Kong's Bestest Girl

Took my kids to see the overwrought, overlong, overdone King Kong remake. It wasn't bad, until physics and logic and common sense and continuity and character consistency went completely out the window, about 30 minutes into it. I gotta admit, those Skull Island natives were some really, really well-done scary-creepy natives. That was the most intense part of the entire movie, both for me and the kids.

But the love interest, the over-young, over-thin Naomi Watts just didn't do it for me. The good-hearted girl from outta town who just wants to make good on the Great White Way and yadda yadda sugary garbage? And then she does that dumbass schtick on the prehistoric bat cliff for Kong's amusement? It was beyond stupid; it was sad. So, she was no Faye Wray.

But Faye Wray never did it for me. Maybe it was because even when I was 12 and saw the 1933 classic for the first time, in my mind she was already pushing 70. That and everything was so dark in that film, it was hard to really even tell what she looked like. She reminded me of pictures of my grandmother when she was young, fuzzy around the edges, in ridiculous clothing; after all, they were contemporaries.













For my money, the gratuitously sexist, racist, and gory 1975 King Kong has got Kong's bestest girl. Without a doubt, it's Jessica Lange. I'd cling to a 1000-foot building for her.

Yeah, the film is just an interconnected series of ridiculoulsy lingering shots of Lange. The at-sea find in the launch, wet and in a sexy evening gown, the half-t-shirt at the beach landing, even this cheeky shot from the jaunt (through Kauai) to the natives' pallisade.

The she meets Kong and things really get hot. I love this photo of Ms. Lange. That body is just about as perfect as they come. Look at that absolutely magnificent swell of calf and thigh. Of course, today she'd be called a fat cow by her contemporaries and the press. Our current magnificent examples of female form are the grotesquely thin Paris Hiltons and Lindsay Lohans, the dead-trashbag-walking, impossibly, unattractively thin. But this look, pure magic, absolute radiance.

And then Kong "got her wet" and pulled her top off.  And she seemed to enjoy it.  Cheeky monkeys.

Pol-Deb Kathy

First things first: So it's Kathleen, er, ah, Katherine, er maybe Kathryn . . . maybe Kathlyn, eh? It's over six years since this grimacing idiot was crammed down our political, judicial and social throats, and respectable news outlets still can't get her name right. It's Katherine, thank you.

That being said, let's press on, shall we?

The phenomenon that is Kathleen Harris just fascinates me. She came to meteoric prominence during the historically disgraceful, disgracefully historic 2000 Bush-Gore electoral debacle in Florida, where it was proven without the slightest shadow of a doubt within just a few days that she, as the Florida secretary of state, was a dabbling, clueless, criminally incompetent figurehead leader in a department that had no idea what it was doing. She stumbled her way through the mess until the far more cerebrally horsepowered national GOP studs got there, got her to shut up and disappear, and then just steamrolled the opposition, the Constitution, the public will, whatever got in their way. And now we're stuck with the idiot who prevailed, and his economy, and his wars, and his trampling of constitutaionally protected privacy statutes and prisoners' rights, the cabal of lies and corruption, all of that fun stuff.

But enough of Dubya the Clueless, and Back to Kathy. Just how did she get to be the secretary of state in Florida? Certainly not on the back of an informed electorate, as the position is not an elected one. Rather, the Florida Secretary of State serves at the pleasure of the Governor, so it's an appointed position. It's pretty clear to me that it was done as a reward for just having lots of personal wealth, having lots of positive pubic social and electoral contact and support to the GOP, the kind of thing that middle-aged folks who have a lot of money tend to get involved with, to make things they way they want, to make themselves feel good about themselves, to create the fiction that they somehow are "serving" the great (non-monied, non-Republican) unwashed, that their somehow giving back.

I can't help but notice just how proud Florida is of her, from the very special listing at , which offers only her name and the fact that she was Secretary of State 1999-2002, and currently serves as a state representative, since 2003. (Yeah, this is a University of Florida site, and it's grossly incomplete, but then again the entire state doesn't even offer a listing of past state-level political leaders and appointees--the state's web site link to the historical listing of governor's doesn't even work.) Not a single word about what she did, nothing at all. No mention--go figure--of the 2000 election, but not even the most lame catch-all blurb about how she "improved processes" or "created synergistic effects" or "synchronized operations" or maybe even "came to work on time and in the right outfit on a semi-consistent basis." Absolutley nothing about her work for 3 years, which goes a long way to clueing you in as to the kind of performance she gave; even the Republican shills can't keep a straight face and make something good up--give it to Karl Rove for some wordsmithing.

And somehow, through some incredible magical process, she actually was elected to the US Congress as a representative of the State of Florida. That's blue-state intelligence and voter competence for you there, eh? That's saying a lot about the voting public of her Florida district, that, despite her unquestionable partisan leanings and arguably criminally corrupt actions while the Florida Secretary of State (does that make her the "FLASOS?"), they still thought she was a good enough person to send to Washington to make sure the three elements of government were balanced, that taxes and defense and all of the truly national issues were taken care of responsibly. This painfully grinning deb was going to do all of this? Puh-leeze.

I mean, just look at the pictures of her. Just look in those eyes, those worried, unfocused, frightened eyes. It's the same with Dubya, of course, except he's taught himself to squint to look like he's a deep thinker, to keep folks from seeing the abject terror and lack of confidence in his eyes when it comes to everything that's going on, especially public speaking.

Yeah, she's made noises about how pictures of her were doctored, and she was just trashed in every liberal outlet--and the comedians had a go at her, too--over what appeared to be a very seriously non-spin-doctored approach to applying make-up. Yeah, I'd have to agree. I can't imagine any fat, cigar-chomping political consultant worth his suitcase full of hundred-dollar bills would allow her to go out in public like that. But she sure did, and lots of folks noticed. I can't help but point out that the unadvised amount of make-up is just another clear indication of the lack of self-confidence, the need to hide while in the public eye, to make them all think that you're something you're not, that is pretty and young and acceptable. What a horrible unstated admission of personal lack of confidence. A strong and confident lady wouldn't slather it on like that, with that lipstick tending toward making you the natural successor to Tammy Fae Bakker as the next Ultimate Drag Queen Icon.

But wait, apparently there's been some kind of magical makeover. Compare these two photos:

This is a change that's taken place just in the past five years or so. How has she managed to get younger and more attractive? Well, surgery is almost certainly one of the answers. That, and someone who finally got her attention about makeup. And an image consultant, all of that happy stuff. Hell, now she looks (to me) like the mom in Donnie Darko, actress Mary McDonnell.

And now she wants to be a senator. Yeah, a senator. Hell, she's got the money to act properly as a senator, at least 30 million dollars of personal fortune, probably a lot more. So that qualifies her as a GOP candidate right there. The good news is that even her party has wised up to her, but luckily they don't have to tel her to go; the public is doing that. There apparently is a more qualified Republican who is more electable than she is, and that's the guy who will get the effort and the money. So she's out, and hopefully that'll be that for her Senate aspirations. And hopefully soon enough she'll depart the Congress all together, and we can concentrate on getting rid of some more incompetent morons who are there working for themselves and not the US citizens.

