JoeGARNET.COM

Veterinarians need bedside manners

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 10:37:26 -0800

Almost two years ago I lost my Rottweiler to an aggressive form of cancer. Yesterday I took my German Shepherd to the vet for what I though were simple age related hip problems. Instead I left the vet shocked, depressed, worried, and thinking I may only have my dog for months more.

I had an appointment with one of the younger doctors in our local vet. She seemed nice. She proceeded to evaluate my dog walking up the hall and noted that she thought it was neurological. She ran him through some tests and told me she surmised that he has Degenerative Myelopathy. She basically shot down every thought of hope I had by basically telling me there isn’t much you can do except euthanize them when they can no longer walk (which only takes about 4 to 6 months).

Then she did some x-rays and returned to not that she didn’t see anything with his spine so it probably wasn’t a slipped disc. Oh and by the way - there looks to be a mass in his right hip. But don’t worry, dogs do fine with only three legs. Except, that usually it has metastasized by this point and there is no point in amputating the leg because likely the cancer is all over the place.

Thanks asshole. Next time, why don’t you just give me what it could be and the action steps needed to figure it out. You have the bedside manners of a fucking toaster.

HOLY SHIT JOE GARNET LIVES

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:57:30 -0800

I don’t know where I’ve been all this time. I gave up on politics for a while. For the five people that come across this site by accident in the next 24 hours let me share my thoughts on the state of the union:

For the millionth time Warren Buffet pays a lower rate than his secretary because he doesn’t pay income tax. He purposely pays himself $100,000 per year to avoid paying a lot in income tax. What he pays is CAPITAL GAINS. This money that most people have already paid tax on. So if they’ve already paid 28 to 36 percent on the income they’ve earned, then re-invest it - should they then pay another 28 to 36 percent on the earnings? That will only discourage investment.

Economics lessen - less people willing to invest, means less capital, which means less people opening businesses, which means less people will have jobs. Duh.

Take away deductions for anyone making over a million dollars a year? What does that do to charities when millionaires don’t have a charitable donations deduction? Anyone? What does incentive mean?

The reason socialism fails is because it does not take into account incentive. It doesn’t matter if you don’t agree with the incentive - but it exists. Like air and water and physics.

At the same time, I think the Republicans might disagree with Obama over the weather. Partisan politics is killing us.

I don’t know what the solution is. And today I don’t care. Today, my lovely 89 year Grandmother passed away from a vicious long term illness. She is at peace, but I will love and miss her for eternity. Thank you for everything Grandma.

OBL BITES THE DUST

Sat, 7 May 2011 06:08:41 -0700

To the brave Navy Seals who stormed Osama Bin Laden’s compound killing the terrorist leader who has loomed over our country for almost twenty years, I salute you. It’s about time. I will give the President this - he made the decision to go into a foreign country, and made sure to keep this from the Pakistanis. I think we can all agree, in the wake of the discovery that OBL was living in an upscale neighborhood, the Pakistanis cannot be trusted.

At best the Pakistanis are incompetent. At worst, some within their government actively hid Bin Laden in their country. Either way, we should stop all foreign aid, and consider whether we should seize their nuclear arsenal. In my view Pakistan is more of a threat than Afghanistan ever was.

I was watching the news on Sunday when Geraldo announced that the President was going to speak (around 10:30 EST). My initial reaction was that it was probably likely that Gaddafi was killed in the bombing that reportedly killed his son and grandchildren. Then Geraldo reported that Bin Laden had been killed. It was a great night for America.

I fear that some will take a false sense of security. Bin Laden in recent years has been on the run, but Al Queda’s network is vast, they don’t need him to attack us. If we back off now, I fear we will suffer another September 11th-type attack. Our government has to be smarter than that.

The other striking thing about the death of UBL is the way the Administration has handled the aftermath. They are once again amateurish. First they announced he was armed, then he wasn’t, then they were going to release pictures, now they aren’t. Instead of getting the story straight and releasing it, they have juggled the story, and dropped the ball.

