intellectualism

the reason bicycle racing has not caught on in the states

is obvious from this photo,

taken at sunday's melon city criterium,

and submitted by a loyal reader.

to fully and properly appreciate the arts and sciences of cycling

take LOTS of thought.

and beer.

here, great minds have gathered for the sole purpose of

coming up with a way to get cochran to buy beer,

my way of having him give back to cyclists

from whom he has taken so much,

prior to his upgrade.

for the record, two eighteen packs of bud.

thanks, jim!

. . . . .

i love cycling, and cyclists.

snake alley on the air

imagine that--someone with a microphone!

let's give a listen...

. . . . .

a full report on the weekend will follow

about corporate sponsorship

i don't have any here.

no fancy links, none of that stuff.

well, the weather and the moon phases,

but that's just to assist my rides,

and the rides of you, my loyal readers.

but here's something you ALL can do which actually COSTS the man.

go here:

http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com

scroll down to the little purple box, and click.

you just helped feed abused and neglected animals.

. . . . .

want to feed people, too?

go here:

www.thehungersite.com

thanks.

i did some ministerial work this weekend

. . . . .

bjarne riis took my advice over the weekend.

. . . . .

. . . . .

it took him a little while . . .

i don't know every reason, i'm sure there was a translation issue,

his english isn't THAT good

[although his spanish and italian is rather impressive,

and i love to hear "puerto" with a danish lilt].

but i'm a forgiving person by nature-

-it's my calling, my curse, my cross to bear-

-and i spent the better part of saturday at my usual station in burlington,

on the snake, urging cyclists to come clean,

to confess their prior doping sins.

i was really quite surprised at the vast number of people

from whom i took confessions and granted forgiveness.

not just former AND current racers,

but cycling photographers and cycling journalists,

race officials, corner marshalls,

the local women wearing yellow "security" t-shirts,

the jesus people giving away holy water,

even one of the announcers

and several of the race sponsors.

they ALL admitted that at one time or another

they had taken some performance-enhancing substance.

the shocker of the day was the young couple

who squeezed into my makeshift confessional to tell me

they had been slipping human growth hormones into their child's food

to help him or her win the 5 year-old big wheel race.

five years old, 3' 10", 85 pounds; is that normal these days?

. . . . .

i had no idea how widespread doping in cycling really was.

. . . . .

so great was the response on saturday,

that i have decided to open up the confessional

to you, my loyal readers,

and to your friends and cycling cohorts.

. . . . .

post your personal doping confession

in the comment section,

before me, the mostly reverend,

and the rest of the entire world.

i'll forgive each and every confessor,

and give you a minor penance to perform.

. . . . .

if you don't trust me, trust greg lemond--you'll feel GREAT!

you might not ever ride well again [ask tyler],

but you MIGHT just snag a really good team,

and win snake alley shortly thereafter.

let's pitch in and clean up this sport . . .

the sport YOU helped ruin!

. . . . .

pimp my bike

happy holidays --
go ride your bike!

aren't we a fine dandy!

PARIS (AP) -- Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme

has called for more cyclists to speak out about doping.

Oh, but he says SO much more than that, of course.

Read all about it here.

FLASH!! EVERYONE ADMITS DOPING!!

. . . . .

it's been around for ever!

. . . . .

if only they'd taken this sage advice!!

nobody ever complained about doping

when all the cyclists openly smoked and drank

and stole bottles of wine-

-DURING THE RACES!!

[swing away, brother jeremy!]

. . .

i'll be golfing with the all9yards.com golf team

. . . . .

FLASH!! miracle baby born in D.C.

this baby has NO PARENTS!!

just grandparents.

isn't THAT amazing?

okay, NOW i'm going on vacation.

POST 301

* * * * *

sounds like my cub scout pack number,

or a v.f.w. lodge number.

but "POST 301" means i've already done 300 of these things.

geezus.

so, in keeping with the way i like to do things,

i'm gonna take some time off.

but don't worry,

i'll leave you with some thoughtful words,

chosen just for you, my loyal readers.

me? i'll be okay.