Get On With It

Lawyers: Obese Ohio Inmate Faces 'Torturous' Death

Sep 18, 2012 3:40 AM (ET)

By ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A condemned Ohio inmate who weighs 480 pounds and has a history of difficulty losing weight argues he would face a "torturous and lingering death" if executed in January.

Yes, at that weight his punishment may in fact prove to be greater than that of a convicted premeditated murderer half his weight.  Oh, well.  Them’s the breaks, you worthless killer.  Let’s proceed; I'm all for a tortuous and lingering death for you, Mr. Post.

Ronald Post, who shot and killed a hotel clerk in northern Ohio almost 30 years ago, said his weight, vein access, scar tissue, depression and other medical problems raise the likelihood his executioners would encounter severe problems.  He's also so big that the execution gurney might not hold him, lawyers for Post said in federal court papers filed Friday.

Why are we concerned about him or the executioners experiencing “severe problems?”  In fact, if the executioners are paid by the hour, this is a better deal for them.  I think the hotel clerk Post murdered experienced some severe problems, too, and the clerk’s family and friends did as well, and are living those problems to this day.  Why are we even listening to what he has to say about the punishment directed by the state?  Why does he have a any kind of say in this?

Who cares about a gurney?  Let’s get some carpenters to build a makeshift table, stout and sturdy enough to hold him.  That shouldn’t be too difficult.  Some 4x4 posts and stout 2x6’s ought to do it.  Or he can just be made to lie on the floor, where his victim ended up after he murdered her.  The floor sounds like a fine additional aspect of his punishment.

"Indeed, given his unique physical and medical condition there is a substantial risk that any attempt to execute him will result in serious physical and psychological pain to him, as well as an execution involving a torturous and lingering death," the filing said.

Well, his unique physical condition requires unique physical adjustments to his execution—no big deal.  As for serious physical and psychological pain, that’s exactly what he deserves, a distinct and in my opinion intentional aspect of his punishment, for the premeditated murder of a person in furtherance of theft.  He should be made to suffer.

Post, 53, is scheduled to die Jan. 16 for the 1983 shooting death of Helen Vantz in Elyria.

A spokeswoman for the prisons department had no comment on the pending litigation.

Post's attorneys also want more time to pursue arguments that claims of a full confession by the inmate to several people have been falsely exaggerated.

So it sounds like he’s in prison and has been telling people of his crime.  Well, that has nothing to do with his trial and conviction—the issue was decided then, and he is guilty of the murder and was sentenced accordingly.  This discussion has nothing to do with this.

"Post's case is about more than his weight, and his life should be spared for reasons wholly unrelated to his obesity," his federal public defender, Joseph Wilhelm, said in a statement.

His obesity has nothing to do with his pending execution.  He is still the same person who committed the murder and was convicted and sentenced for it.  Simple workarounds need to be found and put into action to carry out the sentence directed by the court.  He was tried, convicted and sentenced, and the sentence must be carried out.  The death penalty—no penalty, from a traffic ticket to death—has no power of deterrence when the punishment comes decades after the crime.

Inmates' weight has come up previously in death penalty cases in Ohio and elsewhere.

In 2008, federal courts rejected arguments by condemned double-killer Richard Cooey that he was too obese to die by injection. Cooey's attorneys had argued that prison food and limited opportunities to exercise contributed to a weight problem that would make it difficult for the execution team to find a viable vein for lethal injection.  Cooey, who was 5-foot-7 and weighed 267 pounds, was executed Oct. 14, 2008.

Good riddance to a convicted murderer.

In 2007, it took Ohio executioners about two hours to insert IVs into the veins of condemned inmate Christopher Newton, who weighed about 265 pounds. A prison spokeswoman at the time said his size was an issue.

So did poor Christopher have an extra two hours to consider his fate, question his actions, regret the decisions in his life, and wallow in 120 minutes of terror while his execution slowly took shape?  Well, then, good.  It’s what he earned, and deserved.

In 1994 in Washington state, a federal judge upheld the conviction of Mitchell Rupe, but agreed with Rupe's contention that at more than 400 pounds, he was too heavy to hang because of the risk of decapitation. Rupe argued that hanging would constitute cruel and unusual punishment.

No, sorry, Mitch.  You were a convicted and sentenced murderer.  Decapitation is just fine for guys like you.

After numerous court rulings and a third trial, Rupe was eventually sentenced to life in prison, where he died in 2006.

So this waste got an additional 12 years of life?  Did his victims get an additional 12 years of life?  No.  Then why is he afforded this luxury?

Ohio executes inmates with a single dose of pentobarbital, usually injected through the arms.

Why can’t convicted murderers be injected through the eye?  That sounds like good punishment.

Medical personnel have had a hard time inserting IVs into Post's arms, according to the court filing. Four years ago, an Ohio State University medical center nurse needed three attempts to insert an IV into Post's left arm, the lawyers wrote.

So what?  So it takes a while and/or may take multiple attempts.  So what?  This is the nature of the operation, given his unique physical situation, so poor Post is just going to have to sit still and let them sort it out, so the state can carry out the punishment it decided upon, the one he earned through his actions. 

A good three hours for him to sit there, fully conscious and awake, would be time well spent in the course of his execution.  Let him contemplate his actions for just a few hours more.  If I were running the event, I’d have a court officer read family testimonials and key details of his trial and sentencing hearing, just to reinforce to him what all the fuss is about.

Post has tried losing weight, but knee and back problems have made it difficult to exercise, according to his court filing.

Okay, sure, I don’t think he needs to be forced to exercise, although that sounds like good punishment, too.  I ask the simple question: does the hotel clerk he shot have any current knee and back problems?

Post's request for gastric bypass surgery has been denied, he's been encouraged not to walk because he's at risk for falling, and severe depression has contributed to his inability to limit how much he eats, his filing said.

Good—no elective surgery for any inmate, anywhere, any time.  If he’s at risk of falling, then he can walk, or not, that’s up to him.

Depression affecting his inability to limit his eating?  What?  Uh, he’s in a prison, a relatively closely controlled environment.  Why can’t they limit his intake?  That would tend to affect how much he eats.  Exercise or not, if the prison takes charge of his intake, he’ll lose weight.  So what if he’s hungry?  Let him be hungry night after night, and remind him why he’s being compelled to lose weight.

While at the Mansfield Correctional Institution, Post "used that prison's exercise bike until it broke under his weight," according to the filing.

Why was he given a bike to begin with?  Why is the state spending this kind of money on worthless dogs like him?

