3 Ring Binder

From Benjamin Franklin’s Way to Wealth , sayings collected from Poor Richard’s Almanack were displayed on children’s cups in the early 19 th century.   People found Dr. Franklin’s wisdom an appropriate accompaniment to the gift of a porcelain mug for their children. Now, we have a president who preaches that personal industry is a myth and our only responsibility is to the state which gave us everything. 

You like me! You really like me! Or you like pictures of dogs.

Welcome to the third to last Objectivist Round Up.   This week those of us who are advocates of a government limited to the protection of individual rights were dealt a strong blow by the Supreme Court decision to uphold the individual mandate, as well as the rest of the Affordable Care Act, as constitutional.  As some in the country struggle with what makes America America , those of us who understand the exceptional wisdom -- and limitations -- of our Founding Fathers continue to fight for its future. The Declaration of Independence laid down the principle that “to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men.” This provided the only valid justification of a government and defined its only proper purpose: to protect man’s rights by protecting him from physical violence. Thus the government’s function was changed from the role of ruler to the role of servant. The government was set to protect man from criminals—and the Constitution was written to protec...

What’s more threatening: Snakes on a Plane (Children, do not press the forward arrow key.) Hens on the Deck (The poop is slippery, trust me.) Or Nuns on the Bus Nuns on the Bus ? Really. This would be hilarious if it weren't so disturbing. Every hour of each day, Catholic Sisters stand in solidarity with all who live in poverty, and we confront injustice and systems that cause suffering. We cannot stand by silently when the U.S. Congress considers further enriching the wealthiest Americans at the expense of struggling, impoverished families. [emphasis added] This is too much! Look toward your churches first, Sisters! I wonder if they're going to confront injustice by chucking chalk at the pedophilic priest – or relieve the suffering they see by liquidating some church properties and distributing the tax-free windfall to those in need. And that’s the funny part! The disturbing part is that these women, who have devoted ...

Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio was recently a guest on the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC. If you can convince the voters that you’re on their side it makes all the difference in the world. Political party matters less to voters; ideology matters less. Are you on our side when it comes to Wall St.? Are you on our side when it comes to drug prices? Are you on our side when it comes to trade rules, and tax laws, and all of that? As Sherrod Brown attempted to gather his tribes against the big, bad, money makers, Ms. Maddow seemed to lead the guest in talking points. More striking to me, however, was that after speaking the name of Senator Brown's opponent (who is equal to Mr. Brown in his lack of principles, I imagine) and adding a "dot com" at the end of it, in the interest of fairness,  the host then said this: Of course, he’s always welcome here as a guest on this show and then looked into the camera through her eyebrows . I think she'll give him a fair hearing...

In the spirit of looking on the bright side, here are three good things I made note of as I walked home from the building where I locked my purse, keys, and phone inside an otherwise empty theatre, realizing only after I checked the remote mailbox that the keys in my hand were not my real keys, but merely the mailbox keys, and that the extra precautions I took to make sure the door locked behind me to save said real keys, purse, and phone from the marauding band of thieves in that building was actually a BAD idea. And the worst part? The mailbox was empty! Now onto the promised good things .     I live less than two miles away from said building. It was a lovely day. Just earlier today I had noticed children riding bikes in a makeshift sidewalk over the overpass spanning the highway between my house and the building.    

Sleep shop to mad scientist to convertible houses.  One question: Why are the kids in the front seat when the mother is in the back? Okay, one more: Do you think Dr. Laird is medicated? I'll have to try that forehead wrinkle remover exercise.