America
Why is it always the Dogs fault?
Not too long ago, I read an article about a dog who had somehow managed to set a house on fire. I don’t remember the details, but apparently the cat saved everyone by waking the owners up. This week, I ran into a similar article:
Firefighters said a grease fire that left $50,000 in damage to a Topeka home erupted after a dog shut a woman out of the house while fish was frying on the stove. – [Yahoo/AP]
Now something fishy is going on here. Why is the dog always to blame? How come the lady didn’t just break a window, then reach in and unlock the door when she realized her pan was aflame? Seriously, a broken window or door is way, way cheaper than letting the whole house burn down right?
But nooooo, they let it burn and blame the dog. Yeah. Right. I’m not buying it either…
Dog blamed in fish frying grease blaze – [Yahoo/AP]
You’d think God would have a better sense of humor…
Christian groups are up in arms here over a new children’s film starring Nicole Kidman and based on an award-winning novel by British author Philip Pullman, accusing it of being anti-religious.
Evil in Pullman’s books is represented by the church, called the Magisterium, whose acolytes kidnap orphans across England to subject them to horrible experiments in the frozen northern wastelands. – [Yahoo/AFP]
Seriously, why would anyone who believes in an all-powerful, almighty God, even trouble themselves with things like this? It’s not as if anyone is going to take the movie literally, and decide that the church is evil. Not to mention that there are a lot of other worse things to be complaining about besides a freakin’ movie.
I could point out that, historically, much treachery, killing and death has occurred in the name of Christianity, and religion in general. Numerous crusaders, jihadi, conquerers, terrorists, etc. and wars have often been perpetuated in “Gods” name, or with “Gods” support. But this shouldn’t worry any honest Christians because we are different, and people don’t do that anymore… Right? Oh… Wait… Nevermind.
But as I was saying, does anyone really think God honestly, really cares about this movie? How could it possibly offend Him? It’s a fairy tale for crying out loud! A work of fiction. Why, in the name of all that is holy, would the Almighty be offended by this? Seriously, given how the world works, you’d think God would have, at the very least, an epic sense of humor…
Christian groups slam new Kidman children’s movie – [Yahoo/AFP]
Teen MySpace Suicide. Preventable, but not the way you think…
An article today talked about a teen who committed suicide after a rather cruel Myspace prank:
The parents of Megan Meier of Dardenne Prairie, who hanged herself last year, said her suicide came minutes after she received mean messages through the social networking site MySpace. – [Yahoo/AP]
Now that is very tragic. Teen suicides are probably the saddest thing that can happen, and probably the most devastating thing that can occur to a parent.
A police report said that a mother from the neighborhood and her 18-year-old employee fabricated a profile for a teenage boy online who pretended to be interested in Megan before he began bullying her. – [Yahoo/AP]
OK now this is just plain mean and senseless. Some people really need to get a life. That 18 year old seriously needs a date or something…
After the case became public, Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt asked lawmakers to review state law to see if changes were necessary to better deal with cases that involve Internet bullying. Some municipalities have also considered or passed statutes to strengthen laws that deal with Internet harassement. – [Yahoo/AP]
Ah, of course. The obligatory knee-jerk, parent activist motivated legislative law passing that is bound to bite us in the rear at some point in the future…
What is truly sad about this incident, isn’t that internet laws aren’t tough enough, bullying laws aren’t tough enough or even, as an extreme example of the futility of this kind of lawmaking, that suicide laws aren’t tough enough. The truly sad thing was that the teen wasn’t tough enough.
Here is the thing. I have known kids who were beaten down and abused daily by their parents, who did not kill themselves. I’ve seen kids grow up in environments that would mentally cripple an adult. But they actually became tougher, stronger and more resilient.
When I was growing up, many of my friends and I were subjected to actual physical bullying. Not stupid disparaging emails. Actually, we didn’t have email. I would have preferred to be bullied by email. But the thing is, none of us contemplated suicide, only survival. None of them have committed suicide. Not one.
My point is this. The internet bullying isn’t the big problem. It’s the way kids today are raised. The ones that commit suicide tend to have considered it long before they ever do, and need special treatment. Or even better yet, to have been raised differently.
