JFK'S Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, was in France in the early 60's when
De Gaulle decided to pull out of NATO. De Gaulle said he wanted all US
military out of France as soon as possible.
Rusk responded,
"Does that include those who are buried here?"
De Gaulle did not respond.
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When in England , at a fairly large conference,
Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury
if our plans for Iraq were just an example of 'empire building' by George
Bush.
He answered by saying,
"Over the years, the United States has sent many of
its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom
beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for
in return is enough to bury those that did not return."
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There was a conference in France
where a number of international engineers
were taking part, including French and American. During a break,
one of the French engineers came back into the room saying, "Have you
heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft
carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he
intend to do, bomb them?"
A Boeing engineer
stood up and replied quietly: "Our carriers have three
hospitals on board that can treat several hundred people; they are
nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to
shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to
feed 3,000 people three meals a day, they can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day, and they carry half a
dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and from their flight deck. We have eleven such ships;
how many does France have?"
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A U.S. Navy Admiral
was attending a naval conference that included
Admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of officers that included personnel from most of those countries.
Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a
French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English. He then asked, "Why is it that
we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?"
Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, "Maybe it's because the Brit's, Canadians, Aussie's and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German."
You could have heard a pin drop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane.
At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.
"You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer asked sarcastically.
Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
"Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
The American said,
"The last time I was here, I didn't have to show it."
"Impossible..
Americans always have to show their passports on arrival in France !"
The American senior
gave the Frenchman a long hard look.
Then he quietly explained,
''Well, when I came ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country,
I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to."
You could have heard a pin drop.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Saturday, November 5, 2011
The Meaning of Life
Meaning is derived from purpose. If I create a watch I give it meaning based on its purpose. If you believe creation is random - essentially a multitude of random chances falling into place, then there is random meaning - ie: no meaning. If you believe in a Creator, then meaning comes from the creator. Thus, to understand the meaning of life, you need to understand the purpose for which it was created. If there is no purpose, then it follows that there is no meaning.
To say that "the meaning of life is to live life" has no meaning. Is life self determinant?Is life a state of existance or is it something more? If it is existance, then we are no different than any other form of existance. We just exist. If there is more, like happiness, or bliss or avoiding suffering, then what defines those qualities? Do I define my own happiness? If my happiness intrudes on your happiness what then? Is there a higher standard of happiness? Where did it come from? If there is no creator then that question of there being a higher standard is foolish.
To say that "the meaning of life is to live life" has no meaning. Is life self determinant?Is life a state of existance or is it something more? If it is existance, then we are no different than any other form of existance. We just exist. If there is more, like happiness, or bliss or avoiding suffering, then what defines those qualities? Do I define my own happiness? If my happiness intrudes on your happiness what then? Is there a higher standard of happiness? Where did it come from? If there is no creator then that question of there being a higher standard is foolish.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Do you support "Occupy Wall Street"?
If you do, then do the following:
1. Take your money out of the big five banks and put it in small local banks
2. Take your investments out of the big investment companies and invest locally.
3. Get loans from your local bank or credit union - not the big banks.
4. Do not vote for representatives who receive money from outside your district - if they do, then they won't represent you - they will represent those who gave them money.
5. Only buy "Made in America" that supports jobs like nothing else.
6. Buy from your local shops before you buy from chain stores. That keeps your money in the community.
7. Keep your community clean, drug free and support neighborhood watch - look out for each other. That will bring your police and medical costs down.
1. Take your money out of the big five banks and put it in small local banks
2. Take your investments out of the big investment companies and invest locally.
3. Get loans from your local bank or credit union - not the big banks.
4. Do not vote for representatives who receive money from outside your district - if they do, then they won't represent you - they will represent those who gave them money.
5. Only buy "Made in America" that supports jobs like nothing else.
6. Buy from your local shops before you buy from chain stores. That keeps your money in the community.
7. Keep your community clean, drug free and support neighborhood watch - look out for each other. That will bring your police and medical costs down.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
What is atheism?
It depends on where you come from. Fundamentally it is the rejection of the existence of a deity.
On the surface, this sounds innocuous. While many might find it unpalatable and others a crazy idea, a very large number of people in the world are atheist.
