Today, I celebrate my luck:

I had a Dad.

I had a dad who taught me things,

Who wasn’t violent, but did punish me when needed, even though he hated to do so. He taught me right from wrong.

Who taught me how to be a man,
Taught me to do “man things” .

Taught me when to stand up and be a man.

Who was hard, when he had to be, gentle when needed.
Strong as a rock.

Never shirked his job, and never abandoned it.

I was lucky.
Not everyone is.

I know who may dad is, and I wouldn’t be the person I am today without his guidance.

Thanks, Dad.

Happy Fathers Day.

Seems now that Carmen Cruz, the San Juan Mayor (D)(Puerto Rico) is being investigated for corruption during the relief of the Island in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

Odd, isn’t it, that each time there is a major disaster, it is always the Democrats who not only exhibit extraordinary incompetence before and after the tragedy, but, eventually some form of corruption…taking advantage of the rush and confusion to squeeze a few more dollars from an already beleaguered government trying to help the citizens that need that help badly.

So we have these failings…..

Failure to prepare for the disaster beforehand.

Failure to organize relief efforts afterwards (one can, maybe, give her a pass for this….it was, after all, a disaster, and organization was no doubt troublesome in the immediate aftermath)

Failure to ensure that the supplies were sent where they were needed.

Failure to make sure that the ports and truck drivers would, you know….unload and transport those supplies to places where they were needed….instead supporting the strikes in order to gain political favor from those powerful unions.

Failure to ensure that the supplies that weren’t transported were inventoried…Tens of millions of dollars worth of supplies….food, water, medicine …Parts to restore the power grid, etc, were sitting there, not inventoried and not moved to where they were needed.

Now we find that some hastily created companies were formed….and given preferential treatment,,,,to supply items needed ..at exorbitant prices…When people were, literally, starving and dying of thirst.

It’s like New Orleans only on an island. And in Spanish instead of english.

Corruption and mismanagement killed how many folks in Puerto Rico? And all for a few dollars? 

Standards aren’t fair! I mean, they DEFINE you. And the tests MEASURE you, and make you meet Standards.

And no one likes have to measure up. It’s SO HARD.

University of Chicago to stop requiring ACT and SAT scores for prospective undergraduates

So how, exactly are they gonna measure who is capable of actually, you know, Graduating?

Or is the goal just to get people to enroll and spend (someone’s) money at the school?

ETA: I am told by people that should know better than I do that there is a great deal of thought in the academic world that the standardized tests (ACT/SAT) do not predict collegiate success as much as we might have thought. While I am not convinced, the arguments were that High School GPA and some other placement tests do a better job of predicting said success.. At this time, the jury is still out. It was also pointed out that there is a LOT of money that changes hands for the ACT/SAT every year, so there is a LOT of pushback to keep the standardized testing in place.  While I am not convinced yet, (as no one can seem to point out any studies that prove the theories, one way or the other) I now am not sure. 

But still, the fact that it can happen shows that the municipalities are falling down on their jobs….that they are not spending the Taxpayer’s money wisely.

Domino’s Is Fixing Potholes Because They’re Ruining Pizza
“Paving for pizza” is a good advertising gimmick, and the sign of a sad state of infrastructural affairs.

Spending too much on “Social Safety Nets” and allowing the public unions to dictate staffing rates and wages and benefits….to the detriment of the people they are supposed to serve.

Sad. 

Unless, of course, they are tariffs that the mother country imposes on imports from the US.

Trump offers to cut ALL tariffs, if the other G7 countries will do the same.

No tariffs, no Government subsidized industries, Nothing but unadulterated Free Trade.

The other G7 leaders did not comment. Nor did they accept his offer. 

If so, you might want to read this:

Ruger recalling some MkIV (including 22/45) pistols due to issues with safeties. 

Seems that if you put the safety on part-way and then pull the trigger (why??) and then move the safety, than things get all loud and such. 

that they think that anyone with a British accent (or even better, an Australian or quasi-expatriate British-like or even better; a breathless Irish or Scottish-like accent (fake or real) has more credibility than someone with an American (US) or any other accent?

It’s not like these commentors have  more education than their American english speaking counterparts….they are, after all, just voice actors reading a script.

So why? What makes the Liberals sit up and listen to them with rapt attention. What gives the accented voice-overs more credibility and gravitas in their eyes?

And decides they’d rather have Amazon as an employer of their citizens rather than Tax them into leaving. 

Amazon told the city they’d vote with their wallet (and feet) rather than pay an exorbitant tax on their employees. The giant was willing to abandon their new building and leave….go elsewhere where their presence was welcomed…where they were wanted and seen as more than a source of additional tax  income, rather than a source of good jobs for people.

50,000 jobs stayed in the greater Seattle area.

Greed kills, as the Fairy Tale taught many of us long ago…..others, perhaps, have to learn that lesson over and over

Critics are critical of the Royal Family after Prince George is seen playing with a TOY gun.

“Completely tone deaf of Kate… to give Prince George a toy gun. Doesn’t she read the papers in her own country with all the gun deaths?”

I think that if these folks had to face the people they criticize, instead of just posting their criticism on Twitter, they’d be more circumspect.

Interesting that the Anti Gun folks have crossed the pond…. 

Ranked by state.

How long will you live?

Me? Just under 75 years.

(Not sure what criteria they used, or how they compared things to other countries)