[click on the photo to enlarge--it's cool!]

probably just hang out with some friends.

whatever . . .

it's getting harder and harder to believe this shit

Landis' former manager entering rehab [lame excuse]

Floyd Landis' [changing opinion] former business manager Will Geoghegan [how do you pronounce this?],

relieved of his duties [supplying floyd with jack and coke]following the threatening phone call he made to Greg Lemond [whiny has-been], is entering a rehabilitation program [big surprise] it was announced Monday [always AFTER the barn burns down].

...Geoghegan is in a "distraught state" [fucked up and broke] following the fallout [i can't believe he testified] from his phone call to Lemond [goddamned blabbermouth] last Tuesday evening [i was sooo hungover wednesday morning in court], which Geoghegan later said [what's that shit you take BEFORE your get fucked up?]was the result of alcohol consumption [and too much testosterone].

"While Floyd [were his parents cousins?] and the entire team [dewey, cheatem, and howe] find Will's actions regrettable and abhorrent [we regret that he got caught, and we abhor getting caught], he is still a friend [no place to hide the body] and we wish him the best [hope he dies, or at least cuts out his tongue] in his recovery," wrote Kay, who is executive director [does no work] of the OUCH Sports Medical Center [THIS is encouraging?].
"It is my hope that we can make a seamless transition [i hope to fuck SOMETHING works] and continue [START?] to work together in our mutual best interests [when DO we get paid?].

I know that Floyd [box of rocks] is eager [sitting on electric, shit-filled nasa diaper] to get through the last days [weeks, years?] of his hearing and to turn his focus [where's the jack?] toward his business responsibilities [who's in charge of getting money from the public? does this maynard HAVE any fans left?].

He is very excited [thyroid fucked up from too much testosterone] about our anticipated victory [we've GOTTA get this rube some money, or we're ALL fucked] and is anxious [and SOON!] to support the very few [first honest statement] that have supported him [used to believe in santa, easter bunny, george dubya, and jerry falwell]."

. . . . .

lately i've theorized [rationalized] that floyd [nimrod] might just be a bumpkin [dumbass] who surrounded himself with devious associates [assholes] who were not acting with floyd's [he's a dumbass with money] best interests at heart [sold it on eBay to buy jack daniels], but rather had their OWN agendas [how can i get some of it?].

but how likely is THAT [gdubyabush/karlrove]?

. . . . .

speaking of hard to believe, watch this.

but seriously, who HASN'T felt like this guy

at least ten or twenty times in college.

thoughts before i get to work . . .

well, sure, i worry about some things:

1. the future of the department of justice.

and i'm not alone. read this, and then this.

2. the health of little babies.

i'm not alone here, either. read this, and then this, and then you'll see why i am worried.

donny, eat your quiche!

wholly CRAP, batman! i just went to dq's blog to get an old link, and i see THIS!

now i really AM worried.

use it or lose it, or never have it?

"saving it"

i've heard that phrase a lot lately, in a number of contexts,

and almost universally my response is the same:

the speaker is reluctant to use it,

fearing there might not be enough of it to go around,

and won't have any when he or she "actually needs it."

curiously, those who do not exhibit this paralyzing phobia

but rather use it on a regular basis tend to have more of it,

and more often than not are able to rely upon it when needed.

recently i've heard this phrase and rationalization used

as it relates to bike racing,

or NOT racing.

the speaker is "saving it" for some bigger race,

trusting that whatever that magical essence is

will be better invested and spent

by avoiding a competition the day before "the big one"

and somehow he or she will have super human strength when needed.

. . . . .

for the most part, cycling doesn't work like that, thank god.

this weekend, in fact, the past week,

has seen a good example of this right here in capitol city.

i'm referring specifically to a teammate of mine, scott fairbairn.

40+, cat three, strong as a horse.

last weekend, we had no races, and dave lippold and i conspired

to spend a couple days in the sun and on the roads around des moines.

saturday's ride was a westward trek,

wherein we joined the northern alliance on the road,

and headed out through granger and on towards redfield.

tailwinds carried us out, and we were treated with long,

sweeping vistas and lush, greening river crossings.

on the way back in, headwinds and heat.

throw in several miles of soft gravel for good measure.

it turned out to be over a hundred miles for the day for me.

scott tallied 120.

he was unable to ride with us the next day, but rode nevertheless.

a typical week ensued,

but with the addition of a thursday night marathon,

which i was forced to miss. but as i understand it,

scott spent the better part of 5 or 6 hours handing it to the 1s and 2s.

then in saturday's big creek road race, scott rode the 1/2/3 race.

hot, windy, fast.

he finished 9th; i dropped out after 6 laps.

to paraphrase him, to those folks who think 1/2s races are cake,

you're nuts.

