In Memory of Henri

Today the doctor called and said Henri was having kidney failure. The news hit right before I had a court appearance. Somehow I got through it before walking out of the courthouse with tears streaming down my face. The last time that happened was when JFK was assassinated.

We saw him one last time and it was evident he was suffering. So we consented for them to put him to sleep. I have lost the best friend I've ever had. He taught us a lot about life.

He is with God now - my wife's grandmother Mamaw passed away a couple weeks ago at 102. She says he's now with Mamaw in heaven. I think so too. I feel numb. I thank those who have posted kind comments...I'm spending the rest of today thinking about my little friend who had a rough start in life but turned out to be such a unique member of the family...

Two kinds of people - Beware

9/27/2006 5:14 AM

My wife and I got back at 11 last night from dropping Henri at the Gulf Coast Emergency clinic. He had a chemo shot day before yesterday and yesterday he started going out for a break and not coming back. I found him flat under some bushes near our fence. We got him into the house to rest. But later, I heard the kitchen door bump open and saw Henri slowly disappearing in the direction of the van. He was sinking fast and wanted a car ride to the doc. By the time we reached the clinic we needed a gurney to carry him in –90 lbs of dead weight (down from 100 lbs when this started). They got him an IV and stabilized him.

I’m finding that there are two kinds of people out there – the ones who treat their animals medically no matter what (Henri has cost over $5,000 so far and I am scrambling to make enough to keep doing it) – and those who just ‘pull the plug’ without a second thought even if the animal has a chance.

I avoid the latter. Someone that heartless is going to cheat you on a deal in my opinion. If they care so little about animals do you think they really care about cutting short humans?). If I find that out about someone I won’t do business with them. I prefer working with decent, honorable people – which is why it is just as well I didn’t end up on Congress. LOL. As long as Henri has a chance, like any of God’s creations, we will help him. It’s the human thing to do..

Henri still has a chance but it is still touch and go. I think I’ll write in Henri’s name for Congress in the Special Election. He has more guts than anyone and he’d be just as effective as anyone who servesg just two holiday months (Nov/Dec.) making the party rounds in DC. Henri loves FOOD (although he hasn’t eaten in the past 3 days)…that qualifies him for Washington. LOL.

Henri and Congress District 22

Henri and District 22
Monday, September 25, 2006

Henri is flat, under my feet. He skipped breakfast, which concerns me. Henri not gobbling down food is like boys not thinking about sex. His breathing is somewhat better but labored. He did go for some RICE.

Henri has been with me since my first Congress campaign in 2000. As many of you know, I was the first to challenge Mr. DeLay in the GOP primary in years. Many things have happened since that time. With elections drawing near, it’s time to say a couple things about the District 22 race that I think snoring Henri will agree with:

In 2000 I raised the issue of international issues that affected America’s future – I talked about it on the campaign in front of rooms full of Republicans that had never heard DeLay mention global issues. I had done several videos on terrorism in the 90’s and gave copies to both Mr. DeLay and Vice President Elect Dick Cheney eight months before 9 11. Neither one of them had an aide respond with even a question.

I contend that we must elect Congress representatives who have global knowledge if we are to succeed as a nation and in the “war on terrorism.” So which candidate in District 22 has more of that than the others?

That is the issue – NOT whether they are this party or that. The GOP picked a pest control guy last time –he slept even after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center. This time they picked a skin doctor, a dermatologist. Do we really need an expert on skin rashes in the House of Representatives keeping us “safe”? How much global expertise does Sekula Gibbs have? Same question for the others. Pick the one with the most if you want to be safer. 9 11 happened because Mr. DeLay ignored the world and had no expertise in it.

I hear politicians say they will “keep the borders safe” yada, yada. Talk is not experience. Where was Dr. Sekula Gibbs in 1994 when I did a video with Dr. Ron Hatchett about the potential of nuclear terrorism coming to the U.S.? Where was she when I was negotiating in over 50 countries worldwide? Where were the other candidates?

Henri agrees. He wants his chemo treatment, but he also wants the people of District 22 with the best representative who really knows the world we face. Since I’m not on the ballot, which of those left fill that role the best?

That is the question for voters this November 7 in District 22…Because of DeLay’s leaving the GOP slot empty and the impossibility of a write in, it is evident that the next representative will be Nick Lampson. But in the Special Election, voters should ask the question – which candidate is the best qualified to sit as our Congress rep during Thanksgiving and Christmas – a whole 2 months! Henri says he’ll run for that…

Henri and Congress District 22

Henri and District 22
Monday, September 25, 2006

Henri is flat, under my feet. He skipped breakfast, which concerns me. Henri not gobbling down food is like boys not thinking about sex. His breathing is somewhat better but labored. He did go for some RICE.

