President Obama Campaign Bumper Sticker?

Myths and facts about 'Obamacare'?
Read More...

Election 2012?

A political exercise in the Dog-Ma-Nomics of 'Stone Soup'?

Compare: As of March, 2010, seven years after the invasion, the United States had spent $44.6 billion rebuilding Iraq.
READ MORE...

Contrast: Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, better known as the Stimulus Bill, $40 billion was allocated to provide extended unemployment benefits through Dec. 31, 2009 (with an increase of $25 a week). While it did not directly create new jobs, this money prevented millions of Americans from becoming HOMELESS in a contracting employment market. NO Republicans in the House of Representative & only three Republican Senators voted in flavor of providing economic relief to struggling families.

“Generosity is giving more than you can and pride is taking less than you need.” ~ Kahlil Gibran
Stone Soup (Paperback)

Google keeps recommending links selling Plastic Bifocals, Constipation Remedies, Flatulence Treatments, Depends Underwear, Low Dose Aspirin, Pink House Slippers and the NRA.

Should I be worried?

"Life is a great big canvas and you should throw all the paint on it you can." 
~ Danny Kaye
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (DVD)

Beijing, P.R.C. (June 2008)

The mosquitoes are so BIG in North Dakota the Department of Fish & Game could issue hunting licenses.

A rural life is better: 
Living in a concrete jungle is stressful and makes you vulnerable to depression
The Daily Mail
By David Derbyshire
June 23, 2011


"Scientists have confirmed what every urbanite has long suspected – life in the city is more stressful."
READ MORE...

Photo by Peter Rimar of Grain Elevator in Hunter, North Dakota (August 2010).

The Voices of North Dakota

Joel Heitkamp, KFGO (August 2010)

Merrill Piepkorn, Prairie Public Radio (August 2010)

Photos by Peter Rimar.

Message to Faux News

If a user LIKES a candidate on Facebook, it does not mean that person actually supports that specific individual. Don't believe me? Just spend a few minutes reading the comments left on Michele Bachmann's page.


Because of Facebook's technical architecture, in order to leave a comment on a candidate's page (either positive or negative), a user must JOIN that candidate's LIKE page. IF a journalist (and/or news agency) uses a candidate's Facebook LIKE page to gauge popular support, that journalist (and/or news agency) is an IDIOT.

FYI: The Facebook LIKE function does not represent a scientific poll or survey (even one funded by a special interest group). Anyhow, these days, this blogger watches Comedy Central for an insightful look at the news and laughs from watching Faux News.
Fair and Balanced, My Ass!:
An Unbridled Look at the Bizarre Reality of Fox News (Paperback)

Mural on Town Post Office

May 2010

Stromberg, Nebraska

"The Swede Capital of Nebraska"

I'm confused. I must be drinking the wrong flavor of Kool-Aid.

On June 20th, 2011, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (R), speaking at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Governors Summit on CSPAN, called the Deepwater Horizon OIL SPILL in the Gulf of Mexico a "natural disaster" (TWICE). Could somebody please tell me what I should call a flood, tornado, hurricane, volcanic eruption, earthquake or landslide?


Update:
McDonnell flys to Vail to attend
Koch brothers seminar?
Read More...

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Undergoing organic "fruits & nuts" granola cereal with "low fat" milk therapy?

"Anybody who believes that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach flunked geography." ~ Robert Byrne
Newman's Own Organics California Prunes

Shriner in Mini-Ford, Aneta, North Dakota (June 2010).

"People who don't travel cannot have a global view, all they see is what's in front of them. Those people cannot accept new things because all they know is where they live." ~ Martin Yan

Stonehenge, England
Photo by Peter Rimar.

How does a person open a Swiss Bank Account?

In the event someone stumbled upon this particular post after searching Google, here's a CNN Money report from 1997 which still applies in 2012.
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It should be noted that after 9-11, the U.S. Government can now request and receive information about a specific individual's bank account under the U.S.-Swiss Income Tax Convention (January 2003).

