Thoughts on Easter

Normally I post things on my blog related to the current political condition or jokes and stories.

However, as today is Easter, I feel to share something about this day, its significance to me and to many others throughout the world.



When I opened my web browser (Google), I expected to see something about Easter, a special day to billions of people that commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.


Instead, I saw an image of Cesar Chavez, the American labor leader and civil rights activist, noting that it was the 86th anniversary of his birthday.



I thought how sad that there was no mention of Easter, let alone Christ.

I will add at this point that I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--commonly called Mormons. The central focus and keystone of our beliefs is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that he was born of Mary as described in Luke, and spent his life teaching, healing and serving others, and ultimately suffered in Gethsemane and died on the cross that we might live beyond death... in short He is our Savior.

One of his most significant teachings is often overlooked, if not downright ignored--even by those who profess a belief and love for Him. We read in Mark, Chapter 10:

"42 But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them.

 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:

 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.
 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a a ransom for many."


What a contrast!!! The leadership of Christ is to serve others, while our leaders today generally do it to gain honor, praise, glory and power.

I personally am deeply grateful for the service and sacrifice of the Savior.  I am thankful for His grace, wherein I have received blessings I did not earn. I know that it is only through the grace of Christ can anyone be saved after all that we can do.

I have also come to learn that it is not merely enough to believe in Christ, for, as James says,

"...the devils believe and tremble."

Coupled with this is the understanding that the way we manifest our faith in Christ and our love for Him is to serve others. Good men and women, individually and collectively, can do more to alleviate suffering, offer hope when despair reigns, and bring joy and peace to others than all of the government programs that have ever been or ever will be. 

Since I understand that charity is the pure love of Christ, I also know that charity begins in one's heart, not in the praise and adulation gained through contributing large sums of money to a cause.

I pray that we will all pause for a moment this day, and count our blessings.  I hope that we can appreciate our families, our lives, and the blessings of the very air we breathe as all being gifts from God. I hope that we can be a little kinder, a little more patient, a little closer to our Lord.

I leave my personal witness that I know that Christ lives!  I know that He continues to inspire men today as in days of old, and that all people of faith, regardless of their particular denomination, become Christians as we emulate the example of Christ in serving others. .

I leave this witness in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ...Amen.

Is Your Personal Data Safe With Skype, Facebook, etc.?

Another thought-provoking article from Chriss Street.

In spite of assurances of using 128 bit SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption (don't ask me what this means--go ask an 8 year old), is our personal information when we use Skype, Google, Facebook, etc.?

My adult kids encourage me to use Facebook, and I do go on it 4 to 5 times a month. However, I'm just a little paranoid, after having spent years dealing with credit reporting agencies that mixed my credit history with other's, and the hours it took to straighten mistakes out.  Not to mention the negative impact on my credit...

Anyway...Chriss's article explains where there are risks of data mining, and also the loss of privacy due to the Patriot Act, etc.

Read about it here:

http://www.chrissstreetandcompany.com/2013/03/confident-security-skype-encrypted-services/

Obamacare's New Taxes Equals Sequestration Cuts

In researching for my blog, I noticed that the cost of the Afforable Health Care act was almost the same as the cuts mandated by Sequestration.

Chriss Street has verified that this is the case in his article:

http://www.chrissstreetandcompany.com/2013/03/obamacare-taxes-equal-sequester-spending-cut-2/

We still haven't felt the full economic pain of ObamaCare as most of the mandates will not be in effect until 2014.  If that's Fiscal Year 2014, then it will start in October--just 6 short months. Even on the calendar year it only is 9 months away...

I highly advise people to get out of debt and reduce their spending... I think it's going to get real ugly.


Smitty

Tech Addiction Could Impede Kid's Success

Our world has exploded with technology--in medicine, in music, in communications... the list goes on and on.

Most of this is positive. It has resulted in better medical care, and the ability to communicate with people in diverse areas of the globe.

However, as with any good thing, too much of it isn't a good thing.

This article, from by Heather Kelly of Salt Lake City's KSL Online News brings up some important points:

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=24503040&nid=148&title=tech-addiction-could-impede-kids-success-later-on&fm=home_page&s_cid=queue-1

So, what do you think?  Jump in and tell me how technology has affected you--good and bad, and what you think is appropriate...

