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The Dinner Roll

post #1 of 90
Thread Starter 
Received this in an email today. The ending is great!


Quote:
The Dinner Roll ..
Once upon a time I was invited to the White House for a private dinner with the President.

I am a respected businessman, with a factory that produces memory chips for computers and portable electronics.

There was some talk that my industry was being scrutinized by the administration, but I paid it no mind. I live in a FREE country. There's nothing that the government can do to me if I've broken no laws. My wealth was EARNED honestly, and an invitation to dinner with an American President is an honor.

I checked my coat, was greeted by the Chief of Staff, and joined the President in a yellow dining room.

We sat across from each other at a table draped in white linen. The Great Seal was embossed on the china. Uniformed staff served our dinner.

The meal was served, and I was startled when my waiter suddenly reached out, plucked a dinner roll off my plate and began nibbling it as he walked back to the kitchen..

"Sorry 'bout that," said the President. "Andrew is very hungry."

"I don't appreciate..." I began, but as I looked into the calm brown eyes across from me, I felt immediately guilty and petty. It was just a dinner roll. "Of course," I concluded, and reached for my glass.

Before I could, however, another waiter reached forward, took the glass away and swallowed the wine in a single gulp. "And his brother, Eric, is very thirsty," said the President.

I didn't say anything. The President is testing my compassion, I thought. I withheld my comments and decided to play along. I don't want to seem unkind..

My plate was whisked away before I had tasted a bite.

"Eric's children are also quite hungry."

With a lurch, I crashed to the floor. My chair had been pulled out from under me.

I stood, brushing myself off angrily, and watched as it was carried from the room.

And their grandmother can't stand for long."

I excused myself, smiling outwardly, but inside feeling like a fool. Obviously I had been invited to the White House to be sport for some game. I reached for my coat, to find that it had been taken.

I turned back to the President.

"Their grandfather doesn't like the cold."

I wanted to shout, "that was my coat!" But again, I looked at the placid smiling face of my host and decided I was being a poor sport. I spread my hands helplessly and chuckled.

Then I felt my hip pocket and realized my wallet was gone. I excused myself and walked to a phone on an elegant side table.

I learned shortly that my credit cards had been maxed out, my bank accounts emptied, my retirement and equity portfolios had vanished, and my wife had been thrown out of our home.

Apparently, the waiters and their families were moving in. The President hadn't moved or spoken as I learned all this, but finally I lowered the phone into its cradle and turned to face him.

"Andrew's whole family has made bad financial decisions. They haven't planned for retirement and they need a house. They recently defaulted on a subprime mortgage. I told them they could have your home. They need it more than you do."

My hands were shaking. I felt faint I stumbled back to the table and knelt on the floor.

The President cheerfully cut his meat, ate his steak, and drank his wine. I lowered my eyes and stared at the small gray circles on the tablecloth that were water drops.

"By the way," he added, "I have just signed an Executive Order nationalizing your factories.

I'm firing you as head of your business. I'll be operating the firm now for the benefit of all mankind. There's a whole bunch of Erics and Andrews out there and they can't come to you for jobs groveling like beggars...we need to spread YOUR wealth around..."

I looked up. The President dropped his spoon into the empty ramekin which had been his creme Brule.

He drained the last drops of his wine. As the table was cleared, he lit a cigarette and leaned back in his chair.

He stared at me. I clung to the edge of the table as if it were a ledge and I were a man hanging over an abyss.

I thought of the years behind me, of the life I had lived. The life I had earned with a lifetime of work, risk and struggle.

Why was I punished? How had I allowed it to be taken? What game had I played and lost? I looked across the table and noticed with some surprise that there was no game board between us.

What had I done wrong?

As if answering the unspoken thought, President Obama suddenly cocked his head, locked his empty eyes to mine, and bared a million teeth, chuckling wryly as he folded his hands.

"You should have stopped me at the dinner roll," he said.

