Happy Belated Thanksgiving

i ran this little memory just before Thanksgiving. It got so many nice responses and provoked so many warm holiday memories that i'm reprinting it here. thanks for indulging me : So its Thursday. And my folks are loading up the car for a trip to Brooklyn. My sister's birthday, my Uncle Gus' and mine are all grouped together around Thanksgiving so every year its a 4-way celebration with lots of food and cake and seltzer and pretzels and cranberry sauce and delicious Greek olives.Uncle Gus (and my Aunt Eva) live in a stately building in Brooklyn with massive revolving glass doors and a magnificent elevator. They've lived in this apartment for nearly 30 years and in some places thick light green wall paint covers up the electrical sockets, and the windows that overlook the courtyard sometimes stick. But today it's packed wall to wall with relatives we almost never see -- some distant, others no one is quite sure how they fit in -- and everyone is smiling and laughing and kibbitzing and carrying seltzer or soda or mixed drinks in beautiful clear glasses with baroque gold carvings on the side. The TV is always on -- usually its tuned to The March of the Wooden Soldiers or a football game. While a few of the men watch it, most people are engaged in catch up conversation. They occupy plush chairs and a small green couch and folding chairs, arms and legs everywhere. A long card table, covered over with an even longer white tablecloth and overflowing with warm challah and buns, and SevenUp and blue bottles of seltzer and Seagram 7 and place dishes and napkins and utensils, fills the center of the room. Everything happens around the hub of the table. Crossing the room to join another conversation or to visit the restroom in the hall, beside the bedroom, can be an arduous task. But today everyone is in a good mood and wherever you light there is something interesting going on. Harry is telling me how he knew my Mom when she was a little girl; Peter (my Uncle's handsome friend from Greece) is regaling that group over there with tales of Cyprus; Sylvia is talking to Rose (who is nearly 100) who is talking to my Grandmother Molly or Aunt Sarah.. Gus is busy in the kitchen. He joined the Army when he was 40 (he lied about his age in reverse) and they put him in charge of the Mess. So cooking today for 30 or more people is really not a big deal. He boils dozens of potatoes at one time, cooks gallons of yams and cranberry sauce all at once, and takes special pride in turning out a golden turkey every time. Buckets of stuffing, deep dishes of slaw and gravy and mashed potatoes and baked potatoes and kasha varnishkes and french cut beans. And of course a large sheet cake from Ratchik's Bakery for our collective birthdays (but mostly his). Gus oversees everything - a pudgy dopple ganger of MGM's "Cuddles" Sakall - with black glasses, thinning hair and a quick ready laugh. He had been President of the Furriers Union at one time (that's a big deal) and had been sad to retire from a job he loved. Now, cooking for Army-sized appetites again, he was back in his element. After dinner, me and my Dad and brother sneak up to the roof. The entire building is five or six stories high and you can stand and look over the parapet at the street below. Sometimes people would be hurrying by with their collars cinched up against the cold. A short blast of a car horn would sound weird and echo from this vantage point. If you spit over the side of the building, you could watch it in its slow-motion descent and even hear a small splat in the street below. I wrote a small note about Gus and his Thanksgivings for Reminisce magazine a few years ago. His parties - festive and full of good cheer and humanity - were an annual event for many years. (To this day, i still secrete a can of cranberry sauce and delicious Greek olives whereever i happen to celebrate turkey day). Many of the people we dined with are no longer here. But whether they're here or hereafter, whether friends and relatives are here or away, whether apartments have changed hands and spitting from the rooftop no longer possesses the mystery and magic it once held , we tip a drumstick in their direction, and remember. For all the souls who've touched our loves on this very special day, for the family and friends we still gather with or talk to on the phone or send a letter to or only (as they say in church) remember in the silence of our hearts, they ALL share a special place at our table on this holiday and for as long as memories last. Gobble till ya wobble! :) for more memories by this author, please check out >> https://www.amazon.com/My-Pal-Shep-Vince-Iuliano-ebook/dp/B016UT7XVI

Time to Save America Again.

