Thursday, November 3, 2011

How's that memory working today, Herman?

NOVEMBER 3, 2011

BRUCE A. BRENNAN BLOG FROM THE WORLD AND MY MIND

The news as I see it and the views as I want them.

November 3 is … Sandwich Day and Housewife's Day



Hey honey, how about you making me a ham sandwich? Heather, get used to that request from Ross because, against all evidence, he will think he is the boss.



I will likely be absent on Sunday or at least the column will be posted early.



Herman Cain is defending himself against more accusations of sexual harassment. As I predicted earlier, more will come out. The tally is now three. Cain is responding that he does not recall. We cannot elect a President that cannot remember important events from 10 to 15 years ago. President Reagan tried this but he was out of office, in his 80s and ill. It did not really work for him; it will not work for Cain.



Obama and the Occupy “Some Place” crowd are getting their way. A recent study shows that from 2008, when Obama took office through 2010, while Obama is still in office, the number of millionaires has been reduced by over 40%.



Are the poor any better off? Is the middle-class any better off? Redistribution of the wealth from those that earned it and therefore deserves it surely is not working. I do not think so. Everyone is worse off since Obama took office except perhaps some Wall Street types.



According to the IRS, the IRS released more detailed tax data for 2009, and reports the decline of the taxpaying rich.



In 2007, 390,000 tax filers reported adjusted gross income of $1 million or more and paid $309 billion in taxes. In 2009, there were only 237,000 such filers, a decline of 39%. Almost four of 10 millionaires vanished in two years, and the total taxes they paid in 2009 declined to $178 billion, a drop of 42%.



Those with $10 million or more in reported income fell to 8,274 from 18,394 in 2007, a 55% drop; as a result, their tax payments tanked by 51%. These disappearing millionaires go a long way toward explaining why federal tax revenues have sunk to 15% of GDP in recent years. The loss of millionaires accounts for at least $130 billion of the higher federal budget deficit in 2009. If Warren Buffett wants to reduce the deficit, he should encourage policies to create more millionaires, not campaign to tax them more.

Here it comes. Herman Cain has played the race card. He says race plays a part in the sexual harassment accusations against him. He apparently misses the obvious fact that when the accusations were made, he was not running for President. Nobody cared who he was. Soon, no one will care again.



GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain fielded questions during multiple Fox News interviews on Tuesday night, appearing on "Special Report With Bret Baier" as well as "The O'Reilly Factor." During his interview on "Special Report," Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer asked Cain whether he believes race played a role in the accusations leveled against him:



Krauthammer: "Do you think that race or being a strong black conservative, has anything to do with the fact that you've been so charged, and if so, do you have any evidence to support that?"

Cain: "I believe the answer is yes, but we do not have any evidence to support it. But because I am an unconventional candidate running an unconventional campaign and achieving some unexpected, unconventional results in terms of the poll, we believe that, yes, there are some people who are Democrats, liberals, who do not want to see me win the nomination. And there could be some people on the right who don't want to see me because I'm not the quote-unquote 'establishment' candidate. No evidence."



Krauthammer pressed Cain further on the race issue in order to get a more definitive response. Cain responded that the left side of the political spectrum might be more racially driven than the right. "Relative to the left, I believe that race is a bigger driving factor. I don't think it's a driving factor on the right. This is just based upon our speculation," explained Cain.



Just a couple of thoughts I had and you should too or at least think about.

BRUCE A. BRENNAN

DEKALB, IL 60115

COPYRIGHT 2011





VISIT ANY OF THE SITES LISTED FOR REVIEW, RESEARCH, ORDERING MY WRITING PRODUCTS OR TO CONTACT ME.













Go to web sites below to buy books by Bruce A. Brennan. It is still a good time to purchase any of my books. The books are interesting and inexpensive reads. My third book is now available. The title is Public EneMe?



www.barnesandnoble.com (do a quick search, Title, my name)

www.smashwords.com Do a Title or author search.





Book Titles:



Holmes the Ripper



A Revengeful Mix of Short Fiction



Public EneMe?



"Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana


Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Tell the truth Herman; it is going to come out.

NOVEMBER 2, 2011

BRUCE A. BRENNAN BLOG FROM THE WORLD AND MY MIND

The news as I see it and the views as I want them.

November 2 is … National Deviled Egg Day



Heather and Ross, come Saturday, Heather will be the boss but neither will be at a loss.



