Arizona Humane Society Faces Backlash Over Euthanized Cat

 

When Daniel Dockery took his 9-month-old cat Scruffy to an Arizona Humane Society shelter December 8th to treat a cut she suffered from a barbed wire fence, he couldn't pay the $400 cost of treatment.

Dockery, a 49-year-old recovering heroin addict, told the Arizona Republic that the agency refused to accept a credit card payment or wait for a wire transfer from his mother in Michigan because it was against policy.  The organization gave him the choice to sign surrender papers so that Scruffy could be treated and placed in foster care.  Dockery agreed.

Rather than receiving wound care, Scruffy was euthanized hours later, an act which has devastated Dockery.  He raised the cat from birth and believes she helped him stay off drugs over the past year, the longest period he has stayed clean in his adult life.

After Scruffy's story broke last weekend, supporters threatened to pull donations from the center.  Comments on Facebook, e-mails, and voicemails have flooded the organization with complaints, spurring some changes in policy. 

Stacy Pearson, whom the agency hired to handle media inquiries, announced that the Arizona Humane Society has set up an account funded through donations to cover the costs of emergency treatment for animals whose owners need a few days to pay for the service.  It will also accept credit card payments by phone now.

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Holiday Greetings

Ham on Wry belatedly wishes all readers a holiday season filled with fun, family, and friends, no matter what holiday you celebrate and when you celebrate it. I have taken some time off from writing posts to spend time with family members I don't see often and will resume later this week.

I hope that we can enjoy some respite from the violence and economic hardships that have plagued us in 2011 and start counting our many blessings before we welcome in 2012.

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Jon Bon Jovi Fans, Rejoice! He's Alive!

Readers who love Bon Jovi can breathe a huge sigh of relief.  In order to squelch an internet rumor posted on the website Daily News Blog International Monday claiming falsely that he died, Bon Jovi changed his photo on the band's Facebook page. To avoid causing eyestrain for readers, Ham on Wry will include the text on the sheet of paper dated December 19, 2011 that he's holding in the photo above. He wrote, "Heaven looks a lot like New Jersey."  For an extra measure of assurance, he added a comment,  "Rest assured that Jon is alive and well! This photo was just taken."

The truth didn't deter searchers using "Bon Jovi dead" from blasting through Google, Facebook, and Twitter in a quest for details.  Where was Jon Bon Jovi Monday?  He was at a concert in New Jersey. The Star-Ledger revealed that Bon Jovi joked about the rumor on stage, "and even pantomimed taking phone calls from concerned friends checking to see if he was still alive."  Ham on Wry planned to use Mark Twain's comment about his death being greatly exaggerated in the title of today's post, but Bon Jovi beat me to it and mentioned it at last night's concert.

Daily News Blog International evidently copied part of a 2009 story in the Los Angeles Times about Michael Jackson's death when it perpetrated the hoax.  Just in case some readers doubt that Bon Jovi is alive, he's playing a charity concert tonight in his home state, New Jersey.  Check it out!

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Woman Set on Fire Dies in Elevator

Surveillance Tape of Murderer Posing as Exterminator-AP photo

Deloris Gillespie, a 73-year-old resident of an apartment building in Prospect Park, died Saturday after her assailant sprayed her with an accelerant, doused her with the remaining flammable liquid, and set her ablaze using a lighter to ignite a Molotov cocktail. After a brief pause, he tossed it in the elevator and then left her to die.

Dressed in a homespun version of an exterminator's uniform, the man, later identified as Jerome Isaac, confronted Ms. Gillespie when the elevator doors opened on the fifth floor where she lived.  She crouched on the floor in a defensive posture but couldn't fend off her attacker as he systematically carried out his plan. Neighbors reported the elevator fire but didn't realize that Gillespie was burning to death inside.

Jerome Isaac-Robert Mecea/AP photo

Isaac turned himself in Sunday morning at a transit police station and confessed to the attack. Paul J. Browne, the chief spokesman for the New York Police Department, said he admitted only to setting a fire at first, but later confessed to burning Ms. Gillespie. He told police his motive for burning her alive was a purported $2,000 she owed him for some work he had done for her.  He faces charges of first-degree and second-degree murder and arson.

