Whitman Drabbles
You felons on trial in courts, You convicts in prison-cells, you sentenced assassins chain’d and handcuff’d with iron, Who am I too that I am not on trial or in prison? Me ruthless and devilish as any, that my wrists are not chain’d with iron, or my ankles with iron? You prostitutes flaunting over the trottoirs or obscene in your rooms, Who am I that I should call you more obscene than myself? O culpable! I acknowledge—I expose! (O admirers, praise not me—compliment not me—you make me wince, I see what you do not—I know what you do not.)
… compact truth of the world, There shall be no subject too pronounced—all works shall illustrate the divine law of indirections. What do you suppose creation is? What do you suppose will satisfy the soul, except to walk free and own no superior? What do you suppose I would intimate to you in a hundred ways, but that man or woman is as good as God? And that there is no God any more divine than Yourself? And that that is what the oldest and newest myths finally mean? And that you or any one must approach creations through such laws?
Be composed—be at ease with me—I am Walt Whitman, liberal and lusty as Nature, Not till the sun excludes you do I exclude you, Not till the waters refuse to glisten for you and the leaves to rustle for you, do my words refuse to glisten and rustle for you. My girl I appoint with you an appointment, and I charge you that you make preparation to be worthy to meet me, And I charge you that you be patient and perfect till I come. Till then I salute you with a significant look that you do not forget me.
Of persons arrived at high positions, ceremonies, wealth, scholarships, and the like; (To me all that those persons have arrived at sinks away from them, except as it results to their bodies and souls, So that often to me they appear gaunt and naked, And often to me each one mocks the others, and mocks himself or herself, And of each one the core of life, namely happiness, is full of the rotten excrement of maggots, And often to me those men and women pass unwittingly the true realities of life, and go toward false realities, And often to me they are alive after what custom has served them, but nothing more, And often to me they are sad, hasty, unwaked sonnambules walking the dusk.)
Unfolded out of the folds of the woman man comes unfolded, and is always to come unfolded, Unfolded only out of the superbest woman of the earth is to come the superbest man of the earth, Unfolded out of the friendliest woman is to come the friendliest man, Unfolded only out of the perfect body of a woman can a man be form’d of perfect body, Unfolded only out of the inimitable poems of woman can come the poems of man, (only thence have my poems come;) Unfolded out of the strong and arrogant woman I love, only thence …
… can appear the strong and arrogant man I love, Unfolded by brawny embraces from the well-muscled woman love, only thence come the brawny embraces of the man, Unfolded out of the folds of the woman’s brain come all the folds of the man’s brain, duly obedient, Unfolded out of the justice of the woman all justice is unfolded, Unfolded out of the sympathy of the woman is all sympathy; A man is a great thing upon the earth and through eternity, but every of the greatness of man is unfolded out of woman; First the man is shaped in the woman, he can then be shaped in himself.
These drabbles are taken from Leaves of Grass, by Walt Whitman. The text used today is from The Project Gutenberg. This collection of drabbles is a birthday gift to Mr. Whitman, who graced our planet from May 31, 1819 to March 26, 1892. The poems drabbled today are found in BOOK XXIV. AUTUMN RIVULETS: You Felons on Trial in Courts, Laws for Creations, To a Common Prostitute, Thought, Unfolded out of the Folds. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Marjory Collins took the social media picture in February 1943. “New York, New York O’Reilly’s at Third Avenue and Fifty-Fourth Street, on Saturday night” … Selah
POTUS Jokes
After a ADHD WHCD, the Washington Post published The single best joke told by every president, from Obama to Washington. It was easier than finding anything coherent said by Kamala Harris. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. This is a repost.
The pickins are surprisingly slim, especially for the modern era. When everything you do is recorded, something has to be funny. Three recent Republicans show a liberal capacity for humor.
George H.W. Bush, 1989 Gridiron Club: “People say I’m indecisive, but I don’t know about that.”
Richard Nixon, in Ms. magazine, 1971: “Let me make one thing perfectly clear. I wouldn’t want to wake up next to a lady pipefitter.”
Herbert Hoover “Blessed are the young, for they shall inherit the national debt.”
Warren Harding was a dog. … “referring to his penis, which he named Jerry, in a 1915 love letter to his mistress Carrie Fulton Phillips: “Jerry — you recall Jerry, whose cards I once sent you to Europe — came in while I was pondering your notes in glad reflection, and we talked about it.”
You have to go back over a hundred fifty years to get a serious laugh.
Andrew Johnson “Washington, D.C., is twelve square miles bordered by reality.”
Abraham Lincoln “If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one?”
Franklin Pierce about duties after leaving office: “There’s nothing left. . . but to get drunk.”
Zachary Taylor when suggested that he run: “Stop your nonsense and drink your whiskey!”
John Tyler on his death bed: “Doctor, I am going. Perhaps it is best.”
James Madison on his death bed: “I always talk better lying down.”
I found a quote once about Alexander Hamilton, by John Adams. “His ambition, his restlessness and all his grandiose schemes come, I’m convinced, from a superabundance of secretions, which he couldn’t find enough whores to absorb!” A google search for verification led to a reddit page, Fake Founder Quotes, starring John Adams. Apparently, Mr. Adams said something similar to that in a letter to Dr. Benjamin Rush, sent January 25, 1806. According to this source, the letter was a satire of Jonathan Swift’s Tale of a Tub
George Washington in a 1788 letter congratulating the Marquis de Chastellux on his recent marriage: “Now you are well served for coming to fight in favour of the American Rebels, all the way across the Atlantic Ocean, by catching that terrible Contagion — domestic felicity — which like the small pox or the plague, a man can have only once in his life: because it commonly lasts him (at least with us in America — I don’t know how you manage these matters in France) for his whole life time.”
