Cao Won

There are some left wing moonbats who would not vote for Cao simply because he is a conservative. So, let me explain it to you. This election was not about liberal or conservative. This was about New Orleans' reputation throughout the country. In a nutshell, the people of New Orleans threw out the bum under indictment.

Added bonus: Jefferson cannot offer to resign in as part of any bargaining with the U.S. Attorney.

LPO Coming to Palmer Park Saturday

The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra is going to play in Palmer Park. Get the word out, it promises to be a fun time.

The Worst Book Ever

I tried. I really tried, and I am pretty compulsive about finishing books that I start. I made a valiant effort, but I could not make myself finish the book.

I paid good money for a book called Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife by Linda Berdoll. It is supposed to be a sequel to Pride and Prejudice.

First, I am not convinced that the author actually read Pride and Prejudice before writing the so-called sequel. I think it is far more likely that she watched some part of the movie on the same evening as she watched Debbie Does Dallas and got very confused.

This book has none of the subtlety and social commentary that makes Jane Austen's books such a pleasure to read over and over again. I cannot wrap my brain around the Elizabeth Bennett as sex kitten concept and I don't think I should have to. Not only is there nothing subtle about the sex scenes in this book, they were, in my opinion, crass. I would go into more detail, but I have not yet eaten my dinner.

Second, this book is replete with grammatical errors, and questionable word usage. I seriously doubt that the author owns a dictionary or has even heard of a thesaurus. The last sentence I could bear to read in this book was "[w]ith all due restraint (she did not coldcock her with a grandiole), Elizabeth spluttered briefly." p. 290. This was the last sentence I could stand to read from this book. Coldcock!?!?!? Good Lord!

I suppose I should feel guilty that I have already put a 10c price tag on the book to prepare it for the next yard sale we have. I know it is wrong to rip people off. But hey, the poor sucker who buys this book can always use it to line a bird cage.

If you want to read a good sequel there are quite a few out there, but for the love of God, avoid this one at all costs!

Hurricane Preparedness

Tranquilizer for the cat
16 gal. bottled water
8 pop top cans fruit cocktail
4 Juice boxes
1 bag beef jerky
1 jar peanut butter
Crackers
First aid kit
Electrolytes
Cooler
Ice
Charcoal
Generator
Oil
Gas
Beer
Shotguns
Ammo

Yep. Mr. Molly and I are ready for Ike. We are starting to get the outer bands already and we think that our power may go out over the weekend, but we are not expecting anything like Gustav or Katrina.

Ike is, at the time of this entry, headed for Galveston. I really wish that my sister, who lives in Houston would come here, out of harm's way. I say this knowing full well that if I were in Houston, I would not evacuate, on the information that is available now. Just the same, I wish she would load her baby in the car and come stay with me until the storm has passed.

Stay dry.

Molly

Sarah Palin

First, it is out there so I have to comment on it. I am appalled at all the hateful comments about Sarah Palin's daughter. Let's face it, if she were a Democrat you would have never heard about it because Bristol would have done the unspeakable. Also, I am not so far removed from my own teenage years that I have forgotten all the things I did against my parents' good counsel (I have no intention of listing them, just in case they are reading this blog). I don't see how any of this reflects on her ability to be vice president. Her stance on the important issues that affect the country as a whole is really what matters to me.

All I can say about her speech this evening is "Wow". I want to be like her when I grow up. Okay, she is only two or three years older than I am, but she is a lot of things that I aspire to be. And her take on the crucial issues that are important to me is dead on.

Here's what she says about energy:

With Russia wanting to control a vital pipeline in the Caucasus, and to divide and intimidate our European allies by using energy as a weapon, we cannot leave ourselves at the mercy of foreign suppliers.

To confront the threat that Iran might seek to cut off nearly a fifth of world energy supplies ... or that terrorists might strike again at the Abqaiq facility in Saudi Arabia ... or that Venezuela might shut off its oil deliveries ... we Americans need to produce more of our own oil and gas.

And take it from a gal who knows the North Slope of Alaska: we've got lots of both.

Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling will not solve all of America's energy problems - as if we all didn't know that already.

But the fact that drilling won't solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all.

About the economy:

Congress spends too much ... [Obama]promises more.

Taxes are too high ... he wants to raise them. His tax increases are the fine print in his economic plan, and let me be specific.

The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes ... raise payroll taxes, ... raise investment income taxes ... raise the death tax ... raise business taxes ... and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars. My sister Heather and her husband have just built a service station that's now opened for business - like millions of others who run small businesses.

