The head coast guard admiral who has been overseeing the BP disaster retired today.
Say What? Something here doesn't ring quite right. The top military leader doesn't quit in the middle of a battle. His commander in chief just wouldn't permit it. Not cool.
I forecast that there is more going on here than we are being told.
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I was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia 7-1/2 years ago.
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For a long time the CLL didn't slow me down much or especially degrade my quality of life. But during the last 18 months it has gotten fairly bad. The swollen lymph nodes are now outrageously large. I feel like I should be working in a freak show at the circus. I almost hate to go out in public. They have gotten pretty painful too.
The blood platelets have begun declining, and the red blood cells/hemoglobin have gone way down. So I am almost constantly out of breath, and numbing fatigue comes after just a few seconds of very minor exertion.
The body's ability to fight off invaders, the immune system, has declined precipitously. There is no value in being gross by describing in depth the almost constant tooth and jaw infections, lung infections, jock itch, etc.
Now within the last 90 days I have lost all sense of smell, which of course means also almost all taste of food. My ankles and feet have swollen up so big with edema all of a sudden that I had to buy much larger shoes. Instead of taking the dog for a one mile walk in the desert, twice per day; it now is about 100 meters maximum, and just in the morning when the temperature here in the desert is still fairly cool.
My brain feels from the inside out like it is working better than ever; but I find myself driving very slowly and making large numbers of typos when I am writing. I also doze off much easier. So maybe my brain is deceiving me.
When one is diagnosed with any form of incurable cancer, you go through various stages and thought patterns. At one time having my obituary all typed up, and my will up to date seemed really important to me. Now all that seems largely irrelevant.
The main concern at this stage is: How much suffering should I put up with when this disease is incurable? Over time it will only get worse. At what point does the quality of one's life get so bad that it is sensible to accelerate the process of dying rather than continuing to fight the battle?
What I can say at this point is: My responsibilities to my wonderful little empathic doggie have now become the primary (almost sole) deterrent keeping me from taking any action to close this chapter of life's little one act play. But I'm hedging my bets too. I am ALWAYS armed now. Just in case. Always prepared, like a good Boy Scout.
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The National Enquirer tabloid, not especially renowned for it's high standards of journalism, has published an article about the masseuse who is now refusing to cooperate with police. Here is a teaser:
“Masseuse: Gore's 'A Sick Man'
Al Gore is “not what people think he is—he’s a sick man!” claims Molly Hagerty, 54, the Portland massage therapist who accused the former vice president of “unwanted sexual contact” in 2006. Hagerty, who refused to cooperate with police after they filed a 45-page report on the incident, calls Gore a “sexual predator” and says, “I want justice served.” Reports confirm that Gore was in Portland at the time of the incident, which Hagerty says happened in an upscale hotel. She says Gore asked for inappropriate touching and forced an open-mouth kiss.”
Let me get this straight. Apparently Al Gore's biggest offense was wanting to kiss her on the lips. I would guess that probably 95% of female masseuses get daily requests for hand jobs and blow jobs. I think that many times (perhaps most times) these massage establishments are simply whore houses under a more socially acceptable name. Actual physical therapy normally takes place in a different environment. In this case she came to his hotel.
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Even if he wanted to receive a blow job or a hand job from her, I would say, “So What??” I do sort of question Al Gore wanting to French kiss some worn out 54 year old masseuse. To me this is an indicator of pretty low self esteem. But I guess that after everything he has been through it is logical.
The man still likes sex. Maybe even affection, caring, and that weird concept we call love. Good! I'm very glad. Or at least he did so before this saggy old take-out masseuse woman came along. Maybe she has some sort of financial incentive from the energy companies. It does clearly show that Al Gore is not attracted to young members of the same sex, like is so common nowadays. I'm really glad about that.
There are fucked-up right wingers all over America jumping on this. They are licking their chops and dribbling saliva down their chins they are so excited. Gore solidly got more votes that Bush Jr., and then after the vote rigging in Florida, the Supreme Court had to steal the election for the President of the United States from Al Gore. The ignorant racists on the right still have a burr under their saddle about having to defeat Gore this underhanded way...and getting caught.
These same poorly educated rightist fascists are going to try and use this as ammunition to neutralize Gore's message about the horrors of global warming. Deceitful and dishonorable shit like this almost makes me feel ashamed to call myself an American.