This crime resembles a horror story of the worst kind.  At any point, Isaac could have stopped before throwing the rag burning in a bottle into the elevator.  He didn't.  He chose a tortuous method of murdering her that would cause pain of the worst magnitude.  No amount of money owed warrants that kind of brutal attack, if  Ms. Gillespie, in fact, owed him anything. Building residents described her as a kind woman who was always helping others, including her assailant.

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Kim Jong-il Died on Train Saturday

Reuters Photos--Kim Jong-Un photo by Peter Kujundzic

Earlier today, KCNA, North Korea's state news agency, announced the death of its leader Kim Jong-il Saturday of a heart attack that occurred during a train ride.  Kim reportedly suffered from a variety of serious ailments, including diabetes, stroke and pancreatic cancer.  In 2009, he designated his youngest known son, Kim Jong-Un, his successor, although hints of at least one of his brothers and others challenging that designation could create in-fighting and impede his rise to leadership.

North Korean legend has it that Kim was born February 16, 1942, on Mount Paektu, one of Korea's most cherished sites.  In the state version, his birth was heralded by a pair of rainbows and a brilliant new star.Soviet records, however, indicate he was born in Siberia in 1941 and left for Korea for the first time in 1945. If that information is correct, Kim would have been 70, rather than 69.

Kim officially leaves behind three wives, three sons and three daughters. However, some indications exist that he has fathered many more offspring, who are scattered throughout North Korea.

In response to the news of Kim's death, South Korea placed its military on high alert and called back off-duty  troops as a precaution against any immediate threats from its North Korean neighbors. Adding to the unease, North Korea fired off at least one short-range missile in a test of the system. Unnamed sources in North Korea denied that the test had a direct connection to Kim's death, saying it was probably part of a routine drill instead.

His death leaves many questions for countries in that region and for the rest of the world as well.  The people of North Korea have limited access to communication and know little of the outside world.  The extreme restraints on the population might cause people to panic in the interim before a new leader emerges.  The Chinese government will certainly exert its power in expressing a preference for a collective leadership.

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Soldiers Last Day in Iraq

Pictures tell a story much more succinctly than words.  View the photos below taken during the journey from Iraq to Kuwait.  Labels give credit to the photographers with only a brief caption, so readers can create their own versions of what they see.  Ham on Wry celebrates the end of a war that killed almost 4500 over a period three months shy of nine years.  The DOD estimates 100,000 were wounded.

Soldier Leaving Iraq for Kuwait-Photo Maya Alleruzzo/AP

Last Convoy Leaves Iraq-Maya Alleruzzo /AP

Soldiers Wave to Arriving Troops-Photo Martin Bureau/Agence France-Presse

Kuwait and US Soldier Close Gate After Final Troops Enter-Martin Bureau/Agence France-Presse

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Ham on Wry Award-Alarming Level of Income Disparity in the United States

Homelessness Increases in 2011

Ham on Wry chose its weekly award to address the alarming level of income disparity in this country. Yes, I understand these definitions can be a moving target, but no matter how one views the data, it reveals a shrinking middle class that can no longer occupy its place along a normal distribution curve. The latest census data reflect the ravaging effects of high unemployment  and the weakening government safety net . After years of stagnating wages for the middle class, lost jobs, and an economy that continues to founder, millions of workers and families can no longer stretch their budgets to cover the necessary expenses of sheltering and feeding a family.

Sheldon Danziger, a University of Michigan public policy professor who specializes in poverty, explains, "Safety net programs such as food stamps and tax credits kept poverty from rising even higher in 2010, but for many low-income families with work-related and medical expenses, they are considered too `rich' to qualify.  The reality is that prospects for the poor and the near poor are dismal.  If Congress and the states make further cuts, we can expect the number of poor and low-income families to rise for the next several years."

According to a U.S. Conference of Mayors survey released Thursday, 29 cities say more than 1 in 4 people needing emergency food assistance did not receive it. Many middle-class Americans are dropping below the low-income threshold — roughly $45,000 for a family of four — because of pay cuts, a forced reduction of work hours or a spouse losing a job. Housing and child-care costs are consuming up to half of a family's income.  That data makes it hard to ignore the fact that the middles class is truly shrinking, and it's not just a case of smoke and mirrors.

