Be Prepared

 

Lincoln

 It is difficult to go to any town in west central Illinois that does not have some direct connection with Abraham Lincoln. Our trip to Pittsfield was another example of his impact on Illinois. 

Lincoln practiced law in Pittsfield the county seat for Pike County. Sadly not in the courthouse pictured yesterday as it was built in the 1890’s. 

There were other influences from Pike County. 

John Nicolay and John Hay served as secretaries to Lincoln when he was President. 

The Shastid’s house is a few blocks from the courthouse. Mr. Shastid  moved to Pike County in 1836 and knew President Lincoln when he was a country lawyer. Pittsfield’s ties to and love for Lincoln run deep. 

They are justifiably proud of their history and I’ll leave you with a couple pictures of other local landmarks. 

Historic Illinois

 We went to Pittsfield a couple weeks ago. There was an antique store that had attracted our attention. When we were done there we decided to go visit the downtown area. As it seems usual in this area of Illinois the county courthouse sits in the the square surrounded by shops. It was an interesting s courthouse square so I took some pictures. 

The marker to the right is placed over a time capsule from the bicentennial year 1976 to be opened in 2076. 

Monuments in towns large and small depend on benefactors. They should be remembered an memorialized. 

Our troops deserve monuments  and our appreciation for their sacrifice. 

Civil War soldiers had their own plaque near one of the entrances. Sadly due to terrorist attacks and the need for additional courthouse security the entrance is closed. 

A couple additional views of the courthouse. There are additional items on the square that deserve their own post. It is another place in Illinois Lincoln touched. 

Once again into the fray

 I’ve raged in the past about gun control. I feel like I’m fighting a losing battle but I continue to fight. It is my honest opinion that after the massacre at Sandy Hook there was no act or series of acts that would allow significant changes in gun laws. If you won’t act after the senseless murder of children you will never act. 

Perhaps Christians should consider the following in relation to gun control. 

Based on the following list is there any place you can go that is immune from gun violence?

Maybe we should consider victim statements. 

Pro-life folks might think about this. 

The following worked with President Reagan when he was Governor of California. Black Panther activists showed up with guns and suddenly the Republicans and NRA thought gun control was a good idea. I guess it matters who carries the gun. 

Lies and Stupidity

 I wonder even after deciding on this title if it is correct. Maybe gullible is a better descriptor. Former President Trump and his lawyers ran around the United States after the election claiming massive voter fraud. There is no way, they claimed, that he could have lost unless the alleged winners cheated. The software and voting machines must have switched Trump votes to Biden. One attorney alleged she would release the Kracken. Apparently the conspiracy to cheat Mr. Trump out of a second term had tentacles that reached far and wide across the American landscape. She has now been sued by the software and voting machine companies alleging defamation and seeking damages. Her response for the most part boils down to this. 

So her defense is that what she said was not true and that reasonable people would not accept those statements as factual. It would appear to me that a significant number of Republicans holding seats in the House and Senate are not reasonable people. The thousands who attended the January 6th rally and stormed the Capital are not reasonable people. It would seem that now that they have been told it was all lies these Republicans would realize they had been duped and accept the fact Trump lost. They do not so they are not reasonable people or they are stupid or perhaps just gullible. All those options leave our country in serious jeopardy. 

YouTube or Books

 If you’re looking for a bit of humor you might try reading these. If you would rather have them narrated they are available on YouTube. 

I’m Confused

 In early February I spent a day in the hospital. I’d been having some intermittent chest pains for a few days. I also felt a bit short of breath and occasionally lightheaded. I went to the ER and they did the usual stuff. Blood pressure, electrocardiography, COVID-19 test, and admitted me for testing. There is some nuclear medicine test that uses a chemical that is counteracted by caffeine. Since I’d had my morning coffee I had to wait till the next morning. The test is used to determine if you have blockages in your cardiac arteries. The test results showed my cardiac profusion rate was 80%. The doctor told me normal for my age is about 60%. It was their opinion my issues were gastrointestinal so my medication for that was increased. The result has been good. No additional chest pains and life is back to “normal” whatever that is. I’m not confused about any of that, I’m confused about the bills. I haven’t seen any bills yet but I have been able to access what the insurance company is doing. 

Doctor visit $461. The Medicare allowed amount is just under $118. 

Hospital bill just over $19,700. Allowed amount $2,226. 

Emergency room doctor $2255. Allowed amount $216. 

In what other business is your bill discounted about 90%? Explain to me how that works? If I was private pay, no insurance, that bill would be pushing $25,000. Is that what is happening? Those of us fortunate enough to have health insurance are pushing costs off to those without insurance? Every time I deal with healthcare and health insurance I find myself more of a believer in single payer national healthcare. There is no question in my mind that healthcare is a human right and that it is affordable to provide to everyone in the United States. 

