President Trump's Sense of Humor

Nowadays, the President’s sense of humor has been examined exhaustively. The consensus seems to be that either he doesn’t possess one at all, or that it is so subtle that most people don’t get it -- except, perhaps a gang of 12 year old boys having a food fight in their cafeteria. He could even be John Belushi funny.

You can Google Trump’s “only joking” statements by the hundreds, which shore up the contention that he is channeling John Belushi during one of his less sober moments.

Some of the best (or worst) examples are Sean Spicer claiming Trump was just funning when he asked the Kremlin to do a hack on Mrs. Clinton’s emails while on the campaign trail. Or how about that embarrassing moment that ended when Sarah Huckabee Sanders (no relation to the Colonel) said “I think he was just making a joke,” when Trump recommended that cops bounce prisoner’s heads off the door jambs of their squad cars.  

Lucky for us, Happy Hicks, who handles White House communications on a sub rosa level, recently told The Washingtonian that Trump, quote-unquote, “has a brilliant sense of humor.”  So did ________________  (fill in your own paranoid leader.)

Most people know by now that in Washingtonese, when you are ‘joking’ you are actually attacking -- as in “Who cut your hair, Helen Keller? Just kidding!”

An interesting sidelight about this whole eventyr is that Trump and his minions have a very selective sense of humor. Or very tedious, might be a better way of putting it. How many photoshopped pictures of the President hitting people with golf balls or having them slammed into with trains does the public really want?

There are no ‘poor taste’ filters on Twitter, although there certainly ought to be. Trump should probably add an emoji to let us know when he’s joking and when he’s actually insanely mad. This might help clear up ambivalent tweets like the one thanking Putin for booting American diplomats out of Russia. A smiley face or a thundercloud with a lightning bolt would have been enormously helpful at that point. But then, maybe Trump is all about being ambivalent and not funny or serious. He wants to keep us guessing. That strategy, if that is his strategy, has certainly kept him in office longer than a lot of Beltway buffs predicted.

It just may be Trump’s perceived ambiguity that keeps us out of World War Three with North Korea. Calling its president Rocket Boy and then threatening to wipe his country off the map are not to be construed as a direct insult and threat, but rather a whimsical outpouring of presidential poetic license.

Yeah, that’s probably what it is . . .

(Thanks to Andrew Rosenthal of the NYTimes for giving me this idea to develop.)

We are all just puppets

We are all just puppets in this world of strife and woe,

Strung up by our karma in a vulgar puppet show.

The cords of passion move us, make us dance a merry jig.

Then folly twitches us into some sudden whirligig.

Lugging baggage from the past, we cannot fly -- but crawl,

Tangled in the skeins of every other lifeless doll.

And if we try to cut the strings they only grow anew,

Choking us with destiny, secured by Elmer’s Glue.

That, at least, is what philosophers so often spout.

Me, I see no reason why a puppet makes one pout.

Pure whimsy is a blessed conceit, as puppets surely are;

They bring a little laughter to a world too oft ajar.

Essential Oils are Proving to be Effective Antibiotics

Essential oils often evoke thoughts of scented candles and day spas, but their benefits beyond relaxation are less well-known. Essential oils are ultimately just plant extracts—and those are used in countless cleaning and personal-care products, and are the main ingredient in some pest-control products and some over-the-counter medications, like Vick’s VapoRub and some lice sprays. They’re used in the food industry because of their preservative potency against foodborne pathogens—thanks to their antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antifungal properties. Various oils have also been shown to effectively treat a wide range of common health issues such as nausea and migraines, and a rapidly growing body of research is finding that they are powerful enough to kill human cancer cells of the breast, colon, mouth, skin, and more.

A handful of promising, real-life studies have been conducted with humans and other animals, though most of the research in that realm thus far has been conducted in the lab. More controlled trials will be required before some of these applications  will be available to the public, but meanwhile, scientists have turned up exciting results in another area of use: countering the growing antibiotic-resistance crisis. “The loss of antibiotics due to antimicrobial resistance is potentially one of the most important challenges the medical and animal-health communities will face in the 21st century,” says Dr. Cyril Gay, the senior national program leader at the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service.