Now here is the rub: It is not the belief that human life ends at the last breathe. It is not the belief that human spirit ends its existence after the physical body “dies.” Atheism is NOT the belief that science is the only proof of existence. It is simply the rejection of a creator.
So, why did I say “It depends on where you come from”?
In the western (American) culture, heavily influenced by materialism, atheism goes hand in hand and indistinguishable from the concept that human life ends with the death of the material human body, AND that nothing exists beyond the eventual ability of science to prove. Personally I find this to be an incredibly arrogant and closed minded approach to existence.
Then there is the Eastern metaphysical view of atheism exemplified by Buddhism. Buddhism is an “Atheistic” religion in that it does not hold that there is a “creator” God; but, it DOES teach that human life is more than the confines of the physical body.
Buddhism does acknowledge an ever evolving human spirit that continues to grow after the death of our present physical body through ever higher levels of existence and inter-action with the universe. Buddhism does not expound a creator God but does extort humans to become “god-like” through a journey of self-discovery encompassing ever broader universal ideals.
Even if I held to this belief, I would still have to ask, “with a universe as vast as ours, is there not room for life other than – and perhaps even much greater than, human?”
On the surface, this sounds innocuous. While many might find it unpalatable and others a crazy idea, a very large number of people in the world are atheist.
Now here is the rub: It is not the belief that human life ends at the last breathe. It is not the belief that human spirit ends its existence after the physical body “dies.” Atheism is NOT the belief that science is the only proof of existence. It is simply the rejection of a creator.
So, why did I say “It depends on where you come from”?
In the western (American) culture, heavily influenced by materialism, atheism goes hand in hand and indistinguishable from the concept that human life ends with the death of the material human body, AND that nothing exists beyond the eventual ability of science to prove. Personally I find this to be an incredibly arrogant and closed minded approach to existence.
Then there is the Eastern metaphysical view of atheism exemplified by Buddhism. Buddhism is an “Atheistic” religion in that it does not hold that there is a “creator” God; but, it DOES teach that human life is more than the confines of the physical body.
Buddhism does acknowledge an ever evolving human spirit that continues to grow after the death of our present physical body through ever higher levels of existence and inter-action with the universe. Buddhism does not expound a creator God but does extort humans to become “god-like” through a journey of self-discovery encompassing ever broader universal ideals.
Even if I held to this belief, I would still have to ask, “with a universe as vast as ours, is there not room for life other than – and perhaps even much greater than, human?”
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Did Treasury Just Strategically (Intentionally) Default?
The Market Ticker ® - Commentary on The Capital Markets
Posted 2011-07-01 18:54
by Karl Denninger
in Federal Government
Ignore this thread
Did Treasury Just Strategically (Intentionally) Default?
It sure looks like they did.
Yesterday.
Here's the DTS (daily cash statement) for Treasury.
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=189249
And here's the problem with it:
Note that the pink line did not move much. In fact, it went down.
It should have gone up - a lot - because the "Trust Funds" (you know, Social Security and Medicare?) that you folks on the left keep bleating about being "money good" and "actual debt" had a coupon payment from Treasury due yesterday.
IT WAS NOT MADE.
IF IT HAD BEEN, IT WOULD HAVE BLOWN THE DEBT LIMIT.
That's a default, and it instantaneously destroys both the claim that such activity is not "selective" or, if you prefer, "strategic" and it also destroys the argument that Medicare and Social Security Trust fund "debt" - not just public debt - is subject to the 14th Amendment and thus is "protected" against the Treasury choosing to blow it off.
By the way if you're curious about how much this should amount to (~$90 billion, more or less) have a look at the June 30th, 2010 DTS statement.
Oh, and as for Geithner? He said that any default on any obligation would trigger an immediate market panic. Well, this did - straight up on the S&P and DOW. So much for Timmy's lies.
Have a nice day.
Hattip Publius on the forum who caught it before I did.
Posted 2011-07-01 18:54
by Karl Denninger
in Federal Government
Ignore this thread
Did Treasury Just Strategically (Intentionally) Default?
It sure looks like they did.
Yesterday.
Here's the DTS (daily cash statement) for Treasury.