Adult Decisions, and Adult Consequences

Penn St. riot ends aspiring Army officer's dream

Incorrect: he's not an officer, never was, and now never will be. This is incorrect usage, inflating something close to true for the purpose of drama--it's lame. This guy was a cadet, never an officer. So it should be:

Penn St. Riot Ends Army Officer Aspirant's Dream

Aug 27, 11:04 AM (ET) By MICHAEL RUBINKAM

Stints in jail. Hefty fines and restitution. Clouded futures. The consequences of their bad behavior have been steep for the Penn State students who took to the streets and rioted in the chaotic aftermath of Hall of Fame coach Joe Paterno's firing last November.

That's it: "who took to the streets and rioted." If you were in the mob, and took an active part, that's you.

Perhaps none have learned a harder lesson than Justin Strine, a young man from central Pennsylvania whose planned career as an Army officer is over before it began - the casualty of his own split-second decision to put his hands on a news van, and a judicial system that considered him as guilty as classmates who did far worse that dark night in State College.

Split-second decision...well, maybe. He chose to get there, chose to get to the front, chose to get involved, and finally chose to take part. Those are the facts.  Yeah, others did worse, but he took part in the action. He's an adult, and made a series of stupid decisions. He could have stopped and asked himself, "Do I really want to be here now, and do this?" But he didn't.

As the fall semester gets under way Monday, Strine has returned to campus, along with 15 other students found to have taken part in a nationally televised riot that caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage and embarrassed Penn State.

As he resumes his studies, nothing's the same for the 21-year-old from Hummelstown. He spent part of his summer in jail. Far worse: He's been kicked out of ROTC, his dream of carrying on his family's proud military tradition now out of reach

"I'm losing everything I worked my entire life for," Strine said. Strine's father, a career soldier, questions whether that's a just result.

Your "entire life" is really what you've worked for since maybe age 12, but more likely age 15 or 16, when you started to realize your future, and started making an effort to shape it. So, the loss is at most about nine years, not your entire life, since you weren't keen on being an Army officer as a toddler, or as a grade-schooler.  Stop with the hyperbole, as it doesn't apply.  It's an effort to make your plight looks worse than it is, and it doesn't hold up.

"I had to stand by and watch my son plead guilty to something he didn't do," said Jim Strine.
Penn State sanctioned 32 students for their involvement in the riot, suspending 10 of them from one to three semesters and giving probation to the rest, university spokeswoman Lisa Powers said. Dozens of students were criminally charged, as well, and the guilty pleas have piled up over the last several months.

No, Dad, sorry, but he did do it. He was there, in the front, and took direct part. He DID do it.

An estimated 4,000 to 5,000 people poured into downtown State College on Nov. 9 after the Penn State board of trustees abruptly and unexpectedly fired Paterno - the beloved football coach who led Penn State for nearly 46 seasons - and removed President Graham Spanier over the Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal.

What began as a peaceful protest of Paterno's unceremonious dismissal quickly turned ugly as a "riotous mob," as State College police would later call it, threw bottles and rocks, damaged cars, and tore down light posts and street signs.

Much like the idiots who poured into downtown DC and rallied like Led Zep concertgoers when UBL got his sweet reward...nothing like having an excuse, a cool, different, this-is-new reason to go out, roll with the kids, and act like an idiot.

Strine was in his off-campus apartment when he learned of Paterno's firing.  He and a few friends decided to head downtown.

Step 1: he was off-campus, and decided to go down to the action.

It was a rare misstep in what had been a slow, steady climb toward the officer ranks.
Strine's father is a helicopter pilot and instructor whose 28-year career has taken him to Iraq and Afghanistan. His grandfather is a retired Air Force flight surgeon. His brother and sister, aunt and uncle, cousins - all serve or have served. So it wasn't a surprise when Strine began plotting his own military career as an adolescent, reading the autobiographies of famed Army officers like Norman Schwarzkopf and Colin Powell.

At Penn State, Strine threw himself into ROTC as well as his studies, making the dean's list and spending the summer at Fort Benning, Ga., learning to jump out of airplanes. His goal: to be a pilot like his father.

"He was a good cadet," Jim Strine said.

A good cadet who made a bad decision the night of Nov. 9.

No, a series of bad decisions. This wasn't just one, single, fleeting, momentary snap decision to do something, it was a series of decisions that led him directly to where he got himself into trouble.  Do not characterize this is a single moment in time where everything went off the rails for this young man, a full three years now on the plus side of adulthood.  Adult status means adult responsibilities...and consequences.

Strine had driven himself and a couple friends to the State College commercial district, where they joined thousands of other protesters. At one point Strine and his friend, Christina Assainte, found themselves in a large crowd moving toward a WTAJ-TV news van, where vandals were pelting it with rocks.

Step 2: So, he was driving. That's a leadership role. He wasn't just along for the ride, he provided it.

Step 3: He allowed himself to be in the crowd and moving toward vandals actively involved in mob activities.  Time to bail, but he didn’t.

To the rippling chants of "Flip it! Flip it!" two young men approached the side of the van, motioning others to join them, a video recording shows. That set off a frenzied rush toward the van, and within seconds a large group started to push.

A second wave of spectators then pressed toward the front of the van, perhaps to get a better view. Strine and Assainte were in the front of that group.

With the vehicle already on two wheels and going over, Strine placed his palms on the hood. Four seconds later, the van was on its side. But that's all it took for police and prosecutors to charge him with felony counts of riot and criminal mischief - the same charges filed against students who did the actual pushing.

He was there, he took part.  Solid case.  He could have backed out, backed away, dropped to the ground and rolled away, but he didn’t.

"I always felt I was on a good path, and all the sudden I'm being made into a criminal. It was shocking to me they wouldn't even hear me out and let me explain that yes, I was there and shouldn't have been, but I wasn't this person they are making me out to be," Strine said. "No one ever looked at me as an individual. They looked at me as 5,000 Penn State rioters."

Of course they didn’t listen to you.  The nation is watching Penn State and shaking its head as its beloved coach is shown to have sold out the safety of a series of boys, over the course of years, all for Penn State football brand solidity.  That’s an ugly fact, and what do you think Penn State and the local authorities are going to do with anyone who is making this horrible situation worse?  They’re going to crucify you, classic transference.  Welcome to truly adult realities, chief.

Terrified of being branded a felon, Strine agreed to plead guilty to reduced misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and criminal mischief. He served 30 days in jail - getting out Aug. 4 - and will either be on parole or probation until 2015.

The consequences didn't end there. Penn State suspended Strine for a semester, and he was booted from ROTC and will have to repay every dime of his scholarship money, a total of $34,000. He also owes $8,500 in court costs, fines and restitution.

Ouch.

Strine said he knows he never should have left his apartment that night, never should have been in the vicinity of the van, never should have laid a finger on its hood.

But he did.  That’s a fact, and he got busted for it.

"The van was already going over. It was so crazy, it was mayhem, and in that moment you stop thinking," Strine said. "I know I wasn't completely blameless. I was there, I touched the van and that was wrong. That's why I was happy to do community service for Penn State. But the criminal justice system went overboard."

