Are you kidding me?!!!

Now the NRA supporters are saying that teachers should pack heat!  Are you kidding me?  How would this have helped at Newtown when this kid had an assault weapon?  He had killed the kids and the staff in a few minutes.  Or maybe ALL of the teachers and principal should pack weapons?

In yesterday's Fareed Zaharia had a great op ed on gun control:

Fareed Zakaria, The solution to gun violence is clear - explains the homicide rates in countries with strict gun control compared to the rates in the U.S..  It is staggering.  Last year we had around 11,000 homicides by gun.  In contrast, according to this article, other industrialized nations had:

England and Wales - .3% of our rate
Australia - our rate is 30 times theirs

Zakarai goes on to discuss the other explanations that have been given for our murder rate - 

• mental health - if this is why our numbers are so high then we should have 30 times the mentally ill as Australia, but we don't
• video games - if this were the reason, Japan, which is a video game culture, would have our rate or close to it.  Rather they have a close to ZERO percent.

Read the article.  It is very thought provoking.

BUSHMASTER 223

YES, NOW SOMEONE TELL ME WHY ANYONE IN THIS COUNTRY NEEDS THIS GUN?

"An ABC report quotes a February report by Guns and Ammo magazine noted a growing demand in recent years for AR-15-type rifles (the Bushman223 is an AR-15-type rifle)– and specifically those loaded with .223 caliber bullets – for use in home defense. The .223 caliber load is popular, the article says, because it has better fragmentation upon impact, meaning it will deal a lot of damage with less chance of accidentally continuing through the target and endangering whoever's in the background."  Yes, it won't travel through the "target" because it basically tears up the "target."

I'm sorry, but whether this is for hunting animals or defending your home, why do you need to tear up the "target"?  This does not sound like defense, it sounds like rage.

This weapon can fire 45 rounds in a minute, also.  Maybe if the kid had had handguns only, he may have killed a few people, but not as many.  I don't know.  I do know, that there is no reason for these killing weapons.  I am so ashamed that gun purchases went UP on the days following the Newtown massacre.  Can people in our country be this afraid ?  I just don't feel afraid, and I am sad that so many other people in this great land of ours seem to feel it.  So afraid, that they want to tear up the insides of anyone who might break into their homes, apparently.

Today's Post has some good editorials.  I'll link to two of them:

Eugene Robinson, On Guns, Take Action Now

Richard Cohen, The killing of children, our national shame

TRADITION TRADITION

 There is nothing better than good friends and traditions.  Saturday night we celebrated Christmas together at my house, as we have been doing for many years.  This IS my Christmas regardless of the date.  

I love decorating with a different theme each year---this one was an old fashioned Christmas with candy hanging in the windows, lots of stuffed toys, and red poinsettias.

Indy, our little shih tzu, loves Santa, too.  In fact, he spent most of the evening snoozing on Santa's lap.

What a great night and I look forward to 2013.  I'm already trying to figure out my theme.

ANGRY BEYOND BELIEF

My beloved Washington Post, how could you be part of this?  I am so angry and so sad that this morning's paper, A12-A13, includes stories of the adults and children killed in Newtown, Connecticut.  I am sad for the families and angry because in at least one article, by Post reporter Annie Gowen, it is obvious that the Post contacted the family at home.  The woman who answered said they were not interested in talking.  "We just lost our daughter," she said.  

Isn't this just what the spokesperson for the state police said to the reporters --- the families don't want  to be contacted right now.  He practically begged the reporters to abide by their wishes.  Can't we just leave them in peace?

I've already written to the editor of the Post and will write to Ms. Gowen, too.

Weeping for the children and our country

I'm not sure what to say, what can be said, about this senseless slaughter of innocents.  I am, of course, a gun control advocate, but it is more than guns that killed these little children.  The gunman was mentally ill, there is no other answer, but why didn't anyone see it or do anything about it.  Maybe they did.  I certainly don't know everything about this situation.  what I do know, however, is that public discourse in this country has spiraled down to an unacceptable level.  We can't have different opinions without denigrating the other side.  Still remember the 2012 elections?