About a dozen years ago, the Republican party abdicated its responsibility as part of a system of checks and balances, and became the 'do-nothing' party. The Democrats, chests swelled with a generation of slavery, Jim Crow, anti-Civil rights measurements, became the party that took over America once and for all. During the Obama administration, hundreds of public utilities became property of the Federal Government. The great leviathan that was the United States government took over car manufacturing, banks, tuition, and a myriad of other entities too mundane or sick to contemplate. School history books were re-written, emphasizing the non-existent role of Muslims in the creation of America and their crucial (albeit fictional) importance in the space program, etc. Asking voter's for a picture ID? Well that was racist. Trump's slogan "Make America Great Again"? Bill Clinton said with a wink that THAT was racist too (forgetting, for the nonce, that he had once used that very slogan himself). And while the Republicans slept, Obama doubled the National Debt. He spent more money than all the Presidents combined plus all the war debts combined. How did he do it? The Republicans signed a blank check. They looked the other way. They chose to do 'the People's business' like putting men in women's rooms. Social engineering the racial composite of our neighborhoods. Teaching the soldiers about 'trans-genders'. While another holocaust was going on in the Middle East, our politicians assured us that global warming was the real problem of our times (that is, after it was global cooling and just before it became climate change). Refugees, drug smugglers, pedophiles, and Isis and Syrian plants drove trucks and dangerous drugs across our porous borders. "They're coming here for love" we were told. "Dreamers" was the new name for 1/3 of our prison population. Santuary cities and driver's licenses and free health care and free housing fell like rain. 10's of thousands of 'refugees' (so called) were placed in North Carolina and Virginia and Massachusetts and Michigan, in spite of a court ruling halting the out of control policies of our government. Guatamelan gangs with machete's began to pop up in New York, New Jersey, Arizona. Bodies of young innocent Americans began turning up dead. 95 million people had dropped out of the work force and onto Medicaid rolls, 145 million now collected food stamps. Over a billion dollars was flown to Iran in the middle of the night in an unmarked cargo plane in defiance of US banking laws. Money that might have been used at home. It was, we were told, for an unspecified debt of years ago and Obama and Kerry promised that they 'saved the taxpayer further expense down the line' with their brilliant, nearly Mensa-like moves. Wikileak proved what we've known all along. Government corruption went even deeper than we suspected. The DNC was behind the "Trump rally violence". Major media was complicit in covering the lies and continuing the propaganda. Obama and Kerry made future nuclear war almost a certainty (Bill Clinton had given it to the North Korean's who were happily detonating their weapons and aiming for US shores even as you read this). Hillary thought that Christian's were 'backward thinkers' while the GOP was so busy fighting their candidate that they lost sight of the true picture. Democrats cared not a whit about the safety and happiness of the nation's citizens, and all about creating more voters and propagating their message of Utopia and more Statist control. America is by all accounts spiraling out of control. Greece on acid. And yet i hear people say they will NOT be voting this year. "I can't vote for him, and i certainly can't vote for her," they announce smugly. "I'm staying home." Freedom is never free, and while you're living now in a soft tyranny, there are still things you can do to right the ship. Sitting home on your ass is not one of them. Bad athletes and morons can take a knee when their nation's National Anthem is played. Dimwits and lolligags can let America's sovereignty (in forms like the internet she created) slip through their fingers and into the ken of such stalwart places as Turkey and Iran. Choosing NOT to vote when our country is ailing, and needs us the most? Ignoring the bravery and self-sacrifice of those who came before as people with no interest in our history slip inside our borders and proceed to vote? Listening to politicians on tv tell us something is NOT characteristic of America's values when they clearly don't have a clue what those values are to begin with? Sit on the sidelines and let others choose America's fate without giving voice to your own concerns, or those of your grandchildren yet unborn? There are many things we could do, but please -- never, never that.

Trump v Shillary

Someone asked rhetorically how evangical Christians could endorse Donald Trump for President (in light of some perceived comments the newspapers had twisted to their effect..)..Here's my response : Perhaps its a reaction to the news last week (and in the past) re. Californian Christians now being forced by Obama to pay for abortions, and Billary's assertion that she will continue his policies. Her assertions that his executive actions didn't go as far as she will. Perhaps its his open border policy and Shillary's declarations to up the amount of incoming "500%". Perhaps its a reaction to Chelsea stating at a rally that her mom plans on giving Obamacare to illegals. Her accomplishments are many - defended Black Panthers, kicked off the Watergate docket for zealousness that went beyond the Constitution; Whitewater, money laundering, emails... it could be her help creating the Arab Spring and her direct input that Khadafi must not leave Libya alive (needless to say, Libya is a cesspool now). Perhaps its Amb. Steven's 500 fruitless calls to her before he was murdered, or her assertion to the American public that it was caused by a video AT THE SAME TIME she was telling Chelsea and Libyan president that it was terrorism (yes, that means she lied to us but why split hairs? Look at those cute jumpsuits..)..Perhaps its her hand (along with BO) in paving the way for Isis. Perhaps its the fact that she and Bill stole furniture and chinaware from the WH and had to return it (with resitutions). Or money taken from 6 to 8 countries that kill gays and abuse women. Oh but why quibble? She has lady parts and she's liberal. That alone deserves blind fealty. (its been estimated with glee by none other than our veep Lunchbox Joe that whites will soon be in the minority. I was always under the impression that immigration was supposed to HELP the host country, but i guess as long as we can rid ourselves of those evil white people it serves a dual purpose..BTW, since when is its govt's role to eliminate white folk, or to re-engineer our neighborhoods while BO purchases a 5 million dollar mansion for himself in Palm Springs?) From 1924 to 1965 we didn't even HAVE immigration. And this is all leftie double-speak, is it not? ; folks who come here illegally are not immigrants. They're felons)..Not sure how evangelical Mr T is (my guy Cruz was already bumped) but at the very least i will know he has our country at heart and not self-interest. I guess it all comes down to what our definition of IS is. It certainly scares me to think that Bill and Huma's husband Anthony Weiner can be wandering the Oral Office once more.. More to your point, i guess we can draw a serious line of cause/effect between our lowered standards and morals and less church attendance. Trump is not a racist , that's a meme that his opponents use. His comments -admittedly not PC (thank G-d) - are reserved for ILLEGALS... As someone who lost a loved one recently to H, i have no problem keeping El Chapo (who made 3 trips in and out of America WHILE he was the most hunted man in America) and his low rent ilk out, or in vetting those who come in (they found a Syrian terrorist responsible for at least a thousand murders last month working for the TSA at an airport in Miami, feeling up Americans.)...Whether you read Friedman or not, bringing "500 times" the illegals we now have in to America , and giving them welfare, schooling and healthcare FREE is foolhardy and suicidal. BO said that last week's stalemate didn't stop his "dreamers".. I think someone forgot along the way to tell him that Americans have dreams too..(and isn't it scary that 4 hacks on the Supreme Court think that BO making up his own rules and laws and circumventing the Legislative branch was A-OK?)...Immigration (so called) is supposed to benefit the host country first and foremost. How does bringing in the world's poor and illiterate (many in their own language) help the 95+ million Americans who are now out of work. BO spent millions (yours) to get Syrian's resettled and get them jobs this Spring in Maine. Again, too much to care about Americans who are unemployed and go to bed hungry? I can't divorce Hillary from BO in the same way that i blame Boehner for letting BO bring us 5 trillion in debt on his watch , or even GW for TARP.. She applauds his failed policies and even promises to kick them into hyper-drive. Country be damned, ideology full speed ahead (Friends from our high school who are now Democrats have told me that -despite pro slavery stance of Dem party, despite years of Jim Crow and Bull Conyers and anti first civil rights act in 1950's, despite affiliations with KKK , etc - that it is Republicans who are 'racists'. I guess the narrative works. Viva Alinsky. If we CALL him a racist, he must be. Trump however employs many minorities, was even bringing them in under a government loophole to work at Maralago. On the other hand, in the days after we found out about Lewinsky, Bill and Hill could be seen sitting front row in church -- Bill would even walk out holding a Bible in his hand for effect. NOW i've heard he keeps a small room in Little Rock for his trysts, and Secret Service have taken to calling a certain blonde number 'energizer bunny' as they let her pass unimpeded through the gates in Chappaqua. Who cares, to what end? I certainly could not care less what people do with their 'gentles' (Mel Brooks turns 90 tomorrow, see how i worked that in?). As fas as accomplishments, Trump has built some magnificent buildings and golf courses. He's crass, he's entertaining, i have no doubt he can get some things done..(i hope he has good advice..At this point, he tells us he will add tarriff's to products to get company's to move to America...Tarriff is another word for tax and we already have 12 THOUSAND taxes on products coming into the US... Peanuts for instance are 23% higher. As near as i can tell, a tarriff just means the consumer will pay MORE).. .But i do NOT doubt that Trump loves his great country. I can't say the same for other politicians, who seem to be in a rush to remake and transform America.. I'm really not sure they even LIKE it very much (Michelle wakes up in a house built by slaves, she told a group of graduates last month (forgetting to mention the FREE Americans, Irish and Italian craftsmen who worked alongside them).. Hillary has -- well, she's done --- well, she's female. So there's that. Face it folks, the great Statesmen are all gone (if they ever existed). It WAS a very good year. We have tasted the wine, and now we are left with the dregs...

