Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 261

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I know there is a long way to go, but for whatever reason, I have an uneasy feeling about Hillary Clinton’s campaign. Just a perfect time for Vice President Biden to sit on the sidelines.

Although the Republican presidential field is many and growing, how these candidates pander to the right will continue to be a problem in a general election.

I wonder if the television ads by former Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) warning of economic have any effect on his son’s candidacy, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY).

Given the situation in Iraq , here’s the question I’ve asked before and one that I haven’t notice anyone else asking: Would ISIS/ISIL be a problem if Saddam Hussein was in power?

We recently saw D-Day: Normandy 1944, an Omnimax film at the Cincinnati Museum Center. It’s very well done, so I encourage everyone to see it if you get a chance. To learn more, here’s the film’s website, which includes Find a Theater on the Menu.

The On Satire Bits finale was a lot of fun. Many thanks for the chuckles you gave me in the 134 posts. After all, I’m probably the only person who read every combo! One more series finale to go.

Meals: The Musical – Act 5: Ingredients provide many ingredients. Well done … but no eggs, mustard, ketchup, butter, barbecue sauce, peppermint, chili sauce, cheese, hot sauce, mayonnaise, flour, or coriander … and (as of this time), no buzzers from the producer!  Act 6 should be in two weeks – which means I will announce the theme in next week’s Opinions in the Shorts.

This week has had some unexpected turns, so no Explore or cartoon feature this Saturday, but I’m hoping to toast the new month next week. After all, two more months to go (June and July), and then all 12 months will have a tribute – which is something I didn’t intentionally try to do.

To lead you into this week’s headlines from The Onion, here’s their profile on newly announced presidential candidate Rick Santorum.

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On This Week’s Headlines from The Onion
Complete idiot forgot to shave between mouth and nose
Toyota recalls 1993 Camry due to fact owner really should have bought something new by now
Amusement park adds sleeper cars to its roller coaster for passenger who prefer more restful ride
Wedding guest blissfully unaware she barely made the cut
Long-time coffee shop employee thought customers would care more about his last day
Toddler adjusting to society after serving 2-minute timeout

Interesting Reads
Negative views of Congress crossing party lines
Changing size of bathing suits
Europe’s next cheap travel destination?
New ancient human species found
An inspired inventor
Gases We Emit

For the last time in OITS, here are Your Weekend Celebrations
(Fri) Gnocchi Day, Put a Pillow on Your Fridge Day, Day of UN Peacekeepers, Learn About Composting Day, Hug Your Cat Day, Bats Day, Paperclip Day, Coq Au Vin Day, Heat Awareness Day, Pink Flamingo Day

(Sat) Mint Julep Day, Water a Flower Day, Macaroon Day, Wicket world of Croquet Day, My Bucket’s Got A Hole In It Day

(Sun) Save Your Hearing Day, What You Think Upon Grows Day, No Tobacco Day, Speak in Sentences Day

Here’s a 2-fer to send you into the weekend – two classics, including an unused song from Act 5. Have a safe weekend and in the words of Garrison Keillor, Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.

On a Monday

Warm weather was upon Cincinnati this weekend. What was the weather like in your part of the world? Tell us about your weekend.

As with most weekends, ours was filled with a variety. From ballroom dance to attending our first Reds baseball game of the season … from organizing our recent mess to planting new plants … from attending a birthday party to playing handbells. Yep .. we stayed busy.

Knowing that some of my readers enjoying hearing the handbell pieces we play, click here for Fantasy on Terra Beata, which is interesting and we received kind words from numerous attendees.

Celebrations for your week

• (Week) American Craft Beer Week, Police Week, Food Allergy Awareness Week, Nursing Home Week, Hospital Week, Return to Work Week, Transportation Week, Women’s Health Week, Reading is Fun Week, Children Book Week, Salute to Moms Over 35 Week, Bike to Work Week, Dog Bite Prevention Week, Neuropathy Awareness Week, Stuttering Awareness Week, Pet Week, Music Week, Etiquette Week, Historic Preservation Week
• (Mon) Limerick Day, Nutty Fudge Day, Odometer Day, Women’s Check-up Day
• (Tues) Frog Jumping Day, Hug Your Cat Day, Cough Drop Day, Leprechaun Day, Blame Someone Else Day, Apple Pie Day, Fruit Cocktail Day
• (Wed) Donate a Day’s Wages to Charity Day, Chicken Dance Day, Night-shirt/Third-Shift Workers Day, Crazy Day, Stars and Stripes Forever Day, Marshmallow Fluff Day, Buttermilk Biscuit Day
• (Thurs) Brown Bag Thursday, Over the Rainbow Day, Straw Hat Day, Dinosaur Day, Nylon Stockings Day, Tuberous Sclerosis Day, Chocolate Chip Day, MPS Awareness Day, Day of Families, Hyperemisis Gravidarum Awareness Day

