José and Carlos are beggars. They beg in different areas of town. Carlos begs for the same amount of time as José, but collects only about $8.00 or $9.00 a day.
José brings home a suitcase full of ten-dollar bills every day. He drives a Mercedes, lives in a mortgage-free house, and has a lot of money to spend.
"Hey, amigo," Carlos says to José, "I work just as long and hard as you do, so how come you bring home a suitcase
full of ten dollar bills every day?
José says, "Look at your sign, what does it say?" Carlos reads his sign: "I have no work, a wife and six kids to support."
"What's wrong with that?" Carlos asks him.
"No wonder you only get $8.00 or $9.00 a day!" says José.
Carlos says, "All right, what is on your sign?"
José shows him his sign, which says: NEED ONLY $10 MORE TO GET BACK TO MEXICO
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
'AN ECONOMIC KATRINA IS ABOUT TO HIT'
From my pal Jay Wall. I sure hope Jay’s prediction of pending financial doom will not bear fruit.
PERFECT ECONOMIC STORM BREWING IN HOUSTON, NATION
By J.W. “Jay” Wall
Houston Business Journal
February 18, 2011
I am afraid, sincerely petrified, for my country, and, no, I’m not channeling Glenn Beck.
My business, tenant representation, is good. There’s money in the bank. My accounts
receivable are current. My retirement account has almost recovered from its 2007 lows. We refinanced our house with a conventional 4.25 percent 15-year loan.
Nevertheless, I fear the perfect storm, an economic Katrina, is about to hit and economic Armageddon will be upon us in the not-too-distant future. Let me tell you why.
First, much of our nation’s so called “economic recovery” is a mirage. Our country’s problems: fiscal incontinence, monetary promiscuity and legislative/regulatory misfeasance — a dangerous combination. It seems that the federal government is mostly a vehicle for transferring income and wealth, as opposed to providing the “public-goods” services and infrastructure a free-market economy depends upon.
Washington’s fiscal incontinence continues to flow unrelentingly and manifests itself perhaps most putridly in the $6 billion ethanol subsidy just passed by Congressional Republicans, a boondoggle for which there is not a single economic or environmental rationale. Curious as to why grocery prices are rising unremittingly? Perhaps part of the reason is that we are burning 40 percent of the nation’s corn crop.
To get $250 billion in stimulus, President Obama, with the complicity of the newly empowered/energized Tea/Republican Party, agreed to extend the Bush tax cuts at a cost of around $750 billion, and eventually much more, as these temporary cuts will most likely become permanent.
In other words, our Congress just added a trillion dollars to the already insanely bloated deficit. Bush-era deficits of $500 billion have soared to $1.4 trillion.
Worse, it seems Republicans are now becoming even more deeply complicit in continuing the kick-the-can philosophy of dealing with our nation’s problems, “Why do today what you can do tomorrow and why do tomorrow what you can put off forever?” To fund the increasingly gaping deficit, the government is running its printing presses nonstop, thus the debasement of the dollar continues, which will ultimately cause oil prices and other commodity prices to skyrocket, particularly if the dollar is no longer seen as the world’s reserve currency.
Whatever, it is only a matter of time before inflation kicks in with a vengeance.
Courtesy of the Federal Reserve and its aim to “maximize employment,” the Fed is buying up to $600 billion worth of long-term Treasury obligations to push inflation up and bond yields down. The notion that the Fed can raise inflation and lower bond yields implies that bond buyers are dolts. They aren’t. Witness the dramatic rise in the 10-year Treasury over the past four months from 2.4 percent to 4.0 percent.
We are monetizing our debt and, in turn, debasing the dollar. The Fed buying the banks’ bad assets and long-term Treasuries is moving the Fed’s portfolio further out of the yield curve, risking massive losses.
We are re-inflating the stock market bubble and starting to see excessive financial risk-taking. The revival of financial risk-taking is shown by near record margins and supercharged financial engineering: leveraged buyouts, debt-financed stock buybacks and largely debt-fueled mergers and acquisitions — all are “equity friendly” in the short term, though not necessarily job creating — yet another stock market bubble in the making.
Locally, consolidations in the exploration and production, or E&P, and oil-service sectors have begun in earnest: Baker Hughes/BJ Services have reunited; Schlumberger has acquired Smith International; Apache took over Mariner Energy, etc. The dominos in the next major wave of consolidation in the oil patch are starting to fall with a vengeance. I predict this wave will be as significant as the Exxon/Mobil; BP/Amoco/Arco mergers were in the early 1990s, with similar losses in employment.
Were intellectual honesty/sanity to prevail, the Republicans would admit they launched a giant new entitlement program — prescription drug benefit for Medicare recipients — under President Bush without really paying for it. In addition, under Bush we pursued two wars without cutting other spending or raising taxes. In fact, they just further cut taxes again via a reduction in the payroll tax — from 6.2 percent for employees to 4.2 percent. We continue to fight two wars and have ladled on additional societal burdens such as ObamaCare, which we will never be able to pay for, until and unless we start taking our medicine.
The Democrats set out to trim billions of dollars in prospective Medicare spending but used the money to expand health care for others rather than extend the life of Medicare itself. What we needed were changes in incentives to encourage consumers to demand value and health care providers to supply it. Instead Obama doubled-down on the perverse incentives of the existing system.
Some frightening facts:
• Bankruptcies, both personal and among small business, continue to surge.
• Roughly one in four homeowners are in trouble, and, soon, an estimated 40 percent of American homeowners will find themselves with mortgages in excess of the value of their homes. Fortunately, Houston’s numbers are far better, as we didn’t have rampant housing inflation, probably due to a great freeway network, abundant land and the lack of zoning.
• Nationally, we have over 20 percent combined unemployment and underemployment, and, although Houston is better off, we ain’t better off by much.
• Small business — our city’s and country’s main jobs driver — is in turmoil and often unable to borrow to fund operations.
• Big business is just coming out of deep cost-cutting mode.
• Low interest rates, although rising, continue to be a cruel punishment for savers,
particularly elderly savers.
• Backdoor inflation is rewarding profligate debtors and turning savers into suckers.
I firmly believe we are in a state of economic limbo — before we have a period of hyperinflation, as this Ponzi-scheme of a recovery (TARP, TALF, HAMP, Cash for Clunkers, etc.) comes to an ignominious end.
It seems that, in a perverse manner, the nation’s housing bust wound up acting as fuel for the latest consumer-spending binge. Many borrowers have succumbed to the “Thelma & Louise” school of thought, and consumer spending will prove this out. Via “strategic defaults” — simply not paying their mortgages — many consumers have continued to splurge, as they have that much additional disposable income from what was their mortgage or rent payment.
There are no quick fixes. The more government tries to paper over the housing problem, through various forms of delinquent-borrower aids and exaggerated unemployment subsidies, the longer the crisis will continue. The housing market will not achieve equilibrium in real terms until it is allowed to bottom out, find true market pricing and recover over time.
The answers to our nation’s economic problems will be many. Most will be painful. The size of government must shrink. Much of the reason the economy is so fouled up is because superfluous government regulations and subsidies have slowed the economy. These have prevented market forces from operating the way they need to for a market economy to thrive. They have precluded an efficient allocation of resources.
Having said that, I believe we need an EPA, we need an OSHA, we need an SEC, we need to regulate derivatives trading.
They’ve created a nation of spenders, speculators and consumers, and they have devasted the savers, manufacturers and investing class that built this country. The country is overly indebted, savings-depleted and underemployed. We’ve abandoned capitalism and embraced socialism.
Taxes must rise, but hopefully the tax code will be radically simplified. Social Security needs to be means-tested. The age of eligibility for Social Security will rise. If the government doesn’t pay for what it purchases with current taxes, it must raise them later.
Former Fed Secretary Paul Volcker suggested bringing back some version of Glass-Steagall, the Depression-era legislation that kept commercial and investment banking pursuits separate. Although the moment may have passed for its resurrection, I am in favor of anything that makes “too-big-to-fail” a thing of the past and precludes investment banks from again “risking public pain at private gain.”
By attempting to repeal all consequences of prolific indebtedness and fiscal irresponsibility via behemoth bailouts, Uncle Sam has encouraged even more of the behavior that put our country in such desperate straits in the first place. Further, refusing to pursue civil and criminal actions against the perpetrators of the last meltdown only gives fuel to the fire being kindled as we speak.
Having said that, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be than Houston. We will weather the storm better than anywhere else.
_____
J.W. “Jay” Wall III is a senior vice president with Moody Rambin Interests in Houston, specializing in tenant representation.
PERFECT ECONOMIC STORM BREWING IN HOUSTON, NATION
By J.W. “Jay” Wall
Houston Business Journal
February 18, 2011
I am afraid, sincerely petrified, for my country, and, no, I’m not channeling Glenn Beck.
My business, tenant representation, is good. There’s money in the bank. My accounts
receivable are current. My retirement account has almost recovered from its 2007 lows. We refinanced our house with a conventional 4.25 percent 15-year loan.
Nevertheless, I fear the perfect storm, an economic Katrina, is about to hit and economic Armageddon will be upon us in the not-too-distant future. Let me tell you why.
First, much of our nation’s so called “economic recovery” is a mirage. Our country’s problems: fiscal incontinence, monetary promiscuity and legislative/regulatory misfeasance — a dangerous combination. It seems that the federal government is mostly a vehicle for transferring income and wealth, as opposed to providing the “public-goods” services and infrastructure a free-market economy depends upon.
Washington’s fiscal incontinence continues to flow unrelentingly and manifests itself perhaps most putridly in the $6 billion ethanol subsidy just passed by Congressional Republicans, a boondoggle for which there is not a single economic or environmental rationale. Curious as to why grocery prices are rising unremittingly? Perhaps part of the reason is that we are burning 40 percent of the nation’s corn crop.
To get $250 billion in stimulus, President Obama, with the complicity of the newly empowered/energized Tea/Republican Party, agreed to extend the Bush tax cuts at a cost of around $750 billion, and eventually much more, as these temporary cuts will most likely become permanent.
In other words, our Congress just added a trillion dollars to the already insanely bloated deficit. Bush-era deficits of $500 billion have soared to $1.4 trillion.
Worse, it seems Republicans are now becoming even more deeply complicit in continuing the kick-the-can philosophy of dealing with our nation’s problems, “Why do today what you can do tomorrow and why do tomorrow what you can put off forever?” To fund the increasingly gaping deficit, the government is running its printing presses nonstop, thus the debasement of the dollar continues, which will ultimately cause oil prices and other commodity prices to skyrocket, particularly if the dollar is no longer seen as the world’s reserve currency.
Whatever, it is only a matter of time before inflation kicks in with a vengeance.
Courtesy of the Federal Reserve and its aim to “maximize employment,” the Fed is buying up to $600 billion worth of long-term Treasury obligations to push inflation up and bond yields down. The notion that the Fed can raise inflation and lower bond yields implies that bond buyers are dolts. They aren’t. Witness the dramatic rise in the 10-year Treasury over the past four months from 2.4 percent to 4.0 percent.
We are monetizing our debt and, in turn, debasing the dollar. The Fed buying the banks’ bad assets and long-term Treasuries is moving the Fed’s portfolio further out of the yield curve, risking massive losses.
We are re-inflating the stock market bubble and starting to see excessive financial risk-taking. The revival of financial risk-taking is shown by near record margins and supercharged financial engineering: leveraged buyouts, debt-financed stock buybacks and largely debt-fueled mergers and acquisitions — all are “equity friendly” in the short term, though not necessarily job creating — yet another stock market bubble in the making.
Locally, consolidations in the exploration and production, or E&P, and oil-service sectors have begun in earnest: Baker Hughes/BJ Services have reunited; Schlumberger has acquired Smith International; Apache took over Mariner Energy, etc. The dominos in the next major wave of consolidation in the oil patch are starting to fall with a vengeance. I predict this wave will be as significant as the Exxon/Mobil; BP/Amoco/Arco mergers were in the early 1990s, with similar losses in employment.