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The Vatican is using the legal argument that they cannot be held legally responsible for their perverted priests since a direct employment relationship did not exist.
I would argue otherwise. The church in America did not have the authority to defrock a priest because he was butt fucking young boys in his parish. Only the Vatican in Rome could do that, and frequently they did not. The church laws, rules, and regulations that the priests had to live up to were set in Rome, not locally. If a priest were investigated due to his sexual perversions, it was done so by an office out of Rome. If the Vatican in Rome wanted the man reassigned to another duty post, they had the power to make this happen.
Clearly Rome called the shots, so enough of an employment relationship existed for the Vatican bosses to be held fully accountable.
The Vatican is also arguing that the Pope cannot legally be charged because he has legal immunity as the head of state for an independent country. This argument has pros and cons, but at the end of the day I think it is clear that the Pope will not be going to jail over this issue.
The vehemence that the Vatican is using in attacking the authorities in Belgium shows that they still think their authority and their rules equal or maybe even supersede those of the secular society. Perhaps they could sell this idea in the 1950's but not in 2010. No way Jose'.
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Pope Benedict is outraged that the Belgian authorities confiscated a computer and various records which apparently documented over 500 sexual abuse cases, even though the authorities had warrants and followed all appropriate procedures. The Pope's press releases seem to indicate that he feels the church and the governmental authorities should both investigate. And that their two investigations are of equal importance.
In any large organization, business, or sect the leaders are expected to do what is necessary and appropriate to prevent sexual abuse by the powerful against the rank and file. If the leaders have any reason to suspect that sexual harassment may be occurring or may have occurred, it is their duty to look into the matter. If then it appears that in fact some sexual abuse may have taken place they have a responsibility and legal obligation to notify the governmental authorities. It would be normal for them to turn over to the government any information they have, including all records and documents. The Belgian church should have provided these documents concerning the 500 cases of sexual abuse years ago. Instead they hid them from the secular authorities.
If BP conducts a sexual harassment investigation and finds that something incorrect took place, they are expected to notify the authorities and then help them in all ways possible. If the head of BP issues a press release saying that he considers his company's investigation to be treated equally to the government's investigation, it is sure proof he is completely out of touch with reality.
More and more it feels like this is the Pope's problem. He is somewhere out in space.
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LATER ADDENDUM: Victim's rights groups are expressing outrage at the Pope's statements. It seems that once again the Catholic Church is choosing secrecy and protection for the pedophile priests rather than protection for the children who they sexually abused.
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a Golden Globe nomination.I was looking something up on Wikipedia today and came upon this interesting bit of history.
The Mexican peso was the first currency in the world to use the "$" sign, which the United States dollar later adopted for its own use when the United States adopted the peso as currency during a period before adopting the dollar.
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"An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life.
They didn't want it good, they wanted it Wednesday.
When a place gets crowded enough to require ID's, social collapse is not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere.
May you live as long as you wish and love as long as you live.
No statement should be believed because it is made by an authority.
I never learned from a man who agreed with me.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity."
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------------------------- Robert A. Heinlein
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In each caliber or size the ammunition manufacturers make all different types of ammo. Some is designed for low recoil, others are made in a way which maximizes their accuracy for range or target practice. There also is ammunition specifically made for personal defense.
If your continuation as a life form is under genuine t
hreat, you would prefer to have the most destructive handgun possible available to you, like a .44 magnum. But considerations including concealment, weight, recoil, muzzle flash, etc. may demand that you carry a smaller firearm, such as a .380, which is also sometimes called a 9 mm short.
The Walther PPK, Polizeipistole Kriminalmodell (Police Pistol Detective Model), was first made in Germany in 1931. It is a small handgun well suited to concealed carry. Ian Fleming assured its popularity by making it James Bond's primary firearm. Adolph Hitler killed himself with his PPK. The PPK has been manufactured for several sizes of ammunition, but the most popular have been the .32 ACP and the .380 ACP.
In April 2010 Texas Governor Rick Perry was out getting some early morning exercise with his daughter's Labrador retriever when he was threatened by a coyote. He judged that he was in “imminent danger” and used his .380 Sturm, Ruger LCP ultralight semi automatic handgun with a laser sight to kill the errant coyote. This weapon only weighs about 10
ounces and easily fits in a pocket.
