TO SLEEP, PERCHANCE TO DREAM

I had a horrible nightmare last night, worse than any Wes Craven movie, but fortunately, most of the details disappeared within a few moments of awakening.  I decided to do a little research on it, because the biggest complaint I hear from my friends is about sleep, or the lack of it, and crazy dreams.

Some experts on the NBC’s Today Show offered some good advice: slow down (mentally and physically) before bedtime, hide the clock, drink less alcohol and caffeine, sleep in a cooler climate (or less clothes), and turn off the TV.  I can’t tell you how many times I fell asleep to Family Guy or Stephen Colbert and woke up to a weight loss infomercial (a nightmare in itself).

Okay, good advice, but what about the nightmares?  The list of possible causes was extensive, including stress, alcohol, drugs, and the wrong foods.

In the Bible, Book of Matthew, Jesus apparently drove demons out of a man and sent the demons into a herd of pigs.  I guess that makes sense, as he was Jewish.  But as a result of that story, pork is believed to be a cause of nightmares?

Other foods that may have adverse effects on sleep include most meats (high protein) cheese, chocolate, potatoes, tomatoes, sugar, spices, tobacco, energy drinks, caffeine, ethnic food and fast food.  Geez, what else is there?  Even worse, one study showed 75% of people who eat pepperoni pizza will have nightmares.

One anonymous blogger explained the problem is not with the food and that nightmares are a result of unexpressed fears, anxieties, trauma or stress. 

Luckily, some foods contain melatonin, which promotes sleep.  This smaller, unappealing list includes warm milk, turkey, grains, bananas, cherries and grapes.  Alcohol seems to promote sleep initially (also known as passing out), but it is actually a stimulant and causes problems later in the sleep cycle and again the following morning. 

So let me get this straight.  I’m supposed to eat dinner as early as a senior citizen, dining on turkey and oatmeal, followed by warm milk, de-stress, turn off the TV, turn down the thermostat, hide the clock, and fall into a dreamy, uninterrupted 8 hours of sleep?  What a nightmare!

How Much Change?

Ron Paul remains in the republican presidential campaign because he is gaining delegates if not victories in primaries, and because he has a solid base of support among those who like his message of elimination of the American empire, and elimination of the federal reserve system.

Liquidating the empire business is particularly tempting, because you just sense that it would save money, permit the homeland itself to be better defended, and result in a lot less trouble in general around the world for the United States.

The federal reserve is a different matter altogether. Its hard to imagine that anyone can even remotely conceive what effect this would have on the American and indeed the global economy. Wouldn't a return to a currency supported by precious metals tend to restrict, constrict, and maybe paralyze this huge modern economy we now have?

And wouldn't the elimination of the fed invite even greater economic volatility than we already have? The federal government would still have the power to fix the prime interest rate under the interstate commerce act. Without the fed, would the government continue to provide this stabilizing force? And would we be better off without government involvement in interest fixing?

These questions mighthave to await the results of actual study...

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Stand Up to Israel?

Word is that the Israelis have told the United States that they might attack Iran with or without United States permission, without telling the U.S. in advance. To which I would reply, fine, but we may or may not like the idea, and if you do it and we don't like it, we aint necessarily gonna be on your side...

...at least, that's what my response would be, if I were president. Undoubtedly whatever Obama's real world response is the republicans will call it weak, and disastrous, just to make political points.

The republicans didn't like Obama's apology for the unfortunate Koran burning incident, but, this attitude was adpoted purely for political purposes.

 Isn't it time for America to stand up to israel, like they stand up to America? Obama might be more likely to do that than the republicans, so, on this particular question, the repubs might be the "weak" ones. 

 The middle east might be a far more peaceful place today if this questionable idea of creating a national jewish state hadn't been forced upon the world, but so it was, and our only recourse now is to respect its right to exist.

 Similarly, however, the needs of the displaced Palestinain people must be adequately addressed, and it is remotely possible that the United States has always, and continues to fall down on this point.

One can only imagine how much better the US might get along with the Arab and Islamic world if  America would simply adequately acknowledge the legitimate point of view of the Palestinians..

...would that be too much much to ask? So far, it seems the answer is "yes".

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Snobbery

President Obama has been talking lately about wanting every American to have the opportunity to go to college, and how we can make that happen. In response to this, incredibly, republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum calls Obama a "snob", presumably on the pretext that if Obama thinks that every one should go to college, then he must think that those who don't are inferior, and is therefore snobbish.

Of course Santorum doesn't really believe this, because he can't possibly be that crazy, but its alarming that he thinks saying it will help him. People won't buy it. That don't make good sense. Hell, that don't even make good nonsense, to quote Davy Crockett.

 Ironically, hypocritically, it is Santorum himself who is a snob, and a horrible one at that. Does he not think that his religion is superior to all others, and that everyone would be better off to adopt his religion and its associated moral values?

Does he not believe that heterosexuality is better than homosexuality?  The answer is yes, and the result is that Rick is the ultimate snob.

So contentious is our culture, so determined are we to prevail, that we fabricate reasons to attack our opponents, rather than simply listening to them, and giving them a chance. We are far too angry, and competitive.

Obama understands that not everyone needs to go to college, and Obama understands that a sanitation worker who never goes to college but works hard is equal in value to anyone who goes to college.