. . . . .

okay, "saving it?"

today's race was the gilbert road race,

a basically flat, wide open, windswept 9-mile rectangle,

with a couple little climbs on the north and south ends.

scott rolled off the front on the first lap,

and stayed away alone for a lap and a half,

allowing his teammates, jim, jason, and me, to sit in,

while eventually the other teams reeled him in.

he and rubixcube were relentless pushing the pace

up each of the hills each lap, and with just over a lap to go,

up the hill on the north side, scott punched it again.

shawn loomis, who'd won saturday's master's race at big creek,

joined him, rooby and i shut it down, and that was it.

scott beat him at the finish.

i'm willing to bet that scott will tell you that

racing and fitness "capital" is best spent while fresh.

it has a short shelf life, yet the more of it you spend,

the more of it you make.

moral of the story?

get off your asses and race.

you, and your teammates, will be glad you did.

. . . . .

Q: how do i become a better racer?

A: race better.

Q: how do i race better?

A: race more.

reminiscences from ragbrai past

i've participated in this little cross-state bicycle ride in iowa

for a number of years.

as a matter of fact, last year, in my typically understated manner,

i rode in my 50th ragbrai.

no big deal, no special bikes, no media spectacle.

i just wanted to be

"another rider from iowa doing ragbrai."

i think i succeeded.

some folks, on the other hand, just can't resist the lure of the camera,

the out-reached hands of autograph-seekers, the call of the sirens,

the aroma of the brats and beers.

greg lemond, pictured above, riding HIS

lemond "tete de la queue" [head of the line] ragbrai bicycle,

is one of those pathetic media hounds who will pop up at county fairs,

literally eating his way into the living rooms of america on the local evening news.

a few years ago, on the second night of ragbrai,

i offered to help a friend of mine, who was running a little

sumo wrestling concession on the ride.

unlike some of the more popular "sumo wrestler" franchises,

where, for a hefty fee, you get a giant fat sumo costume and plastic "wig,"

my friend's game was a very low-budget affair:

five bucks got you a cotton dish towel,

and a match with the "reigning champion."

each hour, the "current reigning champion" received

five minutes of brats and beers.

here's a little-known photo of me, taking on the evening's champion,

three-time tour de france winner greg lemond.

greg was no slouch, he was out to win.

the dude talked some pretty mean smack,

much of which i didn't understand--

--until now.

as with citizen kane and "rosebud," and the shining's "redrum,"

these words have haunted me for nearly a decade:

"let uncle ron show you how to hide the weenie."

it was just creepy.

coming to harrah's august 31, 2007

! ! ! ! !

the allman brother's band

will be performing in council bluffs.

i will be going.

who wants to come with me?

* * * * *

post your reasons in the comments section.

it could be worth your efforts,

as anyone who has ever seen them with me will attest.

benefits of quick thinking

a florida senior citizen drove his new corvette convertible

out of the dealership.

taking off down the road, he floored it to 80 mph,

enjoying the wind blowing through what little hair he had left.

"amazing," he thought as he flew down I-75, pushing the pedal even more.

looking in his rear view mirror, he saw a state trooper behind him,

blue lights flashing and siren blaring.

he floored it to 100 mph, then 110, then 120.

suddenly he thought, "what am i doing? i'm too old for this,"

and pulled over to await the trooper's arrival.

pulling in behind him, the trooper walked up to the corvette,

looked at his watch and said,

"sir, my shift ends in 30 minutes, today is friday.

if you can give me a reason for speeding that i've never heard before,

i'll let you go."

the old gentleman paused.

he said, "years ago, my wife ran off with a florida state trooper.

i thought you were bringing her back."

"have a good day, sir," replied the trooper.

OTOPLASTY

@ # $ % & * +

the "pinning back" of one's ears

. . .

step 1: the patient visits the surgeon

[before]

even the layperson's eyes detect many problems here:

1--suspenders should be wider, and vertically striped;

2--lose the tie, and wear a horizontally striped t-shirt;

3--lose that insipid smile.

[during]

stay inside: otoplasty is a long process, and mid-procedure effects can be hideous.

