Inside Tom's Brain

Daggett Thanksgiving Letter - Dorothy Daggett Johnston [Nov 26, 1970]

2009-12-14T04:16:00.003-05:00

   _________________________________________
                                                             11 Farm Lane
                                                             S. Dennis, Mass 02660
                                                             Nov. 26, 1970
Dear Family,
                           Happy Thanksgiving. Here's a story of interest
to all Daggetts of the New Vineyard, Me., Marthas Vineyard, Mass,
Vinal Haven, Me., tribe.
Tristram Daggett, son of Elijah of Holmes Hole "drew his 100 acres
east of the New Vineyard Mountains near Clearwater pond.
Obtaining a back load of provisions at the settlement (Farmington)
on Sandy River he hired a settler to guide him up the mountain to
the town line, newly marked by spotted trees. Thence he traveled ax
in hand, identified his lot, made a camp by a spring, and began felling
trees. He soon brought his family to a log house.They remained there
for 3 years, then moved to West Mills.
   Tristram Daggett, as a young man, made his living from the sea at
Marthas Vineyard. He endured much suffering as a soldier in the 7th
Regiment (Mass.)Discharged June 8, 1783, with a badge of merit for
5 years faithful service. His discharge papers were signed, "G. Washington".
Parcels of land were offered by the Continental Congress to soldiers
for settling. Capt. Tristram was joined by his cousins and their families,
(Capt. Sam Daggett, Capt. Nathan Daggett, Capt. Silas Daggett) in 1793.
At this same time Daggetts left Marthas Vineyard to make a settlement
at Vynal Haven, Maine. You see, the people living on Marthas Vineyard
before the Revolutionary War were subject to severe attack by the English
who wanted to control "the best deep-water harbor on the Eastern
Sea Board".   The English pillaged the island and lived in the people's
homes and ate all their food. (In Edgartown, we saw the great fireplace
at Daggett House behind which was a secret stairway to a chamber where the
owner hid when the English red coats, or the Tory tax collector came.)
The Continental Congress, or the Mass. Bay Colony sent the Islanders no
money or soldiers for

- The Islanders never suffered Indian Raids because of the Rev.
Mayhew's missionary work.                    (*Praying Indians?)
[from Embden Days of Yore by (Wollock?)]
        ____________________________________
                                         -2-

protecting homes & livestock, so the Islanders formed their own
SeaCoast Defense, and all men served. Many Daggetts appear.
They also protected the coast of Mass & what later became Rhode Isl.
(Bristol) keeping open the sea-lanes to port of New York.
You remember that until 1691 the Elizabeth Islands (Nantucket
and Marthas Vineyard) were part of the Province of New York.
This was Kings County, Queens County (Long Isl.) and Dukes
County (Marthas Vineyard). After 1691, the Bay Colony (Mass.
got control), so after many raids, many Daggetts left their lovely
island to try their fortunes as land lubbers. To go to Vynal Haven,
makes sense, but how a sea farin' man ever managed to stay in
Franklin County, Maine, I'll never know. Mr. Gould, who writes
for "Down East" Mag. says they went because their wives were tired
of having their men folk off at sea all the time. But I think sea-
in-the-blood, stays in the blood, and as you study the saga of the
Marthas Vineyard Daggetts you will find many of the Sea Captains
returning to their island.   Of those who tried to claw out a living
in beautiful, ledgy, mountainous, New Vineyard, Maine, it appears
to have been "subsistence" living --- only one or two generations
could survive. The William Talcott Daggett farming family is one
of these. They lived out their days in Anson, Madison, Canaan,Me.,
and 3 generations later were business men. But there were many
sons & daughters in Capt. Nathan Daggetts, and Capt. Sam's &
Silas families, who quickly decided the rocky land of Maine was
not for them, and in (1800s) pioneered far west to Michigan & Wisconsin.
    This year I have found a branch of our family in Alpina, Mich.
I have pondered for years, and wondered about our family "out west".
I wrote the Postmaster of Alpina, Mich. in April 1970, and he
gave my letter to a Mrs. Francis Daggett Thompson. She was a
daughter of George (*Frank) Daggett, brother of grandfather
W. T. Daggett. She made a great effort to send letters to
granddaughters of West Daggett (and Sam Daggett), and as a
result of this
          ____________________________________
                                     -3-              P.O.332
                                                  (Thelma Daggett)
we are now in touch Mrs. Geo. Hermanson, Lewiston, Mich.
granddaughter of Sam Frank Daggett, another brother of
Wm. T. Daggett.
(Please add our new cousin, Thelma to your Xmas list. It has been
wonderful to find our family out there; and for Thelma, it is very
exciting because they have sought knowledge of "Uncle Chris
(Columbus), my grandfather (Sam Frank Daggett) and uncle
West's parents and kin for many, many years.
     We still have not located another branch of Daggett family
who went to Davidson, Wisc,    (*?), and to the Dakotas, and we
have kin in Blair, Nebraska.
       So, I think it exciting to have our ancestors beginnings on
Marthas Vineyard. My nana Daggett with all her love of history
and her patriotic fervor for the early days of our country would have
loved these many stories of whaling days, then the lucrative business
of coastal piloting.       For nana & grandpa the terribly sad
childhood of the Nathan Daggett family, New Vineyard, Me. ----
all those little children left with a young girl mother (Mary Lionell
was wed at 14) --- the young husband and his brother died in a
prison camp in Va.   (Two brothers of Mary Giles and Sam Lionell
also died (same thing) --- the farm bankrupt, the little ones went
to live with friends & relatives, and with their new stepfather, John
Davis, farmer of Canaan, Me.       Already gone out west, were
4 grandparents and 2 gr. uncles of this family --- the sons and
daughters of Capt. Nathan Daggett of Embden, Me.
Letters of love & sympathy must surely have come to Mary Lionell
Daggett, and so to uncle Jesse. The Wescott family, Colby family,
Gray family, of Daggetts, went grandpa William Daggett and his
brothers, Geo Frank, West, Columbus, Isaac, either to live
permanently or to visit. Leslie, the brother born after his father's
death, lived in Maine. He and George are buried with their mother,
in E. Skowhegan Cem.. "Leslie came often to visit his mother. He was
at work in the lumber camps of Maine". Nathan Daggett & his bride Mary
             _________________________________
                                      -4-

were also living in Wisc. briefly when 1st married.
    Another tragedy in Nana Daggett's own (Barrett) family was
that of the death of 4 little girls from diphtheria. Her mother never
got over it. The babies died in 3 days.
   It is interesting to read of the settling of land in Maine after the
Revolution, and at Sandy River Plantation families visited back
& forth across the Kennebec, & married. Transportation was by boat
to Ft. Western (Augusta) then oxcart. Corn was ground at this post,
and a man one bag on his back, one under each arm, 20 mi.. The
country was wild, "one evening while at supper, he saw through his
cabin door, a moose loping over the inter vale. He shot the moose
in it's tracks without leaving the table".   [Happy Face]
   1788 a Raising Bee was held to raise a log church, fortress at
the edge of 7 mile brook. It had no windows but port holes, and an
overhang for better protection from Indians. Called Free will Baptist
Tabernacle.   Rev. Hampton Purington (W. Bath) preached there.
   People settled here from Temple, N.H., Wollich, Wiscasset,
Georgetown, Dresden, as well as Marthas Vineyard and Rhode Island.
   Of course you will read for yourself the story of Capt. Nathan
Daggetts kidnap from Holmes Hole & his piloting the Fr. Fleet into
Yorktown Harbor, Va. --- of Capt. Seth Daggett's vessels trading
the West Indies. --- of all the mittens, sock and wigs (stocking
caps) the wife of Capt. Sam knit & sold. --- of Capt. Sylvanus
Daggett of Holmes Hole, "The only pilot ever to have beat a frigate
out over the Shoals in a head wind", --- and his brother, Leander
Daggett, who first brought a Merino sheep to the island (brought
from a wrecked ship) and 1st rubber for shoes from Belém, Brazil.
We hope our family in Michigan will come now with stories of
the overland trip, and the settling of their homes in Michigan
& Wisconsin.
        Every Daggett should get to the Island some day
        Every Daggett should go see "Daggetts rock & the old cellar
holes in Phillips, Me.   So lets tell all the little boys & little girls
the story of a stalwart family they may be proud of.

