The Fireside Post

Men At Work

We were driving down the street this morning and we noticed three men putting in a retaining wall. We saw a couple of shovels and a wheelbarrow. There were stacks of those pre-formed hex-shaped concrete ‘stones.’ The men had dug out the bank and were placing the stones in place. No more mowing of a […]

Not Just a Hockey Mom: Palin Embraces Sports Mothers of All Stripes

SCRANTON, Pa. — GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is expanding her political base. At the GOP convention in St. Paul, Minn., she was all about the hockey moms. But this afternoon, as she made her way to the stage at Scranton’s Riverfront Sports Complex, the Astroturf on the floor reminded her that she needed […]

Mickey Mouse Complaints

With three weeks to go, and absentee voting well underway, both campaigns — and outside group — have been asking voters and the media to look at the possibility of election fraud. At McCain rallies, supporters intone “ACORN” and “FBI! FBI!” with increasing regularity. And, it’s true, ACORN — a predominately left-leaning group with (limited) […]

McCain Has Become Irrelevant

John McCain is speaking as we type this post.  McCain is presenting his new economic plan.  The fourth or fifth iteration in the past three weeks.  No one is listening because we all know that in two days, or a week, McCain will have a new and different proposal.  McCain is playing to the polls […]

Wicked: A marriage of literature, art, and music

We marvel att the marriage of art and technology and the ingenuity of those who can master that integration.  Steve Jobs and his folks at Apple are prime examples.  In the same vein, there is a marriage of literature, art, and culture that can culminate in the same kind of experience.  Probably the best example […]

McCain is Mean Spirited – Slams Congressman Lewis

Congressman John Lewis has condemned the McCain Campaign for ‘…sowing the seeds of hate and division..” and he mentioned the segregationist Governor George Wallace. John Lewis is characterized as a ‘measured man’ – careful with his language…  There are few men in Congress as respected as John Lewis. This writer believes that John McCain has […]

Obama Wins – Thanks to ACORN

Obama will win this election, no doubt about it.  He speaks about hope, change and civil liberties.  When he speaks everyone listens, from the elite to the redneck.  His Leftist support group ACORN has helped to spread his message, but they don’t stop there.  They have helped bring voters to the booths in record numbers […]

Can McCain Win The Debate?

McCain can win this debate – but he will have to hire Bill Clinton as a stand-in to do so.  We are seeing very clearly that words do matter – and Bill Clinton is the modern master of words.  McCain is a seasoned politician, able to deflect criticisms, able to spin content; but this debate […]

Desmond Tutu on Homosexuality

I received an email today – as I do many times during the course of the week – from a family member who must be convinced the we see the world in the same way.  I am sure that many of you have someone that prowls your email this way.  Based on some skewed version […]

Obama’s Journey – Don’t Stop Believing

Barack Obama is  on a journey.  The destination is unknown, but every mountain, every valley, every raging river will be crossed with determination, with hope, with optimism.  The forest is full of danger, the valley in the shadow of death, Obama fears no evil. Obama knows that the truth is with him.  His cup is […]

Finding Love On-Line For Old People

This writer is a member of the AARP – that should tell you something.  We are on the AARP e-mail list.  Yesterday we received an email titled, “Ohg, Find Love On Line.”  We are laughing as we write – the imagery of old people and internet dating was just too much for our sensibilities.  Perhaps […]

McGrinch

Media has painted McCain as the Grinch. Here is the story. This McGrinch was a citizen of Peopleville. The residents of Peopleville where a happy bunch, who all would come together for the best interests of the people. There where mainly two types of people in Peopleville. The Republiwhys and the Demawhats. They were a […]

Greatest Generation – And Neocons.

