Your daily Letter to the Columnist — Nov. 14, 2012
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He’s got some dreams, too!
Dan,
I really enjoyed your recent “dream” columns (here and here; response here, and I wanted to share a recurring dream I have had for years. Weary of all the complaints about how BAD and CORRUPT and INEFFICIENT government is, I wish that all those complainers could be denied all basic government services for just one week.
You know, things like:
• Driving on our public highways;
• Purchasing food at Kroger that has been inspected by the FDA;
• Flying in safe airplanes along uncongested routes because of the efforts of the FAA;
• Living in homes subject to building codes; and
• My personal favorite, using the toilet in their homes.
Oh yes, I forgot about clean water and police protection. Do you think free speech would be in there, too?
Oh my, they couldn’t post on your blog for one week. Just one week of austerity!
Thanks for your columns, Dan.
Jason Perdue
BONSACK
(No relation to Bill Perdue)
November 14, 2012 - 1:30 PM
I dream of a country that gives me benefits from cradle to grave so that I never have to lift a finger for myself or my family.
• Driving on our public highways
I’m okay with government roads
• Purchasing food at Kroger that has been inspected by the FDA
I’m okay with the FDA so long as it doesn’t get too out-of-control
• Living in homes subject to building codes; and
Standards are fine, but building codes have become something to use against landowners, lately. I’m fine with people building and living in whatever substandard structure they want on their own property. They should be free to sell it and buyers should be free to inspect it and buy it at their own discretion.
“Oh yes, I forgot about clean water and police protection.”
I’d rather have a well. Police are fine and usually do an honorable job, but there is practiacally NO law enforcement presence in my hometown. When I go there, I never worry about getting stopped for some fishing expedietion in an attempt to find a ticket to write. I like no LEO presence much better than cops on every corner like there are here. Blacksburg, Christianburg, and Virginia Tech all have way too many cops. the transition from “peace officers” to “law enforcement” has been a bad one.
“Do you think free speech would be in there, too?”
Of course Jason thinks this is a service provided by our governement.
“Oh my, they couldn’t post on your blog for one week. Just one week of austerity!”
I’ll take my chances {snicker}.
Jason Perdue the golfer?
Include on that list health dept. codes and inspections of restaurants, building codes, fire safety codes and inspection, air and water quality standards and enforcement. The justice system including not only police but Courts, jails and penitentiaries. Just a few of the things that enrich our lives and also separate us from the third world…
You are becoming more and more absurd and unhinged terps. Unless they are profoundly disabled, every human being on earth has to “lift a finger for myself or my family”. Your fantasy for why you lost is just that, a fantasy. 62+ million American citizens do not get nor want “benefits from cradle to grave” and if we are going to talk of the entitled, look at what has been given to the wealthy. Do you think just any business can get government contracts? Do you think just any business can open and get their costs reimbursed, partially or wholly? Do you think all business gets subsidies, tax incentives, rebates, abatement, or is in special status of one kind or another that grants taxpayer money? Shut the hell up about poor people being fed while the rich bastards at the top rack off obscene amounts of tax payer money for bonus, incentive and golden parachute rip offs at taxpayer expense!
Scott, I am the golfer to whom you refer, or at least I was at one time.
No we getthe real story about the Papa John’s Pizza rant. The CEO isn’t really worried about the drop in the bucket cost of providing insurance to his employees. He’s worrtied about the multimilion dollar settlement he’s going to get tagged for because in his uncontrolled greed, he and his franchisees broke the law and have been called out for it.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/papa-john-s-faces–250-million-spam-lawsuit.html
#1 terps, you should probably just go quiet for a while. I know it’s tough having to buy those lunches for Dan, but since you guys are good buddies it’ll be all right.
Besides that, Forbes has pegged the cost of PJ’s healthcare at 3-5 cents per pizza. Looks like the CEO was way exaggerating it.