Regards,

Smitty

Artistry in Wood and Steel

Artistry in Wood and Steel

Over the last couple years, I’ve become pretty good friends with Ron Durrant—one of my coworkers who recently moved back to Utah from Texas, where he worked for Bell Helicopter.

Ron is a Quality Assurance Specialist, so I “rub shoulders” a lot with him in my role as a Production Controller of a machine shop.

Like so many people in the QA field, Ron is a stickler for detail and doing the job right—brought on no doubt by his many years in military and commercial aviation.  After all, if your engine quits at 20,000 feet, you can’t just coast to the curb and call a tow truck, so things have to be done right…

As I’ve grown to know Ron, I discovered that he leads a dual life… at his day job he is constantly scrutinizing processes and products to ensure they meet requirements…by night, he’s a talented gunsmith with a passion for antique firearms.

A couple weeks ago he sent me some pictures and commentary on his latest project—a beautiful .58 caliber flintlock rifle.

.58 cal Flintlock Rifle. Note the Knife Handle has similar wood.

With his permission, I’d like to share them with you as well. 

Ron starts out by relating how he went to Fort Eustis, Virginia for two months for some training on the Apache helicopter.  While there he had an opportunity to meet, and work with, the gunsmiths at Colonial Williamsburg. They actually have a working gunsmith shop that repairs and builds antique firearms, using tools and methods from the late 1700s to the early 1800s.

Ron spent all his spare time in the shop, learning all he could about the tools and processes for making an antique firearm. He says it was one of the great experiences of his life.

He speaks of holding a 700 year old “lock” that was sent to the Williamsburg gunsmiths by the Queen of England with a request that they make a copy of it. The lock is the firing mechanism for a flintlock or caplock firearm—the metal sideplate plate and hammer along with the interior mechanism, springs, etc.)

Picture of Lockwork on .58 Cal Rifle. Note the Buffalo track mark in front of the hammer and the hand formed and tempered hairpin spring under the frizzen (upright curved metal piece that is struck by the flint clamped in the hammer).

 

Ron tells the story in his own words:

 “It was a great experience seeing the file marks made from a gunsmith from the long
past. The workmanship was exceedingly fine and you would never know that
that lock was forged and filed by hand from raw materials. It looked like it
had been machined from modern tools, but the file marks indicated
otherwise.... actually it was better made than what is made today by
machines.”

Ron continues:

“In early muzzleloader history, the gun architecture was set apart in
different regions of the colonies by "schools of manufacture."  For example the
Bethlehem school, Lancaster school, and so forth.

You could actually tell who was the apprentice of a master in the area by the
influence of the master in the new smith's products.

There was a reason that it took an apprentice so many years to become a
master. Many of those years of study and practice under the guidance of a
master were spent learning how to make their own tools and getting prepared
to strike out on their own with all of the tools and knowledge needed to
make a firearm from scratch.”

Bear in mind that there were no Computer-controlled lathes or mills in the 18^th Century—all of the parts of a firearm were made by hand using files and saws. As a result, every weapon made, even the same models by the same gunsmith, were really one-off pieces.  Viewed from that perspective, even the utilitarian infantry musket or Dragoon (calvary) pistol was a work of art.

Ron’s experience at Williamsburg was a source of the motivation to try his hand at the same type of work.

He said,

“I designed this rifle taking some of the features I liked from several of
the schools and incorporating them into this gun. As I was building it, I
found that a rifle very much like this one was made in New England in the
very early 1800's. And it also has some of the lines of the Harpers Ferry
rifle that Lewis and Clark used in the Corps of Discovery. I didn't really
know it at the time I was designing the gun. It just goes to show that most
of what we do has already been done before........”

Right hand side of the rifle shows the lockwork with flint clamped into the serpent-shaped hammer. Note also the hand-cut screw heads and coiled tip on the trigger.

With the exception of the barrel, which came rifled, and some rough cast parts for the lock, Ron did all the work himself, including tanning the hides for the leather “possibles bag” and knife sheath as well as making the powder horns.