The picture on the left is a round of .380 ammunition made by Winchester. The bullet weighs 95 grains and has a full metal jacket. It is ideal for use on the range or for target practice.
The round in the picture on the right is also a .380 but this one is made by Federal, and is specifically made for the purpose of personal defense. The bullet weighs 90 grains and is called a hydrashok jacketed hollow point. When you are being threatened and you feel that you are in imminent danger, whether the animal threatening you has four legs or two, you hope that the ammunition you are using results in the maximum stopping power and tissue damage possible.
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If you haven't seen the movie Invictus yet, you need to make a point of it.
This movie is a true story about Nelson Mandela and South Africa. Morgan Freeman plays Mandela and Matt Damon plays the captain of the South African rugby team. The movie was produced and directed by Clint Eastwood.
I just can't say enough good things about this movie. You won't be disappointed.
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I am in the process of reading several books which have been nominated for the pending Hugo award. One of the books takes place about 150 years from now.
My grandmother was born in 1890. The civil war ended in 1865 so she was born roughly 25 years after the civil war. She heard lots of family stories about it growing up. When I was a young boy she imparted some of these family memories to me. This spans roughly 150 years. One hundred and fifty years really isn't all that long. Technology wasn't as advanced back then, but they experienced most of the same emotions, fears, and hopes that we do in 2010. I can easily imagine living 150 years ago; but trying to imagine what it is going to be like 150 years in the future is much harder.
It is easy to be negative and pessimistic about it. Our greed and consumption of fossil fuels will have made the climate much worse. The gap between rich and poor may be even larger than today, etc. But I see this negative only approach as kind of a cop out.
We have the technology now to communicate. But we don't. I detest the right wing racists, so I do not listen to them. I'm certain they feel the same about me. Will the world still be using so many different languages? If we all used one language we could have the possibility of a better understanding of each others problems. Will we learn to listen?
More and more bacterial diseases no longer can be treated successfully with antibiotics. Will researchers be able to solve this? How about obesity, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes? Will malaria and tuberculosis still be such a scourge? What about agriculture – will monoculture cause rampant famine, or will mankind be able to come up with real and long lasting solutions to hunger? Will extreme poverty still be such a feature of the lives of a large part of mankind?
As the earth warms and sea levels rise, how is mankind going to deal with so the many millions of people who will now no longer have homes? As America transitions from a white Anglo-Saxon culture to one that is primarily Hispanic how will the country change? Will Christianity continue its decline to where we become basically a secular society? What effect will this have? Will America continue to decline financially to where 150 years from now it is a poor has-been country like Iran, Greece, or Italy?
At the moment I just can't seem to come up with a good (and positive) picture of how things are going to be lots better 150 years from now than they are now.
I hope I'm wrong. But for the sake of the planet, maybe mankind needs to go ahead and hurry with its own destruction. Nature can write off homo sapiens as a failure and try over again.
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My dad was one of the greatest guys I ever knew. He died 33 years ago, and I still miss him.BP CEO Tony Hayward has now blown it in about as many ways as is possible. Today this guy in on the Isle of Wight watching his yacht compete in a big race. While thousands of others are working weekends to clean up BP's mess in the Gulf of Mexico. No doubt Hayward used one of the BP corporate jets to fly him back to England.
This is the guy who whined that he “wanted his life back.” And the same ethnocentric jerk who told the Times of London that “Americans were particularly likely to file bogus claims over the spill.”
He is the same dishonest bastard who when being interviewed under oath by the U.S. Congress claimed “me no know nothing senor.” Stonewalling time and again. They should hold this wimp in contempt of congress and put his skinny British ass in jail.
While some of the fishermen of South Louisiana are now having to stand in food lines to get charity food so that their children won't starve, this purple-nosed British cretin is flying off to England to race his million dollar yacht.
Hayward is one worthless example of humanity.
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The people who live near the Gulf of Mexico are rapidly descending into a state of despair. And maybe rightfully so. The more one learns about BP and the oil spill disaster, the more that despair seems like a completely appropriate reaction.
The Jews living in Israel are getting more-and-more paranoid and desperate. There are rumors that Iran has ships headed their way trying to incite violence and warfare. In all these years the Arabs still deny their right to exist as a state, and they keep shelling Israel and sending in rockets. Despair is an attitude that the Israelis can understand.