Income inequality in the United States is at an all-time high, surpassing even the levels seen during the Great Depression, notes a recently updated paper by University of California, Berkeley Professor Emmanuel Saez.  The paper, which covers data through 2007, points to a staggering, unprecedented disparity in American incomes.  Saez calculates that in 2007 the top one percent of American earners took home six percent of total U.S. wages, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2000.  Even more disturbing, the top 10% of wage earners pulled in 49.7 percent of total wages, a level, that surpasses any other year since 1917 and even eclipses that of 1928, when the stock market bubble of the 20's hit its peak.

Don't be fooled by the disclaimers some conservative "talking heads" and think tanks are making about these findings.  When 48% of Americans are classified as low income or poor, this country faces a huge problem. The National Center on Family Homelessness shows that the rate of homelessness among children in the U.S. has increased nearly 33 percent since 2007, which equates to more than 1.5 million kids.  Add to this the parents or adults who care for them, and the number increases substantially.

No quick solution exists to return to a healthier distribution of wealth, but not addressing the disparity only worsens the problem.  Ham on Wry decries the attempts of any politician or group that justifies these figures as acceptable.  This country is wasting precious human resources and will suffer dire consequences unless we face facts and stop the political rhetoric.  Pay attention Congress!  The American people have grown weary of your lack of accomplishments this term.  Do something that will help, not hinder, those who are struggling to survive.  Many of you face re-election next year.  Voters can then show their disgruntlement.

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Kansas City Woman Receives a $6.1 Surprise

Christmas arrived early for a Kansas City, Missouri woman last month.  Missouri Treasurer Clint Zweifel said his office had successfully identified the owner of unclaimed property worth $6.1 million. Zweifel said his staff began searching for the woman last September, when a single security was turned over to his office as unclaimed property.  KMBC, the ABC affiliate in Kansas City, reported that a relative of the woman had invested in "an obscure company" many years ago-a security that had multiplied exponentially from its original date of purchase.

When the woman learned of her bonanza, she requested that the treasurer's office sell her security and send her a check for the proceeds that amounted to $6.1 million. They honored her request, and she can now claim membership in the one percent club.  In fact, with that much money, she's well above the lowest level of income in that bracket.

The woman requested anonymity as part of the transaction, which means her identity might never be revealed.  In a quote from Kansas City Star, Zweifel noted, “Ultimately we have a responsibility, when we return money back to somebody, to protect their privacy and to make sure they’re not being tracked or followed by someone."  In the same article, the newspaper reported that this was the largest unclaimed property settlement on record in Missouri and possibly in the nation.

The unnamed heiress will have a very Merry Christmas, indeed!

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Woman Dies in Tragic Elevator Accident

285 Madison Avenue, Scene of Yesterday's Tragedy

Suzanne Hart, 41, died yesterday morning when she stepped into an elevator on the first floor of a building located at 285 Madison Avenue near Grand Central Station that would have taken her to Y&R (fka Young and Rubicam), a top advertising agency  in New York City.  In one bystander's account, Hart had only one foot inside before the elevator began its ascent to the second floor with the doors open.  However, officials reported that either her foot or leg was caught in the doors as they closed, thus dragging her into the shaft and killing her as the other two people in the elevator watched in horror.

FDNY responded immediately to the emergency and rescued the two people trapped between two floors, who were taken to NYU Medical Center where they were treated for trauma.  The firefighters then removed the victim's mangled body, pronouncing her dead at the scene.

Suzanne Hart was Director of New Business Content and Experience for Y&R. The company released a statement, saying in part, “We are deeply, deeply saddened to confirm that one of our employees has died. Our focus at this moment is the well-being of our employee’s family and our larger Y&R family. As you can imagine, this is a great emotional shock to all.” Ironically, Y&R announced a few days ago that it was vacating the building to move to a new headquarter location.

Investigators from the fire department, police department, and NYC's buildings department stayed on the scene to determine what caused the elevator to malfunction.

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Conservative Talk Show Host Wants Gingrich Out and Will Pay $1 Million to Make It Happen

Michael Savage, a popular conservative radio talk show host, says he will pay Newt Gingrich a cool million to end his bid for the nomination of Republican presidential candidate in the 2012 election. Savage believes Gingrich can't win against President Obama, considering his past affairs while still married and forced resignation as Speaker of the House.

