Thursday, April 30, 2009

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I Swear To God This Is A True Story, It Happened To My Brother In Florida.....


So my brother goes to the supermarket and notices an attractive woman waving at him. She says hello. He's rather taken aback because he can't place where he knows her from. So he says, 'Do you know me?' To which she replies, 'I think you're the father of one of my kids.' Now his mind travels back to the only time he has ever been unfaithful to his wife and says, 'Are you the stripper from the bachelor party that I made love to on the pool table with all my buddies watching while your partner whipped my butt with wet celery???' She looks into his eyes and says calmly, 'No, I'm your daughter's teacher !!

Too Classy For Craigslist Challenge:

Name the year, the car make, the car model and for extra credit, the model's name.






Monday, April 27, 2009

Send That Email NOW!

ATTENTION Springfield Residents Who Live In Council Zone 3!If you live in Springfield City Council Zone 3 -- which corresponds pretty well with Greene County Precincts ,3B, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5B, 6A, 9A, 9B, 34A, 34B, 35A, 42A, 42B and 42C

You need to call or email the people listed below and tell them you want MIKE SCHILLING to represent you as your Zone 3 City Councilman.

THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE QUICKLY!

Mike Schilling, adjunct college instructor, Missouri State University, Drury University and Ozarks Technical Community College, served eight years as state representative for the Missouri 136th District (which includes almost all of Zone 3). Schilling has fourteen years experience in daily newspaper reporting; four years freelance writer and more than two years as assignment editor for NBC television affiliate. Bachelor of Science in agriculture journalism. He teaches journalism, political science and media courses.

Mike Schilling is obviously the most qualified. Schilling will be a true watchdog with the credentials to back up his decision making. He is a bright and tough figure with a high moral compass who will act in the best interest of all of Springfield, not the vested interest few.

Residents of Zone 3 MUST get in touch with our current city council members and tell them either in person, over the phone, or in an email:

"I live in Zone 3 and I want Mike Schilling to represent me on city council."

Here is a link to current city council members and their email addresses.

JIM O'NEAL MAYOR
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

NICK IBARRA, Zone 1
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

CINDY RUSHEFSKY, ZONE 2
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

SCOTT BAILES, ZONE 4
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

BOB STEPHENS, GENERAL A
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

JOHN RUSH, GENERAL B
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

DOUG BURLISON, GENERAL C
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

DAN CHILES, GENERAL D
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

LOUISE WHALL, City Spokesperson
email: Lwhall@springfieldmo.gov

Make That Call or Send That Email NOW! It's that important!

How Swine Flu Started


I told them not to put lipstick on that thing!

It Just Makes Sense To Take Care Of The People Who Make You Money So They Can Keep Making You Money


Here is the link to Standupforworkers.com.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

The 29 Male Poses of Facebook

I salute a superior blogger! This is great! Longrooffan, you tracking wit me?
Jim

Larry Loved Music And Budweiser*

Final Edition
In praise of the newspaper obituary.

By Stefany Anne Golberg

The traditional obituary is an exercise in curtness. It is an art form nasty, brutish, and short, taking the scrambled up, complicated thing that is a human life and smashing it into a tidy, coherent narrative. Take, for example, the 1897 obituary of Margie Zellner in the Allentown, Pennsylvania Morning Call:
Margie, the adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Rupp. She died of typhoid fever. She was ill over a week. Daughter of James F. ZELLNER and Daniella ZELLNER and at the death of her Mother, which occurred when the deceased was a babe, she was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Rupp. Burial at West End Cemetery, Allentown, Pa. On Friday, January 8, 1897. She was 12 years, 11 months and 24 days of age. She lived with the Rupps at 524 Walnut Street. And that’s the story of Margie. She was born, she was adopted, she got typhoid, she lived on Walnut Street, she died, the end. No mention of what kind of games she liked to play, if she wore ribbons in her hair, if anyone was sad that she was gone. Her obituary serves as witness. It was written, and therefore she existed.
In a letter penned to the grieving Elizabeth Hubbart, his brother John’s stepdaughter, Benjamin Franklin wrote, “A man is not completely born until he is dead.” He was trying to make her feel better about the death of her stepfather by saying that, as a soul now freed from his body, he was just getting started. What Elizabeth thought of as a life completed, Franklin portrayed as a mere rehearsal for the “real life” that is immortality. God gives bodies to all of us wandering souls for a little while, to experience pleasure, learn some tricks. Eventually, these bodies become painful or sad or just too gross to maintain, and are shuffled off while we get back to the business of being eternal. For Franklin, then, life is never done.

I can see how this sentiment might be comforting to a believer, but for those of us living on the other side of faith, the question of what constitutes a completed life is still an open one. Aristotle thought of life as a sum of its total actions that couldn’t be judged until those actions came to an end. This might be reassuring to those hovering about the frustrated middle of their lives, harshly judging their progress. Not to worry, says Aristotle — it ain’t over till it’s over. And it isn’t really over until you’ve been judged by other people at a point when you can no longer prepare a defense, be reformed, pay restitution, be rehabilitated. Judgment completes life.