Ted Cruz, great Patriot and Constitutional Scholar.

Wel,, obviously i can't imagine a devestated America with Hildebeast or Bernie Crankcase in charge, but the Donald is going to take some nose-holding. We lost a great Patriotic American tonight when Ted Cruz decided to suspend his campaign in Indiana. The only Constitutional scholar in the pack, Ted is a man who does what he says. He promised to repeal every word of Obamacare and to abolish the IRS, and i have every reason to expect that he would have followed through on those promises. When Boehner and that other imbecile Peter King came out against him, i knew that he was the best choice. The enemy of my enemy, right? Donald Trump throws a lot of gas around. "Lyin' Ted, Canadian, father knew Oswald." I just hope he can be trusted in the years ahead to steer America in the right direction and to shake these Jesse Ventura fantasies to try out the cloak of Statesman. The Presidency has taken a hit in the last few years - cancer is laughed at, as well as our country's sworn enemies in lieu of a dopey slant on 'climate change'. We don't have serious politician's anymore :with the passing of Judge Scalia and the stepping down of Cruz tonight, I fear for America's future. You should too.

Death Panels Begin January 2016..

Tuesday this week, Obama moved to NATIONALIZE THE SUBURBS. They quietly put into place a plan for HUD to re-jigger integration of ethnic and monetary sources. Neighborhood too white? Too many rich people in this locale? Obama and the other geniuses in your Federal government will remedy the situation. (It goes back to a Supreme Court case about 2 weeks ago where laughingstock Judge Kennedy said that any neighborhood that has too much of one type of people has inherent racial prejudice (even if no racial component is exhibited or apparent). Of course , there's only one black man on the Supreme Court..(and for that matter only 3 people on the court with any brains - he's one of them)... Wednesday this week, Obama moved to screw the elderly even more. No longer a personal family matter, the hospitals and doctors will discuss end of life with patients (even if the patients are not ill and not even in the hospital). Medicare (a branch of your Federal Government) will PAY dr's and health "professionals" to bring up discussions with older people about packing things in -- which immediately biases their ability to care for older patients. Healthcare in Obama's world is pushing people out of their bed and off the planet when they reach whatever pre-determined age this monarch believes is fair.. Sarah Palin was mocked for talking about death panels -- well, they begin January 2016. (Government states the public will be given a 60-day period to talk about it, which you know as you've watched this out of control leviathan of a government vote on huge bills they haven't even read is bull-crap). . What national dialogue is Obama (your President, not mine) directing people to discuss? Well, we're all talking about Confederate flags this week.. (Contact your Congressman if you believe the government is out of control. Get vocal! If you voted anything other than Conservative last time, try to be smarter this time around! And if you'd like to read more from this author -- What Price Liberty is available here >> https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/491804)

The Tattoo Thing..

I missed the memo. I'm not sure exactly WHEN we decided that tattoo's were sexier than bare skin. I saw a guy running to catch a bus the other day with big empty star-shapes on his arm (one of the girls watching him -- tattoo's on her chest and belly -- said that stars were 'ghetto'. As apparently torso tattoo's were not). I've seen the obligatory Chinese symbols and even long quotations on mid-sections. The pictures and sayings on necks, wrists, the LOVE/HATE knuckle thing. You can't even see a woman in a skirt anymore without a flower tattoo following close at her heels. Is it me? Years ago we thought tattoo's were for guys working in garages, Army personnel, sailors and Hell's Angels. Now they're so common that they're -- well, common. One saleslady I met has a giant bolt through her mouth, a clip on her eyebrow and lip. Middle-aged women go through catalogs to choose their next tattoo. 'Oh i like that," said one recently about a flower motif. "But do you know what I want to get?" Sorry. Call me old school but I'll always maintain that plain old skin -in whatever incarnation or age - is miles sexier than ink any day. Besides, if everyone has the same thing, doesn't that make it cliche? ******** more from this writer on Amazon, Smashword, and whereever ebooks are sold...

