Monday, August 26, 2019

Sometimes Some Of You Think I Make Some Things Up In The Cause Of Foolishness. That’s Silly. Why Should I Go To the Trouble to Make Things Up When There Are So Many Silly People All Around Us Being Taken Seriously As They Spout Their Silliness In All Directions?


This Blog Posting will be rather short.

Here is an excerpt from an article in the Wall Street Journal by Peggy Noonan about Gender-Neutral Pronouns

Offices and schools are being forced to grapple with all the new Gender-Neutral Pronouns.

Here a handy guide from a website purporting to help Human-Resources Departments in midsize businesses. It is headlined…

Gender Neutral Pronouns—What They Are & How to Use Them
He/She—Zie, Sie, Ey, Ve, Tey, E
Him/Her—Zim, Sie, Em, Ver, Ter, Em
His/Her—Zir, Hir, Eir, Vis, Tem, Eir
Himself/Herself—Zieself, Hirself, Eirself, Verself, Terself, Emself

I don’t know what they are talking about.

I hope I will always be smart enough to never be “smart” enough to ever know what they are talking about.

Would I kid u?
Smartfella

Friday, August 23, 2019

ReDo...Undeniable Fact … We Need A Law for Everything


There are several reasons why I am repeating this Blog Posting from August 12, 2009. In no particular order the several reasons are:
  • My Dear Reader Analytics Tracking System tells me that every one of you who has ever read it has forgotten that you ever read it.
  • I contend that my Little-Read Book, Foolishness…Or Is It? is the World’s Greatest Bathroom Book. Since I am a believer in what I contend, I keep a copy in my bathroom. I was just in my bathroom for some reason or other and I read this Posting and I chuckled all over again several time and I wanted to give each of you a chance chuckle several times.
  • The Posting is just plain funny.
  • The Posting makes fun of our Judicial System and our Judicial System never ceases to Amaze and Confuse me and I wanted to give each of you a chance to be Amazed and Confused.

***************
Here it is…
For months now in the state of Georgia we have been subjected to an ongoing news story that went as follows…
  • In 1989 a “deadbeat dad” was ordered to reimburse the state for public assistance for a son he had been told was his.
  • In 2000 DNA tests proved he was not the father.
  • In June of 2008 a judge sentenced said “deadbeat dad” to jail because he was ruled to be in arrears for $10,263 in child-support obligations, even though the judge was well aware that he was not the father of the child.
  • He stayed in jail till July 2009 (that’s thirteen months) when the judge who originally sentenced him to jail ruled he was, “no longer responsible for paying any amount of child support.”
  • The state’s Department of Human Services has said it will propose legislation next year to make sure what happened in this case will not happen again.

This is really interesting … We need legislation to prevent fathers who have been proven not to be fathers from having to pay for the support of children that they did not father.

Since our Legislative System appears to be determined to pass a law for every possible possibility, are we now going to see laws passed like the following? …
  • Persons who have not robbed banks will no longer be required to reimburse banks that they did not rob.
  • Persons who have not watered their lawns in excess of country watering restrictions will no longer have to pay fines for watering their lawns in excess of country watering restrictions.
  • Persons who have not come in repeatedly late for work can no longer be fired for coming in repeatedly late for work.

In a recent interview one of our Federal Judges was quoted as saying, “I had always wanted to be a king, but I decided I really wanted to have unlimited power, so I decided to become a Federal Judge in the United States Judicial System.”

OK, I admit I made up the above quote about the Judge King … Or did I?

Would I kid u?
Smartfella


Tuesday, August 20, 2019

You Can’t Be Serious?! You Say You Are Serious. Seriously? Since You Are Serious, We Are In Serious Trouble!


“The bias against black robots is a result of bias against African-Americans,” the lead researcher explained to his interviewer. He added, “It is amazing to see how people who had no prior interaction with robots show racial bias towards them.”

I will not make the assumption that, after you have read the above paragraph, you know where this Blog Posting is headed. I’m posting the Blog Posting and I’m not sure what I am saying or am going to say.

Oh well, here goes…

White Robots Are Racist!

The robots themselves aren’t Racist but rather people who make the robots white are Racist. (Is this Blog Posting making any headway along the road to clarity?)

Did I just hear you say, “Not much”?

Well, prepare to be amazed. Here’s a real headline from a television network that insists its article is Really Real News…

Robot Racism? Yes, says a study showing human’s biases extend to robots.
***************
Fella has recovered enough to ask a question…

“Is Everything That Is White Racist?”