No, they made an example out of you and the others.  They took out their impotence in the face of Sandusky’s and Paterno’s and the university’s undeniable crimes on you and the others.  This was the only way they could hit back, and hit they have.

His father said he's not seeking to minimize or excuse Justin's involvement, but contended the district attorney's office was far too aggressive - and his son's punishment far too severe.
"He owns something in this," Jim Strine said. "He just doesn't own what he's got."

No, he owns it completely.

Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller did not return multiple calls and emails seeking information about her office's handling of Strine's case or the other riot cases.
Messages left with State College police Chief Tom King were not returned.

Lt. Col. Ken Weiland, commander of Penn State's Army ROTC program, declined to comment Monday on Strine's removal from the program but cited military regulations that list a multitude of reasons why a cadet could be kicked out.

I was an ROTC scholarship student, way back in the 80s, and it was always clear to me what you could do and couldn’t do.  And getting involved in a riot was a pretty clear no-no.

Powers, the Penn State spokeswoman, said any student who goes through the university disciplinary process can contest the charges or sanctions.

"Justin accepted responsibility and the sanctions in the disciplinary conference, and did not contest them through either avenue that was afforded to him," she said, adding that Penn State carefully assessed each student's culpability, the impact of the crime on the community, and other factors before imposing punishment.

Strine said he didn't contest the charges because he wouldn't have been permitted an attorney, and his testimony before the school could have been used against him in the criminal courts. He didn't challenge the sanctions because Penn State warned him that if he did, he could wind up being penalized more severely. And he said he was never told that a suspension would cost him his spot in ROTC.

Yeah, it sounds like a raw deal, and likely was set up intentionally to be a raw deal, to boof him either way he went.  That’s life, though, and Justin made decisions.  Them’s the breaks.  Don’t complain about decisions you made after the fact.

Assainte, who was with Strine during the riot, said he had no criminal intent that night. She said he got a raw deal.

Sure, he didn’t intend to get involved in a riot, but left his home, drove his own car with others, and worked his way to the front of the group.  He did that.

"I remember him saying, 'All I wanted to do was serve my country, and now I can't because of one little mistake that was caught on tape.' One lapse of judgment and he gets all this thrown at him? I felt so awful," she said. "I just think what happened was really, really unfair."

One little mistake is tripping and breaking a chair at a house party.  This was a very large, very public mistake, which took place in the context of a national scandal involving massive institutions and hundreds of millions of dollars of campus revenue.  Little people get mowed down when the giants duke it out, and Justin was a very little person in this context.  And he got mowed right on down.

 

The Stupid, Filthy and Ignorant Struggle in Galveston

Galveston Area Remains Dangerous in Ike's Wake

22 Sep 08, from an AP article by Angla Brown and Gain Burdeau

ANAHUAC, Texas: Businesses were beginning to reopen, cell phone service was improving and power was coming back, but leaders warned that Galveston remains dangerous more than a week after Hurricane Ike's devastating assault.

Fuel and other essentials remained scarce and police will indefinitely enforce a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew once the island reopens Wednesday.

And it could be weeks or more before basic services are restored in all areas. Still, the island is far from deserted—at least 15,000 people ignored mandatory evacuation orders before and after the storm, and many of them were still there Sunday.

If you ignored the government evacuation order, then officially you have no claim whatsoever to any services. If you have to be rescued, you must pay for the service. If the government has to take any actions at all on your behalf--which it should, to protect your from yourself and others, given the clear indication that you don't have the intelligence to make competent decisions regarding your safety and unfortunately that of those who may be in your care--you must pay for that service. This is only fair to those of us who were paying attention and acted on the government's orders.

Wearing jeans and rubber boots, clutching Bibles and weeping between hymns, residents of the storm-shattered Texas coast comforted each other at makeshift church services. About 50 people came together on a basketball court outside the Oak Island Baptist Church, just south of Interstate 10 about a mile from the tip of Trinity Bay. They sat on folding chairs or simply stood, forced outdoors by the 1-inch layer of mud left inside the single-story red brick building by floodwaters that tossed pews like matchsticks.

What's god going to do for you now? Like he's going to help you now, give you some sort of strength and personal fortitude to withstand the strain of it all after he sent the storm to destroy your home and your church? Doesn't that make him out to be some sort of sick, twisted som'bitch, that he wreaks all of this havoc, and then sits there and watches you deal with it? Kind of like pulling legs off a bug, or cooking them with a magnifying glass, isn't it?

So read your Bible, the collected myths and legends of pre-antiquity codified by men in the centuries after Christ's death, and think your silly little thoughts about a supreme being who really does love you and think about you and care for you, and sends tornadoes and hurricanes and pedophile priests and genocide down to earth to show you just how much he thinks of you and the rest of us.

A demolished mobile home was still lodged among trees, many of them snapped by the storm's 110-mph winds that somehow left the church's trio of 20-foot white crosses still standing. Across the street, piles of debris had sprouted, proof of the labor undertaken since the storm blew through last weekend, and of the work yet to come.

Uh, I don't follow how sprouting debris--which I take to mean that grass/weeds are growing amid the junk--is any kind of proof of labor that's taken place. If anything, it's testament to the non-labor that's taken place, that the grass is growing in a spot where there should be none. If this was the author's intended meaning, they did not communicate it well.

"I know it's hard. Looking around, it's tough," the Rev. Eddie Shauberger told the congregants. "But there is a God, and he has a plan for our lives."

And this hurricane and what he has done to your lives is proof of what kind of plan? How exactly is a hurricane washing your home absolutely and compltely, totally away, so that there is nothing left of it but a busted-up concrete slab a sign that there is a god and that he has a plan? Is it just because you refuse to acknowledge the power of natural forces to create destruction on such a scale, that you just can't conceive of it? Is it that you need to attribute such randomness to some sort of intent, to anthropomorphize the storm so you can better understand your situation?

Rev, all you're doing is selling false hope. And you probably know it, too. So is god's plan something like, "I'm going to destroy all of your homes and kill a few dozen people, wreak billions of dollars in damage in a region still dealing with the last storms I threw at you, and I'll have all of it take place in the midst of the biggest financial crisis in the history of the world that I created, just because I have a plan for YOU." Uh, yeah, I'm sure that's exactly what it is. It's god toughening us up, because we're just not good enough. We're never really ever good enough, of course.

Similar services were being held on Galveston Island and throughout the Houston area, where power had been restored to enough residents that schools planned to hold classes Monday for the first time since the storm.

In Galveston, Bobby and Pamela Quiroga sought succor at a Mass set up in the historic Hotel Galvez. They went to their Roman Catholic church a week ago, the day after storm arrived, but it was closed.

"It's just good to be around people," Bobby Quiroga said. He added, letting his voice trail off, "When you feel a wave shake your house ...."

