The Way We See Things

Today is National 7-11 Day

“People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for.”

Judge Taylor in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, first published in the United States on this day in 1960.

Lee wrote those words way before the Interwebz were a glimmer in Al Gore’s eye.

On this day in 1804, U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr mortally wounded former Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in a duel, where everything is legal in Jersey.
Lin-Manuel Miranda as Hamilton (Broadway 2015–2016)

I remember in the early days of online chat rooms, most of us actually thought we could win an argument. I did sharpen my snarky skills, but I don’t think I ever convinced anyone to change their mind.

It wasn’t just politics, but it was music, and art, and religion, and your basic Virginian superiority.

Sorry, we know we don’t need to brag. We’re Virginians.

There are a lot of people talking about the current state of our country, about the health of our president, and presidential contenders, and of course the election.

On this day in 1924, Scottish runner, Eric Liddell won the gold medal in the 400m at the Paris Olympics after refusing to run in the heats for the 100m on a Sunday. Liddell’s story is told in the 1981 Best Picture “Chariots of Fire.” After the Olympics, Liddell returned to China as a missionary where he died in a Japanese Internment Camp in 1945, just months before liberation.

Most have already made up their mind and are simply looking for validation

Oh the places we could go with that statement…but we won’t.

It’s Thursday. It’s still hot.

And yes, I’ll still take the heat over the cold. Always.

We have one more day this week.

You can do it.

IN OTHER NEWS

Actor George Clooney, a high-profile Biden supporter and fundraiser, asks president to leave race
Associated Press
“This isn’t only my opinion; this is the opinion of every senator and congress member and governor that I’ve spoken with in private,” wrote Clooney. He’s hosted several high-dollar Hollywood fundraisers, including for Biden last month.

Pelosi snaps at reporter asking if she wants Biden to drop out of the race: ‘Am I speaking English to you?’
FOX News
“I’m not having any discussions with you, or anyone else, about what I talk to the president about, with all due respect,” Pelosi told Scott in a video shared on X. “I’m not going to be making any comments today, in the hallway, about the fate of our nation, OK?”

Race to restore power to 1.5M after Hurricane Beryl as dangerous heat wave continues
NBC News
HOUSTON — More than 1.5 million customers in Texas were still without power Wednesday afternoon, depriving many of air conditioning during a dangerous heat wave, 48 hours after Hurricane Beryl made landfall on the Gulf Coast.

12 Most Horrifying Plans In Project 2025
The Babylon Bee
Rumors about the controversial Project 2025 have been all over the news recently, but have you taken the time to learn what Project 2025 actually contains?

BORN ON THIS DAY

Yul Brynner (1920-1985)
I saw Brynner with Constances Towers in “The King and I” at the Uris Theatre in New York in December 1977. I paid $9.00 for my ticket.

1274 – Robert the Bruce, Scottish king (d. 1329)
1767 – John Quincy Adams, American lawyer and politician, 6th President of the United States (d. 1848)
1899 – E. B. White, American essayist and journalist (d. 1985)
1920 – Yul Brynner, Russian actor and dancer (d. 1985)
1926 – Frederick Buechner, American minister, theologian, and author (d. 2022)
1950 – Bonnie Pointer, American singer (d. 2020)
1952 – Stephen Lang, American actor and playwright
1956 – Sela Ward, American actress

 

 

Available on Amazon.

BENEDICTION


 

The Way Things Are

Today is National Pina Colada Day.
Photo by YesMore Content on Unsplash

“If it seems more horrible to kill a man in his own house, then in a field,…it ought surely to be deemed more atrocious to destroy a fetus in the womb before it has come to light.”

Exodus 21:22, Commentaries on the Four Last Books of Moses, Calvin’s Commentaries (Edinburgh;repr. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1999)

French pastor and theologian, John Calvin, was born on this day in 1509 (died 1564).

Read into today’s politics what you will. All I’m saying is that the old gray mare ain’t what she used to be.

On this day in 1991, Boris Yeltsin took office as the first elected President of Russia. On June 16, 1992, President George H.W. Bush welcomed Yeltsin to the White House. I had the privilege of being on the lawn that day.

That and I find myself without a political home.

Maybe that’s as it should be.

I’m approaching retirement from a career where I’ve spent forty-four years in government and public policy. Trust me, I know how bad it is on the inside.

It’s hard though, not to just want to play a little bit of politics.

You know, like this small pint of ice cream won’t hurt my diet, will it?

The news is like a train wreck though. I can’t turn away. I can’t be unconcerned.

But I don’t have to play in their reindeer games.

River City Community Players
September 13-14, 20-21

Yes, I post links and memes below. Some because I think they’re funny. Others because they’re articles you’re not likely to see with a casual viewing of the news. Do with them what you will. Or won’t.

The best thing I’ve learned from Social Media is that you can just scroll on by.

Cue Dionne Warwick.

Sure it’s hard not to leave the snarky comment. It’s harder for me to scroll by when someone has posted something that’s obviously misinformation.

But they don’t want my correction.

That’s our problem. We’ve lost the ability to have conversations about things and not just spew talking points.

We can no longer have civil conversations. We’d rather snark and trade memes to get “our” side’s point across.

And that’s why we are where we are today.

I don’t have solution. I wish I did.

IN OTHER NEWS

Former Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe dies at 89
Fox News
Inhofe, a Republican, was the state’s longest serving senator from 1994 to 2023 and passed away peacefully this morning surrounded by his wife Kay, his children and other family members, a former senior aide tells Fox News.

The Democratic Party Must Speak the Plain Truth to the President
The New York Times Editorial Board
For voters who held out hope that President Biden’s failure to communicate during last month’s debate was an aberration, the intervening days have offered little comfort.

People Who Would Never Cheat In Elections Horrified By ‘Stop Cheating In Elections’ Bill
Babylon Bee
“I want to be clear. This bill is racist, xenophobic, transphobic, and possibly arachnophobic,” Said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. “It’s not the ‘no cheating’ part that bothers us because obviously we would never, ever cheat. But it’s outrageous that Republicans would want to take measures to stop us from cheating. Which we never ever do.”

BORN ON THIS DAY

1856 – Nikola Tesla, Serbian-American electrical and mechanical engineer (d. 1943)
1875 – Mary McLeod Bethune, American educator and activist (d. 1955)
1920 – David Brinkley, American journalist (d. 2003)
1921 – Harvey Ball, American illustrator, created the Smiley (d. 2001)
1921 – Eunice Kennedy Shriver, American activist, co-founded the Special Olympics (d. 2009)
1926 – Fred Gwynne, American actor (d. 1993)
1943 – Arthur Ashe, American tennis player and journalist (d. 1993)
1945 – Ron Glass, American actor (d. 2016)
1972 – Sofía Vergara, Colombian-American actress and producer

Available on Amazon.

BENEDICTION