Waiting for the Farrier Blogging
December 5, 2007
Yeah, that’s what I’m doing: waiting for the farrier. And, around here, it’s kind of like waiting for Godot. Tick, tock, tick, tock. But the good farriers are few and far between so you just keep waiting and keep hoping that the fine fella will come and put the winter shoes on my boys. We’ve got work to do, you know. Trees to pull. Sleds to pull. And fun to be had.
So, while I wait for the sound of his truck to pull up, let’s blog. Ready. Set. Go.
My Brother the Rock Star: I just learned from my brother’s blog that he’s written the introduction to Lee Ranaldo’s new book . Yeah, Lee Ranaldo, as in: Lee Ranaldo from Sonic Youth fame (and a wee bit of fortune). Damn, why is it that older brothers have all the fun? But it gets better. The artwork for the book was done by Curt Kirkwood of Meat Puppets fame. As some of you may remember, my alter ego from last year, Snarky Boy, attended the Meat Puppets concert in Burlington and had plenty of good things to say about it. Congrats, bro. And, since you failed to get me the free tix to either the Sonic Youth or Meat Puppets concerts, I look forward to a signed copy of the book (hint, hint).
Cheap Bastards: I loaded up on newspapers yesterday on my way to court. The last thing I wanted to happen was to be stuck conversing with the old bastards I was arrested with. Just kidding, Boots and Will. Included in the stack was the Wall Street Journal, one of my favorite papers (no kidding). If you can hold your nose – or keep your sides from splitting from the laughter – while getting through its “opinion” pages, it’s a pretty good paper as far as pretty good papers go.
But I wasn’t laughing while reading Andy Laperriere’s op/ed entitled “No Bailouts for Borrowers.” In it, Mr. Laperriere is rip snort over the calls for legislation that would aim to help the homeowners who are on the edge of foreclosure due to the slimy practices of certain loaners of late. Funny, isn’t it, that the Wall Street Journal didn’t mind it when the federal government started forking over billions of dollars to help prop up the slimy loaners? They thought that was just fine. In fact, they called it a necessary step to “stabilize the markets.” But when it comes to a rather benign action like holding the foreclosure agents at bay for 90 days, the Wall Street Journal and its knuckle-dragging opinionators scream holy-hell about a waste of taxpayers’ money.
It kind of reminds me of certain war policies. You know, like handing over billions of dollars to rogue military contractors but then asking soldiers who get their legs blown off to return a few thousands dollars of their sign-up bonuses because they didn’t “complete their tour.” Bastards. No, make that: Shameless bastards.
Zapping the Elderly: Speaking of the Wall Street Journal, they also had a very bizarre – and disturbing – article entitled “The Graying of Shock Therapy.” Yep, it’s about the growing use of shock therapy on the elderly to literally zap them out of depression. The article features 93-year-old Ida Galvanoni who had this to say after three-shocks-a-week since October:
I’m smiling more now; I can see it in myself. I don’t get so distraught.
Sorry, but this is more than a bit disturbing, especially when you consider this eerie note of caution on the practice of zapping the elderly from the article:
One concern is the risk of administering shocks to someone who is actually suffering from dementia rather than depression.
Yeah, that would suck. And why don’t you waterboard them for some family secrets while you’re at it?
But, don’t worry, the medical profession is all over this one. A doctor from the University of Toronto, for example, told the Wall Street Journal that “elderly patients should be carefully monitored for confusion after [shock] treatment.” You think?
Hey Mom, as soon as you get back from that bus tour to Nashville, let’s stick your finger in the socket….
Seven Days Nails It: Mike Ives of Seven Days has filed a great story about the protests at the military recruiting centers last Friday. I guess we were lucky that the increasingly cantankerous, meandering and navel-gazing Peter Freyne wasn’t available to attend. Whew. Ives beautifully captures the mood of the event and puts a well-deserved spotlight on 15-year-old organizer-extraordinaire, Jaz Whitney. It’s just too bad that the feature photo had to include those old bastards. Guess which one is Boots? Hint: Look at the feet. Another hint: He’s A LOT older than I am. Congats, Jaz. And thanks, Mike.
Oops, out of time.
