Monday, March 28, 2005

Food Nazis Strike Again!

From our friends in the land down under, comes a true crime.

PRE-SCHOOL teachers are acting as lunchbox police to help prevent childhood obesity.

The contents of some Queensland children's lunchboxes are confiscated as pre-schools introduce tough new "no junk food" policies, an investigation by The Sunday Mail found.

Early childhood teachers believed the inspections were the only way to stop children eating junk food, regularly packed for them by their parents.

But a leading nutritionist has slammed the idea, saying it would have no effect on children's dietary habits.

"That is one of the dumbest things I have ever heard," Griffith University senior lecturer of public health, Shawn Somerset, said.

Ormiston College, on Brisbane's bayside, has strict rules on junk food. Banned foods included lollies, fruit juice, chocolate, chips and any highly processed foods.


So now kids, you can no longer have fruit juice. Also, since we the nanny state deem it so, you must suckle from our nipple instead. We will tell you what is good and what is bad and you will not question us because it is in your best interests. Your parents know nothing. You will serve us. Resistance is futile.

|

Saturday, March 26, 2005

I might be contagious

Yeah, I am sick. Looks like I might spend my easter alone, in my apartment, catching up on blog entries that I should have made earlier this week but my computer decided to go bad and punish me.

Now, I don't have health insurance...Not yet anyways. May 1st is the start date for my benefits and thank God for that! Now I have some health problems that I should have taken care of long ago, might be serious, might not be but I would rater wait for my insurance to kick in than pay for the exams myself. But the sickness that currently befalls me makes me reflect on a rather heated discussion I had with the resident socialist at work this week. One gal, who mind you looks like she is a member of a biker gang with the new neon color in her hair each week complimented with the punk rock style dress and dark aura, blew my mind when she said that she supported president Bush. I stopped and turned around and I might have dropped my jaw a little too much cause she noticed and started to talk a little more about it. Then the resident socialist decided to add his "thoughts" into the topic. "Capitalism keeps us down man." Oh, no...He didn't just say that, did he? I launched into him like a cat does a mouse. Then once I knew I had him, I did the only cat like thing I could. I played with him.

Now my cat growing up was fun to watch mouse. The mouse, knowing certain death would just freeze in front of him. Then he would pay at it a little, and after he was satisfied in the mouse's destruction, he layed down. The mouse would just sit there. Its' confused state only made it act more irrational. It layed down with him. After a couple minutes of this the mouse realized it could escape, thats when it died. I approached this socialist in much the same way. I made him answer a couple real simple questions, none seemingly related to the last and finally I tie them altogether with a real simple statement that blasts his total hypocrisy. Then I lay down. I tell him I agree. Why should Bill Gates get to keep all that money? He doesn't need it! Why should people make so much money when I make so little? Why doesn't everyone have health care? He thinks I am on his side. He is calm, he is happy, he thinks he has found an ally. Then I simply say, "Because they earned it, I didn't do a damn thing, neither have you and we do not deserve their money."

Ouch, he is shattered, he thought he had someone believing his lies and rhetoric but then I slammed him with the one thought that kills every budding socialists dreams. The truth. But this one of course went into meltdown mode. "Well there are people who still don't have health insurance, we shouldn't need health insurance!". Ha, he thinks I am done playing with him then. Okay, I'll bat him a couple more times. "I agree, health insurance should not exist." He smiles, thinking he won. "You know, it's too bad health insurance exists but it was because of your social programs that we have it now." "No it's not" he replied quite indignatly. "Oh, but yes it is. During World War Two when the government forced standard wages and froze wage increases employers couldn't offer a higher salary to get more and better employees so they started health programs." He got this convoluted look on his face and I think he was going to say something like thats not true but I made sure to cut him off before he said it, "And then it became something that evolved into what insurance is today. Your socialist programs of wage freezing and social plans during the depression led to health insurance today which is costing people on the whole millions of extra dollars each year because insurance raises the price which everyone pays." As they say in first person shooters, "HEADSHOT."

If everyone wanted to have health insurance they should buy it. The government should not be the provider of health care. I have seen health care that is government run. We all have. Canadians that flow through our borders to get medical treatment. There was a story of a teen in Britain who died because his emergency dental appointment was in FIVE months. Hell he died in 5 days which would have still been too late. If I had an emergency I could drive right now and get treatment within the hour. In Britain and Canada I could drive there and make an appointment within the hour for sometime next week for my emergency.

People seem to miss that when you make anything "free" people will scarf it up regardless of need. The last time I was at my local computer store I saw a "free" bin. I started looking through it and pulled out a couple power cords, a PCI video capture card, and I was tempted to take a couple really old motherboards. I didn't need any of that stuff (well I needed one of the power cables but I took like 3 of them). The same happens with health care. The last time I was at the emergency room, I was the second oldest patient there. The only other person was a stabbing victim and it took a while to get to him. The rest were little kids with a cold...well one was having some sort of diabetes problem, but the rest were all sniffiling and after waiting for about 2 hours, the doctor said "Sorry about the wait, but all these mothers think when their child has the sniffles it is the end of the world and don't realize that we cant do a darn thing about it."

So what is the solution to our health "problem"? I don't particularly see it as a problem but if you asked me to wave a magic wand to fix it, there are 2 easy solutions, and 1 hard one. First would be to eliminate co-pays. Insurance can still exist, but make each person pay for it up front and then be re-imbursed for their whole cost. The companies that do this currently tend to have less claims simply because people aren't willing to stick their money out once they see the cost of medical treatment the odds of taking little Timmy to the emergency room at night will decrease dramatically. Of course the second solution(and the hardest of all of them) would be to eliminate insurance completely. Go back to the times when people got sick, they paid a doctor and there was no insurance to pay for anything. I think this is hardest and most unrealistic because no one would want to pay when they got radically ill, even though they could get money and aid from churchs and non-profit organizations. My personal preference though would be a combination of the 2. Almost every place that offers insurance offer also a flexible spending account. These accounts pay for medical expenses from tax free contributions. Now tool it so that no one pays for routine care except the person going in for it. Now, also you would need something for large problems such as surgery and child birth so out of the same account you would pay for a very cheap catastrophic health care. Now the consumer sees the cost of health care. They dont have to pay for the larger health problems and it will relieve the price of routine items thus lowering the price, and saving millions in health care costs.




http://www.daybydaycartoon.com/

Chris Muir nails one out of the park
|

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Sick crimes with no time?