The Mess In Iraq
Content below was previously posted May 17, 2009. … Patrick Charles Eugene Boone will celebrate his 91st birthday June 1 … Pat Boone has had a long, profitable career. He is 75 years old. It might be time for him to retire. Or maybe he can do “cover” versions of gangsta rap. There is an article on WorldNetDaily, signed by Mr. Boone. … If you go to WND, you will get a full-screen popup warning of a computer virus … He makes three suggestions to President BHO. Mr. Boone observes that BHO did not serve in the military. According to wikipedia, neither did Pat Boone.
Content below was previously posted May 17, 2009. … There was a draft when Mr. Boone was 19, and the Korean War had just ended. If he had volunteered at 18, he might have seen some action. The first suggestion regards the pictures of torture. Mr. Boone uses a lot of buzz words, like “liberal media” and “Dan Rather and CBS”. Mr. Boone claims that the torture ended at Abu Ghraib. Documents recently released indicate otherwise. Mr. Boone claims that the corporal punishment his mother gave him was worse than what was done to prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. He also raises the red herring …
Content below was previously posted May 17, 2009. … Suggestion 3 is where Mr. Boone shows signs of dementia. He discusses the reluctance of BHO to publicly participate in the National Day of Prayer. This is compared with a proclamation issued by Abraham Lincoln in 1863. Before he gets to that, he drops this in: “But, scarcely into your presidency, you seem hell-bent to marginalize Christianity and this country’s Judeo-Christian foundation, allowing military chaplains to be harshly disciplined for praying in Jesus’ name and promoting a so-called “fairness doctrine” that is designed to squelch conservative and Christian radio hosts and to equate Holy Scripture with “hate speech.”
Content below was previously posted May 22, 2009. … Nibras Kazimi is a visiting scholar at the Hudson Institute in New York. He writes a blog, Talismangate. It is mostly about Iraq, and the mess it is in. He recently wrote about President Obama. It seems like BHO is going to make a speech to the Muslim world in June. He has chosen Cairo as the site. Mr. Kazimi does not think this is a good choice. The reasoning behind this teaches me a few things.
Content below was previously posted May 22, 2009. … The line in the west is that Cairo is a leading city in the Muslim world. According to Mr. Kazimi, this is not quite the case. The importance of Cairo is largely a product of British propaganda, during the time that Egypt was part of the British Empire. Another black eye for Egypt is the peace treaty with Israel, which was evident during the siege of Gaza last year. To many, Egypt is an ally of Israel. Damascus was suggested as another site for this speech. There are problems. The regime in Syria is brutal …
Content below was previously posted May 22, 2009. … Syria is the sworn enemy of Israel, which would not play well with BHO’s supporters back home. The good news is, Syria has taken in many refugees from the war in Iraq … many more than the United States. Mecca would be a good site for this speech, if BHO was not an infidel. President O is viewed with disdain in the Muslim world, with the escalation of the war in AfPak. Meanwhile, many in America believe BHO is a Muslim.
Content below was previously posted May 22, 2009. … Talismangate is an excellent source of information and confusion. You will read things that are not even hinted in the American corporate media. The English speaking reader will find many of the names difficult to fathom. (Nibras Kazimi is one of the easier ones) Every time I read an Iraqi Blog, I is a bit more confused. America has started something that will be very difficult to finish. … Talismangate is no longer published. Nibras Kazimi currently is known on X as @ImaraWaTijara. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Russell Lee took the social media picture in March 1939. “Two children of family living on relief near Jefferson, Texas. These children did not attend school because of lack of warm clothes and indifference of mother who was sick with pellagra.”
Manley Pointer
Good Country People is a Flannery O’Connor story. Manley Pointer is a Bible salesman in rural Georgia. He calls on the Hopewell family. Manley doesn’t sell any Bibles, but he does get a date with Hulga Hopewell. This is a repost.
“O’Connor portrays a one-legged, unemployed female with a Ph.D. in philosophy, who has nothing to do but stay at home and irritate her mother. When a Bible salesman, Manley Pointer, … arrives at the Hopewell house, Joy, who has changed her name to Hulga, much to the annoyance of her mother, joins her new friend in an excursion to a nearby barn, complete with a romantic hayloft.” source
The first few minutes of the Hulga-Manley date are special. “Smiling, he lifted his hat which was new and wide-brimmed. He had not worn it yesterday and she wondered if he had bought it for the occasion. It was toast-colored with a red and white band around it and was slightly too large for him. He stepped from behind the bush still carrying the black valise. He had on the same suit and the same yellow socks sucked down in his shoes from walking.”