Off to See the Wizard

When The Wizard of Oz opened in 1939, it was not yet the runaway classic we all know and love today. The movie of course was the same movie but the audiences had an embarrassment of riches to view (especially that year, with Gone with the Wind, Lost Horizon, How Green was My Valley, The Good Earth, Goodbye Mr Chips, etc).They didn't take it to their hearts as later audiences did. Not until the advent of television did Dorothy's adventures over the rainbow with her magical friends become rooted in the national conscience and beloved all over the world. There are a precious few movies that deserve classic status - certainly Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, Butch Cassidy, It's A Wonderful Life to name but a few. But Oz continues to draw new audiences wherever it shows - and older folks like me can still enjoy it on many levels (not least of which is that it helps us recapture some of our youth). This light preamble brings me to my sad topic today: speaking to many younger folk (twenty-nine and younger), I find very few even acquainted with the great film. "I'd let my daughter watch it," someone told me today, "but i have no desire. I've seen little pieces of it. It didn't look very good." Another young friend said to me "I've never seen it. Should I?" A third admitted 'I don't really DO black and white movies." When we pointed out that the movie goes from sepia into blazing Technicolor, he said 'oh, well I might watch it then."

WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE???

Going back to an earlier theme (lack of intellectual curiousity) this continues to astonish me. To quote the great William Saroyan:

“The most solid advice for a writer is this, I think: Try to learn to breathe deeply, really to taste food when you eat, and when you sleep really to sleep. Try as much as possible to be wholly alive with all your might, and when you laugh, laugh like hell. And when you get angry, get good and angry. Try to be alive. You will be dead soon enough.”

You not only owe it to your film collection to purchase the Wizard of Oz, but you need to watch it --- often --and share it with your children. Then try Disney's wonderful Swiss Family Robinson, Flight of the Doves or Oliver with the always terrific Ron Moody, or even a newer 'classic' like Toy Story or Finding Nemo. You want to really give your family a treat? Search for a copy of Hans Christian Anderson with Danny Kaye in your library or better yet, permanently add it to your collection. If you have a heart, you'll want to view it again and again. Never saw The Wonderful Wizard of Oz??? My God, wo/man -- how do you even call yourself alive??? ***** You can read many children stories and poems from this author, wherever ebooks are sold, including 48 Poems for Young Children, Plus Two; Carter Wingtipper Flies to Mars!, and the upcoming Gribbius, The Girl Who Believed in Miracles, and Wizapan Skylar, of Winnow's Marsh!

Butch Cassidy Changed My Life

The irony wasn't lost on me. B.J. Thomas singing Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head, piped loud and crystal clear tonight over the loudspeaker of a Long Island BJ's. Suddenly I was 11 again, watching Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with my family on a snowy evening in 1970. I began singing aloud, not even caring who heard me. Paul Newman and the beautiful Katherine Ross on a bicycle. The comedy, drama, cinematic brilliance and lush cinematography enthralled me then (and still does). A buddy movie, a tragic comedy, a romance, a shoot em up, a chase. A movie-movie in the best sense of the word. After looking at a few more DVD's I moved over to the butcher section. The kid there looked to be about 25. "Ever see the movie Butch Cassidy?" I asked him. "No. Is it in black and white?" I explained that it starts in sepia but moves quickly into full color. "I watch black and white movies," he said. "I like The Three Stooges, and it doesn't really bother me." Over the years, I'm no longer surprised by the answers I get when I ask people of all ages questions like that. One woman asked me if the movie Patton was about a dog. Another asked me if Ella Fitzgerald sang. Too many to name told me they never heard of Sammy Davis Jr, or John Denver. Many don't even know which side fought against us in WW2. One young woman told me she never heard of Paul Newman OR Robert Redford. A few told me they never saw The Wizard of Oz, or Gone with the Wind, or The Godfather. Fiddler on the Roof? (Is that a musical?). "I never heard of the Beatles," said a co-worker once. "Don't forget, I was born in 1988." I reminded him that I wasn't born 300 years ago, but knew who Mozart was. I can't imagine growing up in a world without Butch Cassidy. Or Louie Armstrong. Or Bing Crosby. Where is the intellectual curiousity we had? It seems to be lacking. And following this same line of thought, I asked a young cartoonist if he'd ever heard of Will Elder, Larry Gore, Mort Drucker, Mort Walker? How can you ever expect to do anything great if you don't know who's shoulders you're standing on? How can you continue to uphold the Constitution if you've never taken the time to read or understand it? If you're a songwriter or a painter, and you have no idea who Harold Arlen or Rembrandt were, how can i ever take you seriously? After watching him play piano in an intimate setting once in New Orleans, I found the great Ellis Marsalis sitting at a restaurant booth alone. "During that tribute to Duke," I said quickly, "you slipped in a little of Sinatra's 'Willow Weep for Me'. "You heard that, hunh?" he laughed. Dizzy Gillespie, speaking of Louie Armstrong, said "No him, no me." You can-NOT call yourself a comedian, and not know Jerry Lewis's work. Or Charlie Chaplin's. Or Richard Pryor's stand up routines. How do you go through life without ever once having the curousity to see Lawrence of Arabia, Spellbound, or Strangers on a Train? How do you call yourself a writer without reading Fitzgerald, Benet, Malraux, Blake? Or a playwright who is not well-versed in the Bard of Avon, Neil Simon, Arthur Miller, or William Saroyan? How can you dance if you don't know Gene Kelly's work? Or pick up a sax and not be intimate with Coltrane or Rollins? If this sounds like name-dropping, it shouldn't. It just makes common sense. It adds to the richness of life and the roundness of character..Doesn't it? ********* This author's new "30 Days to Your First Poetry Chapbook" is available at Smashwords and many other places where fine ebooks are sold.