A classic obituary like Margie’s above is a great example of this Aristotelian view. In essence, you’re not really dead unless you’ve been the subject of an obituary. It doesn’t have to be fancy — a eulogy written by your mom, a notice in the paper, a headstone with dates that say “he was born, he lived, and then he died.” These will all do. Without an obituary, it’s almost as if you never existed.

The obituary seems to be experiencing a renaissance. In her 2006 book The Dead Beat, Marilyn Johnson reveals a worldwide ring of rabid obituary enthusiasts—members of the Church of Obituaries, she calls them. They flip past the Sports and Business sections eager to read the day’s death roll. They “surf the dead beat” poring over blogs and newspapers searching for fascinating facts about Antoinette K-Doe, who turned a nightclub into a public shrine to her husband, or the guy who invented sea monkeys. Obituaries aren’t dirty little secrets as much as they used to be, lurking in hidden corners and ready to terrify those who cross their path. They are public, normal, interesting, fun. There’s howtowriteanobituary.com which involves everyday people in the writing process, and patrickswayzeobituary.com, a forum writing the demise of the movie star even as he lives. There’s even a glossy online magazine with the snappy name Obit.

But the real change is with the obituary writers. Once shamed to the backs of periodicals to deliver dour, Margie Zellner-style obituaries, many are now part of this new movement to “out” death by making it more accessible and “natural.” They are reconsidering the obituary not as the final judgment, but as a way death can be presented as a sum total of its stories. Everyone has stories, everyone dies, and in writing about death, death and life become more of a circle. The obituary is not the period on the sentence of existence, but a mere interpretation.

A career obituary writer herself, Marilyn Johnson removes the power of judgment completely from obituaries. “…Obits are,” she says, “at their best, a form of literature…"

Across the U.S., a hybrid obituary, a cross between short stories and obits, celebrates the life of local characters, the extraordinary in the ordinary person. The school lunch lady, who spent her evenings as a ballroom hostess. The man who could hypnotize lobsters and stand them on their heads….

Take this USA Today obit about Herbert Hamrol. Herbert Hamrol, by all definition, was just a guy who worked and lived a regular life. But his obituary, grabbing the tidbit that he was one of the last survivors of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, makes an otherwise simple life into one including drama, daring, and, most importantly, history:

Herbert Hamrol was 3 years old when his mother carried him to safety from their crumbling apartment building at 5:12 a.m. on April 18, 1906. "She carried me in her left arm and used her right hand to grab the stair rail," Hamrol told The Associated Press on the earthquake's 99th anniversary. "That's all I remember."

Even the Obituary section in The New York Times — once the paragon of the obituary-as-final-dirt-on-the-grave — is now one of the most widely read sections of any periodical anywhere due to its embrace of the obituary as story.

For an example of the transformation, take this obituary from September 29, 1891, tucked into the lower half of a column with the day’s death notices. It consists of a few lines about some guy named Herman Melville:

Herman Melville died yesterday at his residence, 104 East Twenty-sixth Street, this city, of heart failure, aged seventy-two. He was the author of Typee, Omoo, Mobie Dick, and other sea-faring tales, written in earlier years. He leaves a wife and two daughters, Mrs. M. B. Thomas and Miss Melville.

I would say that’s a pretty fair assessment of Melville’s life, wouldn’t you? Lived in Chelsea, wrote some seafaring tales (did they really misspell Moby Dick?), was married, had a couple of kids, and died in Chelsea. Hey, it’s more than most of us do, plenty enough for a complete life.

Now read this obituary in The New York Times written this past month by Margalit Fox (another change in the obit industry, the honor and agency of the authors) about “Richard Topus, a Pigeon Trainer in World War II.” This is an obituary Melville could only have dreamed of — a heroic tale of one man’s expert bird-handling and his later success as an executive dairy salesman:

To the thousands of American men and boys who raced homing pigeons, a popular sport in the early 20th century and afterward, the government’s message was clear: Uncle Sam Wants Your Birds. Richard Topus was one of those boys. He had no birds of his own to give, but he had another, unassailable asset: he was from Brooklyn, where pigeon racing had long held the status of a secular religion. His already vast experience with pigeons — long, ardent hours spent tending and racing them after school and on weekends — qualified him, when he was still a teenager, to train American spies and other military personnel in the swift, silent use of the birds in wartime.

It goes on to describe his childhood in Brooklyn, where he fell in love with the pigeons his neighbors kept on the roof, and a brief history of the role of pigeons in defeating the Nazis. It’s inspiring, really.

It’s also quite a departure from the Aristotelian view of obituary-as-completion. Rather, it presents life and death as a continuum. Today’s obituaries are more like the optimistic Ben Franklin notion of life as a neverending story. Like literature, an obituary has the power to completely reimagine a life in examining it, for as long as anyone is interested. Life in this view always has potential, as long as we‘re engaged with the past.