[after]

the down side is that you are still the same person, with all your prior skeletons and addictions.

for more information, read this, and view these.

coming soon: fruit identification

jerry falwell

the mostly reverend mr. falwell, seen here on his last trip,

destination unknown, but highly suspected

? ? ? ? ?

. . .

during his earlier days, jerry was a darling of the media.

here is just one example,

when he was linked with first amendment advocate larry flint.
[read the ad first, then go to the link, for the full effect]

* * * * *

rest well, brother jerry. i'll see ya later!

more great album art

donny q posted a link to a blog featuring

some "special" examples of fine album art,

a fast-dying victim of technology.

it just so happens that i have amassed a small collection of this genre,

and i'll share some with you now.

millie jackson, the lost 6th jackson:

singing's not her only talent...

millie is very popular with the guys . . .

but not these guys.

they have other issues.

i'm thinking it's a clip-on tie, and his music is melancholy.

this is a rarity.

ringo had just found out how much john and paul actually made.

it was later re-issued.

the incidental century

the weather has been simply beautiful this week,

thus it has been most inviting to get out to ride.

but there's always this to be done, and that to go see, or whatever,

and it's always most enjoyable if you can ride with someone,

so often i wait until a later hour to get my ride in.

but here's how it went this week:

monday: busy morning, played fake patient in the afternoon-solo ride 730 pm/2 h;

tuesday: went out early w/ hookie-playing chad, met lane, rode to group ride/4h15m;

wednesday: w/ dave, who wanted to go easy & short due to tt tomorrow/2h30m;

thursday: play grandpa, & elkhart tt, limited riding, only 12k race/1h10m;

friday: recovery ride w/dave & the one; they BOTH had to be back early/2h.

. . . . .

no really big days, as you can see.

tuesday was a good day of riding, as i rode really pretty hard,

and it turned out i got 80 miles. good one.

but wednesday and thursday were both shorter than i'd prefer.

i'm old fashioned, and wednesday is always LSD day,

and with nyla on thursdays, it's long hours with the burley in ames.

mondays and fridays are kept holy: recovery only.

but that doesn't mean i can't recover for a really long time!

but no races this weekend, and i was hoping for five hours each day.

. . . . .

now, let me explain something here.

back in 1983, when i first started training for racing,

i was living in mason city.

i went out with my friend don berry, who at the time was THE shit when it came to triathlons in iowa and the upper midwest. i'd go riding with him, travel to triathlons with him, and drink beer and grill out with him and his family. it was good fun.

but the currency, the rate of exchange, was the mile.

looking back, i didn't ride a lot on an annual basis, but my season only ran from march to october. the rest of the year, i'd keep riding--my three-speed--back and forth to work, but i'd also bust out the pipes, and i was a smoker the other six months of the year. but when it was my season, i rode. i'd do my training ride with other folks, and would regularly do two and three people's training sessions in succession.

miles. big ones, with big gears. my motobecane had no front derailleur, and the 52-tooth chainring was replaced with a 54. my ten-speed became a 6-speed, with the technological advance of narrowly-spaced freewheels.

i measured my days not in hours but in miles.

i was a mile monster dork.

my birthday, observed at the end of my season [sept 28],

was marked with a day off work and a solo century.

it was a great way to spend quality time by myself, to reflect on life and the year gone by, and a great hedge on the deniability of aging.

checking my old logs, i'd get maybe 4,000 to 5,000 miles during those half-year seasons. they included round-trips to and from ragbrai,

giving me some nice 800-900 mile 10-day blocks.

but after a few years, i moved to ames, got a uscf license, and spent some time with the old uscf regional coach. he put me onto the notion of time, not miles. eventually i replaced my front derailleur, and later, as a spin instructor to the beautiful people of capitol city,

i developed a three-digit cadence.

as with the pound, the mile was replaced by the hour.

you can teach an old dog new tricks...after a fashion.