March 18, 1925

 

The Tri-State Tornado was the most deadly and destructive in United States history. 695 dead and over 10,000 injured. Entire towns destroyed. I could write about what happened that day but others have done so much better than I could. Take a few minutes to google the date and read a bit about this tragic event. We may see ourselves as masters of this planet. This will show you that nature can and does destroy our works in seconds. 

 

Filibuster

 The United States Senate has become completely dysfunctional. In my opinion it can be narrowed down to the power hungry conduct of one individual. Mitch McConnell as majority leader held absolute control over what business was allowed to come to the Senate floor. If he did not want it considered, debated, voted on, it just didn’t happen. He is no longer majority leader so he lost that power. Now he waves the filibuster as a mighty sword to delay or destroy the legislative agenda of the majority. He claims it is to preserve the rights of the minority party and force compromise. That argument is total bullshit. The recently passed COVID recovery legislation was supported by over 50% of Republican voters and almost 70% of all voters. Republican votes in the Senate for the legislation- exactly zero. If the bill had not gone through budget reconciliation it would not have been approved. Republicans howling over the process used is laughable. It is the same process they used to pass the Trump tax cuts that threw massive amounts of tax breaks to the rich and large corporations. So the question becomes, what do we do with the filibuster? 

The filibuster originally required a senator to stand and talk and talk and talk. When the senator ran out of energy and gave up the floor the filibuster was effectively over. What changed? It seems that Senators got lazy. Now all they are required to do is state their intent to filibuster and 60 votes are required to proceed. It would seem to me that a legislative body so proud of its history should return to its roots. If you want to filibuster take to the floor and start talking. Not just talking but talking about the bill you are filibustering. No reading passages from books like Green Eggs and Ham. No carrying on about anything unrelated to the bill. No bathroom breaks. No meal breaks. Put on your diaper and stand up and talk. No sitting down. So, keep the filibuster if you want. It should be used sparingly and it should be painful. 

I Don’t Know! Fred?

 Coupon placement is key. Pick Me Ups for sale here you dirty minded pervert. 

Choose the ass that describes your life today. 

This is for you Majorie Taylor Green. 

Save Larry!!!!!

Things I wish I could unsee. 

Bird Town

 On Friday we got in the truck and headed out to an antique store in Pittsfield, Illinois. Along the way we passed through Griggsville. Little bits of interest and history reside in the backroads of an Illinois region once known as Forgottonia. While some progress has come to the area it is still largely rural and forgotten. Here is Griggsville’s claim to fame. 

There are Purple Martin house all over town. This is the showpiece one downtown. 

What is special about Purple Martins?

My thought when I saw this was Griggsville must have a mosquito problem or at least had one in the past. 

Things to Think About

 If your car is hurt why not? 

A follow up to a prior blog. 

Knowledge test. 

Confusion

 The current Covid-19 relief bill provides 1.9 trillion dollars in an effort to assist those affected by the economic downturn caused by the pandemic.  It passed the House and Senate with exactly zero Republican votes. It seems from their rhetoric that Republicans felt it cost too much money and contained lots of spending they felt was not pandemic related. I’ve heard the amount 9% as what Republicans feel was directly related to COVID-19 relief. I can’t comment as to if that number is accurate or not. I do know one thing. Under the prior administration Republicans pushed through a 1.9 trillion dollar tax cut without support of Democrats. The Democrats felt the package was too expensive and primarily benefited the wealthy. Folks who, one could reasonably argue, did not need any tax relief. It seemed at the time to be another Republican attempt to argue for trickle down economics. Those at the bottom of the economy are still waiting for the money to trickle down. While you may argue like congressional Republicans that too little of the current relief bill is directly COVID-19 related it is certainly addressed to meet the needs of the poorest among us. It seems to be accurate that if you give money to the rich the poor may never see its benefit. If you give money to the poor they will get the benefit of it and eventually it will still reach the hands of the wealthy. So the question becomes the following. What is the best way to get money into the hands of the rich? I think Henry Ford understood it. He wanted to make his cars inexpensive and pay his workers enough so they could afford to buy them. In that equation both sides benefited. Shouldn’t that be what we as citizens and our representatives be working to achieve? A country where our fellow citizens have enough money to feed their families, clothe them, provide adequate shelter and necessary medical care. It should not be so difficult for us to accomplish those things in a country with the wealth and resources we possess. I remain confused as to why. 

Ipava

 Carol and I took a road trip Saturday just to get out of the house. We arrived at the junction with US 136 east of Table Grove and she asked about going to an antique shop in Ipava. We turned right and headed East 6 miles to a nice little shop. Across the street, as is common in small towns, was the park with the almost universal veteran’s memorial. After shopping I stopped to take a few pictures. 

This is one of the things that makes small Midwest towns special. The unfailing willingness of the citizens to remember the sacrifice of their fellow countrymen.