FROM MY FRIEND CAPT. C.

HOW MANY ZEROS IN A BILLION

This is too true to be funny.

The next time you hear a politician use the
word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about
whether you want the 'politicians' spending
YOUR tax money.

A billion is a difficult number to comprehend,
but one advertising agency did a good job of
putting that figure into some perspective in
one of it's releases.


A.
A billion seconds ago it was 1959.

B.
A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.

C.
A billion hours ago our ancestors were
living in the Stone Age.

D.
A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.

E.
A billion dollars ago was only
8 hours and 20 minutes,
at the rate our government
is spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain...
let's take a look at New Orleans ..
It's amazing what you can learn with some simple division.


Louisiana Senator,
Mary Landrieu (D)
is presently asking Congress for
250 BILLION DOLLARS
to rebuild New Orleans . Interesting number...
what does it mean?

A.
Well... if you are one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans
(every man, woman, and child)
you each get $516,528.

B.
Or... if you have one of the 188,251 homes in
New Orleans , your home gets $1,329,787.

C.
Or... if you are a family of four...
your family gets $2,066,012.

Washington, D. C

<HELLO>
Are all your calculators broken??

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax <>Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Tax
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
Sales Taxes
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago...
and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.

We had absolutely no national debt...
We had the largest middle class in the world...
and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What happened?
Can you spell 'politicians!'

And I still have to
press '1'
for English.

I hope this goes around the
USA
at least 100 times

What the heck happened?????

'LIFE' THOUGHTS BY 'DUCKY'

	How come we choose from just two people to run for president and over fifty for Miss America ?
Now that food has replaced sex in my life, I can't even get into my own pants.
	I signed up for an exercise class and was told to wear loose fitting clothing. If I HAD any loose fitting clothing, I wouldn't have signed up in the first place!
When I was young we used to go 'skinny dipping,' now I just 'chunky dunk.'
	Don't argue with an idiot; people watching may not be able to tell the difference.
Wouldn't it be nice if whenever we messed up our life we could simply press 'Ctrl Alt Delete' and start all over? AMEN, AMEN !!
	Why is it that our children can't read a Bible in school, but they can in prison?
Wouldn't you know it.... Brain cells come and brain cells go, but FAT cells live forever.
	Why do I have to swear on the Bible in court when the Ten Commandments cannot be displayed outside?
Bumper sticker of the year: 'If you can read this, thank a teacher -and, since it's in English, thank a soldier'

'LIFE' THOUGHTS BY 'DUCKY' And remember: life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes. Ya just might want to pass this along....

WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ?

Elephant-shaped Ganesh growth cured my ills, Queens man says

BY NICHOLAS HIRSHON
DAILY NEWS WRITER

Wednesday, October 22nd 2008, 3:52 PM
Sam Lal, in his Jamaica, Queens yard with unusual amaranth plant that resembles Hindu god Ganesh.











Lal says arrival of the plant that's not native to area has cured his back ailments.
















Separated at birth? The mysterious blossom and the elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesh (below)

To most people, the purple flower that sprouted between two concrete slabs in a Queens backyard would be just a hardy vestige of summer.

Sam Lal sees something more.

The Jamaica man is convinced the mysterious blossom is an incarnation of the elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesh - and neighbors and friends are flocking to see it.

The nearly 4-foot-tall flower grew in June and began to resemble an elephant's head and trunk in August. Lal said that the ailments that had plagued him for months disappeared.

"This formation came to heal my illness," the 60-year-old Hindu man said of his relief from pain due to a bone spur near his spine and bulging discs in his neck.

"They say God comes in many forms. I figure this has taken the form of a plant to come into my yard to bless me," said Lal, who immigrated from Guyana three decades ago.

Experts at the Queens Botanical Garden identified the plant as a member of the amaranth family, which is native to Africa, India and southern Central America but not the U.S. Horticulturalists at the garden have never seen an amaranth take an elephant-like shape, garden spokesman Tim Heimerle said.

"For it to have that long trunk like this is not a natural thing," he said.

Lal believes the flower's position - growing through concrete, facing a garage he converted to a prayer space - is evidence of a connection to Ganesh, revered as the Remover of Obstacles.

A manager at a Manhattan uniform company, Lal hurt his back lifting a box and was in pain for 3-1/2 months - but no more.

"I felt that healing power that came with it," he said. "I've lived a religious life all my life. I feel my prayers have been answered through the deities."

Friends and neighbors have already streamed to his 90th Ave. home to see the flower, and Lal said he'd welcome pilgrimages by Hindu faithful.

He knows some people will be skeptical and insisted he did nothing to sculpt the flower.

Heimerle said that wouldn't be possible anyway, because the plant is too fragile.

"Nature is a strange thing, and it's possible it may have just done that spontaneously, but who's to say," Heimerle said.

With the fall chill in the air, Lal fears the flower may die like other amaranths, which are usually killed by winter frost.

"It's a little upsetting," said Lal, who covers the flower with plastic at night to protect it from cold. "It hurts me to know I'll lose it."

Do you have an incredible plant? An amazing animal? Share your photos with us HERE and we may feature your picture in the Daily News.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Here is my opinion.
Whether the plant cured Sam's ills, we'll never know will we. I think what is important here is , that Sam believes that the plant cured him.

Mind over matter, wishing or believing call it what you will, he is not hurting anymore. I think this kind of mental attitude alone can cause miracles.

Do you believe?

I'm a firm believer, in believing.

IT'S TIME TO SAY---

Good Morning Mr. President.

By now we all know that Barack Obama is our new President of these United States America and people are celebrating everywhere.

