My tomata ... One Day to Go … Bob Herbert … Mr. Apology … Unemployment … DOC says ...

Amici:

These were from 7 years ago ... me and the smarter and better-looking half (that leaves me with the heavier half) ... we were married on a beach in the Bahamas (the guy did the ceremony said, “By the power vested in me by the commonwealth of the Bahamas ...” It was and remains a beautiful thing.

Obviously these were taken before I swallowed the Buick that took us home from the airport.

One Day to Go (to the end of June) … As the end of June fast approaches, one has to wonder about that oval office speech President Obama gave the day after he was “assured” by those honorable gents at BP that 90% of the spill would be corralled by the end of the month.

Hmmm … are they even close to 50% yet?

Not to worry, I’m now assured that BP will further assure President Obama for at least another half dozen prime time speeches passing along BP’s good will and intentions … honestly, those “Miss me yet” posters featuring George W. Bush ... if things get any worse, the scary answer will become “Yeah, I guess so.”

Bob Herbert ... there’s a lot of carefully worded Obama bashing here (because Mr. Herbert is an Obama supporter), but he’s also not a blind faith supporter and doesn’t see the point of playing in the political pig pen against the party that can’t change policy) ... so instead he says what needs to be said and this sums up the above-linked article pretty good: “Employment is the No. 1 issue for most ordinary Americans. Their anxiety on this front only grows as they watch teachers, firefighters and police officers lining up to walk the unemployment plank as state and local governments wrestle with horrendous budget deficits.

And what do these worried Americans see the Obama administration doing? It’s doubling down on the war in Afghanistan, trying somehow to build a nation from scratch in the chaos of a combat zone.”

Joe Barton … but so long as the Republicans continue to permit Joe Barton to remain in office, there probably isn’t much for Obama to worry about. Losing his majority surely won’t make much a difference. Mostly because he couldn’t get them to do anything anyway, but also because “six of one, half dozen of another” ... they’re both (Republicans and Democrats) useless anyway.

Unemployment … here’s another area where the GOP manages to stub its own toe; from one side of their mouths they’re crying about deficit spending and the lack of new jobs on the open market … while from the other side of their mouths they’re firmly behind the expense of the wars in Iraq & Afghanistan while telling the already unemployed, “Tough shit you’re running out of money. Go find a job!”

Is that, like, the way they (Republicans) intend to recruit for the never ending war(s) they started?

Really, what’s an out of work guy to do?



—Knucks

And the DOC says ...

Hey Chaz,

There’s nothing going on with politics that interests me lately.

Suddenly Petraeus is everybody’s favorite general. I seem to remember when he was Dubya’s general nobody on the left was that fond of him and that was before he became narcoleptic. I’m sure the Taliban warlords in Afghanistan got a real kick out of his recent performance.

“So Achmed, what will you do if you meet the American general on the field of battle?”

“Well, Faisal, I will walk up to him, draw my sword and ask him questions until he faints like a little girl.”

Eric Holder will not prosecute the Black Panthers on guard outside the polling place, but he will prosecute Arizona for enforcing the law. This guy is just a poorly designed muppet and I wish he would STFU and go away.

The Kagan hearings are a typical Washington Dog and Pony Show and I had little interest. Now the media is saying that Kagan is not a lesbian, so I have no interest whatsoever. This has to be an even bigger disappointment to the Bamster. He likes his nominees to have baggage. No hat boxes here, he likes big freaking steamer trunks type of baggage. I hope she is at least a communist or bombed the Pentagon at some point in her career. Otherwise, the Bamster will drop her like a bag of dirt.

Don’t get me wrong here. I have nothing against lesbians. Just the other night I was savoring a few vintage Silver Bullets (April I believe) and composed a list of things that lesbians like and things that I like. As it turns out, I may indeed be a lesbian.

In response to your disturbing Sha Na Na video, I offer you this.



Have a great week, buddy-boy
Doc

Rigoletto, he's HOME! ... good old Чарли Стелла ... Stieg Larsson

Amici:

Rigoletto is home! La maledizione is over!