How are they going to be any better off if taxes go up? Or maybe you're trying to keep your job at a plant in Michigan or Ohio ... or create jobs with clean coal from Pennsylvania or West Virginia ... or keep a small farm in the family right here in Minnesota.

How are you going to be better off if our opponent adds a massive tax burden to the American economy?

I, for one, was truly impressed.

The Levees Held

I was in Birmingham before the storm hit, so my flight home Sunday Evening was cancelled. Mr. Molly stayed behind with the critters. After several hours of not being able to get through, and watching the news, which I found to be very unsettling, he finally got in touch with me. Yes the levees were overtopped, but, it appears that they have held. The power is still out, but otherwise our little neighborhood survived the storm relatively unscathed.

I am very grateful to all of our neighbors who did stay behind for the fellowship that they have offered Mr. Molly. Also, I am very grateful for the good sense shown by Bob Breck thoughout this storm. I checked his blog frequently when MSNBC began to make me nervous for Mr. Molly and the "fur kids."

In the meantime, I have caught a cold and I suspect that I have inadvertently swallowed sandpaper, so I am not going to fly home until the weekend.

LPO Concert in Palmer Park

I heard a rumor...LPO is going to hold a concert in Palmer Park in October. More on this later.

New Restaurant in River Bend

The other night Mr. Molly and I tried a new restaurant. We went to Curry Corner on Carrollton Avenue. We were very pleased. There were only 3 or 4 entrees offered, but the prices were reasonable and the food was every bit as good as Nirvana - and without the attitude.

Happy Independence Day

I was going to use today's post to discuss the Kennedy v. Louisiana decision. However I have reconsidered. I will save that for another day. Instead I would like to encourage both my readers to reflect on freedom.

Freedom does not come cheap. Many people who are much braver than I have paid the ultimate price to preserve the liberty that we enjoy here in America. Rather than being grateful for their sacrifices, we, as a society, revere politicians who are not proud to be Americans. In fact, patriotism is so out of fashion that our next president and commander in chief may be someone who does not take pride in America. Think about this in November. FREEDOM IS NOT FOR SISSIES.

Boumediene v. Bush - The Molly Solution

To say the least, I am disappointed with this decision. As soon as I can figure out how, I will post links to the opinion itself and to any articles I can find which discuss this opinion. I do not believe that the United States Constitution affords a foreign citizen, an enemy combatant, no less, who is not being held on U.S. soil, the right to a habeus corpus hearing.

I intend to discuss this in depth later, but I would like to give the first ever Molly Goes Ninja Freedom Is Not for Sissies award to Justice Scalia.

Finally, before I go back to work I would like to propose a simple solution to the problem that this case has created: Take no prisoners. Shoot 'em or hang 'em high, but take no prisoners.

UPDATE:

Here is the link to this decision:

http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-1195.pdf

Here is what Justice Scalia had to say in his dissenting opinion:

…[T]oday it is not just the military that the Court elbows aside. A mere two Terms ago in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, 548 U.S. 557 (2006), when the Court held (quite amazingly) that the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 had not stripped habeas jurisdiction over Guantanamo petitioners’ claims, four Members of today’s five-Justice majority joined an opinion saying the following:

“Nothing prevents the President from returning to Congress to seek the authority [for trial by military commission] he believes necessary.

“Where, as here, no emergency prevents consultation with Congress, judicial insistence upon that con¬sultation does not weaken our Nation’s ability to deal with danger. To the contrary, that insistence strengthens the Nation’s ability to determine — through democratic means— how best to do so. The Constitution places its faith in those democratic means.” Id., at 636 (BREYER, J., concurring).

Turns out they were just kidding. For in response, Congress, at the President’s request, quickly enacted the Military Commissions Act, emphatically reasserting that it did not want these prisoners filing habeas petitions.(emphasis added)

Montreal

I went to Montreal over Memorial Day weekend. my friend and I had a marvelous time. We stayed at the Auberge de la Fontaine, and we loved it. We loved waking to the smell of freshly baked croissants in the morning. The inn is located on the third largest park in Montreal and we took a nice leisurely walk on Saturday morning after breakfast. The temperature was about 73 degrees during the day and very little humidity. After a bit of shopping, I have to admit that I am really lame because I went back to the inn, opened the windows and napped in the cool breeze. When I woke up, we got dressed and went to dinner at Cafe Cherrier. Will have to eat my way through Montral again.