Yeah, Cooter, that's what Nature will do to you. It doesn't think, feel, or care, and it will go anywhere it wants to.

The newly married 42-year-olds were still trying to gather their senses eight days after watching their homes and businesses flooded by Ike's 12-foot surge.

"Fourteen steps, and we watched the water come up all the way up—even to the floor. Surreal," Quiroga said, his wife leaning on his shoulder.

Ah, so these two were among the selfish and/or idiotic crew who decided to ignore the government warnings and stay on the island. The weather services told you what was going to happen, and it did happen, just like they said it would.

She dabbed her swollen eyes with a hand towel and vowed never to live on the island again.
"When I fall asleep," she said, "I see the water rising."

Only now that it's happened do you look back and think of what might have been. Maybe a few years ago, after Katrina, or maybe Andrew or even going back to the 70s to Agnes, maybe then you could have taken the time to think about your situation, think about your vulnerability, think about your chances and then formulate a plan to mitigate your personal risk. You could have dealt with it then, on your schedule, taking the time to do it deliberately and correctly, but you didn't, and now all you've got is a grubby hand towel to dry your tiny, sick tears. Maybe you've got some respect for Nature now, eh?

Observances in the hardest-hit spots weren't overflowing with residents. Most of Galveston won't reopen until Wednesday.

But island leaders emphasized that Galveston would remain dangerous and parents were warned their children could be exposed to infections from storm debris and other hazards. Planes continued spraying the island to control mosquitoes. Officials urged those returning to wear masks to protect from mold and to properly dispose of spoiled food to stave off vermin.
Teams of cadaver dogs were still working their way through rubble and debris on Bolivar Peninsula, which suffered even heavier damage than Galveston. Evacuees from the peninsula will board dump trucks and other heavy vehicles this week to examine their homes, since the main road is impassible in many spots.

Authorities had blamed the storm for 26 deaths in Texas and 61 total in the U.S., including a utility contractor from Florida who was electrocuted Friday while trying to restore power in Louisville, Ky.

Power had been restored to most of the customers in Texas whose electricity was cut by Ike, though the state said about 875,000 remained in the dark Sunday.

Whether the power was coming through the wall or from a generator, people throughout the region watched the Houston Texans try to win one for the wretched back home.

Yeah, I'm sure those pretty-boy millionaires were thinking of all of the "wretched" back on home as they played in their overhyped and overcommercialized pageant on Sunday. Yeah, sure.

Maine Williams, a 49-year-old cotton warehouse worker, tuned in the football game with friends in Galveston on a portable TV they set up in an alley. The humidity, mosquitoes and flood muck that covered the neighborhood was made bearable thanks to the grilled hamburger meat, pig tails, cabbage and potatoes, along with the camaraderie and cold beer.

"It's like normal," Williams said, adding that he really wanted was to see his girlfriend and family who evacuated before the storm on buses.

Uh, eating barbecue among filth is like normal? Then that speaks to your existence before the storm, I guess. Or it speaks to your tolerance of adversity, which is good. Or it speaks to your tolerance for a shitty environment, which is not good.

"We're worried about our people," he said. "We want them to come home."

Come home to what, barbecue in a filth-slathered alley? I would have to think they're being better served wherever they are. Sure, you're missing each other, but wives and kids don't belong in this environment, clearly.

As for the game, which the Texans lost on the road to the Tennessee Titans, Williams wasn't too concerned with the outcome: "I'm a Dallas Cowboys man!"

What a trite and idiotic way to wind up this article about the stupid and ignorant. In the end, football is all that matters, right? It's Texas, after all.

My Plans for Evil Overlord

If I ever become an evil overlord:

My legions of terror, will have helmets with clear plexiglass visors, not dark ones. I want their victims to see them and know who they are.

The ventilation ducts in my evil lair will be far too small to crawl through. I know there is an issue with airflow, but I'll upgrade my air exchangers to compensate.

My noble half-brother whose throne I usurped will be executed immediately, in my presence, not kept anonymously imprisoned in my dungeon.

Shooting will not be too good for my enemies. I won't charge their families for the bullets, though; we'll take that expense on.

The ancient artifact which will be my source f power will not be kept on the Mountain of Destiny across the River of Fire and guarded by the Legions of Eternity; it will be in my vault, to which only I know the combination.

I will not gloat over my enemies' predicament before killing them--except for my ex-wife.

When the rebel leader challenges me to fight one-on-one in the ultimate battle and asks, "Or are you afraid to fight without your armies to back you up?" I'll reply, "No, I'm just being sensible."

When I've captured my nemesis and he says, "Before you kill me, won't you tell me what all of this is about?" I'll say, "No," and shoot him.

After I kidnap the beautiful princess, we will be married immediately in a private civil ceremony, and not in three days' time in an overly lavish spectacle which will allow my enemies time to plan.

I probably won't have a self-destruct mechanism, but if I do the activation button will be labeled "Danger: Do Not Push," and I'll have a special, lockable cover over the top of it.

I will not order my trusted lieutenant to kill the infant who is destined to overthrow me; I'll slay the little pecker myself.

I will not interrogate my enemies in my inner sanctum, or anywhere in redoubt at all; an abandoned water treatment plant on the edge of town will do the trick just fine.

I'll be confident in my superiority, obviating the need to leave oh so clever clues or riddles about my plans, or allowing weaker enemies to survive.

I will not make the effort of leaving my enemies' deaths to appear accidental; I want everyone to know what happens if you oppose me.

I'll make it clear that I do in fact know the meaning of the word "mercy;" I just choose not to demonstrate it on a regular basis.

One of my advisors will be a smart-assed seventh grader; any flaws in any plan that he is able to spot will be corrected immediately.

All slain enemies, will be cremated, and NEVER left for dead. We will tidy and thorough.

My undercover agents will not have distinctive tattoos or other creepy body modifications identifying them as my employees. They will blend in, just like they're supposed to.

The supposed hero will not get a last kiss, cigarette, last words, etc.

I will never employ any device that has a digital or spoken countdown. If I absolutely have to have one, it will activate at 27 seconds, just as the hero gets into his final actions.

Any mad scientist who works for me will be truly mad, and he'll monitored so that he never seeks to undo the damage he's done.

If I choose to employ advisors, I will listen to their counsel. I won't always follow it, but it'll be nice t have some additional points of view.

