I hear tell someone in Congress wants to make the Monday after Easter a Federal holiday. Seems to me just another way to take Christianity out of the most holy of Christian celebrations - if anything, the Friday before Easter should be the holiday.

I never really cared for this Monday substituting for an actual holiday. Holidays aren't holidays anymore; they've turned into nothing more than 3-day weekends - mostly for the benefit of Federal employees. A paid day off work - who cares why?

I may not be Christian in the traditional sense but this is/was a Christian-based nation founded mostly on Christian principles. Unfortunately, it's the Christian "turn the other cheek" that has led to the coming - or past - ruin of the nation and its ideals. As has been said: "Tolerance for the sake of tolerance is no virtue" ... and we've seen the effects of too much tolerance. Now any attempt to return to those ideals will be met with laughter, derision, and lawsuits - "My rights are violated"; "I'm offended".

Christmas and Easter are fundamental celebrations in this nation - yet neither can be properly acknowledged. But Ramadan is OK ... Kwanzaa is OK.

The muse isn't clear to me tonight and I'm not expressing myself as I desire but may I wish you all a Blessed Easter season.

Had a notice from the host of a brute-force hack-attack this AM and even I was locked out. Had to go to the host CPanel to fix the site access ... and it seems I blocked >everybody<.
Oops.

One of the regulars contacted me and asked what was up. I'd have not known y'all were locked out 'cause the site looked normal to me. As administrator, I don't see the site exactly as you do. If you notice problems, please let me know - I may not realize there's a problem.

From an article on RealClear Wire via ZeroHedge:

"Meanwhile, the United States—still NATO’s military backbone—faces a fiscal cliff, a recruitment crisis, and an overstretched force posture. The era of limitless resources is over. American global primacy has ended. Multipolarity has arrived. The U.S. must now prioritize. And that means making hard choices about where its forces are truly needed—and where others must finally step up or face the consequences."

I don't know or necessarily agree that American global primacy has ended; weakened though ... and it's not that "multipolarity" has arrived, but that multipolarity has returned. Multipolarity had existed - was NATO's purpose - throughout most of NATO's existence. That multipolarity - and the need for NATO ... at least US involvement ... first ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Too many - most of the world - has lived off US largess (and American neocon dreams and wishes) since 1990.

35 years - an entire generation - is enough. The world has drained us dry - we let them for pie in the sky imaginations of global unity under a US flag - but it's now past time to end the charade. Europe in particular does not need - nor any longer deserve - American "protection".

Update April 16:
A prominent Turkish defense official has given a rare interview to a regional Middle East outlet wherein he describes NATO as a "zombie alliance" which has outlived its functionality and legitimacy as a real military alliance, something which is becoming increasingly evident at Trump threatens to walk the United States away from being its main funder and leader.

NATO is now a zombie alliance. It exists more as a myth than a functional military bloc. Its expansion has been reckless. Its operations – from the Balkans to Libya to Ukraine – have destabilized entire regions, and its credibility is collapsing.

The EU, meanwhile, is pushing a €800 billion (approximately $864 billion) military revamp under the name “ReArm Europe.” But this requires massive austerity at home. European governments are preparing their populations for war, not peace. They need enemies to justify the spending.

He then admits, "But without US leadership, NATO cannot survive as a coherent structure. Trump’s America will not fight for Estonia or send troops to Moldova. Europe will have to defend itself – and it is not ready."

At the time of this sign, I had occasion to often drive Telegraph Rd (the one in the Dire Straits song - also passing where Jimmy Hoffa was last seen). Something to do with a young lady of my acquaintance ...

Driving back and forth to see this girl sucked up a lot of gas, maybe 80 miles round trip (she became my fiancee but the marriage never happened).

Anyway, there was this gas station open past midnight. Not many were in those days. And I often made the return trip after midnight.

Recall gas tanks were small and gas mileage even smaller. If you didn't keep an eye on the gauge, it was easy to run out of gas. Being young-ish and somewhat stupid played into that possibility. So did being broke much of the time.

"Can I have a $1.25 worth of regular please?" That was an hour's work ... and maybe 50 miles worth of driving.

So, this was often the only open station for the 15 miles or so I drove along Telegraph.
Trouble was, they charged ... 32¢/gal !!! Outrageous gouging!

I swore I wouldn't pay that much.

And, by God, all these years later, I was right.

Submitted as a comment by SK

The Cat

You get a wife, you get a house,
Eventually you get a mouse.
You get some words regarding mice,
You get a kitty in a trice.
By two a.m. or thereabouts,
The mouse is in, the cat is out.
It dawns upon you, in your cot,
The mouse is silent, the cat is not.
Instead of kitty, says your spouse,
You should have got another mouse.

Ogden Nash