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Welcome to the Frary Forum. Kvetch in the box below! The Frary Store is up, and you may donate to the campaign as you feel the need to in exchange for merchandise which will get you arrested for thought crime. In order to buy from the store, simply add up the total of the items you want, and when you donate, submit a comment on the paypal form with which items you want, and a mailing address to send it to. It’s the honor system. We here at www.fraryforcongress.com presume you can add. And if we can't trust you, why should you trust the good Professor? |
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| Slippery as an EEL? I know this may sound silly but while watching the debate I had a
flashback moment. When the good congressman was asked about his stance
on prolife and Rowe vs. Wade my mind faded back to the banks of the
Sandy River in Phillips. 5 or 6 times a summer we would all get together
on the rocks below the Woolen mill bridge and build a large bonfire.
Back then in the 70's, the local law enforcement officers would go over
the bridge and honk their horns glad we were keeping ourselves out of
trouble. There we would enjoy each other's company as we dipped our
fishing poles into the river hoping to catch an eel. Sometime, during
the evening someone would actually latch on to one of these beasts.
This is where my flashback went to. Hearing the congressman trying to
answer (or not answer) the question and watching the comentator trying
to get an answer was like us silly eelers trying to take a hooked eel
off the line. We really didn't want to touch it and have it slip though
our fingers or even worse coil around our arms. But that's what we were
there for so the harder we would try the sillier we looked and the bigger
mess we made out of our poles. In the mean time each of us secretly
hoping inside that the eel would either become unhooked or the line
would break as it usually did. |
| You ARE an irascilble curmudgeon! FRARY!!! |
| From: Joseph
From: jfrary8070@aol.com Thanks for the encouragement, Joseph. Come what may Nov. 4, I will pass from the scene in a few years and you will come of age to run yourself. It's not difficult to tell people what you stand for. Win or lose, it will be enough to know that you did your duty. |
There was a Professor named Frary…
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| From: jfrary8070@aol.com
<jfrary8070@aol.com> IMMIGRATION POLICY Dear Boris,
This will provide an opportunity to avoid mass expulsions and the arrest of thousands of small businesmen, in short an opportunity to move energetically to secure our borders. This is a question of sovereignty and assimilation. In previous eras of peak immigration there was never a question of American identity and pride. Now there is vast educational apparatus devoted to denigrating American, its people and its whole history. The liberals offer but one attraction to new immigrants---access to the welfare state, i.e., access to the earnings of our citizens. Open borders and the welfare state cannot long co-exist. Few people ever feel gratitude for government hand-outs. Why should they when they are represented as rights? In fact the Democrats count on equipping the Hispanic minority with grievances and hatred for the Anglos so that they will have a lock on their vote similar to the one they have on the Black vote. The GOP yearns to add them to the social vote bloc and fears being branded as "racist." Considerations of electoral advantage cancels out any consideration of principle. I feel no animus against immigrants, not even illegal immigrants. Our government has not respected or upheld its own laws. Why should we expect them to? Ideally we should welcome millions of energetic and enterprising immigrants and make them into loyal and patriotic citizens. Social security cards, US passports, etc. are the results, not the means to this end. This whole issue fills me with loathing for the political sociopaths that run this country but I have no means of turning this loathing into policy. I have not got beyond 1) control the borders; 2) no welfare for immigrants, legal or illegal; 3) rational procedures for admitting legal immigrants. There must be more, but I don't yet know what. John _____________________________________________________________________________________________ From: Boris Broadside That was probably the most serious and impassioned thing I've heard
from a living political candidate. Seriously. You remind me a little
of Enoch Powell, actually, the difference being that if someone misquotes
you terribly (like "rivers of blood"!), it won't make a difference,
since apparently conservatives aren't in season this season. We'll be
back in 2010. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Re: immigration policy?
