This morning, my wife of twenty-odd years (well, not all of them were odd; some were actually pretty normal*) had a hysterectomy.  Under the synergetic influences of morphine and phenergan, she is sleeping, leaving me alone with my thoughts and my laptop, not to mention a very numb butt (boy, are the chairs uncomfortable here!).  And I’m wondering:  how many of the Presidential candidates have ever had to worry about their medical bills or even accessing health care?

   As the father of two teenage sons, I often wonder at the cognitive processes (or lack of) which take place inside the confines of what I sometimes assume are heads made of solid concrete.  Impulsive decisions, extreme risk-taking and a belief in one’s invincibility exemplify the typical teen.

While perusing one of the local papers (the Biloxi/Gulfport Sun Herald, a McClatchy paper) this morning with a cup o' joe in hand, I came across the front page story:"Air traffic 'overload' or 'propaganda'?"

Since I fly in and out of the airport in Gulfport, MS, quite a bit, this article was obviously of interest to me, particularly the lead paragraph:

Air traffic controllers are sounding the alarm that the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport is dangerously understaffed, but federal officials say that's just union propaganda, that the number of flights here is way down while staffing remains at pre-Katrina levels.

Catch up with me after the "layover"

Actually, he wants your input.

Given how well the MenuFoods issue has been covered by other Kossacks (such as jhritz's UPDATED: Rat Poison found in Recalled Pet Food!), I thought it would be redundant to rehash the issue in my own diary.  Besides, I'm too tired to write anything more substantive after working for the past 4 days on the Whiskers Garden (by the way, the following Kossacks have something for them in the Whisker's Garden:  natasha, Esjaydee, 3goldens and 1864 House).

As an infrequent diarist and commenter here at the Land of Kos, I often observe diaries and comments that run the gamut from whacko rants to complex political analyses to wonderful snark, with everything else somewhere in between.  Many of these "in-between" diaries are often simple but wonderful expressions of the thoughts, hopes, wishes, desires and fears of Kossacks from all walks of life.  

In this spirit and at the risk of trying the patience of my fellow Kossacks and wasting blog space, I humbly request deference to pay homage to a dear family member in hopes of hastening the healing process for the BK family.

This past Tuesday, I received an AFA ActionAlert email from the American Family Association (AFA).  For those who are unfamiliar with this organization, suffice it to say they are usually on the far right of almost every issue.  The purpose of their ActionAlert was to inform me of a poll being conducted on their website concerning Islam and America.

I think it would behoove Kossacks to take a look at this "poll" for themselves (available at the top of their website).  While I am not an member of the Islamic faith, I am becoming a little concerned about the alarmist rhetoric being broadcast from supposed "values" organizations.

Living in the mostly red state of Mississippi, I am often accused of being a liberal agent provocateur, usually in response to my LTEs of local and regional papers.  As I said in my first ever diary, it’s a lonely job, but someone’s gotta do it.  In actuality, I enjoy being the, uh, devil’s advocate, taking contrary positions.  It’s fun and it’s inexpensive entertainment.  Besides, law enforcement probably would frown on my use of Sweet Gum Balls of Mass Destruction (a shameless tribute to the author’s first-ever DailyKos diary).

My usual non-workday routine is to make a couple of cups of  coffee and peruse the area newspapers for news and opinion, then head off to blogland.  What I’ve been reading lately regarding attitudes towards religion concerns me.  Two, seemingly unrelated, news items in particular have prompted me to inflict another diary on the Kos community.  Besides, it's been raining for two days and my family wishes to share their misfortune of being cooped up with me.

When I was growing up in rural Mississippi, one of the many entertainments available to my brother and me was knocking down wasp nests.  This was only marginally safer than one of our other hobbies, manufacturing WMDs capable of splitting hollow trees, but I digress.  (As for you sadists who think stirring up hornet nests is a more enlightened form of entertainment, we may have been dumb, but we weren’t fools.) The whole point of whacking wasp nests was to protect other people from getting stung.  At least that’s what we told our skeptical and long-suffering divorced mother.