I heard on the news that Adele 21 was the top-rated album of the year. "She’s got something for everyone," the news person burbled. Her kids loved it, she loved it. "She doesn’t come out of a formula," her male colleague added. So I went immediately to YouTube to hear this phenomenon. My opinion is that her voice and quality and interpretation of a song are not the most horrible experience I have ever had, but I will live a fulfilled life even without hearing her ever again.

Rod Blogojevich, the disgraced governor of Illinois has received a harsh sentence, 14 years, and he must serve at least 12 before being eligible for release. He is 55 now, and will be 67 on graduation, having spent the most vigorous years of his older life in prison. He was totally humble when he went before the judge, he was contrite, he accepted responsibility, he apologized to the people of Illinois and to his wife and family. His affect was a total turn-around from his early stonewalling and arrogant self-confidence. I never thought he would get to this point. It even seemed likely, the way these things go, that he might totally avoid a conviction. What is more mind-blowing is that his predecessor as governor of Illinois (Ryan I think) is now finishing up a 6-year sentence for corruption. I trust the governor who has succeeded Blogo is taking all this to heart.

I might add that Florida Governor Rick Scott, an unindicted felon, so richly deserves this same fate. His chief executives in the hospital corporation he headed when he was in business, are serving time for Medicare fraud. How in the world did he skate on this one? And why in the world didn’t knee-jerk Florida voters inform themselves before pushing the Republican button at the voting booth like so many lemmings. But he has friends in high places. His approval rating is now very low and I am encouraged that Floridians are finally getting the message.

I was outraged when I heard Joe Scarborough on “Morning Joe”, a news and analysis program on MSNBC (for those of you who don’t watch) say to a guest, “We know Rick Scott and we like him.” I immediately went to my trusty computer and wrote to Joe. I told him he was either grossly uninformed about the nature and character of this guy, or he was deliberately avoiding the truth because he wanted to play nice. Neither position is appealing. (Before becoming a news celebrity, Joe Scarborough was a member of the House of Representatives from a Florida district.)
A day later I followed up with with excerpts from a Miami Herald story about abuses in nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Florida and how this Republican administration is destroying the ombudsman program in order to cater to Scott’s former cronies in the hospital industry. I said this story deserved national attention and if he was worth anything as a journalist, he would put it on Morning Joe.

One of my recent mini snarls was printed in the Fort Myers News-Press a day ago. I wrote that the Tea Party is destroying the Republican Party and no Republican of merit even considers running for president because of their influence. I said we now have one political party, the Dems, flawed as they are, and the party of the nut jobs. I might be proud that my letters get printed often enough, but when I see the quality of other letters that are printed, I am not all that encouraged.

xx, Teal