rick

Per Carlos Mencia: "Ashton Kutcher is a great dramatic actor (insert major world class sarcasm)." Typical Twitter comment: "Ashton just went to the bathroom." Rick

James; I think the best thing to say is simply this: I like it and am left wanting more. You've got a good premise here that could as easily be tomorrow's headlines. Good luck with the story! Rick

ROFLMAO! Rick PS We need a ROFLMAO smiley!

I think I'd rather be identified as a Jedi than most of the other religious sects that are out there... How does one join, one wonders? Don a full length brown cowled robe while holding a naked upright saber before you while chanting "When nine hundred years old you reach, look as good you will not!" and whirling widdershins? Hmmm... Rick

People (over the age of ten) actually wear pajamas? Color me amazed...

I am, frankly, appalled, and this points up one of the glaring problems with "privatizing" the penal system. These two judges should be publicly horsewhipped, on national TV, and then sentenced to extended terms in the same system they used to line their pockets. While I'm on a roll, the heads of the companies involved should face the same punishment. All found to be involved should forfeit 100% of their cash and assets, which should be used to repair some of the damage done to hundreds, if not thousands, of young lives. Public corruption, especially at this level, must be aggressively prosecuted and examples made to serve as examples to anyone else thinking this might be a good way to increase their salaries. Moving back into the real world, however, the best we can expect to happen is that the judges will resign and be disbarred. Neither of these scum-buckets will serve a day of jail time. The people involved on the corporate side will hide behind some corporate entity, and no-one on that end will even be indicted: mark my words. That this is the reality of the situation makes me sick to my stomach. What a distortion of the golden rule: He who has the gold, makes the rules. Rick

I must say it is extremely nice to again have a president who is able to speak coherently while stringing a number of sentences together to form a understandable and moving message. What a nice change after the last president. I must also point out that I have a high degree of certainty that President Obama has read, and understands, the Constitution and Bill of Rights of the United States of America. This, too, is a nice change of pace from the previous administration, who routinely treated those magnificent documents no better than toilet tissue. Perhaps now we can again stand proud, our heads held high, as a new administration returns us to the rule of law, and leads us in living out, as Dr. King put it, "the full measure of our creed.' Congratulations, Mr. President. How can I help? Rick

I, too, am of two minds on this issue. On the one hand, the boy did, in a cold-blooded and premeditated fashion, plan and carry out the killing another human being in the finest fashion of a mafia hitman, and has, apparently exhibited no remorse for his actions. If it's okay to kill someone who is teasing or harassing you, then there are going to be a lot of dead bodies piled up in this country. On the other hand, prior to this, he was a good student despite an apparently less than perfect home life. Does that home life justify murder? His defense attorney seems to think so, but then no defense attorney ever thinks his/her client is guilty...at least in front of the press. What the boy did was callous and heartless, the act of someone without conscience, or someone who had nothing to lose. Where then, do we, as a society, draw the line? Is it okay for underage kids to torture each other as long as no one dies? Or, on the other hand, do we prosecute any minor who commits a felony in adult court? Part of the problem here is the ego and political ambitions of prosecuting attorneys responding to the howling of the mob by tossing a child into the abyss with some of this nations worst: the true dregs of society, where they will learn to become habitual criminals: killers, thieves, rapists, and druggies. The purpose of having a separate juvenile court system was to let kids make mistakes, and learn from them, giving them a chance at living a full productive life without the stigma of an adult conviction hobbling them for the rest of their lives. We are where we are today because there were a relative handful of young people who abused the system and another handful who have committed especially heinous acts, like the young man in this case. What good is served by locking this boy up for the next 50 years save satisfying our own howling cries for revenge? If there is a chance any good can come from this entire mess, shouldn't we be taking advantage of it? What if, instead of a career criminal, a rehabilitated Brandon McInerney discovered a cure for cancer, Parkinson's, or Alzheimer's? I'm not suggesting letting the little murderer go free, but I am suggesting that this case would be better handled in the juvenile court system: a place that is better suited to dealing with child criminality than an adult court whose conviction will ruin any chance this boy could become a useful and productive member of our society. Should he be given another chance? I think so, but only after he pays for what he did. Payment that should be rendered in the juvenile justice system. I don't condone or excuse what this young man did, just as I cannot condone ruining yet another life based on lex talionis, or retributive justice. We once considered ourselves an open and enlightened society. Whatever happened to that? Rick

That would be just my luck.... Rick

Only got 4 out of 5...Damn! Probably that blasted cricket question. Do you have to get all 5 right to qualify? Rick

And we're off on a new plot twist! Rick

Graeme; I seriously doubt that reflects your taste in movie entertainment, but is reflective of the two miniature Graeme's that run about your home... Rick

Rick; That man (Ostertag) should run for office. He makes more sense to me than those beating the drum for something I'll likely never participate in-even if I ever found the "right" person. We do have bigger problems, and its high time we worked on solving them. Equal rights? Absolutely. Gay marriage? Meh, big deal. Thanks for the post. Rick

I hate to say it, but I did warn you about Japanese Pizza.... Rick

The man is a machine...a very talented writing machine. The two latest chapters are very good. Rick