Feel free to use my response as you wish. The imputation of racism is America's favorite indoor sport---far exceeding bowling and ping-pong combined. It has become a badge of honor and veracity. Back when I was hammering diversitarianism, Afro-centrism and affirmative discrimination word on campus reached me that I was being pointed out as the "biggest racist on campus," several black students approached me individually to assure me that THEY didn't think I was a racist. A former dean told me that he had defended me before a meeting of black faculty, etc. They did not know, and it would not have mattered, that I have an Ibo godson, sheltered a Yoruba artist in my home for for several years. sponsored an Arab immigrant, am now sponsoring a Chinese immigrant, loaned $6,000 to a black former student, etc. In truth, there are only slender tendrils of reality connecting these spurious "causes" and the realities they purport to address. They combine in a huge, greasy blob of hypocrisy, misdirection, ideological racketeering and emotional pretense. A Blunt Bah! and a Hearty Humbug! to them all, John Frary
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| From: Richard Kane Rick PS - I'm Not sure you meet the high standards for the U.S. House. Do you have money in your freezer? Do you have a mistress that you've paid off? Do you actually live in another state but have a house here that you rent to your in-laws? Can you possibly live down to these and many other standards? |
| name : GAIL |
| name : Happy independent |
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Great website! You're biggest problem is you might be too cool for Maine! I suggest that you consider holding a can of Budweiser in one of your commercials in order to make sure that you aren't too cool to connect with the central, eastern and northern counties. Hasta la vista! - David |
| Searching the web for info on the Second District residential recount mechanisms this coming November, I find you. Hope you win and bring McCain-Palin on your coattails to a 270-268 victory. -Charles Bird
Charles Bird, Although I did warn John McCain against relying on my coat-tails to bring in the 2nd District Electoral College vote on his behalf, this was a mere pretence of modesty. You may count on me, and so may he. My blessings upon you, and curses upon on all your enemies, John Frary
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Milking the Cows
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MASH NOTE"Wow, that picture of you on your website is only 15 years old? Time has not been kind to you. I strongly suspect you are a drunk, judging by your complexion. As for the rest of the garbage there, talk about noxious pap!"Professor Frary responds: The labored hostility of such dolts soothes and delights me as the music of an Angelic Choir. |
CANDIDYour candid words assure me that there still exists a little piss and vinegar in these neutered times we call 2008.You have my vote. I.M., Maine |
UNION BOSSES STOOGEI love your site, your honesty and attitude. My only disappointment is that you have completely missed the one HUGE reason that Michaud ever got elected in the first place: UNIONS. Michaud is/has been/ will be in the pocket of unions. (Rumor has it that he had to divide half of his Washington office to share space with his union thug friends.) I'm sure you've heard of the phrase: bought and paid for... If Michaud did an honest tag, his would say "bought and paid for by (insert union organization here)\A>R> Skowhegan"Professor Frary: I love your message! You have a point, one which needs a lot of attention. The truth of what you say is revealed in Mike's FEC report for the 2006 election. He meets the essential criteria for a puppet. He is visually presentable and he has no brain. I'm expecting an essay explaining how the unions, led by Mike and others in the leadership, managed to destroy the Great Northern mill, from a man who knows the story in detail and knows how to write it up. This will go on the website. |
TERRIFYINGI am a former student of your from Middlesex County College and I never thought I would see you run for Congress. Your website is witty yet terrifying. I find myself, here at work, constantly reading it because I find it addicting. Hahaha!Honestly, you are so over the top in the way you have chosen to run this race that you might just be elected to Congress based on your Roaring Twenties, WASPy image! Warmest regards, Matt |
Wild in the StreetsI looked at the wild Frary website. Seems that he is out-radicalizing anything I have seen in Berkeley...albeit from a different perspective. What a refreshing and dangerously energizing candidate. He infuriates and entertains equally. 3rd Year M Div student |