In fact, we have no idea what death really is. But obituaries aren’t interesting because of what they say about death. They’re interesting because of the funny and pathetic way they purport to deal with the unfathomable. Obituaries are little fairytales we tell ourselves, while imagining our own lives as one day complete enough to write about. An obituary, any obituary, transforms lives into stories, with interesting characters, a cohesive plot, and most importantly, a good ending. This is what we’ve got as humans — not the ability to understand or be at one with death, but the ability to generate lots of stupid crap to fill in the empty space of the unknown. Obituaries can do that as much as anything, and maybe we can think of them both in the Franklinian and Aristotelian sense: They might not complete life nor make it eternal, but they can make us feel better about living in the constant and terrifying presence of death.

At the end of his letter penned to the grieving Elizabeth Hubbart, Ben Franklin writes “Our friend and we are invited abroad on a party of pleasure — that is to last forever. His chair was first ready and he is gone before us — we could not all conveniently start together, and why should you and I be grieved at this, since we are soon to follow, and we know where to find him.” I like this way of thinking of death as an everlasting ship or maybe a party boat, taking passengers abroad. Many good stories have been inspired by ships. Maybe if we just keep writing them, we can cheat death a little after all. • 22 April 2009

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stefany Anne Golberg is an artist, writer, musician, and professional dilettante. She's a founding member of the art collective Flux Factory and lives in New York City. She can be reached at stefany@fluxfactory.org.

*Larry Loved Music and Budweiser.

Friday, April 24, 2009

ATTENTION Springfield Zone 3 Residents

ATTENTION Springfield Residents!If you live in Springfield City Council Zone 3 -- which corresponds pretty well with Greene County Precincts ,3B, 4A, 4B, 5A, 5B, 6A, 9A, 9B, 34A, 34B, 35A, 42A, 42B and 42C

You need to call or email the people listed below and tell them you want MIKE SCHILLING to represent you as your Zone 3 City Councilman.

THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE QUICKLY!

Here is a link to current city council members and their email addresses.

JIM O'NEAL MAYOR
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

NICK IBARRA, Zone 1
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

CINDY RUSHEFSKY, ZONE 2
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

SCOTT BAILES, ZONE 4
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

BOB STEPHENS, GENERAL A
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

JOHN RUSH, GENERAL B
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

DOUG BURLISON, GENERAL C
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

DAN CHILES, GENERAL D
City Hall: 417-864-1651
Fax: 417-864-1649
email: CityCouncil@springfieldmo.gov
840 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802

Make That Call or Send That Email NOW! It's that important!

Who Is Janet Adams And Why Is Roy Calling Her A Liberal?

Who is Janet Adams? She must have some powerful mojo that Shane Schoeller had to raise over $169,000 to defend his seat against her.

In a letter sent this week to Schoeller supporters, Roy Blunt said, "Unfortunately Shane had to spend $10,121 more than he raised to retain his seat."

WHAT? Something doesn't make sense here or else we are not seeing the whole picture.

I went the the Missouri Ethics Commission site and pulled up Schoeller's 30 days after election report. Roy is right: Schoeller is $10,000 and sum in debt at the beginning of the period.

But he didn't incur this debt running up campaign debts while defending his seat against that liberal Janet Adams as Roy suggests. The debt originated when Shane made his first run against Jamie Schoolcraft in 2006. Instead of paying off the debt with his campaign contributions, Shane instead carried the debt and used contributions that could have paid off the debt to make donations to other candidates.

So, if you made a donation to Shane Schoeller, to help him retain his seat representing Willard and pay down his campaign debt, your donation went, most likely, in this direction:

Don Ruzika for State Rep 132nd $400
Friends of Rick Stream $400
Friends of Shelly Keeney $400
Sander for State Rep $400
Committee To Re-elect Vickie Schneider $400
Friends of Ed Robb $250
Friends of Cloria Brown $500
Friends of Eric Burlison $1,000
Denny Hosking 2008 $500
Jotte for Missouri House $500
Largent 08 $500
Citizens for Jerry Nolte $500
Citizens for Riddle $500
Friends of Ed Robb $500
Citizens for Van Kleek $500
Committee to Elect Dr. Brown for 149th $300
Friends of Charlie Denison $500
Citizerns for TR Carr $300
Citizens for Guernsey $300
Friends of Louie Seiberlich $300
Anne Zerr for State Rep $300
HRCC $5,000
HRCC $883.46
HRCC $252

In the Fall of 2008, Shane contributed $16,985.40, at least, to other candidates and caucuses (HRCC is the House Republican Campaign Caucus--the Dems have one too).

What sets this fund raising appeal apart from what other Democrats and Republicans have done, is Roy's brazen suggestion that Schoeller went into debt to retain his seat. Schoeller incurred the debt almost three years ago. And, instead of paying off the debt ---with his donors' money-- he made campaign contributions to other campaigns. To imply otherwise is dishonest.

Why is Roy inserting himself in this local race?

Remember these posts from KY3's David Catanese?

January 22, 2009: Schoeller considering run for congress.

January 31, 2009: Site set up to draft schoeller for congress.

February 27, 2009: Schoeller: I will not seak the 7th Congressional Seat.

Goodman, a shirt-tale kin of Roy Blunt, is said to have the support of the Blunt/Ashcroft machine.

