People probably think I am too transparent with my life. You can pretty much find everything about me online. Although I don't tell everyone everything, I think if I am asked, I have little that I would actually hide. Mike has found it a little difficult to adjust to - being outed publicly every time he turns around. :-) Luckily, he loves me, and he has learned to just consider it cute.
I've been struggling lately to be productive. I have been tired, like usual. Mike has been less than 100% for quite some time now. I try my best to be understanding, but sometimes I get frustrated because when he is too tired to get anything done, it makes it hard for me to make myself do anything. It gets depressing when he just doesn't feel good all the time and there isn't anything I can do to help him.
He finished up his 48 hour EEG today, and we also requested that his doctor test him for Yellow fever and West Nile. They both have similar symptoms to what he is experiencing - if they get to the point of encephalitis. He had the Yellow fever vaccination earlier this year when he was traveling for work, and there was a minute risk that the vaccination could have the side effects of the actual virus. Also, he got completely eaten up by mosquitoes while we were helping clean up the pond before the wedding. However, only animal instances of West Nile have been reported in North Carolina. Leave it to Mike to get some strange disease - skin eating bacteria, diverticulitis, esophageal rings, and now whatever this is. You marry a guy, and he falls to pieces. Other than feeling like crap all the time, Mike is in good spirits. He is a sweetheart, and I have just been praying that he feels better soon.
Ah, now he walked into the room so I will be caught blogging about him. Mind went blank. Change subject.
The weather is getting cold here; it is a nice change for now, but I think it will get old after another month. I keep seeing pictures of Max growing up, and I am itching to go to Chicago to go see my newest nephew, Kim, and Tony. We also have to find some time to go see mom and Lisa and family.
Mike had bought me a new laptop for my birthday, but it sucked so we returned it. I was going to buy a tablet notebook, but since my brokerage account is down by about $20K, I think my old Dell laptop will have to suffice for a few more months. We still have credit card bills to pay off from the wedding. At least gas prices are in a normal range again - and there are actually gas stations with gas. We were stuck at home for a while.
Anything else interesting in my life to report? Hmmm. No, not really.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
My Family is Broken
Ru_Daddy 004
Originally uploaded by pamela_j_karr
I couldn't resist taking this picture. Mike is hooked up to an EEG for two days. His doctor thinks he might have epilepsy, and we also came up with it possibly being Yellow Fever or West Nile today because the symptoms match. Still don't know. Ru's diagnosis is clear: he loves too much, and the rottweiler did not love him. :-(
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Just When You Think Your Neighborhood is Safe
Ru 007
Originally uploaded by pamela_j_karr
So, Ru was in the backyard yesterday while we were logged in to the McCain Super Saturday phone call. The arborist left the gate open. Well, Ru usually is a good boy about staying in the backyard even if the gate is open. However, he saw a guy walking his dog, and got excited. He ran to go play with the dog (a Rottweiler) and this is what happened. Poor Ru. We are going to get springs for the gates to make sure they stay closed from now on. Ru has a satellite dish on his head and a drain because the bite was so deep. :-(
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Racism
I am scared for our country. I feel more racial tension today than when I lived in Mississippi, and they called me Ching Chong in junior high. They thought my family and I were witches because we had a black cat and that we ate dog because we were Chinese. I feel more racial tension than when I moved to St. Petersburg, Florida shortly after the St. Pete riots. And this just feels wrong. It doesn't feel like hope.
I know racism existed before this election, and I know it will exist after this election. But the problem is that somehow this Presidential election has become all about race. Even if you aren't racist, you are now considered so. Even if you have fought against racism, all your efforts were in vain.
I wrote a response to an accusation that white people don't get why Obama is so important for blacks. I said that Obama doesn't represent the black people I know. The black people I know work extremely hard for their money - as hard or harder than white people I know - and would never think about forcing wealthy people to give the government money to give them a hand out. But, then that comment is considered racist as well.
I am angry that this election has made this country take a step backwards. No matter what color you are, you should be allowed to question both candidates and get intelligent answers. The mud slinging by the American citizens has gotten far more caustic than the ads run by either of the political campaigns. That's when you know when something is drastically wrong.
How do we fix this? Will it all just go away after the election or will it just get worse?