WAKE UP AMERICA !!! IT'S LATER THAN YOU THINK
post #2 of 90
Wow, only a million teeth? Good thing whoever wrote this wasn't trying to exaggerate.
post #3 of 90
That was great!
post #4 of 90
Well now the businessman is an Andrew or an Eric so he can have it too
post #5 of 90
How true it is!!!!
post #6 of 90
There sure are some freakishly imaginative people out there. Let me hand you some tin foil for their helmets.
post #7 of 90
The saddest thing is that it's so true as to what will be coming if he is not stopped in 2010 and 2012! America will no longer be a "free" nation of people.
post #8 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Momofmany View Post
There sure are some freakishly imaginative people out there. Let me hand you some tin foil for their helmets.

No black helicopters? I wonder if the author is a Hutaree?
post #9 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcat View Post

No black helicopters? I wonder if the author is a Hutaree?
So you equate "respected businessmen" with Hutaree militia?

Anyway, something interesting I've discovered. The people I know who have filed their taxes did so without filing Schedule M... the make work pay credit. (obviously they don't use CPAs) Nope, they just paid their taxes and had no clue they had this money coming back. They're used to paying taxes, they expect to. But you know what, I think they can get used to ( or trained to) believing that others should be picking up the tab. And yes, I'm going to file it. But honestly, I don't think I have it coming. What most people ask me is WHY, when our government is bankrupt, are they handing out money like they have it? Sorry if OT, but it seemed in line with the dinner roll.
post #10 of 90
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Momofmany View Post
There sure are some freakishly imaginative people out there. Let me hand you some tin foil for their helmets.
Ya think? This is from your neck of the woods Momofmany, is it true or false?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/o...,7563220.story

Quote:
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office offers a prognosis: "Under the president's budget, debt held by the public would grow from $7.5 trillion (53 percent of GDP) at the end of 2009 to $20.3 trillion (90 percent of GDP) at the end of 2020." Interest payments would quadruple.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jcat View Post

No black helicopters? I wonder if the author is a Hutaree?
I don't think it can be considered "black helicopter" stuff when Barack has been very open about his desire for the redistribution of wealth. Taking from the people who work for a living and giving it to the people who WON'T work for a living

(Not to be confused with: CAN'T work for a living)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUzSx...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsapJii1rMY

We don't want to be like Europe.
post #11 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post
So you equate "respected businessmen" with Hutaree militia?
You're kidding right? This silliness is fiction. Somebody made it up. There is no 'respected businessman' who had his dinner rolls swiped by a White House waiter. It reminds me a lot of the old Rocky and Bullwinkle "Fractured Fairy Tales" except that it isn't as well done.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post
What most people ask me is WHY, when our government is bankrupt, are they handing out money like they have it? Sorry if OT, but it seemed in line with the dinner roll.
Was anyone complaining when Bush did it?
http://hubpages.com/hub/Tax-rebate
post #12 of 90
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
You're kidding right? This silliness is fiction. Somebody made it up. There is no 'respected businessman' who had his dinner rolls swiped by a White House waiter. It reminds me a lot of the old Rocky and Bullwinkle "Fractured Fairy Tales" except that it isn't as well done.



Was anyone complaining when Bush did it?
http://hubpages.com/hub/Tax-rebate
Why quote Cinder? Tricia compared the real life, militant, white supremist group to a fictional "businessman"? It is all in fun 2dog, relax, no big deal.

Ummmm I don't think that President George Bush spent the kind of money that Barack is spending. But Bush spent to much, I will agree with that. And the Monday morning quarterback in me wishes we wouldn't have gone into Iraq, although I am sure not sad that Sadaam is not in power anymore.
post #13 of 90
Noooo she compared the author to the Hutaree - the "businessman" does not exist. But hey it IS April 1st isn't it?

If it's any consolation I think Saddam needed to be taken out. I just think we didn't know what we were getting into going in.