The number of millions of Americans who do not have health insurance and are denied access to health care continues to grow. The Obama plan does not incorporate single payer or a vigorous government option. It won't even affect most people for another few years. The greedy Republicans seem sincere about trying to overturn even this very weak and modest healthcare program. Despair doesn't seem entirely out of line.
The war in Afghanistan is going worse all the time. We are not going to be successful there. That has become clear. For all the kids who come home in a pine box or who do come home but are horribly screwed up physically or emotionally despair is common.
Most of America's senators and congressman are on the take. Corruption is rampant. Rather than being beholding to the voters who elected them they have sold their souls to the wealthy who provide the millions in campaign contributions. Campaign finance reform is simply not going to happen.
Global warming is real and is happening, but still is being denied. America is not doing anything meaningful to help.
Mexico is slowing imploding to the south of us. The Mexicans sure know the meaning of the word despair.
Not good.
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6:15 a.m.
Last night was the most terrible yet. I don't think I slept longer than 10 minutes at a time all night long. I don't know what the total adds up to, but it feels like not nearly enough.
Extreme uncontrollable (and painful) coughing, lungs wheezing. I have never heard the death rattle, but I couldn't help thinking about it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_rattle You really have no choice but to sit up or in most cases actually stand up to try and get the gut wrenching cough under control. Once in a while hocking up a goober of extremely sticky phlegm, but mostly just useless uncontrollable coughing.
The strong pain inside the right lung...right at the same place where it was 7 years ago when I was first diagnosed with leukemia, except now with the addition of lot of very large and sensitive lymph nodes. I remember having this almost debilitating lung pain in Paris, and later at a party given by the Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in Holland.
I now have so many defective cancerous white blood cells that the hemoglobin and oxygen carrying red blood cells have declined well below what people consider to be optimal minimum levels. So lots of tissues and muscles are just barely getting enough oxygen. Quickly becoming out of breath after slowly walking just 10 or 20 meters. Feet and ankles swelling substantially. I had to go buy some new larger shoes.
On the internet I have been following the same leukemia patients for a while. One is a friend of mine. Yesterday a couple of them had been in such pain and continuous discomfort that they were beginning to question how bad one's quality of life can get in an incurable cancerous disease before it makes perfectly good sense to begin questioning how much longer one should keep up the fight. Or as I would say, How much longer one should put up with this shit.
I would not welcome spending many months or years in this situation, but honestly I don't think the body has the stamina left to survive several months of this this level of abuse anyway. I've been this sick for a while now. I should have the strength to put up with it a few more weeks. If things don't start to show signs of getting any better by then, all bets are going to be gradually begin slipping off the table.
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Several American news organizations note that Mexico just had its most violent week ever. About 350 people have died in one week as a result of the fight with organized crime (mostly drug syndicates) in Mexico.
Mexican President Calderon has blamed the problem on demand for drugs like marijuana and cocaine in America and to a growing degree home grown consumption in Mexico. Both of these could be solved by decriminalizing, regulating, and taxing recreational drug use. Prohibition didn't work back in the 1930s, and it doesn't work in the twenty-first century either.
The Mexican President also says that the Mexican mafias have been able to overpower the authorities because of all the guns being brought in from the U.S.A. This part I dispute. Criminals will always have guns whether owning guns is against the law or not. The Mexican criminals are getting their guns from America just because it is nearby and handy. If the American guns were not available then AK-47s would be coming in by the ocean going container load from many countries all over the world. They are readily available and not expensive.
The reason that the Mexican authorities including the police and military have not been able to deal with their organized crime problem is because of the rampant corruption in Mexico. The concept of rule-of-law is not a part of the Mexican culture. Bribes are paid to all government workers in Mexico on a daily basis. In many cases paying a small bribe is the only way to get routine paperwork handled by the government. Now that there is a genuine battle going on against the drug lords, the Mexicans find that this sort of corruption and infiltration by the bad guys reaches to the very top levels of government and law enforcement.
My conclusion? The Mexicans are screwed.