Pillory & HillaryComments, rants, praises and the like here! I am absolutely delighted to hear that John is going to run for Congress.I have known him in New Jersey for nearly forty years, and admired his wit and absolute integrity. John is that rare human being who is not afraid to say what he thinks, and is not captured by the stifling "rules" of pc. He will say during the campaign what must be said; he will pillory Damascus Pelosi and the rest of the defeatist traitors to the US. He will not refrain from mentioning Billy boy's sexual escapades, which currently stand as \"proof\" of his wife's "experience" in politics. He might even ask the question about how many Monicas Hilary intends to keep in reserve if she (God forbid!) enters the White House again. Will John alienate the crowd of fashionable philanderers who masquerade as statesmen and women? He surely will. That's good; somebody has to do it. He will also question the legitimacy of black ministers who preach hatred against the United States and the white man. What luck! to have him as a new- style politician! He represents real change, not one that is masquerading as new, but is really not. Right on John! (I consider it shameful that a newspaper would fire him for saying things that must be said. I certainly would not buy such a paper, and the products that it advertises.) Would you call me -- and my sympathizers-- right-wing extremists? That would also be untrue.Good luck. Dr J. H. Elucidation J. H. has an interesting history. His father, who he despised, was an MP in the Arrow Cross Party who made his accommodation with the communist regime. Joe was on the Hungarian National soccer team. He played a role in the 1956 uprising as an army lieutenant, escaped, migrated to the US, got a job digging ditches for PSE&G, learned English, discovered an intellectual vocation, earned his PhD, and has been nominated to the Hungarian National Academy. As a dean at Rutgers Camden he was a determined enemy of political correctness. |
BEST WISHESWishing all the best-keep up the good fight, make them all think twice, ok, enough cliches--good to see you on the internet, wife ,two kids, all is well.........good luck with the campaign,disregard the resistance,we are all tryin' to circumnavigate the slings and arrows of the overpopulated, and certaintly outrageous morons....carry on, P. diP. |
“Then it was revealed … the assassin was a Castrophiliac Stalinoid.”- John Frary, Republican candidate for Congress in Maine’s 2nd District, commenting on the assassination of John F. Kennedy, on the As Maine Goes Web site, March 16, 2008.(Funny, but you never hear Frary’s opponent, Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, use big words like that.) A.D. |
NutsFrary for Congress in 08! And a swift kick in the nuts to ethan strimling. C.J. |
You Silly ManHon. - I read for some reason your sponsored ad in The Ellsworth American, entitled \"A Humble Apology.\" As an \"educated hack\" who alleges to have spent 32 years working in academia and with ready access to an OED, perhaps you\'ll want to brush up on English punctuation -- specifically, on how to punctuate quotations. Your not knowing rather undermines any kind of academic integrity you\'re attempting to portray in this silly ad. While I certainly have no idea what prompted your advertisement, I\'ll trust it\'s something important to you. So, for future reference and any future public tirades, here are links to resources on how to punctuate quotations that you can review to assist you in appearing more credible: http://web.uvic.ca/wguide/Pages/CitHowPuncShortQs.htmlGood luck. Gretchen Hat in Hand When the prose is magnificent, how can mere technology cope? You see yourself what the Computer Gods did to your no doubt flawlessly punctuated prose (above). Thank you so much for reading my ad, for whatever reason. You sound like fun, and I fully expect to carry the fun vote. May I count on you? |
IMMER GERADE AUS!Go Prof. Frary, Go!! -j.s. |
MY MENTORJust wanted to take a moment to vouch for Professor Frary. As a former student who experienced the professor's lectures and mentorship first-hand, I can promise you that if elected, Prof. Frary will turn C-SPAN into the highest-rated cable entertainment network! I also thought of Prof. Frary when reading all the recent obits for WFB (may he rest in peace). All cited his famous quote during a run for mayor of New York City in 1965. When asked what he would do if he won, Buckley replied: \"Demand a recount.\"Here's wishing I could cast a vote in Maine! former student J.P. |
CRINGE-INDUCINGYou do know how to pick 'em, Robert! You linked me to the most enjoyable politician's web site that I've read in a long long time. Aside from a few cringe-inducing lines, I found it stimulating and enlightening.Note to Congressman Michaud: Always beware the man who just doesn't care whether he lives or dies. He will always have the edge. D.H. Iowa |
