The Red Brick Times

  Sunday, October 26, 2008

Jess R. Stevens, Jr.
October 25, 2008

Jess R. Stevens, Jr. 86 of Ravenna died Friday, October 24, 2008 at Robinson Memorial Hospital in Ravenna. He was born March 19, 1922 in Cleveland, Ohio to the late Jess R. Sr. and Vilma (Burkhart) Stevens. A US Army veteran of WWII, he served in the 860th Quartermaster Company. Jess was a Ravenna resident for the past 2 years, formerly of Randolph and Charlestown Townships, a member of Charlestown United Methodist Church, life member of Ravenna VFW 1055, Mogadore VFW 8487 and Ravenna American Legion 331. He was a radio announcer for WEOL and WPVL, worked in public relations for the Norwalk and Lakewood Chambers of Commerce and was last employed as Director of Safety Services at Barberton Citizens Hospital. Survivors include his wife of 43 years Edna L. (Sunafrank), sons Russell Stevens of Manhatten, NY and Scott (Nancy) Stevens of Beacon, NY, stepsons Louis Oswalt of Lorain, OH and Wilmer Oswalt of Orlando, FL, 14 step grandchildren and 7 step great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by a stepdaughter Sarah Akers and a sister Gladys Stevens. Calling hours will be from 12:00 noon to time of services at 2:00 PM Sunday, October 26, 2008 at Shorts Funeral Home Ravenna Chapel with Reverend Brian Oglesbee officiating. Burial will take place at Hillside Cemetery in Randolph at a later date. Memorials should be made to Charlestown United Methodist Church, 6408 Rock Spring Road, Ravenna, OH 44266 or Robinson Memorial Hospice, 6847 N. Chestnut Street, Ravenna, OH 44266. The family wishes to thank the staff at the Loyalton for their loving care and support. (Shorts, Ravenna (330) 296-6858.)

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Posted 10:08 AM by jeichenlaub (1) comments

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  • Attended the service, Russ, Jess(Scott) and Nancy were there. Seem to be holding up well. Brief service, 2 ministers, fond recollections of Jess. Edna, his wife of 43 years, was there ... frail but strong. Brief buffet afterwards. Condolences can be sent to: scottodds@aol.com, nanaple@aol.com, bandito1949@gmail.com, and wordsmithery@verizon.net.
    # posted by Blogger jeichenlaub : October 26, 2008 4:05 PM
     
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  Saturday, October 25, 2008

Follow the pigs from trough to trough. Their first pork-a-thon was to reap untold billions in loan fees from those foolish enough to think the housing bubble would go on forever, then profit again by repackaging those loans in ways no one could understand (or be forced to take responsibility for). Now they're absolutely wallowing in a government giveaway that was supposedly meant to stop the crashing of the world economy (that they brought on in the first place). But no, they can think of better uses for that money.

And hey! That's one big trough! why should they be the only piggies in the game?
"The Financial Services Roundtable, a lobbying group for financial services companies, asked the Treasury Department on Friday to open its program to broker-dealers, insurance companies, car companies and financial institutions owned by foreign corporations."
Our financial institutions and their lobbyists are in hog heaven right now and working overtime to slurp down as much as they can, because they know what's coming next.

Posted 5:29 AM by whatley (1) comments

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  Friday, October 24, 2008

I've almost finished reading Everyday Survival - Why Smart People do stupid things. The linked blurb doesn't do it justice. What a cool book.

Posted 5:42 PM by whatley (0) comments

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  Thursday, October 23, 2008

From a NYT article titled "Sorry, I Can't Find Your Name":
A number of states - including the battleground state of Florida - have adopted no match, no vote rules. Voters can be removed from the rolls if their names do not match a second list, such as a Social Security or driver's license database. But (like the U.S. mail) lists of this kind are notoriously mistake-filled, and one typo can cause a no match. In Ohio, Republicans recently sued the secretary of state, demanding that she provide local officials with a dubious match list. As many as 200,000 new voters could have been blocked from casting ballots. The Supreme Court rejected the suit, but Republicans are still looking for ways to use the list on Election Day......If voters find on Election Day that their names are not on the rolls, they should contact a voters' rights group like Election Protection, at 1-866-OUR-VOTE, or a political campaign, which can advocate for them. They should not, except as a last resort, cast a provisional ballot, since it is less likely to be counted.

Posted 4:11 AM by whatley (0) comments

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  Sunday, October 19, 2008

Prior to the Wall Street bailout I sent an email to my congresswoman asking her to vote against it. She initially did, but then changed and voted for it. She did reply to my email (a canned reply I'm sure but a good one). I just sent her this:
Dear Congresswoman Sutton,

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my email regarding the Wall Street Bailout. I appreciated your initial vote against it. I must admit that I don't understand your eventual vote in favor of it after another $150 billion or so of pork was added but hey, what do I know?