For a stock, Ron selected red tiger-striped maple.  This wood has a similar appearance to that used on the neck of  quality violins, cellos etc. He inletted the barrel channel as well as the areas for the lock, capbox, and wire inletting in the stock.

The beautiful, hand rubbed stock of tiger-striped maple glows likes it lit from within... Note the Buffalo hoofprints engraved into the cheek piece and the engraved scroll work at the rear of the stock.

If you look carefully, you will see buffalo hoof prints stamped into the steel parts and carved into the cheekpiece on the stock.  The rear sight is actually a hand-filed buffalo skull as well.

It’s work like this that makes a gunsmith a true artist—he has to master skills in woodworking, forging, metal working, finishing, and assorted related skills as well.

Ron sent a picture of a 25 yard target group made by the rifle.  As beautiful as it is, he intends to go hunting with it…

This target was actually shot at 25 yards.  Note that the three holes are all "cloverleafed" and touching each other.

I think you’ll agree that Ron has a passion for artistry in wood and steel.

Smitty

Humor-- The Risk of Going "Paperless"

This is a cute video, hope you enjoy it. If the link doesn't work here, go to my Humor column and click on it there.

Smitty

http://vimeo.com/61275290

Pope Francis Knows the Danger of Inflation and Deficit Spending

Financial columnist Chriss Street writes about the newly-elected Catholic Pope, and his experience with deficit spending, hyper inflation, and socialist governments in his native Argentina.

Read about it here:

http://www.chrissstreetandcompany.com/2013/03/pope-francis-danger-inflation/

Smitty

Chriss Street: Government of Cyprus Taxes Savings Accounts

The government of Cyprus has instituted a tax on private savings accounts of  9.9% on larger accounts and 6.7% on smaller accounts. This is required for Cyprus to be eligible for bailout funds from the European Community.

Chriss Street ties in the 2nd Amendment, and says it won't happen here, but I'm not too sure...

Read about it here:

http://www.chrissstreetandcompany.com/2013/03/cypriot-bailout-amendment/

Smitty

Proposed GOP Cuts to Federal Budget

Another post forwarded from my friend Ron Durrant. It's interesting to see just how much "pork" is in the government budget...

For example, the White House employees three full-time calligraphists.  They make the hand-written invitations to WH functions, etc.  Their pay?  Over $270,000 per year--the "Senior Calligraphist" makes over $90,000 a year!

State government isn't exempt, either.  The superintendent of the Alpine School District in Utah County makes over $270,000 per year by himself--over twice as much as the governor!!  You'll find similar salaries for other school superintendents.

The head of the Utah Transit Authority (UTA), which manages the TRAX light rail and Front Runner Commuter Rail system in Utah, just retired with a RETIREMENT of over $200,000 a year!!!

So, we can't just blame the Federal Government for excessive spending, nor can we just blame Democrats or Liberals.

Greed really knows no political, social, or religious boundaries.

Anyway, here's some interesting information regarding cuts the Republicans want to make to the Federal Budget.I'm not sure I agree with all the proposed cuts... but Exchange Programs for Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Their Historical Trading Partners in Massachusetts????

Note that Social Security and the Department of Defense aren't included...Also, unless it's titled differently, I don't see the Federal Government subsidy of oil companies.

I've highlighted those that I think are especially egregious.

Smitty

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


These are all the programs that the new Republican House has proposed
cutting.

Read to the end.

* Corporation for Public Broadcasting Subsidy -- $445 million annual
savings. (I wouldn't eliminate this subsidy, but cut it back by 20%--the same amount DoD civilians are cut back)
* Save America 's Treasures Program -- $25 million annual savings.
* International Fund for Ireland -- $17 million annual savings.

* Legal Services Corporation -- $420 million annual savings. (Another candidate for 20% reduction)
* National Endowment for the Arts -- $167.5 million annual savings. (50% reduction--we shouldn't be funding "nice to have" programs when our national security and Constitutionally-mandated government services are being pared to the bone).
* National Endowment for the Humanities -- $167.5 million annual Savings. (Ditto)
* Hope VI Program -- $250 million Annual savings.(What does this program do?)
* Amtrak Subsidies -- $1.565 billion annual savings. (Cut back AMTRAK subsidy and put the money to Veteran's Administration Hospitals, etc.)