Schoeller has greater name recognition in this area than Goodman. Schoeller's pedigree is deep: Matt Blunt appointed Schoeller's wife fee agent for the Nixa License Plate Office. She has received almost $800,000 in fees since her appointment. Schoeller has been a staffer for the Homebuilders Association, Students in Free Enterprise, on the staffs of John Ashcroft, Kit Bond, Roy and Matt Blunt....and don't forget, he's another shining alumnus of Southwest Baptist University..Do you remember who used to be president of that University?...and now, a campaign finance money launderer* trained by the masters.

But getting back to Janet Adams, the 'liberal' who, according to Roy, caused Shane to spent all his money and an additional $10,121.00"

I can see it now-----Roy goes to Shane and gets Shane to drop out and support Goodman for the 'good of the party'. As a token of his appreciation, Roy will help Shane with his fundraising efforts in his district and maybe even help him go for Speaker.

Term limits really presents some opportunities that used to take years to fall into place.

We will see how this plays out as we get closer to 2010.

*One of the ways to get around the campaign limits prior to their removal, was this simple scheme:

Special Interest Group A maxes out their contribution to Candidate A who is in a tough fight. So Special Interest Group A maxes out their contribution to, say, Candidate B who is scored as safe to retain his seat.

Candidate B then takes that contribution and passes it though to Candidate A. Candidate B launders the money, obscuring its origins, so much for transparency in government.

Pretty slick, ain't it! And not only that, it is legal!

But wait!, There's MORE!

Candidate B is having a good campaign. His opponent is weak and not raising much money. Candidate B is having good returns from his fund raising efforts. Lots of people are giving money to candidate B because they believe in him.

Candidate B meanwhile gives cash to candidates who are cash strapped. He takes the money people gave to his campaign and gives that money to the campaign of Candidate A.

Again, all legal.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Pharmacy Error In Medicine Given To Polo Horses In Florida

From Brian Skoloff of the AP: WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – An official at a Florida pharmacy said Thursday the business incorrectly prepared a supplement given to 21 polo horses that died over the weekend while preparing to play in a championship match.

Jennifer Beckett of Franck's Pharmacy in Ocala, Fla., told The Associated Press in a statement that the business conducted an internal investigation that found "the strength of an ingredient in the medication was incorrect." The statement did not say what the ingredient was.

Complete story here.

The United States Will Not Torture

"The United States is committed to the world-wide elimination of torture and we are leading this fight by example." --White House Official Proclamation, June 26, 2003.

"The Bush administration pledged yesterday for the first time that the United States will not torture terrorism suspects or treat them cruelly in an attempt to extract information, a move that comes as the deaths of two Afghan prisoners in U.S. custody are being investigated as homicides." --Washington Post, June 27, 2003.

Read David Catanese's account how a local candidate is defending waterboarding.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF EMPLOYEES

POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF EMPLOYEES

As an individual, each employee retains all the rights and obligations of citizenship provided in the Constitution and laws of the state of Missouri and the Constitution and laws of the United States of America. However, no employee shall:

A. Take any active part in managing a campaign, or campaign for political office or otherwise engage in political activity while on duty or within any period of time during which he/she is expected to perform services for which he receives compensation from the college;

B. Otherwise use the authority of his/her position or utilize college funds, supplies, or vehicles to secure support for or oppose any candidate, party, or issue in a partisan election involving candidates for office or party nominations, or affect the results thereof;

C. Use any promise or personal preferential treatment or threat of loss to encourage or coerce any employee to support or contribute to any political issue, candidate, or party;

D. Take part in the management of the campaign for the election or defeat of candidates for the Board of Trustees.

Manley Felt Insulted: Not Moving Out Of City, "I Just Said That To Make It Easy On Everyone."

Wes Johnson of the SN-L filed this report on his conversation with Ralph Manley:

Former Councilman Ralph Manley explained further this morning why he abruptly resigned his council seat Monday night.Manley said he felt his colleagues didn’t respect the many hours of service he put in during his 10 years on council.

And he said he felt “insulted” that two councilmen with bankruptcies in their past would get more support as candidates for mayor pro tem than he did.

Manley also revealed that he has no plans to move outside the city, despite a resignation letter that indicated that was another reason for his departure.

“I’m not moving out of the city,” Manley said. “I just said that to make it easy on everyone. I’m here by myself in the house I’ve lived in for 25 years. I’m not going to leave.”

Manley said he was planning to resign even before the mayor pro tem vote Monday night. But he quit abruptly at the end of the meeting in part because he only got one vote of support - from Councilman John Rush - to serve as mayor pro tem.

“It just kind of insulted me that those two other people (Councilmen Dan Chiles and Doug Burlison) with bankruptcies would get more support than me,” Manley said. “I’ve been a successful businessman for 50 years, and then to have a bunch of neophytes and beginners support two with bankruptcies, it just insulted me.”

"Thank You For Your Support, Sir"

In this photo from today's SN-L, former councilman Ralph K. Manley tosses his resignation letter on the desk in front of Springfield Mayor Jim O'Neil.

"Thank you for your support, sir," Manley said to Mayor O'Neill. It is not known if Manley was referring to O'Neil's support of Chiles in the Mayor Pro Tem election. Watch the toss, hear the comment and decide for yourself.

David Catanese of KY3 reports Manley's decision to resign was made before Monday's Council meeting.