Henri has been with me since my first Congress campaign in 2000. As many of you know, I was the first to challenge Mr. DeLay in the GOP primary in years. Many things have happened since that time. With elections drawing near, it’s time to say a couple things about the District 22 race that I think snoring Henri will agree with:

In 2000 I raised the issue of international issues that affected America’s future – I talked about it on the campaign in front of rooms full of Republicans that had never heard DeLay mention global issues. I had done several videos on terrorism in the 90’s and gave copies to both Mr. DeLay and Vice President Elect Dick Cheney eight months before 9 11. Neither one of them had an aide respond with even a question.

I contend that we must elect Congress representatives who have global knowledge if we are to succeed as a nation and in the “war on terrorism.” So which candidate in District 22 has more of that than the others?

That is the issue – NOT whether they are this party or that. The GOP picked a pest control guy last time –he slept even after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center. This time they picked a skin doctor, a dermatologist. Do we really need an expert on skin rashes in the House of Representatives keeping us “safe”? How much global expertise does Sekula Gibbs have? Same question for the others. Pick the one with the most if you want to be safer. 9 11 happened because Mr. DeLay ignored the world and had no expertise in it.

I hear politicians say they will “keep the borders safe” yada, yada. Talk is not experience. Where was Dr. Sekula Gibbs in 1994 when I did a video with Dr. Ron Hatchett about the potential of nuclear terrorism coming to the U.S.? Where was she when I was negotiating in over 50 countries worldwide? Where were the other candidates?

Henri agrees. He wants his chemo treatment, but he also wants the people of District 22 with the best representative who really knows the world we face. Since I’m not on the ballot, which of those left fill that role the best?

That is the question for voters this November 7 in District 22…

Henri Update and Osama

We thought Henri was OK when we picked him up from Gulf Coast yesterday at noon, but he passed blood before we got out the door. They gave us more pills for that. By nightfall he was breathing hard. We ended up going to the emergency room from 7:30 pm (running down 59 with the 4 way flashers going) to after midnight. They observed him but said his oxygen was OK and to take him home. We got into the van in the rain and he quietly sat in the seat behind me.

He’s been grumpy today-- not eating much beyond part of a tortilla I gave him. He kept rejecting the pill we slipped into some pound cake (apparently cancer dogs like sweet cake). He was lying FLAT under my desk and growling when we approached when L suggested “Walk” -- THAT got him excited. He had not had a walk around the neighbor in years. Now, he likes the ladies (call him a "ladies dog") and it is men that he growls at, including the doctor at the emergency room. Doc laughed and called in the women to give Henri his check up.

The exercise got Henri going and he finally ate the pound cake with the hidden pill. L discovered he wound eat bread. But he's not eating much.

The news all weekend is that Osama bin laden may be dead from typhoid, somewhere in Pakistan. All I can say is that it no longer matters. Bin laden started 9 11 hoping to get the U.S. to overreact and create a “jihad” movement that would fuel more terrorism. Bush did exactly that by jumping into Iraq. Now intelligence sources say that Iraq is fueling the growth of terrorism. Bin laden got what he wanted and Al Qaida will continue without him. In Afghanistan we had them beaten and world opinion was on our side. We lost all of that with Iraq and intelligence reports it has increased our threat. We need a smarter way to deal with it.

Why the heck not?

We got to see Henri tonight. He visited us for awhile – then he turned, went back to the door and scratched – his signal he was ready to go back into the hospital! Apparently he felt it wasn’t time to leave yet. The doctor said he couldn’t believe the change in Henri. He had been “down” all day, then suddenly “he just lit up and came alive” this afternoon. He’s staying in the hospital tonight.

The doctor said that when he or one of the men walked past his cage, Henri would growl. But if one of the girls came by, he was Mr. Friendly. He loves girls. Funny dog.

Might get him back tomorrow. Gulf Coast has done an incredible job. But you learn to take it one day at the time. This has been a very aggressive cancer…we’ll see.

By the way, I think it would be interesting to see President Bush take the chance and debate the President of Iran. If he can debate Sen. Kerry, why not Mr. Iran? Instead of avoiding him at the UN, George should have strolled up to him and invited him to Crawford for BBQ, just like he did when he was Governor and made peace with Democrat Bob Bullock, the Lt. Governor who controlled Austin. Why the heck not?

Henri - the Great Communicator

September 21, 2006

Henri is in animal ICU tonight. He wasn’t supposed to see the doc until tomorrow but this morning I heard Henri throwing up downstairs. Then he went outside and laid on the cool cement. I could not get him inside but the minute I opened the van side door he was up and crawled in. He would not get out so I took him to drop my wife at the Park n Ride. He just sat quietly on the seat behind me and watched instead of his usual habit of trying to climb over the seat to sit in my lap.

