Saturday, September 28, 2013

History Channel: The Manson Family Murders

Source:Lana Hodges- Welcome to the world of Helter Skelter?
Source:The Daily Press

"The first victims fell on August 9, 1969, at the home Roman Polanski had rented located at 10050 Cielo Drive in Benedict Canyon, an area just north of Beverly Hills."

From Lana Hodges

Source:FRS FreeState- Manson Family chief prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi.
Charles Manson had the perfect group to do his evil deeds, )so to speak). Because his group was similar to him in the sense that they didn’t seem to fit in very well in mainstream society. Even though Manson’s soldiers all came from solid middle class backgrounds and could’ve all ended going to college before they went to prison for their murders. But instead ended up with Charlie Manson, because they felt for some reason that their families no longer wanted them.

Charlie, had just gotten out of prison for the last time, in 1967-68 and ends up in the San Francisco area. And meets up with these very young women and Tex Watson, in their late teens. And sees that they are lost and offers them his love and takes them in. And they embraced him and the Manson Crime Family is formed as a result.

Bob Parker: ABC News 45-85- Post-World War II


Source:Bob Parker - ABC News anchor Ted Koppel.
Source:The Daily Press

“45/85 Part 1 an ABC News television documentary. It aired on September 18, 1985. The three-hour program combined archive film and television footage with new interviews to document post-World War II history, focusing especially on the Cold War. Hosted by Ted Koppel and Peter Jennings. End of World War II, Levittown.”


It would be another thirty-years until I was born when World War II was officially over in 1945. So it’s not like I can talk about post-World War II America with any personal experience. I’m going off of what I’ve learned about it from books, publications and documentaries. But this was a time when America came back and came back stronger than it ever was, at least to this point. The Great Depression was finally over and America was moving again. Emerging as the economic, diplomatic and military power of the world. Russia was obviously a major competitor to us from both a military and diplomatic perspective. But America was the power because of what we stood for.

America transitions from a depressing time of economic depression and war, to a period of peace at least abroad, but not at home. To where we were the military and economic power of the world. And where we could influence any part of the world that wanted what we already had. Peace, freedom an independent and developed economy. We rebuild Europe after Europe destroyed themselves. We rebuilt Japan after they attacked us and we practically destroyed them to end that war with them. America had it all from an economic and military perspective and we’re prepared to use it to further our interests around the world. When Harry Truman became President of the United States in 1945, he really was inheriting a powerful great giant of a country. That had never been stronger.

America was not just moving again, but moving to not just be as strong as we can at home, but abroad as well. Neoconservatives I think love this time, because America was fighting to expand democracy and freedom around the world. Not just in Europe, but in the Orient in Japan and the later Korea. America perhaps overestimating their strengths and power and underestimating China’s and Communist Korea by trying to unite all of Korea under a democratic system. And as a result we left Korea deadlocked between a communist North and a democratic South in the 1950s. But South Korea thanks to America, is one of the strongest countries in the world today as well. This was an incredible time when America almost seemed invincible.

Friday, September 27, 2013

The Onion: Senator Ted Cruz: ‘Fills Few Hours of Marathon Speech With Rousing Pro-ObamaCare Argument’


Source:The Onion- In a marathon Senate floor speech Senator Ted Cruz (Republican, Texas) finally ran out of Tea Party propaganda and decided to embrace ObamaCare. If he had 5 more minutes, he would've endorsed President Barack Obama (Democrat, Illinois) for a third term. But every man has to eat and even use the bathroom, go to sleep before they can crash on the Senate floor from exhaustion, etc. Not necessarily from The Onion. LOL

Source:The Daily Press

“The world’s insect leaders meet at the G20,000,000,000 Summit, a bullied 8th grader incorrectly thought classmates would leave him alone during a field trip to the 9/11 memorial, and a man experiencing his first real moment of peace in years is resuscitated. It’s the week of September 27, 2013. More from The Onion." 

From The Onion

Only The Onion would report that Ted Cruz spoke in favor of so-called ObamaCare. Otherwise Senator Cruz could be both drunk and high and awake for seventy-two hours straight at the Guantanamo Bay Prison and even forced to take truth serum and still find away to be against ObamaCare.

Actually, maybe Senator Cruz’s speech happened at Guantanamo Bay Prison on one of his visit’s there after visiting his relatives in Cuba. And decided to stay back and give his big speech there, instead of flying back to Congress to speak on the Senate floor.

Or maybe Senator Cruz just ran out of things to say. That even phone books have a limited amount of pages that you can go through and read. And he was starting to fall asleep reading the phonebook, or got tired of listening to the presiding officer snore in their chair.

Or perhaps the Senator just lost his train of thought. But actually he doesn’t much have much of a train of thought to begin with, because he keeps missing that train. And decided after going into every single thing that he doesn’t like about the Affordable Care Act, including a lot of the stuff that is actually not in the law, he would then go through what he actually likes about the law.

Me personally, every time I see a story from The Onion, I gotta take it with at least one train of thought. I realize they report more facts than Fox News even and perhaps are the most trusted news organization for Millennial’s. But hear them report that Senator Cruz, whose perhaps the most prominent Tea Party member in Congress, come out in favor of the Affordable Care Act, would be like hearing Rick Santorum come out on favor of prostitution and bigamy, in the same speech.