. . . . .

back to this week:

i went out riding yesterday with a bunch of buddies, being in a week without races, there were many up for a longer session. dave, andy c, and i met with some teammates from the northern alliance who realized the foolhardy nature of 800 am starts [farmer jim, ross, john, and scott]. after going north, we set out through granger, on what used to be a regular thursday night group option [yes, kiddies, we actually had group rides then], and began to lose the northern alliance. jim had crops to get in, and john and ross turned back later for some reason, so it was just scott, andy, dave, me, and the tailwind and the sun.

what a great day to be on a bike.

i want to comment here on my bike, pictured above. scott and i have essentially the same bikes, little litespeeds [i ride a 50cm, and scott does NOT tower over me]. we got them from our shop sponsor, rasmussens, and have been on them for a couple months. i asked him what he thought, and we realized we've been having the same experiences. my last new road bike was a 1999 usps trek. it was great, it was hot, i rode the piss out of it. but after less than 160,000 kilometers, the damned thing was starting to get old. my temporary fix? bust out the even older all-terrain ralph with the even older downtube dura ace. i LOVE that bike,

and will ride it forever when the days turn short and gravelly.

but the litespeed? damn. it goes where i want, and the only way it can corner better is to corner faster. which it allows me to do! four thumbs up from scott and i on these little bikes. [i love my sram, too.]

so we're heading west, talking, soaking up the rays, riding up and down the river valleys, taking in the beauty of iowa's lush fertility and promise. after checking the raging dam in redfield, we head south, and find some gravel! freshly-bladed gravel. several miles of it.

hot damn!

i kid you not, it took me back some 45 years, riding the gravel roads of story and hamilton counties on my 24" schwinn tornado on saturday mornings--how a small-town iowa nine year-old spent his free time.

i felt like a fly in a hog lot, and it don't get better than that!

so what's the point of this?

we got back to town, i looked at my computer,

and i had 160 kilometers, 5h30m.

i remember my mason city centuries, hoping to do them in 5 hours, riding my ass off to get it accomplished,

and being pretty spent as a consequence.

i got home, ate some chilled shrimp, took the dogs to the dog park for an hour, mowed the yard, and then went to prairie meadows last night to work the coffee bus with julie to cater an enormous wedding until 230 am, cleaned up, got home, and finally crashed out at 430 am.

woke up at 730 am, and am preparing to go out for 5 more hours today.

the menu? east peru loop, 105 miles of

hills, head winds [15-30 km/h], & sunshine.

i love this. and my mom would be happy for me.

. . . . .

we're planning a barbecue later this month,

and here's what team robinson is preparing.

it looks terrible, but the aftertaste is devine...

. . .

overheard:

seeker: lord, is it true that to you, a million years is but a second?

the almighty: yes, my child.

seeker: then how much is a million dollars?

the almighty: it is but a penny.

seeker: then may i borrow a penny?

the almighty: sure. just a second.

. . . . .

from the police blotter:

a snail is in the police station, reporting a mugging at the hand of two turtles.

police officer: so what happened next?

snail: i don't know, it happened so fast.

fishin' needs water...lots of water...and beer

despite the biblical rains of late,

which were sufficient to cancel some area bicycles races,

the hy-vee fishin' tournament will be held as scheduled,

may 19, 2007

bicyclists are such sissies.

a little water won't spoil THIS sport enthusiast's day.

bikes

. . . . .

i've been working on my trackstanding

while doing research for my blogs.

. . . . .

my team, all9yards.com, hosts a little time trial in elkhart. we had one last night. it's a little 12 km, flat, out-and-back course, that draws more than 150 competitors every month. most come equipped with specialty bikes, wheels, helmets, and clothing worth thousands and thousands of dollars.

but not me.

* * * * *

those of you who raced in the midwest in the late 80s and early 90s will remember this bike. it's from the heyday of velo-vets [krueger, hileman, bananas and me] from europa in cedar falls. great shop, great service, by the way. it's a trek 2300 pro, my first carbon bike. learned all about frame flex, with my 54, 55, and 56 tooth chainrings. i did dozens of time trials with this bike. but lately, it's been hanging in the basement, attracting only my slowly growing sentiment. so yesterday, i slapped on a 55 chainring [old campy nuevo record bolt pattern]

and installed my equally old mavic bullhorn handlebars [remember my old,ordinary paint job funny bike?] with the 1990 scott clip-ons. i found a happy cog on my old rolf vector wheel, slapped on a front brake, and was ready to roll in a 55x13. it was great: sunny, 80+ and no wind. it was a little slow off the start, but, man oh man, did it roll once i got going. i had a great time on this old bike.

it left me breathless, just like it always does.

i love racing bicycles, man.