Were intellectual honesty/sanity to prevail, the Republicans would admit they launched a giant new entitlement program — prescription drug benefit for Medicare recipients — under President Bush without really paying for it. In addition, under Bush we pursued two wars without cutting other spending or raising taxes. In fact, they just further cut taxes again via a reduction in the payroll tax — from 6.2 percent for employees to 4.2 percent. We continue to fight two wars and have ladled on additional societal burdens such as ObamaCare, which we will never be able to pay for, until and unless we start taking our medicine.
The Democrats set out to trim billions of dollars in prospective Medicare spending but used the money to expand health care for others rather than extend the life of Medicare itself. What we needed were changes in incentives to encourage consumers to demand value and health care providers to supply it. Instead Obama doubled-down on the perverse incentives of the existing system.
Some frightening facts:
• Bankruptcies, both personal and among small business, continue to surge.
• Roughly one in four homeowners are in trouble, and, soon, an estimated 40 percent of American homeowners will find themselves with mortgages in excess of the value of their homes. Fortunately, Houston’s numbers are far better, as we didn’t have rampant housing inflation, probably due to a great freeway network, abundant land and the lack of zoning.
• Nationally, we have over 20 percent combined unemployment and underemployment, and, although Houston is better off, we ain’t better off by much.
• Small business — our city’s and country’s main jobs driver — is in turmoil and often unable to borrow to fund operations.
• Big business is just coming out of deep cost-cutting mode.
• Low interest rates, although rising, continue to be a cruel punishment for savers,
particularly elderly savers.
• Backdoor inflation is rewarding profligate debtors and turning savers into suckers.
I firmly believe we are in a state of economic limbo — before we have a period of hyperinflation, as this Ponzi-scheme of a recovery (TARP, TALF, HAMP, Cash for Clunkers, etc.) comes to an ignominious end.
It seems that, in a perverse manner, the nation’s housing bust wound up acting as fuel for the latest consumer-spending binge. Many borrowers have succumbed to the “Thelma & Louise” school of thought, and consumer spending will prove this out. Via “strategic defaults” — simply not paying their mortgages — many consumers have continued to splurge, as they have that much additional disposable income from what was their mortgage or rent payment.
There are no quick fixes. The more government tries to paper over the housing problem, through various forms of delinquent-borrower aids and exaggerated unemployment subsidies, the longer the crisis will continue. The housing market will not achieve equilibrium in real terms until it is allowed to bottom out, find true market pricing and recover over time.
The answers to our nation’s economic problems will be many. Most will be painful. The size of government must shrink. Much of the reason the economy is so fouled up is because superfluous government regulations and subsidies have slowed the economy. These have prevented market forces from operating the way they need to for a market economy to thrive. They have precluded an efficient allocation of resources.
Having said that, I believe we need an EPA, we need an OSHA, we need an SEC, we need to regulate derivatives trading.
They’ve created a nation of spenders, speculators and consumers, and they have devasted the savers, manufacturers and investing class that built this country. The country is overly indebted, savings-depleted and underemployed. We’ve abandoned capitalism and embraced socialism.
Taxes must rise, but hopefully the tax code will be radically simplified. Social Security needs to be means-tested. The age of eligibility for Social Security will rise. If the government doesn’t pay for what it purchases with current taxes, it must raise them later.
Former Fed Secretary Paul Volcker suggested bringing back some version of Glass-Steagall, the Depression-era legislation that kept commercial and investment banking pursuits separate. Although the moment may have passed for its resurrection, I am in favor of anything that makes “too-big-to-fail” a thing of the past and precludes investment banks from again “risking public pain at private gain.”
By attempting to repeal all consequences of prolific indebtedness and fiscal irresponsibility via behemoth bailouts, Uncle Sam has encouraged even more of the behavior that put our country in such desperate straits in the first place. Further, refusing to pursue civil and criminal actions against the perpetrators of the last meltdown only gives fuel to the fire being kindled as we speak.
Having said that, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be than Houston. We will weather the storm better than anywhere else.
_____
J.W. “Jay” Wall III is a senior vice president with Moody Rambin Interests in Houston, specializing in tenant representation.
WILL IT BE FREEDOM OR MORE TYRANNY?
No one really knows how the Egyptian revolution and the unrest in North Africa and the Middle East will eventually turn out.
I HOPE I’M WRONG
By Monica Crowley
politicalmavens.com
February 17, 2011
Revolutions generally start out full of hope. When regular people successfully throw off the yoke of oppressive, brutal tyranny, they naturally hope for a new order that will give them better, freer, more prosperous lives.
A review of some of the most important revolutions of the past 250 years or so shows a very mixed record in terms of this hope panning out.
On the positive side of the ledger: the American revolution of the late 18th century and the Eastern European revolutions of 1989 generated genuine and enduring freedom from dictatorship. On the negative side of the ledger: the French revolution of the late 18th century, the Russian revolution of the early 20th, and the Iranian revolution of 1979 ended in terror, destruction, and ever-greater tyranny.
The Middle East is newly aflame this week. The Egyptian military is tightening its control. The Muslim Brotherhood announced the formation of a formal political party with which it intends to control and influence events. Protesters in Bahrain have taken over the main square in their capital city. Fear seems to have dissipated in Yemen and Algeria, as demonstrations there have grown in number and in size. Protesters continue to take to the streets in Libya and Jordan. And in Iran, thousands of demonstrators came out in Tehran, despite prohibitions from the government, which authorized the use of force against the people. So far, official word is that two have died, and scores have been injured.
Sometimes revolts end in authentic and irreversible freedom. More often than not, however, they end in terror, death, and new kinds of wickedness.
The jury is still out on which way the Middle Eastern revolts will go, but the track record in this part of the world is not encouraging. In fact, the only Arab democracy is the one built by the United States in Iraq. I hope I’m wrong. I hope true freedom and human rights flower in the sands there. But color me skeptical: the region is pulled between strongmen and Islam. This tells me none of this is going to end well.
Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.
I HOPE I’M WRONG
By Monica Crowley
politicalmavens.com
February 17, 2011
Revolutions generally start out full of hope. When regular people successfully throw off the yoke of oppressive, brutal tyranny, they naturally hope for a new order that will give them better, freer, more prosperous lives.
A review of some of the most important revolutions of the past 250 years or so shows a very mixed record in terms of this hope panning out.
On the positive side of the ledger: the American revolution of the late 18th century and the Eastern European revolutions of 1989 generated genuine and enduring freedom from dictatorship. On the negative side of the ledger: the French revolution of the late 18th century, the Russian revolution of the early 20th, and the Iranian revolution of 1979 ended in terror, destruction, and ever-greater tyranny.
The Middle East is newly aflame this week. The Egyptian military is tightening its control. The Muslim Brotherhood announced the formation of a formal political party with which it intends to control and influence events. Protesters in Bahrain have taken over the main square in their capital city. Fear seems to have dissipated in Yemen and Algeria, as demonstrations there have grown in number and in size. Protesters continue to take to the streets in Libya and Jordan. And in Iran, thousands of demonstrators came out in Tehran, despite prohibitions from the government, which authorized the use of force against the people. So far, official word is that two have died, and scores have been injured.
Sometimes revolts end in authentic and irreversible freedom. More often than not, however, they end in terror, death, and new kinds of wickedness.
The jury is still out on which way the Middle Eastern revolts will go, but the track record in this part of the world is not encouraging. In fact, the only Arab democracy is the one built by the United States in Iraq. I hope I’m wrong. I hope true freedom and human rights flower in the sands there. But color me skeptical: the region is pulled between strongmen and Islam. This tells me none of this is going to end well.
Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.
THE MICHELIN MAN AND HIS DOG CAN REST EASY NOW
44 aliases and ‘hundreds if not thousands’ of slashings.
TOMMY JOE KELLEY: SLASHER NABBED, AND UM, TIRED AUSTINITES BREATHE SIGH OF RELIEF
By John Nova Lomax
Houston Press Hair Balls
February 17, 2011
Tommy Joe Kelley's reign of terror appears to be at an end. The 56-year-old drifter was quietly nabbed by Austin cops last month on a trespassing charge and booked into Travis County Jail under what police say is one of his 44 aliases. Earlier this week, police tacked on four more felony charges as new evidence emerged.
Police claim that Kelley used all those fake names and numerous dates of birth to confuse police as he committed "hundreds if not thousands" of slashings in Austin's tony Hyde Park area over the last 16 years. There seemed to be no rhyme nor reason to his crimes. Unlike some slashers, this one never taunted police or left other messages behind. Residents were outraged and frustrated as the crime spree dragged on and on -- they even started a Web site dedicated to catching him.
If you are wondering why you haven't heard of this serial slasher, that's because Kelley's victims were not human.
Nope. Kelley is instead accused of being a Michelin mauler, a Goodyear gasher, a stabber of steel-belted radials. Police caught him with his weapon, a homemade metal tool Kelley allegedly fashioned into a tire-popper.
Kelley now stands accused of four felony counts of unlawful use of a criminal instrument. Police say that he has been nabbed going Norman Bates on NTB products at least five times since 1994, and has had more than 500 "involvements" with Austin police over that same time. Police also say he has been arrested 57 times in three states. Hyde Park residents claim that Kelley did over $16,000 in property damage before he was caught.
His bail is set at $50,000.
TOMMY JOE KELLEY: SLASHER NABBED, AND UM, TIRED AUSTINITES BREATHE SIGH OF RELIEF
By John Nova Lomax
Houston Press Hair Balls
February 17, 2011
Tommy Joe Kelley's reign of terror appears to be at an end. The 56-year-old drifter was quietly nabbed by Austin cops last month on a trespassing charge and booked into Travis County Jail under what police say is one of his 44 aliases. Earlier this week, police tacked on four more felony charges as new evidence emerged.
Police claim that Kelley used all those fake names and numerous dates of birth to confuse police as he committed "hundreds if not thousands" of slashings in Austin's tony Hyde Park area over the last 16 years. There seemed to be no rhyme nor reason to his crimes. Unlike some slashers, this one never taunted police or left other messages behind. Residents were outraged and frustrated as the crime spree dragged on and on -- they even started a Web site dedicated to catching him.
If you are wondering why you haven't heard of this serial slasher, that's because Kelley's victims were not human.
Nope. Kelley is instead accused of being a Michelin mauler, a Goodyear gasher, a stabber of steel-belted radials. Police caught him with his weapon, a homemade metal tool Kelley allegedly fashioned into a tire-popper.
Kelley now stands accused of four felony counts of unlawful use of a criminal instrument. Police say that he has been nabbed going Norman Bates on NTB products at least five times since 1994, and has had more than 500 "involvements" with Austin police over that same time. Police also say he has been arrested 57 times in three states. Hyde Park residents claim that Kelley did over $16,000 in property damage before he was caught.
His bail is set at $50,000.
OLD? ME?
$5.37!
That's what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell said to me. I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Elmo hairdo said the hardest thing anyone has ever said to me. He said, "It's OK. I'll just give you the senior citizen discount."
I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. "Only $4.68" he said cheerfully.
I stood there stupefied. I am 56, not even 60 yet? A mere child! Senior citizen?
I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Elmo. Was he blind? As I sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me?
I'll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile.
Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted! What am I now? A toddler?
"Dude! Can't get too far without your car keys, eh?" I stared with utter disdain at the keys. I began to rationalize in my mind.
"Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly! It could happen to anyone!"
I turned and headed back to the truck. I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn't turn. What now? I checked my keys and tried another. Still nothing.
That's when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror.. I had no purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror.
Then, a few other objects came into focus. The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread all over the floorboard. A partially eaten doughnut on the dashboard.
Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle.
Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found.
I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time. There Elmo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, "What is the world coming to?"
All I could say was, "Did I leave my food and drink in here"? At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits.
Elmo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, "I think you left this in my truck by mistake."
I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized.
She offered these kind words: "It's OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time."
All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40. Yes, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius. And no, I told the officer, I'm not too old to be driving this fast.
As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blankie.
The good news was I had successfully found my way home.
[From: Jody L. Reese, MSN, RN, Assistant Professor, WSU/USU Cooperative Nursing Program]
That's what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell said to me. I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Elmo hairdo said the hardest thing anyone has ever said to me. He said, "It's OK. I'll just give you the senior citizen discount."
I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. "Only $4.68" he said cheerfully.
I stood there stupefied. I am 56, not even 60 yet? A mere child! Senior citizen?
