truth B told

The stamp---small, just takes up a tiny corner of you envelope, but soon will cost 41 cents. It seems the US postal service needs more cash, and will be raising the cost of stamps in 2005. see story here

It's hard to imagine that it will cost four dollars in postage to mail 10 letters. Writing letters to friends the old snail mail way will be a forgotten means of communication. Paying bills online will be more common than not.

Communication continues to change forms. And this time, the US Postal Service will be pushing it forward.

Thanksgiving is around the corner, deer hunting season has arrived, and bullets are flying in Wisconsin.

According to the AP News: Police in Wisconsin say a man accused of shooting eight hunters was "chasing after them and killing them."

Authorities say the deadly violence in Sawyer County erupted after a dispute over a tree stand on Sunday. They say two hunters who confronted Chai Vang were shot as were those who responded to calls for help.

Five people were killed and three were wounded. Police say the suspect was "sniping" at the victims with an assault-style rifle. The suspect was arrested after getting lost in the woods and running out of bullets.

I'm sure the anti-gun people will be up in arms using this scenerio as a foothold in their soapbox against firearms. But this is not a hunting issue. This is not a gun issue. This is a crazy man issue.

Don't let the spin hit you as you hear about the dangers of guns during hunting season. This man was illegally on private property. When he was approached by the owners, he began shooting like a mad man. As help was called to the scene, he shot those guys too. This is no typical hunting accident.

This man has severe issues. I hope anti-gun activists are smart enough not to use him as a poster child. We'll see.

By the way, my father-in-law is taking me hunting Thanksgiving morning. I hope we find lots of pheasent... and no wackos.

Happy Thanksgiving

Ok, Truth B Told readers.....I'm leaving for Poland on Friday. I won't be posting on this site for a week, because I'm trying to reserve it for opinion on news, culture, politics, faith and stuff like that.

However, I just started a new site that will track my travel.

http://travelwithtravis.blogspot.com

This will allow you to follow me around the nation and world when I travel. It only happens a few times a year, but I'll e-mail friends and family to let them know they can view my pictures and journaling.

In the mean time...my soon to be trip to Poland has got me thinking about Communism and Democracy. It will be interesting to land in a post-communist nation and see what's happening.

Democracy, as great as it is, probably brings new problems to the area. We'll see.

Maybe some day we'll have this same discussion about Iraq???

According to the New York Times: Paramount’s “Alfie,” a remake of a romantic comedy about a roguish womanizer starring Jude Law, opened to a dismal $6.5 million in more than 2,000 theaters, far below expectations.

Wayne Llewellyn, the president of distribution at Paramount, said that the conservative ethos reflected in last week’s election results might have hurt the film.

“"It could be the mood of the country right now,”" he said. "It seems to be the result of the election. Maybe they didn’t want to see a guy that slept around.”"

Do you think people not wanting to spend $7.00 to watch care-free sex hopping at the theater is a mood of the country? Way to blame a poor film on the president. How about blaming Paramount for not knowing the MOVEMENT of the country.

I believe we are in a slow uphill climb on morality mountain--in the majority of the United States. Conservative family values is not a political issue. Being family friendly is a lifestyle issue. To some, its a spiritual issue.

Take God completely out of the picture...what decent mom wants to raise a kid who would enjoy watching a guy take complete advantage of women and live a careless life that revolves around sexual encounters with as many women as possible.

Decency in the theater--although rare--is appreciated among families.
I doubt if Hollywood will ever hear this.
Those who have ears, let them hear...

let the truth B told,
-T

"Oh my goodness..." was my thought when I found out that I lost my entire email address book.

My hard drive crashed, and my email contacts have been lost.

If you know me, and we've corresponded through e-mail from time to time, please e-mail me at my (mattoonyouth) account. I need to rebuild my address book.

If you could e-mail others that know me, pass along that I need their e-mail addresses.

I feel so naked! So lost. So disconnected.