Obama understands that, because he is not an idiot, nor is he a snob. Or, if he is a snob,  it manifests in more subtle ways than that. Why not attack the ideas of others on a reasonable basis, not an emotional personal one, if possible? For Santorum, it might not be possible.

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The Quest Continues

When I was about twelve years old, in 1967, I read a book entitled "The Interrupted Journey", about an interrracial couple who claimed to have been abducted by aliens in New Hampshire in 1961. I thought it was a great book, and probably still would if I read it aqain.

The question I kept asking was, "why would they make it up?" To draw attention to their interracial marriage ?  Because the book, co authored by a professonal writer, does not hide  the interracial aspect by politically correctly failing to mention it, as we probably would today. 

We are so politically correct today that we do not allow radio announcers to tell us whether the athletes ar black or white, and, for the purpose of forming my mental image, I, frankly, would like to know...but that's another matter entirely...

Betty and Barney Hill sparked my interest in UFOs, which continues even to this day, and I have read many more books on the subject. That's why I'm trying to find an alien being willing to channel messages through this website, as they apparently do on other websites.

Or maybe the other websites are all fake, and maybe so were Betty and Barney Hill, and so maybe are all the crew on the U.S.S. carrier Roosevelt, and all the others who filed UFO reports, maybe all those airline pilots and police officers are mere frauds - maybe...or, maybe not.

Either way, its worth a try, at least. Either the world is full of liars about UFOs, or something is going on. Either way, I aint takin'  no chances. If my attempt to get in touch with an alein being willing to channel messages to me doesn't work, fine.

But maybe it will work! You never know!  All I know is, the websites which channel messages from aliens tend to be far more popular than my website, and, quite frankly, I'm jealous. So either way, fake or no fake, aliens or no aliens, to me, its worth a try...

...and like I said before, if this doesn't work, then its either going to be celebrity gossip or pornography... so, for those among you with a brain, you'd better hope to hell that UFOs and aliens are real......so, again , here goes...

Dear Galactic Federation of Light....



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One Ant Shy of a Picnic

How many expressions are there to describe stupid people?  One French fry short of a happy meal.  The wheel is spinning but the hamster is dead.  All foam, no beer.  One peanut short of a Snickers.  The elevator doesn’t go to the top floor.  Too much yardage between the goal posts.  One gorilla short of a jungle.

I’m back in college, as a senior citizen this time around.  Even with the internet and other technology, it still isn’t easy.   I’ve never been on the dean’s list – at least not the list of the hundreds of students who maintain a 4.0 average.  We can’t all be smart.  But do IQs, or at least test scores, really matter?  Even if you took this test in 5^th grade on a day when you had the flu and didn’t eat your Wheaties, this number follows you around for the rest of your life.

My research on the internet was inconclusive about President Obama’s IQ; reports claimed everything from 116 to 145, depending on whether you are Republican or Democrat.  Sarah Palin’s IQ was apparently not made public, but one internet site reported it was 19 points higher than Paris Hilton, which would make it 20.

Currently, the smartest man, Kim Ung Yong, has a score of 210.  The smartest woman, Marilyn vos Savant, allegedly has a 228 IQ.  I will withhold editorial comment here, for even this is not empirical evidence that women are smarter than men.  It’s subjective.

A person’s character should not be measured using IQ scores or one stupid quote, or in former President George Bush’s case, numerous stupid quotes.  He has an above average IQ (128) and by most bipartisan accounts was a genuinely good person.

Bill Clinton’s IQ is 137.  Hillary Clinton’s IQ is 140, but Madonna and Shakira are also 140s.  IQ scores of 160 include Stephen Hawking, Reggie Jackson, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates and Quentin Tarantino.

So what if my IQ is not in triple digits?  I’m in good company.  Artist Andy Warhol’s IQ was only 86.  Vice president Al Gore didn’t really invent the internet. 

Joe Theisman said “The word ‘genius’ isn’t applicable in football.  A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein.”

We need to quit stereotyping women and athletes and people from certain geographic areas as dumb (except for Kansas, which is famous for dumb drivers).  People with average IQs are not dumb and in many cases, dumb blondes are neither dumb nor naturally blonde.  (That bit of wisdom is attributed to Dolly Parton, who is no dummy.)

In one of President Obama’s speeches to American students, he said “Every single one of you has something that you’re good at.  Every single one of you has something to offer.  And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is.  That’s the opportunity an education can provide.”

If there were no average students, the dean’s list would just be a school roster.  Kudos to all those who have been on the dean’s list.   Look for my name on there sometime soon, when global warming has made hell freeze over.
### annie

Who's the Teacher Now?

In his straightforward book "Whos' the Teacher Now?', author Tx Trumbo, a career teacher, asks the question "Do We Value Our Children?" His answer is not comforting.

       "Most of my students 'care' about doing well in class. They pariticpate and focus in class, in the computer lab, and on each quiz and test. But do we 'care' about them? Our struggles with basic literacy, remediation, absences, language-acquisition, dropouts, and poor test scores are ongoing challenges and a product of our country's culture, which devalues children."

Trumbo goes on to point out that a UNICEF study indicated that the United States is a relatively bood place to be a child, on account of unequal distribution of wealth, poverty, isolation, dysfunctional families, and lonliness.

      "we have the longest work days and the fewest vacation days of any industrialized country, the higest number of children who say they are lonely, and a high number of children living in poverty."