“He crossed the highway and said, “I knew you’d come!” The girl wondered acidly how he had known this. She pointed to the valise and asked, “Why did you bring your Bibles?” He took her elbow, smiling down on her as if he could not stop. “You can never tell when you’ll need the word of God, Hulga,” he said. She had a moment in which she doubted that this was actually happening and then they began to climb the embankment. They went down into the pasture toward the woods. …”
“Wait,” he said. He leaned the other way and pulled the valise toward him and opened it. It had a pale blue spotted lining and there were only two Bibles in it. He took one of these out and opened the cover of it. It was hollow and contained a pocket flask of whiskey, a pack of cards, and a small blue box with printing on it. He laid these out in front of her one at a time in an evenly-spaced row, like one presenting offerings at the shrine of a goddess. He put the blue box in her hand. THIS PRODUCT TO BE USED ONLY FOR THE PREVENTION OF DISEASE, she read, and dropped it. The boy was unscrewing the top of the flask. He stopped and pointed, with a smile, to the deck of cards. It was not an ordinary deck but one with an obscene picture on the back of each card. “Take a swig,” he said, offering her the bottle first. He held it in front of her, but like one mesmerized, she did not move.” …
“Mrs. Hopewell and Mrs. Freeman, who were in the back pasture, digging up onions, saw him emerge a little later from the woods and head across the meadow toward the highway. “Why, that looks like that nice dull young man that tried to sell me a Bible yesterday,” Mrs. Hopewell said, squinting. “He must have been selling them to the Negroes back in there. He was so simple,” she said, “but I guess the world would be better off if we were all that simple.” source
Erik Langkjær is the possible inspiration for Manley Pointer. A Russian-Danish young man, Mr. Langkjær worked as a textbook salesman. “Klaus Rothstein, a literary critic and commentator for the national Danish newspaper Weekendavisen” got Mr. Langkjær to tell his story.
“I searched for a job in publishing, in the hope that I would be hired as an editor. I did get a job, but it was as a sales representative in the South. During these travels, I met a professor at the University of Georgia. She suggested that I pay a visit to a local woman who had had her first book published by Harcourt, Brace & Company, where I was now a sales agent in the education branch. The professor believed that this author would enjoy meeting me because of her affiliation with the publishing firm. Weakened as she was by her disease, lupus, she wasn’t in contact with many people, so it would be nice to receive a visit from outside. A few years back, her father had died from the same disease, but the doctors had told her not to worry. …”
“Flannery and I quickly became friends. I made an effort to plan my sales route in a way that made it possible for me to visit her every two or three weeks. I would arrive in my own car, and then suggest going for a ride in the surrounding countryside. She was always up for it. We talked about our family backgrounds, and she was excited to hear about my mother’s Russian heritage and my father’s career as a consul general … Flannery herself was a devout Catholic, highly conscious of living in the Protestant South. She considered it a great challenge to be surrounded by Protestants, and to belong to a minority. She had a church to go to on Sundays, but she was aware of the growing secularism, which she considered a threat.”
“I was not really in love; I simply enjoyed the company of women during my lonely travels in the South. Although Flannery was both conventional and religious, we eventually became so close that she, while the car was parked, allowed me to kiss her. At that moment, her disease revealed itself in a new way: there was no strength in her lips. I hit her teeth with my kiss, and since then I’ve thought of it as a kiss of death. …
“I visited her twelve to fourteen times, and later we started exchanging letters. As I returned to Denmark to settle down, she wrote that she would like to hear more from me, and her first letter from June 1954 ends with a reference to our drives around Milledgeville: . . . I haven’t seen any dirt roads since you left and I miss you. I think Flannery was hoping for it to be the two of us. Between April 1953 and June 1954, when my visits were frequent, there was indeed enough contact between us for her to envisage something more. Her letters might also contain a certain disappointment in the fact that the contact wasn’t as strong on my part. …”
“When I later read one of Flannery’s short stories, ‘Good Country People,’ I noticed that the main character was a travelling Bible salesman. I didn’t sell bibles, but I used to call my binder with the records of the publishing firm ‘my bible.’ Also, the salesman in the story is named Manley Pointer, which has an obvious erotic connotation.”source
Miss O’Connor wrote Mr. Langkjær many times. 13 June 54 “My mother has just attended a dairy festival in Eatonton. The governor attended and Miss America. All the cows were in rope stalls around the Courthouse and Miss America, very sunburned, my mother said and in a white strapless evening dress (11 A. M.) had to pick her way among them and admire each one while she kept the tail of the dress out of the little piles of manure. She also had to kiss a calf. Universal suffering.” 18 July 54 “Everything here is busy electing the Governor. There are 9 candidates and the ones I have heard over the radio all sound like hound dogs that have learned to declaim. They are all but one running on keep-segregation platforms and everything is geared to the boys who sit in front of the wooden stores and tell you not to run into a street car down there. (On acct. of the rotten borough system their vote is worth three or four of a city vote.”) source
“Flannery first met Erik in April 1953, she was clearly taken with him and relished their time together, especially their drives through Baldwin County in his car. When he decided to break off their friendship and return to Europe a little over a year later, O’Connor, then using a cane, felt betrayed, as revealed in their short-lived correspondence. In early 1955, O’Connor took only four days to write this story; her intense feelings about Langkjær quickly found their outlet.”source
“Unfortunately, while she may have had romantic feelings towards him, they were not reciprocated. This was especially noticeable after he returned to Denmark in 1954. Flannery would write to him, and it would be weeks before she would hear back. … Eventually, she received a letter from him stating that he had met another woman and they were intending to get married. Flannery was devastated. However, instead of wallowing in her grief she threw herself into her art, writing one of her best short stories, “Good Country People.” Shortly after this story came out, Langkjær wrote Flannery and said that he recognized himself in the character of the salesman, Manley Pointer. Flannery responded with the epistolary equivalent of Carly Simon’s You’re So Vain, telling him in essence not to flatter himself so.” source
29 April 56 “I am highly taken with the thought of your seeing yourself as the Bible salesman. Dear boy, remove this delusion from your head at once. And if you think the story is also my spiritual autobiography, remove that one too. As a matter of fact, I wrote that one not too long after your departure and wanted to send you a copy but decided that the better part of tact would be to desist. Your contribution to it was largely in the matter of properties. Never let it be said that I don’t make the most of experience and information, no matter how meager. But as to the main pattern of that story, it is one of deceit which is something I certainly never connect with you. In my modest way, I think it’s a wonderful story. I read it over and over and nobody enjoys it as much as I do—which is more or less the case with all my productions.”source
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Russell Lee took the social media picture in February 1940. “Wife of Pomp Hall, right, talking with another woman at UCAPAWA (United Cannery, Agricultural, Packing, and Allied Workers of America) meeting at Bristow, Oklahoma.”