Don't fret, this pup is TOUGH!


Rigoletto says: "We don't need no stinkin' discs ... I'm taking a nap ... sideways! Oh, Pop, go easy on the Chivas ..."


As singer, writer, composer and all around multi-talented New York woman, Deborah Karpel, wrote me in an email upon hearing the good news at work this week, The Curse of Monterone has been lifted!

Now, the first one of yous who writes me at Knucksline@gmail.com with a one paragraph explanation of just what that Monterone reference is all about (without copying it from Google--play fair) gets a signed copy of Johnny Porno (with a Rigoletto paw print).

Check out Ms. Karpel’s website ... she is truly talented.

Чарли Стелла ... say what? Our Russian publisher, Centrepolygraph has bought Johnny Porno. And speaking of JP, the Lake Mills Library in Wisconsin likes it too.

Check out some other Stella books my Russian friends have translated and published.

Those Rubles couldn’t come at a better time as we pay for Rigoletto’s surgery.

And those wild and crazy Italians are on board with these.

Now we move on to a successful author who, unfortunately, didn’t live to see his incredible success. Stieg Larsson and his Millennium Trilogy. I wouldn’t have bought these books if the book club I belong to (The Northeast Regional Super Duper Chapter Book Club of the Americas) hadn’t assigned the first book (which was liked so much by the club, the second book was assigned right behind it). Behind on the assignment, I read all three over the last 10 days. Below the Review.

Guilty Pleasures … Not everything the ugly one reads need have been written by Dostoevsky and/or George V. Higgins … in fact, most of it isn’t anything approaching near as good as those deadfellas … and every once in a while I like to take a read of something popular ... well, just to see what my reaction might be. Two weeks ago I ordered the incredibly popular best selling series by an author who died before ever seeing his own success (approaching 40 million in sales, I’m told).

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest …

Mr. Larsson’s writing style wasn’t necessarily something I prefer and there were far too many coincidences throughout the books (one at a time or over the course of all three) and there were times I felt as if I were reading a super hero novel that went far beyond the stretch of my too often limited imagination … and they sometimes offered what I call “the cool character map” (someone from every minority possible vs. the evil stereotypical bad guys) ... there was a lot of journalistic telling vs. showing ... and there were times when I stopped reading, turned to the Principessa and said, “35 million copies?”

And yet I read them one after another, compulsively, without taking a single day’s break (in fact, without taking more than a 6 hour break (for sleeping) and couldn’t wait to read what was going to happen next. I could find all the fault in the world with this trilogy when discussing it, but the bottom line is I couldn’t read it fast enough. And right now the Principessa Ann Marie (definitely the smarter half) is reading it with equal compulsiveness (and loving it).

So any writers out there doing any complaining about the state of the business (and it is in a poor state these days), think about what happened to this poor SOB. He wrote a mega lotto ticket series and died before he could enjoy the spoils of his victory.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED ... because whatever the formula, it worked.

Ingvar Wixell sings Rigoletto ... when they (the bastards who kidnapped his daughter) ask him “What’s new, clown?”, he responds with one of my favorite lines. “Nothing, except you’re more annoying now than ever.”



For those in need of something more familiar in the tragic opera, Rigoletto, here's Pavarotti singing La donna e mobile at the MET in 1981.



—Knucks

Rigoletto’s Surgery ... the truth behind the $20 Billion Sell-out fund ... So long General ... DOC says ...

Amici:

Rigoletto Walks! Today the doctor called to say he went for a short walk. That's what I'm talkin' about ... no beast so fierce as the Rigoletto monster. As Debbie Karpel (check out her site below) wrote yesterday: The curse of Monterone has been lifted!


Post Surgery Rigoletto Update: The wonder dog stands! Rigoletto stood up this morning. The doctor was amazed. He didn’t last long before his hind legs collapsed, but that isn’t supposed to happen (his standing) for another 3-4 weeks. They're having trouble feeding him because Rigoletto is used to skirt steaks and prime rib, so they asked us to bring him some later tonight to keep his diabetes in control. My puppy is one tough MoFo ...

