The Electoral College is Dead

President Obama on Friday described the Electoral College — originally a compromise between those who wanted Congress to choose the president and those who favored a popular vote — as a “ vestige.”

from the New York Times

The 'Electrical College' is dead.
For most folk tis over their head.
It can't be explained
or even retrained;
it hangs by an overripe thread. 

Light the World #17

. . .  we wait for light, but behold obscurity . . . 

Isaiah 59:9

Walking in obscurity without the grateful light,
I toil with hope diminishing late into doleful night.
My sight is dim, the muffled murk delays the start of day;
O save me, Lord, from mists of darkness on my halting way! 
How much longer must I wait for light and glory's gain?
"My son, delay will teach you faith -- it never is in vain."
"Whether you can see or not, the future's plain to me,
and I will guide you through it all into eternity."

Pakistani birds caught up in international intrigue

About the same time, Indian authorities in Kashmir said that they had also discovered 150 dehydrated pigeons stuffed into a car and that they suspected that the birds were smuggled for purposes of espionage. An official was quoted as saying that the pigeons had suspicious multicolored rings attached to their feet. All were turned over to an animal welfare agency while police investigated the case. 

from the Washington Post 


Perfidious pigeons, indeed!
Suspicious, like all of their breed;
No doubt they appear
as spies in Kashmir -- 
provoking them all to secede! 

As Trump era nears, is the media ready for the challenge?

Journalism, more and more, is concentrated in New York City, Washington and California . . . 

from the Washington Post

The newspapers of the Midwest
their writers have had to divest.
They get all their scoops
from various groups
tied up to a Special Int'rest. 

Elderhood

A pickpocket is Time to me;
sneaking up so gradually.
Taking hearing, sight, and smell;
making stairs a living hell.

Yes, I've lived past sixty-three
and I've seen some history.
I've become a bard, a rhymer,
sitting in my soft recliner.

When I start my long recital,
it's not treated like it's vital;
my kids have their fish to fry
and don't care if I speechify.

And so I mark the passing term,
slowing down to food for worm.
Sage advice I have but little:
Don't open cans marked 'Peanut Brittle'.

Here’s why they will most likely return your gifts

“One out of every three gift recipients in the U.S. returned at least one gift item during the 2013 holiday season with the total dollars of returned gifts estimated at $262.4 billion (not including fraudulent returns),” Cohn writes. “This figure does not include unwanted gifts that are not returned but kept in a closet, regifted, sold, donated or thrown away.”

from the Washington Post 

When giving me a gift, don't try

to please me with a silk necktie. 

I never wear 'em, 'cept to church

(then hang 'em on the backyard birch).

A book on diet will be tossed

outside into the cold, cold frost;

yes, I know I'm overweight -- 

but you're a drunk, so cease to prate.

You think I'll like that cheap tick-tock?

It only shows you know your schlock.

Your box of candy is so stale

it's only fit for garbage pail.

No sweater, socks, or fountain pen

will ever make you my dear friend.

And gadgets for my laptop? Nix!

I'd rather have a muffin mix.

And if you try a fruitcake, mate,

you better wear a thick breastplate

because I'll throw it back so fast

you'll think it was a cannon blast.

A thoughtful gift would be so rare

that it would make me stop and stare.

Yet shopping for me isn't hard -- 

cuz all I want's a damn gift card!  

No-religion 'Nativity' display gets OK for Iowa Capitol

The centerpiece of the secular display will be a Bill of Rights "nativity," foundation officials said. The cutout depicts founding fathers Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, along with the Statue of Liberty, gazing in adoration at a "baby" Bill of Rights.

from the Des Moines Register 


An atheist in bland Des Moines
wanted goodwill to purloin;
he got very fresh
when it came to a creche,
so he 'roasted' one like tenderloin. 

Local governments eager to see returns from Amazon.com deal

An estimated $200 million in state sales tax and another $100 million in local sales taxes go uncollected each year from online purchases made by Utahns.

from the Deseret News

No sales tax was ever designed
to give biznessmen peace of mind.
Their customers gripe
at government's swipe,
and say they are being robbed blind.

Peace in this World

"It is only through following the Savior that any of us can find peace and serenity in the trials that will come to all of us."   Henry B. Eyring

Follow the Light of the World for repose;

He allays ev'ry pain from our commonplace woes.

The trials I've encountered, though filled with my foes,

 are sweetened by Christ into sunlit meadows. 

Too Many Favorite Shows? Take Them In at High Speed

With Netflix and podcasts and so many other media offering uncountable hours of addictive programming, how is a listener or viewer supposed to keep up? For some, the answer is speed watching or speed listening — taking in the content at accelerated speeds, sometimes two times as fast as normal.

from the New York Times 

There was a young woman from Wheatley
who wanted to watch programs fleetly.
At double the pace
she forfeited grace,
her mind overloading completely.