Did I just hear you say yes? Did I just hear you elaborate on that “yes” by saying that the computer screen I am writing this blog on is white, therefore, it is a Racist Computer Screen

Did I just hear you say from the bottom of that hole you are digging yourself into that, if the computer screen wanted to prove that it was not Racist, it would change itself to a Black Computer Screen?

Here comes my follow-up question…Since the letters in this Blog Posting are black, to be seen they would have to change themselves into white lettering, if the screen were changed to black. Once the lettering became white, would the white lettering be Racist because it is White?

I can see that you are shaken in your conviction so I will again ask…

“Is Everything That Is White Racist?”

I say no, for example, there’s a pretty good reason why most home appliances are white and it’s because it’s a neutral color that goes with any decor. By the same token, white robots go with anything. 

(I can see that the above paragraph did not close out this discussion.)

Maybe the people who made the first robots didn’t even pick the color white it was just that the washing machine they cut up to get the project started happened to be a White Washing Machine. It wasn’t a plot. It wasn’t a conspiracy. It was just handy (and white).

***************

OK, since this foolishness is already silly, let’s play What If...

  • What if they had made their robots Brown? Would UPS be suing?
  • What if they had made their robots Orange? Would the Orange Growers of Florida be throwing rotten tomatoes at them and their robots?
  • What if they had made their robots Green? Would people from Ireland be charging through our airports with pitchforks in their outraged hands?
Are we being stirred up by people who just like to stir things up? Here are a few things to think about as I desperately try to extricate myself from this Blog Posting… 
  • White People aren’t actually white. They’re a variety of pinks and flesh tones. 
  • Black People aren’t actually black. 
  • Native Americans aren’t actually red.
  • Asians aren’t actually yellow. 
  • White Castle serves hamburgers to everybody. 
  • A White Sale isn’t an attempt to make slavery right. 
  • White Water Rafting is open to all colors of people.
  • Slappy White was not arrested for assault.

Boy, am I glad this one is over.

Would I kid u?

Smartfella


Sunday, August 18, 2019

Feeling A Bit Bored? I’ve Got Something for You to Do. Get Out Your Walking Shoes And Go Protest Something Or Other.


Yes there is a web site on the Internet that allows you to select and plan what you would like to Protest. If you don’t have a burning desire to throw in with this week’s protest, throw in anyway. It is not important that you believe in what you are protesting about. It is only important that you join in and show the world that you care, even if you don’t care.

Here is a list of upcoming protests…
  • Oregon … Never Again Rally Portland
  • Missouri … Stand Up For Humanity KC – March, Rally, and Community Gathering
  • New York … No Raids – Close The Camps – Abolish ICE!
  • Washington DC … Rage Against the War Machine
  • Utah … Global Climate Strike SLC
  • Texas … Protest against Rio Grande LNG! Stop the Pipeline!
  • California … SF Rally For Immigrant Rights And Against SB 1070!
  • Nevada … Red Rage Sit In Protest at ICE Detainment
  • The Official Animal Rights March 2019 / Washington DC
  • New Mexico … Reclaiming Sacred Spaces: A March for Pueblo Liberation & Panel
  • New York …. The Official Animal Rights March-NYC-2019
  • Maryland … Climate Justice Now! Prioritizing Climate Action in 2020 and Beyond
  • Colorado … Longmont Climate Crisis Rally!
  • Michigan … Progressives in the Park 2019
  • Kansas … Never Again is Now: Shut Down Rep. Sharice Davids’ Office
  • Ohio … Never Again Action: Cleveland
  • Wisconsin … Never Again Is Now: Wisconsin #JewsAgainstICE Protest
  • California … March for Freedom: Never Again is Now
  • Pennsylvania … 3rd Annual Stop Killing Us (SKU) March to DC!
  • South Carolina … Youth Demand Action Summit 2019
  • Utah … Rally against SLCPD’s violence!
  • Pennsylvania … Protecting Immigrants’ Rights in PA
  • California … Global Climate Strike March Los Angeles
  • New York … Know Your Rights Training for Friends & Activists (ICE Raids)
  • Oregon … The Official Animal Rights March Portland 2019
  • Michigan … Vigil to Abolish ICE in Kent County
  • Washington … Refuse Fascism Seattle Meeting: The Trump/Pence Regime Must Go!
  • Florida … Broward Climate Protest Arizona … U.N. International Day of Peace
  • California … Rally: Rep. Scott Peters – support the Green New Deal! San Diego
  • Rhode Island … Millions March against M.V. August 31, 2019
  • California … Peace Strike for Climate 8-7-19
  • New Mexico … Medical Freedom March
  • Arkansas … No Iran War/Anti-Imperialism Peace Protests
  • New Hampshire … The March for Children and Families
  • Florida … It’s Fascism Y’all – Seeds of Unity
  • California … The Official Animal Rights March – Los Angeles
  • Michigan … 2019 Second Amendment March
  • Illinois … The Official Animal Rights March – Chicago 8-24-19

Eeny Meeny Miny Moe.

