Eddie Fisher - With These Hands (1953)

Plastering has begun

This is the front of the apartment which has old and new look to it.  The plastered side is the location of my bedroom.  The side to the left with the concrete blocks is the patio area which leads into the living room.  I am making a log of this renovation now.  Picture below is bedroom window which was done early Monday morning.  Soon this primer plaster job will be covered by another coat of plaster which will be the base for the paintwork to be done after this initial plastering job.

What can America do?

IS is a body of terrorists who claim to be the ruler of Islam now.  They emerged from a meeting at Yemen some time ago and were seen chanting the usual death to America theme.  They hate America and want to destroy it.

What can America do?

First, all Americans must be vigilant, remember the Minute Men, and be ready at a moment's notice to defend one's self.

The border problem is such that many believe that potential terrorists have crossed those very borders and may be laying in wait for the time to come to strike at America from within. It has happened before.  A precedent has been set since all the perpetrators of 9/11 had done just exactly that.

Secondly, we must elect the kind of people to congress and the presidency who have the courage, moral fibre, and dedication to defend our constitution, our liberties, and our values.  We do not need any weak Willie's who will be easily persuaded to wishy-washy try to appease the world press or world opinion.

Thirdly, we need to stay morally sound ourselves, not fall prey to self-destruction through alcoholic abuses, any form of addictions to drugs or entertainment, and to stay healthy in body and mind and spirit.

We cannot allow our educational system to be downgraded to satisfy the whims of the weak and lazy but we need to constantly value excellence, dedication, and high achievement.  Our best resources are our young people who need encouragement in academic prowess and endeavors.  We need not allow our own firm character to be eroded by the weaknesses of low intelligence, or low income families.  We must keep our standards high instead of relinquishing them due to a few who cannot reach them.

In too many cases, some school systems are actually changing and altering curriculums to satisfy the needs of students who cannot take tests or pass tests.  That is a serious problem that needs to be addressed for the good of the whole and not for the few who cannot cut the mustard.  In other words, minority groups should not be able to dictate the goals and aims of a school system.

America can do a lot.  But it needs a caring and well educated citizen to ensure the continued success of a nation that was originally ruled by only property owners.  Today, any and everybody can cast a vote in an election so that the electoral process is even slowly destroying the fibre of this democracy.

Nobody eligible should be denied the right to vote on any basis when he is a legitimate citizen of this nation.  However, dead people should not be allowed to vote as has too often been proved to be the case as well.

This country is only as good as the people who live in it.  The only way the people can be good is to be taught by parents, teachers, and community leaders alike.  If America is to lose a battle it should win, it will because it forgot all the principles which brought it into being in the first place. Love of liberty, love of independence, love of honor and decency is what will save America.

Why War? WWI memorial today.

As I went to bed last night the last thing I saw on CNN was an assembly gathered together for the cause of remembering the departed of WWI.  Today in the Independent, a newspaper article discussed the war as former soldiers recalled it.  One threw his poppy away in disgust headlines read.

War has many points of view.  Depending upon when the battle was fought, the pov will change.  In modern day wars we become more aware of the internal workings of war through professional journalists who report it as they see and hear it.  In all of history, some person as a historian or a scribe has somehow or other managed to capture some aspects of a battle, won or lost, to leave to posterity so that we glimpse into it a bit.

Modern wars are now fought with technology and weapons that were nonexistent in times past.  Yesterday's seemingly crude weapons are now kept and collected to marvel at how wars were won or lost with something so simple as a bow and arrow, a shield and sword, and even simply stones.  David brought down Goliath with only a stone it is said.

Today, we have stealth bombers, drones, tanks, artillery, sophisticated eavesdropping equipment whether that of satellites in the atmosphere or cellphones and computer devices ready to in an instant convey a message of urgency.

Early primitive man had to devise tools, dig holes, make netting devices just simply to trap a lion, a boar, or a tiger.  Man versus nature was more prevalent that man against man.  Have we come a long way or not?

To the victor goes the spoils the saying is.  In war that is always the case.  In times past, a war was intent upon either capturing the adversary to make them slaves or to kill them so as not to be troubled again.  It did not matter whether they were civilian or military, so long as they were with the adversary.  A child could grow up to become a threat if left free so he was either killed or captured to become a slave.  Women could be as much a threat to a neighboring community as men so that they were treated in the same light.

In modern times, all this has changed. We no longer think that way.  We have social programs, educational activities, and humane goals that change in each generation to make the lifestyle of the past seem harsh, cruel, and unwarranted.  Granted,  those times of the past did not have modern electricity, indoor plumbing, modern highways with a variety of transportation vehicles, or fast food restaurants. Life was more of a struggle then than it is now.

So why is war an ongoing lifestyle?  Why are there conflicts between nations today?  We have finally arrived at the point to where we have a United Nations designed to equalize each and every nation of the world.  Granted, the Security Council gives heavier weight to a few select nations than others but that is because of the mood of the nations when this governing body was formed.  Today it is likely that some similar kind of weight would still remain with key nations whose economic and social powers are greater than smaller undeveloped nations.

