Empty Nest Syndrome

I have more than one friend facing their child's departure. That's what happens when friends your age had kids in their early twenties. I'm going to have kids at Tranquil Pines with me. Alas. Children keep you young.... or do they put you in the grave?

It's a painful time for parents. I cried as I hugged my friend's daughter good-bye at church last week. Was I crying for her or for me? A bit of both, I think. Her lightening fast maturity strikes fear in my heart.

There's not much time.

Last week, my daughter said when I pointed out the "cool" Disney princess lunch box, "Mom, that's so babyish." Gasp. Just two years ago she hugged Cinderella with all the blind adoration of Ma Sheehan snuggling Hugo Chávez. I'm not ready for her to be over Cinderella.

After the death of my son, I determined to cherish every single solitary precious, even bleak, moment. It's really an attempt to slow down time. From learning colors to chapter books, time marches on. Reading the Rick Riordan book series with the kids, the Greek gods are brought to life. Kronos is locked away in Tartarus, and still causes all sorts of mayhem. Doesn't he always?

The cycle is as old as time, the pain universal. A child growing away so abruptly is one of those times that's disconcerting and shocking almost because everyone endures it. Child leaving is so banal.

When I had my children, I felt initiated into a secret society that operated in plain sight. The breath-taking love, consuming, desperate and so complete that the world seems vibrant and brand new, made me wonder at the dull inwardness I had lived until then. Suddenly, I felt more vulnerable and alive than I had ever in my life. You never told me, I said to my mom. Which wasn't exactly true. She told me. I just didn't get it.

Grandma says that it never gets easier, parting from your children. It gets harder as you get older, she tells me. That's what parenting is all about. Beginning a life so you can go through the process of making sure they're prepared to leave you. And if you succeed, your heart is broken. I'm quite sure my neighbor's heart attack was a direct consequence of his twin daughters moving across the country to fulfill their Ivy League dreams.

Good grief, I've made myself sick thinking a decade ahead. For now, prayers for all those enduring the empty nest. May you have strength and courage as you face the new era. As for me, I guess I need to take more joy in potty-training.


If you have tweens, they'll love these and you'll like making their acquaintance with the Greek gods:

Nekkid Putin

My brother asked what I thought about Vlad Putin's bare torso.

"Um, yuck..."














Now a man in a uniform, flying a plane? That's just hawt!







Besides, Putin is a midget. He's exudes a Napoleon Complex. Ewwww!

Forgotten Wisdom

Tonight I read one of the best essays from 2007, if not the best. It is by Victor Davis Hanson. He covers all sorts of territory: Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS), the definition of a Neocon, the housing mess, cheap Chinese goods and the notion of who to trust, media-wise.

Please read it.

Russia's Power Trip

The domineering Russian spirit didn't die with perestroika and glasnost. The notions of power didn't crumble with the Berlin wall, either. The Russian's intentions merely got put on hold due to financial considerations.

So they're back to their old tricks like drugging political dissidents in psychiatric hospitals and acting aggressively toward supposed friends. And, by Putin's pronouncement: Russia will dominate the military aircraft market, too.

I think I like poor Russians better.

How Failure Serves Progressives

Thomas Sowell has a must read column about progressive policies and the people they "serve" or rather, the people who serve them until they serve no useful purpose:

At one point, Marx wrote to his disciples: "The working class is revolutionary or it is nothing."

Think about that. Millions of human beings mattered to him only in so far as they could serve as cannon fodder in his jihad against the existing society.

If they refused to be pawns in his ideological game, then they were "nothing."

No one on the left would say such things so plainly today, even to themselves. But their actions speak louder than words.

Blacks are to the left today what the working class were to Marx in the 19th century -- pawns in an ideological game.

Blacks who rise out of poverty are of no great interest to the left, unless the way they do so is by attacking society.

The poverty rate among black married couples has been in single digits since 1994 but the left has shown no more interest in why that is so than they have shown in why many millions of people have risen out of poverty in Latin America or in China and India.

H/T Conservative Grapevine

Hurricane Dean Hitting Mexican Mainland

Right now, Dean is hitting the most densely populated area on its trajectory. The people there are experiencing 100 mph winds. More here.

Dr. Jeff Masters has damage estimates:

The Mexican coast near the landfall point is the most densely populated area Dean will affect, and damage there will probably exceed $1 billion. Risk Management Solutions has estimated the insured damage to the Yucatan was between $750 million and $1.5 billion. Total damage is typically double the insured damage, so the price tag for Dean will be very steep for Mexico. Dean also did an estimated $3 billion in damage to Jamaica, and $270 million to Martinique.