Memorial Day Weekend

Summer is finally upon us and I am going for a girl's weekend with a friend to Montreal. Her significant other is a vegetarian, so I see a steak in my future....

For both of the readers of this blog: If you are sticking around NOLA and are wondering what to do this weekend, I have a few suggestions. Bayou Bugaloo and Greek Festival. Or you can buy Darius Rucker's new album.

Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish has a new country album out. Yes, that is right, country. I heard the first single off of it yesterday and really liked it. It's called "Don't think I don't" Check it out.

Security District Legislation

I have heard that the board of the neighborhood group that has been most active in drafting this legislation has voted unanimously (my source tells me that the vote was actually unanimous, as most of us understand the word)to ask Senator Gray to discontinue pursuing this legislation. If I hear anything else, I will post.

At any rate, it looks like I can blog about other things for a while. Like maybe packing peanuts: mere nuisance or spawn of the devil...

Here is my proposal if such taxing district does, in the future, get enacted:

Use the money to hire a company like Blackwater to clean house. Just a thought.

Love and kisses,

Molly

Latest Draft of Improvement District Legislation

The latest draft of the West Carrollton Improvement District Legislation is out.

I have concluded that I made a giant mistake when I voted for Cheryl Gray. I will most likely be voting for her opponent next time around.

The drafters of this legislation agreed to work with a represenative from Palmer Park on subsequent drafts of the legislation. However, they did not return her calls. The Pensiontown Neighborhood Association, who has had three seats on the board of this district since the legislation was first drafted had its first meeting last night.

What this suggests to me is that they want to tax us, but they really do not give a rip about what anyone else in the neighborhood thinks, as long as they can make us pay the tax. I can only assume that Ms. Gray feels the same way, or else she would have postponed drafting this legislation until after the Pensiontown Neighborhood Association had actually been in existence and accomplished something.

Further, the new draft provides that the district can purchase property. What business does a security/improvement district have buying property?

I encourage anyone who has the same concerns that I have to contact Ms. Gray and make those concerns known.

Mugging in Palmer Park

Saturday night at approximately 10:45 pm a neighbor walked through Palmer Park to catch a cab. Several young men attacked him and brutally beat him. A passer-by called the police and an ambulance. He was transported to University Hospital and was
released Sunday. It is my understanding that no report was taken by the officers who responded. To add insult to injury, I am told that the victim's wife has been told by the 2nd district to come to the police station.

This is obscene. I am outraged. This man was beaten badly enough to be admitted to the hospital overnight and the officers did not take a report? UNBELIEVABLE!

UPDATE
I have been told that there was a police report made at the time of the incident and that the victim's wife did not have to go to the police station to file a report the next day.

UPDATE 2
Please read the comment by meimeikittycat

Security District Legislation

The new legislation has been distributed, at least to PPNA. I can't figure out how to post it, so if you don't have a copy and want one, just email me and I will send you what I have.

I would love to spend the rest of the day discussing the details of the newest incarnation of this legislation, and beating the dead dog of how this legislation was originally drafted before the Pensiontown Neighborhood Association was formed, but, hey, it's Jazz Fest.

Molly

Mr. and Mrs. Molly vs. Litter

Alright, here is another of my pet peeves - Litter. The third Saturday of every month, the Palmer Park Neighborhood Association meets and picks up litter in the park. By Saturday evening, Mr. Molly and the dog returned from the park with a bag full of litter that had accumulated in the park between 9:00 Saturday morning and 7:00 Saturday evening.

What is wrong with people?

Word for the Day

Today's word is "unanimous." My understanding of this word is that it refers to an opinion held or a decision or vote made or carried by everyone involved. In other words, if a group of people vote on an issue in a neighborhood meeting and not everyone polled votes the same way, the group is not "unanimously" for or against that issue.

TOWN HALL MEETING II

Okay, I had to leave the town hall meeting early, so I will probably post more on this later. For now I will just make a few basic points.

1. I have been unable to find the new legislation that provides for one security/improvement district that covers Pensiontown and Carrollton Riverbend. All I have is the suggested changes. I would really like to see that the changes are actually in the pipeline.

2. I was correct in my initial reading of SB 568. This bill provides for the district to be in place for NINE years. Anything more than three years is bad. Lets face it, if the security/improvement district turns out to be really great, there will be no problem extending its life. Three years should be plenty of time to see if the didtrict is accomplishing its purpose. Further, in my humble opinion if the board members know that they don't get to be entrenched for several years, I think that they will do a better job of representing all the people who could potentially choose not to extend the district.