* Eliminate duplicating education programs -- H.R. 2274 (in last Congress)--

   authored by Rep. McKeon, eliminates 68 at a savings of $1.3 billion annually. (Why hasn't this been done years ago???)

* U.S. Trade Development Agency -- $55 million annual savings.
* WoodrowWilsonCenter Subsidy -- $20 million annual savings.
* Cut in half funding for congressional printing and binding -- $47 million
annual savings.
* JohnC.StennisCenter Subsidy -- $430,000 annual savings.
* Community Development Fund -- $4.5 billion annual savings.
* Heritage Area Grants and Statutory Aid -- $24 million annual savings.
* Cut Federal Travel Budget in Half -- $7.5 billion annual savings (I don't agree with this as an across-the-board cut.  It certainly needs to be more selective--Congressional Junkets could certainly be reduced.)
* Trim Federal Vehicle Budget by 20% -- $600 million annual savings.Again this needs to be done selectively, not just across the board.
* Essential Air Service -- $150 million annual savings.
* Technology Innovation Program -- $70 Million annual savings.
* Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Program -- $125 million annual
savings.
* Department of Energy Grants to States for Weatherization -- $530 million
annual savings.
* Beach Replenishment -- $95 million annual savings.
* New Starts Transit -- $2 billion annual savings.
* Exchange Programs for Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Their
Historical Trading Partners in Massachusetts -- $9 million annual savings
* Intercity and High Speed Rail Grants -- $2.5 billion annual savings.
* Title X Family Planning -- $318 million annual savings.
* Appalachian Regional Commission -- $76 million annual savings.
* Economic Development Administration -- $293 million annual savings.
* Programs under the National and Community Services Act -- $1.15 billion
annual savings.
* Applied Research at Department of Energy -- $1.27 billion annual savings.
* Freedom CAR and Fuel Partnership -- $200 million annual savings.
* Energy Star Program -- $52 million annual savings.
* Economic Assistance to Egypt -- $250 million annually. (This is a big one for me, considering the political situation in Egypt.)
* U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment -- $1.39 billion annual savings.
* General Assistance to District of Columbia -- $210 million annual savings.
* Subsidy for Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority -- $150 million
annual savings.
* Presidential Campaign Fund -- $775 million savings over ten years.
* No funding for federal office space acquisition -- $864 million annual
savings.
* End prohibitions on competitive sourcing of government services.
* Repeal the Davis-Bacon Act -- More than $1 billion annually. (This act requires government contractors to pay their employees at the local union rate--people scream about separation of church and state, but there's an unholy alliance between the Federal Government and Big Labor)
* IRS Direct Deposit: Require the IRS to deposit fees for some services it
offers (such as processing payment plans for taxpayers) to the Treasury, instead of allowing it to remain as part of its budget -- $1.8 billion savings over ten years.
* Require collection of unpaid taxes by federal employees -- $1 billion
total savings.

* Prohibit taxpayer funded union activities by federal employees -- $1.2
billion savings over ten years.  WHAT IS THIS ABOUT? (Federal employees can't use government resources (including email and computer time) for political activities, but the government subsidizes UNION activities--they're political as well.)

* Sell excess federal properties the government does not make use of -- $15
billion total savings.

* Eliminate death gratuity for Members of Congress.WHAT???

* Eliminate Mohair Subsidies -- $1 million annual savings. (I guess people will have to buy sweaters and coats made from sheep wool...)

* Eliminate taxpayer subsidies to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change -- $12.5 million annual savings. (As long as the government subsidizes research on climate change, it will be a self-perpetuating issue... there's big money to be made here, folks!!) .

* Eliminate Market Access Program -- $200 million annual savings.

* USDA Sugar Program -- $14 million annual savings. (Gee, maybe it would reduce obesity and the number of hyperactive kids!)

* Subsidy to Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
-- $93 million annual savings. (Just what do they do???)

* Eliminate the National Organic Certification Cost-Share Program -- $56.2
million annual savings.

* Eliminate fund for Obamacare administrative costs -- $900 million savings. (But ObamaCare is "affordable"--we have the President's assurance on that)

* Ready to Learn TV Program -- $27 million savings.. WHY?????