I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Elmo. Was he blind? As I sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me?
I'll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile.
Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted! What am I now? A toddler?
"Dude! Can't get too far without your car keys, eh?" I stared with utter disdain at the keys. I began to rationalize in my mind.
"Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly! It could happen to anyone!"
I turned and headed back to the truck. I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn't turn. What now? I checked my keys and tried another. Still nothing.
That's when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror.. I had no purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror.
Then, a few other objects came into focus. The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread all over the floorboard. A partially eaten doughnut on the dashboard.
Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle.
Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found.
I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time. There Elmo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, "What is the world coming to?"
All I could say was, "Did I leave my food and drink in here"? At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits.
Elmo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, "I think you left this in my truck by mistake."
I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized.
She offered these kind words: "It's OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time."
All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40. Yes, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius. And no, I told the officer, I'm not too old to be driving this fast.
As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blankie.
The good news was I had successfully found my way home.
[From: Jody L. Reese, MSN, RN, Assistant Professor, WSU/USU Cooperative Nursing Program]
Thursday, February 17, 2011
'THE NARROWNESS AND ARROGANCE OF THE GLOBAL-WARMING BRIGADES'
Yesterday I posted William Katz’s tribute to Abraham Lincoln. Today, I am posting his take on the global warming debate. He ends with this warning: We must continue questioning, before we commit trillions of dollars to devices, gimmicks and theories that can damage the world’s economy, plunge millions into poverty, and produce very little in return.
“SETTLED” SCIENCE
By William Katz
politicalmavens.com
February 16, 2011
This was the week that Lisa Jackson, head of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) began her testimony on Capitol Hill, challenged for the first time by House committees with GOP majorities. The GOP is somewhat skeptical about some of the EPA’s work and its scientific claims.
By all accounts, Jackson is a pleasant, cooperative and intelligent woman who is a true believer in her cause of protecting the environment. That’s fine. Clean air is better than polluted air. However, she said something before a House committee that symbolized the narrowness and arrogance of the global-warming brigades who have imposed themselves on this planet in recent decades, insisting that the end is near unless we adopt their policies and recommendations. While we still wait for the end to occur, or even to get close, the brigades assure us that blackness is just around the corner.
Jackson, in cautioning Congress against passing legislation that would clip her regulatory wings, said, “Politicians overruling scientists on a scientific question — that would become part of this committee’s legacy.”
Well, forgive me, but I’m a sinner.
There seems to be a belief in some circles that we must not question scientists, that science is perfect and settled, and that mere mortals must not annoy those in white lab coats.
Sorry, but questioning scientists is as legitimate as questioning experts in any field. And, in fact, science is never “settled.” It is forever changing because scientific findings alter assumptions all the time. Albert Einstein challenged 300 years of Newtonian physics at the start of the last century, and was proved right. Elizabeth Kenny (Sister Kenny), an Australian nurse, challenged the accepted science of treating polio victims, and she too was proved right.
What irks me is the assurance given by Lisa Jackson and others that the “science” of global warming is not open to question. In fact, major figures in science are questioning it, challenging it, as well they should. There are sufficient doubts about the “science” of global warming to require a presidential commission to look into the matter, to determine 1) what we know, 2) what we don’t know, and 3) what we have to know.
In his farewell address to the nation, the famous “industrial-military complex” speech, President Eisenhower warned about the emergence of a scientific elite, new demigods, to be worshipped and never doubted. He also warned about the impact of federal grants on the outcome of scientific research. To get a grant, you sometimes have to go along with “accepted” wisdom, “settled” science.
Questioning scientific assumption, if done intelligently and in good faith, is not “anti-science.” It is pro-science. It demands more proof, greater detail. Richard Feynman, the great 20th century physicist, and the star of the panel that investigated the 1986 Challenger disaster, defined science this way:
“The principle of science, the definition, almost, is the following: The test of all knowledge is experiment. Experiment is the sole judge of scientific ‘truth’. But what is the source of knowledge? Where do the laws that are to be tested come from? Experiment, itself, helps to produce these laws, in the sense that it gives us hints. But also needed is imagination to create from these hints the great generalizations — to guess at the wonderful, simple, but very strange patterns beneath them all, and then to experiment to check again whether we have made the right guess.”
“…to check again whether we have made the right guess.”
I wish Professor Feynman were alive today to whisper into the ears of the global-warming crowd, which assures us that they’ve guessed right every time.
In his absence, we must continue questioning, before we commit trillions of dollars to devices, gimmicks and theories that can damage the world’s economy, plunge millions into poverty, and produce very little in return.
“SETTLED” SCIENCE
By William Katz
politicalmavens.com
February 16, 2011
This was the week that Lisa Jackson, head of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) began her testimony on Capitol Hill, challenged for the first time by House committees with GOP majorities. The GOP is somewhat skeptical about some of the EPA’s work and its scientific claims.
By all accounts, Jackson is a pleasant, cooperative and intelligent woman who is a true believer in her cause of protecting the environment. That’s fine. Clean air is better than polluted air. However, she said something before a House committee that symbolized the narrowness and arrogance of the global-warming brigades who have imposed themselves on this planet in recent decades, insisting that the end is near unless we adopt their policies and recommendations. While we still wait for the end to occur, or even to get close, the brigades assure us that blackness is just around the corner.
Jackson, in cautioning Congress against passing legislation that would clip her regulatory wings, said, “Politicians overruling scientists on a scientific question — that would become part of this committee’s legacy.”
Well, forgive me, but I’m a sinner.
There seems to be a belief in some circles that we must not question scientists, that science is perfect and settled, and that mere mortals must not annoy those in white lab coats.
Sorry, but questioning scientists is as legitimate as questioning experts in any field. And, in fact, science is never “settled.” It is forever changing because scientific findings alter assumptions all the time. Albert Einstein challenged 300 years of Newtonian physics at the start of the last century, and was proved right. Elizabeth Kenny (Sister Kenny), an Australian nurse, challenged the accepted science of treating polio victims, and she too was proved right.
What irks me is the assurance given by Lisa Jackson and others that the “science” of global warming is not open to question. In fact, major figures in science are questioning it, challenging it, as well they should. There are sufficient doubts about the “science” of global warming to require a presidential commission to look into the matter, to determine 1) what we know, 2) what we don’t know, and 3) what we have to know.
In his farewell address to the nation, the famous “industrial-military complex” speech, President Eisenhower warned about the emergence of a scientific elite, new demigods, to be worshipped and never doubted. He also warned about the impact of federal grants on the outcome of scientific research. To get a grant, you sometimes have to go along with “accepted” wisdom, “settled” science.
Questioning scientific assumption, if done intelligently and in good faith, is not “anti-science.” It is pro-science. It demands more proof, greater detail. Richard Feynman, the great 20th century physicist, and the star of the panel that investigated the 1986 Challenger disaster, defined science this way:
“The principle of science, the definition, almost, is the following: The test of all knowledge is experiment. Experiment is the sole judge of scientific ‘truth’. But what is the source of knowledge? Where do the laws that are to be tested come from? Experiment, itself, helps to produce these laws, in the sense that it gives us hints. But also needed is imagination to create from these hints the great generalizations — to guess at the wonderful, simple, but very strange patterns beneath them all, and then to experiment to check again whether we have made the right guess.”
“…to check again whether we have made the right guess.”
I wish Professor Feynman were alive today to whisper into the ears of the global-warming crowd, which assures us that they’ve guessed right every time.
In his absence, we must continue questioning, before we commit trillions of dollars to devices, gimmicks and theories that can damage the world’s economy, plunge millions into poverty, and produce very little in return.
'GOOD SHOOT' GETS COMPLICATED
As a part of this report, Scott Stewart tells us exactly who is and who is not entitled to full diplomatic immunity under the Vienna Convention.
THE THREAT OF CIVIL UNREST IN PAKISTAN AND THE DAVIS CASE
By Scott Stewart
STRATFOR Global Intelligence
February 16, 2011
On Feb. 13, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) issued a statement demanding that the government of Pakistan execute U.S. government contractor Raymond Davis or turn him over to the TTP for judgment. Davis, a contract security officer for the CIA, has been in Pakistani custody since a Jan. 27 incident in which he shot two men who reportedly pointed a pistol at him in an apparent robbery attempt.
Pakistani officials have corroborated Davis’ version of events and, according to their preliminary report, Davis appears to have acted in self-defense. From a tactical perspective, the incident appears to have been (in tactical security parlance) a “good shoot,” but the matter has been taken out of the tactical realm and has become mired in transnational politics and Pakistani public sentiment. Whether the shooting was justified or not, Davis has now become a pawn in a larger game being played out between the United States and Pakistan.
When one considers the way similar periods of tension between the Pakistanis and Americans have unfolded in the past, it is not unreasonable to conclude that as this current period plays out, it could have larger consequences for Davis and for American diplomatic facilities and commercial interests in Pakistan. Unless the Pakistani government is willing and able to defuse the situation, the case could indeed provoke violent protests against the United States, and U.S. citizens and businesses in Pakistan should be prepared for this backlash.
DETAILS OF THE CASE
One of the reasons that the Pakistanis have been able to retain Davis in custody is that while he may have been traveling on a “black” diplomatic U.S. passport, not everyone who holds a diplomatic passport is afforded full diplomatic immunity. The only people afforded full diplomatic immunity are those who are on a list of diplomats officially accredited as diplomatic agents by the receiving country. The rest of the foreign employees at an embassy or a consulate in the receiving country who are not on the diplomatic list and who are not accredited as diplomatic agents under the Vienna Convention are only protected by functional immunity. This means they are only protected from prosecution related to their official duties.
As a contract employee assigned to the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, Davis was likely not on the diplomatic list and probably did not enjoy full diplomatic immunity. He was probably considered a member of the administrative or technical staff. Protecting himself during a robbery attempt would not be considered part of his official function in the country, and therefore his actions that day would not be covered under functional immunity. So determining exactly what level of immunity Davis was provided will be critical in this case, and the information provided by the Pakistani Foreign Ministry will have a big impact on the Pakistani judge hearing the arguments.
In all likelihood, Davis was briefed regarding his legal status by his company and by the CIA prior to being assigned to post. He also would have been told that, while he had limited immunity, the U.S. government would do its best to take care of him if some incident occurred. However, it would have been made clear to him that in working as a protective contractor he was running a risk and that if there was an incident on or off duty, he could wind up in trouble. All security contractors working overseas know this and accept the risk as part of the job.
At the time of the shooting, of course, Davis would not have had time to leisurely ponder this potential legal quagmire. He saw a threat and reacted to it. Undoubtedly, the U.S. government will do all it can to help Davis out — especially since the case appears to be a good-shoot scenario and not a case of negligence or bad judgment. Indeed, on Feb. 15, U.S. Sen. John Kerry flew to Islamabad in a bid to seek Davis’ release. However, in spite of American efforts and international convention, Davis’ case is complicated greatly by the fact that he was working in Pakistan and by the current state of U.S.-Pakistani relations.
TENSIONS
Over the past few years, relations between the United States and Pakistan have been very strained. This tension has been evidenced not only by public opinion but also by concrete examples. For example, in mid-December, the CIA station chief in Islamabad was forced to leave the country after his name was disclosed in a class-action lawsuit brought by relatives of civilians killed by unmanned aerial vehicle strikes in the Pakistani tribal badlands.
It was no coincidence that the Pakistani lawsuit against the CIA station chief occurred shortly after the head of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence directorate, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, was accused in a civil lawsuit of being involved in the 2008 attacks in Mumbai. The suit was brought in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn by family members of the American rabbi killed alongside his wife in Mumbai by Pakistan-based Islamist militants.
Like Iraq, Pakistan is a country that has seen considerable controversy over American security contractors over the past several years. The government of Pakistan has gone after security contractor companies like DynCorp and its Pakistani affiliate InterRisk and Xe (formerly known as Blackwater), which has become the Pakistani version of the bogeyman. In addition to the clandestine security and intelligence work the company was conducting in Pakistan, in 2009 the Taliban even began to blame Xe for suicide bombing attacks that killed civilians. The end result is that American security contractors have become extremely unpopular in Pakistan. They are viewed not only as an affront to Pakistani sovereignty but also as trigger-happy killers.
