Unless you are a certain age, you probably never heard of Walter
Winchell (1897-1972).
Winchell was a radio and newspaper guy who dealt with gossip
stories primarily about people in the entertainment business and politics. He was immensely popular from the 1920s
through the early 1960s. He had a fast
talking style as he blurted out information in short or incomplete sentences
while hitting a telegraph key to give an air of urgency.
His standard opening for his radio show was the sound of the
telegraph key while he shouted “Good evening Mr. and Mrs. North and South
America and all the ships at sea! Let’s
go to press!"
His columns were sometimes called dot, dot, dot, columns
because of his use of dots between short story bursts. Larry King used the same format in later
years and I will imitate it today:
Winchell and his telegraph key
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I have been writing
this blog since 2005 and have found that the most hits I get deal with a blog
from 2008 about “kids growing up too fast.”
Second most popular is a piece I did about the dancing of Fred Astaire
and Ginger Roger's while a story about Alfred
Hitchcock and “Psycho” is third. . . Are older cars better than those made
today? Not a chance but they have the
memories we love to reminisce about. You’ll
never hear kids today talk about going to the drive-in restaurant in a new BMW
but we sure like to talk about going there in our ’57 Chevys all those years
ago. . . Did you know that a brand new Chevy Corvette in 1953 cost $3,490? That was the one with the 6 cylinder engine
and three single barrel carburetors . . . One of my favorite places to eat in
Scottsdale is the Elephant Bar. They
have a nice varied menu, good service, and have been in business for about ten
years which is a rarity these days. Best
BBQ? Try Bryan’s in Cave Creek. . . I
hate cigarettes but if I smoked, I would probably buy my smokes on the Indian
rez. You can save a lot on the tax bite
there and if the store on McDowell east of the 101 is any indication, they are
selling a lot of tobacco. That guy has a
drive-up window that is always busy! . . . What’s the big deal with 3D movies
at the theaters? The old Kachina Theater
in Scottsdale showed them 60 years ago.
They were a fad then and will be now.
Hollywood is hurting; not getting near the business they used to get
when they made good films instead of the garbage and remakes so prevalent now.
. . How times do change! I moved to Scottsdale
in 1987 from the Kansas and Missouri area where Walmart Stores were everywhere. I asked someone at the time about Walmarts in
Phoenix and they gave me a look as if to say, “Who?” It wasn’t long after that I saw one open at
Tatum and Bell. We all know the rest of
that story . . . Winding down for today:
What do Mary Worth, Brenda Starr, Gasoline Alley, Steve Canyon, and Terry and
the Pirates have in common? Answer: They are comic strips that have disappeared.
So long until next
time!!!
Two good recent cartoons:
It's hard to read but the little mooching girl is Obama's fantasy girlfriend "Julia".
65 comments:
Walter ... who? I think in 1972, I was 15 and my favorite writers were in hunting magazines and working from dawn to midnight on the farm, then going to school.
Someone made an offer on the land and I accepted. I took Don's advice and will be keeping the five acres that I live on.
Gonna have to Google Walter later. Been moving stuff out of the shop and I'm tuckered out!
Honestly, I have no clue who Walter Winchell is, but nothing like a little education! This is Walter Winchell reporting. It's not as stiff as today's journalism. This was in the early days of television showing clocks and the time of those international locations. It's really entertaining propaganda and sort of sounds like what's going on now. Some things just never change I guess. If it's not Communisim, it's Islam, or it's someone. The fact is that Americans are a warlike people and we need someone's ass to kick. This country is so cool!
Cigarettes are discussed in this video. Perhaps Winchell might be the first one to say in the media that cigarettes were dangerous and he reported a cancer study that said tobacco products kill cancer. Winchell seemed very controversial.
Winchell says that he is editorializing. You won't see a journalist editorializing on Fox News or CNN and admitting to doing it. So the average person believes that today's editorials are news, but Winchell admitted it was his opinion.
http://youtu.be/OKkLlq8I-bM
So I take it that Jim has a telegraph key app on his computer?
