buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 6:46:13 AM

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Not that it's in any way important, but I finally remembered the other two stanzas to "The 43rd Ward":

When you walk down the street, you get a big “hello”

And everyone there is bound to know

Paddy runs the ward, it’s his domain

And Harry keeps it clean when it happens to rain

In the 43rd Ward (43rd Ward!)

In the 43rd Ward (43rd Ward!) 

Oh, I'm feelin' great, and I thank the Lord

That I'm back home in the 43rd Ward!

The urban-renewal boys got a surprise

When Paddy saw the dollar-signs in their eyes

He said, “Don’t go messin’ with our homes and grass;

I’m tellin’ you straight, you can [stick it up your ass]—never pass.”

In the 43rd Ward (43rd Ward!)

In the 43rd Ward (43rd Ward!) 

Oh, I'm feelin' great, and I thank the Lord

That I'm back home in the 43rd Ward!

As I mentioned last night, "Paddy" was Paddy Bauler, one of the last of Chicago's "saloon politicians." It was not uncommon, back in the days when there was a tavern on practically every corner in Chicago, for the saloon/tavern owners to be major politicians, precinct workers and aldermen.  Bauler was one of the last of them; you'll note that the second of the two stanzas above refers to his forestalling some of the urban-renewal  (we used to call it "urban removal") building that was popular in places like Chicago in the '50s and '60s.  I'm not sure who "Harry" in the song refers to.

As a note on the verses from last night, the Moody Bible Institute ran (may still run) a church called "The Foursquare Gospel Church," hence the "city foursquare" reference in the verses last night.

Some other notes on the neighborhood, should anyone be interested; Wells Street, from Division to just north of North Avenue, was the "beatnik/hippie" main drag of the 43rd Ward.  There was at least one "art cinema" there, and Second City, which started on 55th Street on the South Side near the University of Chicago back in the old Nichols & May/Alan Arkin/Severn Darden days, moved up to Wells Street when urban renewal destroyed the old 55th Street commercial strip.

North & Sedgewick, mentioned in the song, is about 4 blocks west of Wells.  When I was in high school, a friend and I went down to Wells Street to "check out the scene," and we were beaten up and robbed in broad daylight while waiting for the North Avenue bus at North & Sedgewick.  Well, we did look pretty "suburban," so we kind of stood out there.

Chicago's "Japantown" is not far from North & Sedgewick, and used to be the site of a Japanese festival every year.  I met a dealer in Japanese swords and armor there when we attended the festival, sometime around 1964, and for a while attended his classes on Japanese swords.  He wrote the authentication papers for one of the swords I acquired around that time.   He had a full suit of Japanese armor that I wanted to blow all my bar mitzvah money on---it was for sale for about $500, a tidy sum in those days---but my parents wouldn't let me do it.  Too bad; the suit of armor would probably be worth about a quarter million today.

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 7:27:53 AM

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In #1 buzzsawmonkey said: sometime around 1964, and for a while attended his classes on Japanese swords

As a youngster in such a class, you must have felt rather uneasy and out of place; like a katana hot tin roof... 

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 7:32:10 AM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 2:

Heh.   In any event, sorry to vapor on about the Chicago That Was.  Alice's "43rd" uncorked a lot of old memories.

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 7:32:25 AM

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In #2 Occasional Reader said: As a youngster in such a class, you must have felt rather uneasy and out of place; like a katana hot tin roof... 

... although hopefully there was a friendly Spanish-speaker in the class, who would greet you with a cheerful "[buzz]! tantō tiempo!"

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 7:34:02 AM

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In #3 buzzsawmonkey said: In any event, sorry to vapor on about the Chicago That Was.

On the contrary, personally I find this sort of thing fascinating.  

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 7:36:50 AM

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It appears that Israel has replaced the Knesset with the Hamlet, since they're going around saying,

To Bibi, or not Bibi, that is the question; 
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the shower of rockets from outrageous terrorists
Or to take arms against this mob of killers, and by opposing, end them...

