Definition of Opinion:  A belief or conclusion held with confidence but not substantiated by positive knowledge or proof.

Please be respectful to others with differing opinions. 

Frank Wiley

Sunday Funnies--(More Groaners)--1. Studies show that Cows produce more milk when farmers talk to them except when it goes in one ear and out the udder.  2. My friend dated a girl with one leg who worked at a brewery.  She was in charge of the Hops.  3. My X-Wife said I was very cheap-----but I wasn't buying it!  4. Did you know a Raven has 17 rigid feathers called Pinions, but a Crow has only 16?  So the difference between a Raven and a Crow is just a matter of a Pinion!  5. I told my Carpenter I didn't want carpeted steps, so he gave me a blank stair.  6. What did the Surgeon say to the Patient who wanted to stitch himself up?  "Suture yourself!"

Jim Coats

Re: #11388.  Sure reminds me of the scorpion and the frog.  And don't forget...the lion sleeps tonight.

Frank.  Good Sunday Funnies.

SECURE THE BORDER!!  ENFORCE THE LAW!!

David Rainwater

Earl, thanks for the good wishes.  It was 28oF this morning and I did put on gloves and a long-sleeve shirt.  I remember dressing out at Phoenix College for PE in the same temperature, but only wearing those short shorts (like you see images of Kareem and other basketball playes of the 60s & 70s) and a two-layer teeshirt...man, I was cold!  I kept those shorts for a long time, but eventually they shrank and didn't fit :)

Earl Harris III

Good ones, Frank!

Love the play on words! Thanks for keeping it light!

I especially like the one about a pinions.

Next time I venture to offer my thoughts on a serious topic being being flown aloft on this alumni site, I will try hard to keep in mind that my rigid sounding stance is nothing more than a pinion.

May birds of a feather flock together as we battle the headwinds we'll invariably face from time to time. May we find a safe harbor, working as one to find peace, knowing it is natural to have differences in a pinions. It may be just my a pinion, but the thought that we might one day nest together as one flock of feathered friends of all shapes and sizes, makes me chirp in hopeful anticipation.

May the cold winds and stormy weather of our current days give way to brighter, sunnier days of tomorrow, with all of us soaring together with only gentle gusts of the winds of goodwill, kindness and understanding beneath our wings, holding us aloft.

That would be a truly beautiful sight in my a pinion!

Earl

Yakety-yak, but I'll be back!

Jim Coats

I know Patty doesn't like posts over one paragraph, but please hang in with me.  This was related to me as factual.  I'm sure someone will fact check it.  OH!  I just heard a "chirp."  Time to change those batteries in the smoke alarms.....Nope.  False alarm.  It was just a word used in #11394.  Here's the "true" story....

"There was a guy named Artie and he had one wish and that was to become a member of the Mafia.

Artie asked around and finally found a member of the Mafia who agreed to help.  Artie was told he had to perform a difficult task, no questions asked.  He was immediately on board.

The Mafia guy told Artie he had to go to Safeway right then, find a guy (he was given a detailed description) and knock him off and he would be paid $1.00 and would be in the Mafia.  Artie agreed and headed for Safeway.

When he got there, he found the guy and started toward him.  Right then, Artie remembered he didn't have a gun, a knife or any weapon.  So, he ran up and strangled the guy.

Someone in the same aisle saw what happened and started yelling.  Artie didn't know what to do so he strangled that guy too.

When Artie turned to leave, he encountered a third guy who started yelling for help.  Desperate, Artie strangled him and ran out of Safeway.

Know what the headline was the next day in the paper?  "Artie chokes three for a dollar at Safeway."

DeWitt Bacon

A teacher stood in front of her young class and said:

"Even though a Whale is a very large animal, it is impossible for it to swallow a human because of its small throat."

Little Susie, in the front row, pipes up and says:

"But Jonah was swallowed by a whale."

.Teacher: "That is physicaly imposible."

Susie: "I will ask Jonah when I get to heaven."

Teacher (scoffing): "But what if Jonah went to Hell?"

Susie (smiling): "Then you ask him."

Earl Harris III

Hey, David,

I'll bet we were at PC at the same time. I do remember taking PE with an instructor whom I didn't care for much.

I distinctly remember him calling me to his desk after a written final exam, accusing me of cheating on one of the questions on the test, specially one that asked for the name of the text we'd been assigned for the class. I do remember reflexively looking down at my book that was sitting on the floor beside me. He obviously caught my furtive glance.