And this is the environment in which the Davis shooting occurred. Even though some Pakistani civilians apparently came forward and reported that they had been robbed at gunpoint by the men Davis shot, other Pakistani groups like the Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) — the successor to the Lashkar-e-Taiba, which was presumably banned by the Pakistani government — have demanded that Davis be hanged. The Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), an Islamist political party, has also demanded that Davis be hanged and has called for large protests if he is released without a court order. As noted above, TTP spokesman Azam Tarik made a statement demanding that the Pakistani government either hang Davis or hand him over to them. Interest in this issue is not just confined to Islamist groups. There are some right-wing conservative nationalists and even some secular liberals who are asking: “If the United States can give CIA shooter Mir Amal Kansi the death penalty, why can’t Pakistan do the same thing to Davis?”
The result is that the Davis case has aroused much controversy and passion in Pakistan. This not only complicates the position of the Pakistani government but also raises the distinct possibility that there will be civil unrest if Davis is released.
FORECAST
Based on this history, the current tension between the United States and Pakistan, public sentiment in Pakistan regarding U.S. security contractors and the possibility of groups like JuD and JeI attempting to take advantage of the situation, there is a very real possibility that Davis’ release could spark mob violence in Pakistan (and specifically Lahore). Even if the Pakistani government does try to defuse the situation, there are other parties who will attempt to stir up violence.
Due to the widespread discontent over the issue of U.S. security contractors in Pakistan, if protests do follow the release of Davis, they can be expected to be similar to the protests that followed the Mohammed cartoon case, i.e., they will cut across ethnic and sectarian lines and present a widespread threat.
THE THREAT OF CIVIL UNREST IN PAKISTAN AND THE DAVIS CASE
By Scott Stewart
STRATFOR Global Intelligence
February 16, 2011
On Feb. 13, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) issued a statement demanding that the government of Pakistan execute U.S. government contractor Raymond Davis or turn him over to the TTP for judgment. Davis, a contract security officer for the CIA, has been in Pakistani custody since a Jan. 27 incident in which he shot two men who reportedly pointed a pistol at him in an apparent robbery attempt.
Pakistani officials have corroborated Davis’ version of events and, according to their preliminary report, Davis appears to have acted in self-defense. From a tactical perspective, the incident appears to have been (in tactical security parlance) a “good shoot,” but the matter has been taken out of the tactical realm and has become mired in transnational politics and Pakistani public sentiment. Whether the shooting was justified or not, Davis has now become a pawn in a larger game being played out between the United States and Pakistan.
When one considers the way similar periods of tension between the Pakistanis and Americans have unfolded in the past, it is not unreasonable to conclude that as this current period plays out, it could have larger consequences for Davis and for American diplomatic facilities and commercial interests in Pakistan. Unless the Pakistani government is willing and able to defuse the situation, the case could indeed provoke violent protests against the United States, and U.S. citizens and businesses in Pakistan should be prepared for this backlash.
DETAILS OF THE CASE
One of the reasons that the Pakistanis have been able to retain Davis in custody is that while he may have been traveling on a “black” diplomatic U.S. passport, not everyone who holds a diplomatic passport is afforded full diplomatic immunity. The only people afforded full diplomatic immunity are those who are on a list of diplomats officially accredited as diplomatic agents by the receiving country. The rest of the foreign employees at an embassy or a consulate in the receiving country who are not on the diplomatic list and who are not accredited as diplomatic agents under the Vienna Convention are only protected by functional immunity. This means they are only protected from prosecution related to their official duties.
As a contract employee assigned to the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, Davis was likely not on the diplomatic list and probably did not enjoy full diplomatic immunity. He was probably considered a member of the administrative or technical staff. Protecting himself during a robbery attempt would not be considered part of his official function in the country, and therefore his actions that day would not be covered under functional immunity. So determining exactly what level of immunity Davis was provided will be critical in this case, and the information provided by the Pakistani Foreign Ministry will have a big impact on the Pakistani judge hearing the arguments.
In all likelihood, Davis was briefed regarding his legal status by his company and by the CIA prior to being assigned to post. He also would have been told that, while he had limited immunity, the U.S. government would do its best to take care of him if some incident occurred. However, it would have been made clear to him that in working as a protective contractor he was running a risk and that if there was an incident on or off duty, he could wind up in trouble. All security contractors working overseas know this and accept the risk as part of the job.
At the time of the shooting, of course, Davis would not have had time to leisurely ponder this potential legal quagmire. He saw a threat and reacted to it. Undoubtedly, the U.S. government will do all it can to help Davis out — especially since the case appears to be a good-shoot scenario and not a case of negligence or bad judgment. Indeed, on Feb. 15, U.S. Sen. John Kerry flew to Islamabad in a bid to seek Davis’ release. However, in spite of American efforts and international convention, Davis’ case is complicated greatly by the fact that he was working in Pakistan and by the current state of U.S.-Pakistani relations.
TENSIONS
Over the past few years, relations between the United States and Pakistan have been very strained. This tension has been evidenced not only by public opinion but also by concrete examples. For example, in mid-December, the CIA station chief in Islamabad was forced to leave the country after his name was disclosed in a class-action lawsuit brought by relatives of civilians killed by unmanned aerial vehicle strikes in the Pakistani tribal badlands.
It was no coincidence that the Pakistani lawsuit against the CIA station chief occurred shortly after the head of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence directorate, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, was accused in a civil lawsuit of being involved in the 2008 attacks in Mumbai. The suit was brought in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn by family members of the American rabbi killed alongside his wife in Mumbai by Pakistan-based Islamist militants.
Like Iraq, Pakistan is a country that has seen considerable controversy over American security contractors over the past several years. The government of Pakistan has gone after security contractor companies like DynCorp and its Pakistani affiliate InterRisk and Xe (formerly known as Blackwater), which has become the Pakistani version of the bogeyman. In addition to the clandestine security and intelligence work the company was conducting in Pakistan, in 2009 the Taliban even began to blame Xe for suicide bombing attacks that killed civilians. The end result is that American security contractors have become extremely unpopular in Pakistan. They are viewed not only as an affront to Pakistani sovereignty but also as trigger-happy killers.
And this is the environment in which the Davis shooting occurred. Even though some Pakistani civilians apparently came forward and reported that they had been robbed at gunpoint by the men Davis shot, other Pakistani groups like the Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) — the successor to the Lashkar-e-Taiba, which was presumably banned by the Pakistani government — have demanded that Davis be hanged. The Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), an Islamist political party, has also demanded that Davis be hanged and has called for large protests if he is released without a court order. As noted above, TTP spokesman Azam Tarik made a statement demanding that the Pakistani government either hang Davis or hand him over to them. Interest in this issue is not just confined to Islamist groups. There are some right-wing conservative nationalists and even some secular liberals who are asking: “If the United States can give CIA shooter Mir Amal Kansi the death penalty, why can’t Pakistan do the same thing to Davis?”
The result is that the Davis case has aroused much controversy and passion in Pakistan. This not only complicates the position of the Pakistani government but also raises the distinct possibility that there will be civil unrest if Davis is released.
FORECAST
Based on this history, the current tension between the United States and Pakistan, public sentiment in Pakistan regarding U.S. security contractors and the possibility of groups like JuD and JeI attempting to take advantage of the situation, there is a very real possibility that Davis’ release could spark mob violence in Pakistan (and specifically Lahore). Even if the Pakistani government does try to defuse the situation, there are other parties who will attempt to stir up violence.
Due to the widespread discontent over the issue of U.S. security contractors in Pakistan, if protests do follow the release of Davis, they can be expected to be similar to the protests that followed the Mohammed cartoon case, i.e., they will cut across ethnic and sectarian lines and present a widespread threat.
SIGN THAT DOG UP FOR THE K-9 CORPS
With a shortage of police dogs, this doggie would make a fine addition to the K-9 corps. He already knows how to detect drugs.
PIT BULL TOSSES SOCK FULL OF MARIJUANA OUT WINDOW
The dog tossed the drugs out the window of the vehicle during a traffic stop
Associated Press
February 16, 2011
MORO, Ore. — An Oregon sheriff's deputy didn't need a drug dog to point out a stash during a recent traffic stop. The driver's dog did it for him.
KGW-TV reports Sherman County sheriff's Sgt. John Terrel was pulling over a pickup truck Feb. 9 when he saw a sock fly out the window. It turned out to be stuffed with marijuana and hashish.
The driver told Terrel he was trying to hide the sock, but his pit bull mix grabbed it and wouldn't let go, enjoying a tug-of-war game.
The dog won the tussle and tossed the sock out the window, and the 32-year-old driver was indicted on drug possession charges.
PIT BULL TOSSES SOCK FULL OF MARIJUANA OUT WINDOW
The dog tossed the drugs out the window of the vehicle during a traffic stop
Associated Press
February 16, 2011
MORO, Ore. — An Oregon sheriff's deputy didn't need a drug dog to point out a stash during a recent traffic stop. The driver's dog did it for him.
KGW-TV reports Sherman County sheriff's Sgt. John Terrel was pulling over a pickup truck Feb. 9 when he saw a sock fly out the window. It turned out to be stuffed with marijuana and hashish.
The driver told Terrel he was trying to hide the sock, but his pit bull mix grabbed it and wouldn't let go, enjoying a tug-of-war game.
The dog won the tussle and tossed the sock out the window, and the 32-year-old driver was indicted on drug possession charges.
THE MEXICANS ARE COMING! THE MEXICANS ARE COMING!
Quick, my fellow Texans, get out your guns! This was obviously a scouting foray by the Mexican army in preparation for an attack that could follow shortly. It kind of looks like they’re getting ready to retake our state.
MEXICO MILITARY INVASION BARELY REPULESED, WE GUESS
By Richard Connelly
Houston Press Hair Balls
February 16, 2011
Ronald Reagan famously warned America that unless the Contras won in Nicaragua, the U.S. would face a growing threat of a Communist invasion from Mexico.
That ominous scenario has now played out. We can only suggest you stock up on bottled water, ammunition and begin to learn Spanish.
The Drudge Report is featuring a story from Valley station KRGV, which we're sure has never experienced such web traffic. The station is reporting on "a Mexican military incursion" into the United States of America.
Or, you know, it could have been a traffic stop gone awry.
The station breathlessly relays the news of an Army truck with uniformed soldiers crossing the international bridge in Mission.
It was a terrifying scene that could have been taken right from the chilling documentary Red Dawn.
The invading horde claimed yards and yards of American soil for their power-hungry leaders...until they saw the customs booth. At which point they did a quick U-turn and slunk back home.
If those brave men and women staffing that booth don't get a Congressional Medal of Honor, there is no justice in this world.
We can only assume the Pentagon has gone to at least DEFCON 2, but with that traitorous Muslim in the White House, who knows? Like we say, it's probably better to just arm yourselves.
MEXICO MILITARY INVASION BARELY REPULESED, WE GUESS
By Richard Connelly
Houston Press Hair Balls
February 16, 2011
Ronald Reagan famously warned America that unless the Contras won in Nicaragua, the U.S. would face a growing threat of a Communist invasion from Mexico.
That ominous scenario has now played out. We can only suggest you stock up on bottled water, ammunition and begin to learn Spanish.
The Drudge Report is featuring a story from Valley station KRGV, which we're sure has never experienced such web traffic. The station is reporting on "a Mexican military incursion" into the United States of America.
Or, you know, it could have been a traffic stop gone awry.
The station breathlessly relays the news of an Army truck with uniformed soldiers crossing the international bridge in Mission.
It was a terrifying scene that could have been taken right from the chilling documentary Red Dawn.
The invading horde claimed yards and yards of American soil for their power-hungry leaders...until they saw the customs booth. At which point they did a quick U-turn and slunk back home.
If those brave men and women staffing that booth don't get a Congressional Medal of Honor, there is no justice in this world.
We can only assume the Pentagon has gone to at least DEFCON 2, but with that traitorous Muslim in the White House, who knows? Like we say, it's probably better to just arm yourselves.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
A TRIBUTE TO ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Right after I got my Masters Degree in 1954, I taught history and general science at South Oak Cliff High School in Dallas. At the time, public school history teachers taught their students about the accomplishments of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman. We taught the history of America’s wars, especially the American Revolution, the Civil War, WWI, WWII and the Korean War. We taught about the things that made America great and we tried to instill pride of country in our students. It was the same way history was taught when I was in high school.
