Delay Wilma

Hey, I’ve been away for a while so I need to catch up. I had to nurse Sweet Pea back to health and then I got the flu. It was a doozy too; lasted nearly two weeks. But I’m getting back into the swing of things and here is a summary of some things on my mind.

Tom Delay:
One of Bush’s buddies that has worked so diligently to take away our rights through fear tactics, namely the Patriot Act, much like McCarthy did in the 50’s. Now he faces the system he’s helped to destroy and I guess we all know now what he thinks of habeas corpus and presumption of innocence; it seems he wants things to return to the “old” ways.

A habeas corpus petition is a petition filed with a court by a person who objects to his own or another's detention or imprisonment. The petition must show that the court ordering the detention or imprisonment made a legal or factual error.

Presumption: a criminal defendant is presumed to be innocent until the prosecuting attorney proves beyond a reasonable doubt that she is guilty.

Hurricane Wilma:
Planning at the state level; how can they issue mandatory evacuations and not make provisions to supply gas. It never fails that the first thing that happens is a gas shortage so one couldn’t evacuate very far if they wanted to.

Also, when the news reporters are criticizing and chastising people for not evacuating it is never brought to light that one must evacuate days before a storm, wait an undetermined amount of time until the storm passes, and then return to get life back on track. How long can any of us in America just stop normal life and camp out? Time is money. Money spent, money lost. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and think about how you might make out.

Be kind, be courteous and have fun.
Bubbie

Hey Y'all,

I grow'd a beard since ya last seen me!

Goin' Home?

Standing in the doorway of his bedroom closet, Uncle Bubba wonders what to pack for his trip back to his hometown. He called his father, the Colonel, to see what the weather is like and he told him it’s pretty cool at night. He’s heard a couple flocks of geese goin’ over and the air smells like fall. Uncle Bubba walks back to the parlor; maybe he’ll pack a little later, after he’s considered it for a while.

Funny thing about going back to where ya came from, you remember it the way it was even if you know it ain’t the same. Generations have passed on and new folks have moved in to take their place. Old buildings are reused until all the life has been sucked out of them and then their abandoned or torn down and often replaced. But heritage is lost with those hand hewn timbers and lavishly placed brick that always seemed to me to be defying the laws of gravity. It took many men to build a city and the pride in their work lies in the pitch of the asphalt in the roads channeling water to the sculpted curbs. The expansion joints, like tacks of an old rollercoaster, evenly spaced over miles of gray sidewalk; each building facade an artistic competition between masons and carpenters.

Today my old hometown is someone’s new home; each day etching memories in their young minds of whimsical bike rides, school bus stops, and secret hiding places. Their stores are shiny and new but just as grand to them with that slim chance of getting a new toy every time they go. Good or bad it’s theirs and they don’t know old from new, to them it’s all new and that’s a great thing.

Honoré B Da Man

Uncle Bubba has a seat at the counter as the waitress pours him a cup of hot black coffee. He grins and nods to the familiar faces along side him.

Admit it. We all know it. There is one resource that America has that could have provided immediate rescue, relief, and order to the Gulf coast; our military. The Armed Forces have the knowledge, trained manpower, equipment, supplies, and discipline to handle such a crisis. Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré has proven us right. They are swift, they are honorable, and when cut lose to accomplish a mission they always come through.

Someone at the top, over the military, ought to know what we all know, because we all know there will be a next time.

Smile, you're being taken.

Uncle Bubba looks out of driver's side window of his pickup truck at the enormous American flag waving over a car dealership. Its shear size gives the illusion that it's moving in slow motion outside of present time. He reminisces on the noble legacy and heritage that the grand flag represents, beyond the current spectacle of an attention grabbing, flapping billboard.

Can any of us, who have lived through the past 30 or 40 years, through assassinations, Watergate, impeachments, Iran-Contra, Whitewater, Viet Nam, inflation, the oil embargo, the Middle East crises, the 2000 election, 9/11, the war in Iraq, the hunt for Osama...(what's his name again?) not understand that many Americans feel a sense of patriotic devolution? I love my country and support my government, but I will not blindly follow any leader” without a big fat, healthy dose of cautious cynicism. Trust is earned.

Family

Uncle Bubba reflects on his position in life; son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, nephew, cousin, and of course uncle. A complex mix for one simple man. One resounding truth shines through no matter how wonderfully painful it may be; lovers and friends come and go, pets pass away, but the family connection is always there. After surviving a tough bout, it’s astounding how comforting a short phone call can be from a concerned family member. It’s a crazy mixed up madness of love and hate, but it’s all we have.

Softail Deluxe

Bubbie looks longingly at his machine of chrome and leather; he feels the wind in his face and Bob Seger's 'Travelin' Man" playin' in the back of his mind. Life is good.