* HUD Ph.D. Program. (It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that Government Housing is a disaster!!)

* Deficit Reduction Check-Off Act.

* TOTAL SAVINGS: $2.5 Trillion over Ten Years

(Ron's Comment) MY QUESTION IS--WHAT IS ALL THIS CRAP DOING IN THE BUDGET IN THE FIRST PLACE??

Smitty's Comment-- Most people have forgotten that President Obama pledged to balance the budget within his first term--seems he hasn't even seriously looked at it).

Inside Syria

I'm sure most of you know about the fighting that is going on in Syria right now.  The current ruler--Bashad, is no friend to the US.  He has supported terrorist organizations, and would like to blow Israel off the map.

Opposing him are the rebels who are trying to depose him.

I think most Americans tend to side with the rebels--maybe it hearkens back to our being taught about our own Revolution in the late 18th Century, and the wonderful country that ultimately resulted from that struggle.

However, a friend sent me an email with some insights gained from his own experience in the Muslim world as well as that of others.

It brings to mind the saying that it's better to deal with the Devil you know, than with one you don't know...

Anyway, my friend's comments are included below...

Smitty

Let's take a look at what we have here.

The War in Syria is fought between two parties that have no love for the
U.S. The Rebels are backed by organizations such as al-Qaeda and the Muslim
Brotherhood, while the current Syrian government, the Baath party is a
socialist autocracy.

The current US president and his administration are sending millions of
American dollars to support the Rebels/al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood.
It is reported from interviews of some of the rebels that they have recently
come from Iraq and Afghanistan where they had been engaged killing American
Soldiers.

President Obama has gone around the U.S. Congress and thus the power of the
American people to rule, and committed more millions of our money in support
of this cause at a time when he is taken money from American households in
an unprecedented government furlough, and has increased Federal taxes for
everyone, while at the same time is destroying Americas national defense
capability by drastically cutting funds to the Department of Defense.

The War has gone on in Syria for two years now because of our support and
other support that the rebels have received, where if they did not receive
such aid, most probably the uprising would have petered out for logistical
reasons.

So what do we know from history?

We know that al-Qaeda and the Muslim Botherhood are anti-American. We know
that they will destroy any and all Americans that cross their path and that
they are sworn to do so. We know that they do not support a free government
or personal liberties, as we have seen from their actions in Afghanistan and
other areas of the world where their rule was a dictatorship.

We can therefore assume that they will continue their efforts to exterminate
all Americans/free governments or free religious states which is what their
jihad is about. From training I received before being deployed to
Afghanistan, we were introduced to the jihad doctrine, where they view
America as the father of all evils that threaten them. Jihad is the physical
struggle against the enemies of Islam. The Koran teaches this doctrine.

So in effect we are helping to fund a new base of operations in Syria for
al-Qaeda and the Muslim brotherhood to assemble, train and execute jihad
against its enemy's....us.

So what does this mean for America?

These rebels, with our help, are winning their war. And, I believe when
that task is done they will again turn the barrels of the rifles that we the
American people supplied them with, against us with even more fury than in
the past.

What's even more ominous is that they have support in the White House...

Political Spin from Harry Reid

I received this story from a friend... I don't know if it's true, but it makes for humorous reading nonetheless...

Smitty

No matter what side of the AISLE you're on, THIS is .......FUNNY! Judy Wallman, a professional genealogy researcher in southern California , was doing some personal work on her own family tree. She discovered that Senator Harry Reid's great-great uncle, Remus Reid, was hanged for horse stealing and train robbery in Montana in 1889. Both Judy and Harry Reid share this common ancestor. The only known photograph of Remus shows him standing on the gallows in Montana territory: On the back of the picture Judy obtained during her research is this inscription: 'Remus Reid, horse thief, sent to Montana Territorial Prison 1885, escaped 1887, robbed the Montana Flyer six times. Caught by Pinkerton detectives, convicted and hanged in 1889.' So Judy recently e-mailed Senator Harry Reid for information about their great-great uncle.  Believe it or not, Harry Reid's staff sent back the following biographical sketch for her genealogy research:  "Remus Reid was a famous cowboy in the Montana Territory. His business empire grew to include acquisition of valuable equestrian assets and intimate dealings with the Montana railroad. Beginning in 1883, he devoted several years of his life to government service, finally taking leave to resume his dealings with the railroad. In 1887, he was a key player in a vital investigation run by the renowned Pinkerton Detective Agency. In 1889, Remus passed away during an important civic function held in his honor when the platform upon which he was standing collapsed."