Detroit Mayor Finally Gets His Due

DETROIT (AP) - Only hours after agreeing to resign and serve time in jail as part of plea deal, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick expressed regret for the scandal that has engulfed the city—and left the door open for a return to public life. Sure, he's a young man, with lots of energy, so why not come on back to the life that has rewarded him so well, all of that power, that privilege, that environment of total freedom from honesty, integrity, the need to uphold the law? Any why is it only now that he's sorry? How is it that the regret comes now that it's been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he's guilty of obstruction of justice and perjury? Why didn't he regret it earlier? Kilpatrick walked into a City Hall conference room Thursday to thunderous applause and thanked his family, backers and staff members for sticking by him during his rocky 6 1/2-year tenure. Thunderous applause? From how many people? Family, I can understand--although I can't understand why his wife would be standing by his side--but how many ignorant others are still under the impression that this is a good, upstanding, honest guy? How could anyone be that foolish, that gullible? "I truly know who I am. I truly know where I come from. In Detroit I know who I am. And I know because of that, there's another day for me," he said in a 20-minute speech on live television. "I want to tell you, Detroit, that you done set me up for a comeback." What does "who I am" have to do with this? He only knows now who he is when he's been forced through the preponderance of hard evidence to admit what everyone else has known for year--that he's a crook? Does he "know" that he's a criminal, that he's a liar and a cheat, a dishonest and manipulative cheat? Let's see if he admits to that... Where is the apology? Where is the contrition for doing something--no, not just something, but an entire, cascading, conspiratorial, years-long range of somethings--wrong? And what has happened to his diction? Nothing like a politician to pander to the lowest common denominator, especially when your back is against the wall. Nothing like a politician to change his stripes to resonate with his target audience. In exchange for pleading guilty to two counts of obstruction of justice, the Democrat will get four months behind bars, pay the city $1 million in restitution, lose his license to practice law, and cannot run for any elected office for five years. Where is the lifetime ban on running for office? He's getting off lightly. I'll bet he makes another run for office, and the sheep will vote for him again. His resignation will take effect in two weeks and his sentence will be officially imposed on Oct. 28. Under the city charter, any mayor guilty of a felony is automatically expelled from office. "I always said I would stand strong for the city of Detroit," the 38-year-old mayor said in his address. "But sometimes standing strong means stepping down." Uh, if you were going to stand strong for the City of Detroit, how is it you chose to ignore the integrity of your wedding vows for so long? How did you stand strong when it came to firing those two police officers? How did you stand strong when you conspired with your mistress and then lied under oath--committed perjury--to keep your extramarital affair a secret? How did you stand strong by not admitting your weakness and your mistakes up front--like a man--and instead fighting them and refusing them, citing so many bogus, pathetic excuses and blaming non-existent conspiracies for the trouble and pain you've brougth on yourself and others? How does any of this reflect this politician standing strong? He's standing strong only now that he's officially to blame, as he sets himself up as a victim, sets himself up for another run at public integrity in five years or so. Coming after nearly eight months of turmoil and demands that Kilpatrick resign, the plea bargain was met with relief from politicians and ordinary Detroit residents alike. I'm sure they're glad to be rid of yet another lying, self-serving politician who feels that the ethics and morals and laws that apply to everyone else do not apply to him. His departure could also remove a major embarrassment for Barack Obama and the Democrats in Michigan, a crucial battleground state in the presidential election. This is a reach, really. I don't see it. Sure, Obama praised him in the past, foolishlly, but I don't see this as a national or regional presidential election issue. "This gives us hope. He's not a king," said Monica Smith, 24, of Detroit, a college student. "This is a huge victory for the city of Detroit. He was not a role model. He was a thug. I'm definitely optimistic." Good stuff, Ms. Smith. I applaud you for speaking the truth, directly and without subterfuge. Thank goodness he wasn't a king, or he would have had your head chopped off. Ken Cockrel Jr., the 42-year-old president of the Detroit City Council, will take over as mayor. He said people need to put aside the anger and bitterness of Kilpatrick's sex scandal. No, this was not a sex scandal; that's the tawdry secondary issue, one of the things that led to his real trouble. This was about perjury and obstruction of justice, resulting from a sex scandal. This is not as trivial as a politician stepping out when he was supposed to serving the public; this is about a politician who, when caught red-handed, conspired with others to obstruct justice and lied under oath to cover his own selfish actions. "What we're going to have to focus on really is restoring the credibility not only of the mayor's office, but also of the city of Detroit," Cockrel said. "There is going to be a need for a healing period in the city of Detroit." The plea bargain came just one day after Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm convened an extraordinary hearing on whether to oust Kilpatrick as mayor. Why did it take this long for the governor to act? If she had the power in the state constitution, why did it take so long for her to make a move? She's just another politician covering her political behind, not wanting to take a stand until she knows exactly which way the winds are blowing. Nothing like being a leader, eh Governor? "I would hope that Michigan citizens will demonstrate our compassion as a people and pray for the mayor's family," Granholm said after the deal. What a load of complete and total condescending crap. Another politician positioning herself as the Forgiver, the gallant and noble do-gooder, when inside she's giggling with glee. First, God is not going to help these people; he doesn't exist. If he was up there, and wanted to help the people of Michigan out, he would have stopped Kwame from straying in the first place, or would have made him stop after the first time, or after the first coupla-dozen times. Or God would have made him own up to it with his wife, or God would have had him admit his guilt in public. Why would God cause Kwame to lie under oath? What is the divine purpose in causing that to happen, or to allow it to take place? Why would God put Detroit and Michigan through all of this crap--if he really cared about any of this? That's because he's not there, so praying isn't going to do a bit of good, except maybe boost the personal self-satisfaction of those doing the praying. At least she did leave out Kilpatrick in her plea for people's prayers. She may be a good Christian woman 'n all, but she was sure to cut him out of the call for prayers. I'm with her on that. He's beyond that kind of mythical help. The scandal stems from a whistleblower lawsuit filed by two former police officers who accused Kilpatrick of retaliating against them for trying to investigate misconduct by the mayor and his security detail. Questioned under oath in 2004 and 2007, Kilpatrick repeatedly denied having an affair with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty. Observe: the perjury goes back to 2004, a full four years. This jackass has been knowingly breaking the law--the felony law, that is, the obstruction of justice and perjury stuff, not including all of that adultery stuff--for a good four years. And it's taken this long for the process to get to this spot--sad. But the Detroit Free Press later obtained text messages between the two—some of them sexually explicit—and published excerpts. Kilpatrick and Beatty were later charged. So did he really think he could keep this under wraps? Was he that naive? That confident of his own personal power and reach? He got the cops ousted, apparently, but he couldn't keep the press back. Good on ya, Detroit Free Press, for doing your job, and doing it so very well. In addition to perjury, Kilpatrick was accused of misleading the City Council when he secured its approval of an $8.4 million settlement with three former police officers. Prosecutors said he settled to keep the text messages from becoming public. "Misleading?" That's an understatement. On Thursday, Kilpatrick also pleaded no contest to assault, for allegedly shoving a detective who was trying to serve a subpoena in the text-message case. His sentence in that case will be served at the same time as the one for obstruction. This one actually seems to me to be The Establishment piling on, slamming this guy while he's down and/or sticking it to him when it seemed he wasn't being properly dealt with in all of the other legal proceedings. I definitely won't go so far as to say that Kilpatrick's treatment here has been unfair. That being said, if you're under this kind of scrutiny, facing these kinds of legal challenges, the last thing you want to do is get physical in any way whatsoever with a sworn law enforcement official carrying out a formal court action. If you're that stupid, then I guess you deserve the assault rap. Or, if you're Kilpatrick, if you're that cocky and self-assured that you forget the law applies to you, too, then welcome to the dock, you idiot... "I take full responsibility for my own actions and for the poor judgment that they reflected," Kilpatrick said. "I wish with all my heart that we could turn back the hands of time and tell that young man to make better choices, but I can't." Again, where is the apology? This statement here is NOT an apology. He says he's taking responsibility, and note he doesn't address why he hasn't done so earlier. He's taking responsibility now only because he has no other choices, and his denying and delaying are no longer options. And the crap about "that young man," well that was only 5-6 years ago, at 38 now that would still have him well over the age of 30. Sorry, but once you hit 25 or so, the pass that young people sometimes get for being impulsive or rash or inexperienced pretty much goes away. And to call your 32-year-old self a "young man" is yet another subtle way of ducking blame, of avoiding taking responsibility for the actions. You think that at age 32 or so that you didn't know about perjury and obstruction of justice, that adultery was wrong and illegal? You're a lawyer--no, wait, WERE, a lawyer, after all--so these kinds of issues are not in question, and a youth argument is cynical and trite, and shows us you still do think we, the public, are gullible and ignorant, and you still can pull the wool over our eyes. The son of a Detroit congresswoman, Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Kilpatrick was 31 when he was elected in 2001, becoming the youngest mayor in Detroit history. His youth, energy and diamond stud earring endeared Kilpatrick to many fellow blacks, especially young ones. Cool. I'm all for youth and energy, and the desire to remake that with which we're fed up. But power corrupts, and this is where it's led us. But Kilpatrick's first term was tumultuous. He came under fire for racking up thousands of dollars in travel on his city-issued credit card and leasing a luxury Lincoln Navigator for his wife. Ah, the delicious allure of entitlement. I'm entitled to it because... Yeah, so many fall into it, assuming that because the wife works hard as the city's first lady, she gets her own vehicle, too. But a good honest scrub of your ethics will show that it doesn't wash. You're a public servant, and we are not here to serve or bankroll your public grandiosity. The only politicians who get rich in office are those who are corrupt. Under his leadership, though, Detroit landed baseball's 2005 All-Star Game and the 2006 Super Bowl. And Kilpatrick's ability to work with business leaders also has been credited with an overhaul of the city's riverfront and development downtown. Good riddance to yet another self-serving, corrupt politician. There are thousands more where he came from. And he'll be back, too, just wait and see.