LINK: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/15/AR2010061503174.html?hpid=moreheadlines
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I was diagnosed as having leukemia in December 2002. The symptoms of the leukemia were not yet obvious, and it was only discovered because I had a series of blood tests done because I had a bad infection in my right lung. For years I had a blood doctor who dealt with the leukemia and a lung doctor who tried to help improve my lung function. I was once trying to impress my attractive lady lung doctor with how much I knew about leukemia. I informed her that most people who have leukemia die of pneumonia. She politely informed me that most people in general at the very end of their life die because of an uncontrollable infection in their lungs. I never tried to impress her after that.
One sees many different life expectancy statistics thrown around concerning people who have chronic lymphocytic leukemia. A common number for life expectancy is 7 – 10 years from the date of diagnosis. Another is a median survival rate of 95 months. Based upon how my CLL has been progressing recently, both forecasts seem pretty accurate to me.
At the moment the lung infection has returned with a vengeance. Last night my body was making so much incredibly sticky phlegm that a few times during the night I honestly thought it might totally plug up my airways. Every 15 – 20 minutes all night long I had to get up and blow my nose and drink some water.
It would be unfortunate if this lung situation gets any worse, since I would then drown because of my lungs and breathing passages clogging up with this gunk. Last night's episode had a positive ending, but I don't doubt that one way or another the leukemia is going to get me in the not too distant future. I'm nearing the end of that journey. Maybe days, or months, maybe even a couple of years. It would be foolish denial to pretend otherwise.
My latest blood test shows that the white blood cells which fight off disease are very low; the platelets have now declined well below minimum recommended levels and so has the hemoglobin in my blood. Inadequate red blood cells and hemoglobin means that the blood is no longer able to do its job of properly oxygenating the body's tissues. In practice it means that I get out of breath real easy now. After walking just 100 or 200 feet (about 30 - 60 meters) the muscles in my legs begin to ache from a lack of sufficient oxygen. The heart is another useful muscle which demands a good supply of oxygen.
So far this journey has been very tolerable. In fact my little doggie and I both have adapted quite well to my newly limited strength and stamina. I am constantly aware of my nearby “hallway howitzer” but I haven't yet gotten at all close to thinking that I should actually exercise the euthanasia option. Thank goodness for my little dog Inu. He snuggles with me and comforts me all night long. In some ways there has now been a partial role reversal. I am still the pack leader; I bring home the bacon, and I hold the leash when we are out on a short walk here in the city. When we go out for a walk in the nearby desert he is constantly checking on me to make sure that I am doing OK. He understand that it has now become his job to protect me, and he takes his work very seriously. It is good to have a soft little furry black partner who gives you unconditional love and wants for you to get better more than anything in the whole wide world.
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Even among really smart commentators not much is being said about the real cause of the massive BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Everyone wants to blame BP, and they in fact should. Others, especially the right wing fanatics and the Republicans who like to spout their pearls of wisdom about less and smaller government, want to blame the Obama administration and the federal government for not doing enough. This really is just blowhard political rhetoric. Anything to make the Presidential Raghead and the progressives look bad.
The number of oil spills and their magnitude have been on the increase for several years. The cause is what we need to deal with, because this must be corrected in order to assure us that this won't continue to happen.
The cause is regulators who allowed the corporations to self regulate. Under Bush II government regulators who did their job of protecting the environment, the food supply for human consumption, kids toys, and fraud in the financial sector were fired. Career regulators in the FDA, OSHA, and even the legal system were strongly encouraged to let these companies make money. The Bush assumption was that companies as big as the Wall Street banks and British Petroleum would not dare endanger their assets by engaging in excessively risky behavior.
Under funding of the regulatory authorities, downright open and active encouragement telling the government regulators to leave these guys alone, deregulation, and industry self-regulation just about bankrupted the country. Many of the people who have lost their homes, savings, marriages, and jobs have actually found it necessary to formally go bankrupt.
Deregulation is the cause of all these crises, and this must be corrected. The Republicans will do everything they can to kill re-regulation. Screw these ignorant red neck bastards.
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In American society civilians decide whether we are going to go to war or not, and the military's job is to do their best to enforce the decisions made by their civilian supervisors. In many countries the military tells the civilian lawmakers and elected officials how its going to be; not so in America. Here we feel that it is improper for the military to even publicly comment about laws, rules, or wars that they don't like. The military is not given the authority to only follow those orders or directives that they like, and ignore those orders which they do not care for.