Won't You Run for President??

Today some bonehead asked NYC Mayor and self-proclaimed Socialist Bill DeBlasio (unpopular with most of the city)if he was going to run for President. To his credit, Bill said "No." But look how handily this job is handed around.. It started (in recent memory) with Mario Cuomo. He gave a good speech about his immigrant parents at the DNC and suddenly there were calls for him to run for President. On the strength of one speech? Same thing with Barack Obama. There were a few who decried his activist leanings, his radical influences (like Bill Ayers and "Frank", his famous communist buddy), his lack of leadership or economic understanding, etc. But he ran for President on the strength of one speech at the DNC...Apparently NOW it doesn't even matter if you're handy with a microphone - Hillary has no positive credit to her name, and a fair amount of shame and betrayal to her country , but she gets to run because she's female. And next of course we'll need a Latino. Makes no difference if they're qualified. Or how much state evidence they destroy on their hard drives. NOW we vote for genitals and ethnic pallor. (It should be noted that the only condition where this doesn't work is if you're a Conservative Constitutionalist. Then of course all bets are off. Sarah Palin or Ted Cruz? Not a chance; their candidacy is pooh poohed on nightly broadcasts.. Genitals and pallor work only for the liberal mind-set, you see.)..Last week Hillary vowed to get amnesty for illegals done even if Congress won't (and even if 74% of the people don't want it, apparently). Jeb Bush says that illegals make better businessmen and have stronger families. (Since they pander so much to illegals, one wonders why they bother to run for office in THIS country).. They talk about 'dreamers' but defecate all over the American dream, which tells us now that 1 in 5 New Yorkers are illegal and there are over 92 million citizens who can't find work. Why are the borders open? Why is there no safety valve to keep Isis from crossing into our towns? Because your goverment is engaged in a social engineering experiment. Their stated goal is to make America 'less white' for whatever twisted reason they may have. Its no secret that illiterate people on welfare will continue to vote Democrat- as communist writer George Bernard Shaw once said " You can rob Peter to pay Paul, and Paul will always be your friend'.. Here's a general rule of thumb: when a politician tells you that illegals (many illiterate in their own language), trying to leave their countries behind but forced by La Raza and other ridiculous front groups NOT to assimilate will (they say ) make the country stronger, and more profitable, and safer, they are lying through their teeth. Don't waste your time listening to dopes like this, no matter what side they're on. They're lost in their own lies... I heard a terrific radio commercial today from Hillsdale College: they reminded us that our politicians (even the President) take an oath to uphold the Constitution and have a duty to do so. Just as American's have a duty to hold their feet to the fire when they stray. What outlandish clown is going to run for President next on a thin resume of shaky facts? Honestly, can a Bernie Sander candidacy be far behind?? (what? really??).......... Please look for more from this author in Amazon and where ever fine ebooks are sold. Obama Told a Lie, What Price Liberty? and The Democrat Playbook are all available now at very reasonable prices!

Jerry's Kids and No More Telethon?

As kids growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, we were always jazzed about the annual Labor Day telethon. In a herculean example of energy, comedian Jerry Lewis would host the telethon from stem to stern (with a short nap break), raising millions of dollars to eradicate this horrible muscle disease. You might go fishing on labor day, or have a bbq with the family, but you always knew that Lewis was hosting the show and that much good was being done.Starting on the previous Sunday night and lasting until Monday early evening, Lewis joked, cajoled, begged, mugged and implored you to send in a few bucks for “his kids”. We held carnivals in our backyards, car washes at our schools and churches, and collected pennies in drop boxes in our convenience stores . Jerry introduced acts, ran through the ever-changing audience with buckets for money yelling “gimme that!”, and frequently went to the tote board to revisit the latest totals pledged. Sometime in the 80’s and 90’s it became the thing for the intelligentsia (so-called) to poke fun at the telethon and Jerry’s methods. Stalwart entertainers who could be counted on to bring their talent to the MDA stages began to drop off due to advanced age and death. When I volunteered to help with phones, we were comfortably placed in hotels with banks of phones and a television screen. “Jerry looks good,” we would whisper to each other as we felt part of the movement. We were helping. We were getting closer to a cure for a myriad of degenerative muscle diseases. I would take caller’s donations and then rush home and phone in my own donation. It was part of the holiday. When Jerry sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone” it was truly the end of summer. School beginning, the sad passage of time. Then they fired Jerry. He was going to talk about it, he was NOT going to talk about it. Then the guy who fired Jerry was himself fired. Now the telethon was reduced to five hours, now two. The same amount of money was donated in two hours, they lied, as in 21 hours. “The age of 21 hour tv is over” said a spokesman when it was announced that the telethon was being yanked. No more telethon. Years of carnivals to raise money, track meets. Millions donated by firemen, and 7-11, and the Shriners. Gone with a whimper and barely a word of explanation. The 21 hour tv hour is over? In an age of binge watching of every series on every device known to man? Jerry has all of his marbles and the energy of the 12 year old he’s always been. The MDA seems to harbor no grudges (in fact, they did a tribute to their long time host a year after it was announced that he was out). The kids still matter. It’s a good, noble, decent charity. They still do many good things. Why can’t they work this out? Say a more manageable 6 hour charity? Or a long telethon (as they do now) with several hosts continuing in their co-managing duties (Tony Orlando, et all)? Jerry sits at his desk, and opens the show with a speech – some little magic comedy bit that he squirrels away in his marvelous ever-present scrapbook of ideas? He can introduce acts, manage the last song with eloquence and style…Not merely for the nostalgic kid in all of us, but as a practical way to raise MORE for those wonderful kids and adults, struck down in their prime by Duchenne’s, or suffering silently in their chairs. We haven’t abandoned Jerry’s kids. Why did they? *** you can read more from this author including The Worst Paperboy in the World and Searching for Elvis on Amazon and wherever fine ebooks are sold.