On his blog, Savage explains, "In a Presidential debate against Obama, regardless of how well he does, on television, he will come off badly compared to Obama and look like nothing more than what he is: a fat, old, white man."  No punches pulled in that statement.  He concluded the post by writing entirely in caps, "If Newt Gingrich loves this country as much as he says he does, if he really wants what is best for America, he'll set his ego aside, call me, and accept my offer."  His final offer-- "take the offer...and don't run."

Savage gave Gingrich 48 hours to respond to his proposition.  Ham on Wry urges Gingrich to do the right thing and accept, or don't take the offer and withdraw because he sees the flaws in his candidacy.  Either way, the Republican Party wins because it has an opportunity to choose a candidate who isn't so divisive.

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Black Cat Inherits Millions

Tommaso Poses for the Camera

Tommaso, aka Tommasino, has defied conventional wisdom about black cats bringing bad luck.  As a kitten, he escaped the scourges of life as a stray when Maria Assunta rescued him from the streets of Rome. Assunta gave him a comfortable home and something else no one knew about until now. Four after Assunta found him, Tommaso inherited $13 million dollars from her estate when she died last month.  Her portfolio comprises mainly various properties in Italy, so this lucky cat has his choice of posh residences to call home.

Assunta, the widow of a successful builder, never had children.  Her deep love of animals led her to write a will in October 2009, naming the cat as the sole beneficiary of the estate under a trustee.   She charged her attorneys with finding “the animal welfare body or association to which to leave the inheritance and the task of looking after the cat Tommaso,” according to the Guardian.  Assunta didn't approve of any that her lawyers found, so she arranged for her nurse Stefania to act as trustee for Tommaso.  Italian law prevents animals from receiving a direct inheritance.

Stefania told the Daily Telegraph, "I promised her that I would look after the cat when she was no longer around. She wanted to be sure that Tommaso would be loved and cuddled. .But I never imagined that she had this sort of wealth. She was very discreet and quiet. I knew very little of her private life. She only told me that she had suffered from loneliness a lot."

The two women met in a park and shared a fondness for animals.  When Assunta grew frail, Stefania devoted herself to nursing the old woman and taking care of Tommaso. The lawyers agree that she will act in the cat's best interest.

Tommaso now reigns as the world's richest cat and will never have to wonder where he'll find his next meal.  Ham and Wry predicts that Italian felines will be lining up at his door for hand-outs, now that he has made world headlines.

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Ron Paul-The Republican Candidate with the Most Consistent Message

Getty Image of Ron Paul

The Republican Party's slate of candidates for president includes a majority of wannabes who'll say anything to capture votes, despite expressing opposing views in the past.  Ham on Wry has found Ron Paul the most consistent in remaining steadfast to his political platform of those candidates still in the running.  His positions have not wavered since he entered politics after Nixon departed from the gold standard in pegging the value of American currency.  Of his decision to run for office, Paul explained, "After that day, all money would be political money rather than money of real value. I was astounded."

Paul's views don't exactly coincide with either Republicans or Democrats, because he's an avowed Libertarian who has devoted time and effort to a thorough study of the constitution in developing his platform. Paul opposes both a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and one to make abortion illegal, because he believes that those issues should be decided by the states.  He considers himself a constitutional conservative and argue the federal government should not be in the business of legislating morality.

Before, after, and even during his terms in office, Paul practiced medicine as an obstetrician, delivering over 4,000 babies.  While he doesn't support a federal ban on abortion, neither does he believe that the federal government should guarantee women a right to abortion.  In his efforts to support the principles of limited government, he has proposed a term limits amendment to the constitution, a reduction to Congressional pay, and refused to take political junkets.  Whether or not readers support his actions, he has staunchly refused to depart from his conservative libertarian political stance.  What has changed?  Paul now emphasizes the relationship between his views and scripture, thus gaining some attention from conservative Christians.