Ralph Manley said his decision to resign from City Council was made up before Monday night, but that the Mayor Pro Tem vote "advanced" his resignation.

"I think it was an insult to my honesty and integrity. To have a couple of people with bankruptcy running against me, was an insult to my intelligence, and I cannot put up with that part," Manley told KY3 News, in a direct slam at his former council colleagues.

Amos Bridges of the SN-L reports:
Manley, who has served as the Zone 3 representative for the past 10 years, cited lack of support for his bid to become mayor pro tem as one reason for the decision .

"I cannot go on the way it is if I cannot have a majority of the people support those plans ... rather than submit to lowering my standards," Manley said, before marching from the council chamber.

In an interview after the meeting, Manley said he made the decision to resign before Monday. His wife died last March and he plans to move to a smaller home outside city limits.

The third largest city in the state is governed by a volunteer board.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Manley Quits: Cites Lack Of Support


His resignation note:

To Honorable Mayor Jim O’Neal and City Council:

I am reminded of D-Day 1944 in Europe for the decision to invade France for the victory to end WWII (of which I was a part.) General Eisenhower wrote two hand written notes. One was that our troops had successfully invaded France and established a firm beachhead. The other note was the invasion was a failure and he took full responsibility for that failure. That note was never used.

So it is with this note. I have failed to get a majority of support from this current Council so it is with regrets that after 10 years of dedicated service to the Springfield City Council I hereby submit my resignation.

I plan to leave for France in May. My wife of 58 years passed away one year ago. Things have changed. I will be moving outside the Springfield city limits when I return.

I have tried to dedicate all my energy and knowledge and time to this city without any pay or compensation. I am grateful for the opportunity to have served this great city.

My wife of 58 years passed away over a year ago and things in my life have changed.

I will be going to France for a couple of weeks to help celebrate their liberation rom Nazi Germany. When I return I will be moving outside the Springfield city limits and will not be eligible to serve on city council any longer.

Please accept my heartfelt thanks to all who allowed me to serve this city.

God bless you.

Ralph K. Manley
Three votes were taken at tonight's city council meeting in an attempt to fill the position of Mayor Pro Tem. A candidate has to receive five votes in order to be elected Mayor Pro Tem. All three votes had the same result. Chiles received four votes (O’Neal, Chiles, Ibarra, Bailes); Burlison received three votes (Stephens, Burlison, Rushefsky); Manley received two votes (Rush, Manley). Ralph voted for himself on all three ballots.

In April, 2007, Manley lost the Mayor Pro Tem position to Gary Deaver. At that time he abstained and did not vote for himself. After that election, sources told the Bus driver that he was so upset and brokenhearted that he didn't win the pro tem that he wanted to quit right then but other council members talked him out of it.

Prior to tonight's council meeting, Manley told a reporter and a blogger in attendance that he had an announcement to make after the meeting. Manley also gave the SN-L a copy of his resignation letter this afternoon.

Does the Council appoint a replacement or will the seat be filled by a special election? Dan says Jim will appoint a replacement who will hold the seat until the next city election.

With Manley's resignation, SW Springfield does not have a voice on the City Council.

Manley is 84 years old.

Here is Amos Bridges' piece in the SN-L on Manley's resignation:
Springfield City Councilman Ralph K. Manley plans to tender his resignation tonight, citing an upcoming move outside city limits and his failure to win the seat of mayor pro tem as two reasons.

Manley, a World War II veteran and long-time Springfield real estate developer, has served on city council for the past 10 years, elected most recently in April 2007.

He spent four of those years as mayor pro tem and has been a fixture at public events and ground-breakings, where the 84-year-old is known for jumping in the air and clicking his heels.

Manley on Monday gave the News-Leader a copy of a letter he planned to give to newly-elected Mayor Jim O’Neal and fellow councilmembers. In it, he said he was “grateful for the opportunity to have served this great city.”

“My wife of 58 years passed away over a year ago and things in my life have changed,” Manley explained in the letter. “I will be going to France for a couple of weeks to help celebrate their liberation from Nazi Germany. When I return I will be moving outside the Springfield city limits and will not be eligible to serve on city council any longer.”

And just to remind you, the third largest city in the state is governed by volunteers.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

SN-L Says Burris Needs To Be Held Accountable For Email Issue


Ever been blindsided?

Wasn't pleasant, was it?

To blindside in football means to "hit or block (an opposing player) from his blind side," Webster's says. In general use, according to the dictionary, blindside means to "attack (someone) from an unseen or unexpected direction."

There's nothing nice or neutral about the word.

When City Manager Greg Burris used the verb in an e-mail he sent before the primary for City Council it carried weight that should not be cavalierly disregarded.


Today's editorial in the Springfield News-Leader opens with that lede.
It showed that the city manager decided two months before a council primary election and four months before the general election to use a word that portrayed two people running for City Council as members of force prone to attack from an unseen direction.

He can protest with his loudest, most indignant voice to anyone who will listen that all he did was forward along a series of e-mails for educational and discussion purposes. But that is simply not true.

His comments put an "us-versus-them" taint on the discussion. And they did so in a politically charged atmosphere. And Burris passed this critical assessment on to more than just city department heads, the group of officials who report directly to him.