Sadly, that is no longer the way history is taught. Our mistreatment of the Indians, slavery in the South and the racial discrimination against blacks and other minorities are shameful chapters in our history that have changed the way history is now taught. Today teachers spent little time instilling pride in America because, in the cause of diversity and multiculturalism, political correctness demands that teachers put more emphasis on the bad things we have done than on the things that have made us great.
Among the casualties of political correctness, Washington is only mentioned as our first president, Jefferson is being ignored, Lincoln is only recognized for being president during the Civil War, etc. With the advent of the civil rights movement and ever since, much more emphasis is being placed on Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X and Cesar Chavez than on our former great presidents.
Abraham Lincoln was a truly great president and deserves better than a brief mention in public school history classes. William Katz – an author, a former CIA officer and editor of The New York Times Magazine – offers us a tribute to Honest Abe. Although Katz did not list Lincoln’s many accomplishments, his tribute should be read to every high school student in this country. Maybe then some of the brighter students will want to go to the library to learn more about this truly great president.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ABE
By William Katz
politicalmavens.com
February 15, 2011
February 12th is Abraham Lincoln’s real birthday. We used to know that as kids until the powers that be morphed Abe with George to form President’s Day. Lincoln would be 202 this year.
Since our educational system seems determined these days to present Lincoln, warts and nothing else, it’s time to put in a good word for Abe. He provides one of the strongest reasons for the “great man” theory of history, that history revolves around the decisions of great (or evil) men in critical times. No Hitler, no World War II. No Reagan, no end of the Cold War on our terms. No Lincoln, no saving of the union.
Indeed, Lincoln was probably the indispensable man. We cannot really imagine anyone else in the American presidency in his place. He reminds us that great men are usually known for one great thing. Who recalls Lincoln’s agricultural policy? They are also known, not simply for great decisions, but the unique ability to explain those decisions, often in memorable prose. Lincoln is revered as much for his speeches as his actions. The speeches explain, and inspire.
Lincoln had one year of formal schooling. Take that, Ivy League.
We used to memorize Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Any literate American knew “With malice toward none, with charity for all…” Do young kids know those words today? I doubt it, and I doubt if they’re made to care. I doubt most even know when the Civil War occurred.
We recall FDR’s “Four Freedoms,” and his “day of infamy” speech after Pearl Harbor.
Ronald Reagan’s “Tear down this wall” has become a staple of American rhetoric.
Sadly, some of our recent presidents, and certainly the current one, don’t comprehend the power of a well-turned phrase. Do we recall anything that Bill Clinton every said, except for “I did not have sex with that woman…”? As for Mr. Obama, he’s a bright man, but a second-class writer. He mouths the words beautifully, but he’s like a bad date. You forget what he said immediately.
So, happy birthday, Abe. You did good. I wish we had film.
Sadly, that is no longer the way history is taught. Our mistreatment of the Indians, slavery in the South and the racial discrimination against blacks and other minorities are shameful chapters in our history that have changed the way history is now taught. Today teachers spent little time instilling pride in America because, in the cause of diversity and multiculturalism, political correctness demands that teachers put more emphasis on the bad things we have done than on the things that have made us great.
Among the casualties of political correctness, Washington is only mentioned as our first president, Jefferson is being ignored, Lincoln is only recognized for being president during the Civil War, etc. With the advent of the civil rights movement and ever since, much more emphasis is being placed on Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X and Cesar Chavez than on our former great presidents.
Abraham Lincoln was a truly great president and deserves better than a brief mention in public school history classes. William Katz – an author, a former CIA officer and editor of The New York Times Magazine – offers us a tribute to Honest Abe. Although Katz did not list Lincoln’s many accomplishments, his tribute should be read to every high school student in this country. Maybe then some of the brighter students will want to go to the library to learn more about this truly great president.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ABE
By William Katz
politicalmavens.com
February 15, 2011
February 12th is Abraham Lincoln’s real birthday. We used to know that as kids until the powers that be morphed Abe with George to form President’s Day. Lincoln would be 202 this year.
Since our educational system seems determined these days to present Lincoln, warts and nothing else, it’s time to put in a good word for Abe. He provides one of the strongest reasons for the “great man” theory of history, that history revolves around the decisions of great (or evil) men in critical times. No Hitler, no World War II. No Reagan, no end of the Cold War on our terms. No Lincoln, no saving of the union.
Indeed, Lincoln was probably the indispensable man. We cannot really imagine anyone else in the American presidency in his place. He reminds us that great men are usually known for one great thing. Who recalls Lincoln’s agricultural policy? They are also known, not simply for great decisions, but the unique ability to explain those decisions, often in memorable prose. Lincoln is revered as much for his speeches as his actions. The speeches explain, and inspire.
Lincoln had one year of formal schooling. Take that, Ivy League.
We used to memorize Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Any literate American knew “With malice toward none, with charity for all…” Do young kids know those words today? I doubt it, and I doubt if they’re made to care. I doubt most even know when the Civil War occurred.
We recall FDR’s “Four Freedoms,” and his “day of infamy” speech after Pearl Harbor.
Ronald Reagan’s “Tear down this wall” has become a staple of American rhetoric.
Sadly, some of our recent presidents, and certainly the current one, don’t comprehend the power of a well-turned phrase. Do we recall anything that Bill Clinton every said, except for “I did not have sex with that woman…”? As for Mr. Obama, he’s a bright man, but a second-class writer. He mouths the words beautifully, but he’s like a bad date. You forget what he said immediately.
So, happy birthday, Abe. You did good. I wish we had film.
11,000 CELL PHONES SEIZED FROM CALIFORNIA PRISON INMATES LAST YEAR
When you add up the cell phones smuggled into all local, state and federal lockups, the phone companies must be making a tidy profit off of prison and jail inmates. Because all those phones had to be in the possession of inmates for a period of time, you can bet several hundred thousand calls were made before they were found.
CALIFORNIA WANTS TO STOP PHONES USED BY LIKES OF MANSON
By Don Thompson – Associated Press
Fresno Bee
February 14, 2011
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California prison officials seized nearly 11,000 cell phones last year, some used to arrange extortions and assaults, others used by the likes of cult killer Charles Manson to connect with the outside world after more than four decades behind bars.
Manson became an unlikely face of the prison cell phone problem after he was caught calling and texting people in California, Florida, New Jersey and British Columbia. He had missed calls from Arkansas, Indiana and Massachusetts on the phone that guards discovered in March 2009, and he was caught with a second phone last month.
Officials have become so outraged at the notion of violent inmates like Manson possessing cell phones that they are trying new ways to strike back. Corrections officials tell The Associated Press that they are preparing to test a system that would capture every cell phone signal from a prison and block unauthorized calls, as California and other states search for technology to stop what has become a growing problem inside prison walls.
California legislators are also considering three proposed changes to state law that would step up enforcement against cell phone violators in prison.
"If the phones didn't work from behind bars, that would solve a lot of the problems. A lot of them wouldn't want the phones anymore," said California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokeswoman Terry Thornton.
Prison officials hope the efforts will thwart inmates like Manson, 40 years after he was convicted of killings including the infamous murders of actress Sharon Tate and six others in Los Angeles in 1969.
He obtained two cell phones despite being housed in California's only Protective Housing Unit, reserved for the most notorious inmates. They have their own exercise yard at Corcoran State Prison, and their meals are cooked by prison employees - instead of other inmates - for fear of poisoning.
Yet the 76-year-old Manson has been calling and texting people all over North America.
"The states and the cities happen to coincide with the locations and cities where I know the old core (Manson) Family members are currently residing," said Sharon Tate's sister, Debra Tate, who lives in the Los Angeles area and is the last surviving member of her immediate family. "These people are still able to influence others, I don't care how old they get."
Officials will not release the names of the people Manson was communicating with on the phone seized in 2009. They also won't say where Manson was calling with his second phone as they struggle with the huge volume of cell phone investigations.
Authorities believe Manson received the first phone from a visitor, a typical method of contraband delivery. Guards encounter more creative methods as well, including phones that are punted over prison walls inside soccer balls. Guards themselves have been accused of smuggling many of the phones. Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Patrick Sequeira is concerned Manson may be reaching old Family members and new followers who regularly send him fan mail.
"He's such a strange individual, it's really almost impossible to say what he would tell people or what he would want to communicate," said Sequeira, who represents prosecutors whenever Manson Family members come up for parole hearings. "Maybe he thinks he can break out and hide, I don't know."
California previously has concentrated on finding the contraband phones. But by the time the phones are discovered, the damage is often done.
So the nation's largest state prison system decided to follow the lead of Mississippi, which is installing a system known as "managed access" after a successful six-month test.
The Federal Communications Commission and the wireless industry support the system as an alternative to jamming, which can interfere with legal GPS, radio and cell phone communications. Maryland, South Carolina and Texas also are evaluating the technology, according to the FCC.
"It renders the cell phone to be a paperweight in the prisoner's hand," said Jamie Barnett, chief of the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. "As the prisoners realized these cell phones would be ineffective, they stopped even trying."
California also will test a device to detect cell phones passing by, letting guards know which prisoners to search for phones so small they can now be concealed in wristwatches.
Installing the managed access equipment would cost about $1 million per prison, Thornton said. The state has 33 adult prisons, so the expense could be considerable as California struggles with a nearly $27 billion budget shortfall through June 2012.
Amit Malhotra, vice president of marketing for Tecore Inc., the Maryland-based company installing Mississippi's system, said that state pays for the technology through the fees inmates pay to make telephone calls using land lines, with no cost to taxpayers and no increase in inmates' phone fees.
Alternatives like installing enough metal detectors to scan every prison employee would also cost millions of dollars, Thornton said. Visitors already are screened.
State Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Los Angeles, said it makes no sense to require screening at airports, sports stadiums, many government buildings and even many high schools, yet not for prison employees. He has introduced two bills that add penalties for inmates, employees or visitors smuggling cell phones. Currently, possessing a cell phone violates prison rules, but is not illegal in California.
A third bill, by Sen. Elaine Alquist, D-Santa Clara, would require the department to conduct random searches of employees and contractors who enter prisons.
The California Correctional Peace Officers Association does not oppose either random or daily employee searches. But that would do nothing to block the sacks of phones that guards have found tossed over prison walls, said spokesman JeVaughn Baker.
And Terry Bittner, director of security products for New York-based ITT Corp., cautioned that even if calls are blocked, inmates can smuggle tiny smart-phone data cards full of messages, photos and video unless officials seize the phones themselves.
Baker estimated it could cost $20 million annually to screen every employee, let alone the cost of the equipment or the overtime if employees get backed up during shift changes. Legislative analysts last year said even random searches could cost $1.3 million annually, including $1 million in overtime for delaying employees getting to and from their posts.
"We don't oppose the idea," Baker said. "Can the state afford to do it?"
CALIFORNIA WANTS TO STOP PHONES USED BY LIKES OF MANSON
By Don Thompson – Associated Press
Fresno Bee
February 14, 2011
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California prison officials seized nearly 11,000 cell phones last year, some used to arrange extortions and assaults, others used by the likes of cult killer Charles Manson to connect with the outside world after more than four decades behind bars.
Manson became an unlikely face of the prison cell phone problem after he was caught calling and texting people in California, Florida, New Jersey and British Columbia. He had missed calls from Arkansas, Indiana and Massachusetts on the phone that guards discovered in March 2009, and he was caught with a second phone last month.
Officials have become so outraged at the notion of violent inmates like Manson possessing cell phones that they are trying new ways to strike back. Corrections officials tell The Associated Press that they are preparing to test a system that would capture every cell phone signal from a prison and block unauthorized calls, as California and other states search for technology to stop what has become a growing problem inside prison walls.
California legislators are also considering three proposed changes to state law that would step up enforcement against cell phone violators in prison.
"If the phones didn't work from behind bars, that would solve a lot of the problems. A lot of them wouldn't want the phones anymore," said California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokeswoman Terry Thornton.
