Bad Pumpkin after one night of freedom. He's grounded, of course! 

Two Trains Have Left The Station (Your Viet Nam)

There are two trains that have left the station. One is a train bound for war. The other is a train for peace.

The death count of American troops in Iraq is approaching 2,000. The make-up of these deaths crosses all boundaries.......all races.......male and female. Most are young Americans from YOUR generation. Are you watching? Are you concerned? Will you act?

This war in Iraq certainly cannot be truly compared to the war (conflict) in Viet Nam. That war lasted from 1965 to 1973. More than 58,000 American troops lost their lives during Viet Nam. It was American's longest war. Do we have another Viet Nam brewing? Let's hope not but I am beyond worried.

I have many concerns about the situation in Iraq. But my greatest concern is the apathy being shown by today's youth. During the Viet Nam War, American youth took to the streets to protest the war. The movement stretched from coast to coast, campus to campus. The youth were tired of the senseless killing of their own and decided enough was enough. They waged a war on the older generation of this country......the leaders in Washington as well as their own parents. Our parents' generation, for the most part, supported what our leaders said or did, regardless of the end result...a sort-of Blind Faith in leadership. It took time and many conflicts, but slowly our parents joined in the fight. The flag-covered coffins began to roll into small town America.....the children of small town America. Slowly, the majority of Americans began to question the motives and decisions of our elected officials and climbed on the train to end the war. A major turning point in the struggle occured on Kent State University in Ohio. It was there that the youth war turned ugly. Four students were killed by the American National Guard. American youth killing American youth. It was a call to arms! Now granted, there were issues on both sides of the conflict and they seemed to boil over on that day. But the shooting deaths of these students sent a message to the folks back home....the parents of the college students. The message was very clear....the establishment had now made the decision to shoot our own citizens. There was now a two-front war....one is Southeast Asia and one at home.

I have not seen a major reaction to the war in Iraq other than some small groups gathering outside the Bush Ranch in Texas or a few arrests in Washington. All I see is apathy.....apathy not only from the youth but from all generations. Have we given in to the powers of the elected ones....the chosen ones who dictate how we operate? This too is Blind Faith and our leaders are convinced that because we have not reacted then we accept the course. Are they wrong? Do we have to wait until the polls open to express our views? Do we even have any views to express?

I urge the campuses across America to become vocal once again. After all, when the troops are stretched so thin that all the "bases" can't be covered, you bring in "fresh troops". And where do you get the fresh troops? Salem College.....ETSU....Clemson....UGa....Ga Tech....UT...Berkely....a high school in Henry County, or Boiling Springs, or Colorado Springs or Krypton or Conyers or Knoxville or Clinton or Oak Ridge...the list goes on and on. And folks there won't be any discrimination when it comes to pulling you out of school. Male, Female, Black, White, Latino, Oriental........the only ones that might possibly escape the pull are the children of our elected officials. They write the laws the to protect themselves....they are NOT protecting you.

There are two trains that have left the station. One is a train bound for war. The other is a train for peace. Which train did you board?

Save The Whales!

Save the Whales!
Country Joe McDonald

When my grandpa was a boy, he went down to the general store
Saw a picture book of a whales shooting its spout and flashin' its tail
Then he got a sailor's dream 'bout cruisin' around on the salty sea
Joinin' up with a fishin' crew to go out and get him a whale or two
Tell me what kind of men are these who sail upon the salty seas
Up in the rigging in the afternoon, swabbin' the decks and sharpenin' harpoons

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

Shanghaied by the light of the moon, put out from Boston in the middle of June
After six months out at sea, and nothin' but death and misery
Set out on a three-year cruise, a union ship and a union crew
And after six months you begin to see, that whalin's not what it used to be

A modern ship and a modern crew with sonar scopes and explodin' harpoons
A mechanical boat made outta steel, a floating machine built to kill the whales

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

There're lots of whales in the deep blue sea, we kill them for the industry
We drag 'em 'longside and chop 'em in two and melt 'em down and sell 'em to you
There hardly is a sailor alive who can keep the tears from his eyes
As he remembers the good old days when there were no whales to save
Now we can thank the companies for scouring the deep blue seas
Looking for ivory and perfume and oil to light your living room

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

When my grandpa was a boy, he went down to the general store
Saw a picture book of a whales shooting its spout and flashin' its tail
Then he got a sailor's dream 'bout cruisin' around on the salty sea
Joinin' up with a fishin' crew to go out and get him a whale or two
Tell me what kind of men are these who sail upon the salty seas
Up in the rigging in the afternoon, swabbin' the decks and sharpenin' harpoons

Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Hooray and up she rises
Early in the morning

Top 10 Scary Things to do For Halloween

Top 10 Scary Things to do For Halloween

10. Tie a string around your cat's tail and put his feet on fly paper; place the cat in the bushes and pull his tail when the kids show up for free candy.

9. Instead of bobbing for apples play bobbing for habaneros.

8. Carve your pumpkin into the shape of a nuclear mushroom. Do not light the candle.

7. Play Michael Jackson cds outdoors until the sun rises. You may be arrested for obscenity but what the hell. Crank it up! "Cause it's da Thriller"!

6. Before you go to bed, put the leftover candy on the front porch; place a mousetrap in the bottom of the candy dish.

5. Send your kids on a scavenger with the list written in invisible ink.

4. Buy a big screen tv and install on the front porch. Play "It's A Wonderful Life" and confuse the crap out of the neighbors.

3. Tie broomsticks all around your front doorstoop....make sure they hang low enough to bop the older kids in the head but NOT the real kids. Geez....don't they ever quit Trick or Treating?

2. Go to Kroger and buy out their supply of Charmin; go to the Great Smoky Mountains and begin.

And the Number One Scary Thing to Do for Halloween:
(Drum roll please.....)


1. Dress up like ol George W and run around saying that Presidential Term Limitations have been eliminated and you're gonna run for 8 more years! Everybody loves W, right?

Gerbalism-The Way to Enlightenment

My frustration with "organized" religion has given me no choice but to establish a new religion. Hey, we haven't had a new one in over a week.

So Welcome to Gerbalism....just follow these steps to inner peace:

• Accept that only through Gerbals (not hamsters) can you find inner peace and sanctuary
• When in a pet store, ask to hold all the Gerbals held captive...then set them free one by one....this act of freeing Gerbals will guarantee you a place in aquarium heaven (lid not included)
• Never eat meat at the buffet. You can survive on sunflower seeds and lettuce. Adding dressing will require you to confess your sins to a higher Gerbal
• Keep a Gerbal in your home, free to run up and down the stairs all night long. Put the cat(s) out first, for murder of Gerbals is a sin that has no forgiveness
• Pet the Gerbal before each meal and allow the Gerbal to bite you often. After all, true inner peace requires pain first.
• Always clean up after your Gerbal. These tiny morsels are your way to enlightenment (wash hands before handling the Gerbal again)
• Should your Gerbal enter into the Gates of Gerbalia, place the remains in an decorative jewelry box and tape securely before burying under the Apricot Tree. Always bury Gerbals under Apricot Trees. If you do not have an Apricot Tree, Home Depot has them on sale this week for $19.99