Mood:  happy

A few short months ago, Frodo supped with the Men of Gondor and the invariable, if not undesirable, subject of politics was raised.  With no hesitation the loudest, and also the youngest, spoke in glowing fashion about the person he felt would gain the most from the current political inertia, and thus become the first female President of the United States.  Frodo gagged at the thought of the person he most likens to a fictional creation by authoress Anne Rice.  Frodo's eyes met that of another Hobbit who likewise cringed at the possibility of another political leader without, well, let us simply leave the sentence complete at the point of the word "without."  Without reflecting too deeply on the quicksand upon which political fortunes rise and fall, Frodo takes keyboard in hand, and reflects upon the women behind, and, once again, perhaps the sentence ends best with a word like "behind."

Harriet Miers, Karen Hughes, and Condi Rice are names which will soon slip somewhere between infamy and ignominy.  It is interesting to note that each was, at some point, a harbinger of the continuing disaster that some have identified with the misnomer of leadership.  Miers was nominated to fill the Supreme Court Seat later filled by Alioto, however even the Republican Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee made it eminently clear that they were not in a mode to "trust" the nomination.  Hughes was called back to the White House, after retiring to family needs in Texas, in order to develop a public relations program that enhanced the role of the United States as a beacon of freedom, rather than an occupying monster.  Hughes, it is noted, is returning again to Texas.  Beacons of Freedom, it seems, are in short supply to most observers these days.

Oh, but Frodo's favorite is the obviously book-smart, erudite, and well-dressed graduate of public schools in Alabama.  National Security Advisor before and during the attacks on September 11th, whose responsibilities by title belay a certain responsibility found herself immunized from any criticism whatsoever.  In fact, once the re-election of the Incomparable Moron was assured, she was promoted.  Since that point-in-time, she has failed to achieve anything that did not involve retail buying power on Rodeo Drive, the Champs d'Elysses, or Fifth Avenue.  Even a windbag like Donald Trump was disposed to note that she has accomplished nil because of her inability to "close" on any opportunity.

All of this assistance has done very little to provide the Incomparable Moron with the "legacy" he apparently deeply desires.  Obviously, these gender giants are not totally to blame for the failures of these mind-numbing years, but they have each been major contributors, and none have received the level of criticism that they so justifiably have earned.  Frodo's purpose in these words, dear reader, is to stand and point his finger at each one of these miscreants, as he will to others in days to come, and simply say "Hasta la Vista, Baby."

One year until Election Day.

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 9:08 PM EST

Updated: Monday, November 5, 2007 9:12 PM EST

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Mood:  surprised

It has been many weeks since last Frodo visited Lake Lovey.  Much to his surprise, the autumnal changes are much brighter than anticipated.  Although the flaming scarlet of the sugar maple is not present, the yellows and oranges are tinged against the blue skies of continuing high pressure.  There is no rain, and no pending additions flowing from any hillside. 

With Fiona and Mick, the Wonder Dog, in tow, Frodo has been exploring the property of other residents about.  Many properties, some new and some renew are, as is usua,l up for sale.  In recent years properties sell quickly, simply because there is demand, and capital, in abundance.  However, Frodo notes that every single "For Sale" sign present nearly two months ago is still in evidence.  In conversation with a neighbor recently moving from Rohan into this area of the Shire full-time, Frodo learns that his house in Rohan sold in only six days.  The conflicting results of sales and purchases have always interested Frodo, and he knows that it is not wise to pre-judge based on simply what has been observed.  Science requires that all factors be examined before laws and theories are recognized, and so should it be in the worlds of behavioral judgment.

Declining value is a trend in capital backed by real estate.  As the number of houses, for example, available become more numerous, then the prices for all drop competitively.  Since, as discussed some months ago, so much real property was over-priced due to demand and overly-available credit, it is only natural that the value of assets should retreat.  Credit becomes more difficult to obtain, and new activity comes to a halt until some measure of stabilization occurs.  Why would anybody buy something that may get even cheaper if one simply waits a week or two?