3. If the commercial owners are exempt from the assessment, then they should not be allowed on the board. The board should be limited to people who actually pay the assessment.

4. I understand why certain neighborhood associations get three spots on the board. However, what has the Pensiontown Neighborhood Association done? Why are we going to allow a neighborhood organization that is not fully formed to have three seats on the board?

5. What about liability? Although the board members are not individually liable, how much, if any of the assessment will have to go to liabilty insurance for the district? Will the district be responsible for purchasing its own liabilty insurance?

6. Why the hurry? If this is worth doing, it is worth doing right. I do not believe that this is our only chance to have one of these districts. Surely no one is suggesting that Senator Gray is unwilling to reintroduce this bill in the next legislative session if that would be better for her constituents.

Anyway, feel free to comment.

Molly

TOWN HALL MEETING

Don't forget the Town Hall Meeting tomorrow night. Senator Gray will be there to answer questions about this new legislation.

When: Monday, April 14, 2008; 6:30 p.m.
Where: St. Matthew's Church
1607 S. Carrollton Avenue (Carrollton and Willow)

Delachaise

Mr. Molly and I went to Delachaise on St Charles Avenue last night. The restaurant was more expensive than we counted on, but everything we ate was good. We will go back.

It is a great place to go when you want a nice glass of wine and don't want to drink on an empty stomach. MM and I split the one of the best grilled ham and cheese sandwiches we had ever had - St Andre and Prosciutto. We also shared an order of frites. The frites were at least as good as those served at La Crepe Nanou, except that the people who work there are much nicer than the people at La Crepe Nanou.

I am a head turner

By that I mean I can actually turn my head. I had an accident several years ago which left me with lingering back/neck problems. I finally broke down and got a massage this morning.

I was a little squeamish, because I do not particularly like the idea of a stranger touching me. I cannot believe I was such a baby. I feel great, I can now turn my head from side to side for the firs time in several weeks. Life is good.

If you have been thinking about doing this, but like me, are uncomfortable with the idea, the best advice I can give you is to take the leap. I wish I had done this several months ago. I went to Le Salon at the NOAC. It was worth every penny.

Update Me Please

I was unable to attend the meeting last night, so if there have been any substantial changes to the Security/Improvement District legislation in the past two days please comment.

Update: Jim S. directed me to crra.wordpress.com. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Rather than two separate districts, it will now be 1 district called the West Carrollton Neighborhood Improvement District. A definite improvement over "Pensiontown," which does not sound like anyplace I care to live.

Molly

Neighborhood Improvement District Part II

Apparently this legislation will be significantly changed in the near future. I will reserve judgment until I see the legislation. However, I do not think that a community center or after school programs are appropriate in any event. I would have apprciated short, declarative sentances from the people trying to sell this tax assessment.

I was mistaken about the expiration of the tax. It is SIX years, rather than nine. Six years is stll too long.-

Neighborhood Improvement District

This is my first foray into the blogosphere. I welcome your comments.

I am not sure how I feel about Security Districts in general and Improvement districts in particular, but at this point, I feel as if our state senator (for whom, incidentally, I voted) is not doing a very good job of representing the people who put her in office. I don't think that Senate Bill No. 568 is a good bill for the following reasons.

1. The name pensiontown is pejorative, and I think that it is wrong to force the name on the residents of the neighborhood. The only argument I have heard in favor of the name is that historically, most of the area was called "pensiontown" or "pidgeon town." I suppose by that logic, if it had historically been called "Deliverance Village," that, too should be forced upon the neighborhood, whether or not we have purty lips.

2. This additional tax will be levied for an initial term of NINE YEARS! Call me crazy, but wouldn't three years be enough time to determine if this legislation will have its intended purpose? Or is the extremely long life of this bill an attempt to disguise the fact that it is really wealth redistribution?

3. This legislation is not creating a "Security District, " it is creating an "Improvement District." While security is an element of the legislation, it is not the whole purpose of the legislation. In an improvement district the board may use the money on anything that will achieve "overall betterment" of the district. In other words, a good portion of the funds collected will likely be diverted away from security, which, at least for me, is a far more important issue than "beautification" or "betterment," whatever that means.

4. I cannot foresee that the people paying the bulk of this tax for the next nine years will reap the bulk of the benefit or even an equal amount of the benefit, particularly given that some people appear to be exempt from paying this tax at all.

Anyway, I welcome your comments, particularly if you can help me pin down the term "overall betterment."