I went home to shower and he still wouldn’t get out of the van—he was still sitting in it when I was presentable, so I drove him to the vet where he promptly jumped out and went in to see the doctors.

That Henri knows how to get things done. He knew he couldn’t wait until tomorrow to go in -- and he figured out a way for me to "get it." I have learned some valuable lessons about life from Henri, like being persistent.

The doctors won’t know for a day or two if they can stabilize him. We’ll treat him as long as possible, and as long as he isn’t suffering.

After dropping Henri at Gulf Coast, I went --for the first time-- to the Bay Area commercial real estate lunch (BACREN). The speaker was Luke Romero, an international real estate broker, who gave a great talk on international investors who make up of a huge percentage of investors coming into our markets – and are rapidly growing. Over 1/3 of our loans now come from foreign capital! Americans are going overseas to invest and foreigners are coming here to invest. It’s a global economy. Today I met Americans setting up deals from Costa Rica to Panama, Americans building condos and resorts.

Between Henri, lunch, phone calls and a run to the courthouse, I didn’t even catch the news. I have a portable TV in the car so I can listen to it when on the road. But once you have a cancer patient in your family, the news doesn’t seem to matter all that much. The only news that matters is how your family member is doing day to day.

Rumsfeld Corrected by US Troops - An Embarrassment

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

8 p.m. Bad day for Henri. He has been flat all day. No appetite – so unlike Henri who ALWAYS loves to eat. Not even is favorite—bread—got him to rise from the dining room floor at noon. He did go out and took a potty break. I watched him straining and some diarrhea. Poor guy. In 3 weeks of treatment this is the worst he’s been. So far he’s been eating well and feeling OK, due to the miracle of modern animal medicine. But today was not a good day. He’s flat on the doorway of my study now, resting and “helping” as always. It seems to be very similar to what people go through with cancer.

The pope has started a furor with comments about Mohammad. Unlike John Paul who was a “uniter,” this one could be a divider. That makes the world even more unstable. Pope Benedict found fault with another religion -- but failed to mention his own church’s role in the Crusades that led to mindless attacks on Muslims by Christians centuries ago, not to mention its pedophile Priest problem (I was raised as a Catholic).

We’ve had a President who has presided over the biggest drop in America’s global reputation of any administration, and now a Pope who is throwing stones. Our ministers like Pat Robertson call for the assassination of foreign leaders. None are building bridges.

Tomorrow I get to go a lunch at which Gen. Colin Powell is speaking. He is a leader I can respect. Gen. Powell is someone we should elect if our country is too succeed. Appointing political hacks to run our agencies (like Michael Brown at FEMA, etc) and prizing blind loyalty over competence does not guarantee success in running a complex world, or prevailing in Iraq. Iraq is a mess because of the incompetent people selected to set it up.

I just read about a military meeting in which Donald Rumsfeld told our troops that 95% of the house searches were now being done by the Iraqis. OUR troops shouted him down, its on video, and informed him that 95% of the house searches are still being done by U.S. troops, not Iraqis. That is how out of touch with reality Mr. Rumseld is –our troops are having to correct him on the actual facts. By keeping him, Pres. Bush is sanctioning his incompetence -- which started with too few troops to guard the ammo dumps and no rebuilding plan. How brilliant is that?

Rumsfeld’s conduct created the Iraq mess. A President who really cares about American competence would sack him, and replace him with someone who knows who is conducting 95% of the searches in Baghdad--someone who is not just another party hack who is clueless about what is going on around him. American taxpayers deserve better than that. All Americans deserve better than that.

best person in each slot gets my vote - no straight ticket

This election we need to vote for leadership with common sense. I don’t want any more whacko agendas.

Nor do we need one party controlling ALL branches of government. That always leads to extremes regardless of party. When I ran for Congress, I had people emailing me that they hoped the Iraq invasion would led to Armageddon, and the person was not the only one who felt that way. That was someone voting for Tom DeLay in the GOP primary. We won’t have a future if we keep electing people who think like that.

It’s not our job to play God on when the world ends. It’s our job to try to keep it from happening. Right now we have leaders who say they care about life while voting down children’s health care, education, etc. They don’t care about children or the future because they think there is no future.

We need leadership with a real vision and plan to develop a brighter future – someone who actually knows what the hell is going on in other parts of the planet before we elect them!

The pest control guy who has never been to the Middle East or anywhere but Congress is not serving the people’s interest with his ignorance of global affairs (but has great expertise at shaking down corporations for donations) that will affect our future.

So folks, let’s vote for some real leaders for a change, whether they are in a party or independent. A diehard conservative once told me that he thought a split Congress and Executive branch was best for conservatives, because it produced “gridlock.” It certainly keeps things from getting radical left or right.

