This is what my monitor showed at 9:00 AM this morning.
For CNN:
For Fox:
If you click on the images, you can see the topics each news media “deems” important.
How can they be so different?
How can CNN essentially ignore the tremendous budget issues confronting the United States while concentrating on the election of the head of the Catholic religion? (Just being factual here – Catholicism is but one religion in this world. Just citing fact.) Well, Michelle Obama got a line in “for being in the vogue”.
Just weeks ago, CNN was headlining day after day Obama’s attack on the “GOP” as he greatly exaggerated the negative effects of the sequester. They even followed Obama when he went campaigning to bash the GOP…instead of trying to run this country.
I thought news was to be objective…or at least consistently applied?
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I will WRITE it.
Our country’s WOES are the result of two dictatorships… A dictatorship being defined as they do as they please as no one can challenge them. A form of Hitler-ism…
One dictatorship is the damn LAWYERS. We are better off without them. We don’t need lawyers representing jerks who go into small businesses just looking for minor violations. Attorneys WON’T restrict themselves as they feel they are “protecting us”. Pffft.
The other dictatorship is the MEDIA. Reporters are using it to spout off their personal feelings or agendas…or of their management…who gets revenue rewards of various “types”.
Ever wonder what happens when Chatter Master influences your daily life…
Lots. Just lots.
It started with a surprise from the reliable Chatter Master… delivered by the (usually unreliable) postal service.
What was in it?
A magic mug…made by Irish leprechauns, no doubt. Mischievous little buggers, they are!
So what did this leprechaun-made magic mug do for us this morning?
A brew of dark, just ground French roast coffee magically filled my magic mug…brewed at the perfect temperature of 195F, of course. Thank goodness they didn’t brew up a green smoothie. Miracle of miracles!
And the mug summoned Spring.
And a little visitor joined us – laden with delicious spring pollen. Achoo!
It made me make homemade waffles for the rug rats…with real maple syrup.
And the magic Chatter Master mug summoned our good neighbor Jake! He ate three! And the great kid he is, he took his plate to the sink.
The magic mug also compelled my son to work on his science project! (Of course, there was a bribe involved…that only partially worked.)
See what happens during a Chatter Master inspired morning??
Wait… What’s this? The yard looks the same… What’s up with that?
My two smallest kids had the honor to see the memorial first hand in June 2010.
Life has been quite unpredictable for me for the past six weeks or so – as well as tiring. I am quite behind in reading many of your fine blogs and that is on my priority to-do list. But it is a hollow descriptive for me to say I am tired.
I am still alive.
Twenty-nine thousand are not.
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The battle for Iwo Jima began 68 years ago on February 19, 1945.
Sixty-eight years ago. Just yesterday for many.
Sixty-eight years ago, about 29,000 young men met horrible deaths on that demonic volcanic island – 22,000 Japanese soldiers and 7,000 Marines. That unforgiving island still has not given up all of her dead to this day… American and Japanese.
Japanese Prime Minister Kan in blue visited Iwo Jima (now renamed Iwo To) in 2010 to help find and exhume Japanese remains. He is the only Japanese Prime Minister to do so.
Indeed, the camaraderie amongst the survivors as well as those linked to the battle by relation or history is rightfully still strong. It is vital to the preservation of bravery, courage and love of country.
Please click on image to see a brief yet touching video.
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As mentioned in an earlier blog, the US Army also participated but not in a manner you would expect.
Per Dr. James McNaughton’s authoritative book, “Nisei Linguists”, Tech Sgt. 5g Terry Takeshi Doi “landed with the assault waves on 19 February 1945”. Doi was a member of the US Army’s top secret Military Intelligence Service (MIS). Doi would be awarded the Silver Star for his actions on Iwo Jima; he went into cave after cave armed only with a flashlight and knife to persuade Japanese soldiers to come out. I believe he is still alive.
Another MIS Nisei, Tech Sgt 3g James Yoshinobu, was fighting in his second world war; he had fought for the US in WW I (that’s ONE) and was 47 years of age while fighting on Iwo Jima. He landed with the 4th Marine Division and was later awarded the Silver Star.
One MIS Nisei, Sgt. Mike Masato Deguchi, was seriously wounded by a land mine and died of his wounds shortly after war’s end.