The great things about Trumbo's book and his approach is that while he has a highly negative opinion of American culture and its influence on children, he is absolutely convinced that the children themselves somehow survive it all and are good people, worth  our attention and energies, which he says they do not get.

Throughout his book Trumbo tells true, heartwarming stories about life and events among his minority kids in an American high school, while soundly and sensibly criticizing the culture in which the school strives.

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Help Wanted

dear galactic federation of light;

perhaps you did not receive my previous letter, in which i requested permission to become a channeler of messages from enlightened extraterrestrial beings.

The Truthless Reconciler would be willing to publish such messages every day, or every week, or as often or as infrequently as you "people" wish.

I don't even know who i'm talking to here; is it the Andromedans? The Pleiadans? The greys?

From what I understand, the Andromedans are benevolent, and the greys and reptilians are not.

Thus, this inquiry is addressed to the andromedans. please respond if possible, and we look forward to hearing from you.

                                                                 Sincerely,

                                                                                The Truthless Reconciler

Who's the Teacher Now?

The Truthless Reconciler seeks to present thoughts and comments on all areas of human and American cultural endeavor, not the least of which is education. The best way to find out what's going on in education is to dive straight into a public school, through the eyes of a teacher who is there every day, all day. Terry X (Tx) Trumbo, a social studies teacher and basketball coach in Springdale, Arkansas, wrote and published a fascinating and insightful book entitled "Who's the Teacher Now?"   Its part daily journal, part commentary and analysis of American public education policy, and the broader American culture within which the education system strives. 

Tex (Tx)  likes the kids: "you should know that our nation's youth are gifted, talented, compassionate, and honorable. In their own unique ways, they are all our best and brightest. They have a sense of duty and are fun living. They have integrity, inner strength, and a desire to serve others.They are respectful. They enjoy a challenge. They are intelligent and intellectually curious. They are not the problem."

By implication, the problem is elsewhere, and Mr Trumbo does not hesitate to say where:

"Now, the society that surrounds us is another matter. We are victims of an economic system that relegates millions to low wage jobs that create an inferior quality of life including poor living conditions, lack of access to health care, lower opportunities for higher education, uncertainty, stress, drugs, crime, gangs, desperation and even homelessness. In my working class, lower income school district, over half the students receive free - and - reduced lunches. That is why we call them 'at risk', because we have put them in a troubled and risky situation."

Again, the book is  "Who's the Teacher Now?", and the author is Tx Trumbo. The book is on Amazon dot com, and deserves attention, for it can inform people.

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Lovin' the Show

The republican presidential race might be the most exciting in history, ironically, since this is the first national campaign in the new era of unlimited corporate money. So maybe that's the lesson: if you want  exciting, wide open campaigns for president, remove all financial restraints, and let 'em go at it.

So far we've had, what, eight different frontrunners? And just think, its still early! And even though its an exciting final four, you wish there were more candidates to make it even more interesting. I really miss Rick Perry, Michelle Bachman, and Herman Cain. Now they were interesting!  Rick was fun for his verbal blunders, Michelle for her wild ideas, and don't we all miss Herman and his women? We couldv'e had month after month of scintillating all American drama.

If only Sarah Palin and Donald Trump would jump in right now, as bitter rivals, and launch bombs in all directions. That would be an advertiser's and a blogger's dream come true. But it would be too much to expect...

I love every republican candidate, even thought I'm a lib dem.They're all great people, ambitious, power hungry, desirous of attention, wealth, and fame. Thus, entirely human. We all wish to survive financially, we all want some attention and social interaction, and we all want to have some control of our environment. The people who run zealously for president simply have a surplus of these basic human needs.

 Are we not all just a bit too inclined to dislike those with whom we disagree? We forget that we only gain by stealing ideas from other people. No sane socialist can visit a grade school lemonade stand and remain unconditionally opposed to capitalism.  

As Goethe said: 

               "If thine own value thou wouldst relish, the world with worth thou must embellish."

And       
            
               "When one respects nothing, it is no trick to be brilliant."

By Bob Bond

                                                          
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FAT TUESDAY

Fat Tuesday.  Finally, a holiday I can relate to, even though I’m not Catholic.

According to americancatholic.org, “Mardi Gras” actually means Fat Tuesday, the last hurrah before the Catholic season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.  In many cultures, it is associated with Carnival, (from Latin words “carne vale”, meaning “farewell to the flesh.”)  Since the 2^nd century, Romans observed a 40-day fast, preceded by a brief period of feasting and merrymaking.

But I’m not here to present a lesson on Mardi Gras or Lent.  I just think Fat Tuesday is a dandy idea.  But why make it only one day a year? 

Even though the problem of hunger is underrepresented, here in America and worldwide, the issue of obesity is in the news every day.  Statistics vary, but generally, the current rate of overweight and obese people in the U.S. is over 30%.  Including me.  I’m an expert on this subject.

This morning, I turned on my computer and an unusual start-up screen appeared, informing me that one of my computer files is too fat.  I confront this message in the mirror every Monday morning.

Everyone in my family has weight struggles, but I’m an overachiever.  My father never let us dine out at all-you-can-eat buffets because he didn’t like being around all the fat people.  And I would say, “But dad, we’re fat.”  He was right.  I feel no shame, sometimes even feel skinny or at least normal when I dine at buffets.  They are by far the most popular restaurants in town. The amount of food that some people pile on their plates is truly disgusting.  Are they justifying this behavior by thinking that this is the best value for meals in this troubled economy?