Taking a break from the Schiavo rant, I thought I would focus in on another tragedy. This man confessed to killing a 9 year old girl and raping her. Not the only time he has been convicted of a sex crime either. My question is why is this allowed to happen? We have record of him in these previous acts. Why aren't authorities stepping in and locking him down? Is Iran ahead of the US when it comes to this?

PAKDASHT, Iran - A young man convicted of raping and murdering 16 boys was lashed 100 times, and then hanged Wednesday in front of a large, angry crowd who pelted him with stones and scuffled with police.

Photo
AP Photo

Mohammed Bijeh, 23, confessed in court to raping and murdering the children, between March and September 2004. Iranian media have said Bijeh burned the bodies of his victims, all boys between 8 and 15.

Bijeh was sentenced to one death sentence for each murder he confessed and 100 lashes of the whip for the rapes.




So Now I am left to wonder. How can Iran of all places be ahead of us when it comes to removing sex offenders from the public? Why are we "treating" these people when we know that a very very high percentage of them go out and committ worse crimes. This man who went from things less harmful like exposure to children and molestation to rape and murder....Which is what almost always happens. Now I must make a note here, I do not consider his crimes of exposure and molestation to be not harmful, but I am quite sure that they aren't quite as harmful as death.

My proposition? Lock them up. No parole. The ones who committed non-lethal crimes can live a life prison sentance. The rest of them need to die. Slowly, painfully and most of all they must not be allowed back into society. Not a single one. If the constitution didn't strictly forbid torture I would say these assholes should be killed and brought back to life as much as possible until their body shut down from the stress of dying and living. Let a couple prisoners beat the shit out of these guys daily.

Along the same lines their stay in prison should be punishment. Work, hard laborous work in bad conditions and then returning to ones cell...Alone. Prison is not a place for cable TV, computers, canteens, recess, gyms, college's and alike. THIS IS PUNISHMENT. My parents when I was young stopped sending me to my room because I went there and watched TV, played on my computer (once I got one), played with my toys....I didn't learn anything in there except punishment simply means I am confined to a 11x12 foot room. Now the kitchen, that was one dull place. Kitchen table, stuck sitting there. Nothing to do or look at, couldn't move, couldn't talk. I learned my lesson. Punishment sucks. The Iranian pig who molested all those boys knows now that punishment sucks, but one has to wonder if John Couey thinks that.
|

Sunday, March 20, 2005

Why I chose Bush over Kerry

A Picture is worth a thousand words.....In this case maybe more.
|

Saturday, March 19, 2005

You think you got what it takes......

.....to fire a teacher?

I found the whole process quite amusing. The amount of appeals that even a suspended student gets in the state of New York is amazing.

Aside from the fact that incompotence isn't grounds for dismissal in their education system, conservativism is. It is sad when we value the teachers more than the students and value both of those over the education given.
|

Terri Schiavo...

I don't know whats worse, the fact that they are going to kill her or the fact that they are going to kill her by STARVING her. Now many people say things like "Oh, shes just a vegtable, let her die." But then you look at the facts surrounding her "husband" and his "treatment" of her.

Terri Schiavo lies in a Florida hospice, subject to a judge’s order that will cause her to die of starvation and dehydration commencing this Friday, March 18, at 1:00 P.M. Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, have fought for over a decade to prevent her death. They have repeatedly gone to court in their efforts to stop Terri’s husband, Michael, from removing the tube that provides her with food and water.

"

The court battle has gone largely against the Schindlers. Last week, Pinellas County Circuit Court judge George Greer issued a steady stream of rulings denying almost every motion the Schindlers raised. He denied some of them summarily, without hearing arguments or evidence. Among the motions Judge Greer denied was a request for new testing and examination of Terri by independent and qualified specialists. David Gibbs, attorney for the Schindlers, submitted 33 affidavits from doctors and other medical professionals contending that Terri’s condition should be reevaluated. About 15 of these affidavits are from board-certified neurologists. Some of these doctors also say that Terri could benefit from therapy. Judge Greer was unmoved.

Many people believe that Terri Schiavo has had “the best of care,” and that everything has been tried by way of rehabilitation. This belief is false. In fact, Terri has had no attempts at therapy or rehabilitation since 1992, and very little had been done up to that point. Terri has not even had the physical therapy most doctors would regard as normative for someone in her condition. The result is that Terri suffers from severe muscle contractures, which have caused her body to become contorted. Physical therapy could remedy this, but husband Michael has refused to provide it.

Terri has also suffered from what many professionals would regard as neglect. She had to have several teeth extracted last year because of severe decay. This decay was caused by a lack of basic dental hygiene, such as tooth-brushing. She also developed decubitus (skin) ulcers on her buttocks and thighs. These ulcers can be prevented by a simple regimen of regular turning: a basic nursing task that any certified nurse’s aide can perform. The presence of these easily preventable ulcers is a classic sign of neglect. Bob and Mary Schindler have repeatedly complained of Terri’s neglect, and have sought to remove Michael as guardian on that basis. Judge Greer was unmoved by those complaints as well.

BAD MEDICINE

And, quite apart from the question of Terri’s therapy and care, it is entirely likely that Terri has never been properly diagnosed. Terri is usually described as being in a Persistent Vegetative State (PVS), and indeed Judge Greer ruled as a finding of fact that she is PVS; but this diagnosis and finding were arrived at in a way that has many neurologists expressing surprise and dismay.

I have spent the past ten days recruiting and interviewing neurologists who are willing to come forward and offer affidavits or declarations concerning new testing and examinations for Terri. In addition to the 15 neurologists’ affidavits Gibbs had in time to present in court, I have commitments from over 30 others who are willing to testify that Terri should have new and additional testing, and new examinations by unbiased neurologists. Almost 50 neurologists all say the same thing: Terri should be reevaluated, Terri should be reexamined, and there are grave doubts as to the accuracy of Terri’s diagnosis of PVS. All of these neurologists are board-certified; a number of them are fellows of the prestigious American Academy of Neurology; several are professors of neurology at major medical schools.