Frankly, I could care less if they outright assassinated Bin Laden. We are more than justified at taking him out as he has declared war on our country. But it’s funny to me how different this would have played out had Bin Laden been killed during the Bush administration?

Finally, it is very likely that the Bush administration’s vigor at attacking Al Queda is what led to the eventual death of Bin Laden. Quite possibly, “enhanced interrogations” techniques also led to the information regarding Bin Laden’s location. When will liberals admit that the Bush administration was right? When will they admit that Guantanamo Bay was a good idea? I won’t hold my breath.

badger benson show INTERVIEW

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 23:05:19 -0700

I just had the honor of recording a great interview on Badger Benson’s 100th show which will air tomorrow. Check out his show at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/search/badger-benson/

You can listen to past shows and follow the links to subscribe in iTunes. I plan on doing more call ins on his show whenever he wants, it was great to get back on the air and let out my thoughts. For this interview, we talked about the old “Boottotheskull.com” days and the early days of our young conservatism. We got into some discussion about the current conflicts such as Libya, and what 2012 will bring.

Check back in this weekend for more of an update, and please listen to his show. He’s the next great conservative talk show host. It was an honor to be a part of his show!

Joe G.

Unions and our government

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 06:24:49 -0800

In one of my former jobs I was a union member. I didn’t join right away, but after a year or two I realized it was worth the 20 bucks a pay check to get legal protections and to contribute to the organization that was looking out for me. I have no problem with that.

In the public sector, the government often has a way of ignoring it’s own labor laws and screwing the public employees. I think unions have a place in our society. That being said here are some things that I see that are wrong with unions and why they are a source of huge frustration for me:

In a time of historic economic downturn, why should public sector union employees be treated any different than the private sector? People have been laid off or taken pay cuts all across the country - so why then shouldn’t public sector employees expect the same? Should government employees, whether Federal, state, or local be above pay cuts and layoffs?

It’s no secret that over the years, many public sector unions across the country have negotiated some pretty sweet deals for pensions, benefits, and pay. Good for them. Yeah, but bad for John Q citizen. Take California for example - there are some Department of Corrections employees that have 90 PERCENT PENSIONS. Huh? Tell me in what job you can get a 90 percent pension? That means after a 25 year retirement (because these positions are law enforcement) you get 90 percent of your pay? That is better than winning the lottery. And now because of insane benefit packages that DEMOCRATS negotiated with the unions years ago, states like California have record budget deficits. And many of the unions won’t budge. They seem not to care that it is bankrupting their states.

The bottom line - these compensation packages are unrealistic and unsustainable. At the end of the day, they can negotiate to keep all these sweetheart deals, but when the states go bankrupt, where is their pension going to come from?

But it seems that the unions are unwilling in most cases to even negotiate these terms. They want to be treated differently than the rest of the country. And at the end of the day, they will shoot themselves in the foot because they will force governments across the country to fire workers and downsize. There just simply isn’t enough money. So what do the union leaders suggest we do - raise taxes to support their packages? Income redistribution?

What’s even more amazing to me, is that the unions will stop at nothing to prevent right to work laws, and instead of giving their employees a choice to join a union - they will oppose legislation that prevents union membership from being compulsory. How is that American? Since the Democrats are the unions biggest supporters - I thought they were for freedom of CHOICE? Or is it only freedom to choose destroying a fetus?

To the public employees that really matter, like Police, Fire, and teachers - I support your efforts. But in almost all cases, you have pretty good salaries, good benefits, and most of all you enjoy much greater job security than the average private sector employee - who currently has to worry about their business folding, or getting laid off. Furthermore, most never have to worry about getting raises based on performance and are given mandatory increases. Even in the worst of economies.

can joe turn to sports for a more serene life?