Frodo could stop at this point and simply conclude that good things come to he who waits, and to not be fearful of economic conditions.  Frodo harkens however to the phrase initiated by John Edwards more than four years ago, when he began to speak about "Two Americas."  With an economy which is approximately two-thirds dependent on the purchase of goods and services by consumers, Frodo fears that the percentage of those able to fuel economic growth is shrinking.  When George W, Bush stumbled into office, oil was less than $25 per barrel, and today it is almost $95.  Other variables, like food and oil, are not tabulated into the measures of inflation, because of their seeming volatility.  Although such theory may be historically sound, Frodo argues that the astronomical percentage increases in these essentials has seriously eroded the amount of capital which those on the lower end of the "Two Americas" have available.  In fact, it is likely to increase the need for assistance to make health care and general nutrition accessible to an increasing number of Citizens in Middle Earth.

Now add in the fact that Frodo, and people like his neighbor from Rohan, will soon not be additions to economic growth, but bystanders.  Perhaps we soon will speak of "Three Americas."  Those gaining, those struggling, and those with their money under the mattress.  

There is much to consider as Fiona steps into the lake, taking note of the fact that the water is a lot chillier than when last she pursued Frodo across the surface.  Mick, the Wonder Dog, doesn't seem to notice at all.   

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 11:36 AM EDT

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Mood:  caffeinated

Frodo has asked for this opportunity to speak to the American people, and particularly to the fairer sex.  There is a point that needs to be made, and it needs to be made in the spirit of moving forward in the collective effort to destroy the Ring, and to bring peace to all the Citizens of Middle Earth.  The point can simply be called "Getting It."  Frodo's words, brief may they be, follow in their entirety.

The people of the United States of America respect the law.

Why else would nearly all of all these people voluntarily file and pay taxes each and every year?  They know that taxes are a very small price to pay for liberty, and for truth, and for justice.

Why else would mothers stand and watch their sons and daughters march off to a jungle or a desert a million miles away knowing they may never return?  They know that sacrifice is something for which a mother must prepare, because the country must survive.

Why else would an entire generation ration themselves and not partake of such luxury items as automobile tires and sugar?  They were keenly aware that everyone must contribute if victory is to be achieved, and peace is to prevail.

Why else would people sit at lunch counters seeking service when they knew that all they would receive would be physical and emotional abuse?  They knew what the law required, and they were willing to suffer to see that it was applied to all, equally.

Respect for the law; not following orders blindly, just recognizing that we are all in this together, and that we have to know that the guy next door will do his job too!

That, dear reader, is the point that is missed in the latest flurry of political diatribe.  That is the point that is missed, not only by George W. Bush, but by Hillary Rodham Clinton, and, Frodo supposes, by Eliot Spitzer.

There are 12 million people in America who did not follow the law.  Perhaps, in their place, Frodo may have done exactly as they have done.  The point remains that it is antithetical to suggest, in even the most rational manner, that it is okay for so many to abuse the law, when so many have given so much to put those laws into place.

The politicians, nearly all of whom drop their heads to catch the latest breeze blowing across the electoral landscape, had better realize that this is a pivotal point for those who pay taxes, who sacrifice sons, daughters, safety, and opportunity in order to make this part of Middle Earth secure for all those who follow.  These people will not tolerate 12 million breaking the law, without consequence.  The politician who does not recognize this point does not "get it."

Perhaps, if Frodo were running as a candidate for political office, he might have taken a similar position.  If that were so, he would subsequently realize why he got his ass kicked when the election results were all tallied.  

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 9:26 AM EDT

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Mood:  lyrical

"Long Road Out of Eden" is an album that will soon join the 120 million already sold by a group of 60 year-olds known as The Eagles.  This time however, they risk a political theme or two as the clouds of climate change and war obscure the horizon.  Frodo notes the fact that this album has been six years in the making, and that sends him off to research exactly how long it took Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.  The reviews that Frodo has seen so far seem to indicate that although the music isn't memorable, the lyrics soar, as if penned by a real live Eagle.

The title track reprises the good-time driving that the Eagles produced so many years ago in the classic song "Take It Easy."  Frodo hears "music blasting from an SUV on a bright and sunny day rolling down the interstate in the good ol' USA."  Then, from the opposite direction, a drunk-driver, "weaving down the American highway through the litter and the wreckage and the cultural junk bloated with entitlement, loaded on propaganda."  The song ends with, taa daa (as promoted by Frodo), Julius Caesar, saying:  "The road to empire is a bloody, stupid waste."

From political point to what seems to be a Barack Obama argument for change, the sign off of the album are the words "The curtain falls, I take my bow, that's how it's meant to be.  It's your world now."

Words and music, music and words; available at Wal-Mart, and Frodo wonders if he can still dance to the music?