Bush was no slouch at spending money. As a matter of fact Republican presidents do not have a good scorecard when it comes to increasing or decreasing the national debt.
http://zfacts.com/p/318.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nationa...idential_terms
post #14 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Ya think? This is from your neck of the woods Momofmany, is it true or false?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/o...,7563220.story
I've told you this before: Chicago newspapers are run by republicans. They always have and probably always will. I find it interesting that you have been linking to them of late.
post #15 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
Noooo she compared the author to the Hutaree - the "businessman" does not exist. But hey it IS April 1st isn't it?
Precisely - thank you for clarifying that.
post #16 of 90
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Momofmany View Post
I've told you this before: Chicago newspapers are run by republicans. They always have and probably always will. I find it interesting that you have been linking to them of late.


The Chicago Tribune endorsed Barack Obama for President during the campaign if I remember correctly.

When the non-partisan CBO says the national debt will be 90% of the GDP by 2020, that means that is will be 190% of the GDP by 2020. How that can't worry people is beyond me.
post #17 of 90
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcat View Post
Precisely - thank you for clarifying that.
So the author of an email is comparable to a white supremist militant? Interesting.
post #18 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
You're kidding right? This silliness is fiction. Somebody made it up. There is no 'respected businessman' who had his dinner rolls swiped by a White House waiter. It reminds me a lot of the old Rocky and Bullwinkle "Fractured Fairy Tales" except that it isn't as well done.[/url]
No, I'm not kidding. It is only fiction in that "you" are not be the businessman that it eludes to. I'm sure there are some that may feel this way, and it's possible they are not militants. I really don't know what many people on this board do for a living. Are you a business owner? If so, are you happy with the manner in which you are taxed, may be taxed, etc.?
post #19 of 90
I'm tempted to forward "The Dinner Roll" to my nephews who are pretty new to the workforce. But I think their mom is pro-Obama (not like a nut or anything as far as I know) so she might get mad at me. I don't know. The point is, being too passive/malleable/agreeable (I don't know the best word to use here - Help me out) makes you vulnerable. Sad but true.
post #20 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post
No, I'm not kidding. It is only fiction in that "you" are not be the businessman that it eludes to. I'm sure there are some that may feel this way, and it's possible they are not militants. I really don't know what many people on this board do for a living. Are you a business owner? If so, are you happy with the manner in which you are taxed, may be taxed, etc.?
As a matter of fact, not only am I a small business owner, so is my husband. The only tax gripes I have are with the state where I have my business, not the Feds.

Are you a business owner if I may ask?
post #21 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
As a matter of fact, not only am I a small business owner, so is my husband. The only tax gripes I have are with the state where I have my business, not the Feds.

Are you a business owner if I may ask?
I am still a Limited Partner with the firm where I worked, so I guess technically yes, that does make me a business owner. My earnings from 2009 were less than half of the prior year. Not quite sure what happened to that dinner roll.

We recently had an election here to raise corporate and income taxes on the wealthy. While neither applied to me, (although indirectly they will affect everyone) I did not support it. Whether it is on the state or federal level, I will not support additional taxation until the money is spent wisely...less waste. I have limited funds myself. I have a budget. If I did as pathetic a job of managing my money as our government does I'd be out on the street. And just think of all those homeless kitties that would create....

So, if I might add to the story, here is what is missing....

Andrew took the dinner roll back to the kitchen where the assistant to the Secretary of Pastries began to divide it up into ten pieces. It took some time because the assistant was already so overweight that they could barely move. Then a dispute broke out over the size of the pieces, which required a majority of the 60 chefs who baked the thing in the first place to resolve.

When no one was looking the pat of butter and jam disappeared.

By the time Andrew got his piece more than half the original roll had crumbled and fallen to the floor, where it was promptly swept under the rug. He traded it to Eric for a drink of wine. Eric then waited for the respected businessman outside on the White House steps and tried to sell it back to him, but he no longer had any money.

By then the sliver of dinner roll was stale anyway, so he threw it out.


Well, it could have happened that way.
post #22 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post
My earnings from 2009 were less than half of the prior year. Not quite sure what happened to that dinner roll.
Both my husband's and my businesses had a rotten year last year too. I think it is because we are both involved with manufacturing. Frankly I think China ate our dinner roll.
post #23 of 90
Thread Starter 
LCinder that was great, I think it needs to be added to the story.


