Chamblee54

Something is going on in Iran.
There was an election, and the incumbents had the bad taste to announce the results before the polls had closed. To hear them tell it, the presiding President and fashion icon Mahmoud Ahmedinejad won a landslide. The supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi do not agree, and have been expressing themselves in the streets. It is getting nasty.
It is very, very tough to tell what is going on there. Andrew Sullivan has been giving this story a lot of space, and it is tough to add it all up. How it is going to play out is anyone’s guess. Chamblee54 is going to throw a few things out, and see if that helps.
1- The genuine power in Iran is a cleric named Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Exactly how much power the President has is a tough call.
2- This is not how elections are supposed to work. In a functional system, the Government has fair elections, and the people go along with the results. It is tough to see a future election working, especially if the dissidents get this one thrown out by their protests. Even if they are right this time, in the future it might be disgruntled opposition that huffs and puffs and gets the results thrown out.
3- Even considering that these people may have less than noble motives, it is still remarkable to see them standing up to their government this way. The Iranian people have had a wild ride. They threw out the Shah, aka the Persian Saddam. They held Americans hostage at the embassy. They were invaded by Iraq, who was supported by the United States. A gruesome eight year war followed, with the United States and Israel cynically selling weapons to Iran.
In the past few years, next door enemy Iraq was conquered. An unfortunate man was elected President of Iran. When he ran for reelection, the people decided it was time for another revolution.
4-Thomas Jefferson wrote in a letter in 1787: “God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion…And what country can preserve its liberties, if it’s rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms… The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure.”
Mr. Jefferson was President in 1807, or twenty years after he wrote that letter. It is assumed he did not want a revolution while he was President.
5- Back to the Revolution du Jour. Mir Hossein Mousavi may be less prone to saying outlandish things than Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This does not mean he is a totally cool person.
“Moussavi served as Iran’s prime minister from 1981 to 1989, during the Iranian Revolution’s formative phase. His closest ally in those days was Khamenei. Moussavi defended the seizure and 444-day imprisonment of the American hostages; he edited a party newspaper that opposed their ’81 release. He helped sponsor Hezbollah. He was instrumental in launching Iran’s chemical weapons program. And his “reformist” coalition is closely allied with conservative economic barons (such as former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, scion of a family fortune); these people have domestic financial grievances with Ahmadinejad – as opposed to having any love for America or western democracy.
6- BHO is in a tricky situation. If he ignores the rebels, he is wrong. If he supports the rebels, then the rebels get labeled as puppets. This will be a test to see if BHO has shmartz to go along with stage presence. The Repubs have wasted little time in denouncing him, and undermining support. This is to be expected by the opposition.
7- There probably is a connection between the Iranian revolution and the events next door in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.
8-With neighbors like Iraq, Israel, and the Stan countries, is it any wonder that some in Iran want the bomb?
9- The people fighting in the streets against their government would die by the thousands if Israel was to nuke Iran.

PG has been on a rules of life bender lately. Today, the facilitator is Avitable. He left ten rules for life. He had 94 comments, many of whom offered their own RFL. PG has read them, so you don’t have to. The best of the best is below. They are in the order in which they appeared.
01 Everyone will disappoint you at least once in your life. Forgive them. It’s when it becomes a habit that you need to cut them out of your life. (Avitable) 02 Words only have as much power as you give them. If you ignore them, they will lose all effectiveness. (Avitable) 03 No matter how bad things are for you, there’s always someone else out there who is worse. Look for the positive aspects first. (Avitable) 04 TV does not rot your brain. If someone says it does, they aren’t watching enough. (Shamelessly Sassy) 05 If someone/life gives you lemons, cut them in half and squirt them in their eyes. Lemons make awesome weapons. (Shamelessly Sassy) 06 While you should respect your elders, you should not respect elderly assholes. (Shamelessly Sassy) 07 There is no room in my life for toxic friends or people without a sense of humor. (Shamelessly Sassy) 08 Be nice to stupid people. They really just have no idea. (Shamelessly Sassy) 09 Being yourself is easier than keeping up with the masks. (harmzie) 10 Even if you’re not stupid or ignorant, you’re going to fuck up something. It’s best to have someone there who will tolerate it. (harmzie) 11 People are more inclined to like you if you make them laugh a little. (harmzie) 12 Respect and likability are not mutually exclusive. (harmzie) 13 Fear and respect are not the same thing. (harmzie) 14 Don’t take yourself too seriously. (Jay) 15 You’re responsible for raising your own kids. (Jay) 16 If you don’t like something don’t watch/read/listen to it. (Jay) 17 If you screw up, it doesn’t make you weak to admit to it and apologize to anyone you might have hurt. (Jay) 18 Buy low and sell high. (Jay)