Rigoletto Surgery Update: The surgery went as well as can be expected. We won't know for a few days the extent of the paralysis (some, full, most likely very limited). Recovery takes 16 weeks before he can walk without a sling (that starts in 5 weeks). He'll be in the hospital another few days, but as soon as he comes out from the anesthesia, he's the boss of the famiglia Stella ... and the books are back open!


Rigoletto’s Surgery ... we were much reassured tonight when we dropped off Rigoletto for his surgery preparation. We met another couple with a dog (there) who’d had the same surgery one month ago. That dog was just now walking again (with the help of a sling) and his parents had already gone through all the angst we’re experiencing. They had the same surgeon and the same costs. They were very nice people and they did their best to help us stay calm. Rigoletto goes in for surgery between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to have a disc removed from his back. If all goes well, he’ll have a tough recovery because he’s a diabetic, but we are very hopeful this works.

I am officially a big wuss because while the doctor was talking to Ann Marie with Rigoletto on her lap, he spotted my wet eyes and said, “Aw, it’ll be okay. I’ll do my best for you. I know you love your dog.”

Honestly, I'm a wreck.


$20 Billion My Ass ... so the here’s the real story. Yeah, there’s been $20 billion set aside for “legitimate” claims (to be determined by a third party who can’t stop saying enough about how generous BP has been). The money will be there in four $5 billion increments (5 billion a year) so it’s a 4 year deal. The bottom line is, can someone who makes a claim later sue for future monies? After some avoiding the real answer on Meet The Press last week, the 9-11 superfund pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg, last night said when someone makes an emergency claim, their claim will be reviewed and they will be asked to come in. Once they receive their emergency claim money (assuming it’s a “legitimate” claim), a discussion will take place during which a “final lump sum” arrangement will be offered. Take the money and no future litigation.

Great, so people who haven’t seen dime 1 of income for the past 2 weeks, 4, weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks will get to negotiate from desperation for a lump sum that precludes them from future litigation for money.

No wonder BP’s stock “surged” after the $20 billion “compensation” was announced.

One more bill of goods sold to a President obviously in a job way over his head.


General Big Mouth ... another day, another White House “meeting”. The meeting should last about 30 seconds and Obama should fire this clown (McChrystal) as soon as he steps in the Oval Office. Hand him a flash light and a compass and let him park cars. TK is totally against this war and has been against both wars since 2006. It has been and remains a bad policy, but so long as we’re there, the President is the commander and Chief and should NEVER take that kind of shit from anybody. My hero President, Harry Truman, fired McArthur (after putting up with his nonsense for way too long) and Obama shouldn’t wait until this clown sits in the chair before he’s told “You’re fired.”

I really hope he (Obama) follows through. We’ll know more tomorrow.


Everything here at casa Stella is on hold until tomorrow, amici. Until then, the so-called atheist joins the very religious wife in prayer for their Rigoletto.

—Knucks

And the DOC says ...

Hey Chaz,

I hope that everything goes well for the pooch tomorrow. And here I thought I was the only one who could make you cry.

$20 Billion - So where exactly did the Bamster get that number from? Every other decision from him took a blue ribbon commission, three czars and twelve months time. He had that $20B figure right on the tip of his tongue. I tend to think that was the figure that BP gave to him. Is it enough? Who knows. Will a bunch of that money go to people who just arrived in the Gulf yesterday? You betcha.

In a future Knucksline we can discuss where Fredo got the constitutional authority to pull off this shakedown. In the meantime, every country that has some experience with this type of calamity and has offered us aid is being told to mind their own business. We know what we’re doing. We’re probably spending a million bucks a day giving showers to pelicans, but the oil just keeps gushing out.

General McChrystal - We have to ask ourselves two questions. Is the war in Afghanistan important? Is McChrystal the best man for the job?

