BJean

Cleos, anyone who tries to tell you that their religion or beliefs or spirituality is superior to yours is not a person who is working to be the kind of person that their beloved Bible says they should endeavor to be. They are myopic, single-minded, selfish, self-important and extremely brainwashed. Anyone who does not seek to understand things beyond the simple teachings of the Bible, Christian educators and writings and accepted clerical wisdom cannot begin to adequately judge another's spirituality. They cannot because they do not have the tools nor the spiritual wisdom to begin to understand the true spiritual powers of our minds and of our universe. The extremist right wing fundamentalists fear anything beyond their own shallow belief system that was structured carefully to keep them obedient. I feel sorry for them like I feel sorry for the children of fanatical Muslim terrorists who are being groomed to kill anyone who disagrees with the extremist Muslim beliefs. They're literally like sheep to slaughter.

I totally agree, as do many Americans.

I think part of the problem with having the most incredibly potent military defense in the world is that we wind up needing to get rid of the obsolete weapons. So in the case of Vietnam, we used them there. Now we're using them in Iraq. And for what? I'll tell you for what - so that the weapons can be replaced with bigger and badder ones. That's how we got so far ahead in the arms race. Anyone who thinks that our military is strictly for "defense" they have their head buried in the sand. We have turned into the aggressors whom we say we hate. And it is mostly about money. We have serious problems throughout the world with irrational leaders in countries that are theocracies and extremist. But we don't have to go drop weapons of mass destruction in order to keep them from rubbing out any of their citizens who disagree with their religious leaders. We can, with the threat of our military behind us, influence countries to treat their citizens better. And it makes sense for us (big brother) to do that. But to annihilate an entire region because we disagree with a country's policies, is ethically and morally wrong. We need a leader who understands this. We need a strong national defense so that we can stay the super power that we are. But to use it indiscriminately is an horrific action that is criminal. And if I were president, we would be prosecuting Bush, Cheney and the whole lot of them. We need to set a precedent. We never thought we had to worry about our own leaders being so corrupt, but it turns out that we do. So we need to make sure that no administration does this again.

peaches, well said! And good luck getting to your goal. It's amazing how cool you'll feel with a TT, especially if you're at goal. Good luck!

Bush sutupidity not funny? LOL I thought it was funny. LOL LOL ROFLMAO LOL Whatza matter with you peeps, don't think Bush antics are funny anymore? A president should be able to be funny about the thousands and thousands of deaths he caused and the billions and billions he spent that we didn't have. Indebtedness to China? Hilarious!!LOLOLOLOL

When hell freezes over. LOL

I know this is true phil, having witnessed that very thing on numerous occasions. I'm pretty sure that if you're not someone with a fundamentalist religious rant, they're pretty sure that you're the boogie man and going to hell and they're willing to start the process here. On the other hand, if you're a "Christian" in the right wing sense of the word, they don't want to mess with you because God will surely strike them down if they do. Us U.S. Americans are totally pitted against one another and some of us don't even have maps. This makes total sense if you ever saw the very right wing Miss Universe (I think it was) spouting one of her brilliant pearls of wisdom.

You've done a bang up job of proving my point. Thanks. No mistaking what you use for brains. And you just keep getting meaner by the day. Not even feigning an ability to really understand the issues or what's going on in Washington. Simply a collossal brainwashing job, thanks to the mom and pop tea baggers, Fox entertainment news and all the rest. Keep it up. You're doing a great job of helping the Democratic party in general and Obama in particular. You people are traitors to the American cause and the American way. And this kind of stupidity is dangerous.