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 08:54:52 -0800

I was always into sports as a kid. I wrestled briefly in junior high, played baseball for over 10 years as a kid, and I followed boxing as a teenager. My earliest dream job was to be the heavyweight champion. But other than baseball and boxing, I was never a sports nut. I never really followed any sports that closely. Recently, the political climate has pushed me from Foxnews to ESPN and I feel happier for it.

This happened to me a few years ago too. Right after the Republican defeat in 2006, I spent much of 2007 ignoring politics and listening to sports radio and ESPN radio podcasts. Then I was sucked back into the political arena during the presidential election of 2008.

For the last couple weeks I have traded in talk radio and Foxnews for guys like Dan Patrick and Colin Cowherd. And I must say I’m a little calmer. It started after the Tucson shooting and the media attack on conservatives. Prior to that, I spent a couple weeks on Twitter defending the Border Patrol from attacks by people that expect them to get hit in the head with rocks and never retaliate. That took a lot out of me. It is really hard arguing with people that are devoid of common sense, and completely guided by their emotions.

The attacks against conservatives lead me to believe that the political climate is so hypocritical in this country it is laughable. I think the tied is turning to an extent, but I just needed a break. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not time to give up, but time to mix it up.

So now that I’ve embraced some sports to add some balance to my life, let me voice my opinion on a topic that has been raging for months - Lebron James’s departure from Cleveland to Miami.

During Lebron’s first appearance in Cleveland as a Miami Heat member, the fans were outraged. I’m very confused by this entire ordeal. When I was a kid, most players stayed with a team for years. But free agency has changed all that, and it is part of capitalism. If you are a great player and are more marketable, then you will command a higher salary. Doesn’t mean I love the fact that players in most sports now bounce from team to to team with the same frequency that I have coffee, but what can you do.

Can you really blame Lebron James for going somewhere else? Whether its for money or not? The guy is one of the best basketball players ever, and arguably the best player in the NBA and whether he went to Miami for the opportunity to play for a title, or for financial reasons, it is his prerogative, and he doesn’t owe his life to obsessive fans in Cleveland. Is professional sports indentured servitude? Don’t be silly.

While I am trying to follow sports a little more, I don’t get these fans that spend their entire lives sitting on their ass blasting their favorite players any chance they get. Like the douche bags that are criticizing Jay Cutler for not playing the entire game against Green Bay. What are they doctors?

where were all the calls for civility from 2001 to 2008?

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 09:31:03 -0800

Last night I watched the President’s speech in Tucson, and several of the other speakers. I must applaud the President for a well thought out and inspirational speech. The President did what he needed to do in this situation - lead, inspire, and remind us all that we are Americans.

I didn’t expect the President to make the mistake of blaming conservatives or Sarah Palin, or the Tea Party. The President is smarter than that. And I honestly believe he knows that is not what caused this incident. It is other moronic politicians who use this as an opportunity to blast conservative ideology. There are politicians already using this tragedy to push agendas such as regulating free speech, more gun control, and “Hate speech” legislation. Since I dealt with these issues on Tuesday, I wanted to examine another question.

While I obviously agree that civility can only help us. It is better to debate the issues we disagree on then to argue, bicker, and throw personal attacks - I am wondering where were all these calls for civility during the Bush Administration?

Where were these calls for civility from the left when people were comparing George W. Bush to the Nazis? Or more recently, when Madanna was threatening to kick Sarah Palin’s ass? Or Sandra Bernhardt was hoping that Sarah Palin would be gang raped? What about the effigy of Sarah Palin that was hung by a noose during the campaign of 2008? Are these not worse then the supposed speech that some on the left say led Jared Loughner to kill 6 people? I don’t remember Sarah Palin ever threatening to kick anyone’s ass.

Michelle Malkin posted a great article showing examples of the attacks against the former President, Sarah Palin and others.

http://michellemalkin.com/2011/01/10/the-progressive-climate-of-hate-an-illustrated-primer-2000-2010/

Numerous pitures, stamps, and t-shirts calling for the assasination of our former President. Where was Sheriff Dupnik then?