If the answer to both questions is yes, then, Obama, put on your little, short pants and your two-tone shoes and go do what you do best. Leave war to the grown-ups. Besides, tomorrow is Wednesday and you are better suited to picking the menu for the weekly white house party. Just as an aside, Fredo, why don’t you have all the guests at these weekly parties wear white powdered wigs. It would send a vibrant message to the few people who still have jobs about what they’re working for.

Supposedly, Fredo is really pissed at McChrystal. It’s too bad we can’t get him to be really pissed at Islamic terrorists and two-bit dictators.

Here’s a little mellow “Iz” to get you through tomorrow, Chazman.



Take care.
Doc

Happy Father’s Day ... Yachting anyone? ... Mr. Apology ... The Band ... a Real Band ...

Amici:

First off, Happy Father’s Day to all a yous fathers out there. Salute.

Second (but really first), Rigoletto was doing great yesterday until he must’ve become too excited and hurt his back again. His hind legs collapsed the same way they had last week and he was panting from pain the next few hours. Hopefully the painkillers do their job today and until he undergoes the surgery to remove the bad disc. Ann Marie, who has been sleeping with the Rigoletto Monster since he’s home on an air mattress in the living room (and has hardly taken a break from being with him), was very despondent at what happened yesterday. This morning, however, he was able to walk a few feet again. Hopefully the hospital won’t hold him too long before he gets the surgery. We hope to bring him in Monday or Tuesday night for an early morning surgery the next day.

Tony Hayward ... it’s good to know Mr. Hayward was so shaken by his “grilling” on Capitol Hill that he saw it fit to race his 52 foot yacht the other day. Boy, President Obama really took him out to the woodshed, didn't he? That’s one tough leader we have there.

Or maybe Tony was celebrating on his yacht because BP’s stock surged after the announcement of the $20 billion compensation fund ... you know, the one where it is now estimated that the cost of compensation will be closer to $200 billion (if it was ever really enforced). Way to go Fredo!

Joe Barton ... Mr. Apology is the top Republican on the Energy and Commerce committee? Holy fucking shit! Even I’d vote for the Democrat running against this putz. Looks like the Shakedown has been on the poor bastards that voted him into office.

The Band ... below are excerpts from Cliff (bass/guitar) and Charlie’s (drums) short practice session:

Charlie: You gonna tune that thing all day?

Cliff: Why don’t you stick your tongue between the hi-hat cymbals?

Charlie: Seriously, why don’t you leave the knobs on the fuckin’ amp alone for two minutes. Maybe we could get through an eighth of a song that way.

Cliff: Why don’t you go back to the bathroom and paradiddle yourself?

Charlie: Why don’t we go down and eat now?

Cliff: Right, there’s something you can handle.


A real band ... we found this playing on the internet yesterday (in search of the Allman Brothers, Not My Cross To Bear. The kid on the guitar is 18 ... and that drummer is smooth. Let’s hear it for The Beale Street West Band.

Order Johnny Porno for every Dad you know today! Be the first to send us a copy of today's receipt/order and we'll send you a signed copy of Cheapskates.

Do the right thing by Dad(s) today ...

—Knucks

Rigoletto ... BP ... Shakedown/Redistritubtion of Wealth ... a new bridge to nowhere ... DOC says ...

Amici:

Rigoletto ... cried like he always does upon Ann Marie’s return from work ... but he ate like a champ again today and was up on all four legs for a little while before his hind legs gave. He seems stabilized to us (his sugar and everything else). We love having him home ... at least until next week when we all go through it all over again in anticipation of his surgery.

The BP thing … the fact emails were released about the BP disaster in Houston a few years back showing how it was more a Public Relations concern than remorse over the death of 15 workers and/or injuries to 100 others is pretty telling in itself (without the countless violations BP has been cited for at every U.S. location). The fact they’ve been lying to the public (and maybe the government; not that anybody there seems to have cared) since their April 20th disaster (during which 11 died and as of a week ago, BP officials hadn’t contacted the families of those killed) suggests nothing much has changed. The fact Tony Hayward looked so smug while congratulating his colleagues upon leaving the White House the other day suggests BP sold The One yet another bridge (according to the Wall Street Journal, BP shares surged after the $20 billion deal was announced). Now, we’ll have to wait and see whether or not they come close to doing anything they claim they’ll do regarding compensation and/or whether or not they’ll be able to corral 90% of the gushing oil by the end of June (perhaps they think it’ll run dry by then), but there’s no doubt that BP has elevated the idea of deregulation to a new level of insanity.

