Monday, March 28, 2011

Publius Minimus to Diogenes......"Its one thing to shoot your mouth off during a presidential campaign; sound much smarter then you really are and say whatever will get yourself elected. It’s an entirely different thing to be elected President, and with all the information and intelligent at your disposal, to govern domestically and as the leader of the free world as if you’re still that ill-informed candidate. Well, at least it was until two years ago."    
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Saturday, March 26, 2011

Great Moments in History #21

Ms. Swanson went on to be an unprecedented 10 time winner.  
She also pursued a movie career in her in her spare time.  
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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Educational Crash Course #14

Another Installment of Diogenes'
 Public Service Educational Series:


 
Next in the series: Genetics for beginners
with Rev. Louis Farrakhan  

 ......Class Dismissed!
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Monday, March 21, 2011

Publius Minimus to Diogenes......"Does anyone actually know who these Libyan rebels are, and what they want other than no more Muammar el-Qaddafi?  Have we just given aid to radical muslims, who may form another Iranian-style theocracy or Taliban, and are handing them the doorstep to Europe? I doubt very seriously they want constitutional democracy, pluralistic society and WiFi access, and I don’t think they're fighting to make Libya safe for Starbuck's and Arby's."
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Great Moments in History #14

  
On this day in 1964...

To counter the onslaught of the sixties British Music Invasion, legendary rock band 'Newman, Davis, Mitchum, Martin & Garner' was formed as music's first "Super Group". Gigs were raucous and far between, and the band finally disbanded to spend time on solo careers and film projects. Their ground breaking formula has been followed successfully many time since. Band members privately blamed the groups demise on the  refusal of Frank Sinatra to join the project after insisting on he be lead singer, and which kind of hats would be worn. 
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Saturday, March 19, 2011

Joseph R. Biden Railroad Station Christened

With only a minor delay, like the Amtrak C.E.O having to be brought to the event in a car  after his train was delayed, the historic refurbished Wilmington Train Station was put into service officially as "The Joseph R. Biden Jr. Railroad Station" today.

The refurbished Station received $20 million in federal stimulus funds and managed to come in somewhere in the neighborhood of $5.7 million over budget.

Tax Payers and fans gave a big send-off to the  
Vice President and the first train as it leaves out of  
the newly christened Biden Station.
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Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Now Leaving Gate 37...........The Crazy Train.


From Capitalist Preservation  

Joe Biden and Amtrak. 
America's two favorite long time  
Federal subsidies. 
" Joe Biden lost out on having a school named after him in his home state of Delaware. This is sad. How does a sitting Vice President of the United States, and I do mean sitting, get SOMETHING, ANYTHING named in their honor? Hmmmm..." Will Profit
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Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Memo: For Immediate Release....


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Monday, March 14, 2011

Publius Minimus to Diogenes......

Publius Minimus to Diogenes......"A gentleman is always mindful of the obligations and duties demanded by courtesy and good manners. That way you tend to sound more believable in the police report."
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I Guess it's Easy to Pick the Right Golf Club.

One of the very real criticisms of Barack Obama by his detractors is his seeming inability to make a decision about anything. This should come as no surprise seeing in his abbreviated term in the U.S. Senate he rarely ever decided anything,  preferring to vote 'Present' on the order of 200 times. On those rare occasions when Obama does make a decision, the process is almost guaranteed to be protracted and that stalling process is pretty much the result of Obama getting too much input, hearing too many opinions, weighing too many options, considering far too many variables. Or is he just not as smart as we were lead to believe?

For democrats, delay, procrastination, indecision, obfuscation, is all part of the Grand illusion of The Great Man of History tragically wrestling with the problems of the day, and the 'Burdens of the Oval Office', which when juxtaposed against black-and-white photos and tinny music is supposed to represent the idealized vision and drama of 'Leadership'. But turns out it's really a mental handicap.



I have been told people who behave this way usually have a serious problem with confidence. Not making decisions is the first indication. Going through a laborious and overwrought process in which all of your attention is focused the on details, no matter how small, is the second indication. People who can never have enough input, can never stop considering putting more and more variables into the decision-making process are not being decisive; they're simply collecting or creating more excuses to not make any decision whatsoever.


While we certainly do not want a Chief Executive who makes hasty, and poorly thought through decisions, neither do want one who dithers over the process, or who burdens himself with too many options. We want, we need, someone to lead. The process of leading requires that the Leader make decisions, surely with the best available information and facts at his command, but not burdened by the fear that the pettiest detail and remotest possibility will always be that one thing you forgot that finally bites you on the ass.


I can understand why Obama is burdened with this particular handicap. He came into office, I think, never having expected to have won in the first place. His experiences in life never prepared him for the reality of having to make the sort of decisions a President in his predicament has to make (to be fair, I don't know what sort of experience, short of the battlefield, can prepare anyone for that sort of thing). I don't think he ever put his name on a piece of legislation while in the Senate, never voiced an opinion until he was certain he knew how it would be received, and he never held a private-sector job in his life.


I'd even go as far as to say that Barack Obama is probably the best example of a poster child for the mollycoddled-advanced-beyond-his-abilities-all-shortcomings-get-papered-over-socially-promoted-Affirmative-Action-Achiever. And I bet the The First Lady lays out his clothes for him in the morning.
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