So how can Judge Greer ignore the opinions of so many qualified neurologists, some of whom are leaders in the field? The answer is that Michael Schiavo, his attorney George Felos, and Judge Greer already have the diagnosis they want.

Terri’s diagnosis was arrived at without the benefit of testing that most neurologists would consider standard for diagnosing PVS. One such test is MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). MRI is widely used today, even for ailments as simple as knee injuries — but Terri has never had one. Michael has repeatedly refused to consent to one. The neurologists I have spoken to have reacted with shock upon learning this fact. One such neurologist is Dr. Peter Morin. He is a researcher specializing in degenerative brain diseases, and has both an M.D. and a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Boston University.

In the course of my conversation with Dr. Morin, he made reference to the standard use of MRI and PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scans to diagnose the extent of brain injuries. He seemed to assume that these had been done for Terri. I stopped him and told him that these tests have never been done for her; that Michael had refused them.

There was a moment of dead silence.

“That’s criminal,” he said, and then asked, in a tone of utter incredulity: “How can he continue as guardian? People are deliberating over this woman’s life and death and there’s been no MRI or PET?” He drew a reasonable conclusion: “These people [Michael Schiavo, George Felos, and Judge Greer] don’t want the information.”

Dr. Morin explained that he would feel obligated to obtain the information in these tests before making a diagnosis with life and death consequences. I told him that CT (Computer-Aided Tomography) scans had been done, and were partly the basis for the finding of PVS. The doctor retorted, “Spare no expense, eh?” I asked him to explain the comment; he said that a CT scan is a much less expensive test than an MRI, but it “only gives you a tenth of the information an MRI does.” He added, “A CT scan is useful only in pretty severe cases, such as trauma, and also during the few days after an anoxic (lack of oxygen) brain injury. It’s useful in an emergency-room setting. But if the question is ischemic injury [brain damage caused by lack of blood/oxygen to part of the brain] you want an MRI and PET. For subsequent evaluation of brain injury, the CT is pretty useless unless there has been a massive stroke.”

Other neurologists have concurred with Dr. Morin’s opinion. Dr. Thomas Zabiega, who trained at the University of Chicago, said, “Any neurologist who is objective would say ‘Yes’” to the question, “Should Terri be given an MRI?”

But in spite of the lack of advanced testing, such as an MRI, attorney George Felos has claimed that Terri’s cerebral cortex has “liquefied,” and doctors for Michael Schiavo have claimed, on the basis of the CT scans, that parts of Terri’s cerebral cortex “have been replaced by fluid.” The problem with such contentions is that the available evidence can’t support them. Dr. Zabiega explained that “a CT scan can’t resolve the kind of detail needed” to make such a pronouncement: “A CT scan is like a blurry photograph.” Dr. William Bell, a professor of neurology at Wake Forest University Medical School, agrees: “A CT scan doesn’t give much detail. In order to see it on a CT, you have to have massive damage.” Is it possible that Terri has that sort of “massive” brain damage? According to Dr. Bell, that isn’t likely. Sometimes, he said, even patients who are PVS have a “normal or near normal” MRI.

So why hasn’t an MRI been done for Terri? That question has never been satisfactorily answered. George Felos has argued that an MRI can’t be done because of thalamic implants that were placed in Terri’s skull during the last attempt at therapy, dating back to 1992. But Felos’s contention ignores the fact that these implants could be removed. Indeed, the doctor who put them in instructed Michael to have them removed. Michael has never done so.

The most obvious possible explanation for what would otherwise be inexplicable behavior is that Michael Schiavo, George Felos, and Judge Greer don’t want to admit any information that would upset the diagnosis they already have. Dr. Morin, when told that Michael had refused an MRI, and that Judge Greer had confirmed the decision, said: “He refused a non-invasive test? People trying to do the right thing want the best and most complete information available. We don't have that in Terri’s case.” Dr. Bell agreed with this assessment, saying, “It seems as though they’re fearful of any additional information.”


Wow. After I read that I wondered how anyone could simply be so cruel as to say kill her. She hasn't even been diagnosed properly, given any treatment that would help her recover but it's suddenly alright to kill her? I cannot believe how criminal this action is. Yet it is court endorsed. People often speak of the courts in an ill-manner these days because of things where they created law in Massachusitts regarding gay "marriage". But then they come along and justify murder like this makes me truely wonder how far we are away from a civilization where "mercy killings" become everyday practice. I remember an episode of Star Trek where the entire premise was at a certain age they killed off their population. One man stood up against this practice and it showed his struggle and in the end he ended up getting "mercy killed". Such displays of barbarianism truely scares me for a country like ours. You live your life then one day someone else gets to decide when you've had enough of life?

Now along those same lines even those who blindly call for her murder (and yes this is murder, you are taking someones life) say to remove the feeding tube. It doesn't seem to bother anyone that she has to go through 2-3 weeks of torture and starvation. Of course these same people would be appauled if we suggested to inject her with a poison to kill her more quickly.

Where is, where are the doctors who really took oath's to "First do no harm"? How on this earth can ANYONE consider removing this feeding tube doing no harm? I am simply appauled at the whole situation and I really feel for her. I feel for her family and I fear for my life. Now the precident is set. Anyone who is a burden to you is simply expendable. Don't like your 3 month old because they have "gotten in the way" or become "too much of a burden"? Kill em. Your wife lost her job and won't/can't find another and it's just too much of a burden? Kill em. Teacher assigns you so much homework you can't go to the homecoming? They are a burden, kill em!

This is just sick
|

Sunday, March 13, 2005

It is coming!

Yes, I am a Star Wars freak and with the installation of my new video card I cannot play my current Star Wars game and I am suffering withdrawls....So I found this to curb my addiction.


I hope to find one that I can throw up on the site
|

And now for a word from Phillip Bennett

I just wanted to make note of this interview with the Washington Post Managing Editor.