Customer Over Slushee
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here is today’s monday morning reader. · I clicked on a youtube video today. The spam message before the video was a fundraising ad from Jon Ossoff. This is May of 2025, eighteen months before the election. Jon Ossoff has access to plenty of money. In 2017, he ran in the most expensive Congressional race ever. A tsumani of money from outside Georgia poured into his campaign. Jon Ossoff attended the joint session of Congress where Bibi Netanyahu came to ask our support for his program of annihilation for the Palestinian people. You can rest assured that AIPAC will give him lots of money. Jon Ossoff needs to be defeated in 2026. · tangerine i was at the gym, just finishing my last set of reps before switching to the stationary bike, where i watch movies … it was too much trouble to turn the noise off, so i listened to the credits The first issue of MAD magazine I read, in 1965, had an introduction to a comic. Since I was new, and didn’t know any better, I read it. It said that nobody reads these introductions, and so we are giving long lost Princess Anastasia the directions for where the Romanov family jewels were hidden. Since it was in New York, and I was in Georgia, I did not go to find out. · On May 7, 2024, FreedomWorks was dissolved by a unanimous vote of its Board of Directors. · Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture was taken March 21, 1960. “Cameo Lounge” · in 2014, I questioned a quote-meme on facebook. … *Meme Poster* Luther Mckinnon, thank you for taking something that was meant to be inspirational and stomping on it. *Meme Poster* unfriended Luther Mckinnon. … good times · June 18, 1957. “Shriners Horse Show, visit to Scottish Rite Hospital” · Today’s entertainment is a selection of posts out of the archive. Topics include The Great Speckled Bird, Charles Bukowski, and the locked restroom doors at Lenox Square · The social media picture: “Unidentified young soldier in Confederate infantry uniform” … In 1865, the national debt was $2.6 billion · It is laundry day. Since I am not doing as many clothes in the warm weather, I decided to do both the top and bottom sheets on the bed. I was able to fit everything on the drying line, with room to spare · I wanted to use this link in a post I will be making in a few minutes. According to google, I have never written on “global warming” · This is a bit of speculation about an important part of our nations history. It was written quickly, with minimal documentation. Mistakes were made. The reader is encouraged to do research, and come to their own conclusions · Theo Von – they might have some drawings of me having sex — Chad Ochocinco – Are you married? — Theo Von – no i got to get married man — Chad – do you have a girlfriend? — Theo – not right now no i’m going to get one — Theo’s body language here is fun to watch. @TheoVon @ochocinco · At 4:20 in the video, @ochocinco explains the term “Mandingo” to @TheoVon – “oh it’s a it’s a wiener term · kind of · oh dang i didn’t know it” · Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo · I googled diarrhea, in the last hour. … It looks like there aren’t many great matches for your search. Try using words that might appear on the page you’re looking for. For example, “cake recipes” instead of “how to make a cake.” · Arthur Siegel took the social media picture in August 1942, “Interlochen, Michigan. National music camp where 300 or more young musicians study symphonic music for eight weeks each summer. Girls waiting to catch large rubber ball · today’s disposable content was copied from product post in 2009. The pictures are better than the text. The picture on facebook: Interlochen, Michigan. National music camp where 300 or more young musicians study symphonic music for eight weeks each summer. Girls waiting to catch large rubber ball · Shireen Abu Akleh · Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. The social media picture: “Unidentified soldier in Confederate uniform with bouquet of flowers · in the best Bob Dylan tradition, this 84th birthday post does not make a lick of sense. · i walked 1.53 miles … round trip … to a yard sale. there was nothing i wanted to buy, but had a lovely conversation with the old lady who was running it. i decided to keep my ear buds off, and listen to the world. there were some terrific birds singing, and NO LEAF BLOWERS · @JoeBrolly1993 Surgeon in Gaza describing how the IDF uses a drone fitted with a sound system to simulate a baby crying. When people go outside to find the baby, they are murdered. · In 2009, Carrie Prejean was chosen Miss California, in a pageant owned by Donald Trump. She got in trouble because of her big mouth. On May 2, 2025, @carrieprejeanboller posed for a picture in the oval office. · every day i round and round repeats itself ordinary life · everyday i live my ordinary life so loving so rich and so sweet it doesn’t seem to matter how it repeats itself 0ver and over goes round and round where its been to where its going · Pictures today are from The Library of Congress Russell Lee took the social media picture in May 1938. “Carnival employee sleeping in hammock underneath wagon. Lasses-White show. Sikeston, Missouri” · selah
Bob Dylan Drabble Birthday
Content below was previously posted May 24, 2024. … Hibbing MN is a cold place. At least it’s the birthplace of Robert Allen Zimmerman. That’s Allen, with an e, and double L, just like hell. He legally changed that to Bob Dylan, with no known middle name. The initials are BD. On May 24, 1941, the curly haired wonder boi arrived. Europe was in flames, and eyeing America as fresh cannon fodder. This was twelve years, eleven months, and eighteen days before I graced the planet. A twelve year old in Hibbing MN would have no reason to think of me.
