The LuLac Edition #353, Nov. 21rst, 2007

PHOTO INDEX: MY FAVORITE FORMER FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE MONICA LEWINSKY AND A GUN.

A CAPITOL OFFENSE?

Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity of a CIA operative.
In an excerpt from his forthcoming book, McClellan recount the 2003 news conference in which he told reporters that aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby were "not involved" in the leak involving operative Valerie Plame.
"There was one problem. It was not true," McClellan writes, according to a brief excerpt released Monday. "I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."

It seems we have grown numb to the lies and deceit of the Bush administration. The fact that a former Press Secretary says he was misled does not surprise us at all. But the fact of the matter was there was an ongoing coverup, a calculated presentation of lies in this matter. Bill Clinton was impeached because of a bout of bad judgement with an intern. The GOP from coast to coast called for his head. Will the same thing happen to the team of Bush/Cheney? Or are we so immune to the lies that we will add this to list as we count down the days to Jan. 20th, 2009 and hope we get through it? Only time will tell.

ED TRIES

Despite an impassioned personal plea by Gov. Rendell to do more, a state House panel this morning endorsed one bill aimed at curbing gun violence but rejected two others and tabled action on a fourth.
In a 27-2 vote, Judiciary Committee members approved a bill sponsored by Speaker Dennis O'Brien (R., Phila.) to create a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 20 year for anyone who fires a weapon at a police officer.
Also by wide margins, the committee rejected bills that would limit the number of handguns a person can buy to one a month and allow cities to enact their own gun laws. Members tabled action on a bill that would require gun owners to report lost and stolen weapons.
The votes came moments after Rendell urged committee members to grow a "backbone" and send the entire package to the full House for a vote. They didn't and as it stands now, the gun lobby has won another round in Harrisburg.

TARA SAYS GOODBYE

Tara Men's Clothing is leaving Wilkes Barre and that's a bad thing. The store had wonderful merchandise and was a little gem in the downtown. The problem was never the store or its style but us. We have become a bunch of slobs who do not dress up. Years ago, when I was growing up, men wore suits and ties to church, even in the summer. Today, you might see a couple of guys wearing "wifebeaters"as they recieve communion. Everything is casual these days. When I worked in broadcasting, we had to wear suits everyday. It was a requirement. Then when I entered the technology field, it was a bit more casual. One place I worked at was so casual, people wore sweats to work. When I'd wear a suit, they'd think I was going for a job interview or coming from a funeral. Wearing a suit and tie became the exception, rather than the rule. Even now, with a dress code and the opportunity to wear a suit in my current job, there are days when I take the path of least resistance because everybody else does too. There are dress down Fridays, I propose we start a new trend in business called "Dress Up Mondays". God knows people don't dress up for church, the Philharmonic, a concert or even dinner anymore. Maybe if we implemented a "dress up" day, fine stores like Tara Men's Clothing can survive in a society of slobs we've created for ourselves.

SWEET CAROLINE

When I was in a sophomore in high school, Neil Diamond's song "Sweet Caroline" came on the scene. I mentioned it to a few high school pals that I knew it was about Caroline Kennedy. They thought I was nuts so I never put it in print when I was the rock and roll columnist for the Sunday Dispatch. On a trip to the Bahamas a few years back, me and a few of the natives (much to Mrs. LuLac's delight) got out of hand when a band started playing that song. I thought about the Caroline connection but never said it out loud. Then on the news, I heard Neil Diamond saying he wrote the song with Caroline Kennedy in mind. I yelled at the TV saying, "I knew it! I knew it!". "Cracklin' Rosie" was about wine, ripple, or now years later, we can ask, "was it really?" Either way, "Sweet Caroline" BOM BOM BOM!!!!!! remains one of the great party songs of all time.