Thanks for e-mailing me and helping me out.

-T

ps...Big Thanks to A for seven hours of work on my laptop.

While we all know which candidates won the 2004 election, I have a few other winners and losers that need to be noted:

Illinois Republican Party – LOSER
The Republican Party in Illinois is in serious trouble. The slate needs wiped clean and an entire new program needs to be built. Judy Baar Topinka needs to step aside and let someone else come in and rescue this sinking Titanic.

Talk Radio-WINNER
Talk radio stepped up to the plate and hit big homeruns this election season. The voice of the mostly conservative radio hosts was heard. This is becoming a more powerful voice in politics. Talk Radio is offering a different perspective than the mainstream media. It’s a force to be reckoned with.

Youth Vote-LOSER
Why can't we get more than 20 percent of the 18-30 bracket out to vote. MTV, Vote or Die, P Diddy, The Boss, Bon Jovi....sorry guys; they may like your music, but it doesn't take them to the polls. Most young adults fail to voice their choice. Don't complain in the next four years...

Bloggers-WINNER
They may not be 100 percent trustworthy, but their winners in ’04 because of its amazing growth in the political process, New voices are being heard in an uncensored environment that isn’t controlled by advertising or industry politics.

CNN-LOSER
I can’t believe CNN made such a big deal about calling Ohio a “green state” and refused to make a call toward Bush. They hide behind accuracy, but I believe it’s a smoke screen for its connection to the Democratic Party. They couldn’t deal with the truth…tried to keep Kerry alive as long as they could. In the end, they appear weak and closely connected to the democrats.

Traditional Values-WINNER
America’s sweeping vote for Bush shows an enormous geographical mass of people who care about family values and conservative morals. It’s encouraging to see a stance for conservative values. Their votes were heard loud and clear.

Exit Polls-LOSER
Egg on face for all these pollsters that think they have the inside info on elections. I’d love to see their faces and hear their conversations when Florida was called for Bush. I wonder who has to explain to Kerry why at 5 p.m. Tuesday his people were dancing in the streets, and then by 11 p.m. their was stilled silence.

Hollywood-LOSER
You are good actors. You are not political scientists. Your voice is a whisper in the political world. In 2008 just shut up and do your job...make us laugh and cry on the silver screen.

Democracy-WINNER
America showed the world that more than 100 million people can vote, and less than 24 hours later can have an outcome. No violence. No major corruption. No legal crud. People’s voices were heard. Let the model of democracy be heard around the world.

let the truth B told
-T

It's the eleventh hour to the election, and Chad if flying in for the big show. I'm sure you'll meet him. He'll be on CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. They'll give him a full inspection when he arrives to the scene.

It's been four quick years, and now he gets to come visit us again. Instead of a nice long stay in Floriday during November, I'm afraid he'll be travelling to many states this time around.

See you when you get here, Chad.

Happy Election Eve
-T

According to an online news report:
Osama bin Laden warned in his October Surprise video that he will be closely monitoring the state-by-state election returns in tomorrow's presidential race -- and will spare any state that votes against President Bush from being attacked, according to a new analysis of his statement. (full story)

The message in his recent video statement was that any U.S. state that votes to elect Bush on Tuesday will be considered an "enemy" and any state that votes for Kerry has "chosen to make peace with us."

If our enemy, the man who organized the terrorist attacks against the World Trade Towers and Pentagon, is glad to have Kerry in the Oval Office, isn't that a message we need to take to heart. Does Osama Bin Laden think America will be less of a threat if Kerry is in the White House?

Osama bin Laden (and France) has declared favor for John Kerry. Why? Because George W. Bush has proven to stand against terror, and not be afraid to fight for what is right. However, Kerry has sent mixed messages about how involved America should be in these conflicts.

We need to pay close attention to the fact that Bin Laden would love to have Kerry as President of the United States.

It seems Bin Laden would vote for Kerry. Who are you voting for?