On Thu, 13 Feb 2003 08:46:31 -0800, Ed <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>David Strike wrote:
>
>> He managed to find a pregnant pipefish, a couple of
>> eagle rays and - pointing to what I thought were three black flatworms
>> wriggling on the sand - knocked me to one side just before I touched the
>> large numbray that was lying beneath the sand using it's lures to
>> attract prey.  (Those things don't half give you a belt of electricity
>> if you're dumb enough to touch them!) :-)
>
Lee> I mean shock therapy is fine for those that need it, but
Lee> deliberately seeking it out while underwater does not seem
Lee> like a really wonderful idea.  8^)

Lee can tag along with Mika when Mika comes to Shelly Beach, to get the
shock therapy Lee BADLY needed. :-)

My experience of this kind is the opposite.  Sue and I were not only
dumb enough to touch an Atlantic Torpedo (before we knew about it of
course), but we played with it for quite a while, GENTLY, without
threatening the critter.  This was in Turks and Caicos, where we also
way a "stack" of FOUR flying granards (sp?) at the sandy bottom,
having a sex orgy -- not knowing who's doing what to whom.

At any rate, my LAW OF NATURE is that critters capable of attacking
will only attack when they feel they are threatened.  So, you can
touch lots of dangerous things and get away with it if you do it
gently.  But it's good to know what they can do to you POTENTIALLY. :-))

>
>> An army guy in camouflage
>> gear was standing on the beach waving his arms at us.  Pete and I waved
>> back!  He kept pointing behind us.  We looked around to see six black
>> inflatables carrying black-clad pongoes quickly sneaking up behind us -
>> with no discernible noise from their motors.  It's probably one of the
>> quickest exits from the water that any of us have ever made!  :-)

Lee> I guess the world knows that the U.S. is on Orange alert.
Lee> To hear the news reports, there's some serious expectation of a
Lee> terrorist attack very soon.  Things like anti aircraft ordinance
Lee> around Washington DC and other major cities, increased inspections
Lee> of vehicles, and the like are being reported.  I'm not real sure
Lee> what information has been received, but it's pretty clear it;s
Lee> being taken more seriously than has been the case in the past.

>In my not so humble opinion, it's all just smoke and mirrors to
>distract us from what 'wubya' hasn't done to help the US economy.

My sentiments precisely.  But that's only PART of it.   It's also
Dubya's MARKETING plan to bomb the hell out of Iraq, when the troops
had already been sent, before UN or any other country had found any
evidence that supported such a unilateral action on Dubya's part.

It's a three-ring-circus art:  (1) Play up the smoke and mirrors
tricks about attacks (2) Have Colon (isn't that the part of the
body that is an oriface? ;-) do his song-and-dance in the UN to the
yawns everyone else (I saw everyone else's reaction (at the UN
security council) during his speeches on TV); and (3) Have Greenspan
giving some pep talks about how the economy is going to improve
while Dubya is sending the country to the bankrupcy courts.  :-)
Greenspan FINALLY quite playing Dubya's deficit game, and DID NOT
support his tax CUT plan, as the NEWPAPER and WALL STREET numskulls
expected Greenspan to be just another clown in the circus.


>As gas price jumped by over $0.30 a gallon in just 2 weeks. Sheeit!
>Ed

That's NOTHING, compared to how much the airline FUEL will jump!
The largest Airline, AA, is already losing 5 MILLION USD per DAY,
with no end in sight!  They'll be headed to the bankrupcy court soon.

In all previous admins, the proposed budget is always "balanced"
(Reagan's pitch, even though he set records in DEFICIT spending,
and people voted him in for an ENCORE.  Sure enough, he set
another new record in decifit spending).  Not to be outdone,
Dubya PROPOSED a budget that is 300 billion to a TRILLION in the
red, even before it started.  :-)   I'll take bets NOW, that
whatever the Congress approves, the DEFICIT will be GREATER
(the only question is, by how many trillions!).  I know Strike
doesn't gamble (against me anway.  :-)).  Any takers?

I KNOW all of this is "supposed" to be consider OT.  But what the
hell?

It's definitely SCUBA related.  It affects my TRAVEL.  It affects
the COST of my travel to dive.  It affects the value of the USD
that pays for my scuba.  It affects EVERYTHING that is scuba
relate. :-))

All Dubya has to do, which is what he could have done in the first
place, is to mine OUR OWN Bitness (the good ole USA), and quit
stirring the posts in Iraq, Afganistan, Korea, ... you name it ...
except tending to the business at HOME.

It's almost too late for Dubya to exit gracefully now.  In golf, it's
called "pressing".  In gambling, it's called bluffing and betting
good money for bad.  In other areas, there may be more descriptive
names for the same thing.

When that stops, the enonomy will boom, there's no more and no less
threats as the US and other countries are threated as they are now,
by whomever Dubya is pushing.  Travel will boom once more.  Scuba
resorts and packages will be back to its good ole days.  There will
be more NEDfests, ...

I know, I know ... as Strike puts it, in a different situation and
a different context,

"Mind you, it's probably an impossible dream,  ..."

But there are values in dreaming impossible dreams, so that
reality may come CLOSER to the impossible dream rather than
drifting  toward the deep end.

THAT's my Sermon of the Day.   :-)

No, no.  The new CatFeeesh live is NOT Evangilism or Preaching!  :-)))

-- Bob.