Anyone for free Starbucks coffee on the 4th of July?

The mercury may be topping out at 100 degrees (F) on July 4^th this year, but Starbucks is giving out free tall cups of hot fresh-brewed coffee.

No codes, coupons, printouts or customer loyalty cards are needed.

Politics are heating up as well, and Starbucks is tapping into the controversy.

Howard Schultz, the 58-year-old chairman of Starbucks, issued a public letter last week, calling for Americans to unite as citizens and call for change in the political arena.

“How can America win this election?” Schultz asked.

“I love America, but we all know there is something wrong,” he continued. “The deficits this country must reconcile are much more than financial, and our inability to solve our own problems is sapping our national spirit. We are better than this. America’s history has showed that we have accomplished extraordinary things when we act collectively, with courage, creativity, and generosity of spirit—especially during trying times.”

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The free coffee offer, good in all participating Starbucks locations all day on July 4^th, is aimed at sparking in-person discussions of politics.

Starbucks’ free coffee offer is good only on Independence Day and is limited to one free coffee per person. Certain specialty coffees are not included.

Image/s:  

Starbucks Coffee Logo – Fair Use

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• Got Change? a Rhymed Exchange on Claims of Change – On both sides of the aisle, candidates chatter about change. Issues vary: Capital gains taxes, war strategies, foreign policy, and nuclear weapons. Each contender has a sound byte to share, and each calls for reform. But does anyone have any real change?
• Laundry Lingo: How-To Remove Stubborn Coffee Stains – Yow! Did someone just bump into you and tip your coffee cup? Did your mocha or latte splash all over your pinstriped suit or silk blouse? How can you get that deep, dark stain out of your fabric garment?
• Exchange Grate – Who will pay the cost for America's floundering banks and the nation's economy? Do Presidential campaign speeches offer a solution? Who has the wisdom and experience to lead us through this fiscal crisis? We do need change, but not chaos.
• Popular Quotations About Voters and Voting – 12 Quotes of Note for Those Who Would Vote - Let's take a look at some pointed comments, aimed at the democratic electoral process by renowned and even infamous individuals from several walks of life, spanning more than two centuries.

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Why do we celebrate Memorial Day?

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day?

Monday is Memorial Day, and it’s so much more than a legal holiday or the unofficial start of summer.

The meaning of Memorial Day vastly surpasses the fashion mavens’ express freedom to wear white shoes and white belts and to carry white purses until Labor Day.

Memorial Day goes beyond barbecued chicken and hamburgers, watermelon seed-spitting contests and even political speeches.

What does Memorial Day mean to you?

In the United States, Memorial Day offers all of us a reminder to remember those who gave their lives for our country. How will we honor those brave patriots, who sacrificed everything for liberty and love?

How can we make Memorial Day more than a picnic, a baseball double-header, an annual golf outing or even a patriotic parade?

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• Wave of Glory - a Poetic Manner on the American Banner  
• Wisconsin Celebrates Plentiful Memorial Day Parades

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No News Is Good News for Tax Day Tomorrow

No News Is Good News for Tax Day Tomorrow

(posted for the A to Z Challenge)

N is for No News.

Tomorrow is Tax Day in the U.S.

Have you filed your taxes yet? If you have, then you either wrote a check, or you are hoping to receive a check. And that’s all you want to hear, when  it comes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Don’t even mention the word “audit.” (Sorry, just did.)

We was audited once, and the IRS actually ended up owing us money. They sent us a check for $50 and change. OK, it wasn’t much, but it sure beat the proverbial stick in the eye. The discrepancy had to do with underreporting of tithing and charitable donations. The IRS apparently questioned our reported giving. When we retrieved copies of the missing receipts, the totals exceeded what we had claimed.

Well, go-o-o-olly! (as Gomer Pyle used to say).

Since today is April 14^th, and Tax Day is tomorrow, here are 14 thought-provoking quotations about taxes. These tax quotes are, of course, printed in red ink.

14 Quotations on Taxes

1. Collecting more taxes than is absolutely necessary is legalized robbery.  (Calvin Coolidge)
2. I shall never use profanity except in discussing house rent and taxes.  (Mark Twain)
3. I'm proud to pay taxes in the United States; the only thing is, I could be just as proud for half the money.  (Arthur Godfrey)
4. Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written today. (Herman Wouk)
5. It's income tax time again, Americans:  time to gather up those receipts, get out those tax forms, sharpen up that pencil, and stab yourself in the aorta.  (Dave Barry)
6. Taxes, after all, are dues that we pay for the privileges of membership in an organized society. (Franklin D. Roosevelt)
7. The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax. (Albert Einstein)
8. The income tax created more criminals than any other single act of government. (Barry Goldwater)
9. The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf has. (Will Rogers)
10. The more you earn, the less you keep, And now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to take, If the tax-collector hasn't got it before I wake. (Ogden Nash)
11. The politicians say "we" can't afford a tax cut.  Maybe we can't afford the politicians.  (Steve Forbes)
12. We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle. (Winston Churchill)
13. What is the difference between a taxidermist and a tax collector? The taxidermist takes only your skin (Mark Twain)
14. When there is an income tax, the just man will pay more and the unjust less on the same amount of income. (Plato)

Image:

Tax Collector

by Marinus Claesz van Reymerswaele

c1540

And here’s an oldies tune for the occasion, “Taxman,” by The Beatles.

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Do You Dare to Deceive?

Do You Dare to Deceive?

(posted for the A to Z Challenge)

D is for Deceit.

April 4^th is Tell a Lie Day. Perhaps ironically, it’s also Hug a Newsman Day. No joke.

C’mon, I’m a journalist. Would I lie to you about something like that?

“Liar, liar. Pants on fire.”

Let’s take a look at deceit.

What have some famous folks said on the subject? Here are seven quick quotes to ponder.

“Accuracy is the twin brother of honesty; inaccuracy, of dishonesty.) (Nathaniel Hawthorne)

“It is discouraging how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.” (Noel Coward)

“Acting is like lying. The art of lying well. I'm paid to tell elaborate lies.” (Mel Gibson)

“Honesty is for the most part less profitable than dishonesty.” (Plato)

“During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.” (George Orwell)

“A lie does not consist in the indirect position of words, but in the desire and intention, by false speaking, to deceive and injure your neighbor.” (Jonathan Swift)

“O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!” (Sir Walter Scott)

How do you feel about deceit?

• Do you believe lying is ever warranted?
• Is a white lie more acceptable than any other kind?
• What constitutes a white lie?
• Can you name any situations in which lying might be justified?
• Have you ever caught someone in a lie?
• Has anyone ever caught you?
• (If you blog your answers to any of these questions today, be sure to leave a link to your posts in the comment section below.)

 

As the soul-searching starts, here’s a bit of musical inspiration. Take a listen to Miranda Lambert’s “White Liar.”

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Image:

Public domain clip-art

Introducing . . . Sarah Palin

Introducing . . . Sarah Palin.

In case you missed it, here's the RNC video introducing the Republican Vice Presidential nominee for 2008, Alaska's Governor Sarah Palin. Palin is running mate to Republican Presidential nominee John McCain.



Should the Lord tarry, after the November 4th election, the American people will likely witness an historic landmark.

For the first time ever, voters will choose from Presidential/Vice Presidential teams that include a female candidate and a partially African-American candidate.