If it isn’t internet bullying, it will be failing a test, buckling under peer pressure, failing to achieve a goal later in life, who knows. No law will prevent that mindset. But good parenting, and where necessary, the right treatments, can. So let’s quit making stupid knee-jerk laws, and focus on how to treat suicide prone teens, indeed how to properly raise our kids so they don’t become suicide prone teens.
Seriously, if all it takes for your teen to kill themselves are mean emails from someone they really don’t even know, don’t you think there must be something else terribly wrong?
No charges in MySpace suicide case – [Yahoo/AP]
Places NOT to watch your Pr0n…
From the record vault of bad ideas. A Texas man chose a rather unusual place to catch a quick porn flick:
Police issued a citation for a man accused of watching pornography on his car DVD player. Cameron J. Walker, 24, of Irving, was issued misdemeanor citations for obscene display or distribution, not having a driver’s license and having an open container of alcohol, Fort Worth police said. – [Yahoo/AP]
Well, ya know, his wife probably kicked him out. That’s why he didn’t have his wallet. Or something. All right, I’m grabbin’ at straws. I got nuthin’. But what other reason would you possibly have to decide to kick back in your car with a cold brewski and watch a porn DVD in public?
Police cite man for watching porn in car – [Yahoo/AP]
More car crushing idiocy…
It would appear that Australia is taking a page from Californias law book of senseless and excessive practices:
Street racers in Australia will soon see their beloved cars being deliberately smashed by the authorities in videos posted on the Internet.
The often flashy, souped-up vehicles will be wrecked in crash tests under laboratory conditions, the New South Wales state government announced. – [Yahoo/AFP]
Now I’m sure some of you out there are thinking “Serves them right!”, but I assure you, this law is not a good thing. There is a reason this hasn’t been done in the past. This is technically a violation of an individuals rights. When convicted killers go to prison, even they do not have their belongings destroyed. They may be confiscated and cataloged, but they get them back when they get out. If they get out.
So how exactly can anyone think that this is a fair penalty for any lesser crime? I’d rather impose this penalty for drunk drivers, rather than street racers. At least the street racers are actually in full control of their faculties, and some of them (let me iterate the *some*) are actually really good drivers. The same cannot be said for drunks. But the kicker is that ultimately, as a deterrent, it wouldn’t work for that either.
These kinds of knee-jerk, intimidation-based legislative decisions set very dangerous precedents that could have very profound future ramifications. And to top it off, it’s not like this is going to deter anyone from street racing anyway. Most of the folks who street race will do it regardless of the penalties. Literally. These laws are little more than public displays to make others feel like something is being done about the problem, when in fact, it will have little effect on any hard core racers.
However to their credit, the Australians have adopted a better use for the vehicles than just crushing them. They will be used for crash tests. Which is orders of magnitude better than Californias pointless “crush ‘em all” solution. But both laws are seriously troublesome. The law will have to be very specific on what constitutes “street racing”, and even then I’m sure many police officers will still abuse it, much like how the “aggressive driving” box is seemingly checked on tickets at will, as opposed to, let’s say, the tickets of drivers who actually meet the legal definition of “aggressive driving”…
Aussie street racers to see cars crashed by govt – [Yahoo/AFP]
More handgun mayhem.
A recent case regarding whether an Oregon school teacher could bring her handgun to school has been decided:
Shirley Katz, who has a legal permit to carry a concealed handgun, argued she needed the Glock semi-automatic pistol to protect herself from her ex-husband. She sued the school district when it told her carrying a gun was against a district policy prohibiting guns.
Circuit Judge G. Philip Arnold agreed with the district, saying “The District has a right to enforce this policy.” he noted that employees “accept their jobs subject to, and knowing, the policy.” – [Yahoo/Reuters]
Well now. That’s too bad. I can sympathize with the need for the district to remain in control. But this ruling won’t prevent any disgruntled students, irate ex-husbands, explosive bearing gang members or crazed faculty from bringing firearms on campus either.