I'm curious. Are you deaf and dumb or just stupid? You've posted a lot of the usual lies and misdemeanors perpetrated by the tea baggers, fox hounds and limbaugh lug head, but this is genuinely ridiculous. The biggest shame going on this country is the derision, discontent and outright blind obedience to the right wing extremist rethoric of those who are unable to broaden their media horizons beyond the Rupurt Murdoch machinery. Buck up kiddos, do think hard about how your leaders have impossibly stalemated themselves into a corner and standing in the way of America's rebuilding. Any way you look at it, you lose unless you try to understand and work with your president and leaders in some kind of conciliatory manner. We won the elections and until things turn, you're stuck with us. We disagreed with nearly everything Bush had to say but we worked with the idiot as best we could. We complained but we didn't refuse to do what we could to make this country safe and better for everyone. They sold us down the river and we kicked the bums out - why are you nut balls thinking that you're the majority who knows best. You had your chance and you blew it big time. And unfortunately you continue to blow it with comments like yours above.

I love the car stuck in the mud analogy.

Good information. But don't expect it to hold any sway with the religious fanatics and right wing tea baggers. They have been fully endoctrinated and please don't confuse them with the facts. It infuriates them to have facts in front of them because it means they have to spend more time finding out how they're supposed to respond from their very fundamentalist/right wing/extremist sources. And don't worry, these things have been mapped out ad infinitim for them and they will be able to sort it out so that they can use the buzz words and rethoric to "prove" how right they are when they post a highly offended sounding retort eschewing the facts and insisting that this is a "Christian Nation" and was from the day it was founded. If I sound negative it's because we've been down this path on several previous occasions.

Excellent, excellent post! Well done.

Well I certainly agree that complex carbs are not toxic and in fact, we need them to have a well-balanced diet. What I meant to say was that the very simple carbs, the junk foods like candy, cookies, cake, jellies, jams, sugery drinks, etc., are often toxic to our bodies. We can use some of the highly refined sugar for energy but otherwise, they aren't good for anything and in fact, can be toxic and addictive. Too much of anything, even if it is a good food can be toxic in the wrong quantities, like meat, milk, eggs, chicken, and porky the pig. So I think what I am trying to say is that a well-balanced meal plan, that includes everything but the highly refined simple carb junk foods, are not only good for us but the answer to having a very healthy body. Wish me luck. I'm someone who has existed for years on junk foods and I am definitely an addict. So I'm working hard to not only figure it out but I'm trying desperately to get healthy and happy. I know I deserve better than to stuff myself with crap just because I'm unhappy, happy, alone or with too many people or any other temporary mental state whre I've allowed myself to justify eating like a hog or a goat.

You're sure welcome. I just noticed you're from Tulsa - my former hometown. And I noticed that you've done really well with the band and you're getting your master's. What an accomplished woman! You should be very proud!

Oh man, do I!!!! Maggie your plan for today is the best thing you can do. Get moving! And remember carbs, especially simple carbs, i.e., junk food, will always go down easier than real food with the band. The doc said that the reason for that is because junk food is loaded with fats and they break down quicker beginning in your mouth. So by the time they hit your band restriction they are already mushier than foods that take longer to breakdown and subsequently digest. And very importantly, remember that carbs are addictive. The more you eat them, the more you crave them. They're toxic and they cause you to retain water because your body is trying to dilute them. Eating them is so totally counter productive to your plan. And last but not least, you must love yourself and care about yourself and be good to yourself. If you're using self-destructive behavior, it is because you aren't caring enough about YOU. We get distracted with outside crapola, like stressing over exams, friend or spouse disagreements, too much work piling up, sadness, whatever! But what we have to do is separate those things from how we manage our health and beauty. You are worth the effort to wean yourself off the simple carbs again. Do your best to eat protein first. Get all your water in. And love yourself. Not necessarily in that order. Take it from someone who's done it all wrong and now is getting it right - take care of yourself baby, you're the only one you have and you're totally worth it. If you love yourself everyone else will too and everything begins to fall into place when you put yourself first!