These are just some of the examples. Michelle has many examples of left-wing goon tactics from SEIU to ACORN. You see, the left only wants civility when you disagree with their points. When the left disagrees with your idealogy, they will threaten, attack, storm your protests, throw out your conservative publications (on virtually every college campus in America), and do whatever they can to silence you.

The truth is that the hardcore left doesn’t really believe in free speech. They only believe in speech they agree with. When they disagree with it, they will attack the messenger with threats, personal attacks, and lies.

And lets not forget a little gem by Wafaa Bilal, a supposed artist who displayed a video game that involves assassinating our former President. Where was the illustrious Tucson Sheriff then? Where were the calls for civility?

While it never hurts us to keep the public debate civil, it only works if all sides play by the same rules. I would argue that we need to be better than the other side, but at the same time you can’t fold up in a ball and let the left sling their mud, lies, and threats.

THE LEFT WING MEDIA JUMPS TO CONCLUSIONS - IS ANYONE SURPRISED?

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 15:44:20 -0800

Immediately after the tragic incident in Arizona in which Representative Gabrielle Giffords was shot and Federal Judge John Roll killed, many on the left assumed the attack by Jared Loughner was spawned by the likes of Sarah Palin and the Tea Party. Without a shred of evidence, the left practically begged for this to be an attack by a right wing nut. So far that remains to be seen, but I’ve even heard Loughner described as a “left-wing” pot head.

It doesn’t matter whether Loughner was a right wing nut, a left wing pot head, a neo-nazi, or whatever. What matters is that he killed 6 people, including a 9 year old girl that was there because she dreamed of being in politics. The most likely scenario, that Loughner was a schizophrenic and completely insane. Could this have been prevented, maybe. Will it ever happen again - the unfortunate answer is, yes.

Even if we sacrifice all of our freedoms to a Big Brother government that tells us when we can speak out, when we can protest, and what weapons we can possess, violent incidents will still occur. Human nature is somewhat savage. We forget that we aren’t that far removed as a species from men wandering the plains hunting animals and warring with competing tribes.

It is sad, and scary that our media and politicians are using this tragedy to serve their own interests. To suggest that people incited this incident with anti-government speech is more than absurd. It is truly un-American. What would have happened if Patrick Henry, or Sam Adams had tempered their speech? Would we be here today? Or was it not their speech that inspired out fathers to declare their independence from Great Britain?

Obviously, our current government situation isn’t the same as our founding fathers revolting against England, but to speak out is what makes us American. I would never advocate violence, but to link that violence with critical speech is dangerous. It is what makes us American, to question our government. When something is wrong, and our leaders go astray, it is our RESPONSIBILITY to question their motives and tactics.

What do we have now? We already have politicians talking about BANNING CERTAIN SYMBOLS and restrictions on talk radio. Are you kidding? How is that going to stop a crazy man from gunning down innocent civilians? Rush Limbaugh was right when he called Arizona Sheriff Clarence Dupnik a fool. Do I always agree with or like Limbaugh, not always. But to place blame on a talk show host is to question the very free speech that this country was founded on, and in fact, FOOLISH.

When Army Major Nisal Hasan killed 13 soldiers, the first thing we were told was to not jump to conclusions. Then we find out that he did in fact have connections to Islamic extremists, and somehow we don’t harp on that point? When in fact, Islamic extremism is in fact a dangerous idealogy. But we tip-toe around the truth about the ideology that motivates terrorists so as not to offend anyone. But when someone questions how high our taxes are, suddenly they are inciting hate speech. What? Are we in the backwards BIZARRO world that Superman used to find himself trapped in?

But when Tea Party activists argue that our government is too big, too bloated, and trampling our rights, they are blamed for a massacre of 6 people? Huh? Did I miss something here. Why did we jump to conclusions so fast? The answer is that our media has grown irresponsible and in FACT WANTED Loughner to be of a conservative ideology so they could advance their left wing agenda. All I can say, is absolutely disgusting.