Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

Dec 042011
 
Saudi Women's Driving Team

Image by SoulRider.222 via Flickr

Think different!

Sometimes the news gives you a fresh insight about life and helps you see the world a whole new way like the featured news story this week for the Coots News Service. Sometimes when you find yourself in a hole it is hard to think differently until you get your head above ground. Well that’s how I feel about today’s story. Maybe we just need to think different.

We all know that our culture and morals are fading fast. It is such an ever present reality that it’s almost trite to talk about the decline of principles and integrity these days. The evidence is everywhere that today’s society glorifies immorality and smut, wallows in it to be frank. There are all kinds of explanations that blame everybody you can think of. Some say that we we are all spoiled. People on welfare live better than royalty 100 years ago so what’s the point of hard work and discipline. Schools reward students that do what they are supposed to because actually teaching kids to think is just too much to expect from government workers. Nobody is expected to actually deliver the goods. They all just sit like baby birds with their mouths open waiting to be fed. It’s a real problem.

What to do?

Nobody seems to really have an answer for what went wrong. It’s a big mystery how we have gone from a country that honors hard work and discipline, respects morals and integrity and crusades for liberty around the world into a nation of lazy wimps that live for pleasures of the moment and run from conflict and taking a stand.  Heck even the President thinks we’re lazy.

My theory

I’ve always had my own theory that it all started with women’s suffrage. Giving women the vote in my mind was the beginning of the end. That one stupid act destroyed the institution of the family. Instead of focusing on raising strong children, suffrage thrust women into the ugly world of commerce and politics. Our families suffered and the result is the moral decline we see today.

Like I say, that’s only my opinion and I don’t get much agreement with my theory these days. Even though I haven’t found anybody that has a better theory– until now. There is a new report out of Saudi Arabia with a fresh theory and I’m giving it serious study. I’m not big on cultural diversity, but sometimes you need to take a fresh look from a different perspective. Proud as we might be of our Judeo-Christian Western culture, maybe we need to think different once in a while and ask “What would Mohammed do?”.

Islamic Academics: Allowing Saudi Women to Drive Would Lead to ‘Surge in Prostitution…Homosexuality & Divorce’

The way these Saudi professors see it, the problem with the West is all due to letting women drive. Could it really be that simple? They insist that allowing women to drive is the cause of the moral corruption in the West and that Saudi Arabia is the beacon of reason in a crazy world.  How do we know this?  It is all because only Saudi Arabia refuses to allow women to drive. Those Saudis have it all solved. You don’t find any moral depravity in Saudi. Food for thought, isn’t it. When you look at it letting women drive is probably worse than letting them vote.

Can we still save our culture?

It’s probably too late to put the cat back in the bag here in the US. I think we are stuck with women voting and driving for the duration although perhaps we can keep them from doing both at the same time. Since there are more women than men and these days most men can’t manage to support a household without a working wife, it is hard to see a solution. These days, ii you expect to hold a job you pretty much need to drive. Good as that Saudi wisdom might be I don’t think we are likely to apply those Saudi principles in the US any time soon.

Still it’s a fascinating exercise to imagine how different life might be to day if the US were to ban women from driving. What do you think? How would your life be changed? Would it be for better or worse?

Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

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Nov 272011
 
Really Really Big Man

Image via Wikipedia

Some news is important!

It takes a big man to admit he is wrong and all three of us Coots are not petite. So today I’m just going to say that last week, I was wrong. You can’t just ignore the news because once in a while there is a story that matters in your life and that you can do something about. And that is what the news stories for today reveal.

After last week’s snit, faithful readers might be wondering what to expect from the Coot’s News Service this week. I laid it on pretty thick and pretty much sawed through the tree limb I was perched on. I stopped sawing just in time. But still, after all that fuss about the irrelevance of news how can the Coot’s continue to provide this service.

Well the answer is another opportunity to clarify the benefits of cantankerosity. Being consistent is another of those traps of conventional thinking that mess people up. Cantankerosity is never having to be sorry about changing your mind. This needs expounding in a Coot’s lesson but for now take it on faith that it takes a big man to admit when he is wrong. And last week I was very wrong because every so often, there is news that matters and news that each person can do something about.

Black Friday 2011: Holiday shoppers hit stores, with a Thanksgiving head start

The news stories this week are about the evil cancer of Black Friday eating our national holiday- Thanksgiving. Apparently nothing is more sacred than saving a few bucks on that big screen TV, not even a family holiday dinner. And retailers will stop at nothing to take your money.

Shoppers in Sacramento, across U.S. turn back the clock in bargain hunt

So what can you do to quash this diabolical threat to family life in America? Stay home on Thanksgiving and plan your holiday to eliminate any need to shop. As Justin has pointed out, there are bargains available on line so you can satisfy the shopping urge and look for deals from your home between courses or at half-time. Maintain the sanctity of your holidays and allow retail employees to enjoy the holiday as well. The Coot’s recommend Amazon for convenience, great selection and fantastic deals and encourage readers to use our link which helps keep this blog going.

