Tim Doctor back on the air!

While flipping stations today I came across a familiar voice. The mighty Tim Doctor, after an all too-long absence from the airwaves, is back on the air at WOOD Radio 1300am.

I haven't heard that flaming libertarian since he filled in for Rick on WOOD's highly rated Rick & Scott Show late February of this year; and he did a fantastic job.

Tim Doctor's libertarian opinions are very welcome in west Michigan at a time when this state has a citizenry that is continually shrinking while at the same time the bloated government continues to grow. Most importantly, Tim simply runs an entertaining talk show.

This is a very cool move on the part of WOOD's program director Angela Vuyst. Tim Doctor is a great local talent.

Listening on-line? Check it at woodradio.com here between 4pm and 6pm eastern every Sunday.
Just click the "listen live" button.

Welcome back to the airwaves, Tim!

Happy May Day, Viva la Revolution

Socialist holiday today! Don't forget to march in the streets and voice your hatred for the Republic that we live in, and demand greater socialism and broader democracy. Maybe you will also wish to have either a communist slogan (of the Marxist, Leninist, or Maoist stripe) or a fascist slogan (excuse me, "progressive" slogan) on a shirt or sign.

Browsing the news, I am not seeing much May Day activity outside the west coast. It seems that a lot of the activity is in L.A., San Diego, and a bit in Seattle.

LA Times:

It's May Day and downtown Los Angeles is bracing itself for an afternoon of marches and rallies that are expected to fill the streets with thousands of people demonstrating in favor of immigrant rights and other causes.

Sign-On San Diego:

More than two dozen community and human-rights groups are planning to march in San Diego today to draw attention to such issues as social injustice and immigration reform.

Seattle Times:

The ports of Seattle and Tacoma are idle while longshore workers take off for May Day.

Port of Seattle spokeswoman Charla Skaggs and Port of Tacoma spokesman Mike Wasem say it's really an issue between the longshore union and the association that manages terminals on the West Coast, the Port Management Association.

Wasem says no work was expected today and May Day is considered a holiday by many workers.

A union spokeswoman in Portland, Jennifer Sargent of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, says more than 25,000 longshore workers at 29 West Coast ports are standing down to call for an end to the war in Iraq.

I kept an eye out while driving through the city today to see if they hold marches here today. But alas, I saw nothing. Ah well, maybe the socialists and anti-America comrades will pull something together next year.

over one year...

sober!

Thanks to the grace of God. And I am totally dependent on God, because I know what I am when left to my own devices. Or shall I say simply "vices"?

I am also eternally thankful for those who prayed for me; and there have been many family and friends offering up prayers and lending support. I will pray for those who have prayed for me, and most of all I will always remember to pray for those afflicted with addictions--and there are many--and for the many families being ripped apart by various addictions.

Also, I am grateful to Alcoholics Anonymous. My family is grateful. At pretty much any hour of the day or night here in Grand Rapids, there is a meeting happening. That was especially needed at the close of 2006 and early 2007 as I was admitting that I am an alcoholic, and I needed to quit drinking.

Mostly, and primarily, I am saying quite sincerely... BOO-YA!

Shroud Of Turin Accidentally Washed With Red Shirt?

I just love The Onion. That sick place is one of my fairy regular "news" stops.
It was Pope Ben's turn to do the Vatican laundry. Hilarious.

This is right up there with some other recent favorite news coverage by The Onion, including "Christ Getting In Shape for Second Coming." At any rate, starting the week with a smile is always a great idea.

Shroud Of Turin Accidentally Washed With Red Shirt

VATICAN CITY—The Shroud of Turin, an ancient linen cloth believed to bear the image of Christ and considered by many clerics and devotees to be one of the holiest relics of the Christian faith, was inadvertently dyed a light shade of pink after being washed with a red T-shirt, sources reported Tuesday.

The holy antiquity, thought by some to be the very garment Jesus Christ was buried in, was discovered in 1354. Though it has suffered oxidation and fire damage over the centuries, this is the first time that the shroud has been harmed in a laundry-related mishap.

"Simply because the shroud has been given a slight pinkish tint does not in any way diminish its sanctity," Vatican spokesman Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo said during a press conference held to address the spiritual repercussions of the shroud's staining. "It is still very much the icon of the suffering of the innocent of all times."

The Vatican stressed that nothing out of the ordinary happened to the shroud during the initial preparations for its monthly laundering in Rome. As is custom, on the third Sunday of the month, the priceless relic—which is kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy—was taken from its hermetically sealed, bulletproof glass case and stuffed into the Blessed Papal Laundry Sack, and it was then transported by a retinue of Swiss Guards to Vatican City without incident.

According to Lajolo, the damage occurred when Pope Benedict XVI, whose turn it was to do the Vatican laundry, did not notice that a brand-new, bright-red Hanes Beefy-T belonging to Cardinal Angelo Sodano had been placed inside of the consecrated cleansing vessel, the Holy Whirlpool 24934 top-load washer.

The pope then started a load of white vestments, including the shroud, only realizing what had happened when he returned to remove the sacred artifact, which is always line-dried.

Earthquake! In ...Michigan?

An earthquake hit in Michigan. An earthquake was actually felt in many states across the east end of the U.S., from Chicago to Florida. But this is a rare thing for Michigan. It happened at 5:37am, so naturally I slept through the unique event.