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Oddly, these Nisei may have never joined the task force sailing out of Pearl for the invasion of Iwo Jima. The Nisei contingent was stopped at the security gate and were prohibited from proceeding because they “looked Japanese”. Only with the accompaniment and support of a few Caucasian officers were they finally allowed to pass and board their transport ships.
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Sixty-eight years later, let us today deeply and reverently remember these brave boys… whether they be American or Japanese…or both. The iconic flag-raising would be tomorrow, February 23.
When I was a youngster, the kids on our Oakford Drive in East Los Angeles would play after-school and certainly after homework was done.
Playing was comprised of two general categories:
1. Sports – like baseball (complete with broken windows) or football (on our lawns spotted with metal sprinkler heads), or,
2. War
Needless to say, I was never a member of the US forces when we played war. (Oh, how I longed to be Sgt. Rock with his bulging biceps and Thompson machine gun blazing away…fighting for the red, white and blue.)
No, I was always the “J” or the “K”… You know what I mean.
To be killed over and over again.
Like with elaborate booby traps: a wooden clothes pin armed with a cap and taped onto a piece of wood. When I neared the booby trap (countless of times), Steve would pull the cord (countless of times) attached to a little string of metal from a spam can holding the clothes pin open..and “POP!” I would crumble to the ground. Very effective weapon if you ask me.
Or shot with John’s toy Winchester. Wait a minute. Winchesters were for cowboys and Indians. I wonder how that got into our (imaginary) war. Oh, well. We were just playing while building our love for country.
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After all, this was only a little more than 15 years after a most bitter war’s end.
Toyota wasn’t even in our vocabulary.
Sony became part of our vocabulary only because of something called a transistor radio.
The gist of it? I hope you will read it and develop your own.
But…
Is this a case of hysteria? Of being afraid of being sued by spotlight-loving lawyers… or CNN making you out to look a villain to support Obama’s political agenda? Just my opinion, of course.
Of what HARM was it? The toy grenade didn’t even have a paper cap… Wait a minute. Was there EVEN a toy grenade? Or maybe it was a fuzzy tennis ball in place of his imaginary grenade?
OMFG.
Don’t punish the kid’s imagination.
Geezus H. Christ.
Maybe he just wants to be Sgt. Rock and save our country.
A car dealer will “rip you off” every time you visit them…or they rip off the OEM when they repair a supposed “warranty” item WITH your car. Lots of stories there on how they rip everyone off.
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Yesterday, I received a bonus that was automatically deposited into my account – which is linked to online banking.
Simple. Hasn’t failed yet.
But then, I saw a “NSF” charge for $35.
THIRTY-FIVE DOLLARS.
Don’t get me wrong. I orchestrate my funds flow – in detail – as I am not rich.
To save even on a day’s interest charge (since my EARNINGS are taxed so much more now), I also schedule payments to “arrive” at the payee’s on the same day as my deposit.
That’s what B of A promises. Headache free on-line banking. I’m sure they make bazillions of dollar on float alone at the same time.
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But yesterday… Well actually, on January 30th, B of A “paid” a large check one day earlier than what I scheduled. Not on the 31st as I scheduled per their “headache free online banking service”.
They paid it one whole day early.
It bounced.
Not “technically” as my bonus hit the bank a minute past midnight. It bounced. On the 30th.
Bank of America PROMPTLY charged me 35 stinking dollars.
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I won’t expand on how much time I spent on THREE phone calls to get them to fix their error. But they apologized. Really.
But TODAY…. February 1st… Their online banking system has been DOWN since about 7:30 AM. It is now past 3:00 PM here.
Funny, isn’t it?
We can’t charge THEM $35 for not being able to access our money at ALL.
Zilch. Nada.
Oh. I’m sorry…
They are telling us to visit one of their convenient ATM’s… but would somebody tell them their ATM’s can’t pay my gas bill?
(Copied from an email. I don’t know who wrote it but I randomly verified a few numbers.)
The state of America’s economy today will impact the prosperity of future generations tomorrow. We created this data card because we want every American to have a simple and easy way to track and discuss the key economic indicators that show the true state of our nation’s economy. The items featured in this card affect every American personally, whether we know it or not.
Join Allen West in standing up for the next generation by printing this data card and using it to start a conversation with your friends about America’s economy. The card will be updated monthly so you will have access to the most recent data.
But we must be vigilant in how we see – or read – things on the internet. It is easy for your sympathies to be played…and your hearts (or your wallets) drained.