With this weekend includes Hug Your Cat Day, that reminds me of  this funny video that I’ve used before. Enjoy … and have a good week.

Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 218

On Politics
Nincompoop’s (aka Sarah Palin) comments about waterboarding at the recent NRA convention is just another example of most people blowing her off as she focuses on making money. I wonder about her popularity after President Obama leaves office./

Sean Hannity and others may have embraced Cliven Bundy, and LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling may have a lot of money – but while Bundy and Sterling got considerable air time, they represent a very small segment of Americans. The good thing about Sterling is that his headlines got Bundy out of the news.

As the White House and Congress continue their stalemate, here’s an interesting article about the active Supreme Court.

Will the Republican base embrace Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WIS) for his different stance toward the poor?

On This Week’s Headlines from The Onion
Music in bar could stand to be louder, worse
New census report reveals US has over 360 million nobodies
Top theoretical physicists, R&B singers meet to debate the meaning of forever
Man has story for every stain on pants
Obama spends another night searching behind White House paintings for safe
Carlos Santana surprises wife with coupon for 45-minute guitar solo

Interesting Reads
Changing demographics in the US leading to the Next America
Saving Rosie the Riveter’s factory
The next Crimea: A place you may not know (from the Foreign Policy Research Institute)
The science of fat
Robert E Lee’s farewell address to the Army of Virginia (Smithsonian) l

On Potpourri
I’ve always support the US Postal Service (USPS). The fact that the US Postal Service loses money is no secret, but here’s an interesting tale of their inefficiency. Our recent move involved a change of address, but within the same suburban post office. When mail with the old address arrives, I thought the mail would switch from one carrier to another within the same post office. OH NO … that would be too easy. My post office sends the old mail downtown, which puts on a change of address label, and returns it to my post office for delivery to my new address.

Earlier this week I encountered this interesting question when completing a form: Which 3 were the most important factors in your decision to purchase this product? (Select 1)

Act 3 of Life: The Musical was a success. The act provide song titles with the following names: Abraham, Amy, Archie, Billie Jean, Billy, Boris, Catherine, Cathy, Daniel, Debra, Diane, Don, Eleanor, Elise, Elmo, Elsie, Elvis, Frank, Fred, Georgia, Holly,  Jack, James, Jane, Jesse, Joanna, John, Laura, Linda, Lola, Lucille, Mack, Marina, Mathew, Michelle, Nikita, Rachel, Rosalinda, Roxanne, Ruby, Sylvia, Sue, Tina Marie, Valentine, Valerie, Veronica, Victoria, Virginia, and Zorba.

No Saturday Morning Cartoon Classic this weekend, but there will be something.

Here are your weekend celebrations

• (Weekend) Toads Suck Daze
• (Fri) No Pants Day, Tuba Day, Truffles Day, Play a Ukulele Day, Space Day, Roberts’ Rule of Order Day, Mollusk Day
• (Sat) Beer Pong Day, Join Hands Day, Hug Your Cat Day, Garden Meditation Day, Bladder Cancer Awareness Day, Free Comic Book Day, Armed Forces Day, Scrapbooking Day, Two Different Colored Shoes Day, Public Radio Day, Paranormal Day, Homebrew Day, Lumpy Rag Day, Press Freedom Day, Kentucky Derby Day
• (Sun) Intergalactic Star Wars Day, Firefighters Day, Respect for Chickens Day, Lemonade Day, Baby Lost Mothers Day, Infertility Survival Day, Motorcycles Mass & Blessing of the Bikes Day, Orange Juice Day, Petite and Proud Day, Give Day, Laughter Day, Candied Orange Peel Day, Mayday for Mutts Day

To send you into the weekend, here’s something from The Piano Guys that will make you smile.Enjoy, have a safe weekend and in the words of Garrison Keillor, Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.