Prison officials hope the efforts will thwart inmates like Manson, 40 years after he was convicted of killings including the infamous murders of actress Sharon Tate and six others in Los Angeles in 1969.
He obtained two cell phones despite being housed in California's only Protective Housing Unit, reserved for the most notorious inmates. They have their own exercise yard at Corcoran State Prison, and their meals are cooked by prison employees - instead of other inmates - for fear of poisoning.
Yet the 76-year-old Manson has been calling and texting people all over North America.
"The states and the cities happen to coincide with the locations and cities where I know the old core (Manson) Family members are currently residing," said Sharon Tate's sister, Debra Tate, who lives in the Los Angeles area and is the last surviving member of her immediate family. "These people are still able to influence others, I don't care how old they get."
Officials will not release the names of the people Manson was communicating with on the phone seized in 2009. They also won't say where Manson was calling with his second phone as they struggle with the huge volume of cell phone investigations.
Authorities believe Manson received the first phone from a visitor, a typical method of contraband delivery. Guards encounter more creative methods as well, including phones that are punted over prison walls inside soccer balls. Guards themselves have been accused of smuggling many of the phones. Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Patrick Sequeira is concerned Manson may be reaching old Family members and new followers who regularly send him fan mail.
"He's such a strange individual, it's really almost impossible to say what he would tell people or what he would want to communicate," said Sequeira, who represents prosecutors whenever Manson Family members come up for parole hearings. "Maybe he thinks he can break out and hide, I don't know."
California previously has concentrated on finding the contraband phones. But by the time the phones are discovered, the damage is often done.
So the nation's largest state prison system decided to follow the lead of Mississippi, which is installing a system known as "managed access" after a successful six-month test.
The Federal Communications Commission and the wireless industry support the system as an alternative to jamming, which can interfere with legal GPS, radio and cell phone communications. Maryland, South Carolina and Texas also are evaluating the technology, according to the FCC.
"It renders the cell phone to be a paperweight in the prisoner's hand," said Jamie Barnett, chief of the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. "As the prisoners realized these cell phones would be ineffective, they stopped even trying."
California also will test a device to detect cell phones passing by, letting guards know which prisoners to search for phones so small they can now be concealed in wristwatches.
Installing the managed access equipment would cost about $1 million per prison, Thornton said. The state has 33 adult prisons, so the expense could be considerable as California struggles with a nearly $27 billion budget shortfall through June 2012.
Amit Malhotra, vice president of marketing for Tecore Inc., the Maryland-based company installing Mississippi's system, said that state pays for the technology through the fees inmates pay to make telephone calls using land lines, with no cost to taxpayers and no increase in inmates' phone fees.
Alternatives like installing enough metal detectors to scan every prison employee would also cost millions of dollars, Thornton said. Visitors already are screened.
State Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Los Angeles, said it makes no sense to require screening at airports, sports stadiums, many government buildings and even many high schools, yet not for prison employees. He has introduced two bills that add penalties for inmates, employees or visitors smuggling cell phones. Currently, possessing a cell phone violates prison rules, but is not illegal in California.
A third bill, by Sen. Elaine Alquist, D-Santa Clara, would require the department to conduct random searches of employees and contractors who enter prisons.
The California Correctional Peace Officers Association does not oppose either random or daily employee searches. But that would do nothing to block the sacks of phones that guards have found tossed over prison walls, said spokesman JeVaughn Baker.
And Terry Bittner, director of security products for New York-based ITT Corp., cautioned that even if calls are blocked, inmates can smuggle tiny smart-phone data cards full of messages, photos and video unless officials seize the phones themselves.
Baker estimated it could cost $20 million annually to screen every employee, let alone the cost of the equipment or the overtime if employees get backed up during shift changes. Legislative analysts last year said even random searches could cost $1.3 million annually, including $1 million in overtime for delaying employees getting to and from their posts.
"We don't oppose the idea," Baker said. "Can the state afford to do it?"
AFTERMATH OF IWO JIMA LINGERS ON
A reminder that our combined losses in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past 10 years pale next to our losses in just one bloody 35-day battle - Iwo Jima – during WWII.
JAPAN TO SPEED UP RECOVERY OF IWO JIMA WAR REMAINS
The Straits Times
February 15, 2011
TOKYO - JAPAN'S Prime Minister Naoto Kan vowed on Tuesday to step up the recovery of the remains of around 13,000 Japanese soldiers still missing on the World War II battlefield island of Iwo Jima.
Mr Kan made the comments at a ceremony in which the remains of 822 Japanese soldiers collected on the remote Pacific island over the past year were handed to the health and welfare ministry.
'We will continue strengthening the recovery project, which is the government's responsibility, so that the war dead still remaining on the island will be repatriated as soon as possible,' he said.
'At the same time, we will continue conveying to younger generations this tragic history, which should not fade into oblivion,' the 64-year-old premier told the ceremony in Tokyo.
In 1945, some 22,000 Japanese and 6,800 US soldiers died in just 35 days as US Marines captured the island, 1,250km south of Tokyo, in one of the fiercest battles fought in the Pacific during WWII.
A picture of US troops raising the Stars and Stripes flag on the island's highest point, Mount Suribachi, became a symbol of US victory in the war. -- AFP
JAPAN TO SPEED UP RECOVERY OF IWO JIMA WAR REMAINS
The Straits Times
February 15, 2011
TOKYO - JAPAN'S Prime Minister Naoto Kan vowed on Tuesday to step up the recovery of the remains of around 13,000 Japanese soldiers still missing on the World War II battlefield island of Iwo Jima.
Mr Kan made the comments at a ceremony in which the remains of 822 Japanese soldiers collected on the remote Pacific island over the past year were handed to the health and welfare ministry.
'We will continue strengthening the recovery project, which is the government's responsibility, so that the war dead still remaining on the island will be repatriated as soon as possible,' he said.
'At the same time, we will continue conveying to younger generations this tragic history, which should not fade into oblivion,' the 64-year-old premier told the ceremony in Tokyo.
In 1945, some 22,000 Japanese and 6,800 US soldiers died in just 35 days as US Marines captured the island, 1,250km south of Tokyo, in one of the fiercest battles fought in the Pacific during WWII.
A picture of US troops raising the Stars and Stripes flag on the island's highest point, Mount Suribachi, became a symbol of US victory in the war. -- AFP
KILL THE MESSENGER
In ancient times, they used to kill the messenger of bad news, hoping that the bad news would go away. Looks like they’re still doing it.
While this may not have been the brightest thing this soon-to-be ex-teacher ever did, you’ve got to admire how she told parents in easily understand words that their little darlings were assholes.
‘THE TRUTH HURTS’, SAYS U.S. TEACHER SUSPENDED AS SHE DEFENDS COMMENTS CALLING STUDENTS ‘RAT-LIKE AND LAZY WHINERS’
Mail Online
February 15, 2011
A teacher who was suspended for calling her pupils 'rat-like' and 'lazy whiners' in a blog has hit back at school officials and the entire school system, saying parents and school governors 'don't want to hear the truth.'
Natalie Munroe, 30, was suspended from Central Bucks High School East in Philadelphia last week after comments on her blog listed several blunt alternative descriptions for student's term report cards.
In a reply to the controversy, Mrs Monroe said how, 'the fact remains that every year... students are coming in less willing to work, to think, to cooperate.'
Writing on Saturday, Mrs Monroe said: 'The truth hurts sometimes. Maybe instead of getting pissed off at the person pointing out the behavior, people need to examine their behavior and make a change.
'The fact remains that every year, more and more, students are coming in less willing to work, to think, to cooperate. These are the students I was complaining about in my blog.'
The controversial stance has gained support from some of the more than 10,000 new visitors who have read her blog since the posts went public.
Before last week she had only 7 regular visitors to her site.
One poster wrote: 'Its unfortunate that politics play into our education system. Some students are just horrible! Its not your job to raise them, but only to teach them, yet some parents would think otherwise.'
Mrs Munroe, a mother who is expecting her second child, started teaching in 2006.
She has a bachelor's degree in English literature and a master's degree in education.
Writing about the shock of discovering parents and teachers had read her comments she said: 'While I never in a million years would have guessed that this many people would ever see my words, and I didn't even intend them to, I stand by what I wrote and I think it's good that people are aware now.'
The blog posts listing the offensive alternate report card suggestions has been taken down.
In it Munroe posted a list of some of the things she would 'like to see added to the canned comment list' for report cards 'as an accurate reflection of what we really want to say to these parents'.
These included:
__'A complete and utter jerk in all ways. Although academically ok, your child has no other redeeming qualities'
__'Lazy'
__'Two words come to mind: brown AND nose'
__'Gimme an A. I. R. H. E. A. D. What's that spell? Your kid!'
__'Asked too many questions and took too long to ask them. The bell means it's time to leave!'
__'Rat-like'
__'Lazy asshole'
In other posts Munroe wrote: 'My students are out of control. They are rude, disengaged, lazy whiners.'
'They curse, discuss drugs, talk back, argue for grades, complain about everything, fancy themselves entitled to whatever they desire and are just generally annoying.'
Mrs Monroe was suspended with pay after staff were made aware of the blog by distressed parents and students.
'Once the situation was brought to our attention, we immediately reacted,' said Principal Abram Lucabaugh.
Munroe was escorted from the building and a substitute teacher brought in.
District superintendent Robert Laws said Munroe's posts were 'very egregious' and 'certainly could result in termination.'
Speaking to website PhillyBurbs, Mrs Monroe's lawyer Steve Rovner, said the school district has 'no basis for firing her'.
'The school district has its power and authority and protections through the law. They're not just a private employer. They can't hire and fire anyone at will,' he said.
'They do not have an Internet policy. They specifically do not have a no-blogging policy. She did not do anything wrong that would give them cause to fire her.'
While this may not have been the brightest thing this soon-to-be ex-teacher ever did, you’ve got to admire how she told parents in easily understand words that their little darlings were assholes.
‘THE TRUTH HURTS’, SAYS U.S. TEACHER SUSPENDED AS SHE DEFENDS COMMENTS CALLING STUDENTS ‘RAT-LIKE AND LAZY WHINERS’
Mail Online
February 15, 2011
A teacher who was suspended for calling her pupils 'rat-like' and 'lazy whiners' in a blog has hit back at school officials and the entire school system, saying parents and school governors 'don't want to hear the truth.'
Natalie Munroe, 30, was suspended from Central Bucks High School East in Philadelphia last week after comments on her blog listed several blunt alternative descriptions for student's term report cards.
In a reply to the controversy, Mrs Monroe said how, 'the fact remains that every year... students are coming in less willing to work, to think, to cooperate.'
Writing on Saturday, Mrs Monroe said: 'The truth hurts sometimes. Maybe instead of getting pissed off at the person pointing out the behavior, people need to examine their behavior and make a change.
'The fact remains that every year, more and more, students are coming in less willing to work, to think, to cooperate. These are the students I was complaining about in my blog.'
The controversial stance has gained support from some of the more than 10,000 new visitors who have read her blog since the posts went public.
Before last week she had only 7 regular visitors to her site.
One poster wrote: 'Its unfortunate that politics play into our education system. Some students are just horrible! Its not your job to raise them, but only to teach them, yet some parents would think otherwise.'
Mrs Munroe, a mother who is expecting her second child, started teaching in 2006.
She has a bachelor's degree in English literature and a master's degree in education.
Writing about the shock of discovering parents and teachers had read her comments she said: 'While I never in a million years would have guessed that this many people would ever see my words, and I didn't even intend them to, I stand by what I wrote and I think it's good that people are aware now.'
The blog posts listing the offensive alternate report card suggestions has been taken down.
In it Munroe posted a list of some of the things she would 'like to see added to the canned comment list' for report cards 'as an accurate reflection of what we really want to say to these parents'.
These included:
__'A complete and utter jerk in all ways. Although academically ok, your child has no other redeeming qualities'
__'Lazy'
__'Two words come to mind: brown AND nose'
__'Gimme an A. I. R. H. E. A. D. What's that spell? Your kid!'
__'Asked too many questions and took too long to ask them. The bell means it's time to leave!'
__'Rat-like'
__'Lazy asshole'
In other posts Munroe wrote: 'My students are out of control. They are rude, disengaged, lazy whiners.'