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 8:38 PM EDT

Updated: Tuesday, October 30, 2007 8:59 PM EDT

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Mood:  sharp

Some years ago Frodo gave up news magazines, not because he didn't like them but because the unread simply assumed gargantuan status in almost every available nook and cranny.  Occasionally however, a cover catches his eye, and a single-item purchase seems completely justified.  Such is the case with the October 29th edition of NEWSWEEK which, on the cover, has a photograph of angry Islamic students with a title "The Most Dangerous Nation In The World Isn't Iraq."  The article itself is both engrossing and fully worth the purchase price of the magazine, but it was something else inside that really struck Frodo's imagination.

Recognizing Frodo's penchant for life imitating art, it was Christopher Dickey, son of the author James, who penned a single page article which brought a racing mind to the starting gate.  Celebrating the DVD re-release of "Deliverance," Dickey compares the screenplay of his father with the events leading up to and including the Pre-Emptive Iraq War.

In summary, the plot was simple enough, four suburbanites from Atlanta go canoeing in the mountains and find out that the wild river and the people around it are much more than what they anticipated.  The character Lewis (portrayed by Burt Reynolds) is the "ubermensch" who believes that it is his destiny to overcome against all obstacles.  In the end however, it is Ed (portrayed by Jon Voight), the ordinary man, who transcends himself in order to survive.  He is motivated entirely by fear and like the rest of the entourage (Ronny Cox and Ned Beatty), believes that Lewis is a little bit nuts.

Dickey agrees with them, and compares Lewis to Vice President Dick Cheney's "closet fantasy of himself" and, indeed, the entire Bush administration.   Ed is merely all the rest of us, and we are running the rapids of a river that is the Iraq War.

One of the locals in the movie asks Lewis "What the hell you want to go fucking around with that river for?," and Lewis responds, "Because it's there."  The local pauses, then says "It's there all right.  You get in and you can't get out, you gonna wish it wasn't."

Dickey asserts that, after 9/11, the destruction of the Taliban government in Afghanistan wasn't a weighty enough challenge for the would-be supermen. Now add in the fact that Lewis is portrayed as a rich boy from Atlanta, whose money came from inherited wealth, who is challenged by survival from near-death experiences.  That scenario is little different from a government that is supposed to brake the self-serving when danger and confusion occur.  The "core coterie" of ideologues in the Bush administration, none of whom were ever more than weekend warriors, pushed for war at all costs and an end to almost all constraints.

In the end, the survivors slay one of the mountain men and then argue over what to do with the body.  When Drew (Ronny Cox) argues that they should tell the police, Lewis denigrates his reference to "the law."  Lewis argues for a vote in the name of "democracy," and the terrified companions opt to hide the evidence. 

"Democracy" squeals like a piggy, and Ned Beatty is thus characterized in our collective memory, and he becomes Everyman. 

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 11:08 AM EDT

Updated: Sunday, October 28, 2007 11:48 AM EDT

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Mood:  rushed

The hummingbird feeder, for the first time in many days, doesn't need to be refilled.  It will be several hours before patches of sunshine will be warm enough for the chair, that sits empty now, to serve as a fitting point of observation for the goings-on in the Gardens of the Shire.  Ground and aerial rodents dart back-and-forth as the avian visitors compete for the seeds intended for immediate consumption and/or storage.  Although Frodo is want to tarry, Fiona and Mick, the Wonder Dog, race through the dew-laden stems of grass, leaving behind tell-tale pawprints weaving ribbons of passage in the sunlight.  There are games afoot, and cooler temperatures demand action both fast and furious.

Although there is less time available for the tasks at hand, there is greater desire to mix need with appreciation.  Colors and breezes change around every corner, and Frodo knows that there will be fewer and fewer moments such as these, and how he laments that fact.  Mick, the Wonder Dog, meets the eyes of Frodo with the challenge of the playmate, and, perhaps, of one who worships his friend.  These are grand moments to be shared, and no one wants to waste a precious second. 

"I have only just a minute, only 60 seconds in it, 

Forced upon me, can't refuse it.

Didn't  seek it, didn't choose it,

But it's up to me to use it.

I must suffer if I lose it,

Give account if I abuse it.

Just a tiny little minute,

But eternity is in it.

What are you going to do with your minute?"