Hi Jim!......I remember Walter very well!.....In fact, he did the narration for the Desilu hit "Untouchables" with Robert Stack for many years which still airs on the ME TV network at 12:30am M-F......speaking of "winding down".....how about Barney Google and Snuffy Smith?......are they still around?.....Your Friend, Sonny
I grew up listening to him, since he was more popular than almost anyone else in radio...and also had a great following of his gossip printed in the newspaper. I recall that he was often accused of being "one of the mob", since he so often wrote of various mob bosses and hit-men and politicians believed to be on the mob payroll.
I joined the Navy in 53, and dont recall ever hearing or reading him since that time.
I wonder if his articles...and his radio exposes...would be as true today as then...with current "actors", of course.
I don't remember Walter Winchell either ... But the name does sound vaguely familiar. Was he ever on the panel of "What's My Line?" ... I know, anybody the doesn't know who Walter Winchell is must be a young whippersnapper. I know a few full grown adults, though, that would ask me what I mean by "What's My Line?" They would have to google it on their I-Phones. That's because, no matter what I say, they don't trust the information unless they can find it online ... Probably don't know what a whippersnapper is either.
Rick,
Winchell was huge in the 20s through the early 60s. By 1920, his newspaper column was in 2,000 newspapers. That was an era where the newspaper was everyone's main source of information.
Radio was just beginning in 1920 but Winchell was soon on it and had millions of listeners. He even got his name into a couple of songs on Broadway and in the movies.
He was quite a character and known for his style of fast talk and that telegraph key.
I have two telegraph keys in case one breaks during a broadcast! LOL
Sonny,
That's correct, Winchell did the narration of "The Untouchables" and i thought he did it well. By then he was getting a little longer in the tooth (early 60s)and sounded a bit more mellow.
That was a nice gig for him because his news career was basically over by then.
I like ME-TV, those old shows are fun to see again.
As Far as Barney Google and Snuffy Smith (and "Aunt Loueesy!, I haven't seen them in a strip for years. I think it was written buy a guy named Fred Lasswell and he is probably gone.
Same as Lil' Abner. Remember Al Capp?
Sam,
You're right about Winchell and the mob. I think he had something to do with Dutch Leonard.
I mused to read his column and was fascinated by his dot,dot,dot, style. It was really different at the time.
He was definitely the leader in his field and there were a lot of class guys in those days although different from Winchell's style. Guys like Lowell Thomas, Robert Trout, Gabriel Heatter, Drew Pearson and others.
CJ,
I don't remember Winchell ever being on "What's My Line?" but he may have done some guest shots. As Sonny mentioned he did the narration part of "The Untouchables" in the early 60s.
He died in '72 so you would have been pretty young during his last few years. He really wasn't much of a factor after the early 60s as the popularity of his style of broadcasting was pretty obsolete. He tried TV but it didn't work; he was too much of a radio guy and seeing him was no big deal.
I know what you mean about people not remembering shows like "What's My Line?" As a kid it was pretty dull to me to watch John Daly flip those cards over until some won a measley $50. But, that is what there was in the 50s and we knew no better.
TO THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO SEE WALTER WINCHELL IN ACTION, HERE IS ONE OF HIS NEWSCASTS FROM 1953.
AS YOU CAN SEE, HE REALLY FIRES OUT THE NEWS IN BITS AND PIECES, HENCE THE "DOT DOT DOT" STYLE OF HIS WRITTEN COLUMNS.
THIS GUY WAS HUGE FOR MANY YEARS WITH HIS STYLE OF REPORTING.
THANKS TO RICK FOR SUBMITTING THE FOLLOWING;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKkLlq8I-bM&feature=youtu.be
From: Joe Finnerty, 5-30
The speed with which Winchell spoke on the radio was way beyond fast . . . more like hearing a machine gun rattle.
I used to read his column in the Daily Mirror. If a celebrity's name appeeared, they were either flattered or flattened.
Burt Lancaster portrayed a character in the movie, Sweet Smell of Success,that was based on Winchell's influence in the media. By his own admission, Winchell said he was a SOB.