The ongoing wars being fought on the earth at the moment appear to be based upon a conflict in religious beliefs and thus goals of the countries which espouse those beliefs.  It appears that the Jews who hold fast to their ancient beliefs are in direct conflict with the Muslims who continue to devote their lives to the faith in which they are born and taught, and unfortunately, in their case, who also coerce other nonMuslims to become Muslim upon fear of death.  What kind of religious faith is that?

War frankly has never been futile. It however has always been unfortunately considered by the Muslim faith that whenever they won a battle over  an adversary that it meant that their God had favored them.  The victory reenforces their belief that God is on their side.

For that reason alone, because as western civilization has become more aware of the kind of teachings of the Muslims, it is seems necessary to deal them a blow that will cause loss of faith in their God.  Anyone who is not a Muslim is considered an infidel and therefore an adversary who should be hated and should be killed.  In that respect, I strongly am opposed to the militant who would set out to destroy my freedoms and my liberties to impose their unfortunate and foolish beliefs upon me. I would fight back and I would want my nation to fight back.

Unfortunately, the Israeli's also have some nonsensical belief that they are the chosen people, that nobody will ever defeat Israel, and they too like the Muslims need to learn that the only thing that they have been chosen by God is to deliver up some Jewish Messiah who Christians believe to be Christ, and since that is done and accepted by most of the world, it is frankly silly for the Jews to continue to deny it while embracing the idea that they are better than everyone else in the world.

So we have two world religious bodies believing in a faith that the rest of the world finds incredulous and antiquated, watching them slaughter one another.  While the Jews wrestle with the Hamas who seem to hate Palestinians enough to allow them to be killed wholesale by Jews who should know better than to do that,  the other terrorist Islamic militant are attempting to take over a caliphate of their own and to rule the Islam world.  They operate  by the sword too, and are readily killing any opposition to them, and will eventually try to hit the USA if and when they get up the manpower to do it.  Rest assured, nobody doubts that they hate the USA and Americans wholesale and will try some idiotic deed against the Satan which is America.

Muslims had been slashing throats in Algeria for years as France reported to the world. Muslims live by the sword and have absolutely no qualms about inflicting their beliefs upon everyone around them.

Is war with the Muslim world necessary?  Yes, it is.  There is no other way to impact these militants but to defeat them.  No matter what it takes, war is necessary to protect one's own freedoms and one's own country.  They cannot be converted or changed simply because they are in a state of true insanity.  They truly believe all the history and doctrine that has been fed into their minds.  They will not be changed or converted.  They must adhere to the teachings of Mohammed, a man they believe to be a prophet, and a man I believe to be a criminal, a psychotic, and a pedophile.  What can the sane people of the world do but to recognize this and to defeat it. It must be defeated. To think that this religious belief has for so many centuries ruined so many people's lives is absolutely unthinkable.  But it is time for it to end.

While this is not a happy thought, it is a necessary realization.  We must stop IS before it goes any further.  Period.

Follow up to Don Schnepp blog entry

I made a friend request to one of the men who stood up before the school board to protest the issue of a rock at a Middle School in Paulding and he responded. I will not name him in this post.  He accepted my request so that he could read my comments which are on my wall.  He then gave me his phone number so that later in the evening I did call him to talk with him about what had happened.


Since my  friendship with Don was  in my youth,  there is little that I can say about his adult life.  We had remained friends until the gay pride program began in earnest and Anita Bryant became the target of their undisguised hate and contempt.  She complained that she feared that they intended to kill her, and that was the beginning of the end of my sympathy towards the gay agenda.


This is not an apology for Don's behavior after he had grown out of his adolescent fears and complexes, but it is to give him some amount of support for his having been a good friend to me in our Senior year.   I met him in Van Wert, Ohio one time after he had begun teaching in Paulding, Ohio. He had gone to Ohio State University where he had learned that being gay was a natural and normal experience for many male types who have a propensity for emotional security in their own sex, and for sexual satisfaction through cohabitation with other men.  In other words, there he learned that for some such as Little Richard,  Paul Lynde, and a host of others that being gay is cool.  Gay parties are quite entertaining, and he apparently attended many of those parties.

With that in mind, he forgot to realize that in the majority of households in America, gay is not cool, is not hip, and is not fun at all.  Religious bodies condemn it wholesale, as do many other social organizations, including the boy scouts of America.  In America, each has the freedom to practice what it teaches.

Don forgot all that when he obviously took it upon himself to expose his gay nature to young boys at an age where they were literally emotionally and physically unable to withstand the awesomeness of his age, his education, and perhaps even his attraction.

