“Over and again, last call for sin
While everyone’s lost, the battle is won.”
“All the Things That I’ve Done,” Killers
Mitt Romney let it be known that he listens to The
Killers, whose lead singer, Brandon Flowers, is Mormon. He didn’t say what his favorite Killers
song is, but I’d bet, if he really listens to them, that it is not “Mr.
Brightside.” Probably more like
“Read My Mind,” which contains the line, “Slippin’ in my faith until I fall.” Running mate Ryan claims he’s an AC/DC and
Zeppelin fan. What unctuous phony
baloneys. In an email mentioning
how Ryan’s speech pandered to the evangelicals in his party, Ray Smock wrote, “The Republican Party has a writhing
poisonous snake in its hands and does not know how to let go without being
fatally bitten.” I replied, “I
like your reference to the poisonous snake in the Republican party’s hands.
It reminds me of a scene in “The Campaign” (which unfortunately I can’t
recommend wholeheartedly) where Will Ferrell as Cam Brady has a snake in his
hands at a fundamentalist church, gets bit, and lets out a string of
profanity.”
Too bad Hurricane Isaac didn’t cause cancellation
of the Republican convention.
Keynote speaker Chris Christie made a pathetic attempt to sound
self-righteous (as the New York Post
succinctly put it, “Fat Chance”) while Anne Romney made a shameless pitch to
win over suburban stay-at-home moms.
Back with the Tuesday lunch regulars at IUN’s
Redhawk Café, Anne Balay mentioned how many women faculty we’ve recently lost and
its impact on the Women’s Studies program. I suggested to Nicole Anslover that she develop a course on
American Women Diplomats and she thought it a good idea. My next pitch is for Diana Chen-lin to
work one up on Chinese Women’s Place over the Ages.
Paulette Lafata-Johnson called to say the IU Alumni
Association will co-sponsor a December book signing at Lake Street Gallery and
pay for refreshments. I also
worked with Raoul Contreras and Scott Fulk on involving Latino students in the
Soup and Substance event with Sheriff Dominguez coming up on September 19.
Sam Barnett’s t-shirt illustrates the continuing
war on public school teachers. Due
to Indiana governor Mitch Daniels draconian policies, there are just three
non-charter public high schools, Wallace, Wirt-Emerson, and West Side, left in
Gary. The Chicago teachers union
gave a ten-day strike notice and there’s so sign the other side is interested
in compromising. The last Windy
City school strike, 25 years ago, lasted 19 days.
Michael Jackson’s three kids joined festivities at
their dad’s boyhood home on what would have been the King of Pop’s fifty-fourth
birthday. There was also a special
exhibit in Miller at the Marshall J. Gardner Center for the Arts.
In our season opener the Electrical Engineers won 5
of 7 points thanks to David “Duke” Kaminski’s 639 series. I had many splits and finished 4 pins
below my average. Two people
mentioned my appearing on Jerry Davich’s radio show. Thanks to new “no smoking” legislation I did not come home
reeking of cigarettes. Chris Lugo,
whose granddaughter Angel came to Cressmoor Lanes when a pre-schooler, reports
that she is in twelfth grade and was offered a softball scholarship.
Country singer Danika Holmes sang at the Thrill of
the Grill, outside in perfect weather.
She was quite soulful and African Americans in the audience seemed to
dig her. I purchased her CD
‘”Living Your Dream,” which has the outstanding song “How to Be Beautiful,”
which contains the line, “Find the good
in life, let your words be kind.”
A lyric in the title song goes, “May
you have a strong foundation when the winds of changes shift.”
On this date 70 years ago humorist Will Rogers
wrote, “California always did have one
custom that they took seriously.
Everything big enough to spread a double mattress on is called a
‘ranch.’ Well, up here in these
mountains where there is lots of fishing, well every house you pass they sell
fishing worms, and it’s called a ‘worm ranch.’ Well, I always did want to own a “ranch,” so I am in the
market for a good worm ranch.”
