Phil Knight - Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?

I have it on good authority that someone occasionally reads this trashy blog. That makes my day when I know that I am sowing, daily sowing, countless seeds of good and . . . . . . . . . . . . well, maybe just sowing.

So, today I'm on a "kick Phil Knight" tirade, so for all you Nike wearers, you may want to read another blog.

Just a tad of an introductory announcement: The recession has ended for Nike and its top executives. CEO Mark Parker has already been paid over 13 million dollars in 2010. Using a so-called Grantor Retained Annuity Trust, 'Phil' has managed to gift his stock growth potential to his children without paying any estate or gift taxes.

Now, down at the University of Phil Knight in Eugene, they probably think that's pretty cool. What else can they think? Phil Knight has proven that he can practically shut his alma mater down by simply withdrawing his egotistic largesse.

Since he hasn't given me any money lately and he hasn't built my house, nor fed or clothed my children, I do have an opinion that I'm not afraid to share. Phil doesn't own me - just the UofO.

Phil Knight will forever be remembered as the founder of Nike. That's it. He could have been so much more. Nike has made $2.5 billion in 2010 and this is just August. What more could he have done to make the world a better place? What legacy will Phil leave to his children besides the gazillion shares of Nike stock worth billions of dollars?

Well, you know that I'm just an old granny. I haven't purchased Phil's stuff for nearly 25 years. I don't know much, but I do know that the world is topsy-turvy right now, and Phil's the topsy part.

So Phil, here's hoping that your kids can spare a dime. The world could use a few.

Portland's Police Force

What is going on with these guys? Last week, they shot a man who agreed to emerge from the house and was coming out backwards with his hands behind his head. That incident is the latest in a long string of Portland Police Bureau brutality.

I can't understand why the Police shoot to kill. What justification do they use for such excessive force? What's wrong with tazing and bean bagging?

Thirteen years ago I was arrested. The arresting officer did everything in his power to escalate the situation - he wanted to turn my misdemeanor into a felony, probably to make the arrest more worthwhile. He swore at me, he was insulting, aggressive, and rude. He told me he actually enjoyed bullying the people he arrested.

Have policemen always been this aggressive? I think they all need to become vegans and do yoga. Namaste.

Tea Partiers are pro-life, pro-tax cuts, and pro-defense - NOT REALLY

Tea Partiers are not so pro-life if the life in question is that of a child of illegal immigrants and the child needs medical care. Tea partiers are pro-defense, especially when they don't see the devastation of a 1,000 pound drone bomb or pick up the body parts of a 'collateral damage' strike. That's not pro-defense, it's non-defense - of Iraqi mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters.
Tea Partiers are pro-tax cuts as long as it doesn't affect them personally. (see Medicare)

Nope. Tea Partiers are business as usual - selfish, self-absorbed, white, racist, middle class hypocrites. As one of their nifty little hand lettered signs at the convention said, "You can't fix stupid"

The Little Girl with the pink ribbons

Warning: This is a depressing post.

Yesterday, I picked up a Newsweek magazine. It contained a number of photos of the destruction in Haiti. One image in particular, will haunt me forever. The scene was of a courtyard filled with the bodies of those who did not survive the quake. I felt like an intruder on very sacred ground.

The image that will haunt me forever was of a little girl. She couldn't have been more than three or four years old. And her hair had been done in cute little ponytails with pink ribbons. Amid all of that death, dirt, agony, a little girl with bright, clean, pink ribbons in her hair. . . . . . . .

Did her mother survive? Was her mother lying next to her, caring for her in death as she had so obviously cared for her in life?

Little ponytails with pink ribbons . . . . . . . . . I won't ever forget.

The Tea Party Activists. . . . . . . . .

Is this yet another party to which I am not invited? Am I missing credentials? But then I'm not a Bircher or a birther, a secessionist or a militiaman, a vaccine denier, gold hoarder, a flat earther, or an anti-papist. So there's probably no invitation for Loony Granny to the Tea Party Convention.

Oh well. I have missed the chance to plunk down the $549 admission fee and travel to Opryland, Tennessee so I can listen to the likes of Glenn Beck harangue the masses about how our government is ruinin' our lahves. Them Tea Party people . . . . . . . . they do know how to throw a durn good shindig. How'd you like the cute little signs at their last big gala? Here's my personal fave: "The Zoo has an African Lion and the White House has a Lyin' African" Yep. Them folks do theirsefs proud.

I just don't get out much anymore. Praise the Lord and pass the cupcakes.

I Am Corporation. Hear me ROAR.

A corporation is a person. I am a person, too. Does that make me a personation? I can't wait to buy me a new pet congresspersonation just like Corporation does. Corporation told me all about what to feed my pet and how to housebreak it. It's pretty easy. All I have to do is buy a whole bag of green feed called 'money'. For the housebreaking, I just put down green money all over the floor - and presto!!! I have a loyal congresspersonation for life! He sits. He begs. He rolls over. He's just a perfect little congresspersonation.

Aren't we glad our supreme courtation thought to give us such nice pets? Oh. Just a little irksome detail; not every personation has a lot of green feed called money. So we don't get a pet. Just Corporation gets a pet.

I can't wait for Corporation to run for President. Can you?

Rush Limbaugh - send him to Haiti

When will someone pull this man's plug and bury his microphone somewhere? Perhaps you haven't heard his latest diatribe? Rush has said that Barack Obama sent aid to Haiti as a political move to shore up his support among black voters. Rush believes that we are already providing enough aid to Haiti through the taxes we pay. Rush is also declaring that the present administration has turned our proud U.S. military into a 'meals on wheels' because they are presently in Haiti delivering aid.

Rush Limbaugh is a traitor to this country. He is loonier than granny. Somebody. Please. Buy the man a tent in Haiti. Break his arms. Provide him medical care in a few weeks for those broken arms. Deny him a shower. Give him a couple of bottles of water. But PLEASE pull his plug.

Long live the people of Haiti.