---Dr. Benjamin F. Mays

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 10:53 AM EDT

Updated: Saturday, October 27, 2007 10:55 AM EDT

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Mood:  on fire

Air Force One will take off for the West Coast immediately after George W. Bush finishes his breakfast ("Fruit Loops" and  Texas Toast) and morning exercise regimen (one-half hour on a stationary bicycle) (why would you be surprised ?).  On the flight to California he will receive the Daily Intelligence Briefing by satellite telephone from the Director of the CIA.  The Secretary of State will appear on the closed-circuit television, presumably to exhibit the new shoes she purchased for her upcoming trip to Myanmar.  The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Insecurity will then personally brief Mr. Bush and the Chairman of the Republican National Committee on the number of registered Republicans and Independents requiring Federal Disaster Assistance.  Mr. Bush will then take a brief nap.

Following is the staff-prepared plan for the whirlwind visit:

There will be no photographs of Mr. Bush looking out of the windows of the airplane at any point. 

Prior to landing in Los Angeles, Mr. Bush will meet with the staff from Faux News and Bill Orally.  The "team representative" from all other media will receive hand-outs from the cute little honey who replaced Tony Snow.  What is her name, anyway?

On the Tarmac Mr. Bush will speak briefly to the people of California before a helicopter flight over the fire damage in wealthy Orange County.  After landing and while walking through the rubble of the pool house outside the Malibu residence of Travis Tritt, Mr. Bush will speak briefly to the African-American housecleaner.  At this point, staff should ensure that Mr. Bush does not accidentally refer to her as "Mammy."

Governor and Mrs. Schwarzenegger will then escort Mr. Bush in the State Humvee to the Charles Gibson Viewing Stand where Mr. Bush will speak to the California National Guard, the 101st Airborne, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Geraldo Rivera.  It should be noted that fires will be visible in the distance.  Should they be waning at this point, Secretary of Labor Chao (aka Mrs. Mitch McConnell) will casually pour several quarts of cologne on the flames to increase the effect for the cameras.

Mr. Bush will then take a short helicopter flight around Lake Arrowhead, north of San Diego.  News photographers will fly in a separate craft so that pictures can be taken of Mr. Bush tossing fire retardant out of the open door of the helicopter.  Note that in order to prevent any potential danger, the retardant will actiually be released over Lake Arrowhead itself.

Mr. Bush will then return to Air Force One.  He is scheduled to return to the White House next Monday, after a short vacation at the Ranch in Crawford. 

There are times when Frodo seems omniscient.     

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 8:59 PM EDT

Updated: Wednesday, October 24, 2007 9:03 PM EDT

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Mood:  special

In June of 1861, one of Frodo's Great-Grandfathers traveled to what was then Harper's Ferry, Virginia, in order to enlist in General Lee's Army.  Frodo has never assessed that act, or any of those subsequent, as treasonous; merely as best judgment at the time.  Frodo is keenly aware that many others, even today, disagree with him.  Feeling no pain, he merely swipes his head with regret for the deficiency in understanding.

Frodo's Great-Grandfather could not, in Frodo's opinion, have failed to step up upon "Jefferson Rock" and partake of the vista that spread itself for him on that day in that place.  Thomas Jefferson, standing on that very spot, had proclaimed this to be the grandest of all the scapes of this new land.  Despite his efforts against the nation divided, many of Frodo's Great-Grandfathers'  progeny who might also possibly stand in that spot would, in behalf of that divided nation,  someday sacrifice the ability to return.  Today, the eyes belonged to Frodo, feeling however, that his sight was shared

The dull magentas, browns, and yellows of the hardwoods, are a coverlet to the mountains, cliffs, and bridges above the shallow Shenandoah.  The life blood, which riffles on a timeless and patient flow to a faraway sea, moves at it has for years far more numerous than the multiples of a hundred known to those who have stood upon Jefferson Rock.  It looks much today as it must have looked when the boot of Mr. Jefferson formed the print that today contains all of the Hobbits' foot.  There is a sense of awe for him, and for Frodo's Great-Grandfather, and for each since who stood here and made a silent promise to return when peace was restored.  Places such as this generate such dreams, those that live beyond that which is given to a single mortal, to be shared by all who follow.

A gentle, life-giving, mist was falling when Frodo finally turned away.  Perhaps there was a message there.  Perhaps not.  Likely it is that another must come.          