A Silent Coup Right Here At Home

Last week the FCC (at the urging of President Obama, who is not supposed to intercede in the affairs of an independent government body), voted to enact regulations to control the internet (the fact that they kept the 330 pages of new rules hidden from the American public, or that they have no Constitutional standing to legally do such a thing seems to matter not a whit). The public - except for Conservatives - rolled over and accepted the new limits to "free speech" (the new ruling controls taxation as well as content, in a little double-speak they concocted called 'net neutrality'. Obama will do for the internet what he's done for healthcare, banking, school tuitions, and any other number of things he's managed to get his hands on: nationalize it, and make it worse. At the same time he's going after the Second Amendment by 'banning' certain ammo with a general sweep of his magic wand. He hints (this week) that he may add a general secondary tax on the public, under the guise of "taxing the rich". A Federal judge in Texas has put a temporary stop on the President's broad illegal amnesty move -- another un-Constitutional move that he has neither the powers nor the authority to enact. Nevertheless, in defiance of the judge's order he continues to give out thousands of work permits (to illegals) and the feckless Republicans, led by the double-talking Mr Boehner, have voted to fund all of these illegal moves. As Charlton Heston said in POTA, "It's a madhouse!" This administration has met at least 3 times to discuss how to bring more illegals into the country, force the middle class to pay for it, and then happily decry that Whites will be in the minority in a few short years. Why is it a goal by our elected officials to destroy the middle class, change the composition of America, and lie to the public as they do it? We were under the impression that we had a representative republic, but the reality seems to be more 1984. All of the men charged and sworn to uphold the US Constitution instead take the opportunity to wipe their asses with it daily. The Progressives (so called) have shredded the document so badly as to make it nearly unrecognizable. The pendulum swings both ways. For all the reckless and illegal posturing (President's for instance are not capable of making law, much less changing a bill over 30 times), posterity and the future will be less than kind. The short thinking of the Parties nowadays is that when the next party is in power, they too will just as irresponsible and reckless. Most of our politicians will hardly be a footnote in the future. Unless liberal magical-thinking does some serious history revision, this one will be known as the worst in history (a feat we thought impossible to beat with Mr Carter and Mr Clinton competing for the title). Apparently it takes a lot to wake a sleeping America, but once waked, they will come back with a roar and vengeance that will be hard to contain. The toothpaste (as they say) will be out of the tube. *** (for more of this author please search his name on Amazon, and enjoy other books that endeavor to restore America to the shining city on the hill that we know it to be, and that our politicians work overtime to tarnish)..

Bibi and those darn anti-semitic Congressmen

This week we were informed by both the State Department and the President (and his spokesman) that un-named zealots had shot up random ‘folks’ (the President’s word ) who happened to be shopping at a deli. Despite the facts that the shooter self-identified as an Islamic radical and explained that their purpose in targeting a Jewish deli in Paris was to shoot Jews,no one in our government was able to put that sentiment into words. Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has been invited by House Speaker John Boehner to speak to Congress this month. The PM’s office , through common courtesy and no existing protocol known to man, informed the White House of its intention to give a speech. The White House immediately issued statements that ‘protocol had been breached’. Obama said that as a matter of etiquette he never attended speeches by candidates who are up for re-election (an election has been called in Israel for early March). Instead he sent over a contingent of 100 ‘folks’ to Israel (at US taxpayer expense) to upset the election and cause Bibi to lose the election. Veep Joe Biden also begged off the speech. Senate Democrats began falling into lockstep. Jewish Senators like Bernie Sander, Chuck Schumer, Debbie Wasserman –Schultz stated that they would not be attending the speech. No matter that this was an important speech by a world leader (and statesmen, as we know, are rare these days, certainly in the two largest world powers ); a speech that could impart important information that these Senate leaders (so called) could use to ensure the safety of their fellow countrymen. Besides raising the intellectual level of the room by their absence, one wonders that Party above all else is so important to both the major parties (but especially the Democrats) that they would play with their country’s safety so blithely. Additional announcements that the FEC and the FCC are both trying major power plays in the next two weeks to take over the internet and attach exorbitant taxation (at the President’s insistence, releasing a 340 page regulation that will not be shown to the American public until after it has been passed); and that illegal alien’s will now be issued 3-5 million Social Security cards and are eligible for “earned income tax credits” – that is, refunds of up to 24 thousand dollars per household for money never paid to the IRS – and one has to wonder which country the President and his minions are really working for. Certainly not ours.*** for more fun with soft tyranny, please check out this author's Smashword and Amazon Kindle books, like "Obamacare With the Wind."

Yet Another Obama Power Grab..

