Thanks...

The best wishes are much appreciated (the "old guy" jokes less so) and I'm looking forward to a nice day. Liz has promised that the "to do" list doesn't count today, so I'm trying to think what I might want to do... a Spartacus marathon might be in order, actually.

Jambo's comment about our "hedonistic" lifestyle here in NEPA was funny. We do seem to draw people to the house damn near every weekend, and luckily for us it is always family and good friends. I'd like to clarify, though, that while there does always seem to be some alcohol consumed, the nights when I go to bed "tipsy" are fairly few and far between. I was moving with a purpose on Saturday night, though... and my ramblings yesterday on the Bund may prove the fact. Once I started with the porter, I should have stuck with it... but the bottle of Jameson that I got as a gift was calling to me, I swear.

Oh, and Ryan's comments on not being an apologist for Ike... you can feel free to bone up on Dwight D. all you want, but all the information you need concerning Ike's policies and programs supporting and expanding New Deal projects, his 91% tax rates, and the details of new Interstate program have been linked on this page in just the last month, I'd bet. The Presidential paradigm didn't change from Hoover in 1930 until Reagan gets inaugurated in 1981, and I don't care what letter is behind the man's name, either. Ike, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter... all kept to the "New Deal" model that FDR started (for good or bad) of ever expanding government and more entitlement programs. Any one of them could have changed this direction (as seen by Reagan), or even have stopped the process from growing (I think Ford tried this, but ran out of time)... but it didn't happen. And once Reagan was out of office, Bush Sr. began the process of moving back to the "New Deal" model again, which was taken up with gusto by Clinton and Bush Jr.

BUT, since you wanted no mas, I'll let it go...

One more barb, though... (hehe)

Jambo and I talked a bit yesterday, and he had just read my posts. Seems he caught the "Glenn Beck" stab I threw in, and recognized it for what it was. I know Ryan sees it too, and that it is painful for him to hear someone suggest that the ideas falling from his mouth aren't his own. This isn't a fair thing to do to our friend (but it is fun, sometimes!), so we both thought that a good solution would be to make the following suggestion:

Ryan must give up any and all television and radio programing for one month. No watching FOX News or listening to Glenn Beck or Sean Hannity or any other pundit rabidly apologizing for the conservative agenda for at least 30 days. His only recourse to current events/news/opinions should be online resources or newspapers. That way, when someone gives a speech or makes a comment, it can be read and followed up on by Ryan, rather than by the pundit feeding the analysis and opinion onto the airwaves.

We've known you for ten years now, Ryan... and I can tell you that while we have argued and debated the merits of New Deal programs since day one, it wasn't until Glenn Beck began painting FDR as a radical socialist reformer bent on circumventing the Constitution by any means possible that you started suggesting it, too. Complaining about SSI is legitimate, because the entire country has known since 1988 that eventually the program would run out of money if not radically changed. Questioning the integrity of FDR for social agendas and programs, but claiming the integrity and legacy of Andrew Jackson is "sacred" and beyond question even in light of his support for questionable (at best) national policies towards hundreds of thousands of Americans seems a tad hypocritical, and especially suspicious when tied so closely with the growing popularity of one Glenn Beck.

This is mostly tongue-in-cheek, my friend, and I'm not suggesting you "parrot" Beck... but I'd love to hear some honest, grounded opinion stemming from "Ryan's research" rather than what the latest talk radio topic is raging through the speakers. Have you ever heard something come out of these people's mouths that made you think "What a load of CRAP!" THAT is what I want to hear about... just once in a while, too. Call it my "birthday wish".

Anyway... there's still lots of whiskey, porter, beer and wine here at the house if you guys want to stop over and tip a few back. We've got hotdogs and some pork chops we can grill, and the pool is finally open for business (cool... but not cold).