Letters to the Editor
MAV in Florida
Published Letters: 284 Editor's Choice: 22
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Airports have been no-speech zones for the last 40 years
[Read the article: Remember when it was fun to fly?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This started in the 60s when a few nutcases and radical-chic kids hijacked planes to Cuba (their ostensible goal was to reach what they imagined to be a socialist utopia, while "sticking it to tha' man." Their real reasons had more to do with the feelings of powerlessness that cause other people to buy a jacked-up pickup truck and an automatic weapon).
After those first few cases, anybody in an airport who cracked a joke about it or dared say anything about the topic was subject to arrest in order to shut them up.
Things, of course, went completely over the top after September 11, 2001. The proof of that was when a gentleman flying into Salt Lake City on Delta Airlines was arrested to coming out of the bathroom within 30 minutes of landing and, according to what we used to politically-incorrectly call "a stewardess," having a funny expression on his face.
No Garrison, you're not the only one grinding his teeth. And the geeks who decided they could protect us by confiscating toothpicks and nail clippers are at work making other forms of travel a royal hassle.
Back in the 70s I could plunk down some cash for an Amtrak ticket, swing aboard and if the train crew was laid-back and looked the other way, even ride at an open Dutch-door in the vestibule between cars. Now the cars are sealed like airliners and the security people are figuring ways to make what used to be a low-key way of travel a major headache.
Next step: Internal passports. And then we'll all be singing "Back in the U.S.S.R.!"
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"And I understand in New York City that you don't really drive a long way most of the time. But -- and then maybe you're chauffeured."
[Read the article: Quote of the day]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Translation: "Shut up, just shut up, you....you....NEW YORKER you!"
Maybe he figures this is a cute line that will resonate with people from Cow Pie, Texas and Fritters, Alabama and Serutan, Florida. He may well be right: "heh heh, thass tellin' `em!"
It kind of reminds me of when he remarked a few years ago that the "advantage" of Alzheimer's disease is that you can hide your own Easter eggs. And that the way to keep the American economy going is that when Alan Greenspan dies, we should have him stuffed.
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"Because at $7/gal people will talk openly of insurrection...." -- electro robot
[Read the article: Quote of the day]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Actually, I was rather amused, because my first thought was that the military would need a LOT of fuel to bring the troops back in a hurry, station them around gasoline-supply points, and keep their tanks, armored cars and Humvees running. :>)
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GOOD GAWD, Awklib!
[Read the article: Neocons and the truth: Bitter enemies to the end]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I just about keeled over when I read that quotation:
"Ledeen argued that war "provides a real test of character" and "creates a pool of leaders for the nation."
That is straight out of the Nazi liteature about "War will make us strong." These guys are farther out there than we can imagine!
A "real test of character" for the Neocon crowd during the Vietnam years included claiming your cyst makes you unfit to serve (Rush Limbaugh), claiming you really want to be a priest (George Will), claiming that teaching business law is vital to the war effort (John Ashcroft) and literally pooping in your pants (Ted Nugent).
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Whaaaaa? "Distribution of crack pipes"?
[Read the article: Condoms: Sort of like crack?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]OK, I haven't had time to delve deeply into this. But, I've heard of distributing hypodermic needles to slow the spread of blood-borne disease, but, is somebody distributing crack pipes? Or are these people just conflating different ideas?
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Kickstarts, you beat me to it!
[Read the article: Republicans worried after Mississippi defeat ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]When I was reading that quote, I had exactly the same thought, and was about to post it! I guess that means I'm not the only one to read that message in the message.
As for the spelling thing, I believe that person was pointiong out, though, that you'd used "Your" (possessive) instead of "You're" (You are). Dang spell-check is ruining us all!
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So, if it was the Sadie Hawkins Day race would it be OK with Ms. Clark-Flory?
[Read the article: Skirt-chasing as sport]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]And I'm surprised the organizers didn't think of that option!
And the people in this run: aren't they what we used to call "consenting adults?" And haven't the feninists for years argued that a woman should be allowed to do with her body what she wants? And shouldn't that apply to running in a SkirtChaser run, even if it is rather silly?
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Thank you, Shane!
[Read the article: "Hardball": Barack Obama is no Neville Chamberlain ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I was about to add, this morning, that the sentaor who said he wished he could have talked with Adoolph Hitler to dissuade him from invading Poland was a Republican senator (Sen Borah of Idaho). In fact, the Republican party of the 1930s had a very laid-back attitude toward Nazi Germany, regarding Hitler as a bulwark against communism and somebody they could do business with (sort of like Ronald Regan's attuitude toward Saddam Hussein).
By the way, Bill Mauldin said that during the war, Nazi propaganda leaflets used to try and discourage American soldiers often quoted from the right-wing editorials of the Chicago Tribune.
Copntinuing with my font of historical trivia, writers on the subject of air power have pointed out that at the time of the Munich agreement, the reborn Luftwaffe already had 1,200 light bombers, while Britain's Royal Air Force had 30-odd Hurricanes and one, count `em, one Spitfire. Their argument was that Munich bought tiome for the RAF to prepare.
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Let us know how it goes, Froggy!
[Read the article: Big Think: Would you replace your front lawn with food?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I've been telling the wife we ought to have a front-yard garden because that would take advantage of the plentiful sun in the front yard, and reduce the amount of grass that we are in thrall to.
I suspect the way to win over, or at least get past the neighbors, would be to put that front-yard garden in a bed that is attarctively trimmed with rock or fencing, or if you wanted to spend the up-front money, a brick-wall planter bed about two feet high. Then it would become an ornament. An expensive one, to be sure, but probably no worse than what people do in the name of sod and shrubbery.
By the way, has anybody here seen the documentary film "Gimme Green"? You can go to its web site for a look at the lawn obsession.