I do know that all 50 states now ALLOW  concealed guns!  What the hell have we become?  For what reason do we need guns in our homes?  Why would we need to go around with a gun concealed?

I don't have the answers, but I have the emotion.  I am so sad and so concerned about where we are headed.  I cannot imagine how my brother could handle it if his little five year old were one of those murdered and I feel so incredibly sad for these families and the families of the teachers who were killed today.

DAY 103 - OPM meets the mark

OPM OPM OPM   It is day 103 and OPM has completed my full retirement action.  I got a deposit today in my bank account for the bit that they had not paid me for the first three months and checking with OPM Services Online was able to see what my first full check will look like on January 1, 2013.  With all the bad news about OPM and the backup on retirement actions, I must say, this is pretty quick.  I believe that my two friends who retired last year waited about 8 months for their first full check.  Way to go, OPM!

Please note those of you who will be retiring that you MUST adjust your taxes yourself via OPM Services Online.  The taxes being taken from my check were much too low.  Also initially state taxes are not taken out.  Once you get your full payments, you can add in those taxes.  It is not a fun thing to do, but it has to be done.

I have also calculated how much I will require to make up the difference between my "meager retirement income" and my expenses.  I have completed the paperwork to  have funds from my life's savings transferred to my checking account each month.  There also, I am having taxes taken out before I get the money.  Will report on how this is going in a few months.  Right now, I am getting a quarterly allotment based on what I think I'll need to cover monthly bills.  I've also set up a monthly payment to an account to cover annual bills like car insurance so that I don't get any big surprises.

Had dinner with old friends from the Department last night.  Half of the group were retired and the other (younger) half were still working.  ALL of those retired seemed very happy with our circumstances.  One is spending quality time with her mom who is battling severe memory loss, one is a volunteer chaplain at a local hospital who works with families dealing with death, one continues to teach music lessons, has a 96 year old mom still living with her (great genes!), and appears to be travelling monthly, and the honoree of the dinner continues to do things for everyone.  It was so great to see everyone and my Christmas tree earrings were a hit.  I gave the pair I had on to one friend at the table and will deliver another pair today.

No one seems to get my humor, but I am going to torture you with Get Fuzzy until someone admits it.  

DAY 102 - The retiree's life.....

Being a retiree is not that exciting, at least not every day.  I don't want to quit writing this blog, but really, I don't have that much to say some times.  I hope you don't mind my recounting things I see on TV or read in the paper.

I don't often agree with Richard Cohen a conservative columnist in the Washington Post, but today's editorial really hit me.  Wouldn't it be wonderful to think that someone would think this highly of you?  Cohen writes of his love for Mona Ackerman, his love for many years.  She died recently of ovarian cancer.  

He writes:  "I had what I called “Mona Moments” — bursts of intense love. They could make me gasp, even go a bit weak in the knees. (Ya think it doesn't happen?) She’d ask me what she had said — what had done it? I rarely knew. I watched her have a similar effect on others. She was adored. She glowed."  

I find it very refreshing that he could bare his soul so fully in public.  Mona must have been some woman. 

Body Pump - I got to the 6:00 AM class again today.  The other pumpers seem to be getting much younger.  I made it through, adding a bit more weight, but still not up to my previous weights.  Sherry made all of us commit to returning next week.  I'll do it.

Jewelry - I'm making three necklaces for the Silver Streak out of pearls and gold balls from her mother.  I want to do something really "out there" but don't have the exact idea yet.  In the mean time, I am making Christmas earrings.  I'm kind of proud of these.

Parties.  I had a luncheon/champagne drinking event last week with a few friends from work.  Thursday I am hosting "high tea" with The Lass and another friend from work.  Saturday is my annual Christmas dinner with eight of us (I only have eight seats at my table!)  The joke is that someone needs to die to get an invitation to this dinner.  This year it will be an old fashioned dinner complete with ham and green bean casserole (!).  I've been decorating the whole house so want to have as many social events here as possible.

After the New Year, life will get more exciting.  I promise.