Herman Cain is finding out what it is like to be a player in a high stakes poker game. The recent allegations of sexual harassment are just the beginning. He managed to drop the ball several times in the first 24 hours after the news story broke.



In an interview airing on Fox News on Monday night, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain says that a financial settlement was paid to one of two women who accused him of sexual harassment while he was serving as head of the National Restaurant Association over a decade ago.



However, in responding to the accusations in questions earlier in the day, the former Godfather's Pizza CEO said, "I have never sexually harassed anyone and those accusations are totally false ... It was concluded, after a thorough investigation, that it had no basis." He added, "I am unaware of any sort of settlement." It has now been reported one of the women received $35,000.00 as settlement. The rest of the facts will come out, sooner or later.



HuffPost's Jon Ward relays background on the controversy and on what Cain had to say on the matter at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. To say he does not remember is amateurish and a lie. He has a campaign staff and investigators on his payroll who have a job just to know about these sorts of things. Constantly changing your story makes you look unprepared, like a liar and like someone who thinks they are smarter than everyone else.



Little boys often get caught with their hand in the cookie jar. That is not the biggest problem. The big trouble comes with the lies and the cover-up. Ask President Nixon, Rep. Weiner, President Reagan, President Clinton, Blago and dozens more.



Cain apparently wants to run with the big dogs. He cannot sit on the porch and whine with the puppies now.



Cain entered the Press Club less than 24 hours after Politico reported that the former Godfather's Pizza CEO and head of the National Restaurant Association was accused of sexual harassment by two unnamed women at the association. The charges were not detailed but Politico reported that both women received payments as settlement. NBC News reported Monday that they had independently confirmed a settlement with one of the two women.

Cain was asked how he could have been unaware of a settlement if he knew the results of an investigation into the charges. He said that once the charges were brought against him he recused himself from the investigation. He added that he does not want the NRA to confirm or deny the settlements, or give any information at all about the incidents. That is not how things work on the national stage. The information will come out. Cain would have more control over it if his campaign leaked the information thereby stealing the thunder from the press.



We can thank God for many things. The world did not end as predicted by the weird, sick nut-preacher from California. Now we can thank him the weird, sick nut-preacher is retiring, hopefully to go into the room on the floor where the elevator doesn’t stop.



Three proposed Rapture dates have come and gone, and the world has not ended. Controversial Christian broadcaster Harold Camping has acknowledged his faulty projections, and issued an apology to his followers. The Christian Post reports that the longtime radio evangelist has retired.



Brandon Tauszik, documentarian, told the Post exclusively that he had spoken to Camping, who seemed "disappointed" by his failed predictions and said he "is no longer able to lead Family Radio Stations, Inc., or his ministry." In an audio message posted on Camping's Family Radio website, the 90-year-old broadcaster told his listeners that the Rapture did not occur October 21 because it was ultimately God's will. "He could have stopped everything if He had wanted to," he said.

In addition, he admits that his calculations were wrong and tells his followers that "we should be very patient about this matter. At least in a minimal way we are learning to walk more and more humble before God."



Camping also apologized for a controversial comment saying that God had stopped saving people who did not believe in his May 21 spiritual judgment day predictions. Camping points out that believers must continue studying the Bible, praying, and remembering that God is in charge.



The evangelist claimed to have cracked a code in the Bible that allowed him to calculate the date of the Rapture. He predicted the world would end in 1994, May 2011, and then in October 2011, the Christian Post reports. Some devout listeners reportedly sold their belongings and donated money to Camping's cause, the Associated Press reports.



Claiming God made you do it or God was wrong does not make what this moron did acceptable. Mercy killings should be legal.





Just a couple of thoughts I had and you should too or at least think about.

BRUCE A. BRENNAN

DEKALB, IL 60115

COPYRIGHT 2011





VISIT ANY OF THE SITES LISTED FOR REVIEW, RESEARCH, ORDERING MY WRITING PRODUCTS OR TO CONTACT ME.













Go to web sites below to buy books by Bruce A. Brennan. It is still a good time to purchase any of my books. The books are interesting and inexpensive reads. My third book is now available. The title is Public EneMe?



www.barnesandnoble.com (do a quick search, Title, my name)

www.smashwords.com Do a Title or author search.





Book Titles:



Holmes the Ripper



A Revengeful Mix of Short Fiction



Public EneMe?



"There is no conversation more boring than the one where everybody agrees." - Michel de Montaigne




Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Anchor babies and Michelle Bachmann; you go girl!