Democracy means many things. How do you define democracy? As a Chinese journalist, you may have your own definition of democracy which corresponds to your history and your way of seeing the world. I may have another definition. Someone else may have their own definitions. Democracy means a lot of different things.

Let me give an example. Democracy in one sense means the majority decides, but it also means the rights of the minority are protected. As UK late Prime Minister Winston Churchill said, democracy is the least bad system that we have ever thught of. So democracy is never perfect. It always has problems. Our democracy here in the US has many contradictions, problems and challenges. So democracy is not a cure that could turn everything bad into good. It has its own advantages and its disadvantages.


So now of course, to Phillip anyways, the answer to everything is that everyone is democratic because they are able to vote. It doesn't matter that people in Iraq were forced to vote at gunpoint, they were a democratic nation! It didn't matter that Hitler wasn't elected by the masses, because Germany was democratic! So now we have people telling us that democracy is a subjective determination (which I am sure he thinks is the wrong decision) and then tells us that democracy cannot turn bad things into good. I bet he wouldn't have said this in 92 and 96

|

Friday, March 11, 2005

Minnesota, the state where absolutely nothing is allowed

Today the court of Minnesota is hearing objections to the multi-county smoking ban which goes in effect April 1st. The metro area bars and restaurants have banded together and are seeking a restraining order against the state for violating provisions of the "Minnesota Clean Air Act" which clearly states that no one but the legislature may add to, or impose standards tougher or less than the state law. The law protects bars and restaurants from banning smoking indoors.

However the larger issue is the smoking ban violates basic issue of property rights. The government comes in and tells me that it is just fine to drink and destroy my liver than drive home in a stupor at .07 (under the legal limit) crash my car into my garage, stumble onto my couch where I pass out to wake up in a pile of my own vomit that has hardened onto my clothes also where I have pissed myself because I couldn't make it to the bathroom.....BUT GOD FORBID YOU INHALE A LITTLE SMOKE! Note:I haven't ever been that intoxicated but have seen it happen to a few people before.

There is one issue above the previous one. Government has become a Nanny to its residents. I don't know about anyone else but I don't need a legilator telling me to not smoke. I know that smoking is bad. I don't need a senator telling me what is good for me. I don't need to be hand held through life. It is almost as if the entire congressional delegation thinks that people are stupid. Even though he was a damn poor governor at least he gridlocked congress for 4 years. He wouldnt pass their legislation and they wouldnt pass his.

I need to gain some political favor.....Volunteer time I guess
|

Terrorism as it relates to Gangs.

Now, for anyone who missed it, there was a shooting of a major community player in Minneapolis the other day. At some steakhouse in a pretty bad part of town a guy pulled a gun and killed 2 men, neither the intended victim. This has brought me to think of something rather ineteresting. Now one of the biggest things that people have linked to terrorism is drug trafficing. Opium, coke, and many other hard drugs are almost soley brought into this country from outside and a lot have terrorist hands in them. Then these drugs are sold down the chain to local gang bangers who use and distribute the drugs freely. Gangs by their very nature ensure the funding of terrorists, or at least a fairly sizeable chunk of it.

Another thing that gangs have in common with terrorists is death. Gangs tend to kill and kill until they end up self-destructing. Most gangs take to the streets and engage in "turf warfare" where they indiscriminatly kill other gang members through any means. Look at Iraq today and you see terrorists doing exactly the same thing. They both kill innocents, although with gangs it is usually more an accident than design. Terrorists, who have no soul, guilt, or remorse, design their attacks to kill as many people as possible no matter who they are. One thing I cannot say I ever remember seeing though is gangs demanding things from the government or else they brutally slaughter a hostage and release the tape of them doing it on TV.

Gangs in general though cause a much wider spread of problems. Terrorists rely on large scale precise attacks to gather attention so that they can just play in the background. Gangs don't seem to care if they attract attention. They like the attention but are content to work in the background without garnering attention to themselves, but instead rely on a chaotic system of attacks and territories within a city.

Given the choice, I would prefer to work against the terrorists. It is quite a bit easier to break up a well organized group than 500 small, individual groups, loosely affiliated with half the others, at war with the rest and are mostly American citizens.
|

Thursday, March 10, 2005

Rude Assholes

I don't usually dislike many people. I can't see the point in getting very worked up about it. But there are some people that really deserve some wrath. Now I work in a copier center and help people every once and a while. It is generally faster and cheaper to use the machines in the self service area and it is not all that hard. They have labels on everything on how to use it. They have little card readers for credit cards and you can pre-pay in cash. There is a 3rd option which is more time consuming and a general pain in the ass and that is that I can give my personal copying card out and then read the card when they are done and then go back and manually charge them for it.

I don't give out my card all that often for the simple reason, I am not going to give away a card that can make unlimited amounts of copies at any of our stores and worry about having to explain what happened to my card. So I always (and it is standard policy in the store too) collect the persons drivers license if I give my card out.

The other day a gentleman approached me and wanted to make some copies, just a few nothing big, so I directed him to the self service area. I told him that he could just use a credit card. To which he lied and said "I don't have a credit card." Seeing as I knew he was going to whine about prepaying because he didn't know how many copies he was going to make I just decided to not waste my time and give him my card. I told him I needed his ID. To which he gave me this blank stare. Didn't move just stared at me. I asked him for his ID again. He then said "Why?" I told him quite simply I am not giving him a card with unlimited access to all the machines in every store with no guarantee that I will get my card back. He then informed me that I should just sit there and watch him make the copies. At this point I almost told him to get out, but knowing that would garner some trouble, I simply told him "I am not going to sit and watch you make copies because I have other things I have to do." He wasn't too keen on my directness and then asked me (without any hint of sarcasm or humor) "What is your security clearence?" What? "What is your NSA security clearence?" At this point I am pretty mad that he is wasting all my time about this when there are other people that need help and he is trying to be this stubborn. I finally wrench his license out of his hands, of course while grabbing it he reveals that he has several credit cards including a bank card. Lying asshole.