Update: Obama Campaign Attacks Romney Over Swiss Bank Account?
Read More...

Good Morning Saigon?

NOTEPAD: This quick sequence of images were taken on a street in downtown Ho Chi Minh City (formally Saigon) back in 2005, this blogger stumbled upon this old women selling packets of chewing gum to passing tourists. Perspective? Yes please. I'll take another helping.

Why do AARP cards expire?
Do they think you're going to get any younger?

Searching for Answers?

When your house is on FIRE, it's absurd to argue with your wife about how to rearrange the furniture.

IF the American consumer doesn't value the country of origin of a product or service, why should international corporations?
Until Americans start voting with their wallets, it'll be almost impossible to create new jobs in a tight global marketplace.

"We need conservative ideas to modernize the U.S. economy and reform American government. But what we have instead are policies that don't reform but just cut and starve government — a strategy that pays little attention to history or best practices from around the world and is based instead on a theory. It turns out that conservatives are the woolly-headed professors after all." ~ Fareed Zakaria 
Read More...

Tea Party Bus

Fargo, North Dakota

(August 20th, 2010)

A "Made in Canada" bus rolling down the highway on "Spanish Tires" so American Voters could sign it with "Made In China" markers, then departing Fargo to drink even more IMPORTED OIL definitely sent a powerful political message. A Hollywood script writer couldn't even make this stuff up.

Zippo "Made In USA" Pocket Lighter

Twitter?

[infographic]

"Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future." ~ John F. Kennedy

Today is a New Day?

Short video of morning sunrise, Las Cruces, New Mexico (September 2009).

It is what it is?

Street Scene, Changsha, P.R.C. (November 2008).
Photo by Peter Rimar

Spell check?

The 19th Amendment?

IF this blogger hears another politician or radio talk show host mention the US Constitution without adding the line "AND the Bill of Rights", I'm going to start singing the theme song from the film Network.


The Bill of Rights were established as a checks and balances to protect an individual against government abuse and corruption.

In its original form, it was NOT a perfect document (see Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 3 of the United States Constitution). Read More...

It's rather aggravating hearing political pundits ranting about the Founding Fathers Fantasy Island era in American History. In 1789, Senators were appointed, blacks were only considered 3/5 human and a woman's place was barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. The original BILL of RIGHTS gave our Constitution meaning and purpose. The roots of ALL real Democratic change and progress begins and ends with this document:

‎"A Bill of Rights is what the people are entitled to against every government, and what no just government should refuse, or rest on inference." ~ Thomas Jefferson

Suggested Reading:
Griswold v. Connecticut
Eisenstadt v. Baird

...perspective...

Kandahar International Airport, Afghanistan (October 2005)

Photo by Peter Rimar.

Right Click and Save As?

Political Doublespeak?

This blogger remembers the day the Canadian PM said his country WOULD NEVER support military operations in Iraq. At noon, while standing in line to eat in Baghdad, I asked a squad of Canadian soldiers about the PMs remarks. Basically, they laughed and answered the question with one simple word: POLITICS.


The Middle East for Dummies (Paperback)

Street Scene, Baghdad, Iraq (April 2004)

"Democracy is like a rice cooker. When too much pressure builds up inside, excess steam is released so the cooker (society) doesn't explode." ~ Self

In the Public Domain?

Over the last few years, I've been slowly POSTING various photographs of people and places from around the world on the internet.

Since the vast majority of the images contained on Reporter's Private Notebook are in the public domain, this blogger grants permission to use any or all of these images for Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Blogger along with any and all media outlets (to include Faux News).

Indeed, the undersigned has only one simple request: if you're going to use any or all of this site's uploaded images, please give credit to your original source (Peter Rimar).

Lastly, I've debated back and forth whether to allow POSTED comments on this particular BLOG. If you want to leave a message, comment or complaint, this is the place (see below).