Time For Leaves to Leave

Autumn leaves are kind of like winter snow....pretty at first, but after they've been around too long they get ugly and dirty and it's just time for them to go away.

So Sayeth The Shack

Here We Go Again!

We're heading for summer and the price of gas is on the way up. Where I live it has gone up 5-10 cents per gallon EVERY DAY for the past week or so. Who to blame? The oil companies? Well, Exxon seems to make record profits every year no matter how high or low the price of gas is so I think they are less to blame than some others. Who are those others? The rich, greedy commodity traders. They are the ones who push up the prices of necessities so they can get a bigger return on their investment dollar while breaking the budgets of the common people who cannot afford to pay more for basic things like food and energy. Have we learned nothing over the past two years? Despite what some "experts" might say, I think that $4-plus/gallon gasoline had a big hand in causing the current economic crisis. The experts might say that it was the mortgage situation but I say that a lot fewer people would have defaulted on their mortgages if they didn't have to pay over $4/gallon for gas just to get to work. And I firmly believe that another steep rise in the price of gas will quell any attempt at an economic recovery anytime soon.

Greed, mixed with a little stupidity, played a big part in the current recession. I am talking mostly about the people who are investing in and manipulating the prices of basic things such as food and energy in order to pad their wallets. In fact I think that such trading should be banned. Necessities such as food and energy should not be traded for profit. The common people simply cannot afford higher prices on food and energy just so the rich people can get richer.

So Sayeth The Shack

Feeling Unstimulated

So they government has given billions of dollars to the banks to "stimulate the economy" and rescue the banks from "failure". And what are the banks doing with this money? They're turning around and screwing their customers!!

I recently received a notice from a bank with which I have a card account. I have never missed a payment or been late, but the notice said they were raising my interest rate about 8 percent! I had the option of "accepting"the change or cancelling my card and paying off the balance at the old rate and terms. So I called and asked them why the increase since I had done nothing to merit this increase. They said it was because of "economic conditions". In other words I was being punished for the actions of other people, since I had nothing to do with the current recession. So I cancelled my card. If that's what they're going to do, screw them! I hope they do fail! I encourage everyone else in this situation to do the same thing so the banks will get the message!

So Sayeth The Shack

Keep Government Out of Sports

The government has been known to overstep its bounds now and than and right here we have a classic case. They want to step in and legislate a college football bowl and playoff system. Now admittedly, the current system is imperfect, but it is no business of the government. Things have really gone too far in this country when the government gets involved with things like this. They need to stick to the business of running the country and sports has nothing to do with that.

So Sayeth The Shack

Trickle-Down Taxation

I read a post on a message board recently that got me thinking. One person said "we don't have to worry about our taxes going up; that will only happen to productive, hard-working Americans making $250,000 or more." The other person said "my employer makes that much; there goes my raise."

Previously I had been all for the idea of increasing taxes on better-off individuals and companies while keeping taxes low on the rest of us. But this little exchange got me to think. If the company I work for has to pay more taxes, they will have less money to pay their workers or to invest in capital improvement. So really a tax increases on businesses and well-off individuals can really also end up being a tax increase on the rest of us, without the rest of us realizing it. So we end up paying one way or the other.

Of course there is no guarantee that if our employers get to keep the money, they will use it to increase our compensation or to better our working conditions.

So Sayeth The Shack

These People Should Work for PENNDOT

Now they'll expect everyone to fix their own roads!!

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/04/09/hawaii.volunteers.repair/index.html?eref=rss_topstories


So Sayeth The Shack

Leave The Drunks Laying In The Street

Leave the drunks laying in the street.

That's what I say after reading the latest story about people with legitimate injuries having to wait 8 hours in the emergency room for treatment or transfer to another facility because the ambulances were too busy bringing in drunks who were injured or passed out during the State Patty's Day drunkfest. The people who pass out should be left laying wherever they end up, in their own vomit even. Those who are injured should be made to wait 8 hours or go elsewhere for treatment so they can sober up and think about it. I have no sympathy whatsoever for these people. They deserve what they get.

I wonder how any of these drunks would feel if someone had died waiting for the ambulance that was instead tied up taking them to the hospital because they were behaving senselessly.

And to the person who said “It wasn’t the students’ fault. It’s just what we do.” you can just take your money and go somewhere else. We don't want you or your money in our town. If that's what the future leaders of our country do, then this country is in worse shape than I thought.

So Sayeth The Shack

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The Nest Gets Emptier

I don't usually say much about my personal or family life on this site, but I'll make an exception.

We now have one less person in our household as our oldest, our daughter, moved out last week. I guess it would have technically happened several months ago had she chosen to go to college, but she did not, even though she had applied and been accepted. And that's OK with me. College isn't for everyone...I barely made it through myself. And it costs so much sometimes I wonder if it is even worth it. She has been working full-time since before high-school graduation last year and has been wanting to move out (especially since I started charging her rent beginning this year). So she moved in with some friends across town. We'll see how things go. Rents are high around here and working full time at a pizza place barely pays enough for that and a few other necessities. She knows she can come back if she needs to. Meanwhile, what to do with her room. We have a few ideas, but I don't want to do anything too drastic until we see how permanent this arrangement ends up being.