So I help the next person who had a question about the self service machines. I helped them with their question and he grabs me and demands a tutorial on how to use the machines. I tell him 4 times to put his documents in face up. After I am done I start helping some other people and he raises his voice at me "It doesn't work!" Damn idiot put the documents in face down ignoring what I told him 4 times (note I even put the first set in face up and he took them out and flipped them face down) and ignored the rather large sign on the document feeder. Of course I won't charge him for the bad copies even though it is his fault it's policy not too and I understand that. So I remind him to put the documents in face up put them in for him and hit the start button. He gives me a blank stare and says "Aren't you going to clear the card?" I tell him no, I won't charge you for the bad ones and walk away to help other people. This guy ends up making about 100 copies total and comes to pay we swap cards and thats when I realize the smell that is following him....He has been drinking this morning. Alot. Keep in mind this is about 8:30 in the morning and he is plastered. Then I look at the book he is carrying, it is a postal worker manual.

I hope he doesn't come back
|

Impossible Remedies

Long ago, the mice had a general council to consider what measures they could take to outwit their common enemy, the Cat. Some said this, and some said that; but at last a young mouse got up and said he had a proposal to make, which he thought would meet the case. "You will all agree," said he, "that our chief danger consists in the sly and treacherous manner in which the enemy approaches us. Now, if we could receive some signal of her approach, we could easily escape from her. I venture, therefore, to propose that a small bell be procured, and attached by a ribbon round the neck of the Cat. By this means we should always know when she was about, and could easily retire while she was in the neighbourhood."

This proposal met with general applause, until an old mouse got up and said: "That is all very well, but who is to bell the Cat?" The mice looked at one another and nobody spoke. Then the old mouse said:

"It is easy to propose impossible remedies."


Now, some people might ask exactly why I posted this. Well I have been reviewing some of the things politically since I started getting involved in politics. I noticed a disturbing pattern. Most politicians propose impossible remedies. Take for example oil prices as a recent example. Congressmen speak out that oil prices are out of control and we need to reign them in. We cannot allow the middle east to dictate our foreign policy......but we cannot drill in ANWR! Can you identify the impossible remedy?

Smoking is bad for you. Everyone should stop smoking! McDonalds is bad for you, everyone stop eating it! War is bad, no more War! All these things could happen but are really unlikely. They dont give solutions to it, they just tell us how bad it is. Although in Minnesota they are taking the route of proposing ideas that deny everyone their rights. People complain that things like the PATRIOT Act take away all these rights yet cannot name a US citizen who has been denied his rights except a guy who was actively fighting our troops. Up here we have counties passing "Smoking Bans" that force private property owners to have smoke free enviroments. Not their homes (yet, there have been a couple bills to ban smoking in personal homes and one to ban it in cars), but in businesses accross the state. I am not a smoker but I cannot for the life of me figure out why the hell anyone has rights over my property, my life, or my personal decisions. Of course these bills are sponsored by people who cry foul and scream "Keep your laws off my body" when it comes to abortion. But if it is smoking they know better than you what you should do to your body. Apparently a right to privacy does not apply to business owners.

Another thing I find funny about the smoking deal, you hear about how many people die of second hand smoke every year. Aside from the fact that no death certificate I have ever heard and none that are in my state have ever stated "Cause of death: Second Hand Smoke." A judge threw out the second hand smoking statistic simply because they cherry picked the data they wanted, increased the tolerance level 2 fold, threw out risk factors that would have harmed their number and altogether dismissed the entire second hand smoke theory....Second hand smoke lie. Because that is what it is. It would be like saying we are the United States of Canada. It is a 100% fabrication.

I am sick of being lied to. I am sick of being told that I should fear everything. I am sick of having to dig for the truth to find the truth.

|

Political Correctness Just Kicked its' own Ass

IKEA, whom I love and adore for their soft serve ice cream and 50 cent delicious hot dogs, are being fingered by Norway as racists:


Swedish home furnishings giant IKEA is guilty of sex discrimination by showing only men putting together furniture in its instruction manuals, Norway's prime minister says.

IKEA, which has more than 200 stores in 32 nations, fears it might offend Muslims by depicting women assembling everything from cupboards to beds. Its manuals show only men or cartoon figures whose sex is unclear.


So now IKEA has to choose between getting sued by PC happy Europeans or having a Jihad declared against them. Political Correctness is now about to hit IKEA now gets hit in the pocketbook no matter what they do. PC isn't just hitting IKEA but every company everywhere. I have worked for my fair share of companies and I can very well spot when someone is being treated unfairly. There is never a product manufactured anymore that doesn't have idiot proof labels. Aside from the little sense it makes to use a hairdryer in the shower where water is pouring down on you each warning manual explicitly states "NOT FOR USE IN SHOWER." I am very curious what idiot figured this one out.

What about the idiot that is smoking while pumping gas? Or the person that had to tell us that McDonalds Big Mac's are fattening. Or the warning labels on alcoholic drinks for pregnant women. Yes I would like to destroy my babies development.

Unfortunatly common sense isn't so common anymore
|

Wednesday, March 09, 2005

Football

Ok, I admit it. I am a freak when it comes to football. When I visited Austraila was when I first got the tinge. That was back in ....98 I think, god has it really been that long? Ok you dont care I am sure. But I got to see the sport Rugby. I am now and probably will always be a fan of Rugby. The first Rugby game I watch was Venezuela against the New Zealand All Blacks. The game was called early, the score was something like 130 to 7. The All Blacks dominated but the game was so much fun to watch. While in town there I learned a lot about the All Blacks and Rugby, bought a wallet which I was later demonized for back here in the states because it said All Blacks on it.....I'll save the rest of that for another day though.

Anyways I got big into Rugby but there and got home to find that no one knew what Rugby was. Damn. Of course if you had satelite you could get the international games of which I later learned there is a USA team....WTF!? Either way I have not and probably never will get a satelite dish simply because I like cable and my cable internet better and it's cheaper this way. However I started to watch football. Mind you this was the year Randy Moss was drafted and put into the line up. Now I could really have picked any team in the league but I personally like the Vikings because I like history and Vikings had a large influence in Minnesota so I personally picked them...Plus gold and purple is just cool.