Now, we don’t think Obama is doing anything bad on purpose. We simply think he’s in over his head and is looking every bit as feeble as did George Bush during and after Katrina. There is something to the idea of actually working for a living. George had Daddy to give him work (and he failed at nearly all of it). Obama had his charm and good lawyers to obtain his first political position; his lawyers managed to have the incumbents he would’ve had to run against disqualified on petition technicalities (they obtained printed names rather than signatures ... or vice versa).

Whatever Obama’s problem, it is yet another sign of government incompetence and I don’t say that easily because zero regulation can only be worse than what we’ve had from BP across the board. The real problem for me is the double dynamic of business running roughshod (using bribes and whatever else they did to avoid genuine regulation and/or render “regulation” useless) and then the government’s inability to a) seat people who won’t be corrupted so easily and b) act in a competent manner when something does go wrong.

Still, this Obama tidbit is frightening: “This is not just a matter of dollars and cents” for a region upended by the spill, Mr. Obama, who returned Tuesday from a fourth tour of the coast, said he had told Mr. Svanberg. “I emphasized to the chairman,” he said, “that when he’s talking to shareholders, when he is in meetings in his boardroom, to keep in mind those individuals — that they are desperate, that some of them, if they don’t get relief quickly, may lose businesses that have been in their families for two or three generations. And the chairman assured me that he would keep them in mind.”

The Chairman of BP assured him? Sounds like a new bridge to nowhere to me.

At this point, if Obama is “assured” by anyone from BP, it is beyond naive ... it is nothing short of stupid.

And from the other side of the aisle we get Redistribution and Shakedowns ...

Well, not that Shakedown ... this one:

From Gail Collins’ NY Times column we get this jewel from the right wing of the aisle: And the ever-popular Representative Michele Bachmann denounced the BP restitution fund as “redistribution of wealth” and “one more gateway for government control.”

Redistribution of wealth? Is this broad always this batshit?

As for Congressman Joe Barton ... this genius is calling the $20 billion compensation fund a White House “shakedown” (good title for a crime novel, by the way). A United States taxpayer paid representative apologized to BP for being held negligibly responsible for the catastrophe they caused.

He apologized ...

Which is why we come back to the Generalissimo Knucks way of handling these things. The rewards these SOB’s get (whether they give themselves the financial rewards or take them from us) merits a likewise risk when they are proven corrupt. Knucks says once we can prove them to have acted in a criminal manner, we line them up and shoot them.

I know, I know, that’s too radical for someone who is supposed to be so liberal, but I never said I’m a fool. I’m only liberal where it makes sense (equal rights, healthcare, education, workers rights) and letting these thieves make fools of us over and over again doesn’t make sense (think back to the PR emails after BP’s 2005 Houston explosion).

So, line them up and shoot them. If for no other reason, how about the look on Tony Hayward’s face when his smug grin gets to deal with the fact the line he’s standing on isn’t for the imported from Japan fish buffet …

And as for Mr. Obama and his Presidency of Change We Can Believe In … well, TK has long felt it’s time for both major parties to take a long needed hike and Obama has proven our point, especially coming on the heels of Dubbya. They are indeed two faces of incompetence from two different worlds, (somebody say Harvard & Yale?) but make no mistake, Obama sold out to privilege and only talks about what the left wants to hear (he abandoned them the day of his inauguration). In fact, talk seems to be all he ever does.