Would I kid u?
Smartfella


Wednesday, August 14, 2019

I Try To Learn A New Word Every Day. Some Of Them I Try To Unlearn As Soon As I Learn Them.


Today my New Word is “Fave”. Being Sly, Cunning and Alert I quickly caught on that this was short for “Favorite”.

I wish I had not caught on so quickly. As soon as I realized that I had figured out such a Cool Modern Word I started to fear people were going to start calling me “Dude”.

Actually I knew I was in trouble a long time ago when I figured out that “Celeb” was short for “Celebrity”.

Oh well, at least I’m not famous because then I would be a “Celebrity Dude”.
***************
We are all well aware that the Internet was invented to…
Ø Not let us relax without being interrupted constantly by a Notification about Useless Information that just popped into our Smartphones.
Ø Allowing you to worry about things that you can’t do anything about but worry about like a Ferry Boat overturning 6,872 miles away from where you are and killing a bunch of people who you would never ever have met in your entire life.
Ø Letting you know that you are terribly out of style because you just bought new jeans and you are ashamed that you could not afford holes in your new jeans so you bought the cheaper ones without holes and you are about to get to work with your scissors, your wire brush and your hammer so you can put holes in them and you are praying to God in heaven that no one will be the wiser that your holes are Cheap Wearer Created Holes and not Cool Store Bought Holes.
***************
Oh yea, back to how “Fave” jumped out at me…

My phone just showed me an ad that was headlined…
Faves from Ellen DeGeneres!
Right next to the cutest picture of Ellen you ever saw are these words…
Ellen’s Fave List
My back-to-school faves for a cool school year.
Love,
(Ellen’s Cool Signature)

Ellen’s First Fave: Wonder Nation Clear Backpack…Stylish & see-through, so you’ll know if you forgot to pack Timmy’s lunch. (I wonder if it would work just as well if you child was not named Timmy but was named Papoose?)
Ellen’s Second Fave: Boon Bento Lunch Box…Shaped like snail so kids will have the most adorable lunch possible. (Maybe that’s why I turned out the way I did. I can’t ever remember eating even one Adorable Lunch at St. Anthony of Padua Grammar School.)
Ellen’s Third Fave: ZIPIT Wildings Pencil Case…Fun moms get their kids fun pencil cases. That’s all there is to it. (If my Mother were still here, she would be proud that she was not a Fun Mom and I would love her even more for standing her ground.)

It’s hard to imagine how Timmy and Papoose will not get all A’s with all these Cool Ellen Faves.

Would I kid u?
Smartfella


Tuesday, August 13, 2019

How Did We Get To This Point?

The Internet loves Lists. Any day of the week you can spend gobs of time (probably your whole day) reading through Lists.

I just stopped pecking this Blog Posting and went to the Internet to find 3 Lists…
•10 Bizarre Claims That Humans Didn’t Originate on Earth
•10 People Who Vanished Only To Mysteriously Reappear
•10 Animals With Cannibalistic Sex Habits

The list that caught my eye and prompted me to start this Blog Posting was… 
The NFL's Most Hated Players Ever, Ranked
This list struck me as kind of stupid and a waste of time but I wasted my time and read through it.

When I got to # 22 (of 40) I was saddened and shocked by the last 4 words in Tim Tebow’s write up…
“On the surface, Tebow seems like an impossible person to hate, but there was plenty of disdain for him during his time in the NFL. Tebow was mostly hated for the hype surrounding him, but also drew scorn for being a devout Christian.”

How did we get to the point where Being a Devout Christian has become a reason for Scorn in the Good Ole USofA?

Would I kid u? 
Smartfella


Monday, August 12, 2019

Never Trust A Papoose


Friday I lost a Hearing Aid. I have looked in all the places it could possibly be but I have about given up. Change that to I have given up. 😢

One of the places where I could have lost it was Kroger. After I looked at all the places in Kroger where it could have been I went to Customer Service and got in line.

My plan was to ask if it had been turned in to their Lost and Found and, if not turned in, leave a note with their Crack Staff with my Name and Phone Number on it in case it is turned in later.