. . . . .

by the way, as i get out and about, i have the pleasure of meeting some of the apparently many folks who actually read this stuff on a regular basis. i really appreciate that you do, and that you understand and get the point of why i say the things i do.

problem is, that only encourages me.

the joy of ink

! ! ! ! !

some women have ALL the fun!
http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthread.php?t=117519

from today's newspapers

an update on congress, after the virginia tech shootings . . .

. . . . .

what you get when you do a search for "state of the union"

[not from the news, but a wonderful statement just the same]

. . . . .

where's rudy?

a guide to the republican candidate's stated views on abortion

sad news about an injured kansas racer

i'm got this link from a tip on the nebraska cycling news website,

which sent me to the kansas cycling association,

which provided some cryptic information about a cat i don't think i know,

but whose plight could affect each and every one of us,

any time we sign our name on a release prior to a race.

please read the article,

and do as your conscience advises.

the tour of . . .IOWA???

. . . . .

governor chet culver was a guest on "the exchange,"

a call-in program on kuni, 90.9 fm.

i didn't call, because i respect the one-question limit.

instead, i sent an email--surprise--to his honor, stating the following:

that next week is bike to work week;

that efforts are in motion to proclaim iowa "the trail capital of america;"

that i have had several friends and teammates

killed and injured over the years by motorists;

[i included this link to the video-captured assault]

that only one person has done any time at all, and that not because he'd killed a bicyclist but that because he was an habitual owi offender;

that i am subjected to year-round harassment by motorists as i ride.

i posed the following questions:

1--IS cycling a priority in iowa?

2--is cycling seen as viable as both transportation AND recreation?

3--what will the culver administration do to ensure that existing motor vehicle laws are enforced to protect bicyclists?

4--what will the governor do

to make iowa roads and city streets safe for ALL cyclists?

5--[i sucked up here] "as a former star athlete," will the governor follow the lead of governors in "cally four knee uh," georgia, utah [r.i.p.], missouri, and viriginia, and host and promote a statewide bicycle race, to showcase and promote iowa as truly

a bicycle friendly and welcoming state?

. . . . .

i mentioned that my team, all9yards.com,

promotes over 30 races from march through october annually,

and would be quite willing to get behind such a project.

? ? ? ? ?

whadya bet i don't get a response?

but if i DO, are you ready for

all9yards.com,

in conjunction with

the orphanage

and cyclingupdate.com,

present

the tour of iowa?

* * * * *

[it will not be held during ragbrai, and it will include some gravel]

i smoked it, i inhaled, i got high, but i didn't ENJOY it.

? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ?

seriously.

i was by myself, i don't know where i got it,

and i didn't know any of the other people there.

i don't know if they were smoking, or if they were getting high,

or if they enjoyed it.

ya know why SNL sucks?

who can write THIS stuff?

guns & roses? love them activist judges!!

i know this looks old, but it's been updated, as promised.

. . . . .

scroll down, and learn how & why.

. . . . .

click on the picture for an exciting and educational excursion!

! ! ! ! !

by the way, that's a gun made of real skin.

isn't that neat?

. . . . .

guns, the law, and you [and your well-regulated militia]

? ? ? ? ?

a couple weeks ago--not much has happened here at the orphanage lately,

it's been eerily quiet, actually--

i posted a photo of a little monkey holding a handgun,

under the caption "troublesome" following the insane shootings at virginia tech. a faithful reader quickly posted a comment under the wrong post, and an interesting thread of discussion ensued. to read these comments, read the comment section FOLLOWING the post entitled--ironically--

"why can't i be smart?"

the troublesome quote was attributed to president dubya wherein he asserted "that there is a right for people to bear arms,

but that all laws must be followed."

this, from the same president who vowed to follow to the end of the earth [but not too far into bora bora] those responsible for toppling the twin towers. i found that more than a bit troublesome. many of you don't remember the tragic chapter of american life wherein in too short a span, guns killed not only a president, a presidential candidate, two civil rights leaders, and wounded and paralyzed another presidential candidate

[remember george c. wallace?], but also mortally wounded the optimism and hope that buoyed the post-eisenhower era.

it's been downhill in many respects since then.