NOVEMBER 1, 2011

BRUCE A. BRENNAN BLOG FROM THE WORLD AND MY MIND

The news as I see it and the views as I want them.

November 1 is … Plan Your Epitaph Day



Steve Jobs planned his quite well.



Ross and Heather, soon you will be together for all the stormy weather! Heather, you will soon be connected to Ross by a tether.



Hello to all of the saints in the world.



On Monday, the world’s population hit 7 billion people meaning Apple could give everyone in the world $37.00 and have some money left over. The world’s population has tripled since the end of WW II.



On Wednesday, Apple disclosed to the SEC as part of their Form 10-K filing, that they currently have $81,570,000,000 in cash, 13.2 million square feet of building space, and 60,400 full-time employees.



"This means that Apple pulled in $37.5 billion in cash profits in fiscal 2011. Not bad for a company that ‘missed’ industry estimates." writes The Next Web.



During Apple's earnings call in October, Tim Cook waved off Apple's mountains of cash, saying they weren't "burning a hole in our pocket" reports MacRumors. He went on to emphasize that Apple was in no rush to decide what to do with the money, and that he was not "religious about holding or not holding cash." Apple's CFO said that 66 percent of the cash was kept overseas for tax reasons.



But $81.5 billion is a lot of cash no matter where you keep it. In fact, it's more cash than the U.S. government has. In their last Form Q-10 filing in July, Apple reported that they had over $75 billion in cash, whereas the government had less than $74 billion, according to the Financial Post. While Apple may be a notorious cash hoarder, despite what Tim Cook says, it's not as though Apple has millions of dollars lying around like a scene in "Scarface." According to the 10-K report, that $81.5 billion is made up of "cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities." This means that only some of it is in cash, and the rest is in either short or long-term investments.



But what if they did have it in cash? What could Apple do with that $81.5 billion? They could pay for the U.S. to gather intelligence for one year, or fund the National Cancer Institute for almost sixteen years, or send over four-hundred thousand people to space.



Michelle Bachmann is unelectable but some of her ideas, often portrayed as extreme by the liberal media, have value. Michelle Bachmann said Saturday she would not help children of immigrants who come to the U.S. illegally. At a campaign stop in Iowa, a Latino college student asked the presidential hopeful what she would do to the children of undocumented immigrants. Bachmann reiterated her hard-line stance that the federal government should not grant them citizenship and said she "would not do anything" for them.



"Their parents are the ones who brought them here ... they did not have the legal right to come to the United States," she said. "We do not owe people who broke our laws to come into the country. We don't owe them anything."



When the subject turned to immigration at another campaign stop that day, Bachmann suggested passing a law that would bar citizenship to children born in the U.S. to parents who are undocumented immigrants. "We've got to end this anchor baby program," she said.



When asked during the Republican presidential debate in Las Vegas if she supports repealing the 14th amendment, Bachmann responded that the issue doesn't have to be dealt with constitutionally, but can be addressed with legislation. "There are a lot of Americans that would like us to deal with this issue of anchor babies legislatively," she said.



Just a couple of thoughts I had and you should too or at least think about.

BRUCE A. BRENNAN

DEKALB, IL 60115

COPYRIGHT 2011





VISIT ANY OF THE SITES LISTED FOR REVIEW, RESEARCH, ORDERING MY WRITING PRODUCTS OR TO CONTACT ME.













Go to web sites below to buy books by Bruce A. Brennan. It is still a good time to purchase any of my books. The books are interesting and inexpensive reads. My third book is now available. The title is Public EneMe?



www.barnesandnoble.com (do a quick search, Title, my name)

www.smashwords.com Do a Title or author search.





Book Titles:



Holmes the Ripper



A Revengeful Mix of Short Fiction



Public EneMe?



"What do we mean by patriotism in the context of our times? I venture to suggest that what we mean is a sense of national responsibility ... a patriotism which is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime." - Adlai Stevenson

Monday, October 31, 2011

It is wedding week in the Brennan family.

OCTOBER 31, 2011

BRUCE A. BRENNAN BLOG FROM THE WORLD AND MY MIND

The news as I see it and the views as I want them.

October 31 is … National Magic Day and Increase Your Pyschic Powers Day



You figure this one out.



Ross and Heather, five more days until it is forever!



What are the day of the year with the fewest births and day of the year with the most births? In the span of ten years (1996-2006) researchers calculated that on Valentine's Day, there is a 3.6% increase in spontaneous births -- births outside of a pregnant women's control -- and a 12.1% increase in Caesarean Sections. On Halloween, however, there's a 5.3% decrease in spontaneous births and a 16.9% decrease in Caesarean births.



