This week I would like to dedicate the blog to the long suffering Comma Editor and the More Jokes and the All the Rest Editor. Thank you for all your hard work.

Jeez.

The thing about having the editors is they are working harder at it than I am, now I have to go back and do a bunch of revising.

I have to say I'm feeling pretty vindicated about the blog right now, since a big part of it is on the topic of Who The Hell is Running the Show?

Indeed, how in the Sam Hill does one build a 25 story building so poorly in the 21st (I think that's right) century in Seattle WA that in 8 years you have to tear it down? International readers this is an apartment building with retail on the street level, that was so poorly constructed it has been determined that for safety reasons it will have to be torn down. IT IS 8 YEARS OLD, IT'S 25 STORIES IT IS IN DOWNTOWN SEATTLE.

A lot of people will lose their shirts and a lot of others will lose their pensions because it was built for the Carpenters Union Pension fund along with some other pension funds. We used to laugh and laugh at this kind of shoddy workmanship when it was in Communist Soviet Russia. This is just embarrassing for a whole bunch of people, but strengthens my point, which is, it's a bad idea to assume that smart people rise to the top. Obviously a lot of smart people do end up in a position of importance, but it does not appear to be across the board. It seems that a percentage of influential people ride to top based on their outfits. Hell if I know.

In this case once again, the rich white guys who will come out smelling like a rose are lawyers. They are suing everyone no matter how unrelated the work was to the fact that the building has the potential to fall down.

Anyway, the point of this whole comma ridden blog, the apex if you will is this: If this
is the best a bunch of rich white guys with all the marbles can come up with, one despairs.

WaMu executives are testifying before Congress this week, coincidentally, in a not so parallel universe. Not repentant really, just pissed off that they didn't get bailed out. They can't afford cable now.

MANNERS

As you know I have excellent problem solving skills. If you believe as I do that people who spit on the sidewalk are vermin I can fix them. Seriously, why would you think it's OK to leave revolting spit on the sidewalk after you?

The solution is easy, and two fold.

First, it has to be a primary offense, or whatever they call it, like talking on your cell phone while driving, so the cops can arrest you for it. Then, after the trial where the offender is found guilty, the convicted criminal is taken outside the courtroom right that minute by the bailiff and made to spit on the sidewalk. He then  (not surprisingly the vast majority will be male) has to get down and lick it up. Sentence served. Cheap, quick, a little cruel, a little unusual maybe but I think the Supreme Court will uphold it.

If that doesn't solve the problem completely, for the second offense, the bailiff  takes some random guy out of the County Jail and he spits on the sidewalk and the guilty guy has to lick that up. Then if the spitter is stupid enough to do it again you just give up and throw him in the Big House. The Republicans will like it because it's cheap, the Democrats may not love it, but I'm an almost bleeding heart liberal and I'd pay to watch. Then there is the bonus "Get Out of Jail to Spit Card" for the guy in jail. Pretty win win if you ask me. Problem solved.

RECYCLING

I have decided not to throw my plastic in the ocean after all. Although there is a floating bunch of plastic 1,000 miles wide across in the Pacific Ocean which is almost impossible to believe, but if you look it up it's true, so really what's the difference. And late breaking news, there has been a similar mass found in the Atlantic.

I get this email thing from the Seattle library every month about new books that are out, you can pick categories, like Do It Yourself or Biography, and somehow I have gotten a bunch of titles that involve "A Year Of..." One I read was by a woman who along with her husband went a whole year without buying anything they didn't actually need. It was OK, although the only thing I actually remember about it was the line about them going to some Frugal Meeting or whatever they call themselves and being fascinated with a guy who "had an apparently self inflicted haircut".

Anyway, where I was going with this is. I am thinking about trying to go for a period of time without buying or using any new plastic, not a year, but a month maybe? What do you think? I am already pretty intense about it, particularly packaging that is out of control but I still use it. This means I can't buy Bud Light in six packs because of the plastic rings, for example. You 20 take a vote and I will do what you decide.The great part is I haven't really thought this through. I didn't even think of the Bud Light thing, one of The Editors did, so it could be pretty interesting.

OK what else what else this week?

WORDS

There is no such word as NOTATE.

PRETTY GOOD THING

Anyway, there is good news all around, lets look. The Space Needle is great. When you go up to the Observation Level there are pictures and captions about building it. Turns out they didn't really know if it was going to work. They had to make prototypes of many pieces,well no kidding, you can't go to Granger and order Space Needle bolts. It's interesting that the engineers involved weren't that sure how it was going to work out and it is still perfect. Which brings me back to the 25 story building, oh never mind. Whatever. I love the Space Needle.

The More Jokes and All The Rest Editor has informed me that this will be the last time I'm going to get away with looking out the window to find a good thing, which takes the Arches of Science off the table for future use so I might as well throw them in now. (Really, doesn't it seem like there should have been a whole bunch of commas in that last sentence?)

Well what is so wonderful about the Arches is they light them up for special occasions, and we can see them from our living room. It's usually pretty easy to figure out what's going on, they were green for St. Patrick's day for example. The last time they were Husky colors, that was a little confusing. I think it was because the Women's Softball team won something. A softball game probably. I love the Arches and the Space Needle.

We have a new International Reader, he is stuck in Europe due to the volcano, hope to see you back here soon!

The More Jokes and Everything Else Editor said this one was unfocused. God shes mean. Dammit, it's not mean if it's true.