Vote Early, Vote Often!

Kidding about the last part, but if you haven't voted yet you need to prioritize everything else on your schedule and make it happen between today and tomorrow. CNN had reports this morning about people seeing 6 hour lines in some states, and turning away without participating saying "oh well". At this point in our history "oh well" is not an option! The 2 parties (and I say 2 because Ralph Nader and other hangers-on are truly not accomplishing anything more than an ego swab at this point) have vastly different courses for America, and no one can think that their life will be the same, regardless of the outcome. It matters. It matters a lot this time, so please vote.

Any of you loyal readers know I like Vegas. This year, with the economy being soft and fuel prices coming down, there are some extreme deals if you can travel in December! I have some repeat clients who went to Las Vegas in May of this year, staying 5 nights at Flamingo, and for their room, taxes, roundtrip transfers, and roundtrip flights from Charlotte, they paid $687 per person. I just priced Dec. 13th for them - same hotel, same flights, same inclusions across the board, and it came in $499 per person. That's a savings of almost $200 each! So even though you might think times are tight, if you have a little flexibility and a few dollars laying around, there are some outstanding values out there. In fact, I told my client he could upgrade to Treasure Island for only $5, or to Mirage for $40. If you like Vegas but have never tried any of the higher-end hotels because they've been too darned expensive, December might be just the ticket you've been waiting for.

Trick or TreaAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUGH! In Chapel Hill, NC a 9-year old boy went to his neighbor's house, and was going to replace the McCain/Palin yard sign with an Obama/Biden sign. I guess because, as we all know, 9-year olds have a definitive political ideology and activist tendencies. Anyway, when the tyke grabbed the McCain/Palin sign he screamed in pain, as an electrical shock coursed through his system. It turns out Shawn Turschak, the sign's owner and front-yard depositor, was tired of having people rip off his sign, so he took matters into his own hands, creating an electrified sign to ward off (or potentially hurt or maim) any would-be pranksters. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Turschak had visits from the boy's father and an Orange County Sherriff's Deputy. The Sherriff decided not to bring "charges", suggesting maybe each party should just go vote the way they want, and leave it at that. Message to 9-year old boys everywhere: you'll have plenty of time to get political later. If you must fight a political battle, use the American Male Weapon Of Choice for over 50 years....rolls of toilet paper. Not that I'm advocating anarchy, just that trees can look a bit barren at this time of year.

Here's a take on politics from the Orlando Sentinel Oct. 14th. Donna and Joel Brinkle of Deltona, Fla., raised a family and held respectable jobs until the mid-'90s, when they came up with a brilliant idea for their future and retirement. Or not. They decided to forego the normal channels of growing old gracefully, instead declaring themselves a sovereign nation. At that time, they stopped paying taxes altogether. How's that working for them you ask? Well, Deltona County has since taken their home, and the couple appear to be living on handouts from their son and their church. They've tried filing property liens against government officials, including former President Bill Clinton, who to no one's surprise fail to recognize the Brinkles as an independent authority or country. They even tried to buy a $700,000 house with a "money order" drawn on their own home-made currency, which looked suspiciously like Monopoly money re-printed and re-worded on a color copier. Even though the Brinkles' game plan has failed miserably, and Joel has even done jail time, the couple remain chipper, thinking at some point a "higher official" (emphasis on the word "high") will vindicate them, and allow them to be their own, happy-go-lucky country again. Kind of reminds me of the original Christopher Reeve Superman movie, where Lex Luthor is laying out his map of the New World Order according to Lex, and finding his sidekick Otis had written in a little piece of land for himself called Otisburg.

Gene Hackman railed: Otisburg? OTISBURG???!!
It's time again, Gene. Let 'em have it:

Brinkleville? BRINKLEVILLE????!!