Burris is still a fledgling city manager with no experience in the complicated and high-profile job of running a city. No amount of work he did in his former job at Missouri State University prepared him for the political minefields he will face in city government.

We're paying for his on-the-job training, and his mistakes.
Springfield is the third largest city in Missouri. Our governance system is a volunteer mayor, volunteer city council and paid city manager and paid staff. Who runs "the city"? Who is "the city"?

Perhaps it time to explore changing the charter and exploring an elected paid full-time mayor and elected paid full-time zone aldermen, get rid of city wide seats.

I know this: Springfield went to the city manager form of governance in 1953. I used to own an old truck, a 1953 Chevrolet.What was high tech in 1953 is just an old truck in 2008. I sold it to a guy who kept the motor and interior and junked the rest. Lots of stuff happened in 1953 and lots of things have changed with the times.

New paint and new wheels make things look nice, but it is still a 1953 model. And it will break down.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

"Buddy" The Work Horse

Jack Hackney and his workhorse "Buddy" near Coldwater, Kansas, 1945

Friday, April 17, 2009

Greene County Citizens Patrol

Out serving warrants?

News Release SPRINGFIELD -- The Greene County Sheriff's Department is seeking volunteers for a new program called Citizens on Patrol. The volunteers will do patrols in a specially marked vehicle after going through an application process and a 40-hour academy. The volunteers will not be able to carry a weapon, nor will they have the ability to arrest anyone.

Red Cedar

I like red cedar wood.

About ten years ago I bought some red cedar fence posts from an old Ozarkian farmer who lived by Minden for fifty cents for small and sixty cents for large. I bought all he had, about one hundred of them. I used them for railings, ballisters and handrails down at the lake cabin. Between the balusters, we hung rocks with holes in them.The Private RN and our son and the neighbors (we have the same neighbors at the lake as we do in town) gradually expanded the deck until it wrapped around the cabin. I save telling you how the cabin came to be named the "B's Nest" for a later post.The used to be a sawmill on the backside of Lake Taneycomo. I stopped there one day and bought a whole bunch of finished cedar boards, about 1x6 that were three feet long. I made end tables and nightstands out of this wood. They turned out nice.

About three years ago, I was at the Goodwill store on North Kansas and found a red cedar dresser that had been varnished. Something about cedar when it is varnished, it bubbles up and gets really ugly looking. I stripped the varnish off with a heat gun, sanded the dresser and drawers with 60, 100, 150, 200 grit sandpaper and oiled it. If you like red cedar, the dresser looks wonderful and has a pleasant aura and aroma. If you don't like red cedar, it smells like a cedar closet.

When the Private RN and I took our big trip to Pennsylvania to pickup the Airstream (which we have used twice in three years [frown]), we bought a cedar chest at a roadside flea market for $20.

About two years ago, the Private RN found, on Craigslist, a cedar chiffarobe and a cedar bed frame that a Craigslister had for sale out between Marshfield and Hartville. I drove out at that time and bought it.

These last three pieces have been in the barn since purchased. I wanted to get out my water tile saw, which is stored underneath the steps going up to the loft in the barn so I could finish laying tile on the back porch floor. But in order to get the saw out, I had to clean out the first floor of the barn so I could get the saw out. In order to clean out the first floor of the barn, I had to clean out the garage so I would have a place to move the stuff I had to move out of the barn. In order to clean out the garage I had move a bunch of stuff that was stored in the garage up to the attic so I would have some space to move the stuff out of the first floor of the barn to the garage so I could get the tile saw out. Adn you wonder why it takes me so long to do anything.

I decided while I was doing all this moving to sand down the cedar chifferobe. I burnt off the old varnish with the heat gun and started sanding with the electric sander and the various grits of sandpaper. I started sanding in the barn. What was I thinking?

The next time I do this I will wear a respirator. Last night my throat was sore and my voice was raspy. I felt like I couldn't catch my breath. I thought of all those millions and millions of dust and burnt varnish particles that were in the air in the barn while I was refinishing the piece. These particles were now in my lungs.

I thought that wearing my CPAP mask would put some moisture in my lungs to break up the mess. It didn't. I slept fitfully last night.

This morning I got up early and made a pot of coffee. I hunkered over my steaming hot cup of coffee and inhaled the steam. Gradually I began to feel better and I have been coughing.

I think I will go to Grizzly's or Harbor Freight and buy a respirator today.

As I write this, I was thinking of how many cars, trucks and trailers I have painted over the years. I never wore a respirator. Sometimes I would put vaseline in my nostrils to keep the paint particles out.

I wearing a respirator from now on whenever I sand or paint anything.

Son Jim makes his boys wear ear protection and safety goggles when they run power tools or work with me in the barn. I wear ear protection while running the mower, power washer, weed eater and leaf blower. I buy earmuffs at Bass Pro (the good ones).

I used to buy throwaway ear muffs from Harbor Freight. But like any tool (especially paint brushes, I have a paint brush-my favorite brush-that is about 10 years old), you get what you pay for.