Now, a few weeks later, we can see how the happy Wall Street campers are using our tax dollars to stimulate the economy. The AIG executives are certainly spreading their new found wealth around aren't they? I sleep better at night knowing they've not been forced to give up their spa treatments, foreign golf/fishing outings and golden parachutes. I'm sure you can count on their votes next time around. Mine? Not so much.

Like most commoners I wish I had a lobbyist to represent me but I don't. I just have you.

FYI: 1) My neighborhood, a formerly good blue collar family one, went through a period where "for sale" signs were on every street. The houses never sold yet the signs have been taken down. Why? They were apparently an invitation to those so desperate they would break in to strip the copper pipes for salvage. 2) The night before trash day guys in beat up old trucks used to cruise by looking for whatever they could scrounge. Last week I saw two older women making the the trash rounds in a minivan. They were actually looking inside each and every receptacle, something the guys in beat up trucks never bothered with. It was scary.

I'm on the verge of losing my home and, surprise, it's paid off (no mortgage). I lost my kidneys last December (due to an autoimmune disease - no warning at all - I'm now a dialysis patient with medical bills beyond belief) so I'll lose it to property taxes that I'll soon be not able to pay. Think if I ask the AIG guys real nice they'll help me out?

I know, I know. You don't exactly need yet another complaining sarcastic letter and I really don't know why I bother sending you one. Ain't gonna make no difference no how. Oh well. Thank you (or one of your staff I suppose) for letting me vent. Without a lobbyist of my very own it's all I can do.

Posted 7:03 AM by whatley (1) comments

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  Saturday, October 18, 2008

I'm a TSA agent and I'm ok, I sleep all night and I work all day.

Posted 5:45 PM by whatley (1) comments

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Legend of the Seeker, my niece's new sword & sorcery TV series, will premier Saturday November 1. It's been syndicated to 95% of the US markets & a large part of the international market as well. In Chicago, it is on WGN, which is also carried on most cable systems.

They are also airing a "Making of a Legend" teaser this weekend, hosted by Lucy Lawless.

You can find your local channel/air time at www.legendoftheseeker.com by entering your zipcode.

It is being shot in New Zealand in HD and, from what I've seen so far, looks fantastic. Hopefully the writing and acting hold up. It's based on Terry Goodkind's "Wizard's First Rule" and he has been one of the main writers for the series as well.

Michael, the Proud Uncle

Posted 10:51 AM by Michael (1) comments

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  • Ohio followers of 'Legend of the Seeker' - - Sat., Nov.1 WBNX (ch 55), 11 pm.
    # posted by Blogger jeichenlaub : October 18, 2008 9:54 PM
     
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  Friday, October 17, 2008

Just in time for Halloween, a new (and scary) article in Rolling Stone called "Block the Vote" (and written by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. no less).

Posted 3:20 PM by whatley (0) comments

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From Crooks and Liars:
It was kind of strange, dintcha think, that John McCain came to the defense of his supporters last night after Barack Obama pointed out that people at McCain/Palin rallies were shouting out "terrorist" and "kill him!" in reference to Obama.

Now an Al Jazeera camera crew caught the honest sentiments of McCain/Palin supporters at an Ohio rally:

"I'm afraid if he wins, the blacks will take over. He's not a Christian! This is a Christian nation! What is our country gonna end up like?"

"When you got a Negra running for president, you need a first stringer. He's definitely a second stringer."

"He seems like a sheep - or a wolf in sheep's clothing to be honest with you. And I believe Palin - she's filled with the Holy Spirit, and I believe she's gonna bring honesty and integrity to the White House."

"He's related to a known terrorist, for one."

"He is friends with a terrorist of this country!"

"He must support terrorists! You know, uh, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck. And that to me is Obama."

"Just the whole, Muslim thing, and everything, and everybody's still kinda = a lot of people have forgotten about 9/11, but... dunno, it's just kinda... little unnerving."

"Obama and his wife, I'm concerned that they could be anti-white. That he might hide that."

"I don't like the fact that he thinks us white people are trash... because we're not!"

Yep, McCain must be so proud.