SUNDAY, BLOODY SUNDAYWho Is John Frary?I receive the Maine GOP news bulletin frequently and was intrigued by a small article that announced John Frary's bid for the Maine 2nd district Congressional seat. I asked myself "who is this John Frary?" and "is he going to be able to beat Michaud for the seat?" Upon receipt of my GOP news I started to look at this " New" Republican contender and have been smiling with malicious glee ever since. John Frary is just what Congress needs to get moving. In complete contrast to the bland, ineffectual representative the voters of the 2nd district have now, comes John Frary's Campaign. After reading the views and opinions of Mr. Frary I cannot but help compare him to one of our Nation's founder's, Benjamin Franklin, who I have always held in high regard. Using a combination of wit, and common sense, coupled with a stodginess that defies Political correctness, Mr. Frary puts forth his arguments and ideas in an entertaining, and refreshingly Honest way. Hmm. Commonsense, wit, determination, HONESTY???? When did any of us see that from one of our Congressmen? This campaign admits it's chances are slim in that honesty and " Straight talk" don't win elections, but I feel if enough voters get behind him, he might have a chance. Can you imagine the reaction of someone like Nancy Pelosi to Mr. Frary? That alone makes me want to get him the 2nd district seat. Please take a moment to look at John's campaign website and if you are so inclined and if you feel as I do volunteer to help collect signatures to get John on the ballot, he can be contacted at: jfrary8070@aol.com 207-778-6685 If anything I think you just might find John Frary entertaining. I know I do.... Slainte' Blighter http://macnaheirean.blogspot.com/ |
Anonymous said...Oh for God's sake, Frary is just a fat alcoholic who throws big words around. Comparing him to Ben Franklin is akin to comparing Bush to Lincoln. Get a grip you hopeless moron. |
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Grapes of WrathI've met Frary 30 or 40 times, and I did see him once drink three beers with a college chum who was visiting. The alcohol stuff must be what psychologists call projection, which is a fancy way of saying "look in the mirror - what you see must be what the other guy sees". A hopeless drunk sees a hopeless drunk, etc.As for the "girth" issue, the better to tackle Nancy Pelosi with. |
DISTURBEDRE: This is The Man for Congress!From: **************************** Sent: Fri 2/08/08 12:17 PM To: ******************************* Dear *******, Here is Professor John Frary in action on film. http://www.politickerme.com/frary-brings-campaign-caucuses-747 It won't bore you:) Sincerely, ______________________________________________________________ From: ****************** To: *********************** Subject: RE: This is The Man for Congress? Date: Thu, 7 Feb 2008 18:59:19 +0000 Ah...It may not bore me, but should it also not disturb me? ______________________________________________________________ From: ********************* To: *********************** Subject: RE: This is The Man for Congress Date: Thu, 7 Feb 2008 22:46:26 -0600 Why would an honest, fun loving, kindly, outspoken, witty and courageous man disturb you? He's 67 years old, and this is his Last Hurrah. It's a great way to go out or get in, and with the strange mood among the electorate this year, lightning may strike. I'll keep you posted. ______________________________________________________________ |
MALE LESBIANSWorking in any campaign is an extraordinarily stressful and demanding enterprise, but working with Frary has been a real hoot. Professor Frary clearly doesn't give a rat's rump whether he wins or not - and the staff have been cautioned very clearly about the dangers of thinking about "electablity". Every time we start wondering if we can carry this demographic or take that issue away from the incumbent, we are told to remember "it's only a movie". That seems to help.The Professor has forbidden us from saying anything bad about the incumbent. We can make fun of him, but nothing personal or strident allowed. And why would we? Mike Michaud is at least mentally stable, unlike someone like Tom Allen, his cooleague to the south, and I had to watch the two of them in action in an excruciatingly boring hour and a half in a university setting. It was called "New Choices" or something equally bland, but maybe 'Mating Rituals of the Metrosexuals'" would be better title. The fake tans, blow dried hair and false bonhomie were revolting. They were obviously channeling Starbucks in the Wilds of Washington County. Allen, a putative candidate for the United States Senate, actually apologized to the somnolent attendees after an hour and more of this blather had reduced the poor things to dropping their faces in their plates. The big, bluff, plaid flannel shirted Michaud just looked so much healthier than the reptilian Allen, an ubernerd, but I just couldn't look at Mike without that song "I'm a Lumberjack and I'm OK!" flitting through my head. As for metrosexuals, at one point, Allen went off on tangent where he bantered about Mike "kidding me about the size of my district" - three times. One wonders what Dr Freud would have made of the interplay had he been in the audience, and still awake. ("Metrosexual" is not a term we hear up here much, so I'd have to define it if we used it: "otherwise homosexual men who sleep with women" i.e. "male lesbian"). Michaud endorsed Edwards, so maybe there's a tie in on the "preening" issue - there IS a youtube video 2 minutes long of Edwards brushing his hair to the tune of "I Feel Pretty". It practically screams out for satirical "treatment". John has already poked some fun at his own impeccable deportment, so we feel this is fair game. Michaud REALLY won't know what to do with satire. He's a perfectly ordinary career politician, who schmoozes up to people and groups that can keep him in power. He votes with Nancy Pelosi 96.3% of