'They curse, discuss drugs, talk back, argue for grades, complain about everything, fancy themselves entitled to whatever they desire and are just generally annoying.'
Mrs Monroe was suspended with pay after staff were made aware of the blog by distressed parents and students.
'Once the situation was brought to our attention, we immediately reacted,' said Principal Abram Lucabaugh.
Munroe was escorted from the building and a substitute teacher brought in.
District superintendent Robert Laws said Munroe's posts were 'very egregious' and 'certainly could result in termination.'
Speaking to website PhillyBurbs, Mrs Monroe's lawyer Steve Rovner, said the school district has 'no basis for firing her'.
'The school district has its power and authority and protections through the law. They're not just a private employer. They can't hire and fire anyone at will,' he said.
'They do not have an Internet policy. They specifically do not have a no-blogging policy. She did not do anything wrong that would give them cause to fire her.'
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
THE MOST ANTI-ISRAEL NEW YORK TIMES COLUMNIST
So what else is new? The Obama administration has been disgusted with Israel from the get-go and Friedman continues to be the most anti-Israel columnist of The New York Times.
FRIEDMAN: WHITE HOUSE DISGUSTED WITH ISRAEL
Senior New York Times columnist describes Israeli cabinet as 'out-of-touch, in-bred, unimaginative and cliché-driven'; says Jerusalem unable to adjust to changes in Egypt
Ynet News.com
February 14, 2011
The Israeli cabinet is cliché-driven and Jerusalem used the crisis in Egypt to to score propaganda points to the point where the White House was disgusted with Israeli interlocutors, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman wrote Sunday.
Friedman, who visited Cairo following the recent uprising, described the Israeli government as out-of-touch, in-bred and unimaginative. He expressed concern over Israel’s future due to its inability to adjust to changes in the region as it sided with Mubarak until the very last moment.
Instead of listening to what the democracy youth in Tahrir Square were saying, Friedman says, the Israeli government frantically called the White House telling the president he must not abandon Pharaoh – and "used the opportunity to score propaganda points: 'Look at us! Look at us! We told you so! We are the only stable country in the region, because we are the only democracy.'"
Friedman continues: "Israel’s government seemed oblivious to the irony of its message: 'We are your only reliable ally because we are a democracy and whatever you do don’t abandon Mubarak and open the way there for democracy.'"
He admits that Israel's concerns are valid – "The peace treaty with Egypt has been the cornerstone of Israeli strategy and economic growth for 30 years", but claims the way Jerusalem was handling itself wasn't not helping.
"When young Egyptians looked around the region and asked: Who is with us in this quest and who is not?, the two big countries they knew were against them were Israel and Saudi Arabia. The children of Egypt were having their liberation moment and the children of Israel decided to side with Pharaoh."
Friedman argues that Israel will ultimately have no choice but "to make peace with 80 million Egyptians" when a democracy is established in Cairo.
FRIEDMAN: WHITE HOUSE DISGUSTED WITH ISRAEL
Senior New York Times columnist describes Israeli cabinet as 'out-of-touch, in-bred, unimaginative and cliché-driven'; says Jerusalem unable to adjust to changes in Egypt
Ynet News.com
February 14, 2011
The Israeli cabinet is cliché-driven and Jerusalem used the crisis in Egypt to to score propaganda points to the point where the White House was disgusted with Israeli interlocutors, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman wrote Sunday.
Friedman, who visited Cairo following the recent uprising, described the Israeli government as out-of-touch, in-bred and unimaginative. He expressed concern over Israel’s future due to its inability to adjust to changes in the region as it sided with Mubarak until the very last moment.
Instead of listening to what the democracy youth in Tahrir Square were saying, Friedman says, the Israeli government frantically called the White House telling the president he must not abandon Pharaoh – and "used the opportunity to score propaganda points: 'Look at us! Look at us! We told you so! We are the only stable country in the region, because we are the only democracy.'"
Friedman continues: "Israel’s government seemed oblivious to the irony of its message: 'We are your only reliable ally because we are a democracy and whatever you do don’t abandon Mubarak and open the way there for democracy.'"
He admits that Israel's concerns are valid – "The peace treaty with Egypt has been the cornerstone of Israeli strategy and economic growth for 30 years", but claims the way Jerusalem was handling itself wasn't not helping.
"When young Egyptians looked around the region and asked: Who is with us in this quest and who is not?, the two big countries they knew were against them were Israel and Saudi Arabia. The children of Egypt were having their liberation moment and the children of Israel decided to side with Pharaoh."
Friedman argues that Israel will ultimately have no choice but "to make peace with 80 million Egyptians" when a democracy is established in Cairo.
HOUSE REPUBLICAN SPENDING CUT PROPOSALS A JOKE
Sandy Leeds, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), is a Senior Lecturer at The University of Texas at Austin. Here is his analysis of the Tea Party driven spending cuts proposed by House Republicans:
WOW! $61 BILLION OF CUTS!
By Sandy J. Leeds
Leeds On Finance
February 13, 2011
House Republicans have suggested $61 billion of spending cuts (some Republicans are arguing that this is $100 billion less than President Obama’s budget proposal from last year; others are admitting that this is just $61 billion of cuts). Apparently, the mainstream Republicans increased their suggested cuts due to pressure from the Tea Party Republicans.
You know that the deficit (and the debt) is my big concern. You would think that this would make me happy. Maybe it’s a start. But mostly, I just see this as a joke – and it’s a reminder of the trouble that we’re in. There are two reasons I think this:
1. The Republicans are simply saying “lets cut everything that the Democrats support.” - They want to reduce spending under the Recovery Act – reducing funding for the high-speed rail. They also want to eliminate the offices of the health care czar and the climate czar. They want to target family planning, welfare and funding for NPR. They want to reduce the budgets of the Departments of Education and the EPA. It would also reduce spending on some food programs for children as well as the Head Start program.
This isn’t shared sacrifice. This isn’t going to do anything but further our political division. This reminds me of when I suggested that Jenny and I balance our budget by cutting spending on anything cultural and that we no longer buy bras. Looking back, my guess is that my budget revisions would have been more happily accepted if I had also suggested that we cut my cable sports packages. Instead, I just suggested cutting things that I was never in favor of.
2. Most importantly, these cuts will have virtually no impact on our deficit. -The 2011 deficit is expected to be $1.27 trillion. If we reduce this by $61 billion, our deficit will be $1.21 trillion. (Wow, that makes me feel better.) The bottom line is that if we’re going to fix our problems, we have to fix Social Security and Medicare. Of course, these are difficult political issues and on one side is going to suggest cuts. It will have to be done jointly.
The End of Unemployment! - You have to love politicians. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., called the proposed spending cuts “a historic effort to get our fiscal house in order and restore certainty to the economy. This legislation will mark the largest spending cut in modern history and will help restore confidence so that people can get back to work.” This is truly classic. Republicans think that we can reach full employment through spending cuts and Democrats think we can shrink our deficit by insuring 32 million more people.
WOW! $61 BILLION OF CUTS!
By Sandy J. Leeds
Leeds On Finance
February 13, 2011
House Republicans have suggested $61 billion of spending cuts (some Republicans are arguing that this is $100 billion less than President Obama’s budget proposal from last year; others are admitting that this is just $61 billion of cuts). Apparently, the mainstream Republicans increased their suggested cuts due to pressure from the Tea Party Republicans.
You know that the deficit (and the debt) is my big concern. You would think that this would make me happy. Maybe it’s a start. But mostly, I just see this as a joke – and it’s a reminder of the trouble that we’re in. There are two reasons I think this:
1. The Republicans are simply saying “lets cut everything that the Democrats support.” - They want to reduce spending under the Recovery Act – reducing funding for the high-speed rail. They also want to eliminate the offices of the health care czar and the climate czar. They want to target family planning, welfare and funding for NPR. They want to reduce the budgets of the Departments of Education and the EPA. It would also reduce spending on some food programs for children as well as the Head Start program.
This isn’t shared sacrifice. This isn’t going to do anything but further our political division. This reminds me of when I suggested that Jenny and I balance our budget by cutting spending on anything cultural and that we no longer buy bras. Looking back, my guess is that my budget revisions would have been more happily accepted if I had also suggested that we cut my cable sports packages. Instead, I just suggested cutting things that I was never in favor of.
2. Most importantly, these cuts will have virtually no impact on our deficit. -The 2011 deficit is expected to be $1.27 trillion. If we reduce this by $61 billion, our deficit will be $1.21 trillion. (Wow, that makes me feel better.) The bottom line is that if we’re going to fix our problems, we have to fix Social Security and Medicare. Of course, these are difficult political issues and on one side is going to suggest cuts. It will have to be done jointly.
The End of Unemployment! - You have to love politicians. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., called the proposed spending cuts “a historic effort to get our fiscal house in order and restore certainty to the economy. This legislation will mark the largest spending cut in modern history and will help restore confidence so that people can get back to work.” This is truly classic. Republicans think that we can reach full employment through spending cuts and Democrats think we can shrink our deficit by insuring 32 million more people.
JUST A NORMAL WEEKEND NIGHT AT THE CANTINA
When the cops arrived, the joint was nearly empty. Hmmm, could it be that the cantina had been full of illegals? And these kind of brawls are not all that uncommon – it’s just that no one usually calls for the cops.
LARGE FIGHT BREAKS OUT AT NORTH HOLLYWOOD NIGHTCLUB
KTLA News
February 12, 2011
NORTH HOLLYWOOD (KTLA) -- Over 80 people were involved in a bar fight that left at least two people injured, police say.
Police received a call early Saturday morning of several fights erupting at Hacienda Corona on Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood. According to Sgt. Morrison of LAPD's North Hollywood Station, a person was hit over the head with a beer bottle and when the security guard tried to intervene several other fights broke out.
When police arrived they found no evidence of a shooting and the club, which had about 200 in attendance, was already emptied with beer bottles smashed on the floor.
At least one person was arrested for an assault with a deadly weapon. One person was injured and was self-transported in unknown condition.
Police are still investigating the motive of the massive brawl.
LARGE FIGHT BREAKS OUT AT NORTH HOLLYWOOD NIGHTCLUB
KTLA News
February 12, 2011
NORTH HOLLYWOOD (KTLA) -- Over 80 people were involved in a bar fight that left at least two people injured, police say.
Police received a call early Saturday morning of several fights erupting at Hacienda Corona on Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood. According to Sgt. Morrison of LAPD's North Hollywood Station, a person was hit over the head with a beer bottle and when the security guard tried to intervene several other fights broke out.
When police arrived they found no evidence of a shooting and the club, which had about 200 in attendance, was already emptied with beer bottles smashed on the floor.
At least one person was arrested for an assault with a deadly weapon. One person was injured and was self-transported in unknown condition.
Police are still investigating the motive of the massive brawl.