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 7:39:13 AM

7

BTW, the powers that be at the school are still yapping at my heels to participate in a telephone call about...something.

I must have really chapped the asses of the various gauleiters.   However, I sent them a message saying that, having taken the required course and received my certificate of completion, we have nothing to discuss.

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 7:43:54 AM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 7:

Comrade, your lack of willingness to participate in your Struggle Session means that you require more Struggle Sessions. 

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 7:46:17 AM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 8:

If they can't/won't say, in writing, in advance of any "meeting," what that "meeting" is specifically concerning, and why, they can pound sand.

lucius septimius 6/4/2021 7:55:38 AM

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In #7 buzzsawmonkey said: aving taken the required course and received my certificate of completion, we have nothing to discuss.

Bingo.

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 7:57:27 AM

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In #10 lucius septimius said: Bingo.

Well, if you insist, but there's not much to discuss regarding bingo... 

vxbush 6/4/2021 8:01:27 AM

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In #11 Occasional Reader said: Well, if you insist, but there's not much to discuss regarding bingo... 

Just his name-o.

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 8:10:32 AM

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By the way, since the Olympics are in the news, people might want to look at the superb comedy "Million Dollar Legs," starring WC Fields, Jack Oakie, George Barbier, and Lyda Roberti as "Mata Machree, the Woman No Man Can Resist."

This is one of the lesser-known examples of what I would call "small-country comedies," a genre which includes the Marx Brothers' "Duck Soup," Wheeler & Woolsey's "Diplomaniacs," and...this one.  Brush salesman Jack Oakie is in Klopstokia, a country where all the men are named "George," all the women are named "Angela," and all of them are natural athletes.  WC Fields is president of the country, which is broke; Jack Oakie, in love with his daughter, suggests that they go to the Olympic tryouts in Los Angeles, where they will win enough money to put the country back on its feet.  Hijinks occur throughout.

There is another film called "Million Dollar Legs," starring Betty Grable.  This is not that film.

Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 9:04:04 AM

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In #13 buzzsawmonkey said: and all of them are natural athletes.  WC Fields is president of the country,

Already I'm detecting a hole in the plot... 

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 9:07:52 AM

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In #14 Occasional Reader said: Already I'm detecting a hole in the plot... 

It's one of the silliest films ever made, and absolutely hilarious.

JCM 6/4/2021 9:18:35 AM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 14:

What's the plot hole for our current situation?

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 2:20:21 PM

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Occasional Reader 6/4/2021 2:35:19 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 17:

Speaking just for myself, work got crazy, the “Friday afternoon follies“ as I like to call the phenomenon.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 2:37:27 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 17:

Not sure where everyone else went, but was away from the computer. Now I'm back on the group "Not W" bench (not Woke)

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 2:46:52 PM

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In #19 Kosh's Shadow said: I'm back on the group "Not W" bench (not Woke)

For what it's worth, I've not heard back from the school wokies since I told them early today we have nothing to talk about.

It will be interesting to see what their new tactic will be.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 2:57:22 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 20:

It will be interesting.

At least my course was purely canned, no live person involved while it ran. (Some live actors, some cartoons)

All multiple choice questions.

I did note that it seems perfectly acceptable to not accept someone's religion for not accepting gay marriage or transgenders, although comments about their religion probably would not be considered acceptable. 

The course, which was mostly a commercial generic course with some minor customization (especially in the links to policies and procedures, and bland statements about how the place has gotten good by valuing all employees).

As for me, I have one prejudice - anyone who works there MUST be smart and good at what they do (at least in science, engineering, and technical work). They do not take people who can't do the work, from what I have seen. 