A couple of weeks ago PG wrote three posts about murder. Some whiners were making noise about media coverage of two high profile killings. PG decided to use a local killing for comparison. The third homicide did not take long to find.
The national corporate newsmongers have moved on to other sensations. Almost nothing has been changed…women get abortions, the army kills moslems, and religious people make noise. It is almost as if the two men died for nothing. Of course, why would anyone say that a death is “for something”? Unless he was trying to motivate young people to go kill for his cause.
The third murder has some developments. The deceased, a lady named Shani Fecht, was the mother of accused killer Zeke Cordell. The accused has some interesting things to say. The story, from the fishwrapper, is a doozy. Here are a few highlights:
“A Sandy Springs teenager accused of gunning down his mother on June 2 told police he was a “psychotic killer” and said killing his mother was “an adrenaline rush.”…Cordell told police…his mother greeting him “Hey, how’s it going.” He told Fecht to hang on while he went back to his Jeep to grab the apartment gate access card…Cordell came back with a 9 mm carbine rifle in his hands. He told police that he smirked at his mother, told her “that was a lie,” and opened fire on her as she sat in her vehicle… Police also found a receipt showing he had purchased the rifle five days prior to the shooting…Other explanations were that she wasn’t a good role model, that she may have done some nude modeling back when he was young, and that she may have smoked some marijuana recently,”
Yes, a troubled teenager was able to legally buy a weapon. In many civilized countries, this might have been a bit more difficult. True, it is people who kill people. It is much easier when you use a rifle.
PG does not know how much national media attention is being given to this case. PG also wonders whether it would be the liberals or conservatives who should be complaining.

You’re An EXTREME Redneck When….. 1. You let your 14-year-old daughter smoke at the dinner table in front of her kids. 2. The Blue Book value of your truck goes up and down depending on how much gas is in it. 3. You’ve been married three times and still have the same in-laws. 4. You think a woman who is out of your league bowls on a different night. 5. You wonder how service stations keep their rest-rooms so clean. 6. Someone in your family died right after saying, ‘Hey, guys, watch this.’ 7. You think Dom Perignon is a Mafia leader. 8. Your wife’s hairdo was once ruined by a ceiling fan. 9. Your junior prom offered day care. 10. You think the last words of the Star-Spangled Banner are ‘Gentlemen, start your engines. 11. You lit a match in the bathroom and your house exploded right off its wheels. 12. The Halloween pumpkin on your porch has more teeth than your spouse. 13. You have to go outside to get something from the fridge. 14. One of your kids was born on a pool table. 15. You need one more hole punched in your card to get a freebie at the House of Tattoos. 16. You can’t get married to your sweetheart because there’s a law against it. 17. You think loading the dishwasher means getting your wife drunk. An East Texas couple, both real-life rednecks, had 9 children. They went to the doctor to see about getting the husband “fixed”. The doctor asked them why, after nine children would they choose to do this. The husband replied that they had read in a recent article that one out of every ten children being born in North America was Mexican, and they didn’t want a Mexican baby because neither of them could speak Spanish.

Yesterday, Chamblee 54 printed a guide to life. It was written by a lady in Cleveland, OH. PG got to thinking about the list. If you saw a mushroom cloud over Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, that is what it was. He decided to write his own list, inspired by the original, but different enough to avoid copyright issues. As with all speculation, the following list is best read with an open mind and a negative attitude.
01- Fair is when a baseball is hit between first and third base. Sometimes it is a controversial call. 02- When in Georgia, just take a drink. 03-Life is too hateful to waste time on religion.04- Family and friends might help, your job might help, insurance might pay the bills, and the government might bail out the insurance company. 05- Interest on credit card debt is a bad investment. 06- Only argue when it is worthwhile. Don’t argue just to have fun. Better yet, don’t argue. 07-Cry because you are happy. 08- Getting angry with G-d is like getting angry with standard time. 09- You don’t have to spend all your money at once. Save a bit now and then, and think of a reason later. 10-The sugar and chemicals in commercial chocolate covers up much of the taste. The real thing cannot hurt you. 11- Make pizza with your pasta so it wont screw up your salad. 12- It’s OK to let your children see you watch TV. 13- There once was a band called Journey. They played corporate rock and made lots of money. That is not a life to compare yours to. 14-There was a TV game show, “I’ve Got A Secret”. It did not relate to anything. 15- If you turn your back on G-d, she will still be looking you in the eyes. 16- Take a deep mind, it calms the breath. If that fails, use mouthwash. 17- Politicians, like diapers, should be changed frequently. 18- Some sayings should be outlawed. They have been used too much, and no longer mean anything. 19- The trouble is, some people are on the third and fourth childhood. 20-Show compassion for your neighbor. Sometimes what you want is more pain to him that pleasure to you. 21-Burn the fancy lingerie and wear the candles. One size fits all. 22- A river goes with the flow without preparation. The water is still polluted. 23- If you have to ask permission, you probably don’t need to. 24- Elbows, armpits, and neck scruff disagree with claims made about the brain. 25- If you charge your happiness, pay the bill at the end of the month. 26- Your reaction to the disaster cannot wait five years. Act now, using the best judgment you have. 27- Cheerios taste better than Life cereal, and People magazine has better pictures than Life. 28- Jesus Worshipers are like teenage boys…the more they talk about forgiveness the less they practice it. 29-If you don’t want someone to hear what you say, keep your voice down. 30- Time wounds all heels. This is especially true in North Carolina. 31- There was a man from Mississippi who went to New Orleans. He took a ten dollar bill and a white shirt. He did not change either one. 32-Mr. Roebuck did not take his partner Sears-iously. 33-The middle three letters of the word Believe is LIE. 34- G-d is a neutral. She loves and hates in equal measure. 35- Show up, Stay awake, and don’t kill anybody. 36-If youth is wasted on the young, is maturity wasted on the mature?37-When you make a list like this, don’t worry about contradicting yourself. 38- The hokey pokey really is what it’s all about. 39- Never wrestle with an pig. You will get dirty, and the pig will enjoy it. 40- Be careful when you ask for something, you might get it. 41- A man thought he was green with envy once. It was really gangrene. 42- The pest is yet to come, but she will go away later. 43- Put your pants on one leg at a time, and put on a dress the same way. 44- Smile, and people will wonder what you are up to. 45- Use spell check, and try to use correct grammar. You will sound smarter than you are.

