Reaction to Cover of NEW YORKER Magazine

Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space:

A whole bunch of folks are upset that negative comments are being made about a Black man campaigning to be elected President of the United States of America.

Even his opponent, John McCain, hurriedly rushes to show he's on the right side, by expressing his outrage at any negative comments towards Barack Hussein Obama.

Well, so what?

Would you like to know what America would be like with a Black president in the White House?

Just take a look at Washington, D.C., where the municipal government, the majority of the population, and most business institutions are Black.

I live in Washington, D.C. at the Ol' Soldiers' Home.

We used to have a military retreat ceremony each afternoon, where the flag was lowered as the bugle sounded.

Reaction was starkly divided mostly along racial lines.

For the most part, White military veterans would pause or rise to their feet, snap to attention, and render order arms.

But, the Black veterans, with very few exceptions, would refuse to acknowledge the colors, and Black employees would just ignore the bugle.

One day, I was walking through the lobby of the Sheridan Building, the dormitory where I live, when I overheard a Black military veteran loudly announcing to a group of other Black military veterans that the White Man was the most dangerous terrorist in the World.

Here at the Ol' Soldiers' Home, we live with the daily sound of gunfire and sirens on all sides.

Most of the local Black population actually seems to relish living down to the very worst perception of their negative stereotypes, as they slur their speech, engage in public profanity, dress sloppily, exhibit a remarkable dearth of intellect, and with obvious lack of motivation, perform slovenly at their tasks.

Martin Luther King, Jr. is quoted as saying he hoped his children would be judged, not for the color of their skin, but the content of their character.

Well, it's "the content of their character" which causes people like me to be racially prejudiced towards Black people.

Unfortunately, in this election, John McCain can't be trusted, either.

So, who do we vote for?

Thank you.

John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee, KB3KWS
Official Bard of Clan Henderson
Armed Forces Retirement Home
Washington, D.C. 20011-8400

NOTE: "My unpopular and controversial personal opinions are independent of my Scottish clan."

A Couple of Jokes

Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space: Here's a couple of original yuks I just now thunk up, all by myself. Do you know what salmonella is? It's either fish cakes marinated in vanilla extract, or fish served with Italian pasta! Lately, I've been feeling sick. I've probably got the Spanish perch. What's the Spanish perch? Why, it's the Spanish Fly before it took off and became the Spanish Flu! Okay, okay, I'm a singer/songwriter, not a comedian. Thank you. John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee, KB3KWS Official Bard of Clan Henderson Armed Forces Retirement Home Washington, D.C. 20011-8400 NOTE: "My unpopular and controversial personal opinions are independent of my Scottish clan."

Volunteer Computer Research Project

Greetings and Salutations to All my Kith and Kin and All the Ships in Outer Space: You can now volunteer to use your computer in helping The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints (i.e., the "Mormon" church) organize genealogical records. I learned of this from a posting in an Internet discussion forum for Latter-day Saint Single Adults, which I participate in. You do NOT need to be a member of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints to participate as a volunteer with your computer. Go to the Family Search Indexing web site, register, and download the software. After downloading the software, install the program, reboot your computer, and then sign in at the web site, and begin transcribing your first batch of names onto the Church's official computerized records. If you have difficulty deciphering an individual's handwritten script (which I did), you can verify correct spelling (or existence?) of a location by using Google or Wikipedia as a reference. There is also a telephone number you can call, but only during normal business hours. One very unusual problem I immediately encountered was a death certificate in Louisiana, for a female named "Ollie", whose spouse was "Eliza", and the cause of death was ovarian cancer!!! I'll not proceed any further with that particular document until I can telephone the head office on Monday or Tuesday. Nifty stuff, huh? Come join with me in this very interesting and critically important historical effort! Thank you. John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee, KB3KWS Official Bard of Clan Henderson Armed Forces Retirement Home Washington, D.C. 20011-8400 NOTE: "My unpopular and controversial personal opinions are independent of my Scottish clan."