Guilty, as charged! I was embarrassed, of course. After originally threatening to flunk me for my transgression, he told me he was lowering my final grade from an A to a C.

But, what I remember most about PC was going to the outdoor concrete handball courts after class hours and on the weekends to play handball with former CHS classmates, Jim Conry and Randy Cofer, who were also students a Phoenix College at the time. I remember how much the palm of my hand hurt. It felt like mush, all red and purple and bruised. I remember diving for balls, and the resulting scrapes that garnished my arms, elbows, legs and knees. Blood and scabs everywhere.

As the song goes, "Those were the days my friend, I thought they'd never end....." 

But, they did. After graduating from PC, I went to UCSB to finish up my undergraduate studies before finally heading off to the University of Oregon for graduate school and my first job, teaching third grade.

Those were great, pleasantly memorable days at PC despite my cheating episode and getting banged up on the handball court.

I suppose many of us have crazy stories from our youth, where risk and dare and injury were just part of the deal. We were immortal then, or so it seemed, at the time.

Earl Harris III

DeWitt and Jim,

Priceless entries. Thanks. You've turned me into a smiling fool.

Earl Harris III

David,

I know all about shrinking shorts, and T-shirts. I've had to throw away a lot of mine over the years. :)

Earl Harris III

Katie,

I reread the poem you shared with us, "Why Nobody Pets the Lion at the Zoo" several times. It's an apt analogy for much of what is taking place today, whether around the world or right here on this alumni site. Hopefully, it might prove prophetic, as well. May the moral of this tale take root here amongst us. Like DeWitt, I too hope we can begin to soothe more and bite less often. Thanks for sharing. Another example of the wisdom and grace possible as we live out the twilight years of our lives.

Earl Harris III

Katie,

Thanks for sharing. Such a heartwarming story about Myah! You have every reason in the world to be proud of her. Looks like she's headed in the right direction early in life. How sweet!

Children can teach us so much! As a teacher and school administrator, I was fortunate to interact with hundreds of students at all grade levels, from kindergarten through high school, over the course of my career. Whether stateside or abroad, I can recall countless stories about their lives that inspired and often surprised me. They include stories of great struggles and triumphs against great odds, of hard work, of heartfelt kindness and love…and more!

Are there stories others of you would consider sharing about a time you were inspired by the actions of your child or children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren or other youngsters?

As Katie felt extremely blessed concerning her observations and interactions with Myah, all of us can learn from "teachers", regardless of their age. In reality, all of us have been helpful "teachers", as well as, eager and active "learners" at various times in our lives. In my opinion, I don't think the growing process ever really stops until the very end.

Jim Coats

As you may have noticed in my #11395 starring Mafia wanna-be, Artie, it turns out he wasn't cut out for the Mob.  Soooo, once charges were dropped by a left wing prosecutor, he decided to pursue another career.  Here's that story.

"Artie always had a soft spot for animals, so he applied for a job at the zoo/aquarium as the person who feeds the animals.  Turns out, in the aquarium there were some long lived, very, very old porpoises.  The secret of their longevity was that they subsisted on a diet of young seagulls. 

One night, he was taking some young seagulls to the old porpoises and he decided to take a shorcut through a compound containing stately lions.  He had to jump over a stately lion, but he made it to the very old  porpoises.

And wouldn't you know, Artie was arrested the next morning.  Know what the charge was?  Transporting young gulls across stately lions for immortal porpoises."

Frank Wiley

Good one Mr. Coats!!  It's to bad we couldn't tell all these jokes in High School--------I would have enjoyed H.S. a lot more.   N.S.--I have posted before about the Ughegers (sp) in China.  They are Muslims being re-programmed by the Communists Chinese.  The Ughegers are in work farming camps as slaves while they are being programmed.  So here's my question?  Where is all the outrage from the Muslim World and the United Nations about this slavery?  You, of course know why?  The Chinese would blow the SHIT out of any country that spoke up------except for US!!  And, I believe that we are the only Country that has brought this to the attention of the United Nations?  God Bless America!!!!!!

Dennis Moran

Sorry Patty, but getting a free word has propelled me onto a new novel..