The problem with the Democratic left is they’re way too willing to listen to his bullshit and won’t even consider walking away from him come election time. For people who like to throw the idea that we’re too guided by our “fear” (i.e., we let the fear of terrorism rule our lives), they sure seem “afraid” to abandon that “lesser of two evils” concept and vote for someone who didn’t have to sell out to become part of a machine that operates by big business, for big business (and one has to wonder what the founding fathers would think about that rewriting of their constitution).

My feeling is Obama is one and done, but there’s as good a chance we’ll be stuck with this clown another four years as a Republican clown will win and take his place. But seriously, amici, what’s the difference? Six of one, half a dozen of the other … or as Mr. Marx used to say (Groucho, not Karl), “One for all and all for me and me for you and three for five and six for a quarter.”



—Knucks

And the DOC says ...

Hey Chaz,

I’m glad to hear that Rigatoni is doing better. Maybe I’m clairvoyant, but I had a feeling that the whole air mattress strategery wasn’t going to work out. You see, most air mattresses are made for those “small people” that the head of BP was so concerned about. You need more of an industrial grade air mattress; Like the ones the stuntmen use when they fall off a building.

And yes, Charles, it is a slush fund. As we speak, ACORN is loading up buses with miscreants and heading down to Louisiana. Along the way they will pick up sailor hats and “Gorton Fisherman” rain outfits for everyone. This will be the same clusterf*ck we had after Katrina. In six months we’ll find out that half the money went for lap dances and tattoos.

If I was a homeless person I would buy an old sea captain’s hat, soak it in motor oil and head down to the Gulf coast. I would stroll in to the nearest FEMA office and tell them the heart wrenching tale of how my $100,000 fishing boat was sucked into God’s own hell of an oil slick and was never seen again. I loved that boat. I called it “Obama’s Dream” and now I’m penniless. Ka-ching! Ka-ching!

To top it off, the disbursements of the $20 Billion will be handled by Obama’s “Pay Czar”… no chance of chicanery there.

After the oil first started leaking the head of the Minerals and Mining Agency either quit or was fired (Fredo wasn’t sure which), so he has appointed a new one. Fortunately, this one is a Harvard lawyer. Now, nobody knows more about offshore, deep-water drilling then those Harvard law school types. I know we can rest assured that this kind of accident will never happen again since we now have a preppy shyster overseeing the oil rigs.



Have a great weekend, Chazman
Doc

PS: “The Oil Song” is from 1979. I had the 45. You can explain what a 45 is to the amicis.

Rigoletto Update

Amici:

This blog will serve as our daily update on the real boss of the Stella family, Rigoletto, until he's home again with us. Here's today's (Wednesday, June 16) update:

Thursday Rigoletto Update: Yesterday we were told that maybe it’s a good idea for him to go home for a few days after all (what my wife had been saying all along; the dog was vomiting from stress). I eat, my dog vomits. So, we were told the doctor would have written instructions for a tech named Jason and Jason would explain everything to us about the meds we were bringing home with us for Rigoletto. Of course when we got there (and managed an $800 credit on a $5000 bill—but the $2700 surgery (without extra hospital costs and they charged you for shit you can't even imagine) comes next week), of course Jason hadn’t been instructed on anything and we went home somewhat blind as to medical instructions that weren’t on the bottles. Long story short? Rigoletto ate skirt steak last night, had his insulin shot and managed to eat his treats after the shot. He was able to stand on his hind legs for a few second before they collapsed while he tried to urinate (that happens to me sometimes too, but usually after drinking a bottle of Chivas) and this morning he looked 1000 x’s better and much more alert.

The air mattress game plan didn’t work out so good because once you put 320 pounds on an air mattress it turns into a pancake … so it was the Principessa Ann Marie doing bed duty (I doubt she slept at all) through the night while the ugly one slept alone in the king sized thing we have in our bedroom. I was supposed to go to the gym this morning but didn’t have the heart to go downstairs (in case she was actually sleeping) so I just waited until 4:00 a.m. and then headed down to make my first cauldron of coffee. The pup ate again, took his painkiller like a champ and had sad eyes when Ann Marie left behind me. Ann Marie’s son, Timmy, will be doing Rigoletto duty through the day and fortunately, the wife is off Fridays so she’ll be with the pup through the night into tomorrow and the weekend until we have to bring him back for the surgery. Hopefully they will listen to us this time and not leave him to be observed overnight before the operation because without us he stresses (the way we stress without him) and he’ll start vomiting again.

