Random acts of unkindness

You don’t need me to tell you that life isn’t fair. But some things just… well…
“Unfair” doesn’t do justice to… a magintude 7.0 earthquake hitting Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere… seems a bitter pill, indeed. You might try contributing to the Red Cross, or UNICEF, or Doctors Without Borders, or the reputable charity of your choice. Let’s do what we can.
And, in further proof that life isn’t fair, 104 year old strongman Joe Rollino was struck and killed by a car here in Brooklyn. One of the most popular Coney Island strong men, he was credited with lifting over 3,200 lbs, despite never weighing more than 150 lbs; the 5’5″ dynamo walked several miles a day, avoided meat, alcohol and tobacco… and, a model of health and what the human body and spirit are capable of… gets run down in the street by a minivan.
As expected, any possible “good” part of the health insurance “reform” bill, in this case, mandates that large employers (Walmart, we mean you) provide health insurance coverage for their employees and that high income earners pay higher taxes to partly pay for the expansion of health coverage… will likely be jettisoned in “negotiations” between the House and Senate.
A new study tells us running shoes cause joint-ache. Outstanding: in the country with the most obese population in the history of the world, go ahead and discourage people from exercising. Thanks.
And an Iranian nuclear scientist was killed in an explosion outside his home. Colleagues say he was critical of the Iranian government, which is a death-penalty offense in Iran these days; naturally, the Iranian government blames the Americans and Zionists. Either way… the man is dead.
I know I promised to be all… upbeat in the new year. At least it looks like the feckless Harry Reid will soon be unseated. So we have something. His recently uncovered racially-charged statements don’t strike me as that serious… the fact that he has been an abysmal leader of the Democrats in the Senate, however, is quite serious. Harry, the problem is, we more than hardly knew ya’.
Losing Harry’s seat is all part of the strategy that led to this breaking news tweet: Democrats hoping to take power back from Republican minority in 2010. So you see? I ended on an upbeat note.