This week we were informed by both the State Department and the President (and his spokesman) that un-named zealots had shot up random ‘folks’ (the President’s word ) who happened to be shopping at a deli. Despite the facts that the shooter self-identified as an Islamic radical and explained that their purpose in targeting a Jewish deli in Paris was to shoot Jews,no one in our government was able to put that sentiment into words. Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has been invited by House Speaker John Boehner to speak to Congress this month. The PM’s office , through common courtesy and no existing protocol known to man, informed the White House of its intention to give a speech. The White House immediately issued statements that ‘protocol had been breached’. Obama said that as a matter of etiquette he never attended speeches by candidates who are up for re-election (an election has been called in Israel for early March). Instead he sent over a contingent of 100 ‘folks’ to Israel (at US taxpayer expense) to upset the election and cause Bibi to lose the election. Veep Joe Biden also begged off the speech. Senate Democrats began falling into lockstep (goose step?). Jewish Senators like Bernie Sander, Debbie Wasserman –Schultz, and of course Luis Guittierez (who works full time for Mexico anyway) stated that they would not be attending the speech. No matter that this was an important speech by a world leader (and statesmen, as we know, are rare these days, certainly in the two largest world powers ); a speech that could impart important information that these Senate leaders (so called) could use to ensure the safety of their fellow countrymen. Besides raising the intellectual level of the room by their absence, one wonders that Party above all else is so important to both the major parties (but especially the Democrats) that they would play with their country’s safety so blithely. Additional announcements that the FEC and the FCC are both trying major power plays in the next two weeks to take over the internet and attach exorbitant taxation (at the President’s insistence, releasing a 340 page regulation that will not be shown to the American public until after it has been passed); and that illegal alien’s will now be issued 3-5 million Social Security cards and are eligible for “earned income tax credits” – that is, refunds of up to 24 thousand dollars per household for money never paid to the IRS – and one has to wonder which country the President and his minions are really working for. Certainly not mine. >>>> for backround information on this growing tyrrany, please check out my QUOTATIONS OF CHAIRMAN OBA-MAO at an Amazon or Smashword near you...

Soft Tyranny

According to the terms built into the new Executive Amnesty Act (so-called) that President Obama has un-Constitutionally foisted on the country, illegals may apply to the IRS for a refund of tax credits for work done while they were illegals. In other words they may be entitled to monies back from the Treasury WHILE THEY WERE ILLEGALLY WORKING IN THE UNITED STATES AND ADDING NOTHING TO THE SYSTEM THEMSELVES. In addition, tax credits (in the form of refund payments) for any children who may have been covered under their term of illegality. Yesterday morning, President Obama gave a speech at a Prayer meeting breakfast. Referring to the week’s news of an Isis hostage burned alive and filmed for the world’s sick entertainment, the President cautioned the crowd that before they climbed on their ‘high horse’ they must remember the Crusades and the murders by Christian’s (thousands of years ago). They must remember slavery in America (by the Democrat Party, he neglected to add; also conveniently forgetting to mention the ensuing Civil War that killed more Americans than all other wars combined to end slavery). Given the President’s recent refusal to meet with the Israeli PM (while at the same time sending operatives to undermine elections in Israel and to try to unseat him), there can be no doubt that the President has a large chip on his shoulder. He obviously does not like Christians, Jews or the great country that was dumb enough to elect him twice to the highest office in the land. After all, you don’t set out to ‘completely transform’ a country that you’re happy with…do you? *** Thank you for visiting with us today. If you'd like to see more from this author, you can find his ebooks for sale on Payhip, Smashwords, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.. Including "Obamacare With the Wind" and "The Frog in the Boiling Water"..

Rod McKuen , and a Winter's Storm

It was, the newspapers and television personalities hyped, THE STORM OF THE CENTURY. Supermarket shoppers were interviewed. “How do you think you’ll get through this?” one anchor asked a friend of mine. “We’re human,” he said. “We’re pretty resourceful.” Storing water was encouraged. Suits from every level of government appeared on television for hours. “Stay home,” they implored. As the hours went on, the request became more stringent. “If you’re out on the streets after 11,” the Mayor said sternly, “ you will be ticketed. It’s a misdemeanor. You’re breaking the law.” (in accordance with the President now, laws no longer have to go through the unnecessary process of being voted on. Any politician can simply SAY it’s a law and voila!). It was snow alright. And it teetered and crunched and did all the things that snow usually does, given the circumstances. Was it THE STORM OF THE CENTURY? Was it ONE FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS?? No, and no sane person really thought it would be. The global folks say it’s a side effect of global warming (don’t ask). The weather folk – like politicians, famous for their half-truths and outright lies - say regardless of its final status, the east ‘certainly got a wallop in this storm.’ I’m not going to lie. I think we’re all tired of shoveling. But those in the know claim there’s another storm in the offing, maybe as soon as Friday. And this one – nevermind earlier in the week – this one is going to be a doozy. Time will tell. **************** i know its fashionable to denigrate popular poetry, and try to act lofty and snobbish but i like Rod McKuen and his poems. Sorry about the syntax, can't seem to get it right for this blog....Here's one from In Someone's Shadow (Cheval Books, 1969): We come into the world alone We go away the same. We're meant to spend the interlude between in closeness But its a long way from the morning to the evening. Here's another favorite from the same book.. Its called "Empty Is": Empty is the sky before the sun wakes up the morning, The eyes of animals in cages , The faces of women mourning when everything has been taken from them. Me? Don't ask me about empty. Rock star bestselling poet, author and singer of the beautiful song Jean (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie), the first millionaire hippie poet who sold his self pubbed books door to door like vacuum cleaners, Wayne Dyer with a gift for meter, singer of sad love ballads, Sinatra colloborator (This Town , is a use you town), gentleman beatnik, rest in peace Rod . Listen to the Warm... ** Thanks for visiting. You can find this author's poems wherever fine ebooks are sold, including "Blackbird Drawn on a Charcoal Sky White Snow."

You Didn't Build That.