the time, but he knows it wouldn't be popular to advertise the fact that he's Jane Fonda's foot stool. And satire is almost unanswerable on any budget - how do you respond to "Senator Wide Stance (R-ID)"? Mike Michaud's brand is typical politician - placate everyone and do nothing. Our "brand" is Professor Frary, aka W.C. Fields reborn as a scourge of modern political humbug. Caning the PC establishment for your viewing pleasure. Glorying in the modern mud wrestling that passes for the conventional wisdom in today's debauched political arena. So while we sit around the shack waiting for lightning to strike, we'll keep you informed. With all the evil at large in America, don't overlook the possibility that there is a great deal of good as well, and it is entirely possible that a good man of true character can take his case to the people and get elected. One thing's for sure - nobody has tried it lately. FRARY FOR CONGRESS! |
DEPLORABLE POINT COUNTERPOINTKennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 02/05/2008John Frary dishes up his own species of "political hokum" in his risible attempt to deride Mike Michaud's advocacy of a Cheney impeachment. The careful reader of Frary's letter (Sentinel, Jan. 24) will note that this congressional candidate's most substantive contribution is to foist the fatuous word "flapdoodlious" upon a politician's slight lexicon of truth. That same careful reader will look in vain through Frary's own "blather" for any claim that a Cheney impeachment might be inappropriate because the vice president was innocent of the criminal charges that Congress could make. Instead, Frary seems to imply that Cheney's best defense is the fact that the administration's pathetic approval rating (32 percent) is not quite as bad as that of Congress (23 percent). But has Frary considered the possibility that Congress might even improve its abysmal approval rating by bringing this corrupt administration to book? Surely "the disillusionment that many Americans feel towards their government" simply stems from the inability of a scandal-ridden Congress to deal effectively with the arrogant ineptitude of our executive leadership and its irresponsible policies. Michaud apparently recognizes this -- but does our would-be Congressman Frary? Perhaps Frary has pirouetted onto this piece of political thin ice without even noticing his peril. Does he really want to tie his candidacy to the intellectual and moral bankruptcy of the current regime? As a long-shot candidate, he might better declare his independence of those who have spent their eight years in Washington bringing our government into profound disrepute both at home and abroad. Richard Spear Fairfield ______________________________________________________________ To the Editor, Richard Spear's Feb. 5 letter responding to John Frary's criticism of Mike Michaud's "flapdoodlious drivel" somehow managed to miss every single point Frary made. The main point that Mr. Spear somehow managed to miss is that Michaud said in September that partisan impeachment hearings by the Democrats would be divisive, while in December he wrote a letter to the Judiciary Committee calling for impeachment hearings in order "to heal the nation's divisions," despite the fact that they would be just as partisan now as they would be back then. Unlike Spear, Michaud knows the impeachment agitation is going nowhere. That's why he has made no effort to follow his letter up with any kind of public justification or explanation. His letter to the judiciary committee was just a little sop to people like Spear, who are so blinded by hatred that they can't follow even the simplest argument. I'm sure that Michaud doesn't share that hatred. He's just playing the game and expects no harm to come from it. I know John Frary and I know that he is very critical of some of the administration's policies. Spear accuses him of defending those policies without a shred of evidence. Lance Harvell Farmington 778-2981 AND THE CANDIDATE WEIGHS IN: Mr. Spear, It's abnormal to engage in friendly conversation with someone and then write a malicious personal attack in the newspaper. Nothing I ever said to you provides grounds for representing me as a toady of the current administration. Nor have you ever contended with me on that matter in our discussions. Since you have never given me reason to believe that you are so stupid as to misconstrue every single point I made in my criticism of Michaud's bogus support of impeachment, I can only assume that you are motivated by some kind of mysterious personal animus. No reason we can't be civil in public, as long as you make no further pretense of cordiality or interest in serious discussion. Just be aware that I regard you with the disgust and contempt you so are so clearly anxious to earn. John Frary |
Is it possible that we can vote for you?
Will you be on the Norridgewock (Somerset County) ballot? I am incensed
over Dirigo Health and Hillary Clinton’s comments that (after
all the health insurers leave) agents that are so smart could surely
find another job. I am retired now but the state of Maine made it impossible
to make a living in the health market. My licenses and taxes were astronomical.