Content below was previously posted May 24, 2024. … a decision was made to go to Nashville. Al Kooper played organ, and served as a music director. A bass player named Joseph Souter, Jr. would become famous a few years later as Joe South. Kris Kristofferson was the janitor. The second session started at 6pm and lasted until 530 the next morning. Mr. Dylan was working on the lyrics to “Sad eyed lady of the lowlands,” and the recording could not start until he was ready. The musicians played ping pong and waited. At 4am, the song was ready. …
Content below was previously posted May 24, 2024. … I met a lady once, who worked in an insurance office. One of the customers was Joe South. His driving record file was an inch thick. … Al Kooper had a life. The former Alan Peter Kuperschmidt produced the first three Lynyrd Skynyrd albums, sold that contract for a nice piece of change, and lived happily ever after. Mr. Kooper was playing a show. I sat in front of the stage. During a break between songs, I asked his friend “what time is it?”. Mr. Kooper heard me, and said it was 11:30.
Content below was originally posted May 28, 2010. … The first BD record that I got was “Blind Boy Grunt”. BBG was a bootleg, recorded in a New York hotel around 1961. … I saw BD with The Band at the omni in 1974, and was not impressed. I won tickets to see BD at the house of blues during the 1996 olympics, and could barely hear what he said, the sound was so bad. … Zimmerman is the birth surname of Ethel Merman. May 24 gave us Queen Victoria and Patti Labelle. On May 24, 1844, Samuel Morse sent the message ”What hath God wrought”
Content below was previously posted July 30, 2024. … “I think everybody’s mind should be bent once in a while. Not by LSD, though. LSD is medicine – a different kind of medicine. It makes you aware of the universe, so to speak; you realize how foolish objects are. But LSD is not for groovy people; it’s for mad, hateful orange haired people who want banana revenge. It’s for people who usually have heart attacks. They ought to use it at the Geneva Convention.” PLAYBOY: “Did you ever have the standard boyhood dream of growing up to be President?” DYLAN: “No. When I was a boy, Harry Truman was President; who’d want to be Harry Truman?”
Content below was previously posted July 30, 2024. … “The only thing I can tell you about Joan Baez is that she’s not Belle Starr.” … PLAYBOY: “Writing about “beard-wearing draft-card burners and pacifist income-tax evaders,” one columnist called such protesters “no less outside society than the junkie, the homosexual or the mass murderer.” What’s your reaction?” DYLAN: “I don’t believe in those terms. They’re too hysterical. They don’t describe anything. Most people think that homosexual, gay, queer, queen, faggot are all the same words. Everybody thinks that a junkie is a dope freak. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t consider myself outside of anything. I just consider myself not around.” …
Content below was previously posted July 30, 2024. … “I go down to Dallas. I get a job as a “before” in a Charles Atlas “before and after” ad. I move in with a delivery boy who can cook fantastic chili and hot dogs. Then this 13-year-old girl from Phoenix comes and burns the house down. The delivery boy – he ain’t so mild. The next thing I know I’m in Omaha. It’s so cold there, by this time I’m robbing my own bicycles and frying my own fish. I stumble onto some luck and get a job as a carburetor out at the hot-rod races every Thursday night.” … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. The social media picture: “Unidentified soldier in Confederate uniform with bouquet of flowers”
Bristol Palin
Content below was originally posted May 26, 2008 … There is this problem of the soldiers who died fighting for the losing side. What to make of these Confederate soldiers who died so their rich neighbors could keep their slaves? They are just as brave as the Union troops, often fighting with less food, weapons and clothing. The modern side to this dilemma is the Vietnam Vet. Often drafted, sent to fight a war which few wanted, these brave soldiers have been dumped on. While the war did not end well, they are every bit as valiant as those who fought in other conflicts.
Content below was originally posted May 29, 2009 … Fort Campbell had a problem with soldiers committing suicide. The commander of the 101st Airborne Division is a take charge type, Brig. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend. He, in so many words, ordered the soldiers to stop killing themselves. “If you don’t remember anything else I say in the next five or 10 minutes, remember this — suicidal behavior in the 101st on Fort Campbell is bad. It’s bad for soldiers, it’s bad for families, bad for your units, bad for this division and our army and our country and it’s got to stop now. Suicides at Fort Campbell have to stop now.”
Consider the teenage abstinence program. The poster girl is Bristol Palin, the same Bristol who fornicated in her parents house. The same Bristol who had her baby, and broke up with the babydaddy, with numerous hard feelings. Some people find this not real. And who is caring for baby Tripp while Mama Bristol talks up abstinence? … In the past 16 years, Bristol has had many excellent adventures. Today she is a real estate agent, and found a check in the mail. It was a reality check. When he took it to the bank, it was rejected for having insufficient funds.
Content below was originally posted May 21, 2009 … “Victory Day“ is celebrated in Russia on May 9. This is the end of the war with Germany in 1945. The Soviet Union lost over 20 million people in that war. The United States, which fought on two fronts, lost 400 thousand, almost all military. The Soviets lost millions of civilians. World War Two was largely fought on Soviet soil. The Nazis killed, and killed, and killed some more. The only thing to stop them was to kill back, which the Soviets did.
All the countries that participated in World War Two suffered, but none quite like the Soviets.
In Ukraine, the Germans were initially greeted as liberators. Once Ukraine got to know the Germans, they saw the need to resist. The Western Front, started on D Day, forced the Germans to divert troops from the Russian War. The United States gave arms and supplies to the Soviets. However, it was the Soviet people who did the heavy lifting in that war. The allies probably would not have won without them. … I grew up in Georgia (American), roughly one hundred years after the War Between the States. Atlanta was the scene of some heavy fighting.