We all know the answer.  Eat less, move more.  I’m very impressed with Michelle Obama’s campaign to tackle this problem in childhood.  I wish her message would have been around in my childhood, but we only had Jack Lalane.  Like millions of others, middle age, cable TV and the internet have lured me into a sedentary lifestyle.

I wake up every morning with good intentions.  But not today.  Not on Fat Tuesday.  Somewhere out there is a loaded burger or a pint of Ben & Jerry’s with my name on it.  I can reform tomorrow.  As Scarlett O’Hara said, “After all, tomorrow is another day.”

###annie

USOs

By now most people realize that many UFO reports come from highly reliable people; police, military, professional.  In terms of reliability reports are of even higher quality regarding USOs, Unidentified Submerged Objects.

Every report ever filed comes from a military source, that's why. Most from the United States Navy, but beyond that, going back a long way, all the way to ancient times.

Alexander the Great was evidently interested in what lay below deep waters, and on the first voyage of Columbas Columbas wrote in his journal about objects emerging from beneath the waters, and flying through the air, brightly.

After world war two the USO industry got started in earnest as the victorious United States navy, patrolling all over the world, had numerous sightings of bright, metallic , fast moving objects moving beneath the surface, often extremely deep, at great speeds, like nothing any man made craft could do.

The aircraft carrier U.S. S. Roosevelt was particularly heavily involved in this, having been followed by a large underwater object for a long time, and object which could move with extreme speed at extreme depth, then suddenly burst out of the water and fly into space.

The interaction between the carrier Roosevelt and USOs lasted for decades, and is attested to by numerous former ship's personell, who have no reason to collaborate and fabricate.

There is much testimony on record about this, which is not widely known. The History Channel did a great documentary on USOs as part of its excellent UFO series. The history of USO sightings by modern American naval people is immense, and fascinating. It seems to be the best eyewitness anecdotal evidence yet that we indeed are not alone on this planet, but instead may be sharing it with very very technologically advanced visitors from somewhere else.

by Bob Bond

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Back to Space!

Congratulations to John Glenn on the fiftieth anniversary of his historic three orbit space flight around the earth. I remember it well, was in first grade. My entire childhood, like a lot of people my age, was colored by the space program race to the moon.

John Glenn, who is now ninety years old, doesn't like the current direction of the American space program, and who can blame him? I grew up thinking that by the year 2012 there would be a huge space station in orbit around the earth, a large lunar colony, and another on Mars, with regular travel available to all of them.

So things didn't turn out as I had thought and hoped. How surprising. Glenn doesn't like the fact that we have phased out the space shuttle without having anything to replace it with. Evidently this will be remedied in the next few years, with a new rocket system coming online. 

Exploration and colonization of space may be the last best hope of humankind. Space might be the future home of the human race. If nothing else, space exploration would focus our energies, provide a way for all humanity to work together for a common goal, and undoubtedly provide new technologies for popular use like it already has.

Newt Gingrich is never going to be president of anything. He won't even run against Obama. But of all the candidates he stood up and proclaimed that if he becomes president, we'll have an base on the moon during his second term. Mitt and Ron laughed at him, but it was the best idea any candidate has proposed thus far.

The recent robotic explorations of Mars are a wonderful achievement, as well as the discovery of new planets using new telescopes. Let's get back on track, and start sending people back into space, as pioneers for a better future for all humanity.

by Bob Bond

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New Writers Wanted

Many websites achieve popularity by engaging is such questionable practices as dispensing celebrity gossip, channeling messages from extraterrestrials, or distributing pornography. The first and third options are beneath the dignity of The Truthless Reconciler, so we thought we'd take a stab at the second. Anyone wishing to contribute to this cause, that of blogatory popularity for The Truthless Reconciler, is quite welcome to do so...


################################################


TO: the Galactic Federation of Light



To whom it may concern; We the Truthless Reconciler website hereby formally request permission to become a channeler of messages from enlightened extraterrestrial beings, subject to your approval and assistance. We would of course need to be introduced to a being of your choice, and given whatever information and instructions necessary to proceed. The Truthless Reconciler is confident that it can be as effective a medium for extraterrestrial contact as any other website currently so engaged, and we eagerly await the opportunity to discuss this further with you. 

Sincerely, TTR


################################################


The idea behind this is that this message will somehow get to the extraterrestrials, who, we are told, monitor our thoughts and actions quite closely, and call themselves "The Galactic Federation of Light". You'd better hope this works, because otherwise, you'll be seeing a whole lot of celebrity gossip and pornography.



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Televised Illiteracy

Functional illiteracy has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. There are more than seven million illiterate Americans, more than twenty five million are unable to read well enough to complete a job application, or read a simple sentence.

As many as fifty million read at a fourth grade level. Nearly a third of the nation's population is illiterate or barely literate, and this number is growing rapildy. At least one third of high school and, surprisingly, college graduates never read another book after graduation.

Surveys indicated that in 2007 eighty per cent of American families neither bought nor read a book that year. And yet the United States is among the world's more literate countries. Mexico and Canada are worse.

At least part of the reading deficit in America can be attributed directly to television, which is based on images, not words, and has long been America's main mass communicatin medium, replacing newspapers.

The average Americn watches more than four hours of television a day. This adds up to more than a full day of TV out of every two weeks, or two solid months of viewing per year per person. Such people will have spent nine years in front of a TV by the they reach the age of sixty five.