. . . . .

many fans of "the right" love to blame "liberal activist judges who legislate from the bench rather than strictly interpret the original intent of the founding fathers" for all the woes of modern-day american society, whether the topic is war, drug use, poverty, racial strife, education, election outcomes [oh, wait, they liked that one], the decline of the family, the "rise" in homosexuality, and more.

basically, everything the right doesn't like, the court is to blame.

specifically, those activist judges who make laws from the court.

now, i don't know everything, but i do know quite a bit.

one of these things is how to interpret at least a little bit what a court means when it says something. i also have a fairly good idea about what a court CAN'T do, and among the many things they can't do is make laws.

but this is digression.

. . . . .

in the comments section to "why can't i be smart" were these thoughts:

1--the bill of rights, that is, the first ten amendments, are CIVIL rights, ie, individual rights.

2--the term militia applies to individuals, not paramilitary groups, or other military groups such as national guards and such.

3--the partiot [sic] act is an "uber dumb ... leap toward communism."

. . . . .

1--the bill of rights is not exclusively devoted to individual rights. many are prohibitions and limitations on congress to various groups [religion, speech, the press, and assemblies of people], and regarding other non-delegated powers are reserved to the states or the people.

2--the term militia is mentioned again in the fifth amendment, wherein it would appear that if the court adopted the thinking of one faithful reader, an individual who deems himself to be a "militia" could declare a state of "public danger" and summarily subject an individual to answer for a capitol offense, unfettered by the usual fifth amendment protections.

3--i have no idea what the hell this reader is trying to say.

. . . . .

but to the point about liberal activist judges being the bane of all that is good, i suggest readers peruse this acticle. as you read this, bear in mind that laurence tribe is a professor at harvard college of law, and was the attorney who argued on behalf of al gore before the supreme court when the court stole the 2000 presidential election from the american public.

. . . . .

speaking of gun rights, by the way,

guess who ELSE enjoys that delicious taste of liberty that only being

a well-armed militia can deliver?

if you guessed me, shoot yourself in the foot!

[that's supposed to be good, in this context.]

more about the sky above you

Tour the Full Moon and May Sky
Ultra-bright Venus will light up the western sky and

Mercury will appear to the lower right of Venus

in the latter half of the month.

the Full Flower Moon, named for May's abundant blooms,

will be visible May 2.

your space dollars at work

i forever will believe that money spent on

space exploration and space travel is money well-spent.

regardless of how wrong you might be,

for sheer jaw-dropping amazing photos

of the wonders of the universe,

nothing can beat a good old deep-space kodak moment.

* * * * *

for seventeen of them [and more, if you click around],

visit here.

* * * * *

if you have the stomach for a discussion

of just how these structures happened to get where they are,

leave your thoughts in the comments section.

guess what i think?

hung like a . . . DUCK?

"this guy's the champion"

"carefully coaxing out his phallus"

"why do these males have this huge phallus?"

"you need a garage to park the car"

"the correlation was incredibly tight"

"it's nasty business"

. . . . .

what the heck is going on here?

what has the good reverend found for us today?

and WHERE did he find it?

. . . . .

no, it's not the onion. it's not the weekly world news.

it's the new york times.

and here's what they have to say today about a rather fowl subject.

i think you'll want to read all about it.

is this the future of men and women?

who let this dog out?

* * * *

wanna run with the big dogs?

saddle up!

* * * *

creationism

with guest pastor, brother ricky gervais
. . .
i had plenty of time yesterday, doing solo laps of the old capitol crit course [thanks again, mark] in the blazing sun of a late april sunday--while the rest of the pro1/2 field was getting taken to the woodshed--to think about my values, and to think about those things most important to me, and to who i am.
i thought, oddly enough, about charles darwin, and about natural selection, in particular.
upon my return home, following a wonderful meal of grilled pork chops and the sopranos, at my daughter's house, and a moonlight bike ride with my granddaughter ["papa, i NEED to ride my bike after entourage." what a smart and well-prioritized child!], i hopped on the internets, and in my cyber pickup truck, i drove my way through that wondrous series of tubes straight to a source that has completely turned my world right-side-up.
i've been wrong all these years, and all it took for me to see the light was 40 or so times up jefferson street hill, baking sunlight, and brother ricky gervais.
watch this epiphinal clip, and see if you don't agree.
hallelujah!
and tip your servers.