Paul served as a flight surgeon in the Air Force for two years and then in the Air National Guard for three. He maintains, "America [should] not interfere militarily, financially, or covertly in the internal affairs of other nations", while simultaneously promoting "open trade, travel, communication, and diplomacy with other nations." (Wikipedia)  The darling of the Republican Party, Ronald Reagan said, "Ron Paul is one of the outstanding leaders fighting for a stronger national defense. As a former Air Force officer, he knows well the needs of our armed forces, and he always puts them first. We need to keep him fighting for our country."  Paul also advocates for spending our money on protecting our own borders and not those of other countries.  He feels that illegal immigrants drain money from Social Security and the welfare system that rightfully belongs to those who were born in the United States or are working toward becoming citizens after entering the country legally.


Ham on Wry has not presented a full picture of Paul's beliefs, but information is readily available online and in the library.  I am not not suggesting readers support his candidacy, but I do recognize that his beliefs don't "sway in the winds" of political expediency and find it a refreshing change when a candidate states his views with clarity.

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Ham on Wry Award-Will the Real Newt Gingrich Please Stand

Newt Gingrich banks on the belief that American voters have suffered a collective memory loss about his previous political career and failed marriages.  Ham on Wry believes otherwise.  The House of Representatives investigated eighty-four ethics charges filed against him during his tenure as Speaker of the House and disciplined him for ethics violations in 1997.  His twenty-year career ended when Republican colleagues forced his resignation from the House in November 1998.

Gingrich has flip-flopped on political issues more that a caught fish in its final death throes.  In 1986, he backed amnesty for illegal immigrants, and he has now toughened that stance in light of the current anti-immigrant mood of many Republicans.  He takes credit for the budget surpluses that occurred when he was Speaker of the House and cites that as evidence that he can bring profound change to Washington.  Evidently, he forgot about Congress using in excess of $371 billion dollars from social security funds to balance the books and create the surplus.  That should grab the attention of current and future recipients of social security payments.  His current position on borrowing Social Security funds to balance the budget states that he will stop Congress from using Social Security to do so because it will hurt Americans who count on that income to live.  Ham on Wry suggests that readers research other examples of his 180-degree switches in his platform.

Equally as troubling as the drastic changes in political stance, his personal life reveals a man with serious character flaws.  At 19, Gingrich married the first of his three wives, Jackie Battley, 26. Battley taught him high school geometry.  Hmmm--I wonder when the romance began.  Gingrich married his second wife Marianne Ginther in 1981, six months after his divorce from Battley was final. Various accounts of how Gingrich delivered the news that he wanted a divorce exist, but one fact holds true.  Gingrich had an affair with Ginther before the divorce.  If that isn't enough to question his personal integrity, the details of his third marriage should.  In the mid-90's, Gingrich started an affair with Callista Bisek, a House of Representatives staffer twenty-three years his junior.  They carried on the affair during the period when Gingrich became a leader of the investigation of President Clinton for perjury and obstruction of justice in connection with his alleged affair with Monica Lewinsky.  He certainly had the credentials to recognize that kind of deception.  Gingrich married Bisek in 2000, not long after his divorce from Ginther.  This is the stuff of reality TV, not the kind of actions one expects from someone running for President of the United States.

Ham on Wry implores Republicans to face the fact that this country needs a leader who will represent us effectively in global as well as domestic affairs (no pun intended).  Gingrich now leads the pack, which leads me to believe that some citizens are not handling the due diligence aspect of intelligent voting seriously.  The Republican Party has serious problems in current and proposed leadership for the future.  It holds a majority in the House of Representatives during the most lackluster year for the passage of important legislation I can recall.  Can't the Republican Party find someone better than Newt Gingrich?  If not, it seems the values of our Founding Fathers don't count in choosing the slate of candidates.

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Police Officer Killed at Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech's website posted an alert following the shooting of a police officer warning "Everyone should seek shelter or stay where you are. Blacksburg Transit service is suspended until the alert is lifted." The suspect was described as a white male wearing gray sweatpants and a gray hat with a neon green brim. He was believed to traveling on foot near McComas Hall, a campus gym, at the time of the posting.

In order to provide the latest information, Ham on Wry checked the university's website.  Details from the site follow.