The impact of having a war fought on your home turf is much greater than fighting across an ocean. I look at the impact a 19th century war had on his home, and can only imagine what impact a much bloodier, more recent war, would have on Russia. After the hot war came the cold war. The Soviet Union was our enemy, and the excuse to maintain a large military. Many of the contributions made by the Soviets in the struggle against Germany have been forgotten. People seem to forget the hundreds of thousands of German civilians killed by American air raids. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Arthur Siegel took the social media picture in August 1942. “Interlochen, Michigan. National music camp where 300 or more young musicians study symphonic music for eight weeks each summer. Girls waiting to catch large rubber ball”
Why The War Between The States Was Fought
This was a repost from 2017. … Recently, Mr. Trump said something stupid about the War Between the States. After his comments began to filter into the marketplace of ideas, people began to react. There was a good bit of self righteous talk about how bad the Confederacy was. Maybe it is time for another point of view. This feature will have minimal research. Mistakes will be made. The reader is encouraged to do their own research.
When the colonies declared independence in 1776, nobody knew how things would turn out. First, Great Britain needed to be defeated. After that, the Articles of Confederation went into effect. “Under these articles, the states remained sovereign and independent, with Congress serving as the last resort on appeal of disputes. Congress was also given the authority to make treaties and alliances, maintain armed forces and coin money. However, the central government lacked the ability to levy taxes and regulate commerce …”
This arrangement was not working, and the Constitutional Convention was called. Originally, the CC was going to revise the Articles of Confederation, but wound up throwing the whole thing out, and creating the Constitution. This document called for greater federal authority. The issue of what powers to give to the states, and what powers to give to the central government, was contentious. It remains controversial to this day.
Had any group of autonomous states formed a federal union before? Usually, such a union is the result of a conquest, with one of the states ruling the others. It is unclear whether such a union had been attempted before, or how successful it was. When the “founding fathers” created the constitution, they probably did not foresee how it would play out. The current system, with a massive central government cat-herding the 50 states, would have been laughed off as a dangerous fantasy.
So the states start to have disagreements. One of the things they disagreed over was slavery. Yes, this was an important factor in the unpleasantness to come. Slavery influenced a lot of the economic conflicts. The North wanted high tariffs to protect industry. The South wanted low tariffs, so they could sell cotton to Europe. There were many other ways for the states to not get along.
Finally, in 1861, the disagreements became too big to ignore. The south seceded, and the War Between The States began. The Confederate States of America was a looser union than the United States. The thought was that the states were more important than the federal union. Mr. Lincoln disagreed. (One popular name for the conflict was Mr. Lincoln’s war.) Many people say that Mr. Lincoln was not especially concerned about the slaves, but wanted to keep the union together.
How does slavery enter into this? Imagine the conflict over states rights vs federalism to be an open tank of gasoline. The lit match that was thrown into that tank was slavery. When the winners wrote the war history, it sounded better to say that the war was fought to free the slaves.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. The social media picture: “Unidentified young soldier in Confederate infantry uniform” … In 1865, the national debt was $2.6 billion.
Sunday Morning Drabbles
Today is May 18, 2025. I am going to write new material for my blog today, based largely on content from May 2008. This was the first year that chamblee54 was on WordPress. I was driving a truck in Marietta, and listening to am talk radio. The 2008 election was going on. John McCain was going to be the Republican candidate, and Barack H. Obama was the Democrat wannabe. The 2008 economic meltdown was a few weeks away. After the economic meltdown, I lost my job, and the election of Obama became inevitable. 17 years later, I am assembling this collection of drabbles.
Another shot in the arm deals with capital punishment. On May 6, 2008, Georgia was preparing to off a convict. … Semantic timeout. While hung, shot, or beheaded are obvious verbs for more archaic means of execution, what is the expression for “executed by lethal injection”? What do you call the process where a GDC employee shoots up a person with substances that will cause their demise? Injecticide? … With all the corruption, lawyers, and rampant egomania in the justice business, how can the death penalty ever be administered fairly? Was this practice ever intended to be fair?
There was a comment thread at a Christian blog. The topic of preaching at funerals came up: “I want to see God’s grace and name honored.” Preaching an unwanted message to grieving people does not honor God. Christians frequently do not respect non-believers. Christians feel that if they only repeat their message over and over that others will agree with it. However, many of us have made up our minds. The more you try, the more you alienate us. A heavy religious message at a funeral is an example of this. Many incontinent evangelicals are like dogs that will not quit barking.
Like many men of my degeneration/generation, I had long hair. The problem is, with a Georgiawhiteboi like me, hair turns into worms after about three centimeters. It is way too much work to take care of. So I bought a pair of clippers. It was the modern version of letting my freak flag fly … I was in the church’s fried chicken on Broad street downtown. The two drag queens were in front of me in line.They got their food and left. When I stepped to the counter, I heard this girl say to her friend ”Her hayyer is so preeiitee”
Tallulah Bankhead was making a movie, “Lifeboat”, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Some of the other actors commented that Miss Bankhead was not wearing panties. Mr. Hitchcock wondered if this was a matter for wardrobe or a matter for hairdressing … Did Mohawks really shave their heads except for a stripe of hair in the middle? That would seem to be a lot of trouble for pre-modern men living in upstate New York. A Mohawk haircut is high maintenance, just like many who display them. … When asked how long it takes to do her hair, Dolly Parton replies. “I don’t know I am not there”
A clean pair of socks is change you can believe in. … The intangibles include respect, good will, and trust. Semantic fine tuning aside, these words mean the same thing. … A man has to believe in something. I believe I will have a drink. W.C. Fields … Mr. Barnum once said “there is a sucker born every minute”. This belief served Mr. Barnum abundantly … Miss Teenage South Carolina gave a famous speech. The first three words were ” I personally believe” … Anyone can quote the Bible. To do so without the trust of the listener is to speak in vain.