As Cari Romm previously reported, livestock consume up to 80 percent of the antibiotics used in the U.S., and the amount actually jumped by 16 percent between 2009 and 2012, according to a recent FDA report. This rampant use of the drugs has led to “superbugs” that are becoming increasingly resistant to the antibiotics that are used to treat not just farm animals, but humans as well. In fact, almost 70 percent of the antibiotics given to these animals are classified as “medically important” for humans. According to Romm, “In the U.S., antibiotic resistance caused more than two million illnesses in 2013, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and an estimated 23,000 deaths,” and they’ve also amounted to an extra $20 billion in healthcare costs. And it’s only poised to get worse: a recent report commissioned by the U.K. government estimates that drug-resistant microbes could cause more than 10 million deaths and cost the global economy $100 trillion by the year 2050.

Numerous recent studies—including several done by the USDA—have shown great promise in using essential oils as an alternative to antibiotics in livestock. One of their studies, published in October 2014 in the journal Poultry Science, found that chickens who consumed feed with added oregano oil had a 59 percent lower mortality rate due to ascites, a common infection in poultry, than untreated chickens. Other research, from a 2011 issue of BMC Proceedings, showed that adding a combination of plant extracts—from oregano, cinnamon, and chili peppers—actually changed the gene expression of treated chickens, resulting in weight gain as well as protection against an injected intestinal infection. A 2010 study from Poultry Science produced similar findings with the use of extracts from turmeric, chili pepper, and shiitake mushrooms. A multi-year study is currently underway at the USDA that includes investigations into the use of citrus peels and essential oils as drug alternatives.

Researchers have also directly compared the effects of commonly used antibiotics with those of various essential oils. One such study, from the March 2012 issue of the Journal of Animal Science, found that rosemary and oregano oils resulted in the same amount of growth in chickens as the antibiotic avilamycin, and that the oils killed bacteria, too. Additional findings have shown that essential oils help reduce salmonella in chickens, and another study found that a blend of several oils can limit the spread of salmonella among animals. One of the co-authors of that study, Dr. Charles Hofacre, a professor at the University of Georgia’s College of Veterinary Medicine, says it’s such a new area of research that they don’t yet know exactly how the essential oils work, but “there is some strong evidence that they are functioning by both an antibacterial action in the intestine and also some have an effect to stimulate the intestinal cells ability to recover from disease more quickly–either by local immunity or helping keep the intestinal cells themselves healthier.”

In the lab, scientists have been testing all kinds of combinations of essential oils and antibiotics, and they’re repeatedly finding that the oils—used on their own and in combination with some common antibiotics—can fight numerous human pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant strains of E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus(which causes staph infection), and other common types of bacteria. Results consistently show that combining essential oils and antibiotics significantly lowers the amount of antibiotic required to do the job. For example, two recent studies showed that lavender and cinnamon essential oils killed E. coli, and when combined with the antibiotic piperacillin, the oils reversed the resistance of the E. coli bacteria to the antibiotic. Another recent study found that basil oil and rosemary oil were both effective in inhibiting the growth of 60 strains of E. coli retrieved from hospital patients. Other research has produced similar results for many other essential oils, both alone and in combination with antibiotics. Researchers believe that one mechanism by which the oils work is by weakening the cell wall of resistant bacteria, thereby damaging or killing the cells while also allowing the antibiotic in.

Learn more about the benefits of essential oils from doTERRA Health Advocate Amy Snyder at http://my.doterra.com/amysnyder  

Digging up the dead because you disagree with them

Local officials and residents, outraged by the violence in Charlottesville, Va., last month and determined to clear their cities of markers that glorify the Confederacy, are pushing for the removal of Confederate monuments that have adorned the graves of soldiers for decades.
from the NYTimes 

The ghoulish Mr. Murkle on the City Council said:

“I propose we dig up and destroy Confederate dead!

Even if the worms have done their work, there still might be

A bit of bone or sinew that can reek of infamy!”

His voice was not alone, and soon the many were ablaze

With disinterring corpses of those who had Southern ways.

Eternal rest no longer was an option for remains

Of those who lost the Civil War down cemetery lanes.

But why stop there, the mob decreed -- there’s many villains sunk

In the ground who ought to be no more than a dead skunk!

We’ll dig ‘em up and grind their bones to show our loyalty

To our country’s greatness and the bonds of charity!

The morbid work commenced in California (not a shock)

Where pioneers and actors were unburied by the block.