We have no money to send you just trying to live in this state takes
all disposable income. We have $100 saved so far for the fall purchase
of fuel oil…but if there is anything we can do to get you elected,
other than money, please let us know. Sincerely,
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I like the comparison to Machiavelli. Michaud is the same as every
other, it hurts when there is no choosing the lesser of two evils. As a warning to the voters of Maine: “Men in general judge more from appearance than from reality. Most Respectfully, Comment by John Fox — April 22, 2008 @ 7:45 am |
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My felicitations to Prof. Frary! If I lived in Maine I would vote for him, and I am very tempted to write him in for pres. His Lagado University Newsletter kept me in stitches for hours after every issue; it was as if he had drawn portraits of my colleagues. Prof. Jonathan Chaves, East Asian Languages & Literatures, The George Washington University Comment by Jonathan Chaves — April 22, 2008 @ 2:51 pm |
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Jay, Maine, which resides in the 2nd district and the epitome of the paper making Maine town, is represented by 3 papermakers. Ray Pineau in the house, Bruce Bryant in the Senate and Mike Michaud in Congress. Yet with all this representation, the most endangered species on the mighty Androscoggin River is the papermill worker. As demonstrated last week with 40 more layoffs at the Wausau Mill. Rumor has it by the end of the year, (after the election) the mill will be closed all together. 300+ good paying jobs with real benefits gone from our community. Fight back against those who bite the hand that feeds them. Join with me in supporting John Frary for Congress! Dan Smiley Comment by Dan Smiley, Jay, Maine — April 27, 2008 @ 2:16 pm |
THANK YOU LETTER AND HUMORLESS RESPONSE“I am contending with an energetic, well-known, amiable, harmless
boob Dear Professor Frary, To say I was appalled at your letter is to put it mildly. You may think it amusing, but it you may find it less so if Rep. Michaud chooses to sue you for defamation of character. Any candidate for public office choose such a course of action in pursuit of an office certainly does not display the character I would expect of a mature individual seeking to represent the people of Maine. To treat the whole thing as a joke reflects on you rather than Rep. Michaud. I am a life long Republican, but be assured, you will not have my vote
in November. (cranky) Republican Party official Dear Republican (Party Official), John N. Frary Comment by Thor — April 29, 2008 @ 3:02 pm |
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We have a great candidate running for congress in the Second District. You may have seen his ads in local weekly newspapers. He is John Frary; born and raised in Farmington, Maine. He’s a retired history professor and a certified curmudgeon. That means he’s somewhat of a grouch and very dissatisfied with the way things are going in our country. He stands for property rights, smaller government and spending within our means. Contrast this with Mike Michaud who is one of the leaders of the Blue/Green Coalition in congress. That is blue collar workers and the green groups. Mikey doesn’t get it that the green groups are job killers. Yet Mike enjoys saying he went from the mill to the hill, meaning Capitol Hill. Mike voted 97% of the time with Nancy Pelosi. Have you ever heard of the Michaud Bill? Don’t worry. You didn’t miss it. There weren’t any. It’s a pattern from Maine’s Second District. There never was a Baldacci Bill either. We need a leader who will advocate for Northern Maine. John Frary will do that. He will be heard. Get to know him over the next six months and you’ll vote for him. Read his ads in the papers. There is real truth in every one of them. John Frary is not your typical politition. He’ll shake things up in a positive way. Comment by Roger Ek — May 4, 2008 @ 8:00 am |
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I am a farm raised, 70 yr old, life-long Republican and extremely concerned about the future of our American democracy. We The People are suffering a blizzard of problems that, when regarded in total seem to represent a bewildering, even hopeless situation. But since my ‘down-sizing’, I’ve had some time to work on a kind of “fault analysis” to simplify problem solving by classifying them in two groups: a.) “Root Causes”, and b.) “Symptoms”. The result of this effort is a short list of Prime Causes for a long list of symptoms, thus, theoretically at least, corrective action becomes more manageable. Here’s a dozen ’symptoms’ that used to look like “The Problem”: * Small family farms bankrupting Take your choice of these symptoms and ask “how come?”, and write the answer, even if it’s “hmm… I don’t know”. Don’t do shortcuts or glib answers. Next, ask “well OK, how come that?” and note the answer, even if it’s “I don’t know” again. Take your time and think carefully. Keep on asking “how come” until you get down to a Root Cause. If after serious effort your very last answer is still “I don’t know”, that in itself is a personal Root Cause that points to the beginning of corrective action: GET SMART ON THE ISSUE! You’ve got a lot of catching up to do but don’t get discouraged because you’ve got a lot of company. Getting back to my “concern for American democracy”, my analysis leads to the conclusion that the democracy our Founders labored for with such loving diligence and intelligence has gradually been hijacked by unsavory corporate and ideological interests. It no longer belongs to WE THE PEOPLE. In light of that conclusion, a reflection on U.S. history and current events will confirm it. What are we to do? Thankfully, our Founders gave us the means to correct our deficiencies, all except the WILL to act. It’s simple in concept: GET SMART on the issues, and act as an INFORMED ELECTORATE. We can’t solve problems with mind-numbing slogans and ridicule, but must tune in on accurate info and build solid understanding before organizing and acting. Let’s face it: If we hadn’t been asleep at the switch and
