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...and celebrate our 234th year of independence. Be grateful that we live in a nation where a political campaign can run for years, thereby giving the voters a chance to really compare the candidates to each other and learn what they really stand for, believe, and intend to do once elected. None of this short months, weeks, or even days of campaigning you find in other countries.
Be appreciative of the fact that we don't have those ridiculous national health care programs that some socialistic governments shove down the throats of their citizens. Our superior system allows us all to choose from a wide variety of plans - one for every need. We don't do one-size-fits-all here. If some fall through the cracks, well, let them get some bootstraps.
We can be glad that we don't have more government regulation than we do. That just stiffles innovation and competition. And who better to know how to judge the safety of products than the very companies who produce them? You can't expect any government to have experts in all areas. The drug companies should yea/nay on drugs. The fossile fuel conglomerates should yea/nay on mine safety and gas drilling, etc. They know best.
Thankfully we have a wonderful lobbying system in place to help our elected representatives make informed decisions on a wide variety of topics that they simply wouldn't have the time to learn about without the selfless lobbyists who put in many hours to help them.
So exercise your First Amendment rights today. Stand up. Speak out. Call a senator. Email a congressperson. Let them know what you think/need/want. They are just waiting to hear from you.
And now, back to reality.
Go forth and spend time with friends and family today. Eat some good food. Go watch some "rockets red glare". Maybe play some games. And if you happen to have any patriotic clothing or accessories, know that today is the one day of the year when you can wear them without becoming a laughing stock.
Happy Birthday to us all. [Image Can Not Be Found]
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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Thank god you put a "And now, back to reality" in there... Otherwise I would never have known if that post was serious!
This is the day when you celebrate blowing up the aliens via an elaborate plan to infect their mothership's microsoft compatible software, right?
Kidding aside - congratulations on a long, illustrious history since your Independance.
A man goes to knowledge as he goes to war, wide awake, with fear, with respect, and with absolute assurance. – The Teachings of Don Juan
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Jarrod said:
Thank god you put a "And now, back to reality" in there... Otherwise I would never have known if that post was serious!
This is the day when you celebrate blowing up the aliens via an elaborate plan to infect their mothership's microsoft compatible software, right?
Kidding aside - congratulations on a long, illustrious history since your Independance.
I was actually using much cleaner language than when I express the same thoughts to friends and family. I'm cynical. I get really bitchy. I cuss. But I'm an optimist too. We have the tools to do better. I think that the US is too young (much like a human teenager) to make good decisions in most areas. We are still selfish and self-centered, and think that we can do what we want in the present moment without suffering any consequences in the future. We will grow up, as many other countries have, but I regret that I won't live to see it. It might take another 500 years - if we don't blow ourselves up in the meantime.
Many of the aliens are in Washington, and most of them use Windows, so.... [Image Can Not Be Found]
Oh, and Jarrod, Aussie that you are, give the trivia question another go, and keep it simple.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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This year we thought for sure we'd be able to see the fireworks from my house as yesterday, last night and today were crystal clear. Then about 3-ish, I could see the fog creeping through the Gate. By 6-ish, all of downtown was completely shrouded in fog. I could hear them, just couldn't see them. Thus another 4th in "sunny" San Francisco is spent. [Image Can Not Be Found]
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Toger said:
This year we thought for sure we'd be able to see the fireworks from my house as yesterday, last night and today were crystal clear. Then about 3-ish, I could see the fog creeping through the Gate. By 6-ish, all of downtown was completely shrouded in fog. I could hear them, just couldn't see them. Thus another 4th in "sunny" San Francisco is spent. [Image Can Not Be Found]
I don't know what's worse, fog or no money for the fireworks in the first place. In past years we've had 2 large displays in Memphis. One downtown that I can walk to, and one way the hell out in East Jesus in a large pubic park. This year both the city and the planners of the east display said they were too broke to afford a show, and no sponsors came forth with $$ for either. I've heard the neighborhood bozos trying to blow their fingers off, but that was it for us.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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It sounded like Fallujah in Ann Arbor. Despite being a hippie enclave, I guess all the students get their inner redneck on when the Fourth rolls around.
Spike, I like your teenager idea. It explains a lot of the country's attitude and behavior. Like you, I tend to get angry and curse when describing the situation these days. I was at a family barbecue yesterday. My mother was feeling maudlin and held forth at length about how bad this year has been, and how we'd all been so excited and happy when Obama was elected because finally everything could get better again, but he's been blocked at every turn and met with every disaster and so despite all his heroic efforts in some ways it feels just as bad as it was. You have to be optimistic or you'll become very gloomy, but personally I don't think we have 500 years to clean up our act.