I am going to be a ticket splitter this election – best person in each slot gets the vote. That can only help our democracy improve….

Passing of Gov. Ann Richards

Governor Ann Richards passing in the middle of one of the most peculiar elections in Texas history is having its own impact – one can’t help but compare her style with today’s candidates. She was only the second woman elected Governor in Texas' long history. I’m thinking we need another woman in the Governor’s chair today since Ms. Richards term ended in 1994. She did give us the lottery that is putting $1 billion a year into our schools.

Compare that to Perry’s nutty plan to take 1 million acres of Texas land for a super great Trans-Texas Terrorist Dream corridor. Those pipelines in the middle of the freeway should roast motorists just fine with just one small bomb. Where do these guys come up with these crazy ideas?

For readers outside Texas, or checking in from another planet, our next Texas Governor will not be elected by a majority, but something less. Instead of just one Democrat and one Republican duking it out, we also have two independents (“Kinky” and Grandma) stirring the pot with the potential to win –or they could collectively pull enough votes from the Democrat to keep in office a weak Republican Governor who is presently scoring under 35%. It looks like people need to pick the one with the best shot of replacing the Perry peter principals.

Ann opened the doors for women and many minorities that had been left out. Women have been left out a lot lately, and Grandma has been making a lot of sense. We need a Governor that represents all Texans, not just the few members of the “club.” Ann was one of those and shall be missed.

Finally, I see headlines that Bush says that capturing bin laden is “not our top priority.” What? Why have a “war on terror” if the No. 1 rat who planned 9 11 (Osama bin laden) is not a “top priority” ?? It will probably take women in that office as well to get the priorities straight…

U.S. Embassy Attacked in Syria

Even Syria is having a problem with terrorists. Several just attacked the U.S. Embassy in Damascus Syria. I was there a few years ago on a kidnapping case (photo) --a 12 year old Texas girl was being held in Sidon Lebanon and Damascus was as close as we could get. You never know what to expect next…

How to Honor Those Who Fell on 9 11

Five years ago today I spent the entire day at a TV studio (Fox 26 Houston) as a terrorism expert, trying to figure out what had happened that awful day. I started to watch the events today but just wasn't up to reliving that awful day again.

I think the best way to observe 9 11 is to find a sense of common purpose by Americans. That purpose, in my opinion, should be to make the world a better place.

I agree with the military command that says that we cannot win the ‘war on terror’ with bullets alone. It will take a political solution. It will take rebuilding and bridge building with Americans reaching out worldwide. I would rather they remember us for something we built instead of something we destroyed.

Highlighting those Americans who are making the world a better place is the purpose of the “Global American” award announced today on my Global American Yahoo Group website. You can get to it via my website.

The best way to remember the fallen of 9 11 is not to live in paranoia and fear but to take action to build a positive future for America and the world on the ashes of hate.

To do it will take our having allies around the world. We have too much to lose in the age of terrorism in the nuclear age without kicking our allies in the teeth. We need better working relationships between us.

Our future depends on it…

P.S. Henri gets his 3rd chemo treatment Friday. He has been responding well...

Standby for a Crazy Election in Texas

I highly recommend the Gulf Coast Vet clinic on West Loop in Houston. Our vet sent us there with Henri vomiting etc from cancer and they worked a miracle. He would have been gone by now if not for their talents. Now he’s gobbling high protein puppy food and barking at tree shadows on the fence again.

Having a cancer patient in the family, even a dog, totally changes your perspective. It has made me more aware of the people around us who have cancer and the medical miracle drugs we now have to give them a fighting chance. A friend of my wife’s is taking chemo for breast cancer.

For Henri they started with a shot. Now he gets a couple of pills morning and night. It has given him a new lease on life. We’ll take it, even if it lasts a year. He’ll get a check up in a few days and we’ll see. One noticeable change - he now whizzes so often he reminds me of a 50-plus year old man.

Texas is gearing up for a crazy election cycle this fall, from cigar smoking independents to write-ins.

If you wrote a novel about what has happened in our Congress district (TX 22) so far the past year no one would have believed it – it would have been considered to far out even for fiction. Who would believe that an indicted Congressman would take his donations and bail out on his own party after winning a primary, leading to attempts at replacements, write-in campaigns and a last minute Special Election call).

It’s guaranteed the next Texas Governor will get less than 50% of the vote.

And it appears the first GOP seat to become Democrat will be this one. Even a majority shift is possible. Change is in the air…

Henri

Doctor called yesterday and said that they know what Henri has – its Lymphoma, a cancer. They can give him chemo but when I asked how much time Henri had, he said; “Maybe a year.”

We started him on chemo…