It was the second friday of june. It was the last day of analog TV. Though PG had not watched much TV since he was in high school, he noted the passage of free analog TV with a bit of sadness. While cable had long since taken over, rabbit ears had defined much of American life for much of PG’s life. Things will never be the same.
On this day of transition, PG got a chain email from a former stupidvisor. The title was 7%. Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio , it begins : “To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I’ve ever written.” My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:
1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. 7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone. 8. It’s OK to get angry with G-d. He can take it. 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present. 12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; G-d never blinks. 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful. 18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple. 24. The most important sex organ is the brain. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’ 27. Always choose life. 28. Forgive everyone everything. 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time. 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 33. Believe in miracles. 34. G-d loves you because of who G-d is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do. 35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young. 37. Your children get only one childhood. 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back. 41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. 42. The best is yet to come. 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 44. Yield. 45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

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Just when you thought you had heard the last of Carrie Prejean, she gets fired. The true story may never be known. Somehow, the official excuse of contract violations sounds flimsy. But then, the lady wrote on her pageant bio that her ambition was to be a Victoria’s Secret model. From there to “opposite marriage” flack is a bit of a jump.
To PG, the whole story got very sad when the reports of Miss Prejean’s childhood emerged. Her parents separated when she was, at most, one year old. For the next ten years, there was a nasty custody battle, with all sorts of accusations. One wonders what Miss Prejean thinks she is defending.
The flip flop by Donald Trump is not surprising. The man seems to believe his own hype. First he supported Miss Prejean, in spite of the nudie pictures. Then, the rude behavior caught up with her, and she was expendable. Or, maybe she didn’t put out for him.
The National Organization for Marriage exploited Miss Prejean as much as anybody. If Miss Prejean had quietly gone away after the pageant, Perez Hilton would have looked like a mean old fool (which he does anyway) The fateful answer at the pageant would have been forgotten. As Keith Lewis ( Executive Director of K2 Productions, the independent producers of the Miss California USA pageant) says, the NOM was looking for a fresh face, and Miss Prejean fit the bill.
The interview with Keith Lewis is fascinating. It seems like Miss Prejean met Mr. Lewis and his boyfriend, and knew they were more than business partners. Things got very hectic in beauty contest land. You will have to turn up the sound on your computer to hear what is said.
It seems like Miss Prejean got a bit too big for her britches. There are reports of rudeness towards pageant officials. To be fair, Miss Prejean does have her story to tell. TMZ reports that K2 productions tried to set up a photo shoot with Playboy Magazine. Miss Prejean says : “I was very respectful of people even when they slandered me and humiliated me. I have not once stooped down to their level.”
That is not what others say. A site called The Dirty got a copy of a memo. The reasons for firing Miss California were: “1) Carrie was unavailable for the pageant organized interviews. She committed to only 1 of the 17 interviews that were scheduled. Sadly, the pageant had pitched 46 different entities for press interviews with Carrie but only 17 agreed. The others refused because of the controversy that Carrie was embroiled in.
2) The main sponsors for Miss California USA sent letters to the organization claiming that they will no longer sponsor the pageant because of the controversy that Carrie had caused. Her statements against gay marriage and rights and the lies regarding images of her (thanks to TheDirty.com) had appalled the sponsors and their clients.
3) The costs for the organization to deal with the controversies caused by Carrie far outweighed the revenues they could possibly ever recoup from her representation. These costs were primarily legal fees including notifying Carrie of her multiple contract breaches as well as the public relations costs for the unremitting damage control.
The only recourse the pageant had was to fire Carrie Prejean… Donald, finally used his infamous line “Carrie, you are fired!”.
The bottom line is, a beauty pageant winner is a PR position. Her job is to look pretty, and create good will. Apparently, Miss Prejean was not doing this job. From the looks of these conflicting statements, this is going to be settled in court, by lawyers. It was lawyers that brought us the Gay Marriage issue to begin with. Spell check suggestions for this feature:
prejean- bluejeans, protean, prejudge, pregnant

