Cow Pies...

...or in other words...HERE'S THE BEEF

I have several beefs I want to write about today and unfortunately ALL of them current.

Where to begin?

How about ARCs? For those of you who don't know what an ARC is, let me explain. ARCs are ADVANCED READERS COPIES of books sent to readers contracted with the publishing companies to read these Unedited copies and NEVER to sell them. (Boy do I WISH I was on those lists, because as I stated in my Profile, I LOVE TO READ)...But I have gone into eBay and found sellers who sell NOTHING but ARCs. ARCs do not give the authors, the CREATORS of these jewels, ANY credit, or acknowledgement. Yesterday, an ARC of Janet Evanovich's upcoming book TWELVE SHARP sold for a staggering $611.04. (On June 20th, the book can LEGITIMATELY be purchased for $16.17 via Amazon.com.

To the seller AND the buyer I say "SHAME ON YOU". What you have done is no different than if you had held the author up by gunpoint. The seller, who did nothing but accept the contracted PRIVILEGE of receiving book titles LONG before they are available to the masses, FREE, your windfall is nothing short of sacrilegious. To the buyer...I don't care if you purchased this book as a COLLECTOR'S ITEM...it is no different than receiving STOLEN GOODS. You have stolen from the author...you have stolen from the Publisher...you have stolen from all of us who love books and respect them as the crown of creative genius they are. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME.

On to my next "PIE" in today's sky.

Senator John McCain...I really respected and LIKED you before. You were a man of honor and compassion. Had you won the nomination for President over the current man back in 2004, I would have happily voted for you. I was appalled by the attack the Bush Campaign waged against...not you...that would have been, although dirty, I suppose given the contentious atmosphere that overcomes supposedly decent people when they are politically driven...acceptable...but to attack your wife and family? That was abhorrent to me. I gave you kudos for defending your loved ones. So what happened? Why did you forget the slings and arrows slung by the Bush Campaign and literally climb into their snake infested bed? Where is your honor? NO ONE ATTACKS MY FAMILY WITHOUT FOREVER ASSUMING THE ROLE OF AN ENEMY! Attack me all you want, but don't EVER take on my family. What happened to YOUR honor? How can I, as a loving family member EVER entrust someone who would place his political ambitions over his family? Politicians speak loudly about "Family Values" but when it comes down to the nitty-gritty they will jump off the family bandwagon if it means slithering their way into the political morass. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME to all you politicos who forget that family is far more important than the intrigue of politics.

Cow Pie Three...I have a 30 year old daughter who is permanently disabled. Because of this she is one of the millions snagged in the Medicare disaster. I tried this weekend to get a prescription filled for her only to be told I could not because her Medicare provider number was not valid. I had to spend ALL of Friday and half of Saturday unwinding this latest of the Medicare D screw up before I could get her the medications she needs. I am only in my 50's yet dealing with the Medicare prescription plan caused me to tear out chunks of my hair and mutter words that my Granny, bless her beloved soul, would have washed my mouth out for. I cannot imagine being a frail elderly person having to deal with this debacle. Why is it everything the current administration places its seal on turns out so wrong?

Cow Pie Four...To those people who believe that we went into Iraq to LIBERATE the people from a vicious tyrant...I say...we have an equally vicious tyrant...judging from the number of people who set sail on rinky boats, or flimsy rafts hoping to defeat the violent currents to reach our Country...right off the tip of Florida. If liberation really WAS the excuse, wouldn't it have been much more cost effective to have liberated Cuba?

Cow Pie Five...For those who really think the current Administration has kept us from being attacked again I say this...why should Al Qaeda attack us here? They have easier access to Americans IN Iraq. We lost over 3000 people in the 9/11 assault. How many of our brave and honorable Americans have we lost in Iraq? we have not been protected from attack...we have just made the attack field for killing Americans much easier over there.

Cow Pie Six...The tax cuts that this administration is so proud of did nothing for the masses. We got a total of $8.00. (Thank God McDonald's is a cheap place to eat out at.)

Cow Pie Seven...We cannot rebuild New Orleans and the other towns devastated by Katrina, but we MUST rebuild Iraq? Why? Considering all the money that has already been spent in Iraq it seems to me the terrorists who had been kept OUT under Saddaam, bomb and shoot up those efforts on a daily basis. I doubt the victims of Katrina would shoot up their rebuilt territory. SO where is the American taxpayer most likely NOT to be squandered?

Cow Pie Eight...No Child Left Behind...Why are our drop out numbers up since the institution of this initiative? I cannot help but wonder if the President would be able to pass the tests he has made a requisite to today's graduating students.

Cow Pie Nine...Stem cell research. Please explain to me how it is playing God to do stem cell research but it was not playing God when the President and his Wife availed themselves of artificial means to have their daughters? In Vitro is not conception by God's methods, is it? So if it is OK to create life artificially why isn't it OK to try to preserve life using similar technology? We treat our pets with more kindness than we do our family of mankind.

I think I'm running out of Cow Pies...no I just can't think of them...but I am sure once I have sat back and thought about this, I will be able to come up with more.