These numbers are a tribute to the seductive capabilities of television, which transports us away from our dreary lives into a world of fabulous fantasy, where everyone is beautiful, and the stress and violence are shocking, stimulating, and vicarious.

We are made to feel closer to the people who really matter, celebrities. By so doing television confers a false sense of power, and becomes the final tuthority on what matters in life. The best way to strike a blow at the insanity of American culture, and to free oneself from manipulation by our corporate masters might well be the money saving measure of cancelling the cable.

There may still be time to get to the public library before the corporate sensors get their hands on it.

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Transient by Choice

by Billy Shears



Life in America is pretty good.  Although forty five million americans live in poverty, 20 to 30 million need a job, and  one hundred million live paycheck to paycheck with high rent or underwater mortgages, still, life in America is pretty good.

And so it was for me, until I decided that I'd had enough of it. Enough nine to five, enough struggling to get by with bills and pressure and deadlines and stress....it was time to get away for awhile.

I decided I wanted to go camping, without any limit on time or space. I wanted my life, at least for a time, to be freee of any responsibility, other than daily survival. Go where I want, when I want, do what I want. The complete freedom of homelessness, responsibilitylessness.

I needed a good pair of walking shoes, a couple changes of clothing, including rain gear, a sleeping bag, and a light weight one man tent in my back pack. No car, no phone, no attachments.

Complete freedom. I would hit the road on foot, and become a homeless transient by choice. Walk a few miles, campout. Walk a few more, campout. Walk a few more, hangout, for a little while. Take notes and keep a diary. An entire spring, summer, and fall on the road, then...who knows?Let the grand adventure begin!


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Nuclear Disarmament

The Truthless Reconciler strongly advocates the elimination of all nuclear weapons, but of course, who doesn't? Isn't that the dream of every sensible person? How to get everyboy in the saloon to give up their guns, after they've already got them pointed at each other? 

What is the biggest roadblock? Why, the United States, of course. Aint no way in hell the United States of America is going to agree to anything like that, ever. Not as long as the military industrial complex, rather than the unwashed masses, is in control.

The international initiative to stop Iran from building the bomb, (or, for all we know, to get Iran to eliminate whatever nuclear weapons it already has), seems like a perfect opportunity to get a world wide ban movement underway.

Actually, its rather hard to imagine any nation which wants the bomb not having it. Just send some students to graduate school in America in nuclear engineering. Were I Iran, I would demand a world wide ban as a condition for quitting my program.

The sheriff walks into the saloon and disarms everybody. But who, other than the United Nations, which can't do it, can do it?  Only the extraterrestrials, if there are any, have the power tp walk in, and disarm humanity of atomic bombs.

If only they would come here and do it!  Perhaps even now, if we're lucky, the Galactic Federation of Light is contemplating just such a move. WE can only hope that they'll also round up any stray bombs which might have been acquired by terrorist groups.

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Seeking Help

The Truthless Reconciler is looking for truth, and thinks it can be found in a wide variety of places. Therefore we are looking for writers of all kinds to contribute articles; conservatives, libertarians, socialists, christians, non christians, moslems, men, women, young, old, and so forth...

Last but not least we are looking for extraterrestrials, that's right, alien beings from other planets, to contribute to TTR.

And why not? It takes all kinds, right?

Careful research by Truthless Reconciler staff indicates that this is not such an inconceivable idea, and might very well be within our reach. So far only three or four different humans have written articles for us, and we greatly appreciate it, but we need more. More people. More aliens. We still don't have s single conservative writer ...or alien...but we will...we will..

Further research seems to indicate that extraterrestrials are all over the internet, usually "channeling", or giving their messages  through human contacts. There are several of these contacts who are particularly prominent; Greg Giles and David Wilcock are two  of the most distinguished channelers, and a being from Andromeda named "SaLuSa" is among the preeminent aliens in the field.

And so be it. Very well then. This is to announce that the Truthless Reconciler wishes to be a conduit of messages from extraterrestrials to humaninty, and considers itself eminently qualified for this. WE will pay top dollar. (would that even matter to them?) It is claimed by researchers that the mere expression of a thought directed towards our extraterrestrial visitors is sufficient to garner their attention.

Very well then!  The Truthless Reconciler hereby wishes to receive the attention, and written, publishable communication, from, um...what was his name...SaLuSa!!  Or, from any other alien who might be interested in being channeled.

Looking forward to hearing from you, Sincerely,
                                                                              The Truthless Reconciler

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DON'T DROP OUT

After the first day of classes this semester, I felt like dropping out, again.  I went back to college part-time at the age of 50.  I’ll be retired before I graduate.  It doesn’t matter.

I started college back in the 1970s.  I chose the No. 2 ranked party school in the nation, and it lived up to its reputation.  After 8 fun-filled years and a dismally low GPA, I dropped out.

I was in good company.  The list of famous college drop-outs is impressive.  Everyone knows that Steve Jobs and Bill Gates never graduated from college.  But since it’s ludicrous for me to compare myself to Jobs or Gates, I tried to find a few more drop-out role models.

Alicia Keys dropped out after one semester at Columbia University.  I can’t sing or play piano.

Heidi Klum became a model immediately after high school.  To say I have nothing in common with her is a gross understatement.