Now I remember listening to people talk about Warren Moon. Good and bad. I personally couldn't see how a guy his age was playing with the youth of the league and perform. He couldn't and Denny Green "sacked" him and Brad Johnson in favor of Randal Cunningham who was able to utilize the speed of Randy Moss and once the league figured out how to cover him they shifted everyone to cover Moss leaving Chris Carter wide open. This duo could have won a superbowl. Gary Anderson, the kicker who had a perfect season not missing one kick choked on a easy 30 yard attempt in the NFC championship game and we lost after a 15-1 season. Now I know Brad Johnson would have been a better choice the next year but they went with Randal again but didn't quite produce like the year before.

Fast forward to today. Randy Moss, plagued with injuries and a bad attitude over the last couple years has turned him (in the eyes of the team) into a liability rather than an asset. Am I mad that they traded Randy? Yes/No. Although Randy was trouble he was a damn good distraction. He always pulled 2 defenders and on a tight 3rd down play where passing was the rule you send him on a slant up the middle of the field throw anyone to go across the field passing in front of Randy and you had an open receiver guaranteed. Randy would pull the entire secondary with him simply because they all feared "the big play". They had a lot to fear too because if they didnt leave that receiver open then they left Randy in single or double coverage. Easy catch for Randy. It was really a win/win that was easily defended but so rarely used that makes me think someone was just completely off on their play calling.

Now, the reason I am not mad that Randy is gone. He was a drain on the team. Simply put, he didn't play for the team. He played for Randy and no one else. Randy threw this season out the window after his injury. Also with the exception of the awesome catches in green bay in the Wild Card game and then the phenominal "moon" of the packer fans the team played better without him. You saw defenses that played like they would against most other offenses except the Vikings offensive line wasn't ranked number 1 all these years simply because of Moss. Passes were thrown short, short, short, then a nice lob over the middle and boom boom. The running game was perfect too. 4 backs that can all run better than most RB's in the league.

Although I am torn, I am very excitedly looking forward to the new season. We have some good draft picks and we picked up a new CB who will add to our great defensive backs. We led the league in interceptions a couple years ago but because we were extensively injured last season we couldn't get people into line. I really really wish Chris Carter would come back. I know thats not going to happen but throw him into the line with Campell, Robinson, Burleson and every other great receiver on thet team and it would be a perfect line up.

I think that Manning is a threat in the NFL but people put too much faith in the Quarterback. That is exactly what happened this year. Everyone was so distraught that the Eagle's lost but they had this great QB. McNabb isn't great, not even close. He has talent but he doesn't have the discipline to make plays and threw terrible passes, didn't establish a running game and pretty much gave the super bowl away. The Pats on the other hand have a decent QB a decent FB a decent everything. I see the Pats going into the playoffs again, Colts....

It will be fun but I will post my predictions after we get into the preseason.
|

Protestors

Now I have protested in the past. I still have my sign from the liberate Minnesota protest at the capital this time last year (which I hope I will get to go to again). Now, my protest was rather quiet. There were a lot of us, but we aquired the proper permits showed up at the capital rotunda listened to our speakers, a couple government representitives that helped organize the thing and then we broke into groups and canvassed the capital.

This isn't meant to be a bash on protesting. In the right respects it is quite an effective tool and gets awareness of a cause or problem in society and thus makes people think and may influence some minds. Now I break with the traditional thought of people protesting in violent ways. For example, frequently on the UCLA campus and surrounding area's there are protests of all sorts of odd natures. I would find some of the photos but they are quite disturbing. Part of the parade was a protest against, of all things, clothing. People (not very pleasant looking ones either) walking down the street in chilly weather with not even shoes. Making their usualy appearence were the "War-for-Oil" tards and the abortion crowd and every "left" orginization one can think of. However their protest sparked violence and riots. Police were called to protect businesses along the "protest" route. The night ended with some rather violent anarchists trying to start a riot and quickly put down. The night was topped with an effigy burning of a doll made to look like the President.

Now it would seem to me, other than getting arrested for violent crimes, there is no real purpose to these kind of protests. I can understand the protests when the war with Iraq started. I don't agree with their message but it is their right to say it. I will always give anyone the opportunity to speak over silencing them, unless they are violent.

However the new thing that caught my attention today is the planned protest on the 2 year mark of the war in Iraq. Not a protest like we saw when we invaded. A protest of the military in general. I was listening to a gentlement on the radio speaking of the military in this protest and compared military service to neighborhood gangs on a global scale. He called the military worse than neighborhood gangs and military men and women murderers. He also claimed that it was better for someone to join a local gang than the Marines. He will be at a Marine recruiting station on March 18th to try and "persuade" anyone from signing up.

This is exactly the kind of crap that makes me wonder who these people expect to defend our country. From the people that say having a gun makes you a killer, comes having a military makes you worse than the bloods or the krypts. I am still at a loss why democrats don't understand the notion that they are weak on defense
|

Another Great Myth Debunked

After the Madrid train bombings which plunged a once good nation into the hands of socialists we get new news that Spain has long been a haven for al-qaeda and terrorism.

Investigations elsewhere in Europe have also intersected here, bolstering the chilling conclusion that Spain was not just a one-time target for joining President Bush's coalition to oust Saddam Hussein - but instead a "crossroads" for Muslim extremists, says Jean-Charles Brisard, a French private investigator.

The spanish and the french agree. They have harbored terrorists and were targets well before they aided us in Iraq. If I were a Spaniard I would be up in arms that the socialist government that is in there now pulled our troops from Iraq claiming we would be safer for it. Now rather than fighting their enemy where innocents aren't in harms way. They would prefer for them to kill a couple hundred people at a time and only get 2 or 3 of the terrorists in return....To quote the Guiness commercials:

Billiant!
|

Children and Public Places

So I was dining at my favorite local restaurant which just expanded their hours to dinner hours. I love going there because they know me and they know what I like pretty well. The atmosphere is very home-like and the whole place is cozy like being home again.