This morning I took some photographs of the finished chiffarobe:

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Here Is A Link To The Torture Memos

Photo: a torture victim murdered while being beaten in a stress position by a masked US agent at Abu Ghraib.)

In October, 2007, we published this post . At that time we were mixing humor, sarcasm and irony in reaction to some news that was coming out that the United States allegedly waterboarded prisoners. It seemed almost too horrible to be true, we're the good guys with the white hats. Only the evil bad guys tortured prisoners.

But, sadly, it was true, our country did torture prisoners. And some of those tortured prisoners died.

The "Good Guys" crossed the line.

Here is a link to the torture memos.

God bless America.

In The Custody Of His Mother In Neosho



(Yes, that is a lit cigarette in the soldier's mouth.)
From the AP story:

Robert John Jeffery, who was arrested in the Philippines in January and deported to the United States, is currently out on bond in the custody of his mother in Neosho, Mo., and awaiting indictment.

Jeffery, who according to an affidavit served as an escort for the fuel trucks, was paid anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000, Dubois told investigators.

One of Jeffery's lawyers, John Zwerling, said Jeffery lives in the Philippines with his wife and that he wasn't hiding out there evading capture.

"We believe the evidence will establish that he was offered what he believed to be a legitimate job with legitimate pay," Zwerling said
This was a scheme to steal diesel fuel and gasoline from the Army in Iraq, $40 million worth of fuel was allegedly stolen from a military base in Iraq. Read the rest of the story here.

Department Of Homeland Security Issues It's Own MIAC Report

The Associated Press is reporting that

In the report, right-wing extremism was defined as hate-motivated groups and movements, such as hatred of certain religions, racial or ethnic groups. "It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration," the report said.
This breaking news can be found here.

Hey, It Worked For Heer's


April 16, 2009

News Release

For Immediate Release

The City of Springfield received one response to its Request for Proposals due by 3 p.m., Wednesday, April 15, for the potential sale and development of a 293-acre tract of land in southwest Springfield.

The land has provided a buffer zone around the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant. The construction of the James River Freeway has changed the buffer area needed around the treatment plant and also has increased the development potential of the property.

The response to the RFP was submitted by Opus Northwest as a letter proposing an alternative to an outright sale of the land. Opus Northwest first entered the Springfield market in 2007 as the owner/developer for the new BKD headquarters building in Center City and has developed additional private business projects in Springfield since that time.

The Opus proposal suggests a mixed-use industrial park under a long-term development agreement as opposed to an outright sale of the land under the current international economic conditions.

City Economic Development Director Mary Lilly Smith is forwarding the letter of interest to the City Manager's Office and the City Council for their review. (A copy of the letter is attached.)

The property is bounded by the James River Freeway on the south; Kauffman Road and West Bypass on the east; Farm Road 156/ Brookline Road on the north; and Farm Road 119/Hutchinson Road on the west.

The City Council authorized issuing the RFP for potential sale of this property in Council Resolution 9623 at its Sept. 15, 2008 meeting.

For more information, contact: Mary Lilly Smith, Economic Development Director, 864-1094; or Louise Whall, Director of Public Information, 864-1010.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

12 Rules Of Writing


I know that we aren't professional writers. Nor or we professional journalists. What we or is a bunch of borderline narcissists who think we got something ot say taht other people will want to read and that will effect them to. Sort of like the guy who drives the Segway or the big SUV we are saying in essence 'look at me'.

Did you spot the grammar and spelling errors in the above sentence? I'm no expect on grammar but I like to think most of the time I get things right and I know how to use the spell check that comes with this blog program.

A while back I posted some basic pointers to follow when constructing arguments, logical rules that can be an aid in constructing and presenting arguments or defending positions.

Just as fallacies can sink your argument, so can grammar errors. Here are 12 simple rules of writing that can and will improve your writing skills. A 'tip of the bus driver's hat' goes out to Junket Studies Tutoring for putting these rules together.

1. To join two independent clauses, use a comma followed by a conjunction, a semicolon alone, or a semicolon followed by a sentence modifier.

2. Use commas to bracket nonrestrictive phrases, which are not essential to the sentence's meaning.

3. Do not use commas to bracket phrases that are essential to a sentence's meaning.

4. When beginning a sentence with an introductory phrase or an introductory (dependent) clause, include a comma.

5. To indicate possession, end a singular noun with an apostrophe followed by an "s". Otherwise, the noun's form seems plural.

6. Use proper punctuation to integrate a quotation into a sentence. If the introductory material is an independent clause, add the quotation after a colon. If the introductory material ends in "thinks," "saying," or some other verb indicating expression, use a comma.

7. Make the subject and verb agree with each other, not with a word that comes between them.

8. Be sure that a pronoun, a participial phrase, or an appositive refers clearly to the proper subject.

9. Use parallel construction to make a strong point and create a smooth flow.

10. Use the active voice unless you specifically need to use the passive.

11. Omit unnecessary words.

12. Spellcheck.

Carnahan Raises Over $1 Million In 60 Days


This just in from Robin Carnahan:

Dear Friends,

I've got great news. We are filing the first fundraising report of my US Senate campaign today and the results...well, they are nothing short of fantastic...

In less than 60 days, we raised over one million dollars!