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=189249
And here's the problem with it:
Note that the pink line did not move much. In fact, it went down.
It should have gone up - a lot - because the "Trust Funds" (you know, Social Security and Medicare?) that you folks on the left keep bleating about being "money good" and "actual debt" had a coupon payment from Treasury due yesterday.
IT WAS NOT MADE.
IF IT HAD BEEN, IT WOULD HAVE BLOWN THE DEBT LIMIT.
That's a default, and it instantaneously destroys both the claim that such activity is not "selective" or, if you prefer, "strategic" and it also destroys the argument that Medicare and Social Security Trust fund "debt" - not just public debt - is subject to the 14th Amendment and thus is "protected" against the Treasury choosing to blow it off.
By the way if you're curious about how much this should amount to (~$90 billion, more or less) have a look at the June 30th, 2010 DTS statement.
Oh, and as for Geithner? He said that any default on any obligation would trigger an immediate market panic. Well, this did - straight up on the S&P and DOW. So much for Timmy's lies.
Have a nice day.
Hattip Publius on the forum who caught it before I did.
A free and independent press? Yeah, right ...
by Arthur Noren on Saturday, July 2, 2011
"There is no such thing, at this date of the world's history, in America as an independent press. You know it and I know it. There is not one of you who dares to write your honest opinions, and if you did you know beforehand that it would never appear in print.
"I am paid $150 a week for keeping my honest opinion out of the paper I am connected with. Others of you are paid similar salaries for things, and if any of you would be so foolish as to write honest opinions, would be out on the streets looking for another job. If I allowed my honest opinions to appear in one issue of my paper, before 24 hours, my occupation would be gone.
"The business of the journalists is to destroy the truth; to lie outright; to pervert; to vilify; to fawn at the feet of Mammon, and to sell his country and his race for his daily bread. You know it and I know it and what folly is this toasting an independent press. We are the tools and vassals of rich men behind the scenes.
"We are Jumping-Jacks -- they pull the strings and we dance. Our talents, our possibilities and our lives are all the property of other men. We are intellectual prostitutes!" -- John Swinton, 1914, former Editor New York Times, (Un-biased Media?? and much worse since then!!)
Keep that in mind as you explore these News Page Links!!
Idaho Travel News
Montana Travel News
Coeur d'Alene Press
Spokane Spokesman-Review
Montana Standard
Missoulian
The Idaho Observer
LewRockwell.com
FOX News
NewsMax
World Net Daily
Electronic Telegraph
Drudge Report
Wall Street Journal
U.S.A. Today
Washington Post
And on the bottom of the list
ABC
CNN
"Mr. Swinton made the statement in 1914 in his speech at the New York Press Club during his retirement party from the New York Times.
"Swinton had been managing editor of the New York Sun until he started his own journal - John Swinton's Paper in 1883. It became one of the most influential and interesting journals in the country. It played a significant role in the upheaval of the American working class in the mid 1880's. Swinton was active in the free-state movement in Kansas and later worked for the New York Times.
"As a side note, John Swinton (1828 - 1921) was the author of the book, "STRIKING FOR LIFE, Labor's Side of the Labor
Question. The Right of the Workingman to a Fair Living (1894)", as the result of some experience, reflection and observation. This book contains a discussion of the rights of labor by some of their most important spokesmen.
The New York Times owns the Boston Globe. Look at who owns both:
Cede & Co., c/o The Depository Trust Co. (the FederalReserve)
United States Trust Company of New York
Wells Fargo Institutional Trust Company
Bank of New York
Bank One Ohio Trust Company
Bankers Trust Company
Boston Safe Deposit & Trust Co.
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.
The Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A.
Boston Safe Deposit & Trust Co.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Mellon Bank, N.A.
Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
Morgan Guaranty Trust Co.
Northern Trust Co.
Smith Barney, Inc.
"What do you think the chances are that you're ever going to hear a single story that the Federal Reserve Banking Cartel doesn't approve?
"And which other media sources are owned by the Federal Reserve Banking Cartel established in 1913-1914?? All of them???