                     With love to all,          Dorothy Daggett Johnston

                                                                Nov 26 ' 1970

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Deciphering Dorothy's handwriting was not easy for me.
Also in some cases the wording just didn't make sense to me.
Due to the fact that all I have to work with is an old photocopy,
some parts just fade out of view at the bottom of the page
(like the "(Praying India..." at the bottom of the first page)
I did my best, and through research and comparison I managed
to figure out nearly everything. You might want to look at the
original first. See if you concur with my 'reading', and by
all means contact me with any suggestions or corrections!

I tried to keep the finished transcription as close to her original
handwritten letter as possible. I kept her spelling as she wrote it
as you'll notice with words like "Marthas" (Vineyard) and
also with the two different spellings if "Vynal" and "Vinal" (Haven).
Where you see a (*?) I simply couldn't understand what she
wrote/meant.
___________________________________________________
- I'm inserting scanned images of the 4 page copy I had to work with
below. If you click on the image it will open up into a full-page view.

___________________________________________________
All in all this was a wonderful learning experience.
I've wanted to do this for many years and finally I just sat
down and did it.

I hope Dorothy would like what I did and my presenting it on
the Internet to be read and appreciated by family and others.

I hope you enjoy it as well..

- Thomas Russell Daggett
________________________________________________

What next? - Then and Now

2009-11-19T17:00:00.003-05:00

Now that Bush and his gang of war profiteers are [mostly] gone, what next?

We have a new president and the majority of Americans people have finally come to their senses, so what comes after the country and much of the world breathe a big sigh of relief?

There is so much to do to repair the damage done by the previous administration we need a triage system to manage this disaster.

I don't expect president Obama to magically wave a wand and fix everything that the Bush gang screwed up. I don't expect that I'll agree with everything he does or does not do. I don't expect him to fulfill all his campaign promises. There are too many undercurrents inside the beltway that are working against Barack Obama for him to accomplish that. He has to choose his engagements carefully, trust himself, and those people whose judgment he's learned to trust over the years and start eating the elephant bite by bite.

And if that wasn't enough of a challenge, the Republicans are admittedly doing nothing but throwing roadblocks in his way and publicly hoping that he fails. For purely political reasons the Republicans are working against fixing the very mess they (for the most part) created, America be damned. The only people they care about are what remains of their base. You know, the ones who evidently have no problem with Rush Limbaugh mocking the uncontrollable movements of a beloved actor, Michael J. Fox, that are caused by Parkinson's disease.. Or the thinly veiled and at times outright racism evidenced by things like the "...Magic Negro" song. The ones who through the wars, the lies, the belligerent dictatorial actions seen and unseen, and the refusal to admit reality still thought George Bush was doing the right thing.

(Original draft date 3/9/09)
---------------------------------------------------------
- That's from a draft I just discovered.

Now, ten months into the new administration there's good news and bad news.
Some of the good news is obvious. We now have a president who is intelligent and pragmatic, progressive and engaging. A huge change from former president Bush, the ignorant, reckless, belligerent fool and the political Chickenhawks who surrounded him.

President Obama is representing our country well. He is gaining international respect for himself and for our country. He favors diplomacy over the bullying tactics of the Bush administration that turned allies into enemies (remember "You're either with us or against us"?).

He still has to prove himself over time though, and the 'guts' of a country don't automatically change when a new administration takes office. The career employees and the other branches of government are still there for the most part, and the 'legacy' placements of the previous administration can either help grease, or toss sand into the gears of a new administration.

This administration had a monumental task in front of it, and that task was compounded in those early days by a financial crisis whose magnitude had not been seen since the Great Depression.

I truly can't comprehend what kind of fortitude it took to not only withstand the pressures of those early days, but to do so with such confidence and grace. From what I've noticed, a good sense of humor must help, along with self confidence and a group of trusted advisors & friends.

Some of the bad news relates to (and stems from) the divisive culture nurtured during the Bush years. What used to be partisan wrangling has turned into rude combative obstructionism for so many of the Republican party. Add to that a racist element brought out by the election of our first black president and what we're seeing exposed is an incredibly ugly side of some Americans.

If that wasn't bad enough, irresponsible and egotistical glory-seekers like Limbaugh, Hannity, and Beck (to name just a few..) are fanning the flames of racism and dissent. An entire cable network, Fox (I won't call it 'News') is engaged in a campaign against the Obama administration. Truth, honesty, or any journalistic principals don't fit into their campaign to take the small group of remaining Bush supporters (and related malcontents) and use them to further their stated goal, that being the failure of president Barack Obama and his goals to fix what Bush and his party broke.

These people have chosen to engage in personal destruction at the expense of our country's health.

Some in the Republican party have compared this to the criticism of president Bush.
How childish and how ignorant!
The same can be said about many of the 'complaints' of the Teabaggers.

The culture of intolerance and hate that's been nurtured over the past eight years has grown to a dangerous level. Irresponsible elected officials like Michelle Bachmann are actually inciting individuals and groups who might just need a slight nudge or implied blessing to move from talk to action.

As I predicted (really going out on a limb..) in my original draft, our new president hasn't fulfilled all his campaign promises. Anyone who expected him to is extremely naive. Despite the best of intentions so many things change once you take over as President of the United States.

Previously unknown facts and issues now figure into your plans.
The competence of those you chose to delegate responsibilities to figures in and isn't always positive.
A cable 'disinformation' network might spend considerable resources (and any remnants of integrity they might have left) working with your failure as their goal.

And of course every organization or group that's been held down by the previous administration expects you to work tirelessly on their cause, ignoring all other factors.

My personal disappointments have been in the area of upholding the rule of law and the oath of office. I realize that I am ignorant of so much of what President Obama has to deal with, but I believe I do have a right to expect that a solemn oath be honored. When you swear "...To protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America..." you can't just choose to ignore serious and destructive crimes, not just against the Constitution but also those that violate international laws and conventions we've signed on to. Perhaps the worst crime being the lies told to gain acceptance and support for a war resulting in so many unnecessary deaths.

When our jails and prisons are overflowing with so many people convicted of non-violent crimes (including those involving marijuana), and also those who are addicted to heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamines (who should be given treatment instead of spending huge amounts of money to 'warehouse' them), you can't simply choose to ignore that oath you took and let those from the previous administration who [allegedly] committed crimes of such magnitude and far reaching implications go unpunished.