NOW THAT'S how it's done, Folks! That's real POLITICAL SPIN !!!

Is ObamaCare Really Affordable??

The Administration, and most of the media, have trumpeted the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) as providing health coverage to all Americans without increasing costs.  But, is that really true??

Time Magazine ran an article wherein the Congressional Budget Office estimated that ObamaCare will cost $1,650,000,000,000 ($1.65 Trillion) over the next 10 years. 


Read the Link from Time Magazine Online Here: 

http://swampland.time.com/2013/02/05/how-much-obamacare-costs-in-one-chart/

Sequestration--with it's forced furloughs, evaporated operating budgets, and vastly reduced defense capability is supposed to save $1.2 Trillion over the next 10 years. (Hopefully we won't have another 9-11 type attack before then).

It doesn't take a genius to realize that Obama is funding part of ObamaCare through Sequestration cuts.

Even so, there are other costs that the American public will end up paying.for this "Affordable" plan. Note these are from mainstream sources, not some radical Right-Wing website.

From FORBES:

"Americans are learning of a new fee attached to Obamacare. This fee is expected to rake in $25 billion over three years, and many corporations aren’t happy. Millions of dollars could flow from major companies into government coffers if the fee is implemented as planned."

http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlipson/2013/03/15/obamacare-fee-will-cost-you/ 

From Investor's Business Daily:

"ObamaCare's Costly Benefit Mandates Are Only the Beginning

ObamaCare: The Obama administration released its final rule Wednesday on the "essential benefits" to be part of health plans sold under ObamaCare. Small businesses say it will cost too much. They don't know the half of it..."

Read More At Investor's Business Daily: http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/022113-645288-obamacare-benefit-mandates-just-the-beginning.htm#ixzz2NoXwC373
Follow us: @IBDinvestors on Twitter | InvestorsBusinessDaily on Facebook

From The Washington Examiner:

"In a new report, the Government Accountability Office estimated that if the cost-containment measures put in place by President Obama’s health care law prove unsustainable, then the law will add substantially to the nation’s long-term debt."

Those "Cost Containment Measures" include Sequestration.  Read the full article here:

http://washingtonexaminer.com/gao-report-if-cost-containment-fails-obamacare-will-be-a-budget-buster/article/2522590

A tie in to the deficit--
With approximately 100 Million taxpayers in the U.S., if we apply the deficit equally it amounts to $165,000 each.

The Obama Administration recently trumpeted $385 Million in cost cutting (including cancelling guided tours at the White House). If we applied this ratio to our $165 Thousand Dollar individual share of the deficit, we would have reduced it by a whopping...............................................

$385 Dollars!!

Some of you math whizzes can figure out how long it will take to eliminate the deficit at this rate.

So, as the old saying goes, 

"There's ain't no such thing as a free lunch".

Smitty

WalMart Compared To Government Bureaucracy

I received this from an associate... some interesting reading. 

1. Americans spend $36,000,000 (Thirty-six Million Dollars) at Wal-Mart Every hour of every day.
 
2. This works out to $20,928 profit every minute!
 
3. Wal-Mart will sell more from January 1 to St. Patrick's Day (March
17th) than Target sells all year.
 
4. Wal-Mart is bigger than Home Depot + Kroger + Target +Sears + Costco
 
K-Mart combined.
 
5. Wal-Mart employs 1.6 million people, is the world's largest private
employer, and most speak English.
 
6. Wal-Mart is the largest company in the history of the world.
 
7. Wal-Mart now sells more food than Kroger and Safeway combined, and
keep in mind they did this in only fifteen years.
 
8. During this same period, 31 big supermarket chains sought
bankruptcy.
 
9. Wal-Mart now sells more food than any other store in the world.
 
10. Wal-Mart has approx 3,900 stores in the USA of which 1,906 are
Super Centers; this is 1,000 more than it had five years ago.
 