This is it, my Softail Deluxe. My current pride and joy. Forget all those therapy bills, spend your money on a Hog and that's all the therapy you need.

Be Thankful

Uncle Bubba’s heart breaks as he watches so many people on the news whose lives are devastated by hurricane Katrina. He has just returned from an area of south Florida that had damage from the same storm; where just there loss of power meant no gas, no stores open, no refrigeration, and no air conditioning. As he turns on the light switch he is thankful. He is mindful of the convenience of getting a burger at a drive through. He is thankful for hot water and cool air. No matter where you live in America, you should be too.

Hurricane Katrina

A gloomy sadness lingers in Uncle Bubbie’s heart; broken by Katrina.

Watching the news coverage of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, my mind just can’t seem to get wrapped around the magnitude of this disaster. I heard one person state that this is our tsunami and I thought; where is the rest of the world? Remember when the tsunami hit last year and all the world sent resources and money to aid the desperate people? Well? Has any other country offered to help us in dealing with this catastrophe? I think as time goes on we’ll learn a lot of lessons in human nature.

Cindy Speaks For Me

Uncle Bubbie eases back in his in porch chair to the chirping of song birds and the first rays of the morning sun warming his face. It’s a good day to be alive in America. Breathing deep, clean air fills his lungs a feeling of melancholy filters out the new sun. This wondrous feeling is a feeling that Casey Sheehan will never feel. He lost is life in the hot hell hole of Iraq. Bubbie thinks fondly of his own son.

Casey's mother, Cindy, is now being chastised for her grieving. How heartless these Bushians can be. The stupidity of it all leaves me speechless…

Fried Chicken Rant

Uncle Bubbie's tummy is rumbling...

I was on a hunt for a Popeye’s Chicken joint when I saw them: two police officers riding tandem on motorcycles. I’ve seen this sight many times and it has always irked me and perhaps due to a spell of fried chicken hypoglycemia I thought, “I need to blog!”
Why is it that when you get your motorcycle license that they implore you to ride with other riders in the correct and safe riding position, which is a staggered formation--they even think so highly of it as to put it on the exam—yet two officers always ride side by side, handle bar to handle bar! Oh, I know the standard answer we get every time we question why those in our society that are supposedly in authority show out as bad examples, because they are trained! They are superior to us! We could never do the kind of dangerous maneuvers that they do without proper training. They drive while talking on the cell phone and typing on a computer for God’s sake! Do you know how many laborious hours of hard work and training it must take to accomplish such a feat? I mean, I do the same thing but I’m a dangerously untrained amateur that needs to be corralled before I hurt myself or someone else. There should be laws! We need more laws!! I need to be protected from myself! See that? I just dropped part of my drumstick on my favorite shirt!

Take a Stem Cell to lunch

Uncle Bubba wipes the grease of his juicy hamburger off of his chin with his shirt sleeve; thankful he is in America where a man can eat what he wants, when he wants, how he wants. His giggling jiggling little friend has just stolen a french fry off of his plate.

Well, our holy rulers are in an uproar again because Senator Frist, whom by the way is a doctor, backs stem cell research. Yep, he broke from the pack of Bush disciples with the dangerous practice of open minded education. The religious cowards that hide behind their re-election banners argue that allowing legalized research of stem cell research for the benefit of now living human beings is legalizing the taking of human life. Listening to their argument, I thought it ironic that this comes from the same group of Americans—and please correct me if I am wrong--that overwhelmingly condone sending our younger generation of potential off to kill and be killed in a war in Afghanistan and another war in Iraq.

Bush, Rove, Nixon? Do you believe it?

Uncle Bubba wonders if others are hearing this rhetoric the same way he is? Probably not. He spends an inordinate time with pursed lips shaking his head.

I watched my usual CBS Sunday Morning show and there was an editorial by Ben Stein, the monotone moron that is consumed with his own self importance. He gave advice to President Bush to learn from the mistakes of Richard Nixon, of whom he worked for, in regard to the Karl Rove debacle. Remarkably he admonished Mr. Bush to keep Mr. Rove close and not turn him over to the "Liberals". He claimed that it was Nixon's undoing by giving up his henchmen, not the fact that he broke the law. This logic is from the morally righteous Republican Party.

Is there anyone whom believes that the government doesn't lie to us? Can a politician get elected and climb the hierarchy to presidential status being honest? Help me; explain it to me because I want to believe.

The Un-Patriot Act of Communism

It's a sad day as Uncle Bubba stares angrily at the cracked TV screen with a marginal sense of satisfaction from smashing is coffee cup against the pundit's face.

How could this be happening? Why would the country allow such a communistic and dangerous act be passed into law so quietly, like a thief slipping into our dark and sleepy bedrooms at night?