Opinions are like a smelly, though productive, body part. What does this say about beliefs? … Believe is a seven letter word. The first two letters are BE. The next three letters are LIE … Cher had a hit song called “Believe” The hair is a wig, the plastic surgery is paid for, but do you believe. … John 3:16 has more than 22 words. That verse helps reduce Jesus to a scheme for life after death. … My opinions about G-d, the Bible, Jesus, and Life after Death are none of your business. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. The social media picture: “Private Lucien Love of Co. D, 43rd Virginia Cavalry Battalion … Photo shows young identified soldier. Lucien Love is one of six Mosby Rangers executed by the Union in September 1864 near Front Royal, Virginia.”
Marilyn Truther
Marilyn Monroe was photographed reading Ulysses, the famously difficult book by James Joyce. 63 years later, a man posted the picture on twitter, while promoting a study course on Ulysses. If Marilyn read it, then you can too! I said something uncooperative, and a brief twitter fight broke out. Since the Ulysses dude, and his tweeting buddy, did not give permission, they will not be quoted here. One exception, the titular “Marilyn Truther,” was coined by the study course promoter.
@chamblee54 It was a joke, at one time, to give models a book to pose with. It was considered funny to give them a difficult book like “Ulysses” ~ Who needs to show a citation? I may be wrong. I asked Mr. Google, and found this. ~ According to photographer, she did not read it from start to finish. A more accurate answer is that she read parts of it Story by photographer should not be taken as unchallenged truth, but it is all we have I should have researched this before i spoke. Did you? ~ I had read that about other models. I also read numerous quotes, attributed to Marilyn, that proved to be phony. Photography is a medium open to manipulation, and creation of fantasy. Just because you see a picture, that does not mean it happened. ~ Eve Arnold… a woman … took that picture. How do we know Marilyn told the truth? Maybe Marilyn was just trying to make a good impression on the lady. Would Marilyn have said the same thing if the photographer was a man?
I disputed that Marilyn Monroe had read Ulysses, and will never know for sure either way. I am not the first person to wonder about this. “Richard Brown, a Professor of Modern Literature at the University of Leeds with a special interest in James Joyce, was intrigued by Eve Arnold’s photos of Marilyn. Curious to know if Marilyn was indeed reading Joyce’s novel or if she was merely posing for the photo, Brown wrote Arnold a letter, which she replied on 20 July 1993. Unfortunately, I don’t have Arnold’s complete letter to show you … In any case, the excerpt from Arnold’s letter is interesting as she was telling Brown exactly what he wanted to know”:
“We worked on a beach on Long Island. She was visiting Norman Rosten the poet. … I asked her what she was reading when I went to pick her up (I was trying to get an idea of how she spent her time). She said she kept Ulysses in her car and had been reading it for a long time. She said she loved the sound of it and would read it aloud to herself to try to make sense of it — but she found it hard going. She couldn’t read it consecutively. When we stopped at a local playground to photograph she got out the book and started to read while I loaded the film. So, of course, I photographed her. It was always a collaborative effort of photographer and subject where she was concerned — but almost more her input.” “Quoted in Richard Brown, “Marilyn Monroe Reading Ulysses: Goddess or Postcultural Cyborg?”, in R. B. Kershner (Ed), Joyce and Popular Culture, p. 174.”
“Monroe is reading the 1934 Random House edition, with the dust jacket removed. This is the edition that was famously set from a pirate version containing numerous errors. This defect notwithstanding, the dust-jacket artwork and typographic design by Ernst Reichl constitute one of the great works in the history of book design.”
What does this say about a screen icon who died in 1962? Maybe she was smarter than your typical dumb blonde. Maybe not. Marilyn had an instinct for the camera, and looking good on the screen brought joy to millions of fans. Is this post mortem resurrection, as an intellectual philosopher, merely another fantasy concocted by well meaning fans? Pictures never lie, and there is a picture of Marilyn, reading Ulysses, with a serious look on her pretty face. Of course it is real! A fantasy involving Norma Jean Baker Marilyn Monroe? How absurd! As long as the merchandise is paid for, and the instagrammers inspired, should we even care?
The cult of Marilyn has shown up on chamblee54 before. “Someone told me that Marilyn Monroe once remarked that she enjoyed reading poetry “because it saves time.” I like this quotation so much that I’ve never dared to confirm it; I’d feel disenchanted to learn it was bogus.” This search for authenticity led to a forum called Data Lounge … “get your fix of gay gossip, news and pointless bitchery.” The “Marilyn: Smart or Stupid” debate rages through 200 comments, reaching a peak at comment 196. “Yes MM said every one of those quotes by herself! … But I’m worried for her, cause She’s my main spirit guide and Saviour and she recently commanded me to share this message! …
In 2014, a facebook notice appeared. It was promoting a blog post by known idiot Matt Walsh. “If you can’t accept me at my worst, then you don’t deserve me at my best.”… “the original quote is from Marilyn Monroe. It’s even more vapid and nauseating when taken in its full context: “I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.” Out of all the profundities ever uttered, what does it say about our society that THIS is the quote we’ve decided to take to heart?” It is generally accepted that Marilyn did not say that. The top debunker is now a malware distributor, and not available for viewing. Somehow, that seems appropriate.
Pictures today are from the Library of Congress. “Listening to speeches at mass meeting of Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers protesting congressional cut of relief appropriations. San Francisco, California.” Photographer: Dorothea Lange February 1939. This is a repost.