11. This year 7.2 billion different purchasing experiences will occur
at Wal-Mart stores. (Earth's population is approximately 6.5 Billion.)
 
12. 90% of all Americans live within fifteen miles of a Wal-Mart.
 

You may think that I am complaining, but I am really laying the ground
work for suggesting that MAYBE we should hire the guys who run Wal-Mart
to fix the economy.

In comparison:

1. The U.S. Postal Service was established in 1775. The government has had 234
years to get it right and it is broke.

2. Social Security was established in 1935. The government has had 74 years to
get it right and it is broke.
 

3. Fannie Mae was established in 1938. The government has had 71 years to get
it right and it is broke.
 
4. War on Poverty started in 1964. The government has had 45 years to get it
right; $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to
"the poor", yet too many poor consider this a right and demand more.
 
5. Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965. The government has had 44
years to get it right and they are broke.
 
6. Freddie Mac was established in 1970. The government has had 39 years to get
it right and it is broke.
 
7. The Department of Energy was created in 1977 by Jimmy Carter to lessen our
dependence on foreign oil. It has ballooned to 16,000 employees with a
budget of $24 billion a year and we import more oil than ever before. 

The government has had 32 years to getit right and it is an abysmal failure.
 
The government has FAILED in every government "service" they have shoved down our
throats while overspending our tax dollars.
 
AND YET POLITICIANS WANT AMERICANS TO BELIEVE THEY CAN BE TRUSTED WITH A GOVERNMENT-RUN 

HEALTH CARE SYSTEM??

Three Great Lies

I've heard it said that there are Three Great Lies that are common to all people:

1.  This won't hurt a bit.

 

2.  The check's in the mail.

 

3. I'm from the government and I'm here to help you...

 

Smitty

How to Match Screw Threads

How to know if two bolts have the same thread.

 Well, I had to match up some screw threads with some nuts today, and it reminded me of a little trick I learned long ago. With both fine and coarse threads in fractional sized bolts, and various pitches in metric bolts, it's sometimes hard to know if they will screw into the same hole or not:

Hold the first bolt horizontally in front of you.  place the threads of the second bolt on top of the first  bolt.  If they are the same thread, the threads will mesh.  If not, they will sit on the top (points) of the threads.

Make sure the bolts are of the same diameter as some bolts have the same "pitch" but are different diameter.

Now a little background on screw threads and pitch.

  The actual geometry of screw threads is actually fairly complex. In their simplest terms, they are defined  by two things:

1. Their basic diameter-- 1/2 inch, 5/16 inch, etc. for the English system of measurement, and 5 millimeter, 10 millimeter, 12 millimeter etc. for metric diameter fasteners.

2. Their pitch-- Thread pitch might be confusing, but all it really is is how many threads there are in a certain length. 

In the English System, pitch is defined as "threads per inch". For example, half-inch diameter bolts can have a thread pitch of 13-- thirteen threads per inch of running length of the screw. You will find it designated like this:

1/2-13, or 1/2 inch diameter, 13 threads per inch.

 In the Metric System they define how many millimeters per thread... for example, a bolt with a 1.5mm pitch has threads that are 1.5 millimeters wide, or a little larger than 1/16th inch.

A metric fastener would be designated something like this:

 8x1.5mm, or 8 millimeter diameter with 1.5 millimeters per screw thread.

The English system is used primarily in the United States and in other English-speaking countries, though it has been pretty much replaced by the metric system in all but the US. It is based on even fractional numbers starting with 1/4 inch up to 7/8 inch in 1/16 inch increments, and larger sizes in 1/4 inch or larger increments-- 1", 1 1/4", 1 1/2", 2", etc.

The Metric system is the most common system, and is used world-wide. It is a decimal-based system, and though a little challenging at first, is actually easier to use than the English or fractional system once you get used to it.

One way to relate to the metric system is by comparing it with the decimal monetary system used by the dollar used by the US and several other countries, like Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. This currency is decimal based-- 10 pennies equal a dime, 10 dimes equal a dollar, etc.

Hope this helps...