Politicians, bandits, and a scientist or two,

Were also roused and made into a nauseating glue.

The evil that men do, or were accused of, anyway,

Now meant graveyards gave up ev’ryone as equal prey.

Cremation is the only course, if you don’t want to be

Put up on display because of idiosyncrasy . . .  

It's Document Hunting Season in Washington D.C.

WASHINGTON — Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, has asked the White House for documents about some of President Trump’s most scrutinized actions since taking office, including the firing of his national security adviser and F.B.I. director, according to White House officials.  from the NYTimes

The document season has started again.

They’re hunting for paper from here to Phnom Penh.

The weather is good for the stalking of sheets,

Off in its den under desks, on the streets.

Of course nowadays many documents hide

In cyberspace lairs where time it can bide.

But hunters like Robert S. Mueller can find

Tracks where all others are equally blind.

He sniffs out their meetings, their memos, their notes;

He’s stalking emails and off the record wild quotes.

Relentlessly zeroing in on his foe,

He cares not who gets in his way, fast or slow.

He even speaks Russian, the better to hunt

Siberian bears who do nothing but grunt.

And buzzards who soar round the Tower of Trump

Will find he can shoot ‘em down, right on their rump!

The season is open, the stakes have gone high,

As Mueller takes aim at each Beltway wiseguy.

Don’t try deleting your own paper trail --

Or Mueller will make sure you never make bail!

Handling Travel Stress with Essential Oils

When it comes to packing a carry-on, there are some must-have accessories you know better than to forget: headphones, a phone charger, and a cozy cardigan for those cold cabins. But if you’re not using them already, it might be time to add essential oils to that list.

Whether you’re afraid of flying, hate waiting in long lines at TSA, or have trouble adjusting to the discomforts of tiny airplane seats, there’s an essential oil combo that can solve your woes. A few drops from the tiny vials can feel like a double espresso shot, a trip to a masseuse, or a session with your facialist since essential oils are especially suited to fight the stress, fatigue, and pain associated with hitting the road.

Amy Galper, a certified aromatherapist at the New York Institute of Aromatherapy, keeps seven oils within reach when she travels. “If I have trouble sleeping, I’m in a new place, or my mind is wandering, I find that frankincense, lavender, and chamomile totally black me out,” she says.

For those who can’t handle hearing the words “unexpected turbulence,” Galper recommends sandalwood, lavender, or frankincense to calm any jitters. And if you’re stuck in a middle seat on that eight-hour flight (with the person in front of you fully reclined), try frankincense, helichrysum, and pink-grapefruit oils—particularly on your lower back and neck—when you get stiff. Your travel-related headaches aren’t limited to unforeseen flight delays? Massage lavender or rosemary on your scalp to temper the altitude discomfort.

See? There’s an oil for every travel woe. And you’re about to be the coolest customer on any plane.

Learn more about the benefits of essential oils from doTERRA Health Advocate Amy Snyder at http://my.doterra.com/amysnyder 

Foxconn and Wisconsin

“Before the Chinese manufacturing giant foxconn pledged to spend ten billion dollars and create thirteen thousand jobs in Wisconsin, the company made a similar promise in Brazil.

Six years later, Brazil is still waiting for most of those jobs to materialize.”

From the NYTimes. September 20. 2017.

Once upon a time up in Wisconsin people dwelt

Amidst the pinewood forests in a happiness heartfelt.

There was cheese and sausage in abundance -- polka too!

Ev’ryone was prosperous and paddled a canoe.

Then one day a coterie from far across the sea

Crept into the state for mischief making (wait and see!)

Like morning glories twined around an unresisting plant,

They squeezed the politicians with their optimistic chant:

“Your fair state does intrigue us; we would like to make a deal.

We’ll give you jobs and money and a tax base that’s unreal.

Just give us land and subsidies; keep unions far away,

Your Badger State will then enjoy an unbroken payday!”

The burgomeisters dithered -- could they get a guarantee

That this here foreign outfit would deliver faithfully?

“How can you doubt our motives?” they were asked in sad despair.

“Have we not brought this blessing to assorted lands so fair?”

“The Nizam of Hyperbole gave us a building site,

And now his people cry our name out all the day and night.

Down where the Brazil nuts grow we promised wealth untold,

And all the jolly people there now go out panning gold.”