There isn’t much time. A man’s (woman’s) life is short, and there’s a finite time for you to grab your portion of the American dream. You work if you’re able (most of us do, anyway), you bring home money to feed and clothe your family. Maybe squirrel something away for a rainy day; hopefully have enough left over to bequeath to your family and loved ones. Time on this earth is fragile and precious and (for most of us) limited to a short interval. Forty or fifty years of productive work. And then you have some temporary hacks in Washington telling you that you didn’t build something. What you’re selling, say footnotes to history like Elizabeth Warren, was driven to your customers on roads that ‘other’s paid for.’ President Obama (who knows nothing of your toil) tells you that the business you built is not really yours alone. Collectivism. Sharing the monies you make with everyone else. If you’re fortunate to make a small nest-egg or even a little fortune (there are very few Bill Gate’s), you need to pay “your fair share”. In 2013, that meant that the top 1% paid 38.9% of their wealth to taxes. The bottom 50% paid 2.78% (less than 3 %). And still the statists say the rich aren’t paying enough: they want more. How much is enough? Well, it’s hard to pin down an answer. There is, some statist’s admit cagily, never enough. America has never before been a covetous nation. If your friend or neighbor made a million, you wished them well. Through luck or hard work or ingenuity (or a blend of all three), they were able to succeed and grab the brass ring. To live the American dream. Never before has this nation been a land of people with hand extended, looking for freebies and shortcuts. A land of jealous haves and have nots. Never before has America been a nation of classes; a land where people felt they were somehow ‘owed’ a living. Where rights like Social Security, insurance, Medicaid, voting were conferred on a group simply for breaking that nation’s laws and entering her illegally. Free enterprise, the best and most productive system ever devised for insuring dignity and a fruitful way of life, is ignored. One former college professor told me that the Keynesian economic theory that President Obama expounded was a sound theory (in fact, it has never worked): the professor had to cut our conversation short because the library where we were standing was closing and he had to wash up. He was living in his car (the irony was lost on him, of course). So you work hard. And your savings – all that you can amass during your short time on earth – is taxed and frittered away. The small amount you’re yet able to save is threatened with massive debt that your government is unwilling or too stubborn to pay down : its imminent implosion threatens to obliterate everything you’ve ever worked for. Your savings could disappear overnight. Still, you manage to die first. And the money you’ve scrimped and saved is cut by 40% again in what they euphemistically refer to as an “inheritance tax” but which is more correctly identified as a ‘death tax’. Money that has already been taxed while you were alive: the government swoops in for a second bite of the apple before they let any of what’s left go to your family. “You wished to pass along your savings to make your son’s life easier? That’s rich. Now bend over while we rifle your pockets!” Envy, jealousy, resentment, division, collectivism are antithetical to the American dream. Our dream is boundless, unlimited. We are born with unalienable rights to be left alone (something statist’s find impossible to do); to live freely and unfettered with constant harassment (ditto). We pay taxes for roads, police, fire, to help people who truly need help. But paying for 50% of the country PLUS illegals who wander over without any pride in this great country or assimilation is too much to ask. Communist writer George Bernard Shaw said “when you rob Peter to pay Paul, Paul will always be your friend.” But Peter will resent the constant intrusion. And may (if you’re not careful) release the Hounds of Hell at your heels. *** Thanks for visiting. You can find ebooks from Vince Iuliano on Amazon and Smashwords, and wherever ebooks are sold... including "Quotations of Chairman Oba mao!" and "What Price Liberty?"

What I Wrote/What They Printed

For decades my "letters to the editor" have run afoul of whichever flunky happens to be in charge of editing at that moment. One newspaper tacked on a whole new ending, changing my entire stated purpose. People who knew me wrote harsh letters, asking me to explain. When i complained to the newspaper, they ran a snarky retraction titled "We Care. Really." Newsday (in this case) published a letter of mine (11/28). Well, they published a paragraph of mine, then made a second out of whole cloth and slapped my name on it. Here's what they published: I was disappointed that President Barack Obama's speech on immigration reform was so brief ["Obama forces the issue," Editorial, Nov. 23]. It didn't give him the opportunity to speak about the higher burden this will impose on taxpayers, or the fact that school and law enforcement systems will be stretched to their breaking points. I was also hoping he would address terrorist threats like the Islamic State group and the ease with which they can get into the country now, more drugs in communities, and the frequent incursion of MS-13 gangs in our small communities. Vince ... etc. Not only did they trim my letter majorly, they added words I never used in sentence patterns I never created. Not that it really matters anymore, but here was my original letter: I was disappointed that President Obama's immigration reform speech was so brief the other night. It didn't give the President the forum or opportunity to speak to the higher burden this will impose on taxpayers, or the new (or old) diseases we will be able to address (like Ebola or the Central American flu that killed five US children this year) , or the fact that school and law enforcement systems will now be stretched to their breaking points. He forgot to mention the new DHS rules that "dumb down" the penalties for illegal drunk drivers or sex offenders to misdemeanors now, or the fact that most communities will be less safe. Also, I was hoping he would address terrorist threats like Isis and the ease with which they can get into the country now, more drugs in communities, and the frequent addition of M13 gangs to our small towns. In the President's speech I was hoping he would speak less about the dreams of people who break our laws, and more about the diminishing American dream. He might have addressed "chain migration" (relatives bringing more relatives) and given less platitudes about American's "not wanting to separate families" (the last time i looked, Americans aren't separating anybody. Families choose to break themselves up when they make the decision to break another country's laws). Despite the anchorman for Univision telling viewers that "Obama was making good on his debt to Latino's" it would have been nice if either of these men addressed the incredible debt that law-breakers owe to taxpayer's. Or the real secret no one is talking about - - that most are coming here for "free" medical and health benefits, as well as to enjoy the fruits of our Medicare system without the messy aftertaste of having to actually have paid into it. Lastly, I had hoped the President would have addressed the fact that there are an estimated 8 million illegals now enrolled in Obamacare (which he promised wouldn't happen), that America is well on its way to becoming a giant welfare state, that half the country is still out of work, that the economy is in its worst shape in decades. I wish he had spoken to the fact that this was being done to create more Democrat voters and not from any heartfelt desire to help the downtrodden in any way. I understand now why the President has always been reluctant to release his school records. I'm sure they show a man who excelled at economics and leadership. Vince Iuliano may be found on Amazon, Smashword, and whereever fine ebooks are sold. Look for his latest Amazon offering , What Price Liberty?, here > ..