Tonight however, was a very different experience. I sat down in a booth in the non-smoking section as I normally do. They brought me out a Coke like normal and my dining companion her Iced Tea. I noticed a large familiy taking up the back 2 booths along with the table in the middle which was half booth half chairs. There was a total of aobut 11 of them. 4 of which were young girls. Now normally young kids are well behaved with a little bit of acting out now and then which I can handle.

Tonight I was treated to the Opera of the 3 year old. I cannot describe how god aweful this was. The kid would run back and forth through a moderatly full restaurant SCREAMING at full pitch for no god damn reason. The father, obviously frustraited, did nothing to stop the child. In fact he encouraged her to run full bore through the place to keep her focused on running rather than screaming.

Now I have been a server before and children running around is not only annoying but very dangerous. Dangerous for the child, dangerous for the server, and dangerous for the other patrons in the restaurant. They finally left and the silence was deafening.

Which brings me to the point of the evening.

I would have never acted like that. Not while dining, not while shopping, not even when home and NEVER in front of a stranger. If I even started to look like I was going to act out my mother pulled me to the side whispered in my ear what would happen if I continued then acted on it if I did. Now I am not saying I was perfect and never acted up but when I did my mother followed through on her threats. I learned very quickly not to act out cause then I got punished. I learned that I could do whatever I wanted to, as long as I was willing to accept the consequences of my actions.

Now I have seen the Nanny 911 and shows just like it. The parents refuse to put their child in line. How does one live their life with a child like this? How can you possibly stand your child disrespecting you? I may not be a parent, but having dealt with much younger children I know what works. You take away things they want, take away things they desire and the result is always obedience. Maybe you might be thinking that's cruel, or unfair, or any other thing that you want. I think it is expected. There is a code of rules and standards for living in a civilized world and running around a diner screaming at the top of your lungs breaks a number of those rules.

These children don't appear to be taught responsibility and in the end will be the ones who get pregnant young, those who hop from job to job because they wont take orders, and generally the ones who rebel against all authority. When teenagers rebel from their parents it is usually equivilant to how much responsibility and discipline they were given as children. As a child I was given a very free range. I went against my parents wishes. I rode my bike accross the highway when they said it wasn't allowed. I stayed out too late. I went places they told me not to. I found my christmas presents and on occasion un-wrapped then carefully re-wrapped them. But I never have used drugs. I smoked one cigarrette after I was of age and when I was 20 I had a couple mixed drinks.

Now let us take a look at my peers. I know of only 3 people who to this day haven't used any illegal drugs. They were pretty much all drinkers through high school. Many were moderate to heavy drug users. I know 3 girls who were pregnant in High School. One of which I tried desperatly to win but she was very high up on a pedestal that I couldn't have possibly reached....Moving on....Priorities for me were quite different then than my peers. I was searching for a job at 14 and when I turned 15 was able to get a job and did. I made $150 per weekend working for $5 and hour. To me it was the world. I was making big bucks and didn't even have to worry about money. I got a car and paid my mother for insurance and the car when I turned 17. I had gotten a better job by that point and had started a career for myself.

Now I wonder if I had been a socialite with my parents providing everything for me how I would have turned out. I don't think I would have liked the result.
|

How are we going to pay for it? Lets tax the rich!

Its what everyone says they are going to do to get extra money in taxes. Both sides say it. They say it in different ways, but they both effectively tax the wealthiest Americans more than anyone else. Why not? They make more they pay more. However the Democrats specifically make it a leading point in their talking points to make sure everyone knows they are going to only tax the "rich". Oh course then it is very funny when the leading city of which houses some of the richest democrats starts a tax revolt.

It is almost funny how one person can say that the solution to all our budget problems is to tax the rich when it has been proven several times that a high tax of the wealthiest of Americans causes massive amounts of poverty and joblessness. Someone is going to spout off their mouth and say something to the effect "No it doesn't, you dont have any proof of that." Of course to this person's dismay, I do. I turn to the 90's, Bill Clinton was having some fun with Cigars and Interns and raising taxes. Clinton's tax increase was amazingly supported by the "republican" congress and passed. However he denied the 99 tax bill to cut taxes and thus started a spiral downward.

Move back a little further. Reagan cut the highest tax rates in half. The economy of the 70's which was considered almost depressionary continued until the tax break. Funny how when people get more money they spend more money and create millions of more jobs. The large push of money flowing actually increased tax revenues and dropped unemployment drastically. We collected more taxes at a lower rate because everyone was spending the new money they got. Investors invested more, businesses bought more stock, publishers published more books, manufacturers manufactured more goods......People bought more.

Bump ahead a couple more years. The "luxury tax" was implemented. This threw a 10% tax on all "luxury" items, or high priced goods that a certain amount of americans would never see let alone own. To give you an idea, most yachts are several hundred thousand (most though get up into the millions and look better than where I live right now, even if it was in a hurricane). Most "rich" people who thought a new yacht would be nice instead threw their money back into the bank. People dont beomce rich by being reckless. They instead went overseas and bought a yacht made in Europe or any where but America where there was no luxury tax. According to representative Kenndy (D-RI) since the repeal of the luxury his states has produced 600,000 new jobs in those fields. Personally I didnt think there was 600,000 adults of working age in Rhode Island but aside from that it is a huge increase in that little state. Taxes on the "rich" simply do not work.

Unless you are running for office.
|

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

Ambition

Now last year I thought I would contribute to society in a unique way. A way that many try and only a few actually follow through on and even less are truly successful. I was going to become a politician. Nothing big of course, I was just going to run for the House get a 2 year term, be an incumbent and start a life long career as a politician.

The area I lived in was about a 50/50 split between the 2 parties so it was all about turn out. No problem, I had a canvassing plan that wouldnt fail. I worked in the community and lived there too so I was all set. I was a man of the people, average joe versus my opponent who was some lawyer who had been in the House one term and had nothing to show for it except a very lame attempt to raise taxes and pass a health rationing plan. Ron Latz in district 44b. The taxpayers league rated him versus tax friendly initiatives. He's not very tax friendly. Now, I was of course running the opposition party to him simply because a 3rd party option would not work. I toiled over whether or not to run, asked for support and finally decided I would do it. I called to find where to file and how to file and got the info. I then inquired with the party that I would be representing to see if there were any other applicants. One was filing as we spoke. I was crushed. I really wanted to beat Latz into the ground. Through the election I never got one thing from either of the candidates. No debates were scheduled. No one ever visited me.