Jason, you were quite the golfer as I recall and I’m sure you are now too. I never was and still am not…
Terps #1, clean water and air, safe food to eat, safe fire regulations, a pretty darn good justice system? You don’t want those? There are plenty of countries that don’t have them and you don’t pay a dime for them. In those countries the “grave” part usually comes earlier but you’re free to head that way. BTW, we pay for those “services”. Somewhere along the way our leaders, who we elected, decided that as a civilized nation the health and safety of our citizens should be of utmost importance and with them we can prosper as individuals and as a nation. I know of few if any advanced countries where these “benefits” are disregarded and considered unimportant. Without these, we are not even close to the “great” country we think like to think we are.
oops, last sentence to read: “we like to think we are.”
Papa John’s stock is falling too. Time to buy! Because at the end of the day, folks will still enjoy that pizza and buy it. I just may order one tonight. Thanks for the idea!
I can’t believe it took this to figure out what “Nosaj” stood for.
terps, move to Somalia. I’m sure you’ll be free of all those pesky clean air and building regulations.
#13 Re: Papa Johns, no thanks, I’ll take my pizza with a little flavor and… no politics. Local pizzas are better anyway. In my neighborhood we have Grace’s and Jimmy Sardines. Both superior to any chain here.
Maybe we should all call PJ’s and request an extra large pizza topped with Republicans!
Well said, Scott Whitaker. Both kick papa johns around the block. Papa johns is awful.
Ring ring.
STORE: Papa Johns, can you hold please. . . (call is placed on hold for 5 minutes)
STORE: Can I help you?
ME: I’d like an extra large pizza please.
STORE: Do you want any toppings?
ME: Yes, I’d like it topped with Republicans.
STORE: Huh?
ME: And I’d like a side of Obamacare.
STORE: Wait a minute . . .
ME: And I’d like two orders of wings — but RIGHT wings, only . . .
STORE: Hey buddy. . .
ME: I want thick crust, like the BS your CEO is spreading about the Affordable Care Act.
F Y I…..The only good use for “Cradle to Grave” is in building things to accommodate people with disabilities or mobility impaired. When we do this we accommodate all the able bodied persons such as parents pushing strollers….this line of thinking serves to accommodate all of society…..from Cradle to grave….Most simplistic example is curb cuts and ramps.
Enjoying a Papa John’s breadstick as I type…
John ..thanks for telling us it was a breadstick..
the mind silouette made some of us think u were
fond of something other than bread.
Haven’t tried Jimmy Sardine’s, but I do like Grace’s. Benny Marconi and Picaso’s are in my neighborhood, I prefer either of them to PJ’s.
joe, I hesitated to post that for that very reason, but then overestimated the maturity of the board and posted it anyway. Oh well.
.
Jimmy Sardine has the best and most interesting pizza crust in town. Homemade, thin, dense, holds together real well. But their pizzas, no matter how good they look, or the consistency of the crust, lack flavor IMHO.
Where is Picaso’s?
Debbie I love Benny Marconis. Have you tried that new place Leonore (I think )?
He who hesitates is lost..
Or Suzie.
Speaking of pizza, anyone up for http://tinyurl.com/by3phwk or for our resident egghead http://tinyurl.com/c5shpac & http://tinyurl.com/azdse6k
Funny, I don’t remember PJ’s laying anyone off when dairy prices spiked (and never really came back down). They simply raised the prices, said tough tatas to their patrons and carried on.
As a matter of fact, that’s what all businesses do and rarely do they ever worry about the end user. I find it strange that price hikes are only dire, apocalyptic and avoidable when one is trying to make a political statement.
Businesses will do what they’ve always done. The ACA will cost PJ’s 5 cents/pizza, they’ll raise the price 10 cents/pizza and PJ’s will actually profit more from the existence of the ACA. In five years, business owners will be saying that the ACA was the best thing to ever happen to their shareholders.
That’s a free $50k for every million pizzas sold, Schnatter! So why don’t you pour yourself a tall, frosty mug of STFU and get bent? Quit pouting and get back to work, dude. It’s not like anyone believes for a minute that you’re going to shutter the biz or anything.
Some of the other foodies here might enjoy: http://tinyurl.com/apzdb2u
**
14 November 2012 Last updated at 19:33 ET
Breakfast, lunch and dinner: Have we always eaten them?