Because in Bush's America we can do what we want, when we want, how we want, with no regard for our neighbors because the government is protecting us. Yep, that's right, we don't have to concern ourselves with anything but putting gas in our pick-up trucks and one-upping everyone in our way as long as the straight shootin' George W. and his righteous posse are looking out for all them bad people out to ruin our good time. Well why should we look out for our friends and neighbors when the government is doing it for us? Besides, we're too busy to be bothered with such things. I gotta work extra hours to pay for my big house and property, my big truck--did I mention that all ready?--my big boat, my wife's big shopping habit.

Didn't you write to your Congressmen or Senators like I did? Then shame on you! The following is a copy of my letter: "First I would like to thank you for your service to this great country of ours. My concerns are about the Patriot Act. I believe this legislation is nothing more than a knee-jerk reaction to the horrible attack on our country; however I do not believe it is the best for our country. It infringes on our constitutional rights and few freedoms that we have left. I, as a proud citizen of the United States of America, choose freedom over security. I have faith in our armed forces for protection and implore you to remove this communistic act."

I recently heard a W. Disciple say that the sooner we all accept that the Patriot Act is good for us and to stop complaining that it infringes our personal rights, the better off we'll be. I could hardly believe my ears! So we are to choose to dummy down and not think for ourselves for our own good?! Act like sheep and do as we're ordered without question?! This is what our founding fathers had in mind? Well we all know what sheep get when no one is looking... No thanks! If you want to volunteer to live in a Communist country under George W. (Want to be like Stalin) Bush, don't expect me to join in, it's my right not to.

Chicken Sandwich

Uncle Bubba stands with his hands on his hips, chest out, head held high as he admires the sparkling chrome on his beautiful machine.

Yesterday I went for a motorcycle ride and stopped for lunch. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce, tomato and mayo. It was quite possibly the most delicious grilled chicken sandwich I have ever had from a restaurant. It was plump and moist with a flavor that tasted like it had just come off of the backyard charcoal grill. Man, it was a tasty interlude to a perfect day.

Where have all the sex offenders gone?

Uncle Bubba begrudgingly clicks off the news on the TV, turns his back on the black box and flips the remote onto the couch cushions feeling annoyed and inspired.

Recently, some cities have moved towards banning all registered sex offenders form living within their city limits. Though I understand the premise behind their thinking, there is still this annoying sentiment that gnaws at the underbelly of our society; if we segregate those people whom we dislike, then our world will be a better place. You know that the proponents for this movement are politically motivated with no regard for future social implications. Their sheep will graze in the safety and security of knowing that all the wolves have been removed from the meadows. But we all know that’s not true; there are always some hiding in the bushes and moving in undetected every day. Removing problems that we can identify and track does nothing to protect us from the unknown. It is merely a political band-aid to cover the cancerous tumor looming under the surface.

In my opinion, I say shame on those whose job it is to constitute the monitoring of these offenders. Our police force has become a peace mitigation format; more geared for watching traffic than watching criminals. Maybe it’s always been this way, but perhaps two hundred and twenty nine years of practice have refined the art of deception by our political leaders. We are told we need to be protected from all the bad in the world by giving away our rights because we don’t know what is best for us. My fellow citizens have been willing lulled into accepting parental authority from our government--whom by the way is supposed to be working for us, not controlling us—like spoiled children grabbing possessions at the bane of all existence. Do we really want to go down this road? Can we keep sweeping things under the rug and expect them never to return? Can’t we come up with better solutions to our social challenges? What do you think?

Harley

I recently bought a Harley. It's a Softail Deluxe. The dealership gave me a VHS cassette from Harley Davidson about being a new owner. A VHS cassette. Not DVD but cassette. I don't even have a VCR anymore. Wouldn't you think that Harley Davidson would offer you a choice?

Willie Wonka

From the beginning: I had to read the book for a school assignment when I was very young and impressionable. I remember the disturbingly sad emotional feelings that I had as I struggled through each tedious page. I didn't like any of the characters and Charlie's bleak life made me sad.

Then, when I got a little older, I watched the movie; or should I say I tried to watch the movie, but it was as bad as the book. It made me sad and left me traumatized. It wasn't long ago that it was on TV and I thought I'd watch it to see if, as an adult, I had a different impression. Had I just been exposed to it at the wrong time in my life? Could that have skewed my initial response? No. It was as bad now as it had been before!

Now the new version is out and everyone is raving about it. So in lies the dilemma; do I chance seeing it in a new light and appreciate the modern CGI effects and Johnny Depp, who I believe is one of our finer actors, or miss this potentially Oscar winning film and alienate myself from the buzz?

I think I'll... pass.