PG read “Churchill, Hitler, and the unnecessary war” by Patrick Buchanan. It makes some interesting points, and is luxuriously footnoted. This is not to say that PG believes all of it.
Part of the problem is Pat Buchanan. He was a speechwriter for Richard Nixon, and a public nuisance today. He gave a hateful speech at the Republican Convention in 1992 , known as the “Culture War” speech. This speech alienated many people, and was a factor in the victory of Bill Clinton.
The book starts with the deal making before World War I. Germany was ruled by Kaiser Wilhelm, the grandson of Queen Victoria. He tried to arrange an alliance with Great Britain. Instead, Britain entered into a secret alliance with France. In 1914, Europe basically blundered into war. The conflict turned into a ghastly stalemate, which continued until 1918. The victorious French forced a vengeful peace on the Germans, setting the stage for the second world war.
Great Britain made many mistakes. They severed an alliance with Japan. They allowed Hitler to advance, then gave a guarantee to Poland that they would defend her in a war. This guarantee to Poland is the biggest blunder of all, according to Buchanan. It made war all but certain. According to Buchanan, if Britain and France had played their cards right, then Hitler’s big war would have been against the Soviet Union.
Eventually, Nazi Germany was defeated, but at a frightful cost. The millions of dead in the war produced an East Europe under Communist Rule for 50 years. The British Empire was a shadow of its former self. The United States came out of the war looking good, but much of Europe was destroyed, and then ruled by Communists.
Winston Churchill does not look good. He is seen cheering the start of war in 1914. He makes numerous blunders and about faces. Churchill was an inspiring leader in the second war.( An actor made speeches for him on radio) The same could be said for Hitler, who read his own speeches.
As with all history, this book needs to be taken with a bit of skepticism. Tom Robbins makes a comparison of history to animal husbandry. A herd manager mixes  bloodlines to create an improved breed. A historian takes “facts”, and mixes them to support an agenda. Both are usually up to their ankles in s**t.
After PG finished the Buchanan book, he started one by Deepak Chopra. The title was “Why is G-d Laughing?“. The first chapter tells the story of a famous comedian. He goes to the hospital when his father drops dead of a heart attack. The comedian cannot help but think of jokes. PG is going to return this to the library without reading any more.

PG had this bright idea to write a post about Oscar Wilde. He may yet do it someday, but he got lost in the research process. He made a mistake. He went to google, and typed in Oscar Wilde. After a dozen sites came up with quotes from Mr. Wilde  (which Mr. Wilde stole from Queen Victoria), there was this… Making up Oscar Wilde quotes – Uncyclopedia, the content-free ..May 8, 2009 … Officially listed as the National Sport of England, making up Oscar Wilde quotes is widely regarded as the greatest spectator sport ever …
PG was intrigued, and went to the site. There were some jewels like ” “It’s like taking acid at McDonald’s.” ~ Oscar Wilde on Bathing Fully Clothed “ Or, “Leave Oscar Wilde alone! what did he do to deserve you writing all this crap about him?!? HE’S A HUMAN BEING!!!”~ Chris Crocker on Why we should all LEAVE OSCAR ALONE!!!! “And who can forget “”Was it six million? Well, anyway what a beautiful moustache.” ~ Oscar Wilde”. At the bottom of the page was the notice that real Oscar Wilde quotes had been inserted onto the page.
PG decided to explore the uncyclopedia. The first thing he tried was Pizza. There was a header that the page may be racist, and an Oscar Wilde quote.
If Pizza is racist, then the next stop should be fried chicken. There was no mention of the Big Chicken, but there were politically incorrect cartoons and remarks. PG then tried, in order, Dear Abby, Jane Fonda, and Bill O’Reilly.. There was an illustration of Jane Fonda eating fried chicken with Bill O’Reilly. Mr. O’Reilly asked if it was finger lickin good, and Ms. Fonda dumped the bucket over his head.
The next person PG tried was Harry Hay. Uncyclopedia had never heard of him.