Shortly after noon today, a Virginia Tech police officer stopped a vehicle on campus during a routine traffic stop in the Coliseum parking lot near McComas Hall
During the traffic stop. the officer was shot and killed. There were witnesses to this shooting.
Witnesses reported to police the shooter fled on foot heading toward the Cage, a parking lot near Duck Pond Drive. At that parking lot, a second person was found. That person is also deceased.
Several law enforcement agencies have responded to assist. Virginia State Police has been requested to take lead in the investigation
The status of the shooter is unknown. The campus community should continue to shelter in place and visitors should not come to campus.

Fall semester classes ended yesterday and semester exams begin tomorrow, so fewer students were walking on the grounds when the shooting occurred.  At this writing, the suspect remains at large.

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To Anonymous Person Who Comments-Other Readers Disregard

As I explained in the blog post that addressed your questions, I have no means of replying to your comments, other than using the blog.  Since it's intended for all readers, if you want me to respond, make comments that identify an e-mail address.  Otherwise, you will not receive replies.

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Guide to Why the United States and Europe Face Economic Woes

The New York Stock Exchange

Ham on Wry rarely forwards e-mail and restricts those that are forwarded to humorous or touching ones.  However, today my close friend PJ sent me a message that compelled me to share it with readers.  Since I don't know who authored the text, I can't give credit to that person.  I have taken license in some of the formatting and in changing the title, but the exact wording remains. Somehow, the Wall Street bull pictured below seems an appropriate symbol for today's post. Please comment, if so moved.

Helga is the proprietor of a bar.
She realizes that virtually all of her customers are unemployed alcoholics
and, as such, can no longer afford to patronize her bar.

To solve this problem, she comes up with a new marketing plan that allows
her customers to drink now, but pay later.
Helga keeps track of the drinks consumed on a ledger (thereby granting the
customers loans).

Word gets around about Helga's "drink now, pay later" marketing strategy
and, as a result, increasing numbers of customers flood into Helga's bar.
Soon she has the largest sales volume for any bar in town.

By providing her customers freedom from immediate payment demands,
Helga gets no resistance when, at regular intervals, she substantially
increases her prices for wine and beer, the most consumed beverages.

                    Consequently, Helga's gross sales margin increases massively.
                    A young and dynamic vice-president at the local bank
                    recognizes that these customer debt constitute valuable future assets and increases.
                    Helga's borrowing limit.

He sees no reason for any undue concern, since he has the debts of the
unemployed alcoholics as collateral!!   

At the bank's corporate headquarters, expert traders figure a way to make huge commissions, and transform these customer loans into DRINKBONDS.  These "securities" then are bundled and traded on international
securities markets.

Naive investors don't really understand that the securities being sold to
them as "AA" "Secured Bonds" really are debts of unemployed alcoholics.
Nevertheless, the bond prices continuously climb!!!, and the securities
soon become the hottest-selling items for some of the nation's leading
brokerage houses.

One day, even though the bond prices still are climbing, a risk manager at
the original local bank decides that the time has come to demand payment
on the debts incurred by the drinkers at Helga's bar. He so informs Helga.
Helga then demands payment from her alcoholic patrons, but being
unemployed alcoholics they cannot pay back their drinking debts.

Since Helga cannot fulfill her loan obligations she is forced into
bankruptcy. The bar closes and Helga's 11 employees lose their jobs.

Her wine supplier also claims bankruptcy, closing the doors on a family
business that had endured for three generations, her beer supplier is
taken over by a competitor, who immediately closes the local plant and
lays off 150 workers. Fortunately though, the bank, the brokerage houses
and their respective executives are saved and bailed out by a multibillion
dollar no-strings attached cash infusion from the government.

The funds required for this bailout are obtained by new taxes levied on
employed, middle-class, non-drinkers who’ve never been in Helga’s bar.

                    Now, do you understand why the economy is the way it is?

                        

                  

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Obama Delivers Powerful Speech in Osawatomie, KS

President Obama in Osawatomie, Kansas--Photo by Charlie Reidel/AP

Whether one supports President Obama or feels he should serve a only one term, his speech on the economy today sounded a theme that resonates with conservative and liberal Americans alike: income inequality.  The choice of the small Kansas town served a dual purpose.  The President was speaking to the "Heartland", a typically conservative area of the country, yet hitting the mark with people who have suffered greatly since the economy nosedived in 2008.  He was also following in the footsteps of former President Theodore Roosevelt, who, in his 1910 speech in Osawatomie, called for a "square deal" for Americans based on a Progressive Party platform.  For readers who don't know much about the Progressive Party, I suggest you do some research.  That name has resurged this year as a possible third party.