instead been diligently taking care of the ‘business of democracy’
we wouldn’t have allowed this tragedy to get to the appalling
state we’re in right now. It’s mostly OUR fault. We perpetuate
it at our very peril by wasting time on senseless rants and polarization. Comment by SAL LYON — May 4, 2008 @ 3:31 pm |
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Dear Prof. Frary: Enclosed is a check for a contribution to “Frary for Congress”. Consider it a gift…I wish it could be more, but we’re being raped by property taxes here. Mortgage crisis? How about property tax crisis! The government is the biggest creditor! Meager as this contribution is, I still expect a patronage position in return. Say, Sheriff of Fisher Ames County. Sans faiblesse, ni Pitie -”MG” Thomas P.S.- The world would be a better place, if OJ had married Hillary instead. Comment by "MG" Thomas — May 12, 2008 @ 9:50 am |
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Professor Frary: For purposes of Federal Election regulations, you may attribute the enclosed contribution as follows: -Seventy-Five dollars ($75) to the UNITED RUSTBELT JIHADISTS, and… Our Lobbyist will visit you after the election. Standard Oil, your late father’s employer, pays its regular quarterly dividend on 10 June. You may expect an additional contribution soon thereafter from the PETROLEUM PROFITEERS OF AMERICA. Sincerely, Comment by MA &LA — May 12, 2008 @ 9:54 am |
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Dear Professor Frary, As an unrepentant liberal I am delighted to send you $50. I would have been an unrepentant Marxist, but I was much too lazy to actually read Marx. Thus I am a jailed Marxist, only one of many failures I have enjoyed. I do miss the Lagado University Newsletters. The problem with political correctness and its mindless, bigoted adherents is that they have no sense of humor whatsoever (much less any sense of irony). Let me know if you need another fifty. Best regards, Comment by GL — May 12, 2008 @ 10:16 am |
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Professor John Frary, It is with renewed interest and enthusiasm with which I am making a political contribution to the Frary Campaign. The last foray I made into political financial support was in the support of the present erstwhile sheriff who maintains law and order to the best of his ability in the county of Franklin. You, being of the same generation, town, schooling…and general upbringing have once again caught my political imagination. Although I seem to remember from early childhood my sister tying your shoes for you on the way to the WE Mallett school on more than one occasion, I trust you now to march to the conservative drummer with your boots on and laced up well. Go forward to meet the challenge which I hope will be a successful one and use the enclosed heartfelt pittance to further the noble cause. It is with fond memories of days past and hopes for a brighter future to come I send me best regards to you, my long ago neighbor and friend. -(a local Frary Fan) Comment by Local Frary Fan — May 12, 2008 @ 10:23 am |
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-FROM THE DESK OF: ((a colorful rogue)), M.D. Dear Sir, Most people (I have absolutely no idea why) do not take me seriously. Likewise, I have been reading your comments and columns for several weeks now because they are being sent to me by my elder daughter, who lives somewhere up there in the hinterland of the Penobscot Wilds. I am wondering: should I take this guy seriously? The latest one, (enclosed(Bring Out Your Dead)) however, has stimulated me to make my own comments. Having had a few years of close observation of “Gummint” health care, via the military, and a few years of second hand contac with government health care via friends in socialist countries, I would like to add the following: The very moment a “system” is taken over by the “Gummint”, it takes a nose dive from which there is no recovery. Lines become interminable merely to be seen and evaluated. Waiting for a “specialist” to confirm and plan treatment, is likewise interminable. Why is this so? A government worker gets paid a monthly salary whether he works or plays golf. There is no incentive to see patients. Therefore, the fewer one sees, the sooner one can get to lunch. In the area which I am familiar, seeing three or four patients in the morning, and four or five in an afternoon, was considered burdensome. In private practice, to be successful, one must see then or fifteen
patients in the morning and twenty or more in the afternoon. In private
practice there is no punching a clock. You do what you have to do to
make a living and be successful. In “Gummint” practice there
is no such thing as ’successful’. Your check is in the mail
regardless of how many people you help. In a socialist country recently,
a friend of mine with an undiagnosed intestinal problem, waited 7 months,
plus nearly a week and a half in a hospital, with no results, before
being given an appointment with a “specialist” to have a
