Posted by
William D. Dannenmaier on Sunday, March 30, 2008 8:30:11 AM
Stray Thoughts
By
William D. Dannenmaier
The San Diego News (February 12, 2008) reported the story of a retired teacher. He said he had been illiterate, unable to read or write, until he was 48 years old. During those first 48 years, he graduated from high school, earned an athletic scholarship to Texas Western College, where he graduated with a degree in education, and taught successfully for 17 years before learning to read. He was also a successful coach. Made me wonder about some of our teachers in Dickson. If I recall correctly, it was Megaera’s kindergarten teacher who never learned to spell her name.
Democratic politics has been entertaining recently. Friends at the Cardiac Club enjoyed my suggestion that, if Obama wins the Democratic nomination, he select David Duke as his running mate. While Duke’s few years in the KKK do not match Obama’s twenty years in Reverend Wright’s America-hating, White-hating, church, it would provide some balance to the ticket.
There is also a rumor, started by me, that if Obama wins the presidency, he is going to appoint his close friend, Reverend Wright as pastor to the Congress.
To avoid appearing one sided, Hillary has made news lately with her claims, twice I believe, of coming under sniper fire when she landed at the airport in Bosnia. Unfortunately, some cameraman was present filming her arrival. The film showed her walking calmly off the plane with accompanying daughter and other persons. She was being greeted by a large delegation, none of whom were ducking from sniper fire. She claims poor memory, but as an experienced infantryman (six months up front, two on intermittent “visits” and four continuous as a scout with the 15th Infantry Regiment) I can guarantee her she would not forget sniper fire if she encountered it. Reminds one of the picture Kerry had made of himself attacking a fighting enemy in Vietnam, with a cameraman filming him – brave cameraman.
Don’t consider this an enthusiastic endorsement of McCain. Our presidential race reminds me of the first heat of a race among nine and ten year old swimmers. The winner of the heat is typically the best of a poor lot.
Come to think of it, Ralph Nader is still running for president. This might be his best election.
In the meantime, the mayor of Detroit has been indicted on several charges, lying under oath, obstructing justice and corruption in general. He claims innocence, but has yet to blame it on a vast right-wing conspiracy, or White-wing conspiracy. Perhaps it is just a conspiracy of honest people with integrity: apparently a foreign group to him.
I have also guessed that the reason the 9/11 terrorists did not include Congress in its attacks on the trade center, the Pentagon and the White House is because they had too many friends there.
Approximately a year ago, Tennessee police received the power to check criminals’ immigration status. Since that time, numerous illegal invaders who had broken the law have been deported. One television report said 2500, another said 3000. Of those, one report, if I recall correctly, said 500 had criminal records and past convictions. The result? The Nashville Hispanic community is complaining that the police are indulging in ethnic discrimination. I can only suppose they don’t wish criminals who are illegal aliens deported if they are Hispanic, they might not be welcomed home.
This is an unfortunate complaint. The majority of Hispanic immigrants are honest, hard-working people with strong family ties, but we don’t need Hispanic criminals who are illegal aliens.
On the home front, I have received lectures in the past week from my bride, Mary Ann – the benevolent (sometimes) dictator of the Cardiac Club and, most recently from the Blue Cross Life Masters nurse who telephones monthly. They don’t like my attitude about visiting doctors, my activities (Mary Ann was tough on using a chain saw) and my diet (Life Masters). Sometimes I feel as if I have three disapproving mothers watching me, only they know more about me and my activities than my real mother did – thank goodness she didn’t know as much.