My thoughts on how beautiful our big blue planet is.  Well after visits to  the moon we got a chance to see what our planet looked like.  How peaceful and Blue.  We know next to nothing about our Streams, Rivers, Lakes, Sea, and Oceans how come? We are sending spacecraft out of our world for what....are we planning on escaping? When I go golfing; I go to see, and smell the green,green grass and the trees that seem so lively.  The trees have a way of saying come on; we see the branches wave in the wind.  Yes the wind; a event that is both dangerous and relaxing. 

I have come to see the benefits of seeing my golf balls;  find the perfect trajectory into the water and sand has been a pleasure.  Having to dress up to play; has been a drag. I have experience the visits from the course sheriff to find out why I was out past closing only to say I had to get back and yet no  one wanted my balls as repayment..oh well another story.

Wars,

If we, could just have wars that are solved on the golf course with the winner being awarded a medal and the looser paying for the chips and salsa.  Life would be a lot more peaceable. Even tho I love driving the gold cart, I would have the match played at a hole closest to the water hazzard.  The match would involve how many strokes it took to put the ball in and if their are playoffs we could use hole one.  The person with the most strokes would be booked in a looser playoff and have to pay for the refreshments of the hospitality wagon.

Ocean,  Its where we should be exploring...Jules Verne made me aware of it too bad he was only read for entertainment.  shee; this just in, the man in the moon proves false. Now what about Atlantis?

Going back to the Ocean; yes we have seawater in our blood but keep going into aerospace..doesn't make sense too me.  We need to learn to speak Dolphin or Whale to find out more about the seas.  But we have engineering that has allowed us to make and build all aroung and over our lands but we are taking baby steps with our Oceans. We need to know more about the water that is around up...just think Arizona was under water, well except for around Flagstaff.

We have trenches that make the depth to the Titanic look like life in a baby pool.  Their are zones that never see light..whats their?

Why are the killer whales removing humans from the water other than payback  for what we did to them at  Sea Worlds? 

I remember going snorkling and seeing fish as big as moving vans and thinking what in the wild world of sports am i doing this for.  My big fear was Moray eels as well as Sharks.  But I did it for the beauty under the waves .(Hanauma Bay)

Dennis

Earl Harris III

Frank,

I’ve been up most of the night thanks, in part, to your latest post, #11404. You made reference to China’s CCP oppression and enslavement of Uyghurs, roughly pronounced “wee guhrs”, a Muslim ethnic minority living in the Xinjiang region of Northwest China. It caught my attention. I admit to having only passing knowledge of this group and the Chinese government's oppression of them.

Because I suffer from a bit of OCD when it comes to wanting to know more about world issues, particularly as they relate to human rights abuses, I began my search, as I usually do, by exploring the Internet for information. 

Turning first to Wikipedia, I came across this rather lengthy general article linked below.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghurs 

Wikipedia also offers an additional entry that more specifically addresses the genocide taking place.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_genocide

Here are two further articles for those who might wish to delve more deeply into the matter, coming from highly respected news sources, two from the BBC and one published by NPR:

(Note: I have come to trust these news sources because they have received high marks in terms of newsworthiness and the objective presentation of facts according to bias rating services I talked about in an earlier post.)

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-22278037

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-62744522

https://www.npr.org/2021/05/31/1001936433/who-the-uyghurs-are-and-why-china-is-targeting-them

I won’t begin to attempt to summarize these articles as you can read them for yourself if you’re interested, but Frank’s concerns seem well-founded. The only thing that I might quibble with is Frank's statement that only the United States has referred this issue to the United Nations. According to articles I read, many other nations have taken official positions condemning China, as well, including most notably many of our allies in Europe.

Frank, I don’t know if your interest and understanding of the plight of the Uyghurs comes as a result of your work within Rotary or other service organizations or not. Perhaps you can fill us in about how you came to be so concerned. This seems to be some pretty awful and scary stuff.

To be perfectly honest, I’m at a loss with what to do with the information that I just gleaned from Frank’s post and my subsequent investigation. Perhaps, all that I can conceive of doing, at this point, is to simply be informed well enough to comment on what I think our government policy should be and support governmental actions that address this horrific situation.

Admittedly, we have pressing problems closer to home, as well, that command our attention. Jim and others, for example, have repeatedly sounded the alarm about the intolerable conditions at our southern border with respect to illegal immigration and related crises. 

I am hoping that before year’s end that we could put our collective energy together in an effort to better understand and begin to find solutions this very difficult and pressing problem.