By Denise Winterman BBC News Magazine
British people – and many others across the world – have been brought up on the idea of three square meals a day as a normal eating pattern, but it wasn’t always that way.
SNIP
**
“Where is Picaso’s?’
In the old Mill Mountain Coffee downtown.
Scott at #10, I don’t play much anymore, but I still love the game.
Kristen at #14, when I started posting on this blog, there were at least two Jasons. I went with Nosaj because my cousin, Luap (Paul), and I called each other by our first names spelled backwards when we were young.
Way, way too many decent pizza joints to have to suffer the indignity of eating chain pizza. Life is too short; if you’re going to commit the sin of consuming the calories make the taste worth it.
Big Al’s and Poor Billy’s up for sale
http://tinyurl.com/aw5sobv
Speaking of Papa John, remember this story? Glad it turned out well; I was happy for him. A bonus is what it cost him and how much it will torque the lefties to read!
http://ir.papajohns.com/releasedetail.cfm?releaseid=404954
Nosaj, I dluow rehtar ton evah nwonk taht.
.
Yea John…
I dont blame you for posting that even
in the face of ridicule.
To let the world know you are sitting
there eating a breadstick is really something
the public at large needs to be made aware of.
…stop the blog..he-s taking another bite.
Another good write-up on Michael Nicholas Varelos
http://tinyurl.com/aw5sobv
**
The Legacy of Mike and his Grill
Wednesday, November, 14, 2012; 10:33 PM
by Justin Graves, News Reporter
SNIP
**
How about it JW. Care to share some reminiscences?
John Wilburn, you are right, I did kind of lump a Constitutional privilege in there with basic government services. Oops.
I worked for the federal government for 26 years, and I am now in public education. There are many dedicated and competent people who choose public service as a career, so it rankles me when I hear someone disparage government institutions seemingly without regard for all the good federal, state, and local
governments do. Sure, there are poor government employees, just as there are poor private sector employees.
On balance, we have it very good in these United States, and a government at every level makes that a reality.
Re: Nosaj @ 11:51 pm
“so it rankles me when I hear someone disparage government institutions seemingly without regard for all the good federal, state, and local governments do. Sure, there are poor government employees, just as there are poor private sector employees.
On balance, we have it very good in these United States, and a government at every level makes that a reality.”
—————-
Plus 1, here.
WJ, doog eno!
Re: Re: Nosaj @ 11:51 pm
OTOH, the term “a Constitutional privilege” rather sticks in my throat.
It is not called the “The Bill of Privileges.”
I like the veggie pizza at Picaso’s because of the pickled banana peppers they put on it. Kristen, I have tried Leonore’s. I thought the pizza was very good. The salad I had with it was good too, nice and fresh.
Regarding your post at 11:03, John Wilburn, nice story, really. You do realize however that when you’re worth hundreds of millions, 250,000.00 is pocket change, right?
#27 Interesting article, Dave Hicks.
Dave, fair enough. I was merely expressing my personal view that it is truly a privilege to live in the US.
I do not begrudge the CEO of PJ’s his money. I dislike intensely that he is a megamillionaire because of the hard work of his employees, and now that he can help them, he doesn’t want to.
Right on Nosaj #38! Well said and very true.
joe:
“To let the world know you are sitting
there eating a breadstick is really something
the public at large needs to be made aware of.”
The point was to let the folks here buzzing about boycotting Papa John’s Pizza know that I was patronizing Papa John’s and laughing at them. Now for something the public at large is already aware of but you need to know:
YOUR COMPUTER HAS AN AUTOMATIC “CARRIAGE RETURN”! YOU DON’T NEED TO HIT “ENTER” AT THE END OF A LINE!
.
Dave Hicks:
“How about it JW. Care to share some reminiscences?”
Oh yes, I have a few good Mike stories, but I’ll just say that he was a successful, self-made immigrant and a very interesting man. He said America was a land of opportunity and didn’t like to hear the whiners. He had a hotdog stand in Roanoke before opening Mike’s Grill in the 70s, which has endured as an institution here and has changed practically zero.