Presenting to a crowd that had gathered at the high school gym to hear his speech, Obama declared, "This isn't just another political debate. This is the defining issue of our time. This is a make-or-break moment for the middle class, and all those who are fighting to get into the middle class."  He noted that after World War II, Americans were imbued with optimism and "believed in an America where hard work paid off, responsibility was rewarded, and anyone could make it if they tried — no matter who you were, where you came from, or how you started out.  These values gave rise to the largest middle class and the strongest economy the world has ever known."  He then discussed the myriad ways that the middle class has declined since America's heyday.

Obama disparaged any efforts to return to the failed practices that led to the financial debacle, which has hackled our economy for over three years.  He held big banks responsible for much of the crisis, saying there now exists "a deficit of trust between Main Street and Wall Street" and called for increased oversight and stronger regulations that would hold financial institutions accountable for their actions.  Further, he called on all Americans to engage in the political process and businesses to use fair practices in dealing with customers.

Ham on Wry eagerly awaits details President Obama will offer about specific ideas that can help our economy regain momentum and encourage a more vibrant middle class.

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Donald Trump Lacks Credentials to Moderate a Political Debate

Donald Trump and Newt Gingrich-Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

The Donald just won't give up.  After a meeting with Newt Gingrich earlier today, he announced he will moderate a debate of the Republican presidential candidates December 27th.  In his typical fashion, Trump used hyperbole to trumpet the fanfare about the event.  Ham on Wry questions his credibility as a political debate moderator, when he's more used to spouting, "You're fired," on Celebrity Apprentice.  He can't use that phrase with the candidates.

Trump still believes that President Obama was not born in Hawaii in 1961, despite ample evidence to the contrary.  The State of Hawaii has attested to the authenticity of Obama's Certificate of Live Birth and CNN asked a man who was born shortly after Obama in August 1961 to obtain proof of his birth. He received the same kind of document.  The Honolulu Star Bulletin announced both births, and the Honolulu Advertiser also published an announcement about Obama's birth.  How much evidence does this man need to let this issue go?  He now accuses most Americans of not caring about the truth. Trump looks squarely at truth and identifies it as a lie.  Although he still believes American should have concerns about Obama's citizenship, he has announced that the "birther issue" will not be debated.   How magnanimous of him!

Republican candidates Ron Paul and John Huntsman have declined to participate in the December 27th debate. Trump quickly dismissed their absence as inconsequential.  Those two men present as the two most well-informed, reasoned candidates on the slate.  The others just don't hold up when one studies their backgrounds, their platforms, and their ability to handle international affairs.  I wonder if Trump pouted in his usual way when Paul and Huntsman announced their decision.

Ham on Wry suggests that Trump stick to what he does best--reality TV.  Like other stars of that ilk, he lives his life in a grand manner with actions designed to attract media attention.  He doesn't understand the meaning of decorum and service.  His life is all about The Donald.  Everything else comes in second or less.  I'll skip this debate and do something worthwhile instead.

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Panda Express Arrives Safely in Edinburgh

Custom-built Panda Enclosure FedEx Used to Transport Pandas from China to Scotland

Tian Tian (Sweetie), an eight year-old female panda, and Yang Guang (Sunshine), an eight year-old male panda pictured in the enclosure above, arrived safely in Edinburgh, Scotland earlier today. Their special chartered Boeing 777, nicknamed the "Panda Express."', was stocked with plenty of bamboo, carrots, and apples for the long journey.

Yang Guang Munches Bamboo at Edinburgh Zoo

The FedEx crew that transported the pandas wore kilts for the occasion, which blended with those worn by the bagpipe players, who welcomed their guests.  Tian and Tian and Yang Guang will stay in their new home at the Edinburgh Zoo for ten years before returning to China.  Zoo officials negotiated for the loan of the pandas for five years before finalizing the deal this year.  The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland will pay almost $1 million a year for the pair, a hefty amount in the eyes of skeptics.