God Will Help When You're Dying . . . Maybe

Based on an article by Lindsey Tannerap, accessed via AP:

Many Think God's Intervention Can Revive the Dying

My simple response: then why are there so many obituaries in the paper every day?

CHICAGO--When it comes to saving lives, God trumps doctors for many Americans. An eye-opening survey reveals widespread belief that divine intervention can revive dying patients. And, researchers said, doctors "need to be prepared to deal with families who are waiting for a miracle."

What in the hell does this mean? Doctors need to tailor their approaches to the practice of scientifically grounded medicine to cater to idiots who think an Imaginary Friend is going to reach down his gigantic hand like in a Monty Python sketch to cure Granny's viciously terminal bowel cancer? What miracle are they waiting for, the dying to get up and can-can around the room?

More than half of randomly surveyed adults—57 percent—said God's intervention could save a family member even if physicians declared treatment would be futile. And nearly three-quarters said patients have a right to demand such treatment.

What "treatment?" Giving costly, futile treatment to someone who cannot benefit from it? How ridiculous is this? How selfish is this? This is the argument that those alcoholic, hepatitic sons-a-bitches who go through 2 or 3 or 4 livers are using. When I become Philosopher-King, these decisions will be made, quickly and without a lot of drama.

When asked to imagine their own relatives being gravely ill or injured, nearly 20 percent of doctors and other medical workers said God could reverse a hopeless outcome.

This is basic wish-fulfillment, sad and whining and so pathetically sycophantic and fawning. So lame. Everyone wishes they could win the lottery, and God could make that happen, too, if he chose to. Or he could make me a film star. Or he could help me and countless others to live for five hundred years or more. The problem is: none of this has happened, and none of it will happen.

"Sensitivity to this belief will promote development of a trusting relationship" with patients and their families, according to researchers. That trust, they said, is needed to help doctors explain objective, overwhelming scientific evidence showing that continued treatment would be worthless.

So, what this is saying is that doctors, whetheror not they themselves have the faith that God is up there and actually cares about the enfeebled, critical patient in play, have to buy in to the family members' last-minute, grasp-at-absolutely-anything, fantastical wishes so that--wait for it--so that they, the doctors, can better communicate to the enraptured, in-denial family that there is nothing else that can be done? How does this make any possible sense in any possible way?

A doctor has to, because I am a Wicca-Druid, tell me that he understands that the Mother Earth spirit has communicated with the stones and the trees and that the earth is balance with water and fire, and that all are in alignment with the cosmos, and my crystals are aligned, too, so he can better deliver to me the no-shit punchline: your father is dying, and there is nothing medical science can do.

Pat Loder, a Milford, Mich., woman whose two young children were killed in a 1991 car crash, said she clung to a belief that God would intervene when things looked hopeless. "When you're a parent and you're standing over the body of your child who you think is dying ... you have to have that" belief, Loder said.

Truly, and this may be harsh, things are not hopeless; they are what they are. A tragedy has struck out of nowhere, and this is the bitter, horrible fact of life, that death is ever present, and sometimes will rise up and strike when you least expect it. Saying "you have to have that belief" is really a coping mechanism, a way of denying or at least delaying accepting the truth that the unthinkable is happening to you, right now, with no warning and no time for preparation.

I cannot imagine the agony this woman suffered in this situation, and I cannot fathom how I would react in the same situation, but I most certainly wouldn't be thinking about a non-existent God. If God were up there, and cared for your children and loved them, and if he loved you and your family and your children's friends, then why did he do this to you? If he can reach down and fix it--forestall the death of truly innocent children--then why doesn't he do it? After all, if you're signing up for the whole God-business, he is the one who brought the death upon them in the first place. God is the cause for their death; he made it happen. God killed them . . . if this is your belief system. What exactly is his calculus for doing this? Why is he killing the young and innocent? For their sins and mistakes? And why doesn't he bring them back?

While doctors should be prepared to deal with those beliefs, they also shouldn't "sugarcoat" the truth about a patient's condition, Loder said. Being honest in a sensitive way helps family members make excruciating decisions about whether to let dying patients linger, or allow doctors to turn off life-prolonging equipment so that organs can be donated, Loder said.

This has nothing to do with signing up for God and omni-present intervention. This is about sensitivity, empathy and respect, and understanding that we all will go through this, many times in our lives, sooner or later. Give someone the courtesy and treatment you would expect if you were in that situation. Help them the best you can. That's all a doctor or any other caregiver needs to do, not sign up for some hokum about God and his incredible powers--which he is consistently choosing not to use.