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 9:53 PM EDT

Updated: Monday, October 22, 2007 10:35 PM EDT

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Mood:  quizzical

Willem de Vlamingh (by the way, did Frodo mention that you should now be taking notes for the test at the end of this lesson?) arrived in Australia from Holland in 1697, and promptly confronted something that the entire civilized world believed did not exist; he encountered black swans.  His discovery forced Europeans to accept the fact that an obvious and accepted belief, i.e. that all swans are white, might actually prove to be incorrect.  This realization probably did not sit well with several established religious groups at the time.

Frodo brings this up because of a new book, appropriately named "The Black Swan," and subtitled "The Impact of the Highly Improbable," written by Dr. Nassim Nicholas Taleb.  Dr. Taleb's theorem is that unlikely events seem impossible when they lie in the unknown or in the future, however, after they occur, they become a part of our readily accepted reality.  Taleb argues that our lives are the cumulative effect of a number of significant shocks that have taken place in our environment that were far different from what was planned or expected.  He uses the theory to argue that America's place in the global economy is strengthened by the fact that we have not learned to fear failure.  Rather, as entrepreneurs our collective successes have more to do with what is unplanned as opposed to what is predictable.

Frodo was struck by one of Taleb's examples, which he dubbed the "Harry Potter Phenomenon."  He merely pointed out that the authoress was, when she wrote her first book, a mother on welfare.  The unpredictable success of her product obviously changed her life, and was, therefore, a "Black Swan."  Other examples used by Dr. Taleb were the internal combustion engine; the Cuban Revolution; the personal computer; the 1990's Internet stock bubble; and World War II.  Each of these events became a "Black Swan" because of the unintended consequences which followed.

Frodo would like to introduce another "Black Swan."  George W. Bush may be the penultimate unintended consequence in the modern world.  For some, his very existence is evidence of a night of passion gone awry.  Others look upon him as a mannequin, dressed and posing, mindlessly, without an unscripted moment and, therefore, a figurehead.  Still others, it seems, regard him as a bulwark against uncontrolled and uncontrollable government.  Frodo argues that all have been confounded by what has actually taken place.  Frodo also hopes that the entrepreneurial spirit of the American people has not been diminished by the most colossal of all our failures.

Frodo will be doing his best Charles Kuralt impersonation for the next several days dear reader.  If the opportunity avails itself, and you happen across a weary traveler sipping an RC and eating a "Moon Pie" in front of an old country store, stop and sit a spell, you might meet Frodo up close and personal.  Talk about a "black Swan," you stop to fill the tank and you come face-to-face with a Hobbit. 

"Now, take out a piece of paper and number from one to ten. . ."    

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 9:17 PM EDT

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Mood:  rushed

Political discussions in the Shire today are all about the weather.  The "Bermuda High" which traditionally sits atop the Southeastern USA at this time of year, spiraling clockwise, pushes precipitous possibilities into the periphery, i.e. Texas (which certainly meets almost any definition of periphery).  The result being that much of the area abounding the Gardens of the Shire is as much as a foot-and-a-half behind the normal annual rainfall for this point in the year, and all of this carries over from similar readings in the prior year.  The only remotely amusing aspect is the fallout from political leaders recognizing that voters care more about rain than they do plebiscites and millage rates.

Atlanta is very visible in the cross-hairs.  As the State of Georgia considers restrictions on commercial and industrial users, beyond the total ban on outdoor watering for residential use, water experts around the nation are shocked by the dire consequences which restrictions place on Metro Atlanta.  Mr. Don Wilhite, who founded the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, is quoted as saying "Most large metropolitan areas have systems in place where they try to be better managers of the resource than (Georgia). . ."

Zing.  And those are pretty strong words emanating from a University with a losing football team. 

Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue (who bears an uncanny likeness to "Curly" of the "Three Stooges") has his political shoes on, and is dancing his best to convince voters that this is neither his fault, nor his responsibility.  Sonny, it seems, is being mentioned by many of the Midgets contending for the Republican Party Presidential nod as a potential Veep nominee.  The back door to the Governor's Mansion on West Paces Ferry road is aswing with advisors at all levels; all in the effort to keep Sonny on the short list.

Frodo's grim countenance on this bleak day was brightened by the appearance of a familiar face exiting from the Governor's Mansion.

Donald Rumsfeld.  Now that's the kind of advice Sonny really needs.  Frodo wonders where Ambassador Bremer is?  Frodo would pay his expenses.

Posted by loveysdaddyga at 10:16 PM EDT

Updated: Monday, October 15, 2007 10:18 PM EDT

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