Our father was a veteran of World War II.  He came home with four Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart, never to speak of his experience.  He kept his silence until his death at age eighty-five.  He did not talk about the atrocities of war because the memories were too painful.  As America entered other […]

John McCain is Dangerous

There is no other way to say this – John McCain is Dangerous.  We marvel at how McCain’s temper has been dismissed by his colleagues as passion or masculine maturity.  John McCain is an abusive person. This video is partisan – we admit – but the people are real and their perspective is real.  And […]

The Marines in Iraq

What is it about Marines that make them so special?  When called upon to serve they do not ask why – they merely pack their bags and go.  They do what is asked of them.  They believe in their hearts that their missions are honorable – that they are in the service of America. How […]

Eazy Hot Wings

I made these myself when I was short on cash but had alot of chicken.  I make these without any exact measurement, time frame or temp so you may need to adjust to your taste. You may use your choice of wing sauce, I prefer tabasco with a little rib rub mixed in. The ingredient […]

Teddy Roosevelt, Racism and the Presidency

Teddy Roosevelt was the Vice President under McKinley. He went about the ceremonial duties of the Vice President of that time – accepting an invitation by Booker T. Washington to visit Tuskegee Institute. But fate interceded, McKinley was assassinated and Roosevelt became President. Roosevelt offered a dinner invitation to Booker T. Washington which was readily […]

McCain and T. R. Roosevelt

John McCain likes to say that one of his heroes or idols or whatever is Teddy Roosevelt – the Republican President at the beginning of the 20th Century.  This writer is also a fan of Roosevelt.  While there are similarities in these men, there are also distinct differences. These differences are rooted in their upbringing. […]

When We Oppose An American War

What happens when we the people do not agree with a war our government has engaged? We have seen this before, we are seeing it happen now – and we will probably see it again in the future. Are there boundaries of protest? Are there definitions of war that all of us can agree on?

This writer has been as perplexed as anyone on the issue of Iraq. We Americans were united in our determination to punish the people who attacked our country on September 11, 2001. In less than two months Afghanistan was on fire, the Taliban scurrying for cover, and Al Quaeda running for the hills of Tora Bora. All of us cheered the success of our military.

This writer is a child of the 1960’s, we turned 18 during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. America was losing 300 soldiers each week in this restricted police action. There was no end in sight and the country united against the war.

McCain, Palin is Great Because I was a POW

John McCain had a news flash for Americans in the town hall debate the other day.  McCain was clever in demonstrating his comprehension of American politics.  Some of his jargon is difficult to follow – probably because his language was affected while serving as a POW. Highlights from McCain’s debate answers: The moderator is a […]

An Intro to the American Coffee House

From the truck stop burners to the gourmet air pots of the local coffee shop to the drive through of the Starbucks on the way to work, coffee dispensing has become more American than preemptive strikes. Coffee has been around. It is nothing new, really. It is not even a product of American culture. In […]

Obama, McCain, Townhall Debate, 10-7-2008

Obama and McCain  will be facing off tonight in a Town hall style debate.  This is a format that McCain has favored.  During the primaries, when McCain was down in the polls and in money, he resurrected his campaign with a town hall format.  McCain is relaxed in smaller groups of people, talking freely with […]

Democrats are Complicit in Economic Collapse

Democrats and Republicans mixed the Perfect Economic Storm.  A big part of the collapse of Wall Street should rightly be put at the feet of the Wall Street Bankers.  These are the ‘experts’ who were charged with managing the bank’s resources.  Our government sanctioned lunacy in the banking industry – but that does not excuse […]

Obama and the Christian Right

The conservative media and christian right refers to “The Liberal Blogosphere” and the “Liberal Media” and the “Liberal Internet.”  We looked around the internet and found these clips attacking Obama.  According to these folks Obama is anti-christian, the anti-Christ, a Muslim, and anything else they can think of. This writer believes the Bible is not […]

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for…..a cheaper product

International trade has been the key to successful nations for hundreds of years.  Trading is more than just about making money.  Trade has allowed nations to export surplus of goods, has helped establish treaties, create a balanced market and allow less prosperous nations to advance technologically. So what happened to America? America happened to America.  […]