Actually, we raised $1,048,000 (to be exact) from more than 1,400 contributions.

In these tough economic times, when so many families are reeling from the failed policies of the Bush years, I couldn't be more grateful for this outpouring of early support from so many friends.

Getting our economy back on track is job one. And I know you share my sense of urgency that our elected officials should focus on doing just that.

For me, public service is about solving problems, getting things done and creating opportunities for people to improve their lives. That's what I've done as Missouri's Secretary of State and that's what I want to do as your U.S. Senator.

Election Day is still many months away and we're sure to go through plenty of ups and downs between now and then. But we couldn't be off to a better start. And for that I'm grateful to all of you who've contributed to our success and signed up to be part of our team.

Now it's time to continue expanding our network. So, I'd appreciate it if you think about others who share our interest in bringing real and lasting change to Washington and forward them an invitation to join our effort. Please ask them to take a minute to do so at www.RobinCarnahan.com.

Thanks again for your early support. It means a lot.

Robin

P.S. We've launched a new website and will be updating more information as we build our campaign. Check out our new look at www.RobinCarnahan.com

Dave Catanese of KY3 Political Blog shows us why this is important.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

You Can't Tell The Players Without A Scorecard (Privileged and Confidential)


While driving Bus down the tubes year ago January, we observed staff of city doesn't use articles when speaking.

Bus riders will now know from reading this privileged and confidential memorandum (Do not be concerned, you, as a frequent rider of the Bus, ARE privileged and, confidentially, I know you will keep this under your hat) that Dan, author of this privileged and confidential memorandum, consistently refers to his boss, in the text of this official document, a privileged and confidential memorandum, by his first name.

Everyone mentioned in this privileged and confidential memorandum (please don't ask me how I got it!) has a first name, a last name and a title. Except for Greg. When I read about "Greg of City Charter" in this privileged and confidential memorandum, I wondered if this was someone like Lawrence of Arabia or Brad of Brangelina. Some people, they don't need a last name. People like Cher or Liza or even Louis.

But this curious "staff-speak" is not unique to Dan. Fellow blogger and citizen journalist Jackehammer received the following email from Louise, also of "The City".

"Dan works for Greg. Greg asked him to review the allegations...Dan did that...Dan will comply. I have copied Dan on these e-mails and he can certainly respond further if he would like to add anything else."


Following are some photos of some people who have first names.

This is a picture of Greg:
This is a picture of Dan
This is a picture of another Dan
This is a picture of Louise
This is a picture of another Louise and some guys named Dave and Jim
This is a picture of another Jim
This is a picture of Ryan
This is a picture of Jason
This is a picture of Bill
This is a picture of Jack
This is a picture of Jackhammer
This is a picture of Bus
And here is a link to some better busing tips.

test photo


Soul Wow, Genesis and Susan Boyle




and finally, while they may have been expecting this, they got Susan Boyle.
I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving.

Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used
And wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung
No wine untasted.

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
As they turn your dream to shame.

And still
I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms
We cannot weather...

I had a dream my life would be
So different form this hell I'm living
so different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed
The dream I dreamed.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Q: What colors were CJ2A's originally offered in from the factory?

A: CJ2A's were offered in the following colors (we've also provided the mixing forumulas):

Pasture Green S-W Part No. 32861
Year: 1945-1946
Parts Color Gauge Reading
39 White (31001) 39
37 Lt. Chrome Green (31117) 76
14 1/2 Carbon Black (31253) 90 1/2
9 1/2 Chrome Yellow (31002) 100

Harvest Tan S-W Part No. 32862
Year: 1945-1946
Parts Color Gauge Reading
61 White (31001) 61
16 1/2 Indian Red (31245) 77 1/2
15 P.T. Yellow (31163) 92 1/2
7 1/2 Carbon Black (31253) 100

Harvard Red S-W Part No. 32873-R
Year: 1946
Parts Color Gauge Reading
97 Toluidine Red (31238) 97
2 White (31001) 99
1 Carbon Black (31253) 100

Michigan Yellow S-W Part No. 32874
Year: 1946-1949
Parts Color Gauge Reading
56 White (31001) 56
33 Perm. Lt. Yellow (31256) 89
10 P.T. Yellow (31163) 99
T Carbon Black (31253) 99

Normandy Blue S-W Part No. 32872
Year: 1946-1949
Parts Color Gauge Reading
54 Prussian Blue (31044) 54
18 Carbon Black (31253) 72
15 1/2 P.T. Green (31243) 87 1/2
12 White (31001) 99 1/2

Picket Gray S-W Part No. 32953
Year: 1947-1949
Parts Color Gauge Reading
56 White (31001) 59
28 Carbon Black (31253) 87
7 1/2 P.T. Yellow (31163) 94 1/2
4 1/2 P.T. Green (31243) 99

Luzon Red S-W Part No. 32954-R
Year: 1947-1949
Parts Color Gauge Reading
48 Lt. Maroon (31258) 48
34 Deep Maroon (31225) 82
12 White (31001) 94
5 Carbon Black (31253) 99

Princeton Black S-W Part No. 31233
Year: 1947-1949
No Formula Provided