Jim Coats

FYI, here's some info from the National Retail Federation entitled:  TOP 5 CITIES AFFECTED BY ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME IN 2022 with my comments in (  ).

1.  Los Angeles - (Blue State - Democrat mayor)

2.  San Francisco/Oakland (Same as above)

3.  Houston (Democrat mayor)

4.  New York City (Blue state - Democrat mayor)

5.  Seattle (Blue state - Democrat mayor)

See a pattern?  Democrats DO NOT ENFORCE THE LAW.  Republicans do.

I have stated before that I do not intend to debate anyone on this site.  I think the only thing I can do is point out the obvious and hope that anyone on the R or D fence might VOTE Republican because "R's" are FOR enforcing the law. 

I have previously pointed out my position/observation of the situation at the Southern Border.  To clarify:  Open Border BAD!  Secured Border GOOD.  Hence, my "bumper sticker."

Can anyone possibly disagree with the foregoing?

With regard to the mistreatment of Oyghurs in China.  Without sounding self-important, I'll simply state that I have NO solution other than to say that China's treatment of the Oyghurs is  OBVIOUSLY abhorrent and I hope our current administration can help....if they have any inclination to do so.  There are ways and I'm guessing that is through strength.

As I predicted before, the left has now begun a campaign of devastation against Mike Johnson.  Someone on this Forum said that if Jesus Christ were to win the election, the left would try to tear him apart.  Again, I will say....Bi-partisan my ass.  See??  I saved a thousand words. 

SECURE THE BORDER!!  ENFORCE THE LAW!!

DeWitt Bacon

Another good one, Jim

I remember a Bible scripture that was written on the wall of a church nursery. 

I Cor. 15;51

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

It took me a while to get that one.

Mike Lorts

What Jim failed to mention is that a majority of the criminals committing crimes in the top five cities were REPUBLICAN. Democratic mayors are doing their best to eliminate crime in their cities but the Republican criminals seem to be doubling down their efforts.

Jim Coats

The previous post was a really good joke!  Had me going there for a minute.  Can't you just see all those criminals robbing stores, beating people for their belongings, jacking cars and so on....can't you just imagine them all carrying their voter ID cards stating they are Republicans?  Or, what about this....one of the first things the cops ask after their name is their party preference just before they release them back into the public.  That is hilarious!  I'm still laughing!  Good one!

SECURE THE BORDER!!  ENFORCE THE LAW!!

Mike Lorts

Jim,

I lust wanted to test your commitment not to debate. 

Michael Wetzel

Jim, what I was wondering is, did you stayed up all night worrying about what you were going to write in your post # 11407 ?. Thus, losing your much needed sleep............

I need some proof, for the absurd statements made in post 11409 !! If I had to make a wild guess here, I would say 98% of these killers, rapist, etc., where from blm'ers, just guessing, mind you...........

Earl Harris III

Katie,

I posted on your Classmate Profile page some detailed information about hiking the Rota Vicentina and/or Camino Portugues in hopes that you might want to add it back to your walking vacation bucket list. It includes a couple of Internet links worth viewing. Enjoy!

Best wishes!

Earl Harris III

Bill Rihs and Frank Wiley:

Thanks for posting recent photos of yourselves on your respective Classmate Profile pages! 

Jim Coats

Michael Kelly

Google Lists the Following Cities as having the Top Ten Crime Statistics in the USA.

St. Louis, Missouri    Mayor Tashaula Jones  (D)

Detroit, Michigan      Mayor Mike  Duggan      (D)

Baltimore, Maryland  Mayor Brandon Scott    (D)

Memphis, Tennessee  Mayor Jim Strickland   (D)

Little Rock, Ark. Mayor  Frank D. Scott Jr.       (D)

Milwaukee, Wis. Mayor  Cavallo Johnson       (D)

Rockford, Illinois  Mayor  Tom McMahan        (D)

Cleveland Ohio  Mayor Justin Bibb                 (D)

Stockton, Calif. Mayor Kevin Lincoln II            (R)

Albuquerque, New Mexico  Mayor Tim Keller  (D)

As you can see because I actually checked it with a Reference Source instead of basing my Statement on my own Incipient Bias, and sloppy attempt at banboozing you, Google has the List, and the names of each current Mayor. As you can see the people of Stockton, Ca. have a Republican Mayor. Perhaps they have grown Weary of the Crime in Stockton, Ca. and are searching for better leadership. Vote Republican!