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QUOTE FROM BLOG:
“You know, like handing over billions of dollars to rogue military contractors but then asking soldiers who get their legs blown off to return a few thousands dollars of their sign-up bonuses because they didn’t “complete their tour.””
END QUOTE
Someone who gets arrested protesting a war should know his facts and not spread lies. This was an isolated incident that was quickly corrected. The official policy is to NOT collect any sign up bonuses. See below:
“Department policy on recoupment also establishes that, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the secretaries of the military departments “shall remit or cancel any and all theater debt incurred by military members who were medically evacuated from a combat zone due to injury or illness, except in the event of clear misconduct.”
Spreading lies makes you no better than those against whom you protest. Shame on you, Michael.
Um, truthseeker.. yes this one instance was corrected due to the bad PR it generated, but it hasn’t been corrected for the many others. Either way, it is immoral.
Mike, what the hell is a ‘farrier’? A horsehoe specialist? You can sit in a fucking recruiter’s office for several hours but you can’t shoe your own horses? Pussy.
I know that facts are often times an annoyance to the liberals, but there is an AP article just released that says that this was never a problem. There were only a handful of cases that were clerical mistakes, and these were quickly corrected.
So the military did the right thing. They fixed any mistakes. They did this
From the article:
“The Pentagon says it has received just two complaints on the issue since a “wounded warrior” hotline was set up this summer.”
And…:
“Pentagon policy and practice for at least 20 years has been to fully pay enlistment bonuses to soldiers forced to leave the military early for reasons beyond their control, such as a combat injury”
If the author of this blog is wrong about these facts, how many other facts is he mistaken about?
Hey Truthseeker. I’ve got two words for you: Walter Reed. As in, hospital. You know, the place that was rotting from a lack of funds and inattention from the Bush administration AND Congress. If the troops that the Bush regime likes to use as war and propaganda fodder got the same kind of treatment that the CEOs of military-related corporations get, they wouldn’t be having the severe mental and physical problems that they’re experiencing. Did you know, for example, that returning Iraq vets have suicide rates that are double that of their non-serving peers? And I’ve spoken with returning Vets and they simply laughed when I asked them about the treatment/care they receive upon returning.
As for you, JD, yes, a farrier works with horse hoofs — trimming and shoeing. And, yes, I guess I’m a “pussy” for not doing it myself. But it takes years of training and experience to do it correctly. And doing it incorrectly means making your horse lame.
Not only ‘always right’ but A PETA member besides. Bet you’re horses are better cared for than the Vets. (that doesn’t sound right?–’Never Mind’)
[...] Waiting for the Farrier BloggingBy M. ColbyAnd why don’t you waterboard them for some family secrets while you’re at it? But, don’t worry, the medical profession is all over this one. A doctor from the University of Toronto, for example, told the Wall Street Journal that …Broadsides – http://broadsides.org [...]
“Hey Truthseeker. I’ve got two words for you: Walter Reed.”
Okay… now you are engaging in the logical fallacy of “moving goalposts.”
You did not mention Water Reed in your blog post. You mentioned misrepresented an isolated incident.
If you had sufficient ammunition to levy valid criticisms, then why did you resort to a misrepresentation and/or an lie?
It makes all of your writing suspect. Funny how you criticize people like Freyne when you can’t get your own facts right. Hypocritical, don’t you think?
“Did you know, for example, that returning Iraq vets have suicide rates that are double that of their non-serving peers? ”
Oh, Michael. Here we go again. Misrepresenting “facts” to make your argument. If your argument is correct, why are you constantly supporting it with straws?
Let’s see what happens when you adopt a CBS report without checking the facts:
In the US, male veterans outnumber female veterans 13:1. Since four times as many males as women commit suicide in the general population, you’d expect the rate among veterans to be close to the rate among males – 17.6/100,000 per year – and indeed it is, if the CBS raw numbers are correct.
CBS also makes an issue of the fact that suicide rates among younger veterans exceed that of the general population by an even bigger margin – but again, that’s what you’d expect, because in that age group, the male-to-female imbalance in suicide rates is greatest, almost six to one.
Woops! Yet again the facts don’t support your argument. When you’re wrong, it’s tough having a fact-checker, isn’t it?
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