Safe Haven

I like music, and thus, I like YouTube. Though most of the videos flirt with copyright violations. Anyway, I got roped into a "Wow, Toto is amazing!" phase yesterday, [waiting while you look up " Africa "and cower in the corner, hoping not to get caught] and I happened to come across a song called " Lea ." Now, more experienced Toto fans know that they like naming songs after members of the fairer sex, and that they've changed lead singers a couple times, for whatever that's worth. My first thought was, "What an outstanding pop song," and my next one was, "Why didn't Babyface cover this on his remake album 'Playlist'?" Don't even act like it's not right up his alley . [Babyface should pay you.--ed.] I know, right? Why didn't Toto's label release "Lea" as a single in 1986? [Because they're stupid, and they think we are, too.--ed.] Even so, follow the Money Train...er, that is, the Soul Tr...

A brief note on page views: This blog crossed over 3000 page views 6 days before Christmas, 2009. As of last night, we have 5200. It's not monumental, but I thank those who read and enjoy my occasionally intelligent blather. [Your page views are inflated because you read your old posts.--ed.] That'd be reasonable, but for the fact that it tells me when I'm inflating the counter. So eat it!

5 Reactions to the Foreign Service Officer Test (Yes, I promise, Uncle Sam, not a word as to its content) 5. It was fun. There was a time crunch, but it was enjoyable. 4. There was a bit of liberal clap-trap on the test, but less than I thought there'd be. 3. A lot more people whose heads are filled with useless, random information (like mine) should think about serving your country like this. You're d--- skippy, I felt patriotic taking the test, and well I should. 2. It wasn't hard. I will eat crow if I failed, but it was easier than I expected. 1. I think I passed, consequently.

I cannot get away from politics, hard as I might try, and I can only hope that I keep the spheres separate enough that noone reading this blog is tempted to think the Christian gospel is linked to the political fortunes of one group or another. I sure don't feel that way, and I hope you don't, either. That said, not only do I have opinions, but I have some training as a political scientist/analyst, (which in truth is nothing more than the collection of a few insidery terms, a dash of history, and a love of the political process, which frankly anyone can have) so I see the world through those eyes also. I need to tell you about the 2006 midterm elections. Here in the US, every seat in the US House of Representatives is contested every 2 years. In 2006, the Republican Party (henceforth "GOP" for 'Grand Ole Party') controlled the House, the Senate, and the presidency leading up to the elections. The GOP lost the majority in both houses of Congress. Gary C. Jacobs...