Woody Allen got kicked out of college.  He reports he got caught cheating on a metaphysics test: "I looked into the soul of the guy next to me."

Rush Limbaugh dropped out of college after being required to take ballroom dancing.  I’m grateful that is not a core requirement for my major.  Glenn Beck reportedly enrolled in one class at Yale but dropped out, complaining that he spent more time looking for a parking space than he did in class.  Worst excuse ever.

Brad Pitt left the University of Missouri two credits short of graduating.  He’s done okay for himself.

My previous college attempt most closely resembles actor Ray Romano.  He went to college for 7 years but never graduated.  He said, “I would get my student loans, get money, register and never really go.  It was a system I thought would somehow pan out.”

Karl Rove, former presidential advisor, left University of Utah after two years.  He should have stayed in school, for his own sake and that of the president he would later advise.

Tiger Woods quit Stanford University after two years.  I never played a round of golf without cheating.  But then he’s had his issues with cheating too.

A lot of celebrities never finished college, including Robert DeNiro, Clint Eastwood, Kanye West, Simon Cowell, Michael J. Fox, Aretha Franklin,  Quentin Tarantino, Harrison Ford, Will Smith, Walt Disney and Steven Spielberg.  The drop-out list also includes many CEO’s, politicians and eight U.S. presidents, such as Roosevelt and Lincoln.

These and countless other college drop-outs had hugely successful careers.  Some were just born with massive talent or good looks; others just got lucky.  Remember that the list of college graduates is even more impressive.  Education is still important, but good luck getting a job.  Next time you get a call from a telemarketer, just ask them where they got their MBA.

###annie

Letter to the Editor

Dear Truthless Reconciler,

I read you, but I don't always agree with you. Why do you think american culture is so bad? Why do you think we are all so dumb, that we are puppets of the corporations? I love American television, and the hot babes who read the news to me, and the hot babes who sell good stuff to me.

Intellectual television shows such as Desperate Housewives enhance our culture by clearly demonstrating what we do not want our culture to be. If we spend our days wondering what killed Whitney Houston, we won't be wondering whether the current political/economic system is really best for most people, and we can relax. 

And since we know it isn't best, and we know that to change it would require a great deal of effort and sacrifice, we prefer to remain in the realm of celebrity events, to simplify and excite our mundane but complicated lives. To take us away from the real world around us. And what could be better than that?

Our lives in America are hectic, lonely, and mundane. We seem to like it like that, the isolation, the lack of community. Our entertainment is our favorite drug, ahead of sugar, caffeine, or even alcohol. Is there reallly anything "wrong" with constantly burying our heads in mobile electronic devices, as long as we don't rear end anyone?

American culture is great because of Paris Hilton, not in spite of Paris Hilton. We like our vicarious lives. Please henceforth publish articles in The Truthless Reconciler which contribute to, rather than condemn, America's glorious celebrity culture.

                                                                       Sincerely,
                                                                                         Billy "pinkin" Shears

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Celebrity For Profit

Back in the day when most folks were either farmers or very small business people, political and economic power were in the hands of the hereditary large land owning nobility.

After the industrial revolution, when corporations were invented and began to grow large, political and economic power shifted to the corporate elite, even as democracy began to replace manarchy. In either monarchy or democracy, real political power is in the hands of those who possess the wealth.

American celebrity culture does the same thing to the teeming masses as religion did for centuries; keeps them distracted, and harmless. Celebrity is the prime tool corporations use to sell us whatever they wish, whether we need it or not.

Celebrities humanize corporate commodities, celebrities present a friendly face of our corporate masters. In his book "Celebrity" Chris Rojek calls celebrity culture "the cult of distraction that valorizes the superficial and the gaudy", and ignores the disintegration of culture, and the increasing separation of the consumers of culture from the realities of that culture.

All the while, material wealth trickles down to us in barely sufficient quantities to keep us yearning for more, and willing to work for more, at jobs which transfer most of their value added to the owners.

It was emphasized that the funeral of Whitney Houston would be a small, private affair. It ended up being televised to most of the world.  It seems there is no end to celebrity for profit.

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Celebrity Worship

"We all have gods", Martin Luther said, "its just a matter of which ones." In America, our gods are celebrities. WE idolize our celebrites with a religious fervor formerly reserved for gods of nature, for gods in the sky. We build temples to celebrities the way the ancient Romans built temples for emperors, ancestors, and sky gods. America is, in essence, a polytheistic society.

Any physical object ever owned or touched by a member of the celebrity pantheon becames a sacred relic, like a bone fragment from a saint, extremely valuable monetarily, imbued with magical powers. JFK's golf clubs, Michael Jackson's bed, princess Di's dress, whatever.

Sooner rather than later possessions of Whitney Houston will doubtless join the magical parade of valuable talismans. Each year nearly a million people pilgrammage to Graceland, a sacred temple.

Entire corporations, like the Hard Rock Cafe base their appeal on a mass yearning to be closer to celebrity. The corpses of ascended celebrities, like Charlie Chaplin and Eva Person, are stolen and held for ransom. Likewise headstones of the famous. In our modern culture our religion is celebrity.

When Albert Einstein moved to New Jersey in 1933, he was instantly turned into the most famous celebrity in the world by the American media, as you can no doubt imagine. He was amazed. In europe he had been a well known and respected scientist, in America, he was suddenly a celebrity god, one of our American pantheon of celebrity gods. He was photographed so often that he started calling himself a "model", and he couldn't understand why wriitng his name on a piece of paper created a sacred American reliquery. 

