Who are our friends? (If we have any)

I think of friends as those who have our best interests at heart.  Between nations, the relationship should be mutually beneficial.  With that in mind, whom can we count as friends in the Mid East?  Forget whether we like the leaders or approve of their form of government. Other than Saudi Arabia who is our friend?  We don't like a lot of things about the country but Saudi Arabia  has a number of times upped the production of crude to bring the price of oil lower

Mubarak was no saint but he cooperated with us for over 30 years.  Now that we have helped overthrow him we have no ally in Egypt (yes, I know we have reached out to the Muslim Brotherhood:. Gaddafi wasn't pretty but he has kept Libya friendly for several years. Who knows what will happen when conditions are settled there.

We talk about Israel being the only democracy and we must protect that country.  But is Israel our friend? Well, there is no question Israel benefits from us, receiving funds and a military umbrella. How do we benefit? Israel certainly does not love us and s doubtful if they respect us even a little.  Rabbi Vitzhak Shapiro has written a book proclaiming it is all right to murder gentiles, including children and babies.  He is supported by other rabbis, some who teach from his book.  Rabbi  Ovadia Yusef  preaches that non-Jews are allowed to live only to serve Jews and without that thnere is no place in the world for  Gentiles.

 We want to have friends but the hard truth is that the United States cannot depend upon anyone but ourselves.  Just take one thing for example -- oil.  We can supply ourselves with all the energy we require and could sell to other countries if our stinking government would come to its senses.

Everybody must live frugally but the politicians

Cut back everyone, except the president and family and Congress.  This is not the time to waste the people's money, if there ever is justification.  Obama is great to criticize corporate spending while he lives a lavish lifestyle. Michelle and girls vacationed in Africa, including a safari, spending over half a million.  Now the Obama's will vacation on Martha's Vineyard.

Congress is just as guilty.  Many members find it necessary to visit country after country; of course they can justify those trips with such important matters as comparing rate of mushroom growth in European capitals and the South Sea islands.  Give us a break, you stinkers.

Cardiologist wants me to have heart cath

I have been of  two minds about writing this.  I don't want to give the readers too much boring detail about myself but on the other hand this blog is partly like a diary. Anyway, here goes.  Last Wednesday I had an angina attack.  Nothing unusual there except in its severity and duration. After treatment with nitro and aspirin the pain was halted and I was relieved that I was scheduled to see a cardiologist Monday morning. 

The cardiologist I have seen for five years had resigned and will go to another hospital in July, resulting in me consulting Dr.Davis.  After reviewing my history, listening to me and studying the EKG, he insisted a heart cath is  necessary.  I don;t look forward to that, but the question I have is what would be next.  I asked for a month to consider it.

Remembering a bad day at school many years ago

For my last three years in high school I got a grade of C in English.  Sometime during that period I mentioned that I couldn't understand why I never got a higher grade.  I was told that this teacher would not give a boy a grade above a C; this satisfied me and I didn't worry about it anymore.  During my freshman year I did get A's in English.  It was in this class that something  so odd happened that I continue to wonder about it many, many years later.

The teacher was Miss Bell.  She suddenly stopped her lesson and began to condemn me for something that I supposedly had done.  She never said what it was but the way she blasted me, never stopping until class ended, that it must have been little short of murder.  I asked my friends what it was that I supposedly had done; no one had the least idea.

The worst was yet to come.  The next day in class she started by reminding the class that some member had interrupted the class by doing something terrible.  But, she said, "we are going to forget all about it; I don't even remember who it was that was so bad.:"   Of course, every eye in the class turned to stare at me. I know that probably everyone has been blamed for something he was not guilty of.  It happens more often than being credited for something good that we didn't do.  I am still puzzled at what crime I was supposed to have committed.

(By the way, although I had been out of  the classroom more than three years, I scored near or at the top of the freshman English exam at LSU and had to take only half year of English to get a full year's credit.)                                       

Another member of the Homer "Iron Men" heard from

Saw in the Homer Guardian-Journal that Sammy Camp and wife Julie were given  the Homer Heritage award for business and community service.  They founded Red River Pharma and have served their church and community in many ways and have been married for 51 years.  I could not recognize either one from their pictures in the newspaper.The last time I saw Sammy, over 40 years ago, he asked me if he would have been better off if he had gone to LSU instead of Tulane. I told him I didn't think it  was a mistake.  Sammy was a member of the 1957 football team famed as the Iron Men.  From that team Ray Wilkins, Bobby Flurry and Fred Miller played for LSU the same time.  Fred made all=American and played professional with the BaltimoreColts.

All of them played American Legion baseball for me and all took part in basketball and track.  Sammy always wanted to run the sprints but he  was better as a quarter miler.  I wanted him to try the 880 but he didn't want to do it.  My theory was to try longer and longer distances with the idea that if a sprinter could develop endurance he had an advantage.

Can of string beans $1.67 at Brookshires

What?  a headline about a can of beans; how trivial, you may say.  But have you purchased groceries lately? The forecasts of stagflation (some predicting inflation doubling) cannot be ignored.  Some products like soybeans and sugarcane are already near double those of a few weeks ago and prices will soon be felt on store shelves.

Add inflation to 15 million unemployed workers and you get stagflation like we've never suffered before.  Can you believe that President Obama claimed in a recent speech that he and his people have created 2.1 million private sector jobs?     No wonder his remark was  greeted with derisive laughter.  Can this nation survive more of Obama? We have lost five million manufacturing jobs and there is no sign we are taking any action to replace them. Don't people understand that you must make a product or provide a service for an economy to  grow or at least survive. 

Public service employees, including federal, state and local, have escaped much of the bad times suffered in the private sector, but their day is coming.  Promises of liberal retirement benefits are  like social security in that they have huge unfounded liabilities.  An economist has said that to meet pensions in the future will require $1400 from each household for the next 30 years.  Workers should  prepare for lower benefits in the future because there is no way citizens will agree with that.

My Father's Day gift surprises me

We've called Jessica my Father's Day gift because she was born two days before Father's Day on June 15, 1990.  /She surprised me by coming home Sunday evening with her mother.  Jen had gone to Baton Rouge to attend a 40th anniversary party for her brother Jeff and his wife Diane.  Jen was also going to see Jessica and her dance partner Rivers take part in a two-day dance competition.

I would not be surprised to see Jessica pictured and interviewed by the Baton Rouge Advocate for some of her many school and community activities but I certainly did not think it would be for dancing.  The Advocate was covering the event and chose to interview Jessica and Rivers and run their picture on the front page of a section.  Jessica got a shock at church Sunday morning when many members commented about it.

The important thing is that we got to share a combined birthday and Father's Day cake and to spend some time together.