But again you give a twenty-hour speech and anything can happen, including finally running out of stuff to say and saying things you don’t believe.

Yale University: Nicholas Wolterstorff- On Faith in Liberal Democracy


Source:Yale University- Professor Nicholas Wolterstorff. 
Source:FRS FreeState

"Miroslav Volf interviews Nicholas Wolterstorff of Yale University about the place of faith in liberal democracy. Wolterstorff discusses the strengths and weaknesses of various secular and  faith-based conceptions of justice and the public sphere, making a case for the relevance of religiously shaped discourses in deliberative democracies." 

From Yale University

Faith in liberal democracy is about the freedom of and from religion. But that they are separate from the state and that all of these things come from the Constitution. 

People have the right to practice, or not practice religion and that we have separation of church and state based on the Constitution. And that even though we have the freedom to believe what we believe. But we do not have the right to force our views on others especially through law. The right to be heard, but not the right to harass people with your views who disagree with you.

Liberals, get stereotyped as being anti-religion and that if anything we would want to see religion eliminated if not outlawed in society. Even though Liberals created the Freedom of Religion when we wrote the U.S. Constitution and created the United States. As well as the Bill of Rights that gives us all of these individual rights and freedom of choice to make these decisions for ourselves. Not the right to force our views on people who disagree with us. Which is much different and fascist even. But the fact is liberalism is built around individual freedom, rights and choices. And not statist, or fascist at all.

Now, I do believe that Liberals tend to be more secular than let's say Christian Conservatives, or Islamists. That goes without saying, because a big part of liberalism has to do with reason and evidence. That you go where the best available facts and evidence are. And take your positions and make your views based on that. Instead of using faith to make those decisions for yourself. 

But this is much different from saying that just because I or someone else is secular, that everyone else should be, or they have to be as well even through law. But again, liberalism is about individual freedom, choice and rights. That the individual can make these decisions for themselves.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Philadelphia Phillies TV: MLB 1981- Chicago Cubs vs Philadelphia Phillies: Full Game

Source:Classic Phillies TV- with the Phillies & Cubs from 1981.

Source:The Daily Press

“October 1981 – Cubs vs Phillies”


1981 was an interesting season for Major League Baseball to say the least. It was a strike shorten season and the genius’ at MLB decided to do a minor league play. Which was to have the division leaders of the first and second halves of the season be the playoff teams of each league. Instead of the division winners being the teams with the best overall records in each league for the entire season.

Because of the 1981 MLB playoff format, the Cincinnati Reds even though they had the best overall record in the NL West in 1981, didn’t win that division. Because the Los Angeles Dodgers had a better record in the second half of the season. 

1981 was the first four game playoff series in MLB because of the strike shortened season. The Cubs were the Cubs in 1981, finishing in last place. They parked themselves there early on that season and never left. The Phillies were again very good and trying to defend their 1980 World Series Championship.

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

MLB Vault: MLB 1988- World Series Game 1- Oakland Athletics @ Los Angeles Dodgers; Full Game


Source:MLB Vault- Kirk Gibson, at the plate to face Dennis Eckersley, in game 1 of the 1988 MLB World Series.
Source:The Daily Press

"Oakland Athletics 4 at Los Angeles Dodgers 5, F -- The Dodgers, already serious underdogs against the A's and Bash Brothers Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire, are given even less of a chance with injured star Kirk Gibson on the shelf. Canseco's second-inning grand slam gives Oakland a 4-3 lead until the bottom of the ninth, when dominating closer Dennis Eckersley comes on to finish it up. But with the tying run on first, Gibson limps up to pinch hit and makes World Series history with a spine-tingling, game-winning two-run homer in his only at-bat of the Series."

From MLB Vault

Source:USA Today- " Vin Scully's greatest calls: Kirk Gibson's greatest home run."
“I don’t believe what I just saw!” Which of course was Jack Buck’s famous call of Kirk Gibson’s famous home run for the Dodgers in-game 1 of the 1988 World Series off of Dennis Eckersley of the Athletics. Referring to the fact that Gibson essentially had no leg strength in that at bat, because he had two bad legs. I believe two broken ankles, perhaps just one broken ankle, but the other leg was hurt as well. And Gibson hits that home run off the best closer in MLB who was a power pitcher and for a time in the late 1980s early 1990s almost un-hittable.

The Eck ( as Dennis Eckersley was called ) was the Mariano Rivera of his generation. The Gibson home run, Kirk’s only hit in this World Series, is just an example of how great a player and hitter he was. And had he only been able to stay healthy, we are talking about a five tool player headed to first ballot status in the MLB Hall of Fame.

WJLA-TV News: 'First look: MGM National Harbor Casino Plan Unveiled'


Source:WJLA News- an employee for MGM.

Source:The New Democrat

"Here's a look at what MGM wants to build at National Harbor as part of their casino project."  

From WJLA News

National Harbor would be a perfect place for a casino, because of all of the people it would bring in. Because of the location attracting people from the Washington suburbs in Maryland, but also Virginia and Baltimore and Frederick as well. Bringing in a lot of new tax revenue for Prince George’s and the state of Maryland. And the good jobs that it will also bring to go with the tax revenue. And also allow for Maryland to really live up to being the Free State that we call ourselves by allowing for Marylanders to make their own decisions about gambling and other forms of entertainment.

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