For a while, March 10, the day I married the Love of My Life; but he is dead and gone now and that day just feels very sad with a remembrance of great happiness. So I revert to my old standby, always there for me, my May 24 birthday! I and Queen Victoria. Hey, it is a national holiday in the entire British Commenwealth. Alas, not here!

Actually, we did not “evolve from apes.” We evolved from tiny microorganisms in the sea, which is where ALL life began. The common ancestor of apes and humans showed up on the family tree multi-millions of years ago, then beings branched off from that common ancestor and one branch eventually became apes and one humans. We know of our close relationship on the evolutionary pathway because our DNA is over 99% the same as chimps and other great apes!

Darwin did not find any Neanderthal skulls. He did not find or use them, and furthermore, they have NOT been proved skulls of apes, but of a branch of Homo, just not Sapiens. They were most definitely closely related to our own species and are now extinct.

What solid data shows that a god created all things? This is a Belief, and not a Fact that any one can prove. I agree about there being no contradiction in belieiving in a Prime Cause, which may or may not be a god or gods, and Science. Many scientists have religious beliefs. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution HAS been supported with all proof over and over and over again and is accepted by all Science institutions, departments, and professors world-over. As for witnessing all stages of evolution, this is patently impossible in most species, as it occurred over millions of years. But we DO have the fossile evidence to PROVE it! Also, we observe all manner of viruses, bacteris, and even larger species evolving right before our eyes ALL the time. This is one reason we have to keep coming up with new medicines to kill off the same old bugs: they EVOLVE! Elaine, obviously you yourself have not studied Evolution or you would know you could not possibly have all stages of evolution appear on this planet at one time! Whole species evolve, not one individual at a time! And the change is not in one person in one lifetime, but appears in stages with each generation. For instance, my great grandchildren are all MUCH taller than was my generation of our family. This is Evolution! What we must read in order to be seeing the real world is not fantasies written by man and purported to be from god, but the thousands of scientific texts written by people who have achieved high education, studied and learned and written it down for us to learn in turn.

Yes, the Smothers Brothers were beyond wonderful, and yes, so are Olbermann and Maddow. In fact, Maddow is my current hero.

Our educational system is betraying our children. We, the public, are blindly and unknowingly electing fundamentalist school boards who are dumbing down Science textbooks ON PURPOSE! Science is not Faith. Science is checking all the data in every possible way and making a model or paradigm of what it all means and testing this endlessly and coming up with a theory of how things work.. These theories are not POSSIBILITIES, as are all Faith-related stories, but are REAL FACTS and are sometimes, though not always, added to as additonal data is discovered. I tell you, it is very, very disturbing that our species is deliberately choosing to be so stubbornly ignorant. But have you noticed that for all the know-nothings protests against Science, they LOVE the technological goodies it has brought them!

Dang it, Joan! That’s what I was going to say! Well, my second is George Burns and Gracie Allen. So now you are going to tell me they are YOUR second, as well! But weren’t Caesar and Coca the greatest EVER? Yeeeeeeesssssss!

“The 14th Amendment defines citizenship this way: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” But even this does not get specific enough. As usual, the Constitution provides the framework for the law, but it is the law that fills in the gaps. Currently, Title 8 of the U.S. Code fills in those gaps. Section 1401 defines the following as people who are “citizens of the United States at birth:” Anyone born inside the United States Any Indian or Eskimo born in the United States, provided being a citizen of the U.S. does not impair the person’s status as a citizen of the tribe Any one born outside the United States, both of whose parents are citizens of the U.S., as long as one parent has lived in the U.S. Any one born outside the United States, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year and the other parent is a U.S. national Any one born in a U.S. possession, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year Any one found in the U.S. under the age of five, whose parentage cannot be determined, as long as proof of non-citizenship is not provided by age 21 Any one born outside the United States, if one parent is an alien and as long as the other parent is a citizen of the U.S. who lived in the U.S. for at least five years (with military and diplomatic service included in this time) A final, historical condition: a person born before 5/24/1934 of an alien father and a U.S. citizen mother who has lived in the U.S. Anyone falling into these categories is considered natural-born, and is eligible to run for President or Vice President. These provisions allow the children of military families to be considered natural-born, for example. Separate sections handle territories that the United States has acquired over time, such as Puerto Rico (8 USC 1402), Alaska (8 USC 1404), Hawaii (8 USC 1405), the U.S. Virgin Islands (8 USC 1406), and Guam (8 USC 1407). Each of these sections confer citizenship on persons living in these territories as of a certain date, and usually confer natural-born status on persons born in those territories after that date. For example, for Puerto Rico, all persons born in Puerto Rico between April 11, 1899, and January 12, 1941, are automatically conferred citizenship as of the date the law was signed by the President (June 27, 1952). Additionally, all persons born in Puerto Rico on or after January 13, 1941, are natural-born citizens of the United States. Note that because of when the law was passed, for some, the natural-born status was retroactive. The law contains one other section of historical note, concerning the Panama Canal Zone and the nation of Panama. In 8 USC 1403, the law states that anyone born in the Canal Zone or in Panama itself, on or after February 26, 1904, to a mother and/or father who is a United States citizen, was “declared” to be a United States citizen. Note that the terms “natural-born” or “citizen at birth” are missing from this section. In 2008, when Arizona Senator John McCain ran for president on the Republican ticket, some theorized that because McCain was born in the Canal Zone, he was not actually qualified to be president. However, it should be noted that section 1403 was written to apply to a small group of people to whom section 1401 did not apply. McCain is a natural-born citizen under 8 USC 1401(c): “a person born outside of the United States and its outlying possessions of parents both of whom are citizens of the United States and one of whom has had a residence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions, prior to the birth of such person.” Not eveyone agrees that this section includes McCain - but absent a court ruling either way, we must presume citizenship.”