I do wish it went more into how to deal with the "differently abled". We have someone in the group who is in a motorized wheelchair; can barely move his hands to operate it; uses a camera device to select letters on the screen to type - but is very good at what he does. I doubt a company would have hired him or had him doing important work. I often have to work with him closely. I don't think I've said anything or behaved in a way that would disturb him, but covering situations like that would have been useful.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 3:00:48 PM

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Since my course mentioned not discussing what you think about someone not baking a cake because the baker's religion does not agree with the lifestyle, I note all the cases are about wedding cakes for gay marriages.

I doubt the bakers would have refused a birthday cake for a gay person. Most of the disapproval is about changing the definition of marriage, not as much of the lifestyle.

JCM 6/4/2021 3:03:35 PM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 18:

Yeah, test new development process updates finding bugs in the process hitting the vendor with the bugs.

Got another team's manager yelling at me at about a part if it got fixed, I say. The he wants me to check in it the design. That would be for you like going into another lawyer's case files and making changes. Told him flat out no, I don't go into design files, copied my boss on that mess.

Then got new engineers what to make changes to things we decide on a year ago. They try to state their case... yeah we thought about it, it's decided.... go away.

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 3:16:27 PM

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In #22 Kosh's Shadow said: I note all the cases are about wedding cakes for gay marriages.

I have considered doing a drawing of a wedding cake, featuring two men in Islamic garb throwing two male figures dressed in morning clothes (striped trousers and dark-grey tailcoats) off the top of the wedding cake.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 3:45:38 PM

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In #24 buzzsawmonkey said: two men in Islamic garb throwing two male figures dressed in morning clothes (striped trousers and dark-grey tailcoats) off the top of the wedding cake.

Defrostingstration

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 3:49:19 PM

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Well, the creeps are at it again.  They just sent me another email "asking me" to "agree to" a phone meeting.

I told them---again---that I've completed their program, and have my certificate, and so I have nothing whatever to say to them.  I also reminded them that a) we were told all opinions were welcomed, and b) that whatever happened in the sessions stayed in the sessions, so that they should back off and shut up (I didn't phrase it quite like that, but I think the sentiment was clear).

To hell with these stinking Maoists.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 4:05:27 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 26:

As I think you already know and want to do, tell them they MUST tell you any charges and the agenda for the meeting BEFORE you will agree.

Maybe reply with a link to Kafka (who referred to this as Kafkaesque yesterday?)

BTW, the Kafka archives are available online

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 4:21:34 PM

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Ms. Asshole just told me she's got the VPHR---which I assume is the Vice President of Human Resources---in on the thread.

I have not replied to her, and will not.

Kosh's Shadow 6/4/2021 4:28:10 PM

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In #28 buzzsawmonkey said: Ms. Asshole just told me she's got the VPHR---which I assume is the Vice President of Human Resources---in on the thread. I have not replied to her, and will not.

They need a lawyer to explain proper procedure. 

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 4:36:19 PM

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In #29 Kosh's Shadow said: They need a lawyer to explain proper procedure. 

Oh, they'll probably manage to axe me; I'm only a lowly adjunct, after all.  But I want their bowels disrupted for as long as possible in the meantime.

JCM 6/4/2021 4:49:46 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 30:

You know any attorney's? When and if they force a meeting, you just show up with an atty, even just a friend.

I did that with one of my meetings with the school district. Boy-o-boy you should have seen their eyes when I introduced my attorney.

JCM 6/4/2021 4:54:35 PM

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Reply to JCM in 31:

I did the whole talk through my atty schtick, they'd ask a question, I'd whisper to the atty. he'd answer.

The were surprising cooperative.......

buzzsawmonkey 6/4/2021 5:06:04 PM

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Reply to JCM in 31: Reply to JCM in 32:

Let me put it this way: I'm an attorney.  My cousin is an attorney.  I know several other attorneys.  That's not the issue---yet.

They've got a bug up their collective ass, despite the fact that the Re-Education Workshop is "done."  They don't have the guts to say, in writing, what that bug up their ass consists of.  And until they do, they can go to hell.