For now, the Rigoletto monster is home and in charge once again. What a dog!


Wednesday Rigoletto Update: He’s coming home this afternoon because he keeps vomiting (from fucking stress, we told them) ... he’ll stay home with us until he’s eating normal again and then plus one day (after he’s stabilized), he’ll be scheduled for the surgery the following day.

He can’t be moved, etc, because of his spine situation, so we’ll have to sleep on an air mattress in the living room (the things we’ll do ...) because he can’t get up or down the doggie stairs at the end of our bed, couch, etc.

We’re half relieved ... at least we get to have him again. We miss our boy big time.


Tuesday: He was vomitting liquid this morning so the operation has been put off until Wednesday or Thursday (most likely Thursday). We get to wait (as does Rigoletto) even longer now. Of course we’re worried about what is going through his mind about us: What happened to them? Etc.

We also wondered why all the delays since we were told it was an emergency 4 days ago and the cost is obscene and getting worse every day.

The other thing is this: It’s great to know that even when you’re shelling out $7-10K, you can be treated like shit by receptionists. I have to wonder if they graduated from some Motor Vehicles Department. Unbelievably rude and incompetent treatment. a) They didn’t know a doctor who’d spoken to Ann Marie just an hour earlier was on site; b) they didn’t know his voice mail message said he was out and wouldn’t be back until June 10th (5 days ago) and c) they didn’t seem to care that one of them told us “he was in a procedure” and the other told us that “he was out on leave”; they couldn’t get their stories straight, even after being told they gave us two different stories after two different calls and that the doctor had already spoken to one of us.

And of course we were put "on hold" over and over and nobody ever picked up again. We had to call back, at which time we can only assume they recognized the number and didn't pick up again ... even though it's their emergency number.

Red Bank Veterinary Hospital … they may do good work (we sure and shit hope so) with your pets, but there's a good chance you’ll be treated like shit over the phone by their receptionists.

Motherfuckers …

Excuse the Angry Venting, but today I can’t handle anymore bullshit. DOC says ...

Amici:

Axelrod on Meet the Press ... and here I thought Paul Begala could talk some shit. On Sunday’s Meet the Press, David Axelrod said: “He went down there and stood, I remember, on--shortly after the incident, in the pouring rain on a Sunday morning and, and spoke to the need to hold BP accountable ...”

Somebody please tell me we’re not supposed to be extra impressed that President Obama had to weather a rain storm.

The pouring rain ... the poor man. I hope somebody had a towel for him to dry off afterward.

And, oh, by the way ... The president flew to the Gulf Coast Sunday 12 days after the oil platform exploded and sank ...

Ah, but it was pouring rain outside on that 12th day.

This is no defense of George Bush’s 7 minute delay in response to a terrorist attack on the country, but it is odd that the delay in this crisis seems to have taken an awful long time to notice ...

Until this week, that is ... for one, Ms. Dowd seems much less seduced by The One lately: ... and even the Times Editorial is showing some angst at The One: The president cannot plug the leak or magically clean up the fouled Gulf of Mexico. But he and his administration need to do a lot more to show they are on top of this mess, and not perpetually behind the curve. For the record, that’s just what Temporary Knucksline mentioned just a few days ago ... how Obama seems so goddamned clueless until AFTER the facts.