Our celebrity religion serves the same purpose as the roman gods; it keeps the motley masses tamed, and harmless.

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PHOBIAS

 It is a commonly known fact that public speaking is the No. 1 fear; death is No. 2.  Everyone has a fear of something.  Some phobias are more common than others. 

Many people have a fear of teachers, cops, dentists and doctors.  Last week, I again experienced “white coat syndrome”, where blood pressure rises because of nervousness about seeing the doctor.  I also recently experienced fear of taking tests, actually called “testophobia”, which some psychologists believe is actually a fear of success.

The list of identified phobias is extensive.  Some of the clinical names are easy to figure out, such as obesophobia, fear of gaining weight, or “Papaphobia”, fear of the Pope.  Other phobia names make no sense, unless you speak ancient Greek or Latin.  For example, “arachibutyrophobia” is the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth;  “Venustraphobia” is the fear of beautiful women;  “Paraskavedekatriaphobia” is fear of Friday the 13^th; “lilapsophobia” is fear of tornados and hurricanes.

Jim Morrison of the 1960s rock group, The Doors, wasn’t exactly a role model, but he was an extraordinary poet and philosopher.  Morrison said “Expose yourself to your deepest fear; after that, fear has no power.”

So, in the course of any ordinary day, I may experience politicaladophobia, taxophobia, houseworkaphobia, exercisophobia, gaspriceaphobia, alarmclockophobia, fastfoodophobia, realityshowophobia, narcilepsiphobia, bankruptophobia, and hangoveraphobia, but with any luck, I won’t have to do any public speaking.

###annie

Social Conservative Dilemma

Rick Santorum is the latest in a long line of altenatives to Mitt Romney, Mitt the GOP frontrunner who is unfortunately unacceptable to republican conservatives,  particularly social conservatives.

The right wingers have tried Hrman Cain, Michelle Bachman, Rick Perry, Jon Huntsman, and  Newt Gingrich as non-Romeny alternatives, and they've all been relegated to the dust bin.

Now we have a recently resurgant Santorum, who is extremely socially conservative, challenging Romney, who recently claimed to be "severely conservative", in the republican scramble to be the most conservative. 

Romney has hardly been "severely conservative", not even close to the others, which is why he would make the  best opponent against Obama. Mitt'll have to convince the social conservative republican base that he can be as conservative as they want him to be, then, in the campaign against Obama, he'll have to subtley shift gears, and run as a moderate. And this, he can and will do, easily.

In order to secure the republican nomination, Santorum, on the other hand, is emphasizing that he opposes ALL contraception, all sex before marriage, and all homo sex. His sexual philosophy is rather far to the right of mainstream America, which tends to take a more libertarian approach to this issue.

Santorum would go down against Obama like a Goldwater or a Dole. It is the tea party social conservatives who will have to give ground, and eventually swallow their pride, and support Romney. Otherwise, the republicans are in trouble.

And then, the only thing Romney will have to do is reverse his previously stated stance, and proclaim his concern for the poor.

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One versus Ninety Nine

The ninety nine per cent, versus the one per cent. We are the ninety nine per cent. Well enough. But the question is, just who is the one per cent? Corporate CEOs? Heads of state and other high ranking government officials around the world ? Billionaires and multi millionaires? Tim Tebow? Alex Rodriguez ?

The truth is, the ninety nine and the one are mere models, abstractions used to simplify a rather complicated situation. But the gist is still the same; grotesque, unacceptable inequality of wealth and power. If the ninety niners were truly unified in purpose, their cause would  doubtless soon come true, and wouldn't be needed anymore.

The truth is, the status quo, concerning wealth, power, and violence, is supported by far more than the one per cent, it is supported and maintained by many more than that, and, to certain degree, by us all.

What can we do to help change the status quo? Lean a bit farther away from it each day, perhaps. A tearing up of a credit card here, a disconnection of cable TV there, maybe an email or two to some politicians... who knows....but the Occupy Wall Street movement aint done, not by a long shot, it will likely spring back up come spring, and its on its way to the internet.

May the Arab spring inspire us all to greater equality and compassion, and long live the brave people of Syria!

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Bring Our Troops Home

by Jim Hosp

I would defend my country and my family if anyone attacked us 

on my street or in my neighborhood but I would not defend America with my life in; 

Vietnam, 

Laos, 

Cambodia, 

the Dominican Republic, 

Grenada, 

Lebanon, 

Libya, 

Iran, 

Libya, (again) 

Iraq, 

Somalia, 

Bosnia, 

Haiti, 

Afghanistan, 

Sudan, 

Kosovo, 

in the Global War on Terror over seas, 

Operation Enduring Freedom, 

Operation Iraqi Freedom, 

the War in North-West Pakistan, 

the "crackdown on al-Queda" in Yemeni, 

the Second Liberian Civil War, 

the 2004 Haitian rebellion, 

Operation Odyssey Dawn,

or Egypt.  

America's military actions and wars since the 1960's, my adult life.

I do not have the answers to the question of how to stop war but I say this, bring our service men and women home now. 

Some countries are not worth the lives of our family members.

Our service men and women have done more than what should be asked of anyone, for way too long. Stand proudly next to them not against them. Our Vet's are not our enemies. Each Vet has supported our freedom by serving. They are the best in the world. 