I have to check the local news to see how many fingers were blown off in my area... we have a fair number of drunken university students at any given time, so I'm thinking quite a few.
Life is the misery we endure between disappointments.
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There were some great fireworks in my block. 3 year olds running around clutching sparklers and rockets flying up in every direction. Drunken skateboarders throwing firecrackers at each other as they rolled by. Endless explosions. Two decent displayr visible from front and back door. It really cranked up this year after a couple of flat years. They really get into blowing shit up in this area I guess. I road my bike around a little to check out the aftermath. I didn't hear any screams of pain so I guess all fingers are in place.
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Oh yeah, my neighborhood lived up to SF's nickname of Baghdad by the Bay. I didn't see any kids with sparklers, but there were quite a few M-80s and cherry bombs (are those the same thing? I know not the ways of illegal fireworks) going off... well into the wee hours of the morning, I might add. [Image Can Not Be Found] I didn't see any "breaking news" about lost fingers in my twitter timeline last night so I'm assuming everyone still has the normal complement of appendages.
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Spike said:
East Jesus
East Jesus?
That is a place?
If being wrong's a crime I'm serving forever
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xtal said:
Spike said:
East Jesus
East Jesus?
That is a place?
I can't tell you where we first heard the term xtal, but my ex husband and I are both city people. It's been more than 35 years since we've lived more than 2 miles from the center of downtown, no matter what city we were in. And because downtowns are not the business and shopping meccas they once were, we have always complained about having to go way the hell out to get to the stores we need to get to. Memphis sits on the eastern bank of the Mississippi, so there is no west side of the city. We live a stone's throw from the river, literally. So all the stuff we need to get to is east of us. We heard the term "East Jesus" somewhere and we decided that meant any place that was more than 10 miles east of us. I've also heard the phrase "Out past where Jesus lost his sandals." No idea what that means, but I guess it means more than 20 miles east of me. [Image Can Not Be Found]
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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Toger said:
Oh yeah, my neighborhood lived up to SF's nickname of Baghdad by the Bay. I didn't see any kids with sparklers, but there were quite a few M-80s and cherry bombs (are those the same thing? I know not the ways of illegal fireworks) going off... well into the wee hours of the morning, I might add. [Image Can Not Be Found] I didn't see any "breaking news" about lost fingers in my twitter timeline last night so I'm assuming everyone still has the normal complement of appendages.
Sparklers are those little harmless Tinker Bell sparklinlg wands that pretty much left the mise en scene about the same time as razors in apples entered the universal yuppie parent subconsious. We used to have sword fights with them when I was a kid but I haven't seen them for a while which is why I took note. [Image Can Not Be Found]
M-80s and cherry bombs are little bits of dynamite and will relieve you of a finger joint if you decide to hold one in your hand to see what it feels like.
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Spike said:
that meant any place that was more than 10 miles east of us
We'd say "(way) out woop woop", but that is uni-directional, and could very well be more than 10 miles.
A man goes to knowledge as he goes to war, wide awake, with fear, with respect, and with absolute assurance. – The Teachings of Don Juan
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You don't wanna know what we (I) say for the middle of nowhere, outside the city. [Image Can Not Be Found]
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Toger said:
You don't wanna know what we (I) say for the middle of nowhere, outside the city. [Image Can Not Be Found]
Don't be silly, Togger. Of course I do. Maybe it's something I can use. Especially if it is derogatory, and most especially if it is about suburbs.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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I like the term, Spike.
"Goin' to East Jesus to grab some coat hangers, be back in a while."
If being wrong's a crime I'm serving forever
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xtal said:
"Goin' to East Jesus to grab some coat hangers, be back in a while."
Damn. You sure you're not one of my kids? I have done just that - gone out east to the dollar store for coat hangers. Why pay full price when I get 3 thick, heavy-duty ones for a buck.
"…you just keep on trying 'til you run out of cake."
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I was in Utah for the fourth. Since the holiday was on a Sunday, they did all of their fireworks on Saturday. I didn't get to see any [Image Can Not Be Found] Effin' religious nuts.
East Jesus is a lot nicer phraseology than Bumfuck, Egypt.
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In my family it's simply Bumfuck. Without the Egypt. Maybe 'cause we lived in Bumfuck, K.S.A. and there was no need to clarify further. Every direction for thousands of kilometers was Bumfuck.
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