For someone who has faced all his other challenges with confidence, to "... choose to look forward instead of backwards ...", ignoring such destructive crimes is truly unbelievable and to me makes you complicit or at the very least guilty of obstructing justice. The same goes for the decision to continue certain secretive policies of the Bush administration, and to let the telecoms who enabled the country's many intelligence agencies to [illegally] spy on innocent citizens 'get off' without prosecution.

President Obama certainly knows what kind of precedent this sets, and how it will enable and give future administration the political cover to engage in similar (or worse) misdeeds. To be complicit in or enable that flies in the face of his otherwise honorable character traits.

It's sad to think that within the legacy of President Obama, this failure to uphold the rule of law, this failure to uphold the oath of office he swore to in front of the citizens of this great country, will tarnish all of the good things he accomplished. Not because he couldn't, but because he chose not to.

Overall I'm so proud of our president and the direction he's taken our country. He represents us well and is such a welcome change after the nightmare of the previous eight years. He is certainly not perfect, nor should anyone ever expect that, but he is an honorable man trying to do his best for his country, doing so in spite of an ugly exhibition of thinly veiled and at times outright racism. His honest attempts at bipartisanship are met with scorn and hostility. Pragmatic in other areas but as yet unable to be so in this case when the good of the country and limited time demand it.

There's still time of course. Two wars, a fragile economy, and the opposition party dedicated to do nothing but obstruct whatever you try to do (and I left a *few* things out) isn't that hard to deal with is it? [\sarcasm]

Best of luck Mr. President. I'm not sure how you've kept your sanity to this point but I'm sure glad you have. The ability to suffer idiots and assholes must be a part of it, something I don't do nearly as well. They're revealing their character and you yours.

I'm proud of you sir, but please don't ignore that oath you took. That and the Constitution are more important than any one of us.

Citizens Bank What Balls You Have

2009-09-22T10:09:00.013-04:00

Of course it's not just Citizens, as many banks are similarly guilty of unbridled greed. Today was just another one of those days that brought it home to me.

I'll start by admitting that I have been lousy at managing money throughout my life. Over the past few years however I've been much better. During those previous years I must have contributed thousands of dollars in overdraft fees to the bottom line of various banks. Obviously that was entirely my fault, but the amount of the fees were and are increasingly exorbitant. Lately they're obscene.

This morning I went to Wal Mart for some groceries and more plastic storage tubs needed to pack items in before my second pest treatment (see my Endicott Dispatch blog to read about that nightmare). I spent about $97.

Meanwhile in my Citizens account(s) I was waiting for a reply to a message I sent them about what I thought was a mistake. My service fee for overdraft protection has been $3 monthly and last month I was charged $30, so I alerted them to that, expecting that $27 would be credited to my account.

I returned from shopping and logged in to my online banking account to see that my checking balance was $0.00 and my savings account was ($2.91). That means I was overdrawn by $2.91.

Then I saw that I had a message waiting for me. It stated that the fee for overdraft protection had changed from $3.00 monthly to $30.00 annually and that I'd been notified about this a couple of months ago.... Oh crap! Now I remember, the fee was actually going down and I recall being happy (and surprised) about that, but now there's no $27 credit to my account. Again, my fault, but I'm now overdrawn and my next social security deposit isn't for 10 days!

I hit "Reply" on the message from the bank and proceeded to explain my situation and asked for guidance. When I clicked "Send" a page popped up telling me that 'my session had timed out'.. No reminder warning me that this was about to happen, and besides, I was typing the whole time, why would a page 'time out' when I was actively entering text into a reply field?

Now I'm getting somewhat irritated and I fire off a message to technical support about the issue. Then I call the bank and speak with a customer rep. After explaining the situation and receiving an apology for the online problem the woman looked at my accounts and told me that I needed to deposit some money to cover the overdraft or I'd be charged $39 #^@*!%@ dollars!

Now don't forget that I have no income for 10 days when my next social security deposit arrives.. That $39 overdraft fee gets repeated until then!

All I could think of at that point was bankers partying it up at some posh resort thinking "Thank you suckers!" or some Citizens CEO getting a huge bonus and internally smirking while thinking about how their industry just got bailed out by the government (tax payers).

I'm not sure if I even want to watch the upcoming hearings where they'll be questioned about these overdraft fees. The greed and arrogance of these people seems to have no bounds. Any contrition voiced by them can't be taken seriously due to their continued arrogant behavior since the last time they were called to testify.

The whole situation is a farce, as is the 'debate' on health care reform. The majority of the population gets screwed by the corporations and most of our elected representatives support them while their re-election coffers are fattened in the process.

I have no problem with paying a penalty when I screw up. I do however have a problem when that penalty is milked over and over as a one teat on a cash cow.

What I Want To See From The Media & My Thoughts So Far

2009-07-24T09:37:00.009-04:00

Here's what I'd like to see from the news media regarding the arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates:

A timeline of the event.
An explanation by legal experts of the laws pertinent in this situation.
Nationally recognized experts in the field of police standards and training.

At the moment my thoughts are that most of the statements I've seen so far are emotional knee-jerk reactions.

I didn't take President Obama's statement as a condemnation of the entire Cambridge Police Department as the the president of the Cambridge Police Patrol Officer's Association claimed. That seems to me to be a defensive mischaracterization of the president's remarks.

The demeanor of the officers that responded is more important than that of Mr. Gates. I believe that police officers are trained to remain calm and deal 'professionally' with subjects even if they're confronted with insults and the like.

It is nevertheless always a good idea and mature behavior for someone in professor Gates' position to also act respectfully. That's easier said than done of course, but as for the police it's essential to remain calm to diffuse and de-escalate a situation.

I always pause when I hear the head of an organization say that they will conduct an 'internal investigation' on one of their own, especially after taking a defensive stance as the Cambridge police have. An independent inquiry should be undertaken to eliminate the question of bias.

Finally, I have a feeling that most if not all the parties in this incident will at some point look back and have second thoughts about their statements and their behavior.

At least I hope they do..

I just re-read my "About Me" (then looked at the date of my last post..)

2009-07-20T04:43:00.004-04:00

Well.... it was accurate when I wrote it!

As far as my blog for "blogsNH" (Concord Monitor Online) goes I should tell you that I stopped for personal/health reasons, and since then I've hesitated resuming for multiple reasons.

I have less energy because of some of the medications I'm taking.

Preaching responsible security can seem like an exercise in futility much of the time. I was spending a great deal of time and energy providing what could be a valuable service for readers and getting little to no feedback from either readers or the paper in return. A few fellow bloggers showed support but at the end of the day I can't justify the effort vs. energy spent.

The Monitor wasn't nearly as progressive as they could be. At that time they didn't even allow comments, and they still don't have live links to contact the reporter.

Too many of the articles (online) are poorly written. So many are brief blurbs leaving out most of the pertinent facts. It's like posting a headline and lead without any details, or showing a photograph without the cutline..

The blog software is clunky and all too often the communication with the Monitor personnel took too long. In addition to that, the contact person seemed to have some kind of relationship with a conservative right-wing group/podcast.

Finally, I simply don't like being associated with some of the more frequent bloggers there.
Nothing 'personal' towards them as people, and maybe it's me, but as a volunteer service as opposed to the responsibility of a professional position it's a choice I've made.