It’s all over for this year but early reports suggest that retailers were encouraged by the sales on Thanksgiving. Make a resolution to avoid retailers that were open on Thanksgiving and shop on-line instead.

And now that Thanksgiving is finally over, lets move on to the next holiday.

 

 



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Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

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What happened to Thanksgiving?

 Posted by at 05:54  rants
Nov 232011
 
Black Friday Freshworkshops

Image by adria.richards via Flickr

There is no question that our world and culture is degrading fast. The evidence is so overwhelming that there just isn’t any way to deny it. In fact it all

seems so intertwined and complex that it is even hard to find a loose thread to attack. But this week in the supermarket I realized something important- we have eliminated Thanksgiving.

 Does that mean the Football games are cancelled?

I don’t mean that it has been abolished or anything so blatant, what I noticed is that we have removed all the respect that we used to award our National Holiday.

My first clue was when the seasonal aisle at the supermarket was revised after Halloween. The candy and decorations were sold off at half price one day and the next day, the clerks were busy putting up the next holiday items. It was the first week in November and they were getting ready for Christmas. What happened to Thanksgiving- our national holiday? Last year I distinctly remember Thanksgiving decorations and gear. Not this year. Thanksgiving has stopped being a celebration of our country and become a convenient start of the Shopping Season, formerly known as Christmas.

No more last minute panic.

In the old days, you needed to get everything you needed for your Thanksgiving feast by Wednesday because it was almost a national rite for everyone to spend Thanksgiving overeating with friends and family. Smart people did it earlier because of the last minute shopping on Wednesday. But everybody knew to get it all done before Thanksgiving. On the big day itself, stores weren’t open because nobody needed to shop. They had an important holiday to celebrate.

 

These days the big event is not Thanksgiving. It is Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) with loads of shopping bargains. Instead of lying around digesting people were willing to get up early and stand in line to get special deals. What can I say? People are nuts.

But this year, Black Friday is not enough. Stores will start giving those special prices on Thanksgiving Day, opening in the evening or even all day. These days Thanksgiving, instead of being a day of national celebration marks the beginning of Shopping Season. All the major stores are open.

So much for our family’s celebration.

A consequence of this decision for our family and many others is that family members will be working all day on Thanksgiving. As a consequence, we will be celebrating our Thanksgiving on Tuesday. It is crazy. What we will do on Thursday we don’t know yet but it sure as heck won’t be shopping.

I’ve never understood the attraction of Black Friday but it always seemed a harmless way to use a day off and get your Christmas shopping done at the same time. But now, when the almighty dollar compels stores to start their selling on Thanksgiving, I draw the line. Something has gone terribly wrong with the country. We need to take time to celebrate our country with our families. It defeats the purpose of a holiday when it becomes a commercial event.

 So who’s to blame?

I don’t blame the retailers because their job is to make money and apparently there is more money to rake in by staying open. What I blame is the people who shop on Thanksgiving. Where are their priorities and why don’t they have a place to go and something more important to do than chasing bargains?

Place cards for Thanksgiving dinner 2008.

Image via Wikipedia

For me, I personally make a point of buying what I need before Thanksgiving. I don’t want to encourage any retailers or reward them for staying open or put any more families in our sorry state. But I’m clearly in the minority. Are any of you diehard Black Friday and now Thanksgiving Day shoppers willing

to share your thoughts? And for you old fashioned folk,has commercialization of Thanksgiving made your Holiday celebration more difficult? The Coots want to know.

Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

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Nov 202011
 

We’ve Got News!

Have I Got News for You

Image via Wikipedia

There is lots of news today and it all sounds important. Libya, Syria, Greece, Italy, the Euro, the Budget Deal and then the attacks on Newt after his rise to the top of the Republican contenders and the never ending saga of the Wall Street protesters. It all seems so frantic and so important and it all is – to somebody.

When you get down to hard cold truth, however, what I realize after dragging myself through all those stories today is a simple truth. They don’t matter a hill of beans. Those stories have no impact on my life today because: I don’t have any power to affect the outcome of those stories today and nothing I can do is going to make a difference in the future.

Bottom line, reading the news is a total waste of my valuable time.

So where does that leave the Coot’s News Service?

It’s a good question which deserves a good answer. The original thinking of our crack management team here at COC was that we could provide a valuable service to our readers by filtering the myriad news stories each week to find a few really important ones, particularly those stories which were upbeat and inspiring. This meant hours of research reading hundreds of real downer stories in the hope of finding something positive. Talk about a deadly assignment! Over time, the task moved from challenging to impossible and our dynamic research team became demoralized. So we moved on the Plan B.

Plan B was to find one story each week that would put our readers ahead of the pack. That seemed like a realistic ambition but even finding that one story soon became a challenge. I don’t know if the stories got worse or our standards rose higher. Whatever the reason, the challenge of finding that one perfect story got harder each week. And keeping our staff on target harder.

So today, exhausted from a fruitless scouring of the news, I have no choice but to punt. Today, we don’t have a story.

Get a Life!