Rule-of-law means that the law is enforced the same for a poor, uneducated Mexican woman as it is for the male, white, Mayor of the city. The policemen are not given the authority to let their friends or the rich and powerful violate society's laws without any consequence. They also are not allowed to single out some particular group, subjecting them to stronger enforcement of the laws – like Jews, Blacks, or Mexicans; while allowing white, redneck, Christians to openly lynch people.
The police are not allowed to permit the rich and powerful to openly smoke pot and snort cocaine, all the while arresting poor brown skinned people for possessing one joint of marijuana. Allowing the law enforcement officer to make these decisions is an open encouragement to bribery and other forms of corruption of the legal system.
The above is a lead in to talking about enforcement of laws relating to immigration.
It is improper for policemen or Border Patrol agents to meet with members of the news media to try and influence which laws will be enforced and which laws will be ignored. It is completely understandable that cops or sheriff's deputies have opinions. In many cases their ideas are based upon personal experience and sound judgment; in others their opinions are ignorant or racist. It is simply their job as law enforcement agents to enforce society's laws as impartially as possible.
Except for those countries undergoing a total breakdown like Somalia, all countries have laws, rules, and regulations which are intended to control who may enter the country, who may work in the country, and who is granted the honor of citizenship. The U.S.A. allows more legal in-migration than any other country. Like all civilized countries the U.S.A. has the obligation to protect the country and it's citizens by prohibiting certain types of people from coming in to the country, and encouraging others to move to America and even eventually gain citizenship status.
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Like in almost all countries, America has long standing laws which require non-citizens to always carry proper identification and proof of citizenship. In many cases this means a passport along with entry visas. When one is driving a motor vehicle it is also the law of the land that one carry proper identification including a driver's license and proof of valid liability insurance.
If the police pull someone over because they are speeding, they have failed to stop at a red light, or because their car does not have valid license plates or an up-to-date safety sticker, the cops are expected to insist that the driver show them a driver's license and insurance card. If in doing so the cops notice an open bottle of whiskey between the driver's legs it is not within their authority to ignore this fact. The same would apply if they notice a handgun being openly displayed sitting on the seat. Same if the policeman obviously smelled the pungent odor of burning marijuana.
So if a traffic cop pulls someone over because they notice that his safety sticker or registration has expired, and then the driver who cannot speak English is unable to produce a valid driver's license or proof of insurance, the same logic would apply. It would be sound judgment on the part of the cop to suspect that perhaps this person has entered the country without being granted proper permission from the American Government. This is commonly called being in the country illegally or being an undocumented alien. We would be very shocked if the policeman were to accept a wad of $100 bills so as to just ignore the violation, and we should also be shocked if the policeman makes an on-the-spot decision to behave as judge and jury by simply letting the person off with no consequences.
When all of society begins openly violating any rule, regulation, or law that they personally don't like it leads to a complete breakdown of civilized society. Witness Somalia or our neighbor just to the south. Mexico has long scoffed at rule-of-law, and now they are paying the price big time.
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The Mexicans have been permitted to openly violate American laws for so long that now they apparently are genuinely offended when American law enforcement officers insist that they follow U.S. Law. If rule-of-law is ignored this is what happens. The corruption and decay seen in Mexico are largely because all Mexican government officials could be bribed so easily – even the police and the judges.
Yesterday a group of Mexicans crossed the international border into the United States, then began using deadly force (stoning by a group of people is clearly deadly force) against an American Border Patrol bicycle agent. To defend himself he was required to also use deadly force. He drew his .40 caliber gun (probably a Glock) and killed one of the Mexicans.
Not long afterward the Mexican police showed up. While the Americans were attempting to investigate what had happened on their side of the border, the gun toting Mexican authorities kept pointing their weapons at the American agents. The Americans were forced to leave the scene. Video shot at the scene shows the Mexican agents then crossing over to the American side of the border and picking up something. The Mexicans later claimed that they had found a .40 caliber shell casing on the Mexican side of the border.
This situation is only destined to get worse. And it all is because for years the American Government openly ignored all the Mexican people who were crossing into America illegally. This intentional disregard for the rule-of-law by the American authorities assured the supply of slave-wage maids and day laborers, as well as chili pickers who were not protected by OSHA or anyone else in the U.S. Government. The Mexicans got used to being able to walk all over the American authorities. Now they are getting quite upset that we have actually begun enforcing existing laws.