TEXAS DICTIONARY OF CALIFORNIA-SPEAK
CALIFORNIA-SPEAK
TEXAS-SPEAK
Medical Marijuana User
Pot Head
Police Brutality
Routine Arrest
Diverse or Lifestyle Choice
Sinful and Perverted
Arsenal of Weapons
Gun Collection
Delicate Wetlands
Swamp
Undocumented Worker
Illegal Alien
Cruelty-Free Materials
Synthetic Fiber
Assault and Battery
Attitude Adjustment
Heavily Armed
Well-protected
Narrow-minded
Righteous
Taxes or Your Fair Share
Coerced Theft
Commonsense Gun Control
Gun Confiscation Plot
Illegal Hazardous Explosives
Fireworks or Stump Removal
Nonviable Tissue Mass
Unborn Baby
Equal Access to Opportunity
Socialism
Multicultural Community
High Crime Area
Fairness or Social Progress
Marxism
Upper Class or "The Rich"
Self-Employed
Progressive, Change
Big Government Scheme
Homeless or Disadvantaged
Bums or Welfare Leeches
Sniper Rifle
Scoped Deer Rifle
Investment For the Future
Higher Taxes
Healthcare Reform
Socialized Medicine
Extremist, Judgmental, or Hater
Conservative
Truants
Homeschoolers
Victim or Oppressed
Criminal or Lazy Good-For-Nothing
High Capacity Ammo Magazine
Standard Capacity Ammo Magazine
Religious Zealot
Church-going
Reintroduced Wolves
Sheep and Elk Killers
Fair Trade Coffee
Overpriced Yuppie Coffee
Exploiters or "The Rich"
Employed or Land Owner
The Gun Lobby
NRA Members
Assault Weapon
Semi-Auto (Grandpa's M1 Carbine)
Fiscal Stimulus
New Taxes and Higher Taxes
Same Sex Marriage
Legalized Perversion
Mandated Eco-Friendly Lighting
Chinese Mercury-Laden Light Bulbs
TEXAS-SPEAK
Medical Marijuana User
Pot Head
Police Brutality
Routine Arrest
Diverse or Lifestyle Choice
Sinful and Perverted
Arsenal of Weapons
Gun Collection
Delicate Wetlands
Swamp
Undocumented Worker
Illegal Alien
Cruelty-Free Materials
Synthetic Fiber
Assault and Battery
Attitude Adjustment
Heavily Armed
Well-protected
Narrow-minded
Righteous
Taxes or Your Fair Share
Coerced Theft
Commonsense Gun Control
Gun Confiscation Plot
Illegal Hazardous Explosives
Fireworks or Stump Removal
Nonviable Tissue Mass
Unborn Baby
Equal Access to Opportunity
Socialism
Multicultural Community
High Crime Area
Fairness or Social Progress
Marxism
Upper Class or "The Rich"
Self-Employed
Progressive, Change
Big Government Scheme
Homeless or Disadvantaged
Bums or Welfare Leeches
Sniper Rifle
Scoped Deer Rifle
Investment For the Future
Higher Taxes
Healthcare Reform
Socialized Medicine
Extremist, Judgmental, or Hater
Conservative
Truants
Homeschoolers
Victim or Oppressed
Criminal or Lazy Good-For-Nothing
High Capacity Ammo Magazine
Standard Capacity Ammo Magazine
Religious Zealot
Church-going
Reintroduced Wolves
Sheep and Elk Killers
Fair Trade Coffee
Overpriced Yuppie Coffee
Exploiters or "The Rich"
Employed or Land Owner
The Gun Lobby
NRA Members
Assault Weapon
Semi-Auto (Grandpa's M1 Carbine)
Fiscal Stimulus
New Taxes and Higher Taxes
Same Sex Marriage
Legalized Perversion
Mandated Eco-Friendly Lighting
Chinese Mercury-Laden Light Bulbs
Monday, February 14, 2011
OUR VERY OWN TOOTHY-GRINNING JOSEPH GOEBBELS
Whether the lawsuit succeeds or not, it exposes Jimmy Carter as a toothy-grinning liar.
THE PROTOCOLS ACCORDING TO JIMMY CARTER
By Rachel Raskin-Zrihen
politicalmavens.com
February 14, 2011
YES!
Someone has finally tried to do something to stop our lunatic former president from doing any further harm.
A class action suit was recently filed in New York against former President Jimmy Carter and publishers Simon & Schuster for publishing a book they knew contained all sorts of anti-Semitic lies and distortions and tried to pass it off as history.
The American people elected this delusional nutcase president unaware that he is deeply anti-Semitic – a mostly incurable congenital condition he hid from us in order to get Jews and others to vote for him back in the day.
There were hints during his unfortunate term in the White House that things were amiss with ol’ Jimmy – his attack by a ferocious, giant swimming bunny, for one – but he appeared to be a mostly harmless if ineffectual southern bumpkin.
But then, free from the burden of having to pretend to represent the entire country, in recent years the man abandoned all pretense of neutrality and let his true anti-Semitic colors bleed through.
He basically retooled The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, packaged it in recent historical context, dipped it in the sugar of modern sensibilities, lent it an air of legitimacy with his former U.S. president status and then loosed it upon the world.
He’s basically our very own toothy-grinning Joseph Goebbels.
Well, now, Carter’s being sued for his screed, “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid,” for disseminating ”false and knowingly misleading statements intended to promote the author’s agenda of anti-Israel propaganda and to deceive the reading public instead of presenting accurate information as advertised.”
Captioned Unterberg et al. v. Jimmy Carter et.al (11 cv 0720), the suit, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks compensatory and punitive damages.
The plaintiffs, according to reports, “are members of the reading public who purchased Carter’s book expecting they were buying an accurate and factual record of historic events concerning Israel and the Palestinian Arabs,” only to find a slickly produced tract of lies.
The lawsuit contends that Carter, who bills himself as a Middle-East expert, and his publisher, “intentionally presented untrue and inaccurate information and sought to capitalize on the author’s status as a former President to mislead unsuspecting members of the public,” according to reports.
The complaint alleges the defendants’ anti-Semitic/anti-Israel lies and distortions violate New York consumer protection laws, one in particular, which makes it illegal to engage in deceptive acts in the course of conducting business.
“While acknowledging Carter’s rights to publish his personal views, the plaintiffs assert that the defendants violated the law” by marketing the book as historically factual “and, thus, harmed those who purchased the book,” reports note.
This is the first time a former president and a publishing house have been sued for intentionally presenting disinformation and propaganda to the reading public by promoting a book full of lies as factual, reports said.
The plaintiffs are represented by lawyers in Alabama and Israel, reports say.
“The complaint notes that after the book’s publication some of Carter’s closest aides, including distinguished public officials and scholars personally involved in the events described, condemned the book as untruthful,” and that ”despite being presented with irrefutable proof that many of the representations in the book are false, the defendants have refused to make any corrections.”
The lawyers in the case say that, if nothing else, the suit will expose the lies and distortions in Carter’s book and “prove that his hatred of Israel has led him to commit this fraud on the public,” the Israeli lawyer said.
The American lawyer went even further.
“It is, indeed, a sad day for all of us as Americans, when a former President demeans the dignity of his office by intentionally misstating critically important facts concerning events of great historic significance and public interest, simply to advance a personal anti-Israel animus and to foster the agenda of the enemies of Israel who pump so much money into the Center which bears his name,” he reportedly said.
This is great.
It’s almost, but not quite, worth going out and buying a copy of Carter’s hopelessly slanted piece of fiction just so I can be included in the lawsuit.
THE PROTOCOLS ACCORDING TO JIMMY CARTER
By Rachel Raskin-Zrihen
politicalmavens.com
February 14, 2011
YES!
Someone has finally tried to do something to stop our lunatic former president from doing any further harm.
A class action suit was recently filed in New York against former President Jimmy Carter and publishers Simon & Schuster for publishing a book they knew contained all sorts of anti-Semitic lies and distortions and tried to pass it off as history.
The American people elected this delusional nutcase president unaware that he is deeply anti-Semitic – a mostly incurable congenital condition he hid from us in order to get Jews and others to vote for him back in the day.
There were hints during his unfortunate term in the White House that things were amiss with ol’ Jimmy – his attack by a ferocious, giant swimming bunny, for one – but he appeared to be a mostly harmless if ineffectual southern bumpkin.
But then, free from the burden of having to pretend to represent the entire country, in recent years the man abandoned all pretense of neutrality and let his true anti-Semitic colors bleed through.
He basically retooled The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, packaged it in recent historical context, dipped it in the sugar of modern sensibilities, lent it an air of legitimacy with his former U.S. president status and then loosed it upon the world.
He’s basically our very own toothy-grinning Joseph Goebbels.
Well, now, Carter’s being sued for his screed, “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid,” for disseminating ”false and knowingly misleading statements intended to promote the author’s agenda of anti-Israel propaganda and to deceive the reading public instead of presenting accurate information as advertised.”
Captioned Unterberg et al. v. Jimmy Carter et.al (11 cv 0720), the suit, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks compensatory and punitive damages.
The plaintiffs, according to reports, “are members of the reading public who purchased Carter’s book expecting they were buying an accurate and factual record of historic events concerning Israel and the Palestinian Arabs,” only to find a slickly produced tract of lies.
The lawsuit contends that Carter, who bills himself as a Middle-East expert, and his publisher, “intentionally presented untrue and inaccurate information and sought to capitalize on the author’s status as a former President to mislead unsuspecting members of the public,” according to reports.
The complaint alleges the defendants’ anti-Semitic/anti-Israel lies and distortions violate New York consumer protection laws, one in particular, which makes it illegal to engage in deceptive acts in the course of conducting business.
“While acknowledging Carter’s rights to publish his personal views, the plaintiffs assert that the defendants violated the law” by marketing the book as historically factual “and, thus, harmed those who purchased the book,” reports note.
This is the first time a former president and a publishing house have been sued for intentionally presenting disinformation and propaganda to the reading public by promoting a book full of lies as factual, reports said.
The plaintiffs are represented by lawyers in Alabama and Israel, reports say.
“The complaint notes that after the book’s publication some of Carter’s closest aides, including distinguished public officials and scholars personally involved in the events described, condemned the book as untruthful,” and that ”despite being presented with irrefutable proof that many of the representations in the book are false, the defendants have refused to make any corrections.”
The lawyers in the case say that, if nothing else, the suit will expose the lies and distortions in Carter’s book and “prove that his hatred of Israel has led him to commit this fraud on the public,” the Israeli lawyer said.
The American lawyer went even further.
“It is, indeed, a sad day for all of us as Americans, when a former President demeans the dignity of his office by intentionally misstating critically important facts concerning events of great historic significance and public interest, simply to advance a personal anti-Israel animus and to foster the agenda of the enemies of Israel who pump so much money into the Center which bears his name,” he reportedly said.
This is great.
It’s almost, but not quite, worth going out and buying a copy of Carter’s hopelessly slanted piece of fiction just so I can be included in the lawsuit.
A MOTHER GIVES HER DAUGHTER'S KILLER A FITTING SENDOFF
Last Friday, Salvadoran immigrant Ingmar Guandique was sentenced to 60 years in prison for the 2001murder in Washington, D.C. of Chandra Levy, a 24-year-old government intern. The killing garnered worldwide attention because, at the time of her death, former California congressman Gary Condit was having an extramarital affair with Levy. For a time, Condit was considered a prime suspect in Chandra’s murder.
At the sentencing hearing, Susan Levy, Chandra’s mother, read a 16-minute long victim impact statement during which she said, “You, Mr. Guandique, you are lower than a cockroach.”
When she finished her statement, Susan Levy turned to Guandique, pointed at the killer and said, “Finally, FUCK YOU! That is it.”
And that was, no doubt about it, a most fitting sendoff.
At the sentencing hearing, Susan Levy, Chandra’s mother, read a 16-minute long victim impact statement during which she said, “You, Mr. Guandique, you are lower than a cockroach.”
When she finished her statement, Susan Levy turned to Guandique, pointed at the killer and said, “Finally, FUCK YOU! That is it.”
And that was, no doubt about it, a most fitting sendoff.
GUN CONTROL ADV OCATES LOSE OUT IN SWITZERLAND
That’s probably why they have a very low crime rate in Switzerland. There’s no NRA there – it’s just that the Swiss have always been smart.
SWISS TO KEEP ARMY-ISSUED WEAPONS AT HOME
The Straits Times
February 13, 2011
GENEVA - A MAJORITY of cantons have voted in favor of holding fast to Switzerland's long-standing tradition of letting citizens keep army-issued weapons at home, results showed on Sunday.
With the vote, the country widely rejected an initiative brought by a coalition of non-governmental groups, religious authorities and center-left parties which sought to have weapons kept in armories instead.
Less than two hours after polls closed, 18 out of 26 cantons had already returned final results, with 14 firmly rejecting of the initiative.
For any initiative to pass, the twin support of a majority of citizens and of cantons is required. -- AFP
SWISS TO KEEP ARMY-ISSUED WEAPONS AT HOME
The Straits Times
February 13, 2011
GENEVA - A MAJORITY of cantons have voted in favor of holding fast to Switzerland's long-standing tradition of letting citizens keep army-issued weapons at home, results showed on Sunday.
With the vote, the country widely rejected an initiative brought by a coalition of non-governmental groups, religious authorities and center-left parties which sought to have weapons kept in armories instead.
Less than two hours after polls closed, 18 out of 26 cantons had already returned final results, with 14 firmly rejecting of the initiative.
For any initiative to pass, the twin support of a majority of citizens and of cantons is required. -- AFP
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)