I do feel that the Concord Monitor Online is getting better and I hope that trend continues, albeit at a much more rapid pace. Perhaps loading up the blogsNH section with in-house sports blogs isn't fair to the citizen bloggers (despite my personal tastes/feelings). Having a separate section for Monitor employee blogs would be more appropriate, or maybe just expanding the space for blog headlines so that the sports blogs aren't all that readers see. That has frequently been the case lately.

I also feel that not having a dedicated contact person/supervisor for the blogs was an issue I noticed. My contact was splitting his time between various duties and that resulted in a lack of timely communication and probably less dedication towards improvements and innovation.

There are so many examples on the web of engaging site design and progressive staff enlisting reader and citizen participation in blogs, citizen journalism and reader commentary. But without management behind the scenes willing and able to let go of outdated thinking and bringing in some of the outstanding progressive professionals to replace those who perhaps aren't able to migrate into the new paradigm.

I'm certainly no expert but I think any unbiased assessment of Concord Monitor Online would conclude that there's a great deal of room for improvement.

This is one of those big historical shifts in technology and lifestyle affecting a wide range of industries. If those industries don't adapt, or are too slow to adapt, they will be left behind and die off.

As for me? I will keep going forward and see what each day brings. When I have the energy and motivation to write I will write.

I don't want to leave this existence not having made a positive difference. Unfortunately I have a great many negative actions in my past that I need to make up for, so since then I've tried to learn and grow as a human being, progressing on the road towards enlightenment.

I've isolated myself since then and need to change that now. Fighting the self-loathing and embarrassment I wallowed in for the last twenty years and learning to forgive myself is a challenge but essential. The prospect of living alone until I die is untenable. Finding a woman who has the intelligence, understanding, patience, and humor to share my life with is a similar challenge but also essential.

Wish me luck and positive thoughts OK? I'll be posting here and over at my other blog The Endicott Dispatch more frequently [again].

Insanity, Irresponsibility, Hypocrisy, and Complicity

2009-04-09T23:27:00.012-04:00

In the news today an "alleged" drunk driver ran a red light and killed a young pitcher in the prime of his life. After the sadness and some outrage nothing will change. This kind of thing happens every day and it's tolerated.

Yet the same people responsible for creating and enforcing laws in this country are dead-set against marijuana, even for medicinal use.

That's crazy hypocrisy.

Now I just watched William Cohan on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart explaining in very simple terms the insanely flimsy and 'hard to believe it's legal' foundation for Bear Stearns business model and the reason for it's collapse.

This is the first time I've heard about how this crazy system works. On all of the news programs, all of the political blogs, through all the political campaigns over the past twenty years I have never had an inkling of the insane system that the investment banking and hedge funds operate under.

That's crazy enough, but the thought of hundreds of Billions of taxpayer dollars being given to this same system (and many of the same people) to prop it up is the height of insanity and irresponsibility!

I think that if the people of this nation/world truly realized how they were being used to prop up this house of cards they would revolt.. and why don't they know?

Isn't that the job of journalism?

And why are our elected representatives part of the problem?

Some Random Thoughts Roaming My Mind

2009-03-19T19:13:00.013-04:00

[Sorry about the screwy formatting (grrr), but I'm 'wicked tired' and I've got to eat something..]

1. People are frustrated by all this taxpayer $$ flying out the door and having no control.

2. The credit society most people live in got them (and the lending institutions) into very bad
unsustainable habits.

3. The Bush administration reinforced #2 by committing our forces to a war where the
American people were purposely kept disengaged (no 'war tax' etc.. "War? What war.
Mistakes? No mistakes here..").

Going from a balanced budget and a surplus to Trillion-dollar deficit spending under Bush.
'Heck of a job George...'.

3a. 'Due diligence'.... There was little to no 'due diligence' (except maybe to protecting
"secrets") over the entire Bush administration's tenure.

4. Current frustrations include millionaire financial misfits getting rewarded despite
the fact that they helped create the mess.

- And as far as I'm concerned, there is no place in a responsible society for
failure to be rewarded.

5. This bailout money is corporate welfare.
Ask any social worker about the restrictions imposed if you take public assistance.

I'm sure it's a culture shock and a rude awakening to these millionaire executives to have to
show restraint and contrition. To suddenly be answerable to the people who have to bail their
sorry incompetent asses out when they've gotten used to answering to no one except a chosen few.

Most people that have jobs work hard and many pay their bills on time, only to see their
retirement accounts wiped out or drastically deflated while top executives get their
'golden parachutes' and rewarding failure with 'performance bonuses'.

They see billions literally thrown at companies* owned by friends of Bush/Cheney. Billions
more thrown to corrupt foreign governments/officials and terrorist organizations.
They see inexperienced political appointees given the job of 'overseeing' critical programs
including spending in Iraq.
Instead of appointing the most competent people to government positions, neophytes whose
primary qualifications are party loyalty and monetary contributions to that same party
were chosen.

Crimes and mismanagement were covered up by over-reaching "secrecy" policies

Between the corruption here at home, and the corruption in many of the foreign
governments that we provide[d] money to, what percent actually got to where it was
supposed to? (We can't tell because too many of the people responsible for that were either
incompetent or complicit themselves!)

- Now picture yourself as President Obama [voluntarily] stepping into this huge
disaster created by seven years of Bush/Cheney and the republican majority (and *some*
democrats).

You can't possibly accomplish anything by yourself (other than by example and leadership)
so you have to delegate much of it to others, some of whom will undoubtedly mess some
things up.

Being a man of courage class and honor he takes ultimate responsibility for his errors and
those in his administration who make mistakes (as opposed to 'having faith in them' but
taking no responsibility and never admitting to any mistakes [as the previous administration
did]).

If most people were truthful and honest with themselves, they'd have to admit that
(were they in President Obama's shoes) they would have either snapped under the pressure
or be looking for some form of escape via medication or heavy drinking.

To Obama's credit, he appears to be holding up fairly well and providing
leadership amidst all the turmoil surrounding him.

He needs to reign in some of his closest advisers though. Rahm Emanuel and others are
making his job harder at the moment.

Don't forget the Republican party (what's left of it), led by a hateful radio commentator (one
of many) who are acting like juvenile delinquents and doing absolutely nothing to help their
constituents by standing in the way of everything President Obama and Congress try to get
done.

America needs their help, and they're hoping for (and contributing to) *our*
failure.

- Picture President Obama trying to scale a wall (holding America's future and
well-being) while other Americans (mainly Republicans) throw crap on him and
try to saw off the bottom of the ladder instead of helping him get up the wall.

And despite all this you will still find far too many people leaving comments on progressive
web sites [and others] being hypercritical, and saying things like "If Bush and Cheney were
back in the White House everything would be just fine.". (Kool-Aid withdrawal/accepting
reality must be very hard for some )

*Some of whom provided sub-standard services, some that put the health and safety of our troops at risk, some that killed innocent civilians, alienating potential allies, some that
basically sanctioned rape of their own employees, and almost all of them protected from
criminal penalties by the administration who considered itself 'untouchable'.

Leo Laporte's daughter going to her Senior Prom..

2008-05-28T06:20:00.006-04:00

As soon as I heard Leo mention (on his TWiT [This Week in Tech] podcast I think) the fact that his daughter was going to her senior prom, my thoughts immediately went to this image* of the two of them that I saved from the 'TechTV' days.

I think Leo's got a couple of great kids, and they have a great dad.

* It's been 'altered' with various effects like Paint.

Earth To Bush Administration.. No More! No Torture. No Exceptions.

2008-03-19T16:40:00.010-04:00

This article in The Washington Monthly is about the use of torture by the US and seeks to end the "debate" about it's use, effectiveness, effects on those who engage in it and those who experience it, and the effects on the United States, it's allies and it's adversaries.

The article has links to 37 (if I counted correctly) individual articles on this subject by contributors like Jimmy Carter, Wesley Clark, Peter Bergen, Lee H. Hamilton & Thomas H. Kean, Chris Dodd, Kenneth M. Duberstein & Richard Armitage, Bob Barr, and Chuck Hagel.

I was alerted to it through Wesley Clark's newsletter. I think he put it well where he wrote:

"Torture is illegal, ineffective, and morally wrong. The United States has signed numerous treaties condemning torture and abjuring its practice. Those treaties are the law of the land. And, yes, waterboarding is torture: in the past, we convicted and punished foreign nationals for torture by waterboarding. There are no legal loopholes permitting torture in "exceptional cases." After all, those were the same excuses used by the torturers we once condemned.[...]"
(bold emphasis mine)
(The rest of Wesley Clark's article can be read on this page at The Washington Monthly)

I think it's a sad state of affairs that this issue is even considered "debatable". Too many people mixing the fiction of TV shows like "24" with reality, and in some cases the main stream media contributing to that confusion.

Reality and what's 'right' aren't factors that the Bush administration seem to consider. Morality is not an issue. And I don't think any group of notables, no matter how distinguished or how right they are, will change the course of this administration. Especially in the short time left.

In the scary proposition that somehow McCain was elected President, I'm not at all sure if much would change for the better. I'd like to think that [he] would change the policy on torture, but as far as the 'my way or nothing' belligerent attitude of our current foreign policy, and towards the legislative branch (so long as it has a Democratic majority), I have serious doubts.

I don't see that being *much* of a possibility, but Bush did get elected twice..

Let us all work towards a Democratic victory in the fall, then the work can begin in earnest repairing the Constitution and the rule of law, our international reputation, the health of our military, the health of our economy, and so much more.

Other things high on my wish list are things like refocusing our "representatives" attention on their individual constituents and limiting the influence of lobbyists. And speaking of 'health', how about the health of [all of] our citizens!

Take some time and read the individual articles, then think (and work) towards a time in the not so distant future where ideals like those of the authors can be our common reality and not something from the past.

A .PDF file containing all the individual articles is available for download on the page containing the main article "No More - No Torture. No Exceptions.", along with individual links [along the left side of the page] .

*Image used above is from The Washington Monthly article.

ALERT: This Program Steals Your Login Credentials!

2008-03-12T05:10:00.008-04:00

I just read this article by Robert Vamosi over at Webware.com about programmer Dustin Brooks who discovered that the program "G-Archiver" sends the login credentials of everyone who signs up for the program to the email account of it's author John Terry.

Brooks was looking for a program to back up his Gmail account when he discovered G-Archiver.

"He signed up for a program called G-Archiver distributed by Mate Media of Miami, Fla. Brooks says that after installing the program, it didn't do all he was looking for so he decided to reverse engineer the source code using a program called Reflector for .Net.

Inside the source code Brooks found the program author's e-mail address and account password for Gmail. Thinking that was a little strange, Brooks used the hardcoded information to open John Terry's Gmail account. There, Brooks alleges he found 1,777 messages, all of which had username and passwords for people who signed up for the G-Archiver, including his own. In other words, whenever anyone signed up for the program, as Brooks had, a copy of his or her username and password was sent to John Terry's Gmail account.

Hardcoding e-mail addresses isn't new. In a presentation at Black Hat D.C. 2008 a few weeks ago, researchers Nitesh Dhanjani and Billy Rios reported that phishing site creators frequently hardcode e-mail addresses into the code in order to receive copies of the personal information submitted independent of where the Web form is being sent."

You can read the rest over at Webware.com, but I have to say that reading this makes me wonder what other programs out there do this. It certainly makes an argument for Open-Source software. Being the healthy skeptic and cautious person that I am, I've wondered about this in the past. The only thing protecting most customers is the reputation of the company/author, and inquisitive (and skilled) people like Dustin Brooks.

My Best Friend in 1963

2008-02-15T16:30:00.004-05:00

Pepsi, daughter of Taffy. Maybe close to a year old in this picture. The Pilgrim Fellowship group at Dad's church in Monterey named her. The Tryons raised beautiful Golden Retrievers, and I think we picked the best of the litter.

Something's Different

2008-01-31T22:10:00.001-05:00

Yes, I finally changed over to the new template. I decided to mirror my other blog's appearance. As I find the time I'll add more links and some different page elements.

I've been trying to concentrate on my BlogsNH blog "TechAlert", and I've got a new post there called "Parents And Kids 'Growing Up Online'". If you haven't seen the PBS - Frontline program "Growing Up Online" you should, especially if you have kids still in school.

I've been concentrating on computer security and other tech-related stuff lately and avoiding politics as much as I can, so that's one of the main reasons the posts here have been sparse.
One of the other reasons is the topic of my latest post over at The Endicott Dispatch.

The nature of campaign politics and the way it being covered by most of the media turns me off.
I'm counting the days until this group of criminals is out of the White House and we can start to repair the damage they've done.

As that time gets closer I'll have more to say. In the mean time, my posts here might change from the political rants to other topics...Inside Tom's Brain.

Who Knew? (probably everyone but me....)

2008-01-15T09:28:00.001-05:00

In news relating to "Daggett's", brought to my attention via my "Daggett" Google News Alerts and The Pueblo Chieftain Online:

------------------------------------------------------------

TIN MEN

On Saturday, get out your can opener and give thanks for the brainchild of Ezra Daggett and Thomas Kensett. On this date in 1825, the men obtained a patent for the process of storing food in tin cans. And all the beans lived happily ever after.

------------------------------------------------------------

Aside from the lead poisoning associated with the solder, this was really significant.

And I'm really thankful that my parents named me Thomas and not Ezra!

After Tomorrow

2008-01-07T21:45:00.000-05:00

Things will be quieting down here in New Hampshire (until November).

For me (and my neighbors here at the Endicott Hotel on Main St. Concord) that means figuratively and literally. Over the past several days (since the Iowa Caucus) the political supporters have been out on the streets like I've never experienced since I moved here in 1979.

The morning of the Iowa Caucus I was awakened by someone beating a snare drum out front. I assume it was a Ron Paul supporter as they were the only ones out that day. It was a frigid day but sunny, and the Paul faithful were out en masse here in Concord.
Since then it's been crazy and noisy, starting around 8 AM and lasting all day long. Horns honking, sometimes blaring all the way down Main Street, groups of supporters chanting or yelling, sometimes to cars going by, other times at each other.

As I said, I've never seen enthusiasm like this here in Concord before the primary, or before the general election. Despite the noise I think it's great to see so many (mostly younger) people out participating in the political process and working for their candidate.

Much of this enthusiasm is undoubtedly due to the unprecedented failure of President Bush and the 'torturous' last seven years. The combination of an unnecessary war that many were fooled into supporting until the truth became evident, an unduly secretive and deceptive President and Vice President, seemingly endless scandals in the Republican party, and a Republican leadership that either looked the other way or was complicit in a plan to dominate and marginalize the opposing party, all the while rubber stamping everything the President asked for, whether legal or not.
-and-
With the price of oil and gasoline tripling, real estate in trouble, the NSA allowed to spy on Americans uncontrolled, billions of dollars spent in Iraq but unnaccounted for, New Orleans neglected, incompetant political appointees heading critical agencies, the Justice Department politicized, and much of the rest of the world now fearful and wondering how far down the road to crazytown Bush will drive the war wagon. Oh, and I almost forgot the disregard and obvious contempt for the Constitution, the Geneva Convention, and the rule of law in general as it pertains to Bush's imperial presidency, and the disdain for the poor and the social programs that help them, not to mention the neglect of the veterans that Bush needlessly sent into harms way. Is it any wonder that there is this massive call for change?

As I've heard others say, the President promised to unite the country. Of course it didn't happen the way he said it would (did anything?), but in the end he succeeded in uniting 80% of the country in opposition to him and his failed policies.

After all that has happened over the past seven years, why would any sane, caring person even consider voting for another Republican?

My Favorite Holiday Card

2007-12-24T22:56:00.000-05:00

The title of this card is "Frozen Thung", and inside it says
"Hathy Holidayth".

The first thing I like is that it looks a bit like I did back when I was a little kid.
The other thing is his resemblance to the younger brother in the classic Christmas movie "A Christmas Story" who also froze his tongue to a metal pole. The only thing missing are the kids gathered around him laughing.

So here's to wishing everyone "Hathy Holidayth"!

Here's the info from the back of the card (with my comments added):

Contemporary American Photographers

Photograph [Copyright] 1994 Joe Lampi (<- This guy is good)
Dublin Productions (<- really neat site w/ Flash, check out the photos)
Frothen Thung
[Copyright] Palm Press, Inc. 1995 (<- Interesting cards)
1442A Walnut Street #120
Berkeley, California 94709

Holiday Thoughts on Christmas Eve

2007-12-24T20:57:00.000-05:00

I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season.

I'm celebrating a traditional but solitary New England Christmas here in New Hampshire, missing my father greatly but recalling wonderful Christmas memories from childhood.

The traditional reading of "The Night Before Christmas" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", remembering how hard it was to get to sleep on Christmas eve listening for any faint sound that might actually be Santa on the roof, and the rush of anticipation in my belly keeping me awake 'till I finally drifted off to sleep. Then waking up early on Christmas morning, wondering if it's too early to wake mom and dad to get the day started, feeling like it's taking them forever while they make their coffee and have a bit of breakfast before finally gathering around the tree to see if your wishes had been answered by Santa.

I'm also thinking of all the people who might not be having a 'merry' Christmas for whatever reason, including those not able to be with their loved ones for the holidays and those who can't afford to get their kids what they've been asking for the past year. And most recently, the employees who have found themselves suddenly without their jobs just before Christmas.

To many of those folks, remember that there are people out there who care, and tomorrow's always a new day.
And as my father would always say to me when times were tough, "this too shall pass", then he'd remind me to "keep smiling".

Bless you Dad.
And bless all of you, one and all..

Critical Question For Candidates

2007-12-20T18:05:00.000-05:00

Knowing the history of the Presidency regarding the unwillingness to give up presidential powers once their predecessors have gained them (despite how they gained them and whether they're constitutional or not), I think it's imperative that the current candidates for the presidency are asked whether they will reverse the "questionable" powers that Bush has claimed since becoming President. Especially if he's not impeached as he rightfully should be.

If Bush isn't impeached, (as I've stated before) a terrible precedent will have been set on many levels for future Presidents. Candidates need to be on the record (not that that matters anymore) saying that if elected they will renounce the unconstitutional claims of presidential privilege the Bush administration has stubbornly held to since 9/11, clearly and unconditionally.

Instead of the mostly asinine questions asked of candidates, we must ask this one and other critical topics! Electing a president has rarely had so much at stake for the future of our country as this one. If we're not able to reverse the downward decline this president and the majority of the Republican party have "led" us into we will have completely lost the honored position as respected and envied leader of the free world.

Not only thoughtful and respectable people in this country, but people all over the world are waiting to see what happens after the debacle of the Bush presidency is over.

The direction the President has taken us, compounded by the severe lack of representation of the citizenry by Congress in favor of big business interests (and their own) will lead to our downfall eventually. It's surely not what our founders put into place so thoughtfully.
As a matter of fact it's starting to resemble what they rebelled against all those years ago.

Tonight's Countdown [Without] Keith Olbermann

2007-12-17T20:32:00.000-05:00

Just a few thoughts regarding tonight's show.
First of all, of all the people who sub for Keith when he's off Allison Stewart is in my opinion the best. That said, I need to say something about tonight's discussion concerning former President Clinton's "roll the dice" comment from the Charlie Rose show.

I don't understand the questioning of what Clinton's statement 'meant'. It's plain to me that it meant that Hillary is a fairly well known commodity with a good deal of experience, as are the other candidates, except for Barack Obama. It's simply a matter of experience. Now I understand that political journalists like to read 'between the lines' and divine "the real meaning" of statements like this, and sometimes that's necessary, and sometimes the journalists are correct, but sometimes 'a cigar is just a cigar'.

"Roll the dice" means gambling, taking a chance. And to elect someone with a limited amount of experience, even when they have a lot of good ideas and are charismatic, is a calculated risk. Is it not?
In some ways you could say that voting for any of the candidates is a gamble. We've seen too many politicians take stances and vote on issues that oppose what the majority of their constituents want, and in some instances are in direct conflict with the oath they swore to when elected (you know, "To protect and defend the Constitution..."?).

There's no doubt that Hillary's campaign has encountered some bumps in the road, and being almost dead even in the latest polls has undoubtedly made them anxious to draw distinctions between her and Barack Obama. That major distinction is experience. They'd both be a welcome change from what this country and the world has painfully experienced over the past seven years, and are both head and shoulders above anyone running for the Republican party.

Now the idea that Bill Clinton was doing anything other than being truthful when he said that "Obama is a person of enormous talent". I didn't read that as "damning him with fake praise" as it was characterized by Allison and Howard Fineman. And I think Clinton characterized the rest of the field of candidates correctly when he said that all but Obama had a long and fairly extensive history of foreign policy and legislative experience.
I think the same thing. The first time I heard Barack Obama speak he amazed me by how much sense he made and how well he communicated. So much of what he says reflects the same way I feel about many issues. In some ways he has characteristics that none of the other candidates do, and part of that [I think] comes from not being part of the Washington scene for too long. But as far as other (meaning the good) aspects of experience go, he just hasn't had the time or the experience(s).

As for David Gregory's questioning of Hillary Clinton regarding the quote, he clearly interpreted it negatively as simply a 'dig' and not as a simple [political] way to make the distinction between Hillary and Barack Obama. He could have phrased it differently, but competitive politics isn't a case of being as nice to your opponents as you can. These days that was being [relatively] nice!
The questioning by Gregory had the odor of another try for a 'gotcha' moment from a member of the press as opposed to unbiased critical questioning of a candidate and Hillary didn't oblige him.
I truly miss Theresa Heinz Kerry and her forthright and unabashed responses to questions like that. I'd like to think that she would have responded by saying "My husband said it, why aren't you asking him?".

The press can often be so petty.

PS, Allison's comments about Michael Jackson almost made me snort water out my nose!

Crazy For The Holidays

2007-12-12T08:14:00.000-05:00

I plead guilty to neglecting this blog recently.
A few of the reasons are here:

1. Sometimes I just get overwhelmed by the magnitude of scandals, dirty tricks, self-serving talking heads, and election coverage that treats it like a game or spectator sport. Bush and his gang lie with impunity, and right-wing water carriers are still lugging their bilge water.

2. Meanwhile my ADD addled brain is jumping from the holidays, to increased seasonal depression, to a new blog for the Concord Monitor Online's "blogsNH" that I'm about to start. Add to that an upstairs neighbor who walks like Frankenstein, shaking this 100 year old former hotel, a new management company for us who looks to be doing it on the cheap, and the second year of being without my dear old Dad and wanting to move back to Western Mass to be close to my mother who is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's.

When it gets really bad I remember my father's words of wisdom (not that he came up with this, but..) "This too shall pass", and one of his favorites "Smile a lot".

So that's what I'm trying to keep in mind this winter as I do my best to keep all the balls in the air. And if I drop one, rest assured that I'll bend down and pick it up, and toss it back up in the air with the rest as soon as I can.

Troubled times only make the good times that much sweeter to savor.

And remember to "Smile a lot".

A Comment On Comments

2007-11-26T16:53:00.000-05:00

I leave comments from time to time, mostly on political sites like ThinkProgress,The Huffington Post, Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, and TalkingPointsMemo. I'm not quite sure of what this says about me, but so many of the comments I read are either nonsensical, poorly thought out, mis-spelled, childish, or off-topic. Many are varied combinations of that list.

Now I'm certainly not immune to some of this either, but in my defense I've gotten better since I started using WordWeb, some other writing aids like an additional thesaurus (Mobysaurus Thesaurus), the web site Answers.com, and many others. And the best aid of all, taking my time and re-reading my thoughts before clicking "Post".

I know some of this is unfortunately the way many younger people are communicating these days. No capital letters, no punctuation, etc.. And then there's the fact that just because you have a computer, it doesn't necessarily mean that you're educated (or course there are some people that aren't 'educated' but are plenty smart).

I hope this doesn't come across as conceited or anything like that. My formal education ended after high school (and later in life one year of photography school). And to call that an 'education' is being generous. During high school (in the seventies) I was a rocker and a serious partier. I spent most of my time playing the drums with a local band, smoking pot, and drinking beer. But somewhere in there, mostly before and after that part of my life I read a lot. It also helped that my parents were highly intelligent graduates of Colby College and my mother quickly corrected me whenever I mis-spoke.
I'm far from perfect, and I prove it often, but I try to take the time and steps necessary to minimize that fact when I leave comments.

Nowadays I deal with chronic depression, ADD, and severe anxiety, all of which conspire to make writing and thinking clearly a difficult process. I guess that in some ways that forces me to be more careful about what I write and how I write it. And sometimes when I don't put the effort into it I let things go that I'd otherwise spend more time on. The end result being writing that I'm less than proud of, and usually exhibits itself towards the end of whatever I'm writing as my attention and energy fade. My writing is far from perfect, but at least I make the effort to make it understandable.

I assume that this happens to others also. The reasons for thoughtless (or 'less than thoughtful') comments are many, but the reasons for poorly spelled comments aren't. There are typos, which are easily remedied by simply re-reading before posting. Then there are many people who can't spell, which is almost as easily remedied by using one of the hundreds of spell-checking utilities available that underline the mis-spelled words for you.

Then there are the comments that seem to have been written by aliens, some of which actually were written by people from other countries who don't have a good command of english, and others that seem to have come from some beings that are not of this world.
The former is understandable, but there are many that fall into the latter category, undecipherable by the best translators. They're the ones that leave you thinking, HUH?

It's a tossup as to which is more maddening, the inane comments that people pull out of their butts, or the fact that some people are so lazy that they won't bother to use a simple spelling utility that could at least allow them to fake it and not look so stoopid.

These days with all the blogs, forums, and comments sections, most of which are solely print-based, you have to take extra care to make sure your thoughts are conveyed clearly. There are no facial clues or voice inflections for others to notice and thereby access your true feelings or the actual meaning of your comment as opposed to what they think you meant.

I haven't touched on THE PEOPLE WHO FEEL THEY HAVE TO WRITE EVERYTHING IN ALL CAPS, JUST SO...__________________(fill in the blank).
Most veterans of internet forums and such know that this is considered 'yelling' and is bad form, but with more and more new people coming online with computers everyday and joining the world wide conversation there are just so many that haven't learned the proper etiquette, let alone bother to use proper english or spelling. Some know better and do it anyway.

I haven't mentioned 'trolls' either. Those who 'troll' the comments sections of web sites looking to engage in arguments with people that don't share their point of view, and some who purposely go there to derail the legitimate discussion. The reasons are many. These days the small but vocal minority of 'loyal Bushies' seem to be everywhere standing up for their hero, the facts be damned. Among those there are also the religious zealots, well-meaning and otherwise.

I'm finding myself less and less prone to even read the comments sections these days. I am finding some sites that seem to have a more thoughtful and less fanatical commentary but I don't know how to avoid the lazy posts with the typos, et al.
Maybe at a site like PoynterOnline.

I've 'replied' to people's comments from time to time, politely mentioning how easy and helpful spelling assist utilities are, but they're usually met with the 'spelling nazi' reply or some other defensive retort so I don't bother anymore.

I wish it didn't bother me as much. I'd blame my mother, but it's not her fault. I'm glad for her guidance. I feel sorry for those whose parents aren't good role models. I know all to many. Unfortunately ignorance usually breeds ignorance as I'm sure many teachers would agree. The exceptions are wonderful to see and are to be encouraged. But this trend towards 'no rules writing' is bad. I've had people tell me that "it's just the way kids are communicating these days", as if there was nothing that could be done to change it.

It's bad for the future of increased online interaction and bad for accurate communication where all you have to go by are written words.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to re-read my post. I could really use an editor to help me with that, but for now I'll have to muddle through as best I can.

*Did I mention the ones who overuse the bold highlighting feature?

Disgusting "comments" at Military.com

2007-11-23T16:49:00.000-05:00

I followed a link from the Military.com newsletter to an article about an award-winning AP photographer from Iraq who's been 'detained' and imprisoned without charges for 19 months.

After reading the article I went to check out the comments (Join the Discussion) and was disturbed and disgusted by what I read.
(Because the URL is so long for the comments/discussion page here's a shortened URL http://tinyurl.com/295q3o .)

I suggest you read the article, then the comments, and judge for yourself...

Here are some examples from the "discussion":

-------------------------------------------
"I can't believe it took us this long to capture him. Doesn't surprise me at all."
-------------------------------------------
"Just an AP photographer? Hell, I think nearly the whole lot at AP is a cheering section for the terrorists."
---------------------------------------------
quote:
Originally posted by 67NOV:
Just an AP photographer? Hell, I think nearly the whole lot at AP is a cheering section for the terrorists.

"You and me both Sir."
---------------------------------------------
"Michelle Malkin has links to the pictures he's taken... all of insurgent activity, apparently without any fear on his part. If he isn't collaborating with them I'll eat my hat."
--------------------------------------------
"About time the military starts investigating all of this so called "journalists"

First AP,next CNN and finally Aljazeera "
--------------------------------------------
"Well, I've been wrong before, but I think burying this turd in a holr with his head sticking up and letting locals stone the head would probably be a good idea. I'm just old-fashioned like that."
--------------------------------------------
"Well, when you serve, maybe you'll think differently about those who are Terrorists. Enjoy being Protected by others"
--------------------------------------------

- And when someone posted a dissenting view, here's what some wrote:

"Actually, What is laughable,... no it's more like pathetic is all the clueless mouth diarrhea from liberals on this site."
-------------------------------------------- Followed by:

"LMAO, good show, sir. I will buy you a beer for that one. BeerGulp, ahhh.....the beer is nice and cold."
--------------------------------------------
"A corporation will stand behind it's employee regardless of the scurrilousness of the employee only to protect their own image.

We probably have tons of terrorists who have infiltrated many businesses in the U.S. ready to strike. Many others have lawn services.

I am sure the U.S. military wouldn't make these claims without substantial evidence. Of course he is probably photographing military operations and smuggling it to the insurgency in his nose. Can you imagine how many volumes of micro file you can stuff in that jobaruby?

Yikes so that is where all the air is going."
-------------------------------------------
"GEEEEEEEZ! The article states they're going to turn the AP photographer guy over to the Iraq authorities in a few days, so what are all these libs crying about!

Remember, that AP photographer isn't an American and isn't in the USA, he's in a foreign country. Things work differently over there and when under arrest you don't have any rights over there. So if they want to lock the guy up and never let him out, shut him up, or torture him to with in an inch of his life to find out what he knows....... well, that's just how it goes. That's how they do it over there. The guy is a terrorist and his efforts have no doubt cost others their lives, so......... this guy is getting what he deserves, whether you agree with it or not."
------------------------------------------

- There's more, but that's enough to give you the general flavor. As I said, only one person showed any sense of decency (and respect for the rule of law) and supported the AP photographer.

The feeling I got when reading these comments was that they could have been written by those who committed the atrocities at Abu Ghraib. The absolute lack of humanity and the disregard for human rights goes against what I thought the US military stood for and has spent blood protecting.

I have to wonder how prevalent is this ignorant and malevolent attitude in our servicemen and women?

Is this some of what you get when you send people to fight and die in an asymmetric war?

Is it what happens to soldiers when they see their comrades get blown up daily by fighters who look just like the ones they're there to protect?

Does it come from bad leadership?

Just where in hell do these comments come from?

C|NET - Download.com -- Are you confused?

2007-11-23T15:00:00.000-05:00

This is what happens when I (successfully?) log in to Download.com.

As you can see, I'm logged in and it displayed my user name
(Welcome back, "trdaggett"). And if you look at the bottom it also says "Sorry, the identifier/password combination you've entered is invalid.".

I just sent another issue 'comment' to CNET about the ongoing login issues. I've been registered with CNET and ZDNet for years, and it seems like nearly every time I go to log in something like this happens. They don't screw up my email
address though, I get everything I've signed up for.

After I finished sending the support comment, it presented me with a page that went something like this; 'We think you requested information on Limewire...'.
I wish I'd taken a screenshot of it. It obviously parsed my comment and made a guess as to the content....badly. Nowhere did I mention Limewire or anything remotely similar.

In the second screen grab you see it shows all the different requests that "NoScript" detected.
For those who don't know about it NoScript is a Firefox 'extension' that blocks Java scripting in web pages until I 'allow' it. It's perhaps the most valuable add-on available and protects me from malicious scripting exploits.
Everyone should use it unless you're a security freak and are using another method.
The author Giorgio Maone is to be congratulated and deserves all the donations we can send!
------------------------------------
Now back to CNET, I don't know what causes this/these issues, I'm thinking that it might have something to do with all the different scripts running on their pages, and all the different browsers and combinations of security ware and add-ons people use. But it's not like I'm using an obscure browser or shouldn't be using an excellent security extension like NoScript.
Obviously something is screwed up, and usually the more things you have going on inside a web page, the better the chance for conflicts.
As an end-user, I don't care. All I want is a web page that works. And guess what happens if an end-user has trouble every time they try to log in? -- Adios until you get it straight.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, But...

2007-11-22T06:56:00.000-05:00

But, remember the indigenous peoples who don't share the same feelings. Their experience was entirely different from the English settlers. For one group it was the beginning, the other the beginning of the end.

I have mixed feelings about the day as my family was to follow these pilgrims path in 1630 when the Winthrop Fleet brought them to the shores of Massachusetts. I hate to think that Daggetts or Purintons (or any settlers for that matter) were in any part responsible for the downfall and destruction of the local tribes' way of life. Of course they were, in the most basic sense by being part of a group of people who thought that they had a right to 'settle' on someone else's land. I'd like to think that they were at least cognizant of that fact, and were possibly ones who at least tried to have a mutually beneficial relationship.

These days those issues aren't what most people think about on Thanksgiving day. Come to think of it, on the original Thanksgiving most were thinking of themselves and the fortunes of their group and little of the people whose lives and lands they would eventually dispossess.

This Thanksgiving while we are giving thanks for family and friends, the bountiful feast, and the fellowship of the day, it would be good to give some thought to those whose lives were irrevocably changed by our forefathers. I certainly will.

The News From A True Citizen Journalist In Iraq

2007-11-12T15:34:00.000-05:00

When I hear talking heads commenting on how the surge is working, and how the media isn't covering any of the good news from 'Eye-rack' (what the hell is so hard to pronounce?), my head wants to explode in frustration. So desperate to be vindicated in some way for their support of this devastating war, yet unable to produce any tangible (and believable) evidence themselves, they continue to live in a bubble of denial.

I wonder how they'd feel if they had to live in Iraq (outside the Green Zone), or if they were the manager of this clinic cited in a book by Dahr Jamail called "Beyond the Green Zone - Dispatches From an Unembedded Journalist in Occupied Iraq" that I just read about over at Firedoglake:

"The boxes of medical supplies we brought into the clinic were torn open immediately by desperate doctors. A woman entered, slapping her chest and face, and wailing as her husband carried in the dying body of her little boy. Blood was trickling off one of his arms, which dangled out of his father’s arms. Thus began my witnessing of an endless stream of women and children who had been shot by the U.S. soldiers and were now being raced into the dirty clinic, the cars speeding over the curb out front, and weeping family members carriying in their wounded."

"Standing near the ambulance in frustration, Maki [the manager of the clinic] told us, They (U.S. soldiers) shot the ambulance and they shot the driver after they checked his car, and knew he was carrying nothing. Then they shot him. And then they shot the ambulance. And now I have no ambulance to evacuate more than twenty wounded people.[...]"

Gee, I didn't hear about this on the news either.

Those have to be some thick bubbles these people are hiding in.

Lets make two lists, one with the 'good' news, the other with the bad. If you survive to complete the first part you'll already have a jump on the second.

And a large part of it depends on your perspective. How much good news do you have to report if you're one of the 2+ million displaced Iraqis? Probably more than if you're still living in Baghdad. How much good news do you think Maki has to report?

It seems that the only ones reporting "good news" are the officers who still support Bush, or the ones that know from experience that anything other than good news will put you on the fast track to "retirement". Oh, and Fox'ers.

More Ineptitude On Bush's Watch

2007-11-11T20:04:00.000-05:00

I just finished the New York Times article "Death of Spy Satellite Program".

I wonder how many billions of dollars have been wasted due to the lack of oversight, mis-management, and corruption in the past seven years of George Bush (and Republican domination). At least in this case they know how much was lost, but between Katrina and Iraq there are billions completely unaccounted for.