Dean's core passed just north of Chetumal, Mexico during its landfall as a Category 5 hurricane yesterday, and that city of 150,000 suffered mostly Category 1 and 2 hurricane damage. Power has already been restored, and the governor of the province estimated that the city would be back to normal in two weeks--except for the 3-6 months needed to repair some of the roads washed out. Farther north, about a third of the hotels and cabins in Tulum, and strip of coastal development just south of Cozumel, received damage. Beach erosion was significant all along the Yucatan. The worst damage was reported in Majahual, on the coast 30 miles northeast of Chetumal, where the full Category 5 strength of the storm was felt. According to the Associated Press, "Hundreds of homes were collapsed in Majahual when Dean's eye passed almost directly overhead, crumpling steel girders, splintering wooden structures and washing away about half of the immense concrete dock that transformed the sleepy fishing village into Mexico's second-busiest cruise ship destination on the peninsula. The storm surge covered almost the entire town in waist-deep sea water." For those interested in tracking the effects of the storm, the Hurricane Dean wikipedia page is an excellent source of information.

This is a big, bad storm and it continues its destruction. So far, though, there hasn't been nearly as many lives lost as thought likely.

Iraqi Sacrifices Himself For U.S. Soldiers

Inspiring. Gateway Pundit wonders why this hasn't hit the press.

Gender Theory: "Strange and Reclusive"--UPDATED

When women are strange and reclusive, they hoard cats. When men are strange and reclusive, they're serial killers.

UPDATE: More on female serial killers. They're a different breed and rarer than men serial killers, but the people are still dead. Female psychopathology as an understudied subject. And they do participate in child abuse and killing their children.

Over 600 Investigations Since January

And how many pieces of legislation? That doesn't matter, I guess:

"Maybe it's even more important than legislation," said Democratic Congressman Henry Waxman, a key player who chairs the House of Representatives' Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

The goal is to hamstring the President. The result is that the electorate hates them:

NOT MUCH LOVE FOR CONGRESS: "A new Gallup Poll finds Congress' approval rating the lowest it has been since Gallup first tracked public opinion of Congress with this measure in 1974. Just 18% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, while 76% disapprove, according to the August 13-16, 2007, Gallup Poll."

The Dems are so proud of their oversight and just can't seem to enact the legislation that would actually make the people happy. Any legislation that will promote transparency, get rid of pork, get rid of earmarks and improve ethics (seriously) will win big points.

Nap Shame

I'll admit it. I'm a napper. And I'm not alone. When I can get one, that is, seeing as I have these little darlings who interfere with my Perfect Schedule:

8 AM Rise - 1 AM Go to Bed

One hour nap after lunch some time--around 1:30-2:00. I simply love naps and get far too few of them. I resent the "early to bed, early to rise" nonsense. I resent the implication of laziness if one enjoys a nap. I resent the Martha Stewarts of the world who only need four hours of sleep and wake at 4:00 a.m. Actually, I'm jealous. I require much more sleep. I also resent clucking relatives who, after knowing my unorthodox schedule for years, still say, "You were up that late?" Leave me alone! I'm a grown woman. I can sleep when I want to.

Ann Althouse asks:

Why must we feel ashamed? In fact, why shouldn't our employers provide us with nap rooms? Some actually do. Or maybe you can set up your own office to make it nappable. Back in my home office, in Wisconsin, I have a perfect sofa for napping. And it is not goofing off. A 20 minute nap is part of a formula for a very productive day. Why are people so Puritanical about naps? They want to see people looking busy. They can be barely conscious and get nothing done, but to surrender consciousness altogether... we're so afraid of that.

Why, indeed? Winston Churchill was a famous napper. He's my nap hero.

More on napping.

Foreclosures Up 93% Over A Year Ago

That's a lot.

Spying In Iraq

Michael Totten tells the compelling story. And might I just say, as a reader of both Michaels (Totten and Yon), that making comparisons is just silly. Both men have their own journalistic voice. Neither can really be duplicated. We should all just be grateful to be reading what's happening over there. Without both of them jetting around the world, finding the truth, we'd have to rely on the MSM's perspective.

Happy Young People

Who knew that young people were so balanced and optimistic? Interesting notes about the poll:

You might think money would be clearly tied to a general sense of happiness. But almost no one said "money" when asked what makes them happy, though people with the highest family incomes are generally happier with life. However, having highly educated parents is a stronger predictor of happiness than income.

And sex? Yes, we were getting to that. Being sexually active actually leads to less happiness among 13-17 year olds, according to the survey. If you're 18 to 24, sex might lead to more happiness in the moment, but not in general.

Overall, kids turn to parents and friends and find happiness there. Also, they find it at church.

MOM says, "They sound quite sensible on the whole."

More Scientific Bullying

Censorship courtesy a creationist from Turkey. Wow. It's oppression all around.

Michael Vick Over?

I wrote a Michael Vick dog fighting opinion that nearly everyone disagreed with but my husband and my mother. While watching NFL football (yes, I love violent ground acquisition sports), the announcers were pontificating that no owner would want to sit with Vick because he lied and people are disgusted about the dog fighting. Blah. Blah. Blah. Whatever. I have one name for everyone: Bill Clinton. Of course Vick lied. Everyone lies when they get caught doing something wrong these days. At least that's what people say when people are screwing or killing other people. Maybe dog killing is held to a higher standard. These days, it seems it is. Back to football.