It was 5.2 mag over by Chicago, and 5.4 for us here in Grand Rapids. There was some damage to homes. Nothing serious, but not much more than just cracked plaster.

Drudge has the following atop his Report this morning:

EARTHQUAKE: 5.2 MAG SHAKES ILLINOIS, MISSOURI, KENTUCKY...
DETAILS...
PREDAWN, RATTLE IN MIDWEST...
MAPS...
FELT IN CHICAGO...

WOOD TV has the following on their news site:

Earthquake felt in West Michigan

Earthquake felt in West Michigan Apr 18, 2008, 8:27 am
A 5.4 earthquake early Friday rocked people in Michigan surprising residents unaccustomed to such a large temblor. ...

Someone named Spud called into The Rick & Scott show and echoed some of the first thoughts that crossed my mind when I first heard about the quake on the news: how long until it is suggested that this earthquake is the result of the alleged "man-made global warming?" Was that Spud of WGRD that I heard calling in?

Mike Patton's diverse ability still fascinates me.

Vince Flynn's novels heading to the big screen?

Well it looks like Flynn's work is heading to the movie screens. I happened upon this press release over the weekend:

CBS Films has optioned the rights for Flynn’s Mitch Rapp character with the intention of creating a character-based, action-thriller movie franchise. Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who produced two of last summer’s hits — "Transformers" and Stephen King’s "1408" — and Nick Wechsler ("We Own The Night") are in negotiations to produce the films.

...

"We have always passionately believed in Vince Flynn’s star potential as a bestselling author, and equally that his books deserved the even wider audience and exposure that can be reached through feature films" said Reidy. "That this comes about through our relationship with CBS Films is even more exciting for us, and we look forward to seeing Mitch Rapp on the screen..."

I wonder who will be playing Mitch Rapp? I am so excited that I picked up a copy of Separation of Power. A great way to ruin any short term plans is to pick up a few Vince Flynn books--they are just so hard to put down.

The government issues demand for more government

While I'm in a national news mood, I see the following (in my mind) ironic headlines at Drudge Report:

Call for new regulatory agencies...

TREASURY DEPT. PROPOSES MORE POWER FOR FED

In other words, the government is calling for an increase in government.

Unfortunately I don't see anything about We The People calling for an increase in liberty. I think those of us interested in our liberty and pissed off about our fat government getting fatter are a bit too busy at work or at school or with our families to march in the street. That's ok, we have priorities. We do take the time to hit the voting booths for elections.

"Oh, Thank You So Very Much El Presidente!"

I just read this AP story. Cuba's new government to allow ordinary Cubans to get cell phone service.

Maybe these little things will lead to bigger victories for individual liberty; and maybe just maybe eventually Cuba will cease to be the socialist paradise that Michael Moore loves so much. Baby steps.

So there is a push toward a right to liberty in Cuba. Meanwhile we have people here in the United States pushing in exactly the opposite direction, attempting to criminalize anything and everything--including, ironically, cell phone use.

The future isn't all as bad as bad as some think.

This just in: "Older Americans wealthier, living longer"

That bitch Mother Nature is teaching me patience

That whore named Mother Nature is teaching me a lesson, I guess. I know that I need to learn some acceptance and patience. I have trouble just accepting. That was most clear when I needed to face the simple basic reality of my inability to drink "like other people," and accept that I am an alcoholic.

But now I have been sick for a week, and I the dark overcast days, the 47-degree day immediately followed by a 30-something-degree snowy wet day isn't making it any easier to get to feeling all better. Holy crap, I was done with this blasted weather a month ago.

But being mad about the weather, as easy as it is, doesn't change it at all. I know--I've been hacked off at all the cold, the dark, and the snow since the end of January.

Isn't it spring time?

After we have finally had a few weeks with plenty of sunshine, 40-50 degree temps and all the snow melted away, I decided that this weekend would be a great time to get the kid's bikes out. Additionally the kids all have a 4 day weekend for Easter, because they go to a Catholic school. But then yesturday the following happened:

...And another several inches fell since taking the picture. I am glad that we have not yet packed away the boots and snow pants. Sigh.

5 favorite parables? Don't make me choose...

Ok. A loooong time (March 1st of this year) ago I was tagged by both Scott of SoberNuggets and CatholicGOP at Faith & Country to list my five favorite parables. The past few weeks I thought about it, sat down to list my five favs... only to go back and review them and think about it.

Alas, I really can't go through the Biblical parables and come up with a list of my "top five." At the risk of sounding like a cop out, I like them all fairly equally, and at different point of my life some parables speak to me more than others--except for one. The only parable that I can honestly say is the only one that consistently stands out is the "prodigal son" parable.

Now at this point in my life, as a recovering alcoholic, this would make a load of sense right? However, I have always found that the "prodigal son" story appealed to me. The story begins with a relationship with a father that is in trouble. And, boy how often have I realized that my own relationship with the Eternal Father has gone astray or worse!

I always find a good reflection of that parable to be compelling. One I am listing to at this moment can be found at EWTN's audio library; and it is by Father Kevin Doran from the Lenten season of 2007. Between the heartache caused, the troubled relationship, the insecurity, the homecoming, the genuine love, and the resentment on the part of the elder son, the "prodigal son" parable is always good for reflection for me.

The dead can return back to life.

Hey, Easter is right around the corner. And for me, today is a great day. 11 months sober. Yes, Jesus can bring the dead back to life.