So Sayeth The Shack

Not An "Accident"

"Crash death ruled accidental" was the headine to a story concerning the death of a 4-year old boy as the result of a car crash. This tragedy could have easily been prevented and so was no more an "accident" than those that are caused by drunk drivers. In this case, according to newspaper reports, the driver of the car, the boy's mother, attempted to pass another vehicle IN A NO PASSING ZONE ON A SNOW-COVERED ROAD! She slid off the road and hit a tree head-on. There is a double dose of stupidity here. First of all, no-passing zones are there for a reason. Due to sight distance, curves or potential oncoming traffic entering the road from an intersection, it has been deemed unsafe to pass in the area. Second, on a snow-covered and slippery road? Just take it easy and slow down. Sure there are some people who drive too slow in those conditions, but it is safer to just back off and stay behind them than to try to pass, especially in a no-passing area.

So Sayeth The Shack

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The Octuplet Scam

So this woman that had the octuplets, along with all her other kids, apparently is just trying to make some kind of celebrity of herself. She has a publicist and a website. (Wonder who is paying for those). She even has the audacity to be using the website to ask for donations! And supposedly she has received death threats. While the death threats, if they have indeed occurred (note my skepticism) cannot be condoned, I have to say that anyone who actually donates money to this woman via her website is an idiot. This is all just a big scam to get money and noteriety. The next thing we know she'll be showing up on "The View" and whatever other talk show she can weasel her way on to.

So Sayeth The Shack

I Hate (Love) My Job

Ever hate something and love it at the same time? That is how I feel about my job right now.

Regular readers know what I do and where I do it so I won't get into that. Besides it could be most any job.

I was never too keen on the "new system" my company went to a couple of years or so ago, but recently it has gotten worse. In early December, a couple of positions were cut from the shift I work on and the work was "redistributed". And I'll tell you right where it all went: to me! So now I am doing not only what I used to do but also what two other people used to do. And I only have the same amount of time to do it that I had before. This is an enormous amount of work to be responsible for and I m also expected to get everything right. Some days it doesn't bother me too much, but other days it does, and this is one day when it bothered me a lot. So I just had to write it down, shout it from the highest hill: I hate my f-ing job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But I have to say that at the same time, I love my job....sort of anyway. In a time when it seems tens of thousands more people are losing their jobs every day, I have to say that I am at least somewhat happy to still be employed. Because if I weren't, I'd have nowhere to live and nothing to eat. It's just that on some days, like today, I'd rather be a trash collector.

So Sayeth The Shack

The Obama Abortion Irony

Our new president is a supporter of abortion rights. The conservative Catholic group, Catholicvote.org, had a new ad to coincide with his inauguration yesterday. The gist of the ad was as follows.....

"This child's future is a broken home
he will be abandoned by his father
his single mother will struggle to raise him
despite the hardships he will endure
this child
will become
The 1st African American President
Life
Imagine the Potential"

What are the odds that our now-president might have become just another abortion statistic?

While I agree that abortion should be up to an individual, the individual should not just automatically decide to abort a fetus just because it looks like it might be a tough road ahead. People actually can overcome and rise above bad situations.

So Sayeth The Shack

What's The Harm In Mentioning "God"?

Many years ago, the atheists were successsul in getting prayer removed from our public schools. More recently, some have attempted to get the words "so help me God" removed from the presidential oath of office. In the meantime, what about the "in God we trust" that is emblazened on our currency and the fact that when you testify in court you swear an oath on a bible ending with the words "so help me God". (There are exceptions for non-believers in most cases). There are still many religious references in public everyday life.


For those who believe in God, which is still the majority of people in this country, this is not a problem. Since this country is supposed to be a Democracy, that means majority rules, right? So those who do not believe should "take a back seat". Just like those who did not vote for the new president-elect should "get over it" and "get on with their lives"

Besides, even if you do not believe in God, is the mention of His name going to kill you? Surely, I think not. Does it offend you? If so, you need some thicker skin. So I really don't see the problem with phrases such as "so help me God" or "in God we trust", at least when spoken by someone else. To the atheist, it is just an empty, meaningless phrase. And in most cases, exemptions have been made for non-believers when testifying in court that they do not need to speak these words. So it should ultimately be up to the person taking the oath whether or no to make a reference to God. If the incoming president chooses not to speak these words, he should not have to. But if he did choose not so, that would cause quite a stir, don't you think?


So Sayeth The Shack

Happy New Year 2009

My longtime readers know that I am usually somewhat of a scrooge when it come to New Year's.

But this year I will start things off on a slightly different note.

Happy New Year from The Shack. May 2009 be better that or at least as good as 2008 for you and your families. May you face and overcome new challenges with faith and strengh. May you strengthen old relationships and start new ones. May a small piece of the world be better because of you. And may you find yourself a better person in some way 365 days from now. Have a good year!


So Sayeth The Shack