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UPDATE: The Mexican boy throwing the rocks was a know smuggler of people. It also appears possible that he was standing on the Mexcian side of the line and that the American Border Patrol agent was on the American side when he fired the fatal shots.
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they were married to each other.At the moment I've got things set up just like I want them. I'm pleased with the situation. I don't own an assault rifle, an AK-47, a Uzzi, any .223 caliber weapons, or any of the large magazine capacity "lunatic guns" that you see the cop killers and the extremist government haters so enamored/armed with.
In long guns I've got:
12 gauge pump action shotgun with laser and the shortest barrel that is legal, with OO buck shot.
30-06 bolt action hunting rifle equipped with a Nikon scope, a flashlight, and a laser.
30-30 lever action carbine.
In hand guns I've got:
One beautiful little 2 shot derringer chambered for .38 special or .32 H&R magnum.
.38 special +P titanium alloy frame revolver with a laser grip.
.44 magnum revolvers with laser grips - 2 ea.
.380 semi automatic concealed carry with a laser grip.
This does not make me a gun freak. Honest. This just proves that I am a normal Texan.
I learned firearms safety, gun cleaning, and how to shoot from my Dad when I was a young boy with a .22 long rifle semi automatic. From my grandfather I inherited a 410 pump action shotgun. Our family also had a Winchester lever action 30-30, an old civil war era derringer, and a semi automatic .32 caliber handgun that had been used in WWII by someone in the medical corps. When I served in the army in the 1970's (during the Vietnam War) everyone was required to receive adequate training in weapons safety, firing, and maintaining the M16; but I spent the next three years sitting behind an IBM Executive typewriter typing for a General at the 3rd Armored Division Headquarters in Frankfurt, West Germany.
I worked in his campaign because he had the most liberal voting record of any U.S. Senator and because he was an ex-community organizer. Now based upon his behavior I consider President Barack Obama to be very much middle-of-the-road; maybe somewhat to the right of center. Many people tend to try define a person with one word. He is a black, he is a Republican wanna be, she is a lesbian, or he is a liberal.
When people find out that I drive a Toyota Prius (this is my second one), that my house has a white roof, great insulation, triple pane windows, roll down shutters, and desert landscaping some people like to define me as a liberal, environmentalist, tree hugger. In many ways I guess I am; and a pinko, progressive or liberal too.
But on economics issues I consider the Republicans to be horribly wasteful deficit spending extremists. Ronald Rayguns was the worst. I believe in civil rights for people of color and equality for women. I abhor warfare, and I think marine mammals should be protected. If the Californians want to legalize pot it is fine with me. All of this makes people say that I am a liberal.
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In Mexico is it extremely illegal for normal people to possess firearms, but the criminals are very well armed. It just proves that the bad guys will always be able to get guns, even if guns are made illegal. I am a supporter of the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteeing broad gun rights to all adult, non-criminal Americans. I think open carry is fine. I also want to stop undocumented immigration. These ideas are normally associated with the right wing.
It just proves that the old left-right, liberal-conservative definition is horribly simple minded. Always was. People are far more complex than that.
Ammunition is currently readily available for all my guns, except for the .380 auto. I have a couple of boxes of shells for each caliber of gun that I own. I do have some 380 rounds (also called 9 mm short), but they are full metal jacket rounds. The high performance, “self protection” type of ammunition is all on back order everywhere that I know of at the moment.
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If you are using a wireless connection or a slow internet connection it will take a few seconds for this to appear. It is really funny so please be patient.
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Right now it is 105.6 F (41 C) just a couple of kilometers from my house in El Paso, Texas.
The New York Times has a great article today about the various people who are concerned about what will happen to society as the easy to recover (read cheap) oil runs out and worldwide we transition to using oil which which was more difficult, dangerous, and expensive to recover.
The article describes the collapsitarians and the doomers, both of which are “located somewhere between the environmental movement and the bunkered survivalists.”
I certainly won't live long enough to see the major effects of the cheap oil shortage, but it still makes me feel good about myself to own a house with triple pane windows, a white roof, and to drive a Toyota Prius. I do find myself sometimes thinking about the social and economic collapse which might result. Maybe these thought patterns of gloom and doom, possible imminent chaos, and destruction are contributing to my generalized paranoia. Or maybe this mostly is just a physical and chemical reaction to having late stage leukemia.