As I stood in line I started to get an uneasy feeling about just how efficient Kroger’s Crack Customer Service Staff was…
  •         The girl behind the counter had a tattoo on her neck. 
  •            As I got closer I saw she had several tattoos on her arms.
  •         There was no symmetry in her choice of tattoos…a Chicken Head, Chinese Writing, a Hockey Stick, something that looked like it could have been a Frog or a Lizard, etc.

When I got to the head of the line I began to feel reassured. 

She had a very pleasant smile, she seemed interested and sympathetic to my tale of woe and she had nothing hanging from her nose.

She took my piece of paper with my Name and Phone Number on it and pledged to call me if my hearing aid came into Kroger’s Lost and Found.

Then, as I turned away, I noticed her name on her name badge. It was Papoose! I got a sinking feeling. What kind of person has Papoose for a name? With or without tattoos can a Papoose Person be trusted?

I slowly walked back to my car with a growing feeling of apprehension.
***************
Two day later I went back to Kroger to see if any miracles had occurred while I was away.

The nice untattooed middle aged lady behind the Customer Service Counter left no stone unturned but she not only did not have my hearing aid but she found no traces of my Note with my Name and Phone Number on it.

Never Trust A Papoose.

Would I kid u?
Smartfella


Sunday, August 11, 2019

Where Have I Been?


It has been a long time since I blogged. I know (hope) you missed me and you probably have been thinking…
Ø I Gave up the Ghost. (Before moving on to the second bullet I searched “Gave up the Ghost” & found this… “Immediatly the angell of the LORDE smote him, because he gaue not God the honoure: And he was eaten vp of wormes, and gaue vp the goost”). Since I don’t like either worms or wormes, I decided to come up with other bullets that you might be thinking about me.)
Ø I decided to not blog any longer. (That’s not what happened.)
Ø I was not able to get on the Internet for 4 days. (That’s what happened.)

However, my Internet Service Provider performed like one of its TV Commercials and jumped right in and restored my Internet Service immediately. (That’s not what happened.)

Actually, I have had the Internet back for several days but I have been consulting with my Book Publishing Adviser about letting the world know about this whole awful experience by way of the publication of my second book.

We have decided on a title… 4 Days Is A Lot More Than 4 When Your Internet Service Provider Comes To The Rescue.

The title was easy. The rest of the time we were trying to decide whether or not we could keep it under 200 pages.

Here is what actually happened (in no particular order)…
Ø I got cut off while talking to my Internet Service Provider and had to call back (more than once).
Ø I was told that there were No Other Reported Problems with their service in my area.
Ø I was twice given a Definite Appointment Time but the technician did not show up.
Ø One time the technician showed up when I did not expect him.
Ø The first technician said he was from the Maintenance Department (remember “Maintenance Department”) and he confirmed that my Internet Service was not working (I told him I already knew that) and because it was not working he had to kick it up to Higher Level Technicians for repair.
Ø He left me to wait for the Higher Level Technician to arrive.
Ø When the Higher Level Technician finished his in-depth analysis he again confirmed that the Internet Service was not working but he said his department was not the department that should handle this particular type of repair and he would have to send in the Maintenance Department.
Ø I did not tell him that the Maintenance Department had already been here and had kicked it up to his department because I was speechless.
Ø He left me to wait for the Maintenance Department to arrive.
Ø While one of the Technicians was working on my problem, my next door neighbor came out of her house and said her Internet Service was not working. (Remember the second bullet above?)
Ø While another one of the Technicians was working on my problem, my neighbor from across the street came up and said his Internet Service was not working. (Remember the second bullet above?)
Ø All through these kept and not kept appointments I was receiving emails telling me that my Technician was going to be at my house between 8 and 9 PM.
Ø Near the end of the saga one of the Appointment Confirming Ladies told me that the 8 to 9 pm did not mean 8 to 9 pm but only meant that they would be out sometime that day between 8 am and 9 pm.
Ø On several occasions the Internet Service Provider’s Computer would call me and announce that it was calling to confirm an appointment and then put me on hold for anywhere from 25 to 50 minutes before a non-computer person came on the line to confirm the next appointment.
Ø On 2 occasions I got another Computer Call within 10 minutes of the Prior Computer Call’s Termination that made me wait me just as long as the Computer Call in the above bullet and the eventual non-computer person had no knowledge of the Prior Computer Call or the time confirmed by the Prior Computer Call.

All’s well that ends well…Or is it?

Would I kid u?
Smartfella

Lagniappe: The saddest part is, now that I can connect again to the outside world, the Talking Heads are still screaming at me and talking faster than my hears can hear the same way they were doing before my Internet Service Provider came to my rescue.