One Star Jeffy
Two stories appeared here in 2011. 052811 052911 They were both based on a facebook quote … “I think we’re having a misunderstanding about what I mean by emotional truth aka “your truth.” It’s a new concept for me too.” The concept today is to assemble a collection of drabbles … 100 words stories … on the murky concept of “your truth”. The only rule is not to spend too much time, or effort, writing this thing. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. “Jewell Pathe’s Bathing Beauty Pirates capture Vitagraph Ships for “Captain Blood”, Balboa Beach, California, June 15, 1924”
Dog Jail, a substack organ, ran a story about the coming obsolescence of clickbait. Before you start cheering, what AI has planned is much worse. … “Last week, an AI-generated image of an explosion near the Pentagon went viral on social media, briefly spooking the stock market. … The AI technology that really made stocks flutter was the social media algorithms that showed the image to so many, so fast.” … Content consumers “have become vigilant against clickbait. Most now know that the link promising “One Weird Trick to Prevent Colon Cancer” is unlikely to save your life. The designers …”
“Government Official Who Makes Perfectly Valid, Well-Reasoned Point Against Israel Forced To Resign” The Onion 052011 “State Department diplomat Nelson Milstrand, who appeared on CNN last week and offered an analysis implying that Israel could perhaps exercise more restraint toward Palestinian moderates in disputed territories, was asked to resign Tuesday. … “The United States deeply regrets any harm Mr. Milstrand’s remarks may have caused our democratic partner in the Middle East,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in an unequivocal condemnation of the veteran foreign-service officer’s statements. “U.S. policy toward Israel continues to be one of unconditional support and fawning sycophancy.”…
The seminal blog post appeared in 2011. Most of the links are no longer operative. Currently existing sites will have priority today. … Reality Sandwich is for people who cannot afford a nothing burger. One of the most commented on stories is “Lady Gaga: The Visionary Rebirth of the Divine Mother Monster”. The linked feature deals with flying saucers. “ … Naked Hunger talks about a woman who wants to lose weight. “Nobody said that “my truth” was going to interest anyone except me! … We enter into a war we will never, I repeat never, win: woman against her appetite.”
The me me me meme gets a further workout in Saying “Yes” to Me … I felt as if the very foundations of my life had shifted” … Some guy named Jeffy is promoting a book called Get Laid or Die Trying. There is a quote from Tupak Shakur about players and bitches. At the end, the book gets one more plug… “Hate to be such an annoying ass (not really), but if you haven’t got a copy of the book yet, get it today. It’s really good! I swear! Excellent coffee table book and perfect for the bathroom.”
The one star reviews of Jeffy’s book are a hoot. … “ this person is a sleazy airhead … His approach, style, attitudes etc. have all the charm and sex appeal of an overflowing toilet.” … I got the audiobook, narrated by the author. It’s a complete pain to listen to, because he insists on screaming regularly. If I turn the volume down, I can’t hear the regular speaking at all, and if I turn it up to a normal volume, suddenly he’s screaming again and I have to turn it down.”
More one star Jeffy: May Karma Visit Upon Jeff Allen “This guy is a narcissitic player without emotion … A really sad, selfish character who is all about himself to the bitter end. Guys, if you want to be like that, please find your own planet!” … How about you just die trying? “This is the last guy in the world that you should be getting dating advice from: […] Honestly, you’d probably get more romantic or at least creative approaches for free by driving to your local state penitentiary and interviewing a serial pedophile.”
Blonde Stories
The world is in turmoil. People are killing people for no good reason. The government is run by liars and scoundrels. Religion is a dirty word. It is time for blonde stories . Thank you FunnyJokes. Pictures are from The Library of Congress
A married couple was asleep when the phone rang at 2 in the morning. The very blonde wife picked up the phone, listened a moment, and said ‘How should I know, that’s 200 miles from here!’ and hung up. The husband said, ‘Who was that?’ The wife answered, ‘I don’t know, some woman wanting to know if the coast is clear.’
Two blondes are walking down the street. One notices a compact on the sidewalk and leans down to pick it up. She opens it, looks in the mirror and says, ‘Hmm, this person looks familiar.’ The second blonde says, ‘Here, let me see!’ So, the first blonde hands her the compact. The second blonde looks in the mirror and says, ‘You dummy, it’s me!’
A blonde suspects her boyfriend of cheating on her, so she goes out and buys a gun. She goes to his apartment unexpectedly and when she opens the door she finds him in the arms of a redhead. Well, the blonde is really angry. She opens her purse to take out the gun, and as she does so, she is overcome with grief. She takes the gun and puts it to her head. The boyfriend yells, ‘No, honey, don’t do it!’ The blonde replies, ‘Shut up, you’re next!’
A blonde was bragging about her knowledge of state capitals. She proudly says, ‘Go ahead, ask me … I know ‘em all.’ ‘OK, what’s the capital of Wisconsin ?’ The blonde replies, ‘Oh, that’s easy. Its W.’
Q: What did the blonde ask her doctor when he told her she was pregnant? A: ‘Is it mine?’
Bambi, a blonde in her fourth year as a UCLA Freshman, sat in her US Government class. The professor asked Bambi if she knew what Roe vs. Wade was about. Bambi pondered the question; then, finally, said, ‘That was the decision George Washington had to make before he crossed the Delaware.’
Returning home from work, a blonde was shocked to find her house burglarized. She telephoned the police at once and reported the crime. The police dispatcher broadcast the call on the radio, and a K-9 unit, patrolling nearby, was the first to respond. As the K-9 officer approached the house with his dog on a leash, the blonde ran out on the porch, shuddered at the sight of the cop and his dog, then sat down on the steps. Putting her face in her hands, she moaned, ‘I come home to find all my possessions stolen. I call the police for help, and what do they do? They send me a BLIND COP!’
Chamblee54 
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