Hi Joe,
That was a great film with Lancaster and Tony Curtis. I can see where WW would have disapproved since it wasn't flattering to him.
Winchell was definitly a SOB to many; a tough character.
"Winchell was huge in the 20s through the early 60s. By 1920, his newspaper column was in 2,000 newspapers. That was an era where the newspaper was everyone's main source of information."
In the 60's, TV's didn't last long and I'll give the digital age high marks for not having to slap the boob tube to get rid of the lines. How about having to fix the vertical hold? We often didn't have a TV, so we read a lot and listened to music. Kids played in the dirt.
Winchell having mob connections? It is just so unusual that mainstream entertainers would have links to organized crime!
BTW, I'll be the big double nickel next month and I'm bored with music journalism and the lies of the entertainers.
Jim: Will you please stop constantly reminding me how old I'm getting? LOL. Seriously though, most people under 60 will have no idea who Winchell was.
Chin,
Those are great prices. If I smoked, I'd buy from you.
Rick,
Our first TV (16 inch 1949 "National) had knobs to adjust everything. There was brightness, horizontal, vertical, contrast, and a couple more on the back of the set for whatever.
We had the luxury of a roof antenna which meant that planes going by which interfered with the picture. Then there was a loud buzz that came and went as the scenes changed.
Since we didn't know better and it beat crowing around the radio at night we were happy as could be. After all, on Tuesday's at 8:00 we had Uncle Miltie!
Joe,
You're right; if someone is 60 now they were 20 in 1972 when Winchell died as a non-entity of that time.
That would make them 10 in 1962 which was well after the years of Winchell's popularity as a broadcaster. He was doing the voice overs for "The Untouchables" in the early 60s which was totally different from his actual career so they would probably never have heard him on radio or TV or ever read his columns.
I agree, it does make one feel old based on those circumstances and I know you are in that age range so I know how you feel. You can imagine how I feel; I remember him well!
I'd kill to be 60 again! LOL
Rick,
The big 55 is coming up, huh? You kids!
In case I forget it next month, happy birthday!
Boy has things changed since the day of Walter and I suppose other greats of that era, for one thing I would imagine that people in general trusted the media to somewhat bring them some information and hopefully hold the commentary to the minimum.
But to be fair the media was pretty new and people had not yet had much reason to distrust..
I am guessing that guys like Walter Winchell and Walter Cronkite benefited the most from a trusting America, what they said went as gospel for the most part, today...
not so much.
For instance I frequent the pages of the Russian Times now for news coverage that msm will ignore in concert.
Frankly even though I am near 65 now and my early memories of the issue was mostly him being mimicked in cartoons and such, a pullet broadcasting over a mike with a fedora or something of that sort spitting out machine gun style the news of the barnyard... he was pretty much over the hill by the time I acquired any political or global awareness... and by then Walter Cronkite had taken over as our official news anchor.
blood in the water on the street this morning.
I wonder what his interpretation of the situation would be, right now most of the talkers are mystified as to how things could be imploding so quickly... but that is because they listen to one another implicitly, so the message they hold is identical.
Possibly a guy like Walter would have been involved with the cyber media and actually instead of just covering Mitt Romney holding a presser in front of Solyndria yesterday, would have been doing some serious investigating of the fraud and corruption that Obama has wrecked on society with these obvious examples of money laundering disguised as government start up money..
That is one of the biggest problems with having only McNews to get us through the day- we aren't going to get that coverage because the mainstream media simply doesn't want to see what is going on.
Walter Winchell probably wouldn't have made it out of the coffee room in this climate.
Middy,
8.2 probably spoiled breakfast for Obama this morning. He counteracted in his usual manner: "It's Bush's fault!"
Speaking of meals, Clinton will probably not be invited to the White House for dinner anytime soon after supporting Mitt's work at Bain as "Sterling." He joins Cory Booker and a few others who are trashing "O" for his attacks on Bain. It might be time for him and and his sweetie pie to take another vacation to Hawaii.
As successful as Winchell was with his radio show and column in 2,000 papers, he was usually known as a "gossip" guy rather than a serious newsman. That frustrated him for a lot of years and toward the end as he tried to hang on, many were shaking their heads at him.
However, He was a very popular guy and you didn't want to be on his bad side. Rodger's and Hart wrote a line in their 1930's Broadway show song from "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" that "I read every line that Winchell writes."
Also, in the Busby Berkeley musical of 1933 there is a line in a song stating that "it's a cinch that Winchell knows."
The man had a lot of power up until the late 50s or so. I thought his narration on "The Untouchables" was always good.
Gasoline Alley, Brenda Star, Smokey Stover, Bringing Up Father, The Gumps, Sweeney and Sons,.....oh yes I remember those, not good, but great days of real comic strips!
How can you effectively explain to the youth of today your daily involvememnt with a cartoon strip, one in which the characters age along with you? You can't!
They have to be lived with and felt in the times they reflected.
Allen
Thanks, Allen,
Those were all great strips that read daily many years ago as you did.
Strips like Gasoline Alley were so wholesome with Skeezix and his family and who could forget Maggie going after Jiggs with her rolling pin in Bringing Up Father? I always like Dagwood and Blondie too and enjoyed the movie version with Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake.
Today I enjoy Non-Sequitor, F Minus, Bizzaro, and Mutts. The Mutts strip I posted on this blog brings a tear top my eye every time I see it with that pooch rushing to his owner who is back from war.
I doubt if kids even read the comics anymore. They are too busy with their smartphones.
Did you notice something unique about Walter Winchell? No experts. No clips. No graphics. No panels of guests pumping up the propaganda. What if the media controls your opinions about everything that you are and you do. And what if today's media knows this from all store computers sharing information, cameras, cell phones, everything. The best way to passively control a population is by manipulating the media and use social psychology. Is it necessary or does the media just make you think something is necessary? [cue telegraph]
... --- ...
Yeah I remember some of those great comic strips, we didn't get the newspaper every day when I was pretty young but the neighbor did and I got to horn in on the Sunday funnies once they became available to us little guys..
Paul's big sister got first dibs and nobody complained..
My all time favorite was from a little later... Bloom County..
great satire from a somewhat middle of the roader, still got an Opus setting up on the book case...
Seemed like there was a few different themes, Gasoline Alley was a favorite, Little Orphan Annie ran for all my young life, Dick Tracy, Batman, Superman and Lil Abner pretty much filled up the Sunday paper- that and the sports section..
I always liked the Donald or Daffy Duck comics the best for some reason.. wonder why?
Then Mark Trail smoking that pipe living in a cabin somewhere in the Canadian Rockies I imagine... probably turned out to be either a Ted Kaczynski, hiding from the law over a messy divorce or gay..
...damn I became cynical at a relatively young age.
Rick,
Good points. With the technology of today combined with psychological testing, many members of the public can have their thinking manipulated.
Kind of like now where Obama is scrambling after the bad jobs report blaming his problems, as usual, on Bush and now saying he will be OK after "Republican fever" dies down.
Middy,
I also read Gasoline Alley and I never missed Dick Tracy. Remember the two way wrist radio Tracy would use to call Sam Ketchum. We used to laugh at that as though something like that would never be possible, Yeah, right!
Little Orphan Annie was a fave too with Daddy Warbucks and the gang.
Al Capp would always show his politics in L'il Abner and Batman and the Phantom couldn't be missed.
Now they want gay marriage in Archie, the Green lantern is going to be gay, and Vanessa Redgrave is going to play a gay Supreme Court Justice.
Goddam! What's the big fascination with being gay now? Let them be gay if they want but do we have to have it flaunted on us?
What a bunch of crappola.
Learn from this Jimmy... avoid discussing what others remember about people who have been dead for forty years..
..that is unless you want to talk exclusively to the few remaining bored, dyspeptic troglodytes most with varying degrees of a rapidly diminishing and suspect memory..
put a fork in it.
Middy,
You may have a point there.
I should take off my hat and let everyone see that point.
Are they making a movie about Walter Winchell? I'm just curious.
I found out that a few of us military veterans are intervening on the local heroin trade.
Several years ago, about the time I started talking about SN, I was threatened with death and to be fed to the hogs and the only thing that stopped them was me saying that I knew that rock star. They're afraid of her. I've done favors and now shit's gonna get done the old fashioned Cold War way.
Rick,
They asked me to play the part of Winchell but they said I would have to shave my hair and wear a fedora for 90 minutes so I declined.
Hell, I can have standards too, right? Plus I don't want to associate with those Hollywood phonies anyway unless, of course, they can get Charlize Theron to play Mrs. Winchell!
Jim,
I know who Walter Winchell is, didnt he invent the donut? Then he started the famous Winchell's donut chain. right?
aaaaahhhgggghhhhh...
maybe someone should invent a good news channel, I swear this society is getting more and more like some futuristic end of civilization flick shot on a low budget...
Sol: There was a world, once, you punk.
Det. Thorn: "Yes, so you keep telling me"
Sol: "I was there. I can prove it"
Det. Thorn: "I know, I know. When you were young, people were better"
Sol: "Aw, nuts. People were always rotten. But the world 'was' beautiful"
Martha Phillips: "I should've offered you something, Mr. Thorn"
Det. Thorn: "If I'd had the time, I would've asked for it"
haha... some things never change...
Looks like Soylent Green was a documentary....
.....so far it seems most of the zombie activity has been localized to the east coast. Of course I would have probably guessed California as the logical jumping off area but to be frank, it could be going on but with everything else they have to deal with not deemed particularly newsworthy.
Hey here's something a little lighter...
Revealed: Victim of Canadian porn star cannibal is Chinese gay lover as police reveal 'murderer' is on the run in France... dressed as a woman
damn... got redirected again!!
this was supposed to be a link to "how puppies make our lives so much more richer"
...at least it wasn't another warm and fuzzy story about Obama serving up one of Bo's doubles to Michelle's touring paparazzi for lunch..
sorry Jim. but I can't seem to find my hat.
Just imagine the degree of narcissism it takes to name your own dog after yourself?
After that jobs report Friday the lying media couldn't resuscitate with a pair of paddles to the chest I've changed my prognostication to 65/32 .. with 3% who once again either forgot it was this Tuesday or got in some altercation on a skittles and ice tea run..
Hey Jim, just happened on Stossel's show tonight... haha he really takes it to that blowhard O'Reilly.. then my favorite smart guy Charles Payne dressed him down and practically called him a marxist on air..
there might be gunfire on one of these sets with Stossel and O'Reilly banging heads... BOR was getting pretty pissed off over that passive aggressive approach that i admit might get pretty irritating.
Great theater this... Bill might as well be Archie Bunker.. he has lost it- kept ranting on about the ground and what's under it being our property and it got pretty hilarious.
it's on tomorrow as a repeat if you please.
Steve,
Actually, his name was formerly Walter Krispy Kreme but since there already was a Krispy Kreme donut company he had to change hisname. he decided to go by Walter Winchell and the resat is history. LOL
I used to buy Winchell's donuts all the time in Kansas City and here for a while but they have disappeared. The closest according to their store locator is Palm Desert and Indio in Calif. Those are both over 200 miles away.
I better call Walt and ask what the hell is going on!
Middy,
It sounds like you got into the Pabst today. That's OK, I like it when you are happy.
I hope you are right about 65-32, we have to get rid of that guy.
A guy sent me an email today saying the word has leaked that the SC went 5-4 against Obamacare. I hope it is true and not just wishful thinking. If I were those judges, I would have a lot of security. I don't trust Obama on this.
I hear a decision is to be given Tuesday.
You're pretty much right about O'Reilly. I really like Payne on the Fox Business Channel along with Neil and Gerri Willis and Stossel has always been a FAVORITE. I LOVE HIS SPECIALS ESPECIALLY THE ONE ABOUT WELFARE FROM A COUPLE YEARS AGO. (sorry!)
I just read his book "No, They Can't" and am going to review it for the blog. You're welcome to borrow it if you want. It's a great read.
Pelosi is predicting that it will be 6-3 in favor of Obamacare.
I hope that info is correct Jim,
If so, Tuesday could be a huge day for real Americans and a very bad day for Obama. Because the Wisconsin gov recall election is also this Tuesday.
2 big punches to the head of Obama in one day would be a beautiful thing, of course the media will pretend it doesnt mean anything.
Sounds like a plan...
Na... just one of those nights with RebeccaWhiteFangCatoFong having conniptions, begging treats and me chowing down for a fat man on a plate of cottage cheese, sardines with genuine Beaver mustard, and bread sticks from Costco... all washed down with a big ol glass of iced tea...
if my uncles in Arkansas could see me now and how far I have gone.
that's not a typo...
It's Bullfrog season.. guess that's what started me off thinking about my uncle Larry, he was a paratrooper in WWII and quite a guy with the animals... he always had a falcon with the hood and everything, there was always some strange animal like a skunk (hopefully de sac'd by someone who knew what he was doing) or some monkey.. you name it he was one of those people who seemed to be able to communicate with nature..
he used to let me tag along on a bullfrog catching trip which was better than those snipe hunts they tried on everyone..
today that would be prosecuted as a hate crime.
But then most of my early childhood could be seen as a continuous hate crime, I can't tell you how many times my dad humiliated me when I asked for money or some other necessity like a new car..
he never gave in.
oddly enough that is what my son tells me I was like.. funny I don't remember it that way.
anyway, I can't remember when it was I started becoming aware of news and such, guess it might have been the Kennedy assassination or maybe the bay of pigs but I only knew what was told to me on the tv..
somewhere when I wasn't paying attention newspaper men became journalists and then journalists became activists presenting the news through one filter or the other, I like to think that guys like WW had a bit of integrity which is becoming harder and harder to find.
BTW Sarah Palin looked as bad as I ever have seen her on that show, I think the stress has finally taken something, either that or she needs a long vacation.. her interview was near amateur level, I haven't seen her for a couple of years and was a bit taken back... did you see anything like that?
steve,
I screwed up. I meant SB1070, not Obamacare. That will be later this month as advertised. Sorry!
I'd sure like to see the triplicate of Gov. Walker winning, SB1070 passing, and Obamacare defeated.
I heard the other day that the polls show Walker winning which would be a shot in the solar plexis to our imitation president I heard the dems have pulled advertising and have already claimed it only concerns Wisconsin and is not a big deal to them. What a bunch off BS that is!
As far as O-Care and Pelosi, she is living in a dream world. If the hearing is any indication of the result, O-Care should be dumped at least 5-4. Verrilli made a bad presentation to the SC.
Middy,
I've seen Palin recently and she does look a bit haggard. She leads a stressful life with all the interviewers and those who dislike her always pestering her. Bill Maher is one example of an unprincipled hypocrite that has gone beyond bad manners with the name he called her. No wonder he hides on HBO which no one watches.
I was one year into the USAF when the Cuban Crisis happened and it was a nervous time We were pretty much restricted to base.
A year later Kennedy was assassinated which was another serious time. We all remember where we were when it happened. I was walking from the barracks acroos the street to my office and as soon as I walked in they were talking about it. It was a weird feeling to have a president assassinated in my lifetime.
Jim, I remember JFK's assassination, Robert Kennedy's assassination, M.L. King's assassination, John Lennon's death and the attempted assassination of President Reagan. Isn't it interesting that the assassinations stopped? And now this garbage of the mortgage fraud, SEC not doing their job, allowing Bernie Madoff to do his impossible successes and now the assassination of millions of people's lifestyles. They must know that there is a God and He is watching. The richest of people in the world have gone insane with power and money. They have forgotten their place and will dearly pay for it. It's inevitable.
Hey, I bought a new kayak from Bass Pro. Ascend kayaks are made 30 miles from me in Lebanon Mo. I gave my old one to a 68-year-old woman who is trying to get back to fishing and falls down a lot on the river bank. So now she can float around, sit and fish. The economy sucks and I'd have never made any money from it and I'm selling that land this month anyway. Bass Pro redesigned the hull of the kayak and they have chairs that can be removed to be used as a lawn chair.
Glad to find out something is made here anymore, I'm surprised one can find even a kayak made in the US.
Thinking back tho, some of my happiest days has been in a fishing boat, gives you some time to think about life, hard on the skin but easy on the mind.
Same thing with hiking in the Sierras no phone, no dealing with people- just enjoying the view.
pull the cinch up tight type of day on the street it looks like, people going to get beat up again, but it's been ugly for a while now- at least oil is falling so we get a break at the pump for a while.
enjoy the kayak.
Rick,
I remember when the first Bass Pro Shop opened in Springfield in the 1980s. Brown Derby Liquor stores of Springfield were the ones who started it and everyone was amazed at the size and scope of that store with the huge aquarium.
That's nice gesture by you to give that lady a boat. Fishing is great enjoyment and that boat will be a good time for her.
I remember all those incidents too. Regan's shooting I especially remember as it happened on my birthday.
Middy,
I see oil dropped to $90 so prices will go down a bit.
It's funny how we get trained on this stuff. I remember a few years ago when gas was about $1.90 a gallon and I saw a woman in a huge SUV sitting in a north Scottsdale parking lot yapping on a cell phone with the engine and air running.
I told Barb that those SUV's would disappear as soon as gas went over $2. Ha!, was I ever wrong; there are more of them than ever now.
We get conditioned to the increases. They touched $4 this spring so now that they are in the $3.70 range we feel relief because they have dropped so much. It's all mental gymnastics and psychology.
I remember being shocked many years ago when I was driving to Cincy from Kansas and gas in Illinois was 42 cents a gallon. What an outrage!
I read in the USA Today that the worlds' economies are slowing. Duh. Scary stuff.
The kayak is an investment in survival.
So when can I expect Jim & Barb, Don, Middy and CJ to the farm? Refugees. Heh heh.
Yeah... but they probably pumped it and checked your air in the tires- hell, you might even get one of those little balls to put on the antenna.
Hope you got your skittles and ice tea for today... at least it will only be a little over a hundred, definitely a light color hoodie day in Snottsdale... I noticed that the Midwest is getting the same treatment they do every year.
oddly enough Costa Rica is having another nice day if you don't live too close to a volcano.
Rick,
Book me a room by the pool.
Middy,
I remember when you would be ambushed by a couple guys in white coveralls with little leather bow ties at gas stations.
One would come to your window to ask about your purchase while the other would go to work checking air pressure, water, oil, belts, and wiping the windshield. Gas was 25 cents and some stations gave trading stamps like TV or S&H.
We always paid in cash. There were no credit cards like now; dept. stores had "charge it plates" but you had to be special to get one. Plus, nobody wanted one anyway. It was a cash and carry society. Charging was reprehensible; it was a sign of poverty to not have the dough with you at all times to pay for purchases.
Proving society is easy to corrupt with a steady drumbeat of lies..
For instance why pay as you go when you can spend that future windfall investment by borrowing from the money you have tied up in some inefficent mortgage?- this is the mentality that triggered an unprecedented amount of borrowing against the mirage of gains..
And that's the problem in a nutshell, America watered down with the freeshitarmy or balkanized outliers- not the same animal that won WWII or ended the cold war with a victory over tyranny, we are a nation of confused leaderless sheep but now without the guiding star of personal moral certitude..
Today more than ever we need a president who leads from the front not some tyrant who threatens from the safety of the rear.
A nation cannot survive without moral leadership and a citizenry willing to work.
I haven't changed my mind one iota over which way this nation is headed the past three years nor have I changed my opinion over where the economy is headed- in fact I might have been a bit optimistic last year..
the Obama presidency is such a joke now, that if you give him enough money he will let your ride on AF-1. its just like Disneyland at the white house.
"Rocker Jon Bon Jovi got a lift Monday to New York on Air Force One with President Obama"
Middy,
That nonsense about borrowing on supposed equity has always amazed me. I couldn't sleep at night if I knew I had loans based on the come.
But, I grew up in an era where people even hated to charge anything much less borrow against ghost profits.
There is too much "stuff" today that a lot of people "simply must have" like a $200 smartphone for everyone in the family and, of course, large flat screen TVs in every room and trading for that new SUV when the old one has 20M miles.
I wonder how they feel when the day comes that they don't have the dough for all that junk? FORECLOSURE! Can you imagine the feeling of not being able to make your house payment?
I've said it before and will repeat it: The middle class is trying to live too far above their means.
Steve,
Bon Jovi? Really?
I wonder if he did an acoustic version of "I'm a cowboy; on a steel horse I ride" for fare.
What a joke Obama is. It's embarrassing that the voters put him in office. Hopefully he will be gone in November along with his meddling wife.
See my next blog. he even has some high powered Dems after him for some of his statements about Romney.
Hey all, didn't I tell you this was going to be a fun summer?
If the damn economy wasn't flat lined this stuff would be great comedy, but lots of people are on the bad end of three years of threats and promises and I don't know if this sow can be turned around any time soon enough to help them.
Yeah the man who would lower the sea level just three years ago is now the butt of late night comedy routines..
you live by the sword, you die by the sword.
Tomorrow is gonna be what Joe hot mike Biden once referred to as "f****in' big!
Neil Cavuto has been onsite to ground zero at Madison interviewing the good governor and a lot of players on both sides.. they have pretty much all night coverage planned for tomorrow, by this time we will pretty much know if the union stranglehold has been broken...
I think tomorrow is going to start the flood the Dems have been dreading..
full moon tonight, can you tell?
Right, I've got Jim and Barb booked in the luxury hayloft for when everything melts down.
We have nothing to worry about though. The insurance companies, banks, lenders, mega-corporation CEO's and Bernie Madoff made the world what we see today! What could go wrong with highly educated business and financial people running things? Even Obama has a great plan to stabilize the global population and make the world into a happy happy place!
As people in developing countries grow wealthier, they'll spend more money and it will trickle down to the USA! Almost like it was designed to do, sort of like Reagan's twice removed uncle's cousin's brother.
I was told by certain government people that there are foreign governments reading everything that we write on Facebook. It gives me some ideas.
See, they're studying Americans by what they write on the Internet. Holy shit dudes! That's just too funny! The Chinese got to be wondering if we're all fricking greedy, heavily armed, partying, Christian crazy people!
Like Paris Hilton says, that's hot!
The radical Muslims are writing (I read their stuff too) that we only know violence from our video games. But you'd think that their diplomatic experience in Washington D.C. would prove otherwise.
Middy,
Obama was near Madison the other day and snubbed the Governor's recall election action. The polls don't look good for the Dems so I guess he figured he shouldn't be associated with he situation.
I only hope that Walker wins and wins big. Recall elections are a joke and are the fault of a bunch of losers who support them like Paula "the chameleon" Pennypacker who thinks that everyone who she doesn't like that gets elected should be recalled. It's nothing but sour grapes.
I laugh when I see all the Ugenti signs springing up now. Paula has to be furious. Maybe she should start a campaign to recall Ugenti.
Rick,
The hayloft, huh? That sounds pretty good as long it is near the pool and has a view of the river.
By the way, do you have Dell Mack booked for the lounge while we are there?
Haylofts are pretty safe with all the straw unless someone drinks and smokes... yeah maybe with a little rubber glued to the walls I suppose our Don Q politician would fit in nicely.
It looks like she has started some lower level third party or something, what she is saying doesn't seem to fit either major party viewpoint..
But it will be a nice day in Madison I believe, this is the death rattle for liberalism in general, and American liberalism in specific.
Lots of changes have to be made, I hope Mitt is up to it.
Middy,
We can only hope
I read in the USA Today that the worlds' economies are slowing. Duh. Scary stuff. The kayak is an investment in survival. So when can I expect Jim & Barb, Don, Middy and CJ to the farm? Refugees. Heh heh.
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