Just one case in point… Although this involves Facebook (which I had abandoned a couple of years ago), the medium is of no consequence. A “blog” can achieve the same results.
And people will get hurt… Perhaps financially but always emotionally which can be the most costly.
It is NOT a victimless crime.
Please click on image above or the link below to listen/watch the report.
We all want to feel we helped someone, some animal or pet, or a family in need after a natural disaster.
At the same time, help yourself before you find yourself – or your own family – getting hurt.
Look into a “feel sorry for me” post or blog thoroughly before giving your heart.
If too many things are happening to someone, and you start to feel more sympathetic than ever, take a deep breath… Think about the entire scenario first. You will be able to breathe easier later.
“Just photos,” as they say… Photos of my beautiful daughter’s wedding a couple of weeks ago.
Well, with just a little writing, perhaps, with a smidgeon of our American history tossed in.
In my other blog posts, there has been mention of the “internment camps” in which one-half of my dad’s family was imprisoned in the US during WWII.
Internees were not allowed to bring in cameras amongst many other things deemed to be a threat to national or camp security – like knives, guns, tools…and cameras.
However, at one camp called “Manzanar” (where my Aunt Shiz and cousins were imprisoned), one brave soul braved the tight security measures and actually made his own camera…in secret. He then took prohibited photographs during his interment. His name was Toyo Miyatake… (Note: there is a super documentary on Toyo Miyatake called “Toyo’s Camera“: http://www.toyoscamera.com/. One contributor was George Takei who played “Sulu” on “Star Trek”. Takei was also imprisoned during the war.)
Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios
The actual camera he made is shown below; it is still in the possession of the Miyatake family:
Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios
In what I believe is a Signal Corps official photograph, the Toyo Miyatake family is pictured in their Manzanar barracks:
Toyo Miyatake’s family in Manzanar
This is one of the more well-known photographs taken by Toyo Miyatake at Manzanar during WWII:
Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios
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Jump forward to today.
Toyo Miyatake’s grandson is Alan Miyatake; my 11 year old son sneakily grabbed my EXPENSIVE DSLR and snapped this photo of Alan and I chatting at my daughter’s wedding. The gent on the left is Alan. We are the same age……but I do look YOUNGER, of course. Just kidding, Alan!
Alan Miyatake on the left
We’ve known each other for over five decades now; we attended the same church. When we played B-ball in the church league, he played guard. When he let loose a shot, his form reminded me of a graceful ballet. He was good… and his photography was fortunately much better. (Smile)
He shot my weddings…both of them, unfortunately. And there was no one else I was honored to have shooting my daughter’s. Both of us were joking before the wedding that we were both extremely grateful for auto-focus…
The following proofs are Alan’s work where noted.
Thanks, Alan…but I still challenge you in sports photography! LOL
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Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios. Isn’t my daughter just beautiful? Takes after mom, I am told.Copyright Toyo Miyatake StudiosCopyright Toyo Miyatake StudiosCopyright Toyo Miyatake StudiosCopyright Toyo Miyatake Studios
My four wonderful kids:
Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios. This would be the last photo of the four kids together before her marriage. I was honored to have Alan take this portrait.Copyright Toyo Miyatake Studios. My oldest son Takeshi and my ex.Copyright Toyo Miyatake StudiosCopyright Toyo Miyatake Studios. Doesn’t she look gorgeous?
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And now, some of my snapshots… Gotta throw these in:
My son was the officiant (i.e., he married them off). He got choked up a few times. The bridesmaid on the far left is my cousin’s daughter, seven months pregnant.
Ever faithful and reliable Alan at work…They make their entry as husband and wifeFirst dance…
James and my youngest girl Brooke on their way for a dance. It was (HOPEFULLY) her first one.My littlest son’s (hopefully NOT his) first dance.Breaking of the ceremonial cask of “osake” graciously provided by my new in-laws.Remember Jake and Brady? Their parents, too…but Brooke was too embarrassed to dance…yet.Jake lost! She was too embarrassed to dance. 🙂My bud Don and his wife Marie. A guy couldn’t ask for a more loyal and faithful friend. Thanks, Cap.
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Alan, great job once again. I was honored to have you shoot my daughter’s wedding.
And congratulations, James and Robyn. Love you both.
Masako and Spam Musubi 