When is Barack going to give some "stimulus" to small business? The backbone of this country/
post #24 of 90
post #25 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
Both my husband's and my businesses had a rotten year last year too. I think it is because we are both involved with manufacturing. Frankly I think China ate our dinner roll.
I hear ya. Just locally a manufacturer of BBQs outsourced their production to China. So disappointing. Locally made, good quality, something to be proud of your community about.

And this isn't local, but over the holidays DH always buys a Budweiser stein. He has hundreds of them. This years wasn't very attractive IMO, so I turned it over and saw MADE IN CHINA for the first time. Over the years they've always been produced in Brazil, which isn't anything to write home about either. But it was just one more thing. I called the distributor to pretty much just say we noticed and weren't impressed. They didn't even know they'd changed manufacturers. (If you believe what they said)

Ckblv...glad you liked my addition. If anyone asks...I'm not Hutaree militia.
post #26 of 90
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post

Ckblv...glad you liked my addition. If anyone asks...I'm not Hutaree militia.
To late to edit the OP or I would have added it. I checked.
post #27 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinder View Post
I hear ya. Just locally a manufacturer of BBQs outsourced their production to China. So disappointing. Locally made, good quality, something to be proud of your community about.
This is our fault actually. We all want to pay as little as possible for everything we buy and our local manufacturers cannot afford to pay the wages, benefits, etc. that our North American workers demand, often through unions that cripple our manufacturers, so in order for them to make any kind of profit they need to outsource their production to a place like China just to make a living. Erso, we have only ourselves to blame for this.
post #28 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yosemite View Post
This is our fault actually. We all want to pay as little as possible for everything we buy and our local manufacturers cannot afford to pay the wages, benefits, etc. that our North American workers demand, often through unions that cripple our manufacturers, so in order for them to make any kind of profit they need to outsource their production to a place like China just to make a living. Erso, we have only ourselves to blame for this.
It's a vicious cycle. And you know, they hate us over there. I don't like to buy anything for my cats "made in China" anymore. I'm so afraid it will be something treated with something evil. If I can't avoid it, (Like Tolly's fur mice, and the wave curls they love so much) I wash it thoroughly first.
post #29 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yosemite View Post
This is our fault actually. We all want to pay as little as possible for everything we buy and our local manufacturers cannot afford to pay the wages, benefits, etc. that our North American workers demand, often through unions that cripple our manufacturers, so in order for them to make any kind of profit they need to outsource their production to a place like China just to make a living. Erso, we have only ourselves to blame for this.
This is why I avoid shopping at some stores entirely (like Walmart). Unless I have no other option at all, I simply won't buy something made in China. I got a gift certificate for Hobby Lobby for Christmas and went shopping to redeem it. I found exactly 1 thing that wasn't made in China (and didn't want it) so I left the store without redeeming it. I'll try again in a few months to see if they have new merchandise that's made elsewhere.

You can avoid buying things made in China if you commit yourself to it.
post #30 of 90
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yosemite View Post
This is our fault actually. We all want to pay as little as possible for everything we buy and our local manufacturers cannot afford to pay the wages, benefits, etc. that our North American workers demand, often through unions that cripple our manufacturers, so in order for them to make any kind of profit they need to outsource their production to a place like China just to make a living. Erso, we have only ourselves to blame for this.
Part of what I do for a living involves evaulating products and I see ALL companies who outsource to China without exception having problems. The Chinese have no concept of quality control and I never see a component made the way it was supposed to be. Not even close. The result: angry customers, loss of reputation and in some cases the customer returns to a US source for their products. More often than not though they just keep sending their engineers to China (is that cost saving?) to get them to try to fix the problem face-to-face. Almost every time I get a call from one of my customers (in engineering) wanting my help with their quality issues, I reply: "Don't tell me, let me guess, you've outsourced your production to China," I hear a sigh on the other end and then something like "Yeah, corporate has ordered purchasing to use sources in the far east."
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