This is a good day for a freakish story. Change is not always good. Many people resist change and remember a simpler, gentler and more normal time. This story tells of a mistake and the homogenizing of society. Bobby Montoya often dresses like a girl, plays with girl's toys, and most recently, wants to become a Girl Scout, apparently by magic.



But when his mother, Felisha Archuleta, brought him to a local troop leader, the child's dreams were dashed. According to 9 News, the Girl Scouts worker said the child could not join, regardless of how the 7-year-old feels, because Bobby had "boy parts."



"I said, 'Well, what's the big deal?' She said 'It doesn't matter how he looks, he has boy parts, he can't be in Girl Scouts. Girl Scouts don't allow that [and] I don't want to be in trouble by parents or my supervisor,'" Archuleta told 9 News.



Bobby was heartbroken. Too bad; disappointment is part of life. It helps people learn and get along.



According to Fox News, the Girl Scouts of Colorado have since admitted a mistake was made. Apparently the worker who turned Montoya away was unfamiliar with the group's policies, and Bobby is now welcome to join the group. It's unclear as to whether or not he has decided to join in light of the reversal.



Requests for transgender children to join the Girl Scouts have grown according to Fox News, and the group has been working to support them and their families. However, Bobby's struggles go beyond the Girl Scouts experience. In an interview with 9 News, Montoya says how difficult it can be, especially in school. Often Montoya feels bullied or gets teased because of the way he dresses and acts. Bobby doesn't want these actions to cause change, but admits being made fun of can hurt, and even his mother feels the pain.



Bullying due to sexual orientation or gender identity has long been an issue, most recently in the wake of the suicide of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer last month. While Rodemeyer's case is certainly different from Montoya's both situations have shed light on the struggles of LGBT youth.



Why does a seven year-old get to change the rules. This child is too young to make a stand or decide to join the Girl Scouts without a significant amount of pushing by a parent. You do not have to be a psychic to see the mother is using her child to get her fifteen minutes of fame and it is sickening and should be illegal. The mother is selfish and self-centered.



Just a couple of thoughts I had and you should too or at least think about.

BRUCE A. BRENNAN

DEKALB, IL 60115

COPYRIGHT 2011





VISIT ANY OF THE SITES LISTED FOR REVIEW, RESEARCH, ORDERING MY WRITING PRODUCTS OR TO CONTACT ME.













Go to web sites below to buy books by Bruce A. Brennan. It is still a good time to purchase any of my books. The books are interesting and inexpensive reads. My third book is now available. The title is Public EneMe?



www.barnesandnoble.com (do a quick search, Title, my name)

www.smashwords.com Do a Title or author search.





Book Titles:



Holmes the Ripper



A Revengeful Mix of Short Fiction



Public EneMe?





"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." - Anais Nin




Sunday, October 30, 2011

Candy corn and Christmas trees

OCTOBER 30, 2011

BRUCE A. BRENNAN BLOG FROM THE WORLD AND MY MIND

The news as I see it and the views as I want them.

October 30 is … National Candy Corn Day



This should be tomorrow. I like candy corn; so does my dog.



We are getting close to the holiday season. Every year we will hear about some jerk with more time on their hands and money in their wallet than brain matter in their head bitch about a traditional Christmas ornament or decoration and demand it be changed, moved or taken down. I have never talked to anyone who agrees with these yearly battles but they keep happening. Ben Stein recently chimed in with his thoughts.

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a crèche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (Regarding Hurricane Katrina). Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.


Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not, then just discard it.... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein



Well written Mr. Stein; lead on.

Just a couple of thoughts I had and you should too or at least think about.

BRUCE A. BRENNAN

DEKALB, IL 60115

COPYRIGHT 2011





VISIT ANY OF THE SITES LISTED FOR REVIEW, RESEARCH, ORDERING MY WRITING PRODUCTS OR TO CONTACT ME.













Go to web sites below to buy books by Bruce A. Brennan. It is still a good time to purchase any of my books. The books are interesting and inexpensive reads. My third book is now available. The title is Public EneMe?



www.barnesandnoble.com (do a quick search, Title, my name)

www.smashwords.com Do a Title or author search.





Book Titles:



Holmes the Ripper



A Revengeful Mix of Short Fiction



Public EneMe?



"Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." - Theodore Roosevelt