Not just in the United States but people are celebrating around the world as well.
This morning I saw a video of our US soldiers in Afghanistan cheering for Obama when they got the news.
They are celebrating in Kenya, and if I had not been a blogger I would not have known that some of my blogger friends in India were also hoping that Obama would win.

Now, we all know that he has won.
Let us all pray that we have made the right decision and that he will make us proud.

Yet at the same time let us not expect miracles from a human being. He can not walk on water and he has a hard road ahead to deal with.

There has been many mistakes made in the past and many fences to mend.

Frankly even if I were smart enough to run for president, I wouldn't want to step into taking over during some of the worse times that I have seen in my life time.

LAST DAY TO VOTE

I believe it was my Father who used to say on voting day, ' Well tomorrow we will know who the biggest crook in America is'.
Yet he would always vote.

So in memory of my Dad, I would like pick up the tradition.

Tomorrow who do you think will be the biggest crook in America?

Come on lighten up, a little levity here.

FROM MY GOOD FRIEND CAPT. C

He talks about changes for the better in Iraq and he attributes at least some of it to McCain's idea for the power surge. I thought it befitting and fair to post this for those of you who are McCain fans. In all honesty there are things that I do like about McCain I regard him very highly, yet I made the decision to not vote for him for several reasons one being Palin. However I do believe in giving credit where credit is do and I agree with my friend the Power Surge was a good idea.
__________________________

Posted on September 9, 2008 by my dear friend Capt.C

When To Celebrate
A dictionary defines celebration as “a joyful occasion for special festivities to mark some happy event... any joyous diversion.”

Who defines “joyful” or “joyous”? Is it up to each individual? I believe that I tend to celebrate more than others. I clap and say “Yeah!” after I finish a delicious meal that my wonderful wife has made for me. I celebrate with my precious children all the time. Children will celebrate anything. If you have small children, then you understand what I am saying. A child will clap for joy when they put a toy in a pail. A child will laugh with excitement when they see a puppy. A child knows how to celebrate.

As we get older, for some reason we don’t find the joy of putting toys in a pail. We don’t see the wonders of life when a puppy wags its tail. We become so desensitized of the miracles of life. We have lost the joyful purpose of celebration....

I know you are thinking, “Where are you going with this?” I do have a point. I want you to take a deep breath, open your mind and just allow me to explain something to you that you will NEVER see on the news.

When I was deployed to Iraq in 2006, things were a little different. Hardly a day would go by when somebody wasn’t trying to kill me. This is especially true for the first few months that I was there. I know that some will argue that having a random mortar fired towards you is not “really trying to kill you.” Okay, but if you haven’t had a random mortar fired toward you, then what do you really know? And if you have had a random mortar fired at you, then you know that they are trying to kill you. So, I will argue the point.

Anyway, during my six and a half month tour, I did anesthesia for over 280 cases. For those of you that don’t understand case numbers, that is a lot of cases. Of those cases, I am willing to say that nearly 240 of those cases where trauma (or trauma related) cases. I did very little elective cases. I can not even begin to tell you how many units of blood and blood products that I pumped into those patients. I can not remember how many deaths I saw. I can tell you this, I pumped in more blood and blood products in that six and a half months than most civilians will pump in a lifetime. I probably saw more death than any of you will ever see (unless you have been here or you are a mortician). Slightly off the subject - I went to an anesthesia conference a year or so ago. I was attending a course that was being taught by a man that was at “the number one trauma center in the USA”. It sounds impressive doesn’t it? Well, when he told us about the most units of blood that has ever been given to an individual at their facility, I just had to smile. I was thinking, “Really? That’s it?? I have beaten that number on more than one occasion.” For the record, I gave over 120 blood products to a single patient in under four hours. You do the math - that’s kicking.

Now lets fast forward 18 months. I have once again arrived in Iraq. Grant it, I am still in the early stages of my deployment. I have been here for almost two months. But, let me tell you that things have changed. Things have changed in ways that I would not have dreamed.

First lets start with the random mortars. I can’t remember the last one. They are so few and far in between. Second are the cases. I have done a total of 23 cases since I have been here. Of those 23 cases, only four have been trauma. All the others have been elective cases.

Now for the real news, something that you will be hard pressed to see or hear about in the media. There are new schools, new hospitals, new training centers, new communities that HAVE BEEN BUILT. Not by the Americans either, but by the Iraqi people. There are almost as many Iraqi Army Soldiers as there are US Soldiers here. The number of Iraqi Soldiers is growing by the day. There is another HUGE piece of the pie. The Iraqi people are seeing and “understanding” the difference that is being made. Something I thought could never happen. I was wrong. That’s right - I admit that I was wrong. The Iraqi population understands that if they inform the authorities, not only will the bad guys get caught, they will also be protected. So, now the communities are stepping up to the plate. The bad guys may be able to threaten one person, but they can’t threaten them all. So, they are learning to stand up against them.

So, what does this mean? Well, it means that there is decrease in life being lost - on both sides. There is an exponential number of bad guys being caught and killed. The bad guys are getting desperate. Now, here is where I will have to stop giving details. But, I can say that they are truly getting desperate and it shows.

So, why have you not heard about this? Well, it is because that would mean that the media would be responsible for informing the public of the truth, not just its’ agenda. It would mean that the media would HAVE TO ADMIT THAT THE SURGE WORKED!!! Not only did it work, it has changed the community. The media doesn’t want you to know this. They want you to be ignorant of the facts. They want to push a certain person into the Presidential seat so they can have even more power and more money (yea, don’t full yourself - it’s all about power and money).

So, I have to ask. If a country that was full of blood shed just 18 months ago, is now relatively a peaceful country - is that something to celebrate??? I know the children are celebrating.........