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November 22, 2004:
Three Strikes:
We saw on local TV a fellow who owns several quick-stop type
stores. In the last four years, his stores have experienced 32
armed robberies. He was quite put out with our law enforcement
and court system. The last thug who robbed one of his stores
got no jail time, just four months probation, and he was not
even required to pay restitution. In other words, he got to keep
what he stole. Don't you think we need a three strikes law? Perhaps
we don't need a law for the crooks, but for the judges. If they
let three felons walk, they get removed from the bench for good.
The DA in this case tried to switch attention from the failure
of himself and the courts to drugs. He said drugs are to blame
for this bad behavior and we should deal with that rather than
the felony. Is it any wonder the cops are sometimes not vigorous
in their work? These cops often risk their lives to bring a felon
to the bar and the court lets them walk. Why bother? A two bit
DA and a two bit judge.
Global Warming:
It really is happening. According to ABC news, we have lost 400
thousand square miles of sea ice from the polar region. That's
8% of the ice pac. The United States is causing most of that
disaster. Our government continues to refuse to deal with the
fact of greenhouse gas generation in America. We still refuse
to sign the Kyoto accord.
I Told You So!
In Atlanta Georgia the Creationists have renewed the efforts
to get creationists theories into the public school systems.
They are putting stickers on history books telling the students
that evolution is only a theory. Now, with their man in the White
House they sense a new attitude in the population. They are sure
they can take us backward several centuries. I fear they are
right. I told you this would happen. This is just the beginning
salvo. Hello Dark Ages!
Breakthrough:
We noticed on the television news that science has created a
vaccine for one kind of cervical cancer in woman. It deals with
the most common cause by preventing it. It will save countless
lives. Right on! Now wouldn't it be great if they could create
a vaccine for breast and prostrate cancer?
Silly Sheriff:
This one is so silly I did not want to believe it, but the account
was published in the Detroit Free Press. Most folks know the
Ford Motor Company is being sued by a consortium of Police departments.
The alleged case cites faulty fuel tanks in the Crown Victoria
causing fuel tank explosions and fires. One of the claimants
in this suit is a Florida Sheriff named Charlie Morris. It seems
this guy was foolish enough to try to purchase more Crown Vics
from Ford for his department after he initiated the lawsuit.
The sales folks at Ford respectfully declined to sell to him.
Then this nut case went into court and tried to get a judge to
order Ford to sell him more cars. The judge had the good sense
to deny his request. Bizarre!
Here It Comes:
George's patsy, Powell, has proclaimed that Iran is trying to
develop a nuclear weapon. George is chiding them. I gotta say
it, I told you so! How long do you think it will be before we
invade? How long do you think it will be before George calls
for a militry draft? How many of our kids do you think will be
killed? We are blowing up Mosques in Iraq and our government
is talking about free elections. Our situation there is untenable
and we are lecturing Iran on ethical behavior. Double bizarre!
Happy Holiday:
November 19 and we were watching the evening news. It is not
even Thanksgiving yet and Saginaw was lighting their municipal
Christmas tree. Next day, on the 20th they had a Christmas parade.
Is it gross and commercial in spades? Of course not. They are
just celebrating the birth of Jesus. I have no doubt. Let us
pray brethren, let us pray.
A New Problem:
It seems air passengers are complaining. The people who are supposed
to be inspecting baggage are stealing part of it. That's the
rap. It turns out that many of the people hired by the government
as inspectors have criminal records. Why am I not surprised?
I have a solution for the passengers. If I had to fly I would
send my luggage ahead by UPS and board the plane with only my
ID, credit card, and enough cash to last until I arrive.
Ford:
Ford has been showing off the new Escape highbred. They say people
are lining up to buy it. I am constantly amazed at the credulity
of the American rabble. I wonder what they would do if someone
came out with a well designed real highbred car. I sincerely
hope Ford has something else in the offing. I fear this Escape
bubble will burst quickly. I have not seen the actual vehicle,
except on TV and in a brochure they sent me, but it sure looks
like a kludge to me. It has the acceleration of a turtle and
the gas millage is not high enough to justify the tradeoffs.
They claim 36 mpg on the highway and 41 in town. The worst part
is, it cost 6 grand more than the regular vehicle. Even if gas
was 5 bucks a gallon you could not make that up in the life of
the car. It reminds me of the VW craze back in the 60's.
They say it has a 330 volt battery or some such fantastic
number. That has all the makings of an electric chair. How long
do you suppose it will be before some mechanic gets electrocuted,
by a car? That is outrageously stupid, irresponsible, and unnecessary.
I suspect the lawyers will love the car. It should bring on some
dandy law suits. It's like Ford does not get enough trouble from
Firestone and the Nader Nuts. They have to create some of their
own. A real highbred would be designed, not slopped together
on an existing platform from a random set of components.
I think Ford's best hope may be in the new Ford Five Hundred.
It looks like it was actually designed from scratch for comfort
and performance. Except for the GT, the rest of their offerings
seem to be just face lifts of old stuff. The GT is obviously
an attempt to cut into the Corvette market. That would be a real
coup if they could bring it off. The problem is, Vet owners are
a cult much like Apple PC users. Most of them would rather die
than give up their myth and they are the only market for that
kind of car.
Suicide:
Recently, the media reported there is a suicide in America every
eight minutes. A large number of these suicides are teenage kids.
Isn't anyone in our culture able to make the connection between
despair, leading to suicide, and the lack of nurturing that precedes
it? Doesn't anyone realize that the kids at Littleton were really
committing suicide in a very dramatic way? Doesn't anyone understand
a scream for attention and help when they hear it? Doesn't anyone
understand that it all has to do with the lack of ethics in our
culture?
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