Support our Vet's return home with the best medical services available, hire them, train them for good paying jobs and by respecting the sacrifices they have made for all us. Most of us do not know what they have gone through and have been asked to do to preserve our way of life.

America enjoys wonderful freedoms and we should support each other. If there is anything worth fighting for, it's our Vet's and their return home.

A safe and secure America starts at our own boarders. 

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Occupy the Internet

If the Syrian government were to stop attacking the people of Syria, the Syrian people might, at this point, get out into the streets and stage such a massive protest that nearly everyone in Syria might end up getting involved.  A veritable tiger by the tail.

We the American people online tend to support the Syrian people online, do we not?

You friends of The Truthless Reconciler in Russia are perhaps aware that your government is blocking U.N. action against the Syrian Assad government. Is there by chance any means by which small groups of Russian citizens can encourage their government to change policy?

Let's get this "Occupy Wall Street" movement established on the internet, and "Occupy the Internet", and form a global coalition of the ninety nine per cent of humanity which wishes to see an end to the madness, to put an end to the madness.

The madness includes global corporate domination, destruction of the environment for the enrichment of the few, religious extremism, paranoid dictators who accede to religious extremism and corporate domination in order to stay in power, national foreign policy driven by religious extremism and elite corporate interests. (and so forth).

May the good people of Syria continue to rise up, and replace a dictatorship with a democracy of its people, by its people, for its people!

May the ninety nine per cent govern the world in its own best interests!


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Inclusiveness

Evidently some university did a study which concluded that higher IQ people tend to be liberal, and lower IQ people tend towards conservatism, especially social conservatism.

It sounds rather dubious, yet, one recalls the tendency of university professors worldwide to be liberal, and one might think that the most intelligent American presidents of recent vintage were Carter, Clinton, and Obama, while the somewhat less gifted were Bush, Bush, and Reagan.

The purpose here is not to advocate any particular political philosophy, but rather, to seek truth through thought exchange. Both liberalism and conservatism are true. Both are correct. And they compliment each other, and they do not mutually exclude each other. Conservatism is the foundation upon which liberalism is based, as augmentation, not antithesis.  Likewise all the world's religions, each providing a particular pathway to the truth.

Let's assume, until otherwise proven, that liberals and conservatives are about equally intelligent, overall. And likewise all religions are true. Like Goethe said:

             "When I realized that everyone invents his own religion, I decided to invent mine."

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More on Occupy Wall Street

          On September 17, 2011, “Occupy Wall Street” began in the financial district of New York City.  The generalized goal was to protest the corporate greed and political corruption of the banks and corporations symbolized by Wall Street, also referred to as the “1 percent”.  Utilizing social media for global publicity, it is a leaderless movement, with no current list of demands, and no projected ending, other than making the world a better place for the 99 percent.  The Occupy Wall Street website contains the following call to action:  “Occupy Wall Street is leaderless resistance movement with people of many colors, genders and political persuasions. The one thing we all have in common is that We Are The 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%. We are using the revolutionary Arab Spring tactic to achieve our ends and encourage the use of nonviolence to maximize the safety of all participants.  This #ows movement empowers real people to create real change from the bottom up. We want to see a general assembly in every backyard, on every street corner because we don't need Wall Street and we don't need politicians to build a better society.”

            Across the nation, the movement brought out a wide demographic of supporters, from the old hippie baby boomers to the young idealisitic college students to the truly poor and homeless victims of the current economy.  Celebrities, including some who participated in the protests of the 1960s-70s, are pitching in to promote the cause.  Ice cream moguls Ben and Jerry treated everyone in the Washington, D.C. camp to free ice cream.  According to the New York Daily News, on November 7, 2011, the 99% crowd occupying Zuccotti Park at Wall Street were treated to a concert by two legendary rock performers from Woodstock, David Crosby and Graham Nash, singing “Teach Your Children” and “Military Madness”.  Crosby may have experienced a Woodstock flashback as he shouted “No more war!” to the delighted crowd during the concert, but afterwards he told a Daily News reporter that he understood the crowd:  “People are pissed off and they have a reason to be pissed off.  They just want jobs.  They want to be a part of society.  I’m here to help.  The system is against them.”  Other celebrities lending their support to the movement include Yoko Ono, Deepak Chopra, Kanye West, Miley Cyrus, Alec Baldwin, Susan Sarandon, Nancy Pelosi, and of course, Michael Moore.    Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson appeared on NBC’s Today Show on 12/1/11 expressing his understanding of the cause and the need for more jobs.  

            The impact of the Occupy Wall Street movement is impossible to measure at this time, but with better weather around the corner, many are ready to spring back into action.  In early December, 2011, the governors of New York and California both proposed tax hikes on the rich to save their states’ budgets.  Whether the Occupy movements had any influence on these proposals is debatable, as both governors are Democrats and tax hikes were inevitable.  Occupy Wall Street’s “fifteen minutes of fame” may be up, giving way at least temporarily to the media’s obsession with the Republican presidential candidates and other looming global issues, but for a few months, the protesters captured the world’s attention, with their resonating message that greed and corruption will no longer be tolerated by the 99% on the low end of the income inequality injustice.  History has proven time and again that movements such as this can produce positive change.  As the Occupy Wall Street movement endures some speed bumps, they vow to re-energize their supporters with a new game plan and a firm belief that a better world for everyone is possible.

###written by annie

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