Football is about two things. Number 1: Money. Number 2: Winning.

Michael Vick will be a cheap date when he comes back into the league. He will make a contrite statement. He'll profess his wrongness. He will make his apology heart-felt and sincere. He will get paid relative dirt. And if he is successful, he will help a team win. In short, he will help some team owner make big money. (Now, if he decides to be a jerk, ala Leona Helmsley, he'll be hung from the rafters. But he is black, entitled, rich guy. That at least gives him more grace than a rich, entitled, white woman.)

America will forgive him. And the guys who watch football don't really give a crap anyway. Most of them. Some, are deeply offended and hope he never comes back into sports.

In a world where OJ roams free and gives autographs to adoring fans, Michael Vick is small potatoes. Or at least that's my opinion. What I find weird is the bleeding heart concern over dogs when wife-beaters, murderers, drug users get a pass. To me, it's bass-ackwards.

Oh wait, I'm NOT the only one thinking this. David Stein of the Sporting News says:

Mike Vick, without a plea bargain, would face, based on felony conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and conspiring to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture, 5 years in prison. With a plea it is possible that his sentence would be somewhere in the 8-12 month range -- or 3-4 TIMES the jail time of the guy who killed a woman, or possibly 12 TIMES or more the jail time of the guy who allegedly beat his wife ... again.

And at the Orlando Sentinal:

If only Michael Vick had been arrested for abusing women instead of dogs.

He'd still be on the football field today.

He'd still have the love and adoration of his fans

And, yes, he'd still have his Nike deal.

Such is the shame of professional sports.

Dogs are treated with more respect than women.

What would be a just result for Vick? A $500,000 donation to SPCA or some such dog foundation, a year probation, and 160 hours of community service, the hard kind scooping poop.

Now, some are writing about the entitled air that star athletes breath leading them to believe they are above all laws. Further, some decry the spirit surrounding black athletes where groupies and hangers-on encourage thuggish, criminal behavior to "keep it real". As in, you ain't black enough, you don't have street cred, yo if you don't "keep it real". These are related, but different problems entirely.

On the one hand, the subject is justice in America. As in, there isn't any when murders get suspended sentences and a dog fighter can spend up to six years in Federal Prison (where there is no time shaved for good behavior). What the above reporters allude to is the problematic dynamic where there are too many laws, enforcement is arbitrary and punishment is so uneven as to be unjust. And then there is the hell that awaits prisoners. Prison rape seems to be an acceptable means of punishment, these days. It is despicable and it makes me sick that we live in a country that believes that it's acceptable justice. It's not.

On the other hand, there is the cultural problem. Blacks have created a thug sub-culture where education, achievement and good values are considered "too white". For a black to maintain his blackness, he must use slang, be criminal, and keep the 'hood mentality. It's "keeping it real". On this topic, Jason Whitlock of Kansas City.com writes:

So let’s go ahead and redefine “keeping it real,” shall we?

We might as well, now that Michael Vick kept it real stupid and probably is headed to a federal penitentiary, the vacation destination of choice for men who believe criminal behavior and a lack of education are cultural benchmarks.

Trust me, I take no satisfaction in Vick’s decision to reach a plea agreement on dogfighting charges or his impending incarceration. The lack of parole and rehabilitation opportunities in federal penitentiaries and the mental disease caused by those shortcomings are as revolting to me as the crimes that land men there.

But this column won’t be a blast on our morally bankrupt penal institutions. This column will be about the lesson we all should take from Vick’s dramatic fall. Not long ago, the man did have the world by the tail. He owned a $130 million contract in a city, Atlanta, that adored him, and he was labeled a “franchise” quarterback.

He threw it all away because he bought into the self-destructive, immature, hip-hop model of “keeping it real.”

And this mentality isn't helped at all when black activist leaders support criminal behavior and brand anyone offended by the crime as racist. This delusional thinking enables the very choices that harm their own community:

Earlier this month, in a march to the Georgia Dome to assert their support for Vick, civil-rights leaders from the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Southern Christian Leadership Center cautioned the public against rushing to judgment before Vick appeared in court.

On Monday, representatives from both civil-rights organizations declined to comment, the Los Angeles Times reported. Gerald Rose, the founder of New Order, a new Atlanta-based human-rights group, told the Los Angeles Times he planned to go ahead with a "major rally" for Vick at the Georgia Dome on Monday but acknowledged it would take on a different tone.

Michael Vick isn't a victim except of his own hubris. And no one helps the situation by pretending he is a victim.

What remains after this sad incident is this:

1. The justice system is uneven, unfair and instills mistrust.
2. The black community too often elevates criminal behavior while identifying good character and accomplishment as "too white".
3. Political correctness and misplaced priorities cause Americans to value dogs over people, athletes and entertainers over other forms of accomplishment, and prevents people of all colors from naming the problem in the black community and progressively in the community at large.