Have you, in the earlier days of e-mail, received messages from Nigeria and other African countries offering millions if you would just put up a few measley thousands to get them over here, etc.? Me, too. I never fell for them. But apparently some Kenyans (and others) have been working a new scam of selling Obama’s “real” birth certificate; counterfeit, of course, but realistic. And some of the foaming-at-the-mouth Obama-haters over here have fallen for these scams and have paid $2,000 and more US to receive same and be THE ONE who discredits Obama! And now, avidly certain they have in their hot hands the Truth of the Matter, they are trying desperately to bring it to the attention of the public and get them to believe. The officialdom of Hawaii has vowed over and over again that Obama’s birth there was real and there is a valid proof. Hawaii has a LAW against providing the original certificate, but their Secretary of State and others have had the right to check it out and say it is real. Why would they lie? What about all the people who KNEW these people in Hawaii at the time? There are simply heaps of folk who can testify as to his birth there. History distorts. When Henry VII killed Richard III at Bosworth and stole the throne for the Tudors, despite Parliment having passed a law previously saying that line was illegitimate and therefore ineligible, the Tudors put out all sorts of wicked stories to discredit Richard, including getting Shakespeare to write pro-Tudor. Forensic anthropology and studious research has shown the princes in The Tower to have been alive and being provided for AFTER Richard’s death at Bosworth, but the stain has remained on York for centuries due to the PR Spin of the Tudors! Sometimes, it seems, there just ain’t no justice! p.s. Richard did NOT have a hump in his back, either!

I love romantic comedies, and recommend Dan in Real Life to Kelly and Love Actually. But I voted for Historical. Documentaries are my very favorite dessert, but you cannot drag most people kicking and screaming to view one. I know; I’ve tried! There are SO many true stories that need to be told. What the British did to China in the matter of opium, and the Guano Wars, and simply dozens of other things. I am astonished there seem to be more voters out there who DID NOT watch or remember the Watergate Hearings and how wonderful Joe Biden was then. Oh, there is just SO MUCH real stuff to be taught the public, and what better way then through wonderfully exciting scripts that will suck them into the theatres?

Supportive

I was raised a Christian, but was never taught that the Bible is the “Word of God.” This is what has changed so much in my lifetime. We were taught that the Bible was a book full of stories handed down by word of mouth before being written down, and largely mythology. Given this background, also that of most of my generation, I have never been able to relate to those who spend their lives believing every word in this collection of stories. I mean, there is just one whole LOT of contradiction in those books! A whole lot! How does one arrive at believing with all their being that these writings by and of MEN are in fact the “Word of God?” Oh, that’s right! I forgot! It is because a bunch of men desiring to wield as much Power over their lives and minds as possible TELL them they must believe this. It is all, when all is said and done, a question of men wanting power and all of its accouterments. They use The Bible and Fear as very effective weapons. My insulation derives from my having been raised to reason things out. I choose to do unto others as I would desire them to do unto me. Those who hold up their Bibles to stun us with the Word of God should understand that theirs is a specious argument.

Perfect! Wonderful analysis and perspective! Right on!

That is because one of the open rivers of influence for the fundamentalists has been the school boards of America, and they have known this for over 30 years now. They have not only markedly changed our schools, ruining many along the path, but our textbooks. They are dumbing down our Science lamentably. Wish liberal activists would wake up and RUN for the School Boards! Seriously!

I find myself letting go of a deep, pent-up breath and saying: “Thank god for dedicated excellence and good faith!”