Benching better judgement, all the leaders did concur

That they would trust a miracle to suddenly occur.

The gates were thrown wide open and the coterie began

Cutting trees and hauling rock (in charge of a kinsman.)

The countryside was ravished and the taxpayers were bled,

While the coterie built nothing but a dinky little shed.

And as for jobs created for Wisconsin hoi polloi,

They never even hired just one lousy office boy!

After many years and many dollars had gone by,

The politicians finally saw who was the big fall guy.

They demanded punishment for all those bright pipe dreams

That caused all of their people to rely upon moonbeams.

By then that coterie of fiends had fled back overseas

With nothing left behind besides a pair of broken skis.

There wasn’t anyone to blame  for all this shocking madness --

Except themselves, the politicians knew with growing sadness.

Up there in Wisconsin people still fry up fresh smelt.

But in their heart of hearts all of their hopes already melt.

Whenever someone promises to increase their income,

They slap on lots of tar and fluff and then yell: “Kill the bum!”

The Best Essential Oils for Menstrual Cramps

• "Lavender oil used as an inhalation has been shown to effectively reduce cramps and menstrual bleeding when compared to a placebo," shares Jennifer Stagg, MD, a naturopathic physician. "Lavender is thought to effect the prostaglandins that mediate pain and uterine contractions." Lavender oil's ability to lessen contractions makes it one of the best essential oils for menstrual cramps. 

• "Cinnamon oil alone has been studied as a treatment for menstrual cramps, and was found to be very effective at reducing uterine contractions," explains Dr. Stagg.
• "A blend of essential oils of lavender, clove, cinnamon, and rose was studied as a topical oil applied to the abdomen for seven days prior to menstruation, and was found to reduce the amount of pain and duration of cramps and even the amount of menstrual bleeding when compared to a placebo group," says Dr. Stagg. She suggests these essential oils for cramps because they may balance prostaglandin levels to ease pain.
• Clary sage is one of the most popular essential oils for menstrual cramps because it's easily found and widely believed to be an antispasmodic agent, meaning it reduces spasms, like the ones your uterus may be experiencing. Still unsure about essential oils? 
• Of all the essential oils for cramps, frankincense probably evokes the most festive flair thanks to the scent also being popular at holiday times. Frankincense can be used in a warm bath, diffuser, or applied topically when diluted with other oils to help relieve pain associated with inflammation. These surprising frankincense benefits will get you excited about trying the oil on for size.
• Ylang ylang oil is regarded as a mood enhancer, PMS-calmer, and mild sedative to help take the edge of pain associated with cramping. It also is thought to fight anxiety, which is a kind of welcome bonus when you're already uncomfortable. Here are some other essential oils that help fight anxiety.

Learn more about the benefits of essential oils from doTERRA Health Advocate Amy Snyder at http://my.doterra.com/amysnyder 

Saint Claire Broiler to Close

The St. Clair Broiler was the spot I took my high school flame.

We’d share a malted milk while playing at the mating game.

A reuben or a rachel, or a country club on rye,

Would guarantee a kiss or two when no one was nearby.

And after I was married we’d go out on Friday nights

To the St. Clair Broiler to conduct our weekly fights.

For she would have the walleye, while I said the tuna melt

Was better for our budget and would also keep her svelte.

Now we are grandparents and do not fuss much anymore.

She orders the shrimp basket and a frickle, por favor.

I give the grand kids burgers with those greasy brown french fries,

And settle for a salad so my blood pressure don’t rise.

Minnesota Government on Verge of Winter Shut Down

The Minnesota Legislature will have to start furloughing employees in December and completely shut down by February, unless there’s a resolution to the monthslong political and legal conflict between Gov. Mark Dayton and legislative leaders.  from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The Minnesota government will shut down very soon.

It’s enough to make me cry and go into a swoon!

How can snow for skiing be created without some

Bureaucrat who snow-jobs while he sits upon his bum?

No lutefisk or lefse will be processed by the state --

Which means church basement suppers will now meet an awful fate!

And skating rinks will close because of some line item veto --

And will the Winter Carnival be forced to really eat crow?

The roads will not be plowed and with no license for ice fishing

No eel pouts will be caught, filleted, and fried up for the dishing.

If the legislature and the Governor must feud,

I say we dump ‘em in a lake without an Evinrude.