Both pandas have parented previously, but never as a pair.  The Edinburgh Zoo hopes that Sweetie will mate with Sunshine and deliver at least one healthy cub while in residence.  The eight-year-old pair are the first breeding pandas Britain has hosted in seventeen years. They were raised at the Giant Panda Conservation and Research Center in Ya'an, Sichuan Province and will be researched as part of a joint project between China and Scotland.

The giant pandas will have two weeks to settle in before the viewing public will be allowed to see them.  By nature, they are shy animals and will require that time to adjust to their new surroundings. Chinese efforts to save giant pandas from extinction have proved successful, and hopes are high that Sweetie and Sunshine will add to the panda population during their stay in Scotland.

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Ham on Wry Award-Judy Lewis, Love Child of Clark Gable and Loretta Young, Dies at 76

Judy Lewis with her Mother Loretta Young in 1961

While working on The Call of the Wild, a movie shot in 1935 from the book written by Jack London, Clark Gable and Loretta Young had a romantic liaison that resulted in a pregnancy.  Young refused to end it because of her Catholic upbringing, but Gable was married to his second wife at that time.  As a result the whole situation remained secret in order to avoid a scandal.  Young went abroad for awhile and returned to California to give birth to Lewis in Venice, California, where mother and daughter lived together for eight months.

Young then contrived a huge deception, placing her child in an orphanage under the care of nuns for the next eleven months.  She then reclaimed her daughter, but told everyone that she had adopted the girl.  When her daughter turned five, Young married Tom Lewis.  Young gave Judy her husband's last name, bur he never adopted Judy and treated her poorly.

As a child, Lewis suffered the slings and arrows of other children, who called her "Dumbo Ears" because her ears closely resembled her father's.  At the age of seven, Young arranged for an ear surgery to make her daughter's ears less prominent and diminish the likelihood of people drawling conclusions about Gable being her father.  Gable did visit her once at the age of 15, but he never saw her again.  Lewis was mystified by the visit and his show of affection when he left.

Judy Lewis in 1997/Photofest

Two weeks before 23-year-old Lewis married Joe Tinney, he told her the truth about her parents, but she didn't confront her mother about it until eight years later.  Young finally confessed the entire story to her, although she publicly denied Gable was the father when Lewis's memoir Uncommon Knowledge was published in 1994.  This caused a rift between the two that lasted until a few weeks before Young died in 2000. when they reconciled.  After her death, Forever Young, the authorized biography of her life, ended any speculation about Judy Lewis's true parentage.

Lewis pursued a successful acting career for two decades, but switched to marriage and family therapy after that.  She spent much of her later career working with foster children and pregnant teens.  Perhaps her parents' refusal to acknowledge her and her unhappy early life prompted her choice to focus on troubled children.  Lewis never really made peace with Gable's absence from her life.  Of his only visit she wrote, "As he left, he gave me a kiss on my forehead, but I didn't know he was my father. I cry when I watch his films. Why didn't he ride up on a white horse and rescue me?" Ham on Wry finds it tragic that a child suffered so that her parents' careers could flourish.

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Santa Arrives Early in Reading, PA

Secret Santa Hands Money to a Woman in Reading Bus Station, the Reading Eagle

Donning his version of a Santa's elf costume, a long-sleeved red shirt and red hat, an anonymous benefactor set a goal of giving a total $20,000 to needy residents of Reading, Pennsylvania Tuesday. Handing $100 bills stamped with "Secret Santa" in red, the unidentified businessman embodied the true spirit of Christmas.  Throughout his visit, the man wearing a red hat stamped with "Elf" was escorted by police.

Approximately 90,000 people inhabit the city of reading, which has suffered greatly since the economic slide began in 2008.  It is the most impoverished city with a population of 65,000 or more in America, so residents received "Secret Santa's" gifts with tears of joy and appreciation. A video produced by the Reading Eagle showed one man weeping inside a bus station.  He said that he had been praying for help just the night before, and "Secret Santa" arrived with the present.  The video followed Santa's helper but always showed him with his back to the camera.

When asked why he had chosen this specific act of kindness, the anonymous Santa replied, “Cities like Reading are experiencing tough economic times.  It’s time for us to step up, not step back.” Ham on Wry hopes this story convinces others with the means to share some of their bounty during the holiday season.  America has had too many examples of selfish greed, and I'm delighted to share some happy news about someone giving away money in this post.

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