Unless the district installs metal detectors. And hires some really burly security guards. But of course they’d have to arm the security guards, ’cause they would be useless against an armed assailant if they didn’t have a projectile weapon of some sort. Like a taser. Or a firearm. Except your average taser has an average range of about 15 feet. And is single shot. Not much help against a firearm wielding opponent. Unless they are less than 15 feet in front of you, and you are a crack shot.
It seems to me that while the district seems to be ignoring the basic fact that these rules do not protect the ones who follow them. Only the ones who break them. They do not prevent anyone from bringing a firearm into the school, unless the rule is supplemented by active security measures, such as metal detectors and random spot checks that physically prevent them from being broken. And that just breeds an atmosphere of oppression. Not to mention that even those measures can be circumvented.
So what exactly is the point of such a restriction? At the end of the day, it seems entirely easier to just arm the teachers. It would be much, much cheaper, and orders of magnitude more effective. If not with firearms, then at least with tasers. Sticking ones head in the sand in a gunfight only guarantees that ones hind quarters will get shot off…
Teacher loses fight to take gun to class – [Yahoo/Reuters]
Old school robbery gone wrong…
What does a 70 year old man, a 50 year old non-working handgun, a bandanna, a grocery bag and a local bank add up to? Prison time:
Police say a 70-year-old man told them he tried to solve his financial problems with a grocery bag, bandanna and a 50-year-old handgun that doesn’t work.
Instead, Donald Cesare is in the Erie County Prison on federal bank robbery charges stemming from a holdup Thursday at the First National Bank in Millcreek Township. – [Yahoo/AP]
Now obviously, this guy was desperate. Seriously, who tries to hold up a bank with a 50 year old, non functioning firearm? But he seems like a nice guy. Probably didn’t really want to hurt anybody. Even wanted to apologize to the teller.
Pity he couldn’t figure out a better way to deal with his financial woes. If I had a broken, 50 year old hand gun, and nothing to do, I’d hold up a bingo hall. “Please put your left hand in the air, and with your right hand, slowly pass all of your bingo cards forward…” That would be totally cool…
Man, 70, charged in Pa. bank holdup – [Yahoo/AP]
Use the crosswalk… Or else…
Most of the time, I find myself ranting about the flaws in our legal system, but today we have a unfortunate example of a man who appears to have a rather poor grasp of the basics, and subsequently cause himself a little more grief than neccesary:
Leroy Franklin Cladd Jr. was cited for not using a crosswalk late Thursday night. He balked at signing the ticket, a misdemeanor that landed him in jail. He was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time, police said. – [Yahoo/AP]
OK. To be fair, I can see where this guy erred. Honestly, why would they throw you in jail for jaywalking? But that’s the problem. They didn’t throw him in jail for jaywalking. They threw him in jail for refusing to answer to the charge of jaywalking. Big difference.
In case you don’t see the difference, let me spell it out for you. Jaywalking. No big deal. But if, perchance, you get caught by a bored officer with nothing better to do, you get a citation. The citation is merely a charge, an accusation of an infraction. Your signature on a citation is not an admission of guilt or innocence, it is simply a way of legally ensuring that you will show up, to either challenge the accusation, or admit guilt and make restitution.
If you don’t sign, you are not legally bound to voluntarily answer to the charge at a later date, so the only way to ensure that this happens is to arrest you on the spot, throw you in jail, and bring you before the next available judge. It’s that simple. It may seem a little harsh for a crime as piddling as jaywalking, but there you have it. The law ain’t perfect.
Seriously, the man should have just signed the doggone citation. At least that way, he might have had a few drinks at the bar before they came and arrested him for not showing up in court…
Fla. man jailed for jaywalking – [Yahoo/AP]
Shrooms. Giving new meaning to “Hot Chocolate”…
Apparently a Georgia man has found a new use for chocolate bunnies:
Rockdale County sheriff’s deputies arrested a the man after a deputy spotted him allegedly selling a sheet of LSD and a chocolate duck containing psilocybin mushrooms for $650, Sgt. Jodi Shupe said Saturday. – [Yahoo/AP]
Ah. He was probably trying to bring back the good old days. The days of “special” brownies and spiked punch. Someone should have told him it’s the new millennium. