At my age everyday has become an adventure. I am in good health, but when you enter the beginning of the eighth decade of one's life each day brings a wonder.

Some days you hear about the end of a life that ends too soon, other days you get to see something that has never happen before, or learn about what was once a mystery is now known.

I remember when I was young wondering what life would be like in the year 2000. I knew back in the fifties even before Russia entered us into the space age, that we would go into space. My fellow students thought I was a bit touched when I predicted men on the moon. What I didn't know was once we got there we would abandon it shortly afterwards.

I also remember reading the sci-fi writers of the day and seeing what was once sci-fi become fact. Today i watched a commercial that showed a robot fixing another robot and I begin to wonder if maybe the Terminator could be right around the corner!

The last century took us from an idea of flight to space, from radio to the internet, a life span of 48 years to 78 years, and from the telegraph to twitter.

Each day brings a new announcement of a new wonder from knowledge gained in every possible discipline studied by man.

I was told by my classmates in the fifties that most would not want to live forever. Are they NUTS!

I would love to see what and where we are a thousand or even two thousands years from now! Will we solve the problem of inter-galactic space travel? Will we solve the problem of over population? Will lifespans be measured by the 100's of years? Will we still believe in democracy? Will religions still exist? What new voices will sing to us?

I know I will not see that happen, but I do know that each new day is a beginning towards those days and I can hardly wait to see what happens today!


 

Why is it that many of the people we put on pedestals tend to fall? Some slip off, some come crashing down.

Some of them their fame is brief others last for years, but too often they end before we have seen their best. Yet others do quite well and even in their nineties still can bring joy to the world.

I guess it is something that has been with us for a long time and will remain for a long time to come.

We all have our demons no matter who we are and some handle them better than others and some are handled by their demons.

I just know that some leave us all too soon and Whitney Houston was one of them.
 

I was supposed to get a scope done next Wednesday, but I canceled it for a couple of reasons.

First my latest blood tests came back with flying colors and al the reasons Doc had ordered the scope were no longer valid. He still wanted me to have it "just in case" and I thought why not!

Well two days ago I get my letter with instructions. I don't have a problem with the flushing part of it, after all doing that is not that bad of an idea. What was the other part of the instructions was a problem. The test was to been done next Wednesday and I was suppose to stop taking any medication for my arthritis for a week. I stopped on Friday and by today I was sore ALL over! This not something I am prepared to put up with for another four days, besides I got my instructions with only six days before the exam.

Medical science is a wonderful thing, but sometimes I wonder why we have to stop one treatment that is doing wonders so another treatment can be done. If your going to stick something up my butt at least let me have relaxed muscles!

By the way for all the Americans that downgrade the Canadian health care system. The arrangements for the scope was done within two weeks and it would not have cost me a dime! So much for "waiting" lists!
 

The market is booming, the Russians and Chinese deny the UN to do anything about Syria as people continue to die from the hands of their OWN government, and then Castro announces his two volume memories of his early life and Romney takes Nevada! What a Day!

Pardon me if I don't get real excited by any of this. The market is just setting us up for a major fall. NATO will most likely have to step in some where down the road in Syria. Both Russia and China have their own problems with people within their borders unhappy about how decisions are made without their input and Syria is getting a little too close to home. Who really wants to know about Castro's early life it is the period from 1960 to now we are interested in, especially around the Bay of Pigs time slot. As too Nevada, hell this is just the beginning of a roll for Romney, chances are that there isn't another state that will go against him from now til the end of the primaries. Expect Rick to be gone by the end of the week while Newt and Ron stick it out for another couple of months.

But it has been an interesting day. However tomorrow promises to be more interesting as the Super Bowel ads will be aired. Wonder if Betty White has another one? Can't wait to see what the Bud's horses are off to doing... Oh, the game? Being a Pat fan can there be any doubt?
 

We have been in a bear market for the past 34 months, most Bears last between 36 and 48 months. So I figure by the time the market hits 13,000 it will be time for the Bear to act. When it does expect the market to drop to below the 6500 mark!

If Obama is lucky it will be at the end of the year, but it is more likely to start around the time of the conventions in August!

Even so I can not see a multimillionaire being able to convince me he can do better than Obama, who IS the middle class!

Romney doesn't even understand MacDonald 's never mind what homeless and the poor deal with everyday.

I figure that those who vote for Romney really don't understand what is going on, are racists, or religious frantics.
 

Finally there has been a study relating IQ with political beliefs and guess what they have concluded?

Are racists dumb? Do conservatives tend to be less intelligent than liberals? A provocative new study from Brock University in Ontario suggests the answer to both questions may be a qualified yes.

The study, published in Psychological Science, showed that people who score low on I.Q. tests in childhood are more likely to develop prejudiced beliefs and socially conservative politics in adulthood.

Dr. Gordon Hodson, a professor of psychology at the university and the study's lead author, said the finding represented evidence of a vicious cycle: People of low intelligence gravitate toward socially conservative ideologies, which stress resistance to change and, in turn, prejudice. Why might less intelligent people be drawn to conservative ideologies? Because such ideologies feature "structure and order" that make it easier to comprehend a complicated world, Hodson said. "Unfortunately, many of these features can also contribute to prejudice," he added.

Dr. Brian Nosek, a University of Virginia psychologist, echoed those sentiments.

"Reality is complicated and messy," he told The Huffington Post in an email. "Ideologies get rid of the messiness and impose a simpler solution. So, it may not be surprising that people with less cognitive capacity will be attracted to simplifying ideologies."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/27/intelligence-study-links-prejudice_n_12...

This has been reported in the Huffington Post and needs to be taken with a grain of salt, but it is interesting.
 

Got an email from a friend that relayed a story that made me think of Republicans and Democrats. Which wolf would you assign the Republicans to? Maybe we should stop feeding it!

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil - It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good - It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."



 

It is kind of amazing how US politics can make other more important things disappear from the headlines.

While we have been watching the clowns called Republicans Syria has gone south, al-Qaeda has taken over Yemen, Myanmar is about to have an election, the Seals have rescued two kidnapped people in Somalia, Greece is still sending chills throughout the markets, and the Academy has announced the candidates for the Oscars.

Very little of these and many other really interesting and important things have been missing from the front page...

Look, Romney will win the nomination in August. Newt and Paul will remain in it to the bitter end, then Paul will declare for a third party. Rick will be gone after Florida. So lets get with the program and examine if Obama's economic plan is the right way to go and if it is lets get behind the Democrats so they can regain control of the House.

Fact is in the first two years the Democrats did quite a bit when they had a majority. With health care out of the way they could do a lot more!
 

The Onion just put out an article by "scientists" stating that we need to get rid of 2.3 billion people if the planet is to survive the plague of humans.
It was a tongue in cheek article as it concluded by asking the question how would you go about reducing the population.

Well Hitler had some concrete ideas about that subject.... Personally I have seen Mother Nature take care of that problem time in again. As a one time hunter I noticed that an increase in the rabbit or deer population was soon followed by an increase in the coyote or wolf population and then as they increased their numbers things like mange affected them. If there was no increase in the coyotes population the rabbits came down with a virus of some sort. Hasn't anyone noticed the increase in Cancer or heart related problems and the new problems like AIDS and now the flesh eating bacteria? Hell you can catch something quit deadly just by GOING to a hospital.

I know that given enough time we are capable of finding out how to handle new medical problems, just like we did with AIDS. Trick is having enough time, what happens if we don't have the time? There was a fiction book called "Earth Abides" written on this very subject where mankind was hit by a fast moving virus that knocked civilization back to the stone age! An interesting read and maybe we are not far off to that time as we rapidly head for 10 billion people on the planet.

Any way I hope we never get to the point where we have to consider deliberately reducing the population as a means for survival Though I do believe there are certain groups that would not hesitate to put such a plan into operation.
 

Recently I have sent the Canada Party video to my friends in the states. One of them has enjoyed it and asked for more. One began to rant about the weakness of the Canadian military, from an experience he had thirty years ago. Then he went of a short rant about the greatest of America ending with a "God Bless America" comment. I had to respond to some of his comments and after I finished I thought it might be of interest to you.

I came to Canada in 1967 for two years and stayed , for the most part, a lifetime. Here are some of the reasons:

Without a doubt the United States is the best thing that has ever happen to mankind. The United States is the light that shines brightly and draws people from all over the world to it.

It is that very reason why I fear for its ability to continue that role. Proverb 16:18 comes to mind "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."

Too many Americans have come to the conclusion that if things are not done the "American" way then it is wrong or evil!

The reality is that America has come under the control of what Eisenhower warned us about, the military/industrial complex. America is no longer doing what is right for its people but what is right for big business. Our forefathers saw federal government service as something you did for a few years then went back to their regular job, not something you did as a career. With a population of 300 million surely we have enough people who could volunteer their time for six years and then go back home instead of staying a life time!

Currently Congress is made up mostly of MILLIONAIRES! Is it little wonder why our health care is in the hands of Insurance companies more interested in making a PROFIT over providing you with care? Americans are so brainwashed that they believe that their health should be allowed to be controlled by health insurance companies than a government designed to serve them! If the government fails to deliver they can replace it at the next election rather than try and fire a CEO, who will walk away with a multimillion dollar payoff regardless!

Can't have government get involved, after all! By the way has the government ever fail to provide you with your social security check, failed to remind you about your taxes, or defend our country? I believe what Obama said in his State of the Union address: "That government should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more." Health care is one of those issues.

What makes me sad is to watch from Canada and see America decline. When I first came north the US led the world in just about every measure you could mention. Today not so much. In education, health, standard of living, value of the dollar, manufacturing, transportation, housing, communication, and countless other ways the US is less than what it was. Yet too many Americans go around beating their chest saying we are the greatest and do nothing about addressing the problems that are leading to the decline.

You wonder why I stayed in Canada? Well since I have been here Canada has provided a health care system where I can work anywhere in the country and have health care coverage. I do not need to worry about having a preexisting condition or losing my job and lose my health care. I have had an achelies tendon repaired, an open heart operation which required me to stay in the ICU for 10 days and 4 days in recovery, two trips to the hospital to remove kidney stones, while my wife has delivered two children and had major surgery. Yesterday I visited the hospital for major blood tests. Total cost? $0.00! Sure I pay more taxes than you, but not having to worry about medical expenses as I get older is well worth it!

Obama's health care is a vast improvement over what was, but it is miles from what is needed, but too many Americans have been brained washed by the health insurance companies to knock the Canadian system.

When I came to Canada the education system was OK, but then the government wanted to improve it. So what did they do? They went to the TEACHERS and asked what needed to be done. Today the curriculum is developed with teachers working with specialists and technical people to develop the curriculum. In the US the changes are made by the top. Some bright people get together with politicians and you get something that just doesn't work. Leave No Child Behind, which left everybody behind. A long time ago I came to Canada, one of the reasons was that as a teacher my salary took a 24% jump in ONE year. Within three years I was making double what my friends in Colorado were making. In 2001 I took a job as Principal of a small K to 12 school in northern New Hampshire, my salary was $45,000 In 2002 I started as Principal of a 7-12 school in Alberta with a starting salary of $75,000 when I retired in 2005 my last salary was over $100,000. Today that job is worth over $122,000 while the average salary in Massachusetts is $116,000 and New Hampshire is $105,000. Basically Canada has shown the value of teachers by paying them a competitive salary!

As a result today Canada ranks in the top FIVE in the world while the US is struggling to stay in the top 25!

Today's generation have far too many people who have been brained washed by the religious right. It happen the moment we allowed various religions to run their own schools. We seem to be too dumb to realize that America's decline began the moment we gave everyone the right to run their own schools and degrade the public school system.

My Dad fought to prevent America from being taken over by tyrants little did he realize that the tyrants within the country would be more dangerous!

Our fathers were part of the great generation and unfortunately we have failed to pass on the values they defended to our children.

Unfortunately too many of us refuse to recognize the obvious: "If we keep pounding our chest saying WE ARE THE GREATEST", we will soon discover the world has passed us by. Fact is it already is. Yes the US has the greatest military the world has ever seen, but why did it take us ten years to defeat an uneducated ill armed opponent when it took only four years to defeat two of the most powerful militaries,to invade another country?

Most Americans see the system as broken! The problem is that everyone is running around with different ideas and not prepared to sit down with others and listen to each other. America is rapidly become as extreme as some of the Muslims. God Bless America??? Does God not bless Norway (the country with highest living standard in the world), Germany, Japan, Fiji, Australia??? Give me a break! What happen to Tebow? Did God go on vacation?

My comments are not because I think less of America, but because I still believe it is the greatest country in the world, but if it does not soon change and improve it will continue to decline. We need to fix it not just beat our chest!