On the wall beside the register at Mike’s there are numberous pictures of “friends”. Two of my agents, I and Mike at lunch in one of them. He was always supportive of my business and graciously hosted the VCDL dinner after our VT rally last fall. We were glad to know him and will all miss seeing him walking around and talking politics and business and bringing smiles to the patrons.
R.I.P. Mike
Nosaj:
“I was merely expressing my personal view that it is truly a privilege to live in the US.”
Yes, we’re privileged, but we’re also consuming the fruits of our forefathers’ labors without regard to planting and working for more.
JohnW, I think most of use work in our way towards improving on what we’ve been given. We just have different ideas of what “more” looks like.
I’m not boycotting Papa John’s, because you can’t boycott what you never had any interest in spending money on in the first place.
A friend reminded people on Facebook, that when you boycott a place, the people who really suffer are the workers. They’re already getting screwed by the owners.
#51 I can’t “boycott” them, either, because I can’t eat there, but even before my gluten problem was diagnosed, I absolutely could not stand PJ. Neither could my children. At least back then, the sauce was way too sweet.
I don’t like the crust on Papa John’s pizzas.
John Wilburn, what you say about our penchant for consumption is wise. If I had but a few seeds to toss on the fertile soil that is our great country, I would sow the seeds of civility and tolerance. I would also mix the strongest batch of Round Up I could to eradicate the weeds of blame. What about you?
Nosaj, those are very worthy seeds, but there has be some seeds that are not as heart-warming to plant or produce as sweet-tasting a fruit.
In your same vein of sowing seeds of charcter-building, we need some serious sacrifice to pay down that debt NOW, that involves less of a feeling of entitlement. We need gentlemen of strong character who take fatherhood seriously. We need young men and women who never default to saying “that’s not my job” when it comes to hard or messy work. It will take a cultural change to restore this country and parents who sow these seeds.
Gdad, sweet sauce is the worst. The worst.
Chain pizza is not good.
JW…
I was quite aware of the message
in the story of John and the Giant
Breadstick. Its just that it was a rather shallow
message. It had the heft of a dead November leaf
wind crabbing across a sidewalk.
Some people pound their chests..others , well..
eat bread sticks.
joe:
“Some people pound their chests..others , well..
eat bread sticks.”
And still
others, prefer to
recognize that they
aren’t using a
1950′s Royal typewriter.
The whole Papa John’s thread was pretty OMG to be honest with you. I like your posts joe and am dropping it.
Re: Nosaj — @ 7:23 am
I’ll second that, also.
Re: Debbie @ 12:20 pm
“I’m not boycotting Papa John’s, because you can’t boycott what you never had any interest in spending money on in the first place.”
—————-
You can add me to that list.
—–
BTW, anyone been to the the Radford cookie baker’s lately? How’s he doing?
It looked very sparsely patronized, the last few time that I have driven through town.
BTW, I’m not boycotting him, either — again, because you can’t boycott where you have never been in the first place, IMHO.
I like the style of joe’s comments. They scan like subversively Zen poetry when I read them.
Laura, I like his style too and miss his more poetic compositions. You can tell he is a manual typewriter guy, though. My mom and aunt broke that habit, but a former boss of hers never did, even after computers. She would have a string of “Enter” insertions into all of her text making cutting a pasting a real chore.
It doesn’t bother me one bit that he does that, but it is kind of funny. I like the diversity of it to tell the truth.
.
Agreed, JW. You and I will likely differ on the manner in which we believe the debt should be paid down, but the cultural change you speak of is vital. It will be generations in the making. I am a huge believer in modeling. Our children learn much more by watching what we do than by listening to what we say, and unfortunately, the lack of ethical behavior from our elected officials – in both parties! – is profoundly disappointing.
There is good news, though. I think our children and theirs to follow have wonderful educational opportunities. They will figure it out. They will realize the value of work, although I do think you and I will have to come to grips with what work will look like in the 21st century. That is a good thing. Change creates friction, and friction creates growth. It’ll just be kinda hot for a while.
#62 – I’m in a similar boat, JW. I’ve been trying to break myself of the habit of adding an extra empty space after a period for years, with only limited success. Darn this newfangled technology!
speaking of cultural change, what did any of you think about last night’s Team Umizoomi feature?