The Republicans ... and this clown act of a political party needs to stay off the airwaves and focus on figuring out what it is they really want. They don’t get to talk out of both sides of their mouths; either they are against government regulation or they’re for it. They don’t seem to be able to make up their mind. While this disaster is the one they were politically hoping for (to cash in on) and Obama is making it easy for them (the same way Democrats embraced and continue to embrace George Bush’s mishandling of Katrina and his wars), they (Republicans) need to accept the fact that sometimes Government aid is REQUIRED, especially when so many in the Gulf region are so economically dependent on the oil industry. Seriously, you guys are falling all over yourselves. It was deregulation that caused the financial and the Gulf Oil disaster(s) and you don’t get to make believe it wasn’t. And let’s quit jerking ourselves off about why we went to war. As someone who initially supported both of them, I’ve been thoroughly embarrassed about that since 2006. You don’t get to support that bullshit anymore either, not while you’re complaining about a budget deficit. No fucking way.

You’d think the performance of these two loser parties (Republicans and Democrats) which is so stunningly alike (Bush & Obama) at this point, would mandate a third, fourth, fifth and sixth party stage sharing scenario when it comes to political debates for ALL ELECTIONS, but certainly for the Presidential Stage. At this point, what we’ve gotten from our two great major parties is yet another version of Dumb and Dumber (and, yes, they are certainly interchangeable, aren’t they?).

But according to Obama Blind Faithers, this is the guy we need to pay attention to.

Some Democrats will defend their President to the point of ignoring what's going on around them by pointing out what a retard Glenn Beck is (but feel free to substitute or add Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, etc.). Right, we should care about this Beck clown while the Gulf continues to be swamped with oil, those “stimulated” continue to hoard the money WE gave them and not provide jobs to the unemployed, the war in Afghanistan continues to escalate in numbers of American troops AND numbers of American troops killed (and those reports continue to disappear from major news media outlets), bailed out businesses continue to flourish (rewarding management with record bonuses while outsourcing OUR jobs), gays still can’t tell when asked (but shouldn’t be asked), nor can they marry (which classifies them as second class citizens under OUR CONSTITUTION), there’s no such thing as national health insurance, but rather, 33,000,000 more customers for the Health Insurance Industry, the “oversight” of the banking industry almost precluded their CEO’s from telling us all to fuck off during Congressional hearings (they were so overwhelmed with “regulations”) etc., etc., etc.

Not to worry about any of that stuff, amici ... it’s Glenn Beck we have to worry about.

Seriously, do blind faithers EVER deal in reality?

Here’s a clue ... not only is Dick Cheney not in charge (or George Bush) ... neither is Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh or, dare I say it, Glenn Beck.

At this point, I’m all for a beneficent dictator ...

Again, please excuse the angry venting. Today I can’t help it; sometimes the bullshit is extra hard to swallow.

Here’s something that always makes me feel better ... Peter Erskine on drums. I tried this several times and dropped the sticks more often than I ever came close to sounding anything like Mr. Erskine.



—Knucks

And the DOC says ...

Hey Chaz,

I feel your pain, brother. You have to zone in on the key phrase… “in the pouring rain”. It took 12 days, but the Chosen One was standing on the beach in the pouring rain. Now, what can’t you do in the pouring rain?

GOLF!

Look on the bright side. If it hadn’t rained that day, he still wouldn’t have shown up.

He skipped Arlington on Memorial Day and then when his advisors told him what a douchebag he looked like he had them drag 150 people in digital camo to a meeting hall so he could appear concerned.

You’re right about both parties being useless. This definitely was not what our Founding Fathers envisioned. They thought you would leave your livelihood to “serve” the nation for a few years. Do your stuff and then return to your career. Our whole mess can be attributed to the current system where our representatives are career politicians. They haven’t the slightest idea how capitalism works in the real world. They just know how to raise enough money to get themselves re-elected.

TO THE AMICI:

I did not desert you on Friday. I submitted my retort and it was censored by the fascistic, jack-booted editor at Knucksline (not that I bear him any ill will). Now, you’ve seen the shit that I get away with here. Can you imagine what it would take to get me blackballed? Oh baby! Just close your eyes and let your imagination run wild.

The fat bastard himself told me that I was “crazy”, but I don’t hold it against old lardass and neither should you.

Monday Musical Madness (written by Willie)

If you have to ask who Willie is ... don’t bother playing it.


Smoke and prayers for Rigoletto
Doc