Loder was driving when a speeding motorcycle slammed into the family's car. Both children were rushed unconscious to hospitals, and Loder says she believes doctors did everything they could. They were not able to revive her 5-year-old son; soon after her 8-year-old daughter was declared brain dead. She said her beliefs about divine intervention have changed.

Of course they have. How can you continue to believe in God when he takes away your children? Or, at the very best, when things like this happen and he refuses to help you? How can you continue to have faith when this happens to you?

"I have become more of a realist," she said. "I know that none of us are immune from anything."

And that's because there is no God. There is nothing/no one watching over us. Life is cruel and harsh, uncompromising and unflinching. Existence is not a human thing, and therefore is beyond human belief, faith or wish. We live in it, and we are largely powerless to affect it. All we can do is be aware and wary, attentive to the threats that are around us every day, whether it's dangers in traffic, tainted meat, or pedophile priests.

Loder was not involved in the survey, which appears in Monday's Archives of Surgery. It involved 1,000 U.S. adults randomly selected to answer questions by telephone about their views on end-of-life medical care. They were surveyed in 2005, along with 774 doctors, nurses and other medical workers who responded to mailed questions.

Survey questions mostly dealt with untimely deaths from trauma such as accidents and violence. These deaths are often particularly tough on relatives because they are more unexpected than deaths from lingering illnesses such as cancer, and the patients tend to be younger.

Well, duh, of course these are harder. When you see death coming, everyone can prepare. There is no way out, and we're all headed there, but it's nice if you've got time to get ready. When you can do that, it's easy. The abrupt and unexpected is the hardest. But, this doesn't mean that God or even hollow God-talk should come into play. Just because it's an ugly, tragic, excruciatingly painful situation is no reason to abandon the truth.

Dr. Lenworth Jacobs, a University of Connecticut surgery professor and trauma chief at Hartford Hospital, was the lead author. He said trauma treatment advances have allowed patients who previously would have died at the scene to survive longer. That shift means hospital trauma specialists "are much more heavily engaged in the death process," he said.
Jacobs said he frequently meets people who think God will save their dying loved one and who want medical procedures to continue.

Again, if it's all about God and what he can do, then why are you asking for medical treatment to go on? If God is going to make it happen, there is going to be blinding golden light, angel choruses, that kind of thing. If medicine can fix the victim, they'll already have it done or be working on it; if medicine can't, then the doctor owes you the unvarnished truth.

What's the first stage of grief? Denial, yes. That's what this is, forestalling the inevitable, denying it, and substituting the power of God for reality. Get on over it, accept the truth, and move on.

"You can't say, 'That's nonsense.' You have to respect that" and try to show them X-rays, CAT scans and other medical evidence indicating death is imminent, he said. Relatives need to know that "it's not that you don't want a miracle to happen, it's just20that is not going to happen today with this patient," he said.

Nothing wrong with wanting a miracle to happen, and with the billions of people in the world every now and then that zillion-to-one instance will occur, and Junior will jump up from the table all better. But most days, almost every single day, that's just not going to happen.

Hope for the best, expect the worst.

Families occasionally persist and hospitals have gone to court seeking to stop medical treatment doctors believe is futile, but such cases are quite rare.

Nothing like squandering insurance and all of the assets and wealth of the estate to provide medical treatment in a futile manner, eh? Nothing like taking time and attention away from those who will pull through. Nothing like that kind of denial.

Dr. Michael Sise, trauma medical director at Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego, called the study "a great contribution" to one of the most intense issues doctors face. Sise, a Catholic doctor working in a Catholic hospital, said miracles don't happen when medical evidence shows death is near. "That's just not a realistic situation," he said.

So, Catholic Doc, I guess the only miracles are those performed by the saints, without having that whole eminent-death thing bearing down on them, right? Again, religious dogma is ready for anything.

Sise recalled a teenager severely injured in a gang beating who died soon afterward at his hospital. The mother "absolutely did not want to withdraw" medical equipment despite the severity of her child's brain injuries, which ensured she would never wake up, Sise said. "The mom was playing religious tapes in the room, and obviously was very focused on looking for a miracle."

Denial, pure denial. Likely another Catholic, brought up in a life of dogma, costumes, hierarchy and ingrained, rote-memory ritual. So what do you go to when everything else you know has let you down? Right back to your ritual.

Claudia McCormick, a nurse and trauma program director at Duke University Hospital, said she also has never seen that kind of miracle. But her niece's recovery after being hit by a boat while inner-tubing earlier this year came close. The boat backed into her and its propeller "caught her in the side of the head. She had no pulse when they pulled her out of the water," McCormick said.

Doctors at the hospital where she was airlifted said "it really doesn't look good." And while it never re ached the point where withdrawing lifesaving equipment was discussed, McCormick recalled one of her doctors saying later: '"God has plans for this child. I never thought she'd be here.'"

What a load of shit. I would be incensed if my doctor or that of my child was spouting hollow religious crap when it's time to save someone's life. Enough of the hollow quackery, and let's get to the hard science, the real things that make medicine go. The story itself tells you the deal: "it never reached the point where withdrawing lifesaving equipment was discussed," so there were clinical indications she might not make it, but also clinical indications she was viable. God and plans had nothing to do with it.

I say: let's come back 20 years from now and find McCormick's niece, and see what kind of plans God has for her. Who's up for this test?

Like many hospitals, Duke uses a team approach to help relatives deal with dying trauma victims, enlisting social workers, grief counselors and chaplains to work with doctors and nurses.
If the family still says, "We just can't shut that machine off, then, you know what, we can't shut that machine off," McCormick said.

Yeah, that's grief, just taking some time to adjust. It's got nothing to do with the victim getting better; it's all about the family adjusting to the new reality.

"Sometimes," she said, "you might have a family that's having a hard time and it might take another day, and that's OK."

Bottom line: If you believe in God, you must then believe that not only can he fix the bad things that happen, but also that he has the power to stop them from happening in the first place (we won't get into the whole "he caused the bad thing to happen" bit). So, if God allows bad things to happen to good people, how is it that he is looking out for any of us? Why would he give us a lifesaving miracle when he let that bus run over that little girl? When pedophile priests continue for decades with fully witting bishops and cardinals shielding them, how does that show God is looking out for us? When crminals defraud and steal in the name of God, how is it that God is looking out for us, or at least the morons duped by their schemes? When child rapists get away and offend over and over, how does that show us God's love? How does the very existence of child pornography demonstrate to us God's love for us? When children get cancer or other diseases, are hit by cars, are beaten and starved and tortured and murdered by their parents, how does that show the depth and purity of God's undying love for us, his own children? It doesn't, It doesn't because there is no God. Never has been, never will be. The sooner we all figure this out, the better off we all will be.