I was devastated. I could have run a campaign in my spare time that would have crushed their "campaigning" but I relented. I knew that I couldnt fight an opponent in the primary and then fight to win a second race versus an incumbent. I knew too that the gentleman that was also running wouldnt have been able to win either. I didn't run simply because the plan that was so simple, so easy and fool proof, had become incomprehensibly complex and seemingly un-obtainable. Turn out in the district was fair for the election but John (the man in my spot) was horribly defeated by a good margin.

So where does that leave me now? Well I moved out of the district into a new spot where the political scene is almost 80/20 for the incumbent party. Basically it is a reward area for those who have served the party well, they move out here when the current person wants to retire and they run unchalleneged.

I almost feel wronged by the whole thing. I know I could have run a campaign to waste Latz. I also know that I would have had a damn hard time running in a primary against someone. But this is a lesson and a learning experience. I cannot think of a time better where I learned what self defeat was. I looked at the situation and said "I cannot possibly do this" and I found a way not to. If there was a way for me to go back, even knowing I would face certain defeat. I would go back and run. The lesson I must learn, the lesson I have learned is that the only impassible obsticles in front of me are the ones that I place there.

Maybe I just need to become a pro-wrestler, go bald and become crazy and I can be governor....
|

What is wrong with education today

Listening to the radio on the way home listening to a radio discussion about the pledge of alliegence they started talking about education. Now I was in the public schools in the younger years of my life. When I reached high school my mother forced me to look into private schooling. I was fine with the change and thus switched to private school. Now I had been one of if not the smartest kid in my class in school and was quite bored with school. Now not to say I wasn't still bored with high school, but I got a good challenge out of it.

But I was special. I was different. I wasn't the only one but we were few. Then I started to realize, in private school I wasn't special or different anymore. In fact I was behind quite a few students. I had a tough time getting up to par but I managed. My school was one of the more expensive schools at right around $4,000 when I started and ending around $5,500 4 years later. Public schools spend 3-4 times as much. It confuses me quite a bit to see we are spending more money on schools and they keep telling us the NEED more money. Not want or would like but absolutely must have without question more money. Almost 50% of the Minnesota budget is spent on education and that number would sharply increase if you added in all the referendums and alike that the schools forced on us. Again going back to that inconsistancy as a theme here we have people that cant say no to a school wanting to double your property tax every 4 years.

Solution? Well it certanly isn't spending money. We have been doing it for years, giving them unchecked funds to spend wherever however they desire. Administrators get trips and cars while teachers get paid lavish salaries in their final years to up their state sponsored (not district funded) pensions. No social program has ever succeeded by having as much money as they wanted and education is one of them.

School Vouchers would be a great idea if it wasn't still a redistribution of wealth. Take from me who has no kids and give to you who has 5? Why am I paying for your child? You found someone else to have sex with, take responsibility for your pleasure and raise it.

The only thing that satisfies all sides is the complete and total dissolution of public schools as a whole. The ones currentlyopen could easily switch. This would remove quite a few few problems from schools. Children who are chronic trouble makers and not disciplined by their parents would soon find themselves without a school because no school is going to put up with their crap. Schools would no longer force people by gunpoint (and if you dont think that they aren't forcing you at gunpoint, just stop paying your taxes and wait until they show up) to fund them and would work competively to attract students. Very much like Colleges do today. The smartest people and the people with athletic talent get free rides, but everyone wants to go to the smartest schools or the most popular schools. Think about how many people know Harvard vs how many people know Hennepin Technical College.

Down with schools
|

Captains Log.....stardate....something something something.....ah crap

First entry into the world of blogging. I have read and continue to read others blogs but now I think I am ready to enter into the world and fully immerse myself into this world.

A little background for anyone who cares. I am from Minnesota. Most people when they say their state say "The Great State of....", however I just call it Minnesota. Dont get me wrong, there is no place I would rather live. I just dislike the way the state is sometimes. For example, we have a Republican Governor, a Republican House, a Democrat Senate, one of both for Senators right now and we voted for Kerry. Why does this bother me you probably ask? Well aside from seeing the right person get in every once and a while you would think that people wouldnt be so ass backwards as to vote for one person this election and then vote for someone with the complete opposite opinion and plan for everything else. What IDIOT thought "I voted for Tim Pawlenty (governor) but I am going to vote for Kerry"? The other thing that bothers me is the mass of people who bought into Jesse Ventura. I was one of them, mostly because I was young and didnt know much (if anything about politics) yet if people had really looked at his stance on issues rather than his slogan and celebrity status I am quite sure he wouldnt have made it into office.

For those that dont live here we have gridlock. Not quite like what California or DC have, but it's pretty damn bad. I know the solution. I think everyone here does. Build more roads. It is kind of like IPOD's, Apple ran out of IPOD's at their stores so they bumped up production. Here, we decided not to build more roads like a sane person but to build a commuter rail line. I don't mind so much that they built the dang thing, but what I do mind is that they built it with a set budget (which was way too high to begin with but whatever), but didnt plan to build roads in addition. In fact they set the damn thing up for failure because they INCREASED bus traffic when the rail line opened. We are spending MORE money on buses than we were before and now we have to spend on this rail line that cannot even come close to paying for itself, and I am still stuck in traffic every day. Maybe I could have lived with it too if it was a somewhat effective system too. The current system circles around downtown and to the airport and mall of america. Big whoop dee do. I live in the west suburbs and the likelyhood of me seeing this thing in my lifetime is slim (as I dont travel into Minneapolis unless I have to) but now I am paying for it and rather than expand my primary highway they are turing the HOV (carpool lane) into a carpool/toll lane. Now for a fee you can travel in the carpool lane. Yip yip yip yahoo.....

And thus begins this blog
|
Weblog Commenting and Trackback by HaloScan.com