Smitty

Tinkering With Tiny Tractors

Tinkering With Tiny Tractors

Well, here's my first post on things mechanical.

Anyone that knows me knows that I'm a dyed-in-the-wool, true blue life-long tinkerer.  My mother tells me that as a young boy--4 to 5 year old, she had to keep all the alarm clocks and mechanical things up out of reach as I would take them apart to see how they worked  (.but, generally couldn't get them back together again  ;o} )

Well, the tinkering bug has stayed with me... I like to mess around with metal working tools, old cars, Ham Radio, and whatever else comes to hand.

Another thing I've always wanted was a small tractor.  As a small boy--just a little older than when I was dismembering mom's clocks and toasters--mom would take us into the big Sears store on 900 South in Salt Lake City.  They always had these big (to me), beautiful blue and red garden tractors for sale there...

Finally, a couple years ago, I got into garden tractors in a big way...

I started out with the Gravely walk-behind tractor... but soon graduated to Cub Cadets...

The one shown in the first picture above was built in 1967.  I found it down in Ephraim, Utah.  The PO (previous owner) had let it sit for awhile, and we couldn't get it started. So, we pushed it up into the bed of my pickup--no small task as these things are made of cast iron, and weigh about 500-600 lbs.


I got it home, pulled the carb and cleaned it with a can of WalMart Carb Cleaner, then pulled the shrouds from the engine to clean out the mice nests, etc.
I put fresh fuel in the tank, a new battery, and she cranked over and ran... Pretty good for a 40 year old "man toy"!!


These are great little tractors--at least the ones built from the 1960s to the early 1980s.  They were built by International Harvester Corporation (IHC) and their coloring and shape mimicked the large farm tractors that IHC made at that time. You could get them with all types of attachments, including mowers, tillers, snowblowers, and plows. (Picture below is not my tractor-- I just thought it looked neat).

 They are also very popular for Garden Tractor Pulls as their Kohler engines can be tweaked to get 50% more horsepower, and the drive trains are almost indestructible.


This picture shows a Cub Cadet that someone stretched into a dump truck... 

A little long to maneuver around the yard, but definitely intriguing, and... handy.



I've since "collected" a number of other GTs, including a Power King--that's my grandson "aping" for the camera in front of a friend's PK.

Then there's my White GT1650--

It's a great tractor--Briggs & Stratton 16 hp engine, shaft drive--even for the mower deck and tiller, and  hydrostatic transmission.  We tilled a bunch of garden with it this summer.

Then there's my Sears GT18...

Another "find" that wasn't running... in fact the engine wouldn't turn over so I thought it was locked up.  It had a rear scraper blade for it, and the owner let me have it for $200.  I got it up into my trailer (much lower to the ground and easier to use) and got it home.  Poured some penetrating oil in the cylinders (it's a flat twin Onan engine) and turned it over with a wrench... it popped free and then started when I hit the key... yesss...!!  It's in rough shape appearance wise, but I plowed 6 gardens with it this last year... below are some pics of me on it plowing some pasture last fall so we can have a larger garden this spring...

I plowed a 75 x 100 foot space--cutting through the grass and roots... it just kept a runnin'

Anyway... gotta run for now, I'll write more about my GTs later...

Smitty

Not All Crooks Are Stupid

This has been making the rounds on the Internet lately.  However, it's good advice and worth repeating.

 Smitty

NOW HEAR THIS...NOT ALL THIEVES ARE STUPID!!

1. A friend of a friend left their car in the long-term parking at San Jose while away, and someone broke into the car. Using the information on the car's registration in the glove compartment, they drove the car to the people's home in Pebble Beach and robbed it. So I guess if we are going to leave the car in long-term parking, we should not leave the registration/insurance cards in it, nor your remote garage door opener.

This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.

 

2. GPS.

A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard. When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen. The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.

Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it... Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know where you live if your GPS were stolen.

3. MOBILE PHONES
I never thought of this.......

This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet, etc., was stolen. 20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.' When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.

Moral of the lesson:
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....

b. And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.

c. Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you.
*PLEASE PASS THIS ON
* I never thought about the above!

As of now, I no longer have 'home' listed on my cell phone.