Thanks Sarah!

leroy it boggles the mind doesn't it? Socialism is a buzz word that the right wing has gommed onto that makes them feel all warm and fuzzy and patriotic toward capitalism. We're learing that many people who are so right wing that they have become exclusionary are now fixated to the extent that they are extremists in the worst sense of the word. Sometimes they spew the same things that extremists in the Middle East spew. Yet they say they hate Muslims and have insulted our president (in their eyes) by calling him a Muslim. The right wing crazies are drinking the Limbaugh/Fox kool-aide and nothing any real free thinker can tell them will convince them to stand back and reasses their abandonment to the kool-aide fix they crave everyday. For one of them to stand up with tears streaming and say, "I want my country back" it is obvious that they are a real threat to our democratic process and our American way of life. Because if you don't join the Tea Party bandwagon and drink the tea party kool-aide, they'd probably just as soon shoot you as have a debate with you.

You are the one who flipped out about his use of that word. It's you who I asked to define it because you seemed to think that it was the equivalent of someone calling the president a "nigger." tdslf the thing that is so confounding to anyone who has a truly fair and civil bone in his body is why people like Rush Limbaugh and the incredibly unfair and biased Fox network commontaters are given any credibility at all, ever. Rush Limbaugh is a bald-faced liar. He has always lied but only in the past few years has he been able to amass such a following of people who apparently believe that he is speaking truth. He is a very dishonest, very clever and devious mad man. And he's laughing all the way to the bank - on the backs of the poor ignorant bastards who think he's the second coming. Rupurt Murdoch is similarly motivated and dishonest and although he only directly controls his Fox empire (as far as I know) he indirectly affects all the other networks because they spend time having to deal with the load of crap that he's dishing out. He's also laughing all the way to the bank and the power he wields is unbelievable in light of the fact that he's such a blatantly dishonest and biased person. Of course we have to discuss it. It's outrageous and it is affecting our lives as free Americans in a very bad way.

Yay Stacy! Who knew a little refried beans could be so darned good!!

Ok I went to out to lunch with the man about half an hour ago and ordered a cup of clam chowder. I ate about a fourth of it and felt fine at first. Now I feel really yukee. I only had like one or two pieces of clam. I think the whole thing was just too rich. Ugh! No pain or anything like that. Just an overall feeling of wantiing to lie down.

Is it just me or do all the posts by us bleeding hearts sound a little different? You know, different perspectives, different wording, different reactions to the neocon's posts, etc.? Whereas the extremist right wing posts all seem to reek of Fox's buzz words/talking points?

Wow congratulations Phil on your retirement to the land of enchantment (so to speak.) I've always enjoyed visiting but wouldn't want to live there because of the heat and humidity. Of course I lived in Orlando which is chock full of G-d and Guns and Disney dancers and singers with the heat and humidity but absolutely no ocean breezes. So I dunno, maybe I would like living in Key West better. It is definitely a whole 'nuther very laid back lifestyle. I hope you love it and are living the good life.

Why yes, blush, I'm quite clever. At least you're smart enough to recognize that. Thanks.

Wow I'm confused... My doctor will not allow me to take Prevacid or Tums or any pills or chewable antacids. I had some burning after I drank Water especially and he said that I can take a little Mylanta. So that's what I started doing if I drank anything before bedtime and tried to lay down to go to sleep. If the burning begins, now I take a tiny teaspoon of Mylanta and can drop right off to sleep. I don't know why water is such a problem. Makes no sense to me. But my doctor defnitely has not prescribed anything to take like that on a regular basis. I will have to ask him why not since so many of you are taking antacids all the time. P.S. Try sleeping in a chair instead of laying down when it gets really bad. I have a long history (before the sleeve) of acid reflux from a hiatal hernia and spent many a night sleeping upright.

I too had refried Beans when my menu plan said I could have black beans. I didn't have a good ready source of black beans so I went for it. The refried beans are the only thing I've gone astray with and I was only eating about 400 cal per day even with the beans. I had absolutely no problem with them the first time I tried them but the second time I couldn't eat as much - only about 2 ozs. But they were absolutely wonderful. I watched Barefoot Contessa make lentil soup that looked awesome. Maybe I'll try making some of that and freezing some for a few weeks down the road. Today I was allowed salmon and although I couldn't eat much it was absolutely the best thing I believe I've ever had. And I'm not much of a fish person. Let's revise that I USED to be not much of a fish person. I'm changing my ways!!