I'm Not Like Everybody Else

Pharaoh said to Joseph,
“I had a dream,
and no one can interpret it.
But I have heard it said of you
that when you hear a dream
you can interpret it.”
“I cannot do it,”
Joseph replied to Pharaoh,
“but my GOD
will give Pharaoh
the answer he desires.”
~ Genesis 41

I won't take all that they hand me down
Make out a smile, though I wear a frown
And I'm not gonna take it all lying down
Cause once I get started, I go to town
I'm not like everybody else

And I don't want to ball about
like everybody else
And I don't want to live my life
like everybody else
And I won't say that I feel fine
like everybody else
Cause I'm not like everybody else

But darling,
you know that I love you true
Do anything that you want me to
Confess all my sins like you want me to
There's one thing that I will say to you
I'm not like everybody else

If you all want me to settle down
Then slow up
and stop all my running 'round
Do everything like you want me to
There's one thing that I will say to you
I'm not like everybody else

And I don't want to ball about
like everybody else
And I don't want to live my life
like everybody else
And I don't want to stay fine
like everybody else
Cause I'm not like everybody else

How Many More Times?

Since no one knows the future,
who can tell someone else what is to come?
~ Ecclesiastes 8

This Post Dedicated
to Glorious Leader
of Jim Beam Brigade,
Comrade Hayseed.
Long may he wave.

Well they blocked that video
a gorgeous live clip from 1968

but here is the song anyway...

Medicine Jar

"But days are coming,”
declares the LORD,
“when I will send men
who pour from pitchers,
and they will pour her out;
they will empty her pitchers
and smash her jars.
~ Jeremiah 48

The Snake

Each one threw down his staff
and it became a snake.
But Aaron’s staff
swallowed up their staffs.
~ Exodus 7

Seven & Seven Is ...

... If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times...
~ Genesis 4



Peter came to Jesus and asked,
“Lord, how many times
shall I forgive
my brother or sister
who sins against me?
Up to seven times?”
Jesus answered,
“I tell you, not seven times,
but seventy-seven times."
~ Matthew 18

Hold On

Wait for the LORD;
be strong
and take heart
and wait for the LORD.
~ Psalm 27

Kiss Me

An honest answer
is like a kiss on the lips.
~ Proverbs 24

Watermelon Man

The trees said to the fig tree,
Come and be our king!

But the fig tree replied,
Should I give up my fruit,
so good and sweet,
to hold sway over the trees?

Then the trees said to the vine,
Come and be our king!
~ Judges 9

Sitting In My Tree

At least there is hope for a tree:
If it is cut down, it will sprout again,
and its new shoots will not fail.
~ Job 14

A Bitch Too Far

The woman said:
I know
that Messiah is coming
and when he comes,
he will explain everything to us
~ John 4

Abolish the Department of Homeland Security



Warrior Cops:
The Ominous Growth of Paramilitarism
in American Police Departments

In the Year of iDecline, Twenty Eleventy...

Now, if only I could harness the power of Orwell spinning in his grave to fire up my Tesla coil the Bongatorium would be complete...

The primary mission of a police officer traditionally has been to "keep the peace." Those whom an officer suspects to have committed a crime are treated as just that - suspects. Police officers are expected, under the rule of law, to protect the civil liberties of all citizens, even the "bad guys." For domestic law enforcement, a suspect in custody remains innocent until proven guilty.

Soldiers, by contrast, are trained to identify people they encounter as belonging to one of two groups -- the enemy and the non-enemy -- and they often reach this decision while surrounded by a population that considers the soldier an occupying force. Once this identification is made, a soldier's mission is stark and simple: kill the enemy, "try" not to kill the non-enemy.

Indeed, the Soldier's Creed declares, "I stand ready to deploy, engage, and destroy the enemies of the United States of America in close combat." This is a far cry from the peace officer's creed that expects its adherents "to protect and serve."

Notwithstanding this concern, however, Americans should remain mindful bringing military-style training to domestic law enforcement has real consequences. When police officers are dressed like soldiers, armed like soldiers, and trained like soldiers, it's not surprising that they are beginning to act like soldiers.

And remember: a soldier's main objective is to kill the enemy.

SNIP

never mind the steroids...

My Name Is Nobody

He was despised
and rejected
by mankind,
a man of suffering,
and familiar with pain.
Like one
from whom people
hide their faces
he was despised,
and we held him
in low esteem.
~ Isaiah 53