In a telephone interview with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Friday, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said President George W. Bush has eliminated the line between church and state and has abandoned Americaís basic values:
"I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history. The overt reversal of Americaís basic values as expressed by previous administrations, including those of George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon and others, has been the most disturbing to me."
In response, White House spokesman Tony Fratto on Sunday said, "I think he [Carter] is proving to be increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments."
Maybe I'm missing something here, but if Carter was irrelevant, wouldn't the White House simply choose not to comment on his statements (sort of like I choose not to read anything about an anorexic hotel heiress' latest run in with the law or a past his prime quarterback's latest comments about how he wants to be traded one day and not the next)?
Q1 - Language: Does it bother you that more and more consumer goods contain packaging that is printed in both English and Spanish?
Q2 - Selective Service: Last weekend, the owner of a Louisville, Kentucky, restaurant said he didn't want OJ Simpson in his restaurant. "I said I'm not serving you," said Jeff Ruby, owner of Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse. "And then this blonde comes up to me, I guess it's his date, and says 'It' s a free country, he should be able to eat where he wants!' I said, 'Listen now, you're a blonde. You'd better be careful he doesn't slit your throat.'" What's your take on this? Should the owner of a restaurant be allowed to selectively choose whom he does and does not serve or should everyone be served so long as they are not breaking any laws or reasonable house rules?
Q3 - Standby: Have you ever flown standby? If so, was it a good experience and would you do it again? If you said you'd never fly standby again, would you change your mind if the ticket you were flying on was free?
Q4 - Problems: What do you think is the most important problem facing the United States today? The economy in general, fuel/oil prices, unemployment, federal budget deficit/federal debt, taxes, wage issues, high cost of living/inflation, the gap between rich and poor, foreign trade/trade deficit, corporate corruption, the situation in Iraq, immigration/illegal aliens, terrorism, environment/pollution, crime/violence, drugs, the media, race relations/racism, care for the elderly, or something else entirely?
Back in the day, when I was an Acquisitions Editor for John Wiley & Sons' consumer For Dummies series, I came up with the idea for what ultimately became the hit book, Living Gluten-Free For Dummies, by Danna Korn. My job at the time was to research and propose new books for the series, find authors to write them, negotiate author contracts, and help manage all of my books until they ultimately landed on bookstore shelves all across the world.
While researching and working on Living Gluten-Free For Dummies, I learned that many people may benefit from a gluten-free diet, including those with Celiac disease, M.S., arthritis, osteoporosis, autism, diabetes, and ataxia. Along the way, I had the good fortune of meeting Robb Dorf, President and CEO of PureFit, a company dedicated to educating, motivating, and liberating people to achieve optimum health and fitness. Robb created a one-of-a-kind nutrition bar...one that is made with natural ingredients and which contains absolutely no gluten or wheat whatsoever. After trying a couple of flavors, I became hooked, and even used them as recently as a few weeks ago when I ran in the Salt Lake City Half Marathon.
If you'd like to try some PureFit Nutrition Bars out for yourself, you're in luck. Last night I listed a box for sale on eBay. Here's my listing:
Other things you may want to know about PureFit Nutrition Bars:
They won't melt inside of their packaging, which makes them great for backcountry trips in the spring or summer time, or any other outdoor activities, like long distance running races and bike trips.
If you have food allergies, you may need to know ahead of time that PureFit nutrition bars are manufactured in a facility that processes milk, egg products, tree nuts and peanuts, which might not be so good for you.
However, if you are allergic to Gluten or Wheat, you are 100 percent safe with these great tasting Chocolate Brownie bars.
If Chocolate Brownie isn't your speed, I can also sell you a box of Almond Crunch or Peanut Butter Crunch.
Q1 - Summer Movies: Which movies are you most looking forward to seeing this summer... Lucky You, Spider-Man 3, 28 Weeks Later, Shrek the Third, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Day Watch, Mr. Brooks, Knocked Up, Ocean's Thirteen, Surf's Up, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Evan Almighty, A Mighty Heart, Live Free or Die Hard, Evening, Ratatouille, Sicko, Transformers, Rescue Dawn, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, 1408, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, Hairspray, Goya's Ghosts, The Simpsons Movie, The Bourne Ultimatum, Becoming Jane, Rush Hour 3, Stardust, The Invasion, Good Luck Chuck, or Halloween 9?
Q2 - Summer Vacation: Are you planning to take a summer vacation? If so, where you are going? If not, where would you go if you were taking a summer vacation?
Q3 - Summer Jobs: Growing up, did you ever have a summer job? If so, what were the best and worst summer jobs you had?
Q4 - Summer Travel: Last week, the Denver Post published an article tallying a host of problems that might only worsen by the higher number of airplane travelers this summer, including that the nation's outdated air traffic control system might be overwhelmed; pilots may refuse to work overtime which may cause more cancellations; and, with most flights flying at or near capacity, there might be no open seats on other flights should yours be canceled or delayed. At the same time, some airlines have said that starting this summer they will charge between $15 and $25 extra to air travelers who wish to request aisle or exit-row seats. Are the airlines nickel and dimming you to death or is it about time we started paying extra for better meals and specific seats in coach?