What literally happened between him and his select group of boys is more than I know but I am certain that he indulged in his own desires by seducing some of them.  They will have to speak for themselves, but I know for a fact that he was capable of doing such a thing since he had told me that he thought that some boys had an attraction to him.  He would have not been a strong enough man to avoid exploiting that and taking advantage of it.  And unfortunately, finally the truth came out. He had been fool enough to force himself upon at least two who  have dared to speak up.

He is gone now.  I was sad to see his name appear in headlines because as I said once a friend, always a friend but we had had a parting of the ways late in our lives.  I became opposed to the gay action group who threaten non gays.  I find that unfair and repugnant to me.  Don did tell me that I was lucky to be alive the last time that I heard from him which was in 1974.  He did still write to me then and had sent me the picture of the class of '54 reunion.

He thought of me as being a lot like Doris Day, not just because we both had freckles, and both were spunky and full of fire but also because he thought of me as some kind of Calamity Jane.  Anything you can do I can do better theme.

I will remember Don Schnepp with fondness for his being a light hearted and funny guy.  He was always honest with me.  When his dad suggested that Don marry me,  because when his dad learned of his being gay all he could think was that all Don needed was a good woman, Don owned up to me that he was gay and liked only boys.  I wish more men could be so honest with other women in that respect.  Both Kathy Lee Gifford and Anita Bryant can testify to that as we have learned.

It seems that the gay world exists in its own little world.  When it comes into conflict with the heterosexual world, there is bound to be trouble.  Don should have had better sense than to inflict his desires on young boys at such a tender age.  He surely should have been apprehended and stopped then.

 But I remember when I was teaching 8th grade at Center Intermediate the entire class knew about Tim Keenan who admitted in the class that he is gay.  Gay problems are better understood in California than in Ohio I guess.  We all knew who the gay members of the faculty were and we knew how to handle it.  Never did any get into trouble with a student.  Yes, even the Lesbian gay faculty members were known as well as the men.  Every school district probably has at least one.  We had more than our fair share.  Kids love to discuss this in my classes in California.  They also like to look up my skirts if they can.  I had to learn how to stay at least ten feet ahead of my students.  It must be just as volatile today as it was when I was in the field.  However, I began a trend by wearing pant suits.  And waxing nostalgic,I remember my favorite 8th grade math teacher, Mr. Young, who got into trouble because of Diane Roth and Diane Hardin who on a phone call made an accusation that was overheard to cost Mr. Young his job.  Oh, how we loved him!  I wanted to marry him.  He did finally marry his sweetheart.  Life goes on.

All Our Sorrows Soon Be Over

Life is very difficult at times.   This has been one of the most difficult days to spend on earth.

Some Words on Don Schnepp

Don Schnepp died in 2004.  I am learning that it was suicide.  I feel so sorry and so bad about all of this now.

Don and I both worked together at Bill Derry's Drug Store in the 56-57 years.  We became friends that year when we were seniors. We had lived on the same street for years without really knowing each other but finally we became fast friends. I was Doris Day to him.

Maybe that it why his sister used a rock to remember him by.



Anyway, I learned this afternoon that he had been the subject of a problem in Paulding after his sister had donated a rock to the Middle School where he had taught.  Don had gone to Ohio State late in life to take up the teaching trade so that he could have employment.  We had remained friends and even exchanged letters and visited back and to with one another.  He confided in me many of his secrets that were obviously not so secret, but we dished the dirt and I learned all the gossip from him.  We were buddies.

In high school he had tried to smash his red Plymouth against a wall so that finally I realized how unhappy he was with himself for being a social outcast.  When his father proposed that Don and I get married, Don confessed to me that he was gay and that he liked boys.  At that time, I learned who all the gay guys in Van Wert were then, and some of the neighborhood adult men who were obviously who had introduced him to that lifestyle.

He admitted to me that some of the boys in his class were flirting with him and that it would be hard for him to resist the temptation.  In high school, he was in the band and would not take up sports fearing that he would be discovered to be gay.  Apparently, he learned from all his gay friends in Ohio State that it was all right to be aggressive and to solicit young boys because the upshot of all of this is that I learned this afternoon that he had raped two of his students.  That is their story.  I will not question them on it.

This will follow with a newspaper article that I read this afternoon.  I am writing this for my classmates in Van Wert, Ohio  who knew both of us way back when.  I am so happy to know the truth now that I think others who care would want to know it too.

He apparently had a friend in a woman who was a school secretary at the school.  The newspaper reported that she defended him.  That was kind of her, but probably a bit misguided.

I applaud the two boys who had the nerve to put their own reputations on the line through speaking out.  I do not doubt that Don had sex with them.  I know him well enough to believe in a part of their story.  I have not heard all of it.  Yet, nobody can ever understand why it is that when a person is so hurt by an act like this that they can get support from others.  I understand why.  One remembers the Don who was kind, who gave me his car to use, who asked me for a date to a hayride, and who was a great listener and pal.  I deplore his act against the children but I do still like the Don who was my friend.