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COLLAPSITARIANS: http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2009/02/collapsitarians.php
DOOMERS: http://www.doomers.us/forum2/
LINK TO MAIN ARTICLE: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/us/06peak.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
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I am about as far as one can get from being a Republican. Even so, I really like this campaign ad!
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It is an illusion and delusional to thank that America can ever fully close off the border with Mexico. Even if we spent the vast amounts of money needed to build a Berlin Wall on America's southern border, just like was the case in Germany, there would still be plenty of people who find ways to get through or over the wall. The real solution is genuine and sincere enforcement of employment laws, and enforcement of the laws regarding whether a person who is a citizen of another country has been granted permission by the U.S. government to visit, live, or work in America. Judicial transparency and some measure of compassion are both required if this is going to work. The poor immigrants who come to America don't do so for the climate or the political system; they come north hoping to improve themselves and their families financially by working their asses off in mostly low paying, demeaning jobs.
If society decides that we really do want to control and reduce casual immigration from the Spanish speaking countries then there are two elements, neither of which involves bigger and longer walls or more U.S. Border Patrol agents and all their SUVs & helicopters.
First, heavy fines which are big enough that they really do hurt must become mandatory for any American employer who hires people who do not have U.S. Government working permission. Big fines and mandatory jail time for American businessmen and managers who repeatedly violate the law would help. What this also says is that the government must get it's act together so that all adults in America have a high tech U.S. Government I.D. Card with their photo and their status regarding whether they may be employed or not. Second, the government needs to get its act together regarding keeping track of all non-citizens. Especially tracking when they exit the country or if they overstay their temporary permission to visit.
The above is a discussion about the essentially racist and xenophobic matter of immigration by badly educated, brown skinned, poor people who speak the Spanish language. There is the second issue of drugs, drug barons, ignoring rule-of-law, etc. This is probably a far more important matter.
We should start out by legalizing marijuana, regulating its growth, production, use, and taxing it when it is sold to the final consumer. Just like tobacco, pot should be treated much like alcohol was after prohibition. Young people need to find it much harder to get their hands on pot. Driving a motor vehicle while stoned on pot is probably just as dangerous as driving drunk or talking-texting on your cell phone while driving.
When the marijuana money flow is transparent and is tracked and taxed by the IRS, it will be more difficult for the drug barons/criminals to remain involved in the matter. The addictive drugs like oxycontin, crystal meth, heroin, and cocaine are an entirely different issue and this has to be dealt with differently. I don't have time to discuss it here. It is worth noting that prescriptions by Doctors must be computerized and better regulated so that the flow of illegal prescription drugs is also ameliorated.
Supporting rule-of-law and fighting corruption/bribery are essential for the survival of America as a civilized society. The penalties for corruption and bribery by government employees (including elected officials) need to be greatly increased and made mandatory. Not discretionary. Rooting out and preventing corruption among government workers has to become one of our highest priorities.
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The 1969 movie entitled Easy Rider was really famous at the time. Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and a young Jack Nicholson starred in it. At the time it was viewed as earth shaking, maybe even revolutionary. It was the first movie which openly discussed and advocated smoking marijuana and long hair on men, and the perils of the not so bright, closed minded southern red necks.
The story is about two small time drug dealers who ride their motorcycles across America. Along the way they have various adventures including experiencing the good and the bad of a commune, being thrown in a red neck jail, and eventually getting gunned down by a dumb ass southern good-ole-boy.
I saw the movie back when it was fresh, and now forty one years later I just finished it again. I had forgotten that in some ways it was a musical. But not with Broadway singers, rather the popular druggie music of the time along with scenic shots of their trip across the southwest.
Some books and movies age very well. Others not so well. I am surprised at how amateurish this movie seems now. Most of the things we thought we believed in back then have not panned out well. Actually we were just a bunch of mostly lazy stoners. Our thoughts about peace, equality of the races and sexes, and saving the environment certainly have not played out well at all. The forces of evil have won over – solidly won. You might say that the rich, closed minded, red neck bastards kicked our asses.
LINK: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easy_Rider
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