"The bureaucratic objective is this: If you cannot suppress the news or control it, then for heaven's sake convert it into a meaningless mass of gobbledegook." (Roger Tarterian, Editor, United Press
International, March, 8, 1967)
""You cannot hope to bribe or twist, thank God,
an American journalist - But seeing what the man will do, unbribed, there's no
occasion to." (Humbert Wolfe)
""This is, in theory still a free country, but
our politically correct, censorious times are such that many of us tremble to give vent to perfectly acceptable views for fear of condemnation. Freedom of speech is thereby imperiled, big questions go undebated, and great lies become accepted, unequivocally, as great truths." (Simon Heffer, Daily Mail, June 7th, 2000)
"There is no such thing, at this date of the world's history, in America as an independent press. You know it and I know it. There is not one of you who dares to write your honest opinions, and if you did you know beforehand that it would never appear in print.
"I am paid $150 a week for keeping my honest opinion out of the paper I am connected with. Others of you are paid similar salaries for things, and if any of you would be so foolish as to write honest opinions, would be out on the streets looking for another job. If I allowed my honest opinions to appear in one issue of my paper, before 24 hours, my occupation would be gone.
"The business of the journalists is to destroy the truth; to lie outright; to pervert; to vilify; to fawn at the feet of Mammon, and to sell his country and his race for his daily bread. You know it and I know it and what folly is this toasting an independent press. We are the tools and vassals of rich men behind the scenes.
"We are Jumping-Jacks -- they pull the strings and we dance. Our talents, our possibilities and our lives are all the property of other men. We are intellectual prostitutes!" -- John Swinton, 1914, former Editor New York Times, (Un-biased Media?? and much worse since then!!)
Keep that in mind as you explore these News Page Links!!
Idaho Travel News
Montana Travel News
Coeur d'Alene Press
Spokane Spokesman-Review
Montana Standard
Missoulian
The Idaho Observer
LewRockwell.com
FOX News
NewsMax
World Net Daily
Electronic Telegraph
Drudge Report
Wall Street Journal
U.S.A. Today
Washington Post
And on the bottom of the list
ABC
CNN
"Mr. Swinton made the statement in 1914 in his speech at the New York Press Club during his retirement party from the New York Times.
"Swinton had been managing editor of the New York Sun until he started his own journal - John Swinton's Paper in 1883. It became one of the most influential and interesting journals in the country. It played a significant role in the upheaval of the American working class in the mid 1880's. Swinton was active in the free-state movement in Kansas and later worked for the New York Times.
"As a side note, John Swinton (1828 - 1921) was the author of the book, "STRIKING FOR LIFE, Labor's Side of the Labor
Question. The Right of the Workingman to a Fair Living (1894)", as the result of some experience, reflection and observation. This book contains a discussion of the rights of labor by some of their most important spokesmen.
The New York Times owns the Boston Globe. Look at who owns both:
Cede & Co., c/o The Depository Trust Co. (the FederalReserve)
United States Trust Company of New York
Wells Fargo Institutional Trust Company
Bank of New York
Bank One Ohio Trust Company
Bankers Trust Company
Boston Safe Deposit & Trust Co.
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.
The Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A.
Boston Safe Deposit & Trust Co.
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
Mellon Bank, N.A.
Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
Morgan Guaranty Trust Co.
Northern Trust Co.
Smith Barney, Inc.
"What do you think the chances are that you're ever going to hear a single story that the Federal Reserve Banking Cartel doesn't approve?
"And which other media sources are owned by the Federal Reserve Banking Cartel established in 1913-1914?? All of them???
"The bureaucratic objective is this: If you cannot suppress the news or control it, then for heaven's sake convert it into a meaningless mass of gobbledegook." (Roger Tarterian, Editor, United Press
International, March, 8, 1967)
""You cannot hope to bribe or twist, thank God,
an American journalist - But seeing what the man will do, unbribed, there's no
occasion to." (Humbert Wolfe)
""This is, in theory still a free country, but
our politically correct, censorious times are such that many of us tremble to give vent to perfectly acceptable views for fear of condemnation. Freedom of speech is thereby imperiled, big questions go undebated, and great lies become accepted, unequivocally, as great truths." (Simon Heffer, Daily Mail, June 7th, 2000)
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