The unavoidable truth is that nobody NEEDS the news, nobody BENEFITS from the news. News is an incredible and scandalous WASTE of society’s time and resources. I can confidently state that there is absolutely nothing in the news that you need to know and that you would be much better off walking the dog, playing catch with your grandson or taking your wife to a movie than reading the news.

There! I’ve said it.

But back to the original question about CNS. Does this mean the end of CNS as we know it? Will the delight of checking COC on Sunday’s for insightful commentary and wisdom be gone forever? And the answer is “Of course not.” We know that our readers depend on CNS to brighten their dreary weekends and we take our responsibilities very seriously even if it means continuing to follow the news.

So there will be a new report next week, although just now it is hard to say what it will be. After all, it is seven days away. Who knows? Something important might happen.

 

 

 

 

Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

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Nov 132011
 
Mayor of Richmond prefers protest to veterans

I honor Veterans 364 days a year

Calif. Mayor Chooses Occupy Rally Over Veterans Day Memorial

So today I feel like I’m channeling Bob as I bristle with outrage but I don’t know what this country is coming to when an elected city official chooses not to even pretend a respect for our veterans. The Mayor of Richmond California doesn’t even hesitate about choosing a protest rally over a memorial ceremony on Veteran’s Day. Sure Veteran’s Day Memorials are not very exciting events with their patriotic music, lots of old geezers and politicians mouthing platitudes but that’s why we have the holiday. Maybe she just wanted to sleep in.

But she didn’t just stay home and sleep in. Mayor Gayle McLaughlin attended the Occupy Richmond Protest Rally instead. It is no big deal,the mayor says because she honors veterans on the other 364 days a year .She is apparently so worn out honoring veterans that she needs a break . Besides, she points out, the Occupy Richmond Protest will celebrate veteran Scott Olson who was injured at a recent Occupy Oakland Rally. So she is killing two birds with one stone, celebrating veterans and anarchy at the same time.

So where is Richmond California?

Now I don’t know the town of Richmond very well other than being the last stop on BART (the Bay Area Rapid Transit) and the place where I leave my car when visiting San Francisco. It seems an unremarkable town in a spectacular locale  but next time I visit I will be looking more closely. Bay area suburbs are difficult to read because housing costs are so high that high income folks will be living in neighborhoods that look more like lower class areas in the rest of the country. Still is looks tidy and clean with none of the ominous atmosphere of nearby Oakland or the raffish, hippie style of even nearer-by Berkeley. Just another ordinary SF suburb trying to stay respectable. Apparently, however, there is more to Richmond than meets the eye.

McLaughlin is similarly hard to read as well. Her record, at least as recorded in her campaign website is fiscally responsible and socially progressive and her political career has been adept. She is the self-proclaimed highest level elected official of the Green Party. But it looks like the wheels have fallen off her bus with this move which reveals that the reasonable, nuanced progressive mayor is a well camouflaged nut job. Take a look at the Facebook page for the Richmond Rally and then check out the profile for Jose Lopez the organizer. Nothing about this Rally suggests community interest. What it reveals is the philosophy of the organizers which most surely includes the mayor.

Why protest on Veteran’s Day?

First look at the decision to hold the Rally on Veteran’s Day. Surely one of the other 364 days would have worked as well for the Rally but the organizers chose Veteran’s Day. Still, the mayor might have split her attention and attended both but she did not. The reasons are not hard to fathom for a proud progressive and Green Party apparatchik. Unfocused and chaotic as the recent swarm of protest rallies are, one of the common demands is the forgiveness of all debt including the debt incurred by student loans for college. This is a sensitive issue for the Mayor who recently declared bankruptcy to eliminate $100,000 in student loans. The trauma for the Mayor no doubt drew her to the Occupy Movement. Perhaps the personal philosophy of Mr. Lopez as listed on his Facebook page attracted her as well. All you need to know about the Rally you can learn from Mr. Lopez philosophy. “fuck the system . si se puede . i’m from Oakland biiiiitch lol “. Clear and concise!

Back on point.

So, now that I’ve gone all Bob over this California politician, let me try to get back on track. I won’t even try humor today. Veteran’s Day always does that for me because my war was Vietnam. The first and I hope the last war to have the population and its lick spittle politicians go south on their warriors. Not only warriors but drafted warriors. I freely admit that I would not have volunteered for the Army and that I was ambivalent about the mission, but dammit, I served my country when it asked me and for 30 years this country has literally spit upon Vietnam veterans and run from our destiny as leaders of the free world.

So Veteran’s Day always leaves me testy and concerned about the future of this country when our warriors are disrespected and misused in unfocused missions. The President has cut and run from victory to appease his supporters the spiritual children of those who spit on me and my brother warriors. I don’t really care about Mayor McLaughlin and her disrespect for our soldiers. What I do care for is our country. I worry about a future where politicians do not even pretend to respect our veterans and our history. Without our veterans, we would have lost our country long ago.  With politicians like Gayle McLaughlin, we won’t have it much longer.

 

Ralph

Ralph is the inspiration for Cantankerous Old Coots and is our Grand Duke of Cantankerousness

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