People still use IE? Rick

Peppers, yes. Onions, of course. Black olives, with the right mix of toppings. Garlic is a must, in the sauce, at least. The same thing applies to basil. I like the odd Hawaiian pizza even. I must, however, draw the line when it comes to putting lettuce/rocket/arugula on my pizza pie! [shudders] Oh, the horror, the horror. Rick

You can get that smell, without shelling out your hard earned cash. All you need do is go to work at a burger joint. You'll reek of burgers and make some extra cash at the same time! Rick

Having had pizza in Europe, Japan, and here in the States, I think my overall favorite is still thin crust, New York style, pepperoni pizza. We have a place downtown Denver that is a typical New York style hole in the wall, but damn, they make good New York style pizza. My second favorite is the thin crust South Philly I mentioned earlier. I've had Chicago style deep dish, and while I like it, especially the cholesterol special (meat and lots of it), few places outside of the Chicago area do it right. They also do a great stromboli there. It's definitely worth a visit just for the pizza. Garbage pizza's (everything on them) are good too, once in a while, as long as there's no sardines. All that cholesterol is raising my blood pressure just thinking about it! (You just have to eat it fast before all that grease congeals.) Italian pizza, in Europe, as made by Italians, is good, but as was mentioned, the sauce is rather bland. This is offset, however, by a nice crisp crust, the use of sharper flavored cheeses, and excellent meats and sausages. I survived a three month assignment in the Netherlands because of a small Italian run pizza shop near work, and great Indian and Chinese places near my apartment. The Dutch, God bless 'em, aren't very fond of spicy foods, and they very nearly killed me with blandness. (you haven't lived till you've had their version of Mexican food ) As a side note, I had to get to know the staff at the Indian place...they were afraid to cook it as spicy as I wanted it. Once they were convinced I could handle it (and that I wouldn't sue them or something), the cook took good care of me. I can't get it that hot here! Japan has some interesting pizza's...I remember eating at Shakey's pizza in Shinjuku. They had a cuttlefish pizza! Yes, Cuttlefish! (cuttlefish are related to squid and octopus for those of you fortunate enough to have never eaten it on a pizza). I had one over there that had fish eggs and tuna on it! I guess the true beauty of pizza is in its flexibility. Despite my personal feelings about fish on pizza, its supreme adaptability has made it a favorite the world over. All hail that brave Italian who came up with the idea! Rick

Here you go Colin: Allrecipies.com - Death by Chocolate Rick PS I'm presently enjoying one of the true gifts of the season: mint chocolate M&M's. I'd describe how wonderful they are, but the description would get some people WAAAYYYYY too excited.

That's kind of cool, actually. You'd never get that many cats doing the same thing in real life, however, hence the expression "Tough as herding cats!" Anyway, enjoy a nice day at the beach for us on Christmas, Des, while we freeze. We set a new record low temperature of -18 degrees Fahrenheit (almost -28 Celsius) last night! Brrr... Merry Winter Solstice Celebration, err, I mean Christmas! Rick

It is kind of strange when you think about it. The pre-christian celebrations were related to the celebration of the Winter Solstice, when the days finally began to get longer again. The early christian church co-opted the pagan winter solstice celebration, which the Roman's celebrated on the 25th of December, into the their evolving theology. Many scholars today do not believe the date actually marks the literal birth of Christ, but that the date was co-opted into the new religion to ease the transition from the various pagan faiths into the christian theology. Speaking as someone who has lived there at one time or another, I can say I've seen Christmas celebrated in Korea and in Japan, both nations being places where the majority of the population are members of other faiths. The world is an interesting place.... Rick

Just a note for those of you who have been following Chris Lydon's Falcon Banner Saga. The latest installment, The Fifth Column, has been released and is available at Lulu.com in PDF or paperback format. I got it, read it, and enjoyed it! Happy reading! Rick

There's a place near me called Santoro's Brick Oven Pizza, and my favorite pizza is a modified South Philly. The original South Philly has red sauce, sauted onions and red peppers, and hot Italian sausage. My version uses pepperoni...just hits the spot for some reason, although it's good with the sausage. The crust is thin and crispy: Yummm. 9 AM...damn, they won't be open for another two hours! I don't mind pineapple on a pizza, but can't stand anchovies. I'm also of the opinion that BBQ sauce belongs on Ribs and Chicken (also culinary delights, but that's another thread), NOT on pizza! Rick

Cole; Something, clearly, needs to change. Colleges claim they spend entirely too much time on remedial education. Public schools claim they don't have enough money despite tax increase after tax increase. Administrators blame the teachers, the teachers blame the administration, and the students are the ones losing out. I can claim to have had one good English teacher in all my years as a student, all the way through college, and that teacher taught a college expository writing class. The rest were a complete waste of the space they occupied. I suspect that situation has only gotten worse. What happens in American high schools these days? Text messaging 101? And yet those same schools are capable of producing people like our own Colinian and some of the other young writers here, who clearly managed to learn how to use the language in a clear and eloquent fashion. I suspect they learned the use of the language in the same way I did, in spite of, rather than because of, the people nominally charged with teaching the language. I learned how the language worked by reading it, lots of it. I was reading author's like Leon Uris and Tolkien when I was 10, and suspect those who can still use the language learned it the same way. Aristotle said, "What we have to learn to do, we learn by doing." I honestly suspect this is the root of the problem. Reading simply isn't cool...it wasn't even when I was a kid. Rick