Boston bomber

Another bomber! Just like the mad bombers of the Middle East.

I have never been able to understand what would compel anybody to build an explosive device for the avowed purpose of killing or maiming a bunch of innocent people.

I could possibly comprehend an individual seeking revenge on another person (or even 2 or 3 people), but I fail to understand what would motivate somebody to indiscriminately kill people he/she has never even seen before.

Anytime I hear about such lunacy, I cannot help but thinking about (political or religious) indoctrination.
The process by which some lost soul uncritically accepts a set of outlandish beliefs formulated by some fanatical crackpot.

Such people tend to be low self-esteem loners, introverted, resentful individuals seduced by the idea of punishing people who didn’t justly appreciate them.

I will show them, must be their motto.
I will show those smug sons of bitches what I can do.
It is a desperate act of recognition seeking. By his peers or by the people who underestimated him.

Bombers usually don’t have much to lose but will get their 15 minutes of fame (and their due reward in heaven they hope) by way of their demented act.

I assume that the Boston bomber is somebody familiar with the area, the city or even the country where the attack took place.
This person though did not have any qualms about killing people who took him in their bosom.

Did he work alone, or was he some puppet manipulated by somebody fomenting hatred from a safe distance?
I would opt for the second hypothesis. Troublemakers are usually cowards inciting feeble-minded individuals do their dirty work.

I have always favored capital punishment. I know that it is politically incorrect, but I believe that our society has become too lenient. Today you can literally get way with murder.
In the Boston case the Code of Hammurabi (Talion Law) should prevail.

What do people do when they corner an unfortunate wild animal that killed a human being?
They unmercifully destroy it.

No less should be done with somebody who wrecked so many lives.

Alain

2013 Lentils & Sausages cookout

“Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get.” Mark Twain.

Spring has officially been with us for about 3 weeks, but you wouldn’t know it judging by the kind of meteorological conditions we experienced yesterday.
The day started fairly well, but little by little the wind picked up and by mid-afternoon we were engulfed in a real windstorm.

As we say in my native land “Il faisait un vent à décorner les boeufs » (the wind was strong enough to dehorn cattle).
The wind knocked down chairs and attempted to steal anything not properly secured.
Dust flew everywhere blinding people and making babies cry.

This sorry state of affairs didn’t stop pétanque enthusiasts from participating in our annual Lentils & Sausages/Tournament.

The field looked great, thanks to the efforts of some dedicated club members (Claudie Chourré, Emily Etcheverry and Christine Cragg) and some hired help.
We ought to have a special award to express our gratitude toward these people.

The following randomly-mated teams participated in this tournament:

  1. Eva Lofaro/Steve Jones/Claudie Chourre
  2. Jean Etcheverry/Carolina Jones
  3. Teri Sirico/Lilian Sebban
  4. Ernest Lucero/Luc Pouget
  5. Bernard Passmar/Danielle Gusella
  6. Bill Hansen/Jenny
  7. Jean Barka/Shannon Bowman
  8. Barbara Hall/Jean-Michel Poulnot
  9. Monique Bricca/Patrick Vaslet
  10. Joe La Torre/Dolly Ebolito
  11. Sabine Mattei/Alain Gusella
  12. Henry Wessel/Philippe Arnaud
  13. Minette Etallaz/Alain Efron
  14. Tamara Efron/Pierre P.
  15. Gustave Foucher/Jean-Claude Bunand
  16. Bleys Rose/Christine Cragg
  17. John Morisson/Jean-Claude Etallaz
  18. Helga Facchini/Jean Krauer
  19. Calvert Barron/Gilles Karpowicz
  20. Joss Krauer/Emily Etcheverry
  21. Etienne Rijkheer/Mireille Di Maio
  22. Christine Jones/Carlos Couto

But before the competition started we enjoyed sausages and lentils expertly prepared by maestro Jean-Claude Etallaz. Wine will always improve any dish!
It would be unpardonable of me to forget mentioning that Jean-Claude was assisted by René (jack of all trades) Di Maio.
Rene helped! I can testify to this!

The tournament started after lunch and was orchestrated by Dave Riffo.

I forgot to mention that the format of this particular tourney was “a la mêlée”. Not my favorite arrangement.
I understand that is done to allow “newbies” to mix with seasoned players, but if luck assigns you a third-string partner, you could be in for a rather frustrating afternoon.

The games started around 1:00 p.m. and ended around 5:00 p.m.
There were no official winners and no cash prizes were awarded. Bottles of wine were instead randomly given away to participating players.

To everyone surprise (to mine anyway), the Mardirossian family had arranged a little party to celebrate Colette Mardirossian’s 80th birthday.
At the end of the day, flowers, a large cake and plenty of fine champagne (Veuve Cliquot) were bought to the field and served to everybody.
Happy birthday Colette!

And that’s the way it was in San Rafael, on Sunday April 14, 2013.

Alain

 

Is a bra necessary?

I always thought that it is a good idea to peruse foreign websites to see what people across the pond are thinking.
Especially the French! Those untrustworthy mollusks chomping/Beaujolais quaffing rabble-rousers!

Anyway, yesterday I came across an interesting tidbit .

After conducting a study of a large group of women (aged 18 to 35), sports medicine doctor Jean-Denis Rouillon is proffering that wearing a bra is totally unnecessary. At least for young women.

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He is postulating that if a woman starts wearing a bra right after puberty, it will inhibit and weaken breasts natural suspension mechanism.
Holy Toledo!

If women start wearing bras at an early age, they will start relying on them and remain hooked for the rest of their lives.
And that’s, by the way, is what Victoria’s Secrets is pushing women to do.

But In fact, says the good doctor, women don’t need to wear bras. It is a scientific fact!

This is a fascinating bit of news and I suspect that the powerful bra-lobby is not going to take this hanging down.
Just like the gun lobby, they are prepared to mount a large twin counterattack.

Victoria’s Secrets and Frederick’s of Hollywood are already saying that “it is the inalienable right of women to keep and bear bras” and “It is not bras that need breasts, but breasts that need bras”.

Breasts in America have acquired an almost mythical status.
You must have breasts, women are told, and the bigger the better.
And if pobrecita, you are breast challenged, we will sell you some.

Young girls already traumatized by the onset of puberty will do almost anything to attract the attention of the opposite sex.

And since in America everything is outrageous, be prepared to see nubile girls sporting gigantic mammary appendages hanging around.
But with these big guns you will need some support and that’s what the bra lobby, working hand in hand with the plastic surgeons pressure group, is pushing for.

Do you need to wear a bra? Judging by their gravity defying attires, Hollywood hotties have already spoken and it is certainly not up to a man to weigh what’s good for women.

Alain