Posted 4:34 AM by whatley (3) comments

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  • Yes, unfortunately. "Anti-me" is still a blindly held human habit. It takes mental work to make space for those who are not me. I feel that the underlying motivation is the animal whose territory is threatened by too many others moving in. That basic reaction is overlain with generations of "committees to make it all better in the neighborhood" that mask and justify such sociopathic behavior. The tension between individual animal survival and social grouping to increase the survival odds has been writ small, smaller, smallest, to the point that children in school join to torture someone because she is "too different". Easier than understanding. Understanding takes too much work, and thinking puts one outside the mainstream of the animal herd. And of course, to be different is to be shunned to death. After all, if evolution gave rise to the general flock of average beasts, it cannot be wrong, right? Viva vanilla, no matter what flavor it represents.
    # posted by Blogger Andy : October 17, 2008 6:58 AM
     
  • Not me? Different? Hmm... That sounds a lot like, um, you!

    I shun thee. Not to death though. Maybe just a mild cough.
    # posted by Blogger whatley : October 17, 2008 3:18 PM
     
  • Whattya know- sinus trouble.
    # posted by Blogger Andy : October 19, 2008 7:15 AM
     
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  Wednesday, October 15, 2008

OK. That's it. McCain is responding to a question about why his running mate is the best choice to the the "next" president. He characterized Palin, among other things, as a champion against government as usual, who will "get into Washington and sweep out the old boy network, the cronyism" and other back-room mechanisms. If it were not for the old boy crony group, McCain would never have been able to stay in the Military after crashing planes and being subordinate, would never have been able to stay in the Senate after changing his ethical directions and associations, after swinging like the weathervane to the course that would blow him where he wanted to go, regardless of the path. He is speaking in pat phrases that sound coached. His body language is studied and stultified. He keeps trying to attack Obama with the tired lies about how bad Obama is because he once served on an education committe with a Chicago Professor who was a bad dude back in the 60's (when Obama was 8 years old). Obama smiles and shakes his head and knocks down each swipe and turns back to the problems at hand; the economy, the survival of the middle class, the stability of the country as a whole, regardless of party affiliation. Obama's answer to why Biden is the best "next" president highlighted international knowledge, experience in foreign policy, and the ability to work across the aisle on issues of merit.

Obama seems to be playing resonant themes on a carillon. McCain seems to be swiping at a Pinata with a baseball bat.

I'm going to bed. This middle class sluggard still has to schlep and slave tomorrow.

Posted 9:47 PM by Andy (0) comments

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  Monday, October 06, 2008

Rolling Stone has published a short biography of John McCain titled "Make-Believe Maverick, A closer look at the life and career of John McCain reveals a disturbing record of recklessness and dishonesty."

Wow. To call this unflattering doesn't do it justice. It's scathing. I have to wonder how McCain (or his RNC handlers really) will respond. On one hand you can't let something like this go unchallenged, but on the other hand any response will just draw more attention to it.

Posted 5:00 AM by whatley (3) comments

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  • Ken Burns, perhaps the greatest documentarian of American history we've ever had, isn't too thrilled about Palin/McCain either.
    # posted by Blogger whatley : October 06, 2008 5:55 AM
     
  • And, just to make your day complete, Sarah speaks out about freedom of the press.
    # posted by Blogger whatley : October 06, 2008 5:59 AM
     
  • I got a call from Obama campaign HQ last night. A real person. Female. Young but experienced enough to talk intelligently. "Do you know who you are voting for?" she asked. "Absolutely," I replied. "Would you care to share your decision?" she queried. "I never discuss my vote until I get into the booth with myself," I rejoindered. "Well, do you have some thoughts on the debates?" she pressed. I paused and polled my brain cell. "If the government gave every man, woman and child in the USA $100,000 each, to apply either toward existing debt or against future retirement, and stipulated that no recipient could incur any further debt for the next five years, or they had to give it back, it would do more good and cost less than $700 billion going toward propping up the systems that have caused the problems in the first place," I pontificated. "That's a really good idea," she congratulated me. "Have you ever thought of running for office?"

    Well that was a chilling thought, best put soon out of its misery. So I told her she was doing good work and disengaged as soon as I could. Another narrow escape.
    # posted by Blogger Andy : October 09, 2008 8:48 PM
     
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  Friday, October 03, 2008

"He said" "She said" The debate last night was notable for its lack of new or groundbreaking ideas. Neither party was left holding a bag, or caught short in fumbling. Palin was less facile than Biden, but I saw that as Biden's experience speaking in the Senate and in front of constituents. He knew better than to let the audience take time to think, keeping the words flowing to hammer the point home, in traditional debating style. Palin was good on steering the topic to attack, even when the question asked had nothing to do with her answer. The tone was polite throughout, no muckraking and no hotheads. But was it historymaking? No. Split decision with no TKO. The House vote on the "bailout" package looms larger today. Here are some links for debate result analysis.

Posted 6:10 AM by Andy (1) comments

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