Out of serene seas, anger.

Today's Tids Issue 3,934

For Hope:

I’ll never get tired of seeing those beautiful, old, flowering bushes along a country road. Now, in the foreground, rolls of hay scattered in fields beyond.

From time to time, we hear dire warnings from our military leaders, like recently when they talked of the real threat from NK. But this morning I heard of another warning, this from Secretary of Defense Mattis. It was to his troops in Afghanistan. He told them, “You just hold the line, my fine young soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines; you just hold the line until our country gets back to understanding and respecting each other, and showing it, and being friendly to one another, as Americans owe to one another because we’re so doggone lucky to be Americans.” That may be scarier than a potential bomb from Kim. Think about it. We are not a nation of one? What are brave men and women fighting for? What are these military people who put their lives on the line thinking about today as they look at the friction back home?

From “Shoe”: Warning: The Musical you are about to watch contains sax and violins.

Do you get the feeling that the left views everything as some kind of social experiment loaded with entitlements?

On Saturday morning, I was looking out the window and saw two men dressed handsomely in full colonial garb, chatting as two men may have in 1776. As they left my visual moment another figure entered, this a man in his early twenties in sandals, shorts and tank top…hair tossled by wind. I was startled by the contrast between today and the days when the US A was founded, when great new concepts were formulated to guide us sensibly. I thought of the ideas and customs of today, which are as disparate as a tank top and ruffled shirt ‘neath silken waistcoats. And I’m thinking how much further can we go. What if we accept everything under the guise of being progressive. That we should not be guided any more by men in powdered wigs. I shuddered.

(Note: There was a gathering in the park around the corner from here where George Washington and Ben Franklyn once strode, a gathering of men women and children in colonial togs, showing people today what it took to live 241 years ago today.)

I heard of a guy who when visiting friends houses, goes into the kitchen and adds items to their To-Do Lists. “Monitor signals from alien spaceship.” “Adopt a child and donate to church raffle”.

A guy recommends for those times when at Mass and you can’t remember the words to a hymn being sung in Latin, that you pull out a Dorito’s bag and read the ingredients to the tune. Pick a hymn and try it.

The Question:

A reader notes that Spell-Check can’t find words like Murgatroyd, nor do millenniums understand words and phrases like Jalopy or Hunky Dory. Name five words or phrases quite familiar in your era which would be quite mysterious today’s youth. OMG, is there such a thing as something young people wouldn’t get!

The Headlines:

--Flooding In Houston Brings Large City to Its Knees; US Coast Guard Taking Charge; There is an Urgent Cry For More Boats; Trump Praises All, Signs Disaster Relief, Planning Visit; Harvey Still Whirling; 50 Inches Of Rain Predicted. 20,000 Cruise Ship Passengers Stranded.

--Wall Street Up; Oil Markets Confused; gas Prices Surghing.

--40% Of All Small Businesses Expected Not To Survive Harvey.

--Masked Leftists Attack Conservatives At Berkley.

--Uber Hires Expedia Exec Dara Khosrowshahi As New CEO; Finally.

--Nafta Negotiations Appear Stalemated.

As you all may remember, from time to time the Tids Actuarial Department randomly picks Providence Journal Obit pages and averages out the ages of the deceased of the day. Saturday’s average age was 82. Note, one age of 48 skewed the average slightly downward. Tossing the 48 brings the average to 84.9. Feel better?

I read where 12 Cleveland Browns knelt in a circle to support the Kaepernick protest. After last year’s 1-15 worst in the NFL record, you’d think they’ be concentrating on learning how to play football.

While emphasizing that Clinton totally abused pardons more than any President by granting them to some serious law breakers for political purposes, legal scholar Jonathon Turley pointed out that the danger in Trump’s pardon of Joe Arpaio could set a precedent for law officials to disregard Federal laws in conflict with what they view as their legitimate mission for their constituents.

And then, there are many legal observers who say Arpaio should never have been convicted in the first place. There two sides to everything, and these days nobody listens to one of them.

Another reason for state’s rights, just in case you didn’t notice it.

Have you noticed that when a house burns down to the ground that only the chimney and fire place are left standing…looking guilty as hell. Who me?

One of the worst of many bad entitlements in our society is crosswalks for pedestrians who think they are authorized right of way on all roads regardless, virtually dismissing all sense of personal responsibility.

Someday I’m going to have to get serious and update my LinkedIn Profile.

As far as I can see from reading the news, you are either a racist or a person of race.

By the way, I seem to have started some kind of “Swims Upside Down is still Swims” controversy. One reader insisted that there is only one answer to that question of which word upside down is still the same – “OHIO”. Of course, I argued and like a liberal sticking by my own misinformation. But, alas swims is in fact the only word that is the same upside down and backward. Sorry folks.

I wonder if any environmentalist group has ever done a study on how much co2 is spewed into the air as cars idle in place when forced to stop by entitled pedestrians.

You know the winds will soon be blowing fiercely against Trump when you heard on last Friday MSNBC host Chuck Todd during his reports on the still at sea, potentially devastating Harvey, wondering in measured tones what Trump will do wrong; uttering the phrase “Harvey will make or break his administration.” How abominable. You know they will do everything in their power to assure that Harvey is a catastrophe at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue too. 

These People Vote, Department:

It has been reported from several locations around the country that people are being treated after they put suntan lotion on their eyeballs to watch the eclipse. What more can I say.

Sunday morning I awoke to the news that Mayweather beat McGregor, and I didn’t feel a thing.

My most recent hobby has been looking for deals on the so-called “bagged” premium coffees. I was getting tired of it until last week when I found for their first time a decent reduction on the cost of that most rarified of all brands, Peets tops shelf coffee. I have now tried it and find it to be average. No need to ever buy that $11.95 coffee again. I have to find a new hobby.

It will be interesting to see what The Donald does to save face if Nafta negotiations go nowhere. Canada and Mexico aren’t about to give in.

The Answer:

There are many, but here are a few. Of course, there is “Heavens to Murgatroyd”. Young techs won’t understand “Carbon Copy” or “Don’t touch that dial” or “You sound like a “Broken record”. How about “Best Bib and Tucker”, “Heavens to Betsy”, “Gee Whillikers and Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat.” “Hey, it’s your nickel”, “Fiddlesticks” and “Kneehigh to a grasshopper” may have entered your minds. There was Captain Marvel’s “Holy Moley” and my personal favorite “Holy Cow”! So, “See you later Alligator. After a while Crocodile”. I think I taught those to my grandchildren. Thanks to Bob B for refreshing my mind.

I look out at the anger in America, and I can only think, “This is a fine kettle of fish.”

The air was cool his beautiful late August morn; the sun just awakened, flickered anew. I walked by the meandering stream and wondered: How can so many things be wrong in a world like this.