I know racism existed before this election, and I know it will exist after this election. But the problem is that somehow this Presidential election has become all about race. Even if you aren't racist, you are now considered so. Even if you have fought against racism, all your efforts were in vain.
I wrote a response to an accusation that white people don't get why Obama is so important for blacks. I said that Obama doesn't represent the black people I know. The black people I know work extremely hard for their money - as hard or harder than white people I know - and would never think about forcing wealthy people to give the government money to give them a hand out. But, then that comment is considered racist as well.
I am angry that this election has made this country take a step backwards. No matter what color you are, you should be allowed to question both candidates and get intelligent answers. The mud slinging by the American citizens has gotten far more caustic than the ads run by either of the political campaigns. That's when you know when something is drastically wrong.
How do we fix this? Will it all just go away after the election or will it just get worse?
What we do and do not know . . .
Burr, Richard
217 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
Dole, Elizabeth
555 DIRKSEN SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
Dear Senators Burr and Dole,
We know all about Joe the Plumber. We know that his real first name is Sam and that his last name is Wurzelbacher. We know that he doesn’t have a plumber’s license, owes back taxes, and may even have a case against him for domestic battery. And all Joe did was ask, “Your new tax plan is going to tax me more, isn’t it?”
What we don’t know is if Obama violated the Logan Act which declares it treason to confer with foreign governments against the interests of the United States when he campaigned and possibly raised money for Odinga in Kenya whose rise to power ultimately resulted in the death of 1,500 people. Odinga’s campaign was for radical socialist change with wealth distribution in Kenya.
We don’t know how much money was funneled into (and for what causes) liberal organizations such as the Chicago Woods Fund, ACORN, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, and Trinity Church during Obama’s 10 year relationship with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers or 20 year membership at Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s church. Trinity Church preaches Black Liberation Theology and radical race separatism. Wright once said, “Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run! We [in the U.S.] believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God.” Interestingly enough, the far left sentiments I read on the church’s website last week have been replaced with a completely new, mainstream website I found today. Other files associating Obama and Ayers have also been removed during the past week from the Woods Fund and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) websites.
We don’t know if Obama is truly an American citizen eligible to run for President. His birth certificate was filed under Barry Soetoro, the surname of his adoptive father from Indonesia. There are claims that Indonesia did not allow dual citizenship until 2007 which means Obama would have had to give up his US citizenship to attend school in Indonesia.
We don’t know the extent of Obama’s 16 year involvement with Tony Rezko, a Chicago slumlord who campaigned for Obama and was indicted for soliciting kickbacks in 2006. We don’t know much about his relationship with John McKnight except that McKnight got him into Harvard Law School, gave him his first job as a community organizer, and was a disciple of Saul Alinsky, radical Socialist. We also don’t know much about his relationship with Rev. Jim Wallis, Fred Davis, Rahid Khalidi, and other radical liberals.
We do know that Obama endorsed Bernie Sanders, the first publicly declared Democratic Socialist elected to the US Senate. This is where I first heard Obama talk about change: “Sometimes we get disheartened and sometimes we pullback and we say you know what nothing is going change and yet when you look a these two men standing beside me it's an indication in fact that things can change.”
We do know that Obama believes that “we've got to make sure that people who have more money help the people who have less money,” and “we need to spread the wealth around.” He ensures us that when he is President, “we’ll ensure that economic justice is served."
We know that Obama’s tax plan guarantees a distribution of wealth where the top 1% of the nation would pay more tax that the bottom 80% of Americans combined. However, less than 50% of the "middle class tax break" actually goes to the middle class tax payer. The rest goes to people who pay no taxes at all or those making $93,000 to $192,000 a year.
We know that two-thirds of small business (sole proprietorships, partnerships, S-corporations, and family farms) profits are earned in households making more than $250,000 per year and that Obama’s tax plan may tax their earnings up to 54.9% (the individual tax rate will climb from 35% to 39.6% and the Social Security/Medicare tax rate could climb from 2.9% to 15.3%. Put those together, and you get 54.9%). This 54.9% tax rate would be the highest since the Carter Administration, when America suffered through double-digit inflation and unemployment. America's 26 million small businesses employers give a paycheck to 116 million employees. When small business taxes go up, millions of these employees will be at risk of being laid off.
Intrinsically, we know that radical Socialism is not superior to reformed Capitalism. We know that the US is founded on the idea of the “American Dream” which is the belief in the freedom to achieve our goals (often wealth as a form of prosperity) through hard work. We also know that the economic growth of our country is more important than the fact that we might get an extra tax break of our own.
We all know that Obama has a charismatic personality with a decisiveness and power not found in his political opponents. He makes promises of a new nation and of change. But do we really know what that change really means?
During no other time in history has the background of a Presidential candidate been so controversial yet so glossed over. It took a Plumber from Ohio to say the covert word “Socialism” that we had all been thinking before McCain could even question his opponents’ stance on the issue. Because, we all know, if McCain had said it first, he would have surely been accused of treachery. Socialism is a policy, not a character flaw. We need to know the extent of Senator Obama plans to impose this ideology on our country before he is elected President (which I can only hope he is not). Yet all probing questions have simply been silenced. I have been respectful of Obama supporters, have not used fowl language, and have refrained from any personal attacks. However, when I have questioned Senator Obama’s readiness to be my President, Obama supporters have called me racist, dumb, fat, uncompassionate, a liar, a brick wall, out of my mind, greedy, undesirable to men, and a whacked out bitch. After simply comparing timelines for Palin and Obama’s experience, I was told that “I hope you die a slow and agonizing death you worthless piece of shit.” I guess I know how Joe feels. Is this what Senator Obama meant by, “I want you to argue with them and get in their face?”
Senators Dole and Burr, as my representatives in Senate, I am counting on you to make sure Obama is thoroughly put through the vetting process, and that we can still invoke our First Amendment rights to free speech. Currently, there is no law requiring background checks for President of the United States, yet in some states felons are stripped of the right to vote. Therefore, men and women who do not even have the privilege of voting could in fact run for President. I am not suggesting that Senator Obama has a criminal background, but I do want answers to all the questions concerned citizens have been asking about his socialist ideologies and troubling entourage of friends and business partners. I believe an FBI investigation is not only appropriate but necessary. With his practically unlimited source of funding and media’s bias slant, I simply don’t know the truth. However, I refuse to accept ignorance as comfort and will continue to search for the facts; hopefully, I won’t be alone. Americans have the right to an informed vote, and unfortunately, it may already be too late for that. I am truly concerned about my families’ future and the future of this great Nation.
*** Note: This letter was originally written by me (Pamela Karr Wisniewski). However, you are welcome to copy the letter to send to your state's US Senators. ***
217 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
Dole, Elizabeth
555 DIRKSEN SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
Dear Senators Burr and Dole,
We know all about Joe the Plumber. We know that his real first name is Sam and that his last name is Wurzelbacher. We know that he doesn’t have a plumber’s license, owes back taxes, and may even have a case against him for domestic battery. And all Joe did was ask, “Your new tax plan is going to tax me more, isn’t it?”
What we don’t know is if Obama violated the Logan Act which declares it treason to confer with foreign governments against the interests of the United States when he campaigned and possibly raised money for Odinga in Kenya whose rise to power ultimately resulted in the death of 1,500 people. Odinga’s campaign was for radical socialist change with wealth distribution in Kenya.
We don’t know how much money was funneled into (and for what causes) liberal organizations such as the Chicago Woods Fund, ACORN, the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, and Trinity Church during Obama’s 10 year relationship with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers or 20 year membership at Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s church. Trinity Church preaches Black Liberation Theology and radical race separatism. Wright once said, “Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run! We [in the U.S.] believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God.” Interestingly enough, the far left sentiments I read on the church’s website last week have been replaced with a completely new, mainstream website I found today. Other files associating Obama and Ayers have also been removed during the past week from the Woods Fund and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) websites.
We don’t know if Obama is truly an American citizen eligible to run for President. His birth certificate was filed under Barry Soetoro, the surname of his adoptive father from Indonesia. There are claims that Indonesia did not allow dual citizenship until 2007 which means Obama would have had to give up his US citizenship to attend school in Indonesia.
We don’t know the extent of Obama’s 16 year involvement with Tony Rezko, a Chicago slumlord who campaigned for Obama and was indicted for soliciting kickbacks in 2006. We don’t know much about his relationship with John McKnight except that McKnight got him into Harvard Law School, gave him his first job as a community organizer, and was a disciple of Saul Alinsky, radical Socialist. We also don’t know much about his relationship with Rev. Jim Wallis, Fred Davis, Rahid Khalidi, and other radical liberals.
We do know that Obama endorsed Bernie Sanders, the first publicly declared Democratic Socialist elected to the US Senate. This is where I first heard Obama talk about change: “Sometimes we get disheartened and sometimes we pullback and we say you know what nothing is going change and yet when you look a these two men standing beside me it's an indication in fact that things can change.”
We do know that Obama believes that “we've got to make sure that people who have more money help the people who have less money,” and “we need to spread the wealth around.” He ensures us that when he is President, “we’ll ensure that economic justice is served."
We know that Obama’s tax plan guarantees a distribution of wealth where the top 1% of the nation would pay more tax that the bottom 80% of Americans combined. However, less than 50% of the "middle class tax break" actually goes to the middle class tax payer. The rest goes to people who pay no taxes at all or those making $93,000 to $192,000 a year.
We know that two-thirds of small business (sole proprietorships, partnerships, S-corporations, and family farms) profits are earned in households making more than $250,000 per year and that Obama’s tax plan may tax their earnings up to 54.9% (the individual tax rate will climb from 35% to 39.6% and the Social Security/Medicare tax rate could climb from 2.9% to 15.3%. Put those together, and you get 54.9%). This 54.9% tax rate would be the highest since the Carter Administration, when America suffered through double-digit inflation and unemployment. America's 26 million small businesses employers give a paycheck to 116 million employees. When small business taxes go up, millions of these employees will be at risk of being laid off.
Intrinsically, we know that radical Socialism is not superior to reformed Capitalism. We know that the US is founded on the idea of the “American Dream” which is the belief in the freedom to achieve our goals (often wealth as a form of prosperity) through hard work. We also know that the economic growth of our country is more important than the fact that we might get an extra tax break of our own.
We all know that Obama has a charismatic personality with a decisiveness and power not found in his political opponents. He makes promises of a new nation and of change. But do we really know what that change really means?
During no other time in history has the background of a Presidential candidate been so controversial yet so glossed over. It took a Plumber from Ohio to say the covert word “Socialism” that we had all been thinking before McCain could even question his opponents’ stance on the issue. Because, we all know, if McCain had said it first, he would have surely been accused of treachery. Socialism is a policy, not a character flaw. We need to know the extent of Senator Obama plans to impose this ideology on our country before he is elected President (which I can only hope he is not). Yet all probing questions have simply been silenced. I have been respectful of Obama supporters, have not used fowl language, and have refrained from any personal attacks. However, when I have questioned Senator Obama’s readiness to be my President, Obama supporters have called me racist, dumb, fat, uncompassionate, a liar, a brick wall, out of my mind, greedy, undesirable to men, and a whacked out bitch. After simply comparing timelines for Palin and Obama’s experience, I was told that “I hope you die a slow and agonizing death you worthless piece of shit.” I guess I know how Joe feels. Is this what Senator Obama meant by, “I want you to argue with them and get in their face?”
Senators Dole and Burr, as my representatives in Senate, I am counting on you to make sure Obama is thoroughly put through the vetting process, and that we can still invoke our First Amendment rights to free speech. Currently, there is no law requiring background checks for President of the United States, yet in some states felons are stripped of the right to vote. Therefore, men and women who do not even have the privilege of voting could in fact run for President. I am not suggesting that Senator Obama has a criminal background, but I do want answers to all the questions concerned citizens have been asking about his socialist ideologies and troubling entourage of friends and business partners. I believe an FBI investigation is not only appropriate but necessary. With his practically unlimited source of funding and media’s bias slant, I simply don’t know the truth. However, I refuse to accept ignorance as comfort and will continue to search for the facts; hopefully, I won’t be alone. Americans have the right to an informed vote, and unfortunately, it may already be too late for that. I am truly concerned about my families’ future and the future of this great Nation.
*** Note: This letter was originally written by me (Pamela Karr Wisniewski). However, you are welcome to copy the letter to send to your state's US Senators. ***
Friday, October 10, 2008
We Will Call Her Limpy
Poor Scuro has to go to the vet tomorrow because she has been limpy for about a week now. However, she is a tough little kitty and continues to perform her nightly duties of mashing and fluff-heading us as we sleep.
In other news, we adopted some ducks from the Carolina Waterfowl Rescue for the Ferguson's pond.
Let's see, what else? Mike had an echo-cardiogram today and is all hooked up to a heart monitor. He won't be very cuddly tonight.
I am happy with my new department at school. It doesn't make me cry, and I feel like I am actually getting help to be productive.
My 29th birthday went over without a hitch - other than the fact that I am now another year older. :-(
I joined the National Arbor Day Foundation for $15, and they are going to send me 10 flowering trees. I thought that was pretty cool. You should get some free trees too!
I think Mike will be watching his Notre Dame game as I read qualifying exam articles tomorrow. This, of course, will be after we take Scuro the Limpy to the vet. Boy, will she be mad at us.
In other news, we adopted some ducks from the Carolina Waterfowl Rescue for the Ferguson's pond.
Let's see, what else? Mike had an echo-cardiogram today and is all hooked up to a heart monitor. He won't be very cuddly tonight.
I am happy with my new department at school. It doesn't make me cry, and I feel like I am actually getting help to be productive.
My 29th birthday went over without a hitch - other than the fact that I am now another year older. :-(
I joined the National Arbor Day Foundation for $15, and they are going to send me 10 flowering trees. I thought that was pretty cool. You should get some free trees too!
I think Mike will be watching his Notre Dame game as I read qualifying exam articles tomorrow. This, of course, will be after we take Scuro the Limpy to the vet. Boy, will she be mad at us.
Saturday, October 04, 2008
82% of Statistics are made up on the spot . . .
Some issues with the 90% statistic referring to McCain voting with Bush:
-The majority of Senate votes are unanimous consent votes
-Obama leaves out 2005 when McCain only voted with Bush 77% of the time
-Based on the same comparison, Obama votes with the Democratic party 97% of the time, rarely showing bipartisanship. On the other hand, McCain has voted with his party (since 1987) only 83% of the time.
77% for a Republican voting with Republicans seems reasonable to me. Obama has voted with Bush about 40% of the time and Biden 52% of the time, and they are Democrats. And when they say McCain voted with Bush 90% of the time, that only includes 22% of the votes during Bush's presidency. I agree that the term "Maverick" is a marketing ploy that is getting annoying, but the fact that McCain has shown bipartisan leadership is noteworthy. Democrats made up 55 percent of his political partners over the last two Congresses, including on the tough issues of campaign finance and global warming. For Obama, Republicans were only 13 percent of his co-sponsors during his time in the Senate, and he had his biggest bipartisan successes on noncontroversial measures, such as issuing a postage stamp for Rosa Parks.
-The majority of Senate votes are unanimous consent votes
-Obama leaves out 2005 when McCain only voted with Bush 77% of the time
-Based on the same comparison, Obama votes with the Democratic party 97% of the time, rarely showing bipartisanship. On the other hand, McCain has voted with his party (since 1987) only 83% of the time.
77% for a Republican voting with Republicans seems reasonable to me. Obama has voted with Bush about 40% of the time and Biden 52% of the time, and they are Democrats. And when they say McCain voted with Bush 90% of the time, that only includes 22% of the votes during Bush's presidency. I agree that the term "Maverick" is a marketing ploy that is getting annoying, but the fact that McCain has shown bipartisan leadership is noteworthy. Democrats made up 55 percent of his political partners over the last two Congresses, including on the tough issues of campaign finance and global warming. For Obama, Republicans were only 13 percent of his co-sponsors during his time in the Senate, and he had his biggest bipartisan successes on noncontroversial measures, such as issuing a postage stamp for Rosa Parks.
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Obama and Socialism
"We've got to make sure that people who have more money help the people who have less money," Sen. Obama said. "If you had a whole pizza, and your friend had no pizza, would you give him a slice?"
Definition of Socialism: Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods, and the creation of an egalitarian society.
Definition of Socialism: Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods, and the creation of an egalitarian society.
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