Acting Tough

Golda Meir was the Prime Minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974. She didn't act tough, she WAS tough. She didn't need to convince anyone that she was serious, because she WAS serious. And because she truly had that strength, she was also warm and kindhearted. Look at this photo of her -- not a mean bone in her body. Furthermore, Golda was not a pretty woman, but she was nice to look at and pleasant.

In contrast, our dominant American female needs to prove something. Hillary needs to act tough -- but she's not tough, she's mean. That might explain why she arouses so much hostility.

Why did she stoop to calling my man Obama an elitist because he wouldn't shoot pool in a small town in Pennsylvania? A strong and sympathetic woman would have let his remarks go by -- or would even have backed him up on that. Let's see -- a black man from the South Side of Chicago goes into a small town in the countryside of Pennsylvania and he doesn't feel very comfortable?
I wonder why.

But Hillary just steps up and gives us a new code word, "blue collar worker." She says Obama is not in touch with them. Hillary is from Park Ridge, a leafy north side suburb of Chicago -- near to where I grew up. I know this territory and the status rankings that go with it. People who grow up in Park Ridge have the world at their feet unless they blow it. People from the South Side of Chicago face an uphill struggle, and yet Hillary calls Obama an "elitist."

She's mean, not tough. She's destroys and brings ruin.

So how is Obama going to finish her off? Well, Barak, she's a girl and you can't hit her. But I'm thinking, Obama is too smart for that. What he does -- he stays cool, he stays steady, and he keeps going. Hillary taunts him and goads him over and over again, but he keeps cool. What is he a wimp?

Then out steps Michelle Obama, the fierce one. She turns back to Hillary and calls her out, "Girl, you think you're tough. I'm gonna show you tough. You're ragging on my husband and I'm going to take you downtown."

And Michelle Obama will tear Hillary to pieces and there will be justice in the land.

Cold Spring

If this global warming gets any worse, we're going to have icebergs floating down the Skagit River. The cherry crop in eastern Washington has been devastated by late spring frosts, so your Washington-grown Bings and Queen Anne's will cost double. But look on the bright side -- that solves the labor crunch. Washington farmers have been facing a serious shortage of farm labor this season, but if half the fruit crop is ruined, they won't need so many workers.

Which brings us to the heart of the Frog Hospital policy of energy independence. The key is diversity -- just like what the farmers do. Farmers around here know they can never depend on just one crop, because everything that can go wrong, will go wrong.

Same with energy -- every source of energy comes with its own problem. Energy from foreign oil causes war. Wind power kills birds, ethanol from corn drives up food prices, solar energy is just plain pricey, and nuclear energy can blow up in your face.
The solution is to get a little here and little there. Diversify.

And conserve.