proper diagnosis and treatment. The upshot: he never got to see the
specialist. He got to see the coroner! I agree that every one should
have access to the medical care this country offers. But getting the
government involved would be disastrous to the best damn medical “system”
in the world. Thank You, –I have a lot more, but one page of my running off at the mouth is enough for anyone! Comment by rd — May 12, 2008 @ 10:56 am |
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Lieber Herrn Frary: Sie muessen kein Zweifel haben! Wir werden kampfen bis zum letzten Mann! Vorwaerts Maenner! Immer vorwaerts! Wir werden siegen!! Alles fuer unser Frary! Signed, A good American. Comment by Al from Hallowell — June 4, 2008 @ 1:07 pm |
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Professor Frary: Comment by Senator Phinneas T. Fogghorn — June 14, 2008 @ 9:31 am |
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I enjoyed reading your views and agree pretty much with what you believe government should be. I am not one to say something about an issue unless I have something constuctive to add. My comment is directed towards health care of those with uncaring healthy eating habits. Now I am not one for larger government, but here is a part in which I think they could play, in light of our high health care insurance. I would put a high tax on any food that holds a high content of saturated fats or any other chemical or natural ingrdient that poses an unhealthy diet, making sure this tax goes towards its intended purpose. Thanks. Comment by D. Strater — August 8, 2008 @ 1:53 pm |
| so, on the union thing. mistakes have
been made aplenty but its fairly easy to throw around the word "thug"
when taking a long historical view of the relationship between labor
and big capital in this country. why, it really wasn't all that long
ago that big capital used to chain working class kids to the machines
in the big mills and factories right here in good ole new england. bargeloads
of pinkerton "thugs" where hired by big mining capital to
pound the heads of the striking miners. this list could go on and on
but lets just leave it that workers have reason to fear big capital.
now i see you're running for congress, a club full of toadies for big
capital. fannie and freddie have donated so much money to their campaigns
that its no wonder how fast they've rushed in to "save" them. i do like your wisecracking way but try to take the long view before
you kick the crap out of working folks who have every right to feel
anxious during these times. _________________________________________________________ Dear Richard, “My website is open to your testimony about the Great Northern Paper union, as it is open to contrary views. I have no direct knowledge of conditions [in Millinocket], but have been told that the local was amenable to compromise but the national over-ruled them. Contracts went unfilled. Buyers decided to hell with it and the company folded. Feel free to add your own story. “Incidents of thuggishness are common enough in the history of unions and there is no reason to believe that union bosses are any freer of self-interest than management. I know the Unions will try to paint me as a tool of Big Business and Big Oil, but the salient fact is I have no contributions from any business associations or oil companies. “As for Mike Michaud, check his FEC reports for this year alone (not counting the $$$MILLIONS he raked in over the last few years). Here are A FEW of them from this June: United Steelworkers -$15,000 / Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers -$10,000 / Plumbers/Pipefitters Union -$10,000 / Marine Engineers Beneficial Assn -$7,500 Operating Engineers Union -/$7,500 / American Federation of Teachers -$7,000 / International Assn of Fire Fighters -$6,000 / Laborers Union -$5,000 / Machinists/Aerospace Workers Union -$5,000 / Painters & Allied Trades Union -$5,000 / Service Employees Int. Union -$5,000 / United Auto Workers -$5,000 / Teamsters Union -$5,000 / “If Mike Michaud is not bought and paid for by the unions, then he is cheating them. “I was a member of AFT 1940 for a time, although I told the union president that I would never go out on strike. Faculty have a whole bunch of privileges that blue collar workers have no prospect of ever getting. I figured it would be a bit much to add the strike threat to all their other advantages. She did not agree with my views, but respected them. “My refusal to strike did not prevent my unionized colleagues from electing me president of the faculty senate, because they knew I could be relied upon to criticize the college leadership (management to you) as the pack of limp, self-serving nitwits they were. It was the current president of AFT 1940 who set me up for the presidency. “Tom Allen is being attacked for trying to get rid of secret ballots in union elections (a VERY bad idea) but Tom is just following orders. THE REAL AUTHOR OF THIS MEASURE IS MIKE MICHAUD, or whoever is pulling his strings these days. (And I know who it is - do you?) “This is the bottom line: the industrial unions are allied in the Democratic party with the public service unions and the environmental whackos. The former prosper by taxing people in private employment. The latter do not love a paper mill and would be glad to see them all disappear, along with the blue-collar workers who invade "their" woods with ATVs, snow-mobiles and hunting rifles. The enemy of the union workers are - THE UNIONS. “If you don't know that , you are not paying attention. Professor John Frary Candidate for US Congress |