Monday, February 21, 2011

You Win Some...



Today is Presidents Day. And with the divisive political unrest in Wisconsin and Washington, what could be more timely than pausing to solemnly reflect on what this day really is...

An artificially created holiday to give federal employees a three-day weekend.

Oh sure, we used to celebrate the actual birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, but that didn't guarantee that our overworked and underpaid federal workers would always get a full three days to stretch out, relax, or take bus trips out of state. So the government tossed out the Presidents' names, the actual dates of their birth, and decided to make it a great national day of savings on bedding, linen and towels.

All of which seems especially appropriate in 2011, a time in which we have a president whose name (Barack Barry Hussein Soetoro Obama) is constantly changing, whose birth date is undocumented, and whose foreign policy is "throw in the towel."

But even under the reign of Obama and the crushing burden of record unemployment, Americans should give thanks for the one undeniable blessing of this day.

No new bills in the mail.

-

13 comments:

Pete(Detroit) said...

True dat - the OLD bills are bad enough!

Angry Hoosier Dad said...

We once had presidents who said great things and inspired great dreams. Men whose love of country transcended their love of self and even their concern for their own safety. Men whose devotion to an ideal of freedom drove them to sacrifice all for that ideal. Men whose faith in divine Providence kept them on a righteous path no matter how hard the road.
And today...we have...Obama.
God, forgive us and help us in spite of ourselves.

Earl said...

Seems like our best leaders right now are Republican GOVERNORS. "On Wisconsin..."

Jim Hlavac said...

Why we would celebrate Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce and James Buchannon along with Washington, Lincoln and Reagan I'll never know. On the other hand, if the feds and bureaucrats take the day off I would propose a day for each and every president, and that should give us 45 days of relief. If we honor our vice-presidents in this way, we'd get nearly 100 days without a bureaucrat at work, which is fine by me.

Doc - Northern Nevada said...

Yeah Jim, I know it was said 'tongue in cheek', but 90 more WORK days when government employess do absolutely nothing and get paid for it ... and those who have to work get double time and a half for doing so, all because of 'collective bargaining'! Just what we need when budgets are crashing down everywhere you look ... yup, spend more money we don't have! Easier to just vote them the hell out of office so the taxpayers get a "reasonable value for their dollar" from the replacements.
By the way, congratulations on finally posting a comment where you found no way to ram your personal agenda down our throats. I am not for, or against, your way of life; but I really don't think you twisting everything you write just to get it in print, is the right way to go. There are better ways and other venues that are better suited for it. Thank you for leaving it out this time.

Colby_Muenster said...

Jim and Doc,

You both have valid points. As much as I would love to have these morons on permanent vacation or holiday, I certainly don't want to PAY them for it. Still, I would gladly pay Barney Frank or Harry Reid to stay the hell away, AND we can reap some sort of satisfaction knowing that the morons who voted idiots like this into office will also foot the bill.

And wouldn't it be great to have a Pierce or Fillmore? At least those guys were Americans!

Let's keep up the mantra. Vote these anti-American shitheads out in 2012! Let's get a super majority and take our country back.

Anonymous said...

excuse me, but i am a federal worker and i am at work today, and not receiving any compensation. just trying to get ahead (don't tell my union boss). in total disclosure, i am probably in the minority in this capacity.

and in all likelyhood, jesus wasn't born on decemeber 25, but yet we celebrate his day then (as well as easter). basically, i respectfully disagree with the assertion that president's day is "artificial"; many great men have sat in that office, and i have no problem giving a day in their honor.

which leads me to a third point-we both draw the same conclusion as this cartoon. we've had such great leaders posessing wisdom and moral righteousness, and to have obama listed with them is an absolute disgrace.

Bruce said...

If I can make one additional point to consider ... Our public servants in Congress decided to expand their holiday observance to the entire week. Just another example of: "Do as I say, not as I do." Don't expect any overhaul of the Congressional pension or health care plan very soon.

Bobo said...

@ Bruce...they had to take the rest of the week off. Everybody knows congress can't get anything done in just 4 days. They spend that much time on back slapping and cigar puffing so, the week being one day short doesn't allow for any actual business to be completed. Which probably saves the country a billion dollars.

Mount Rushmore said...

I'll join in congratulating Jim H, whose comments today for once do not revolve entirely around his personal sexual-preference victimhood issues. Attaboy.

Stilton Jarlsberg said...

Drozz- I meant that the holiday is "artificial" only in the sense that the date gets moved around. I've got nothing against honoring past Presidents. It's the current president I can't stand.

Cathy Kennedy said...

Stumbled upon your blog. This is great, simply great! I'm borrowing your cartoon to put up on my blog this Friday, but I'll have a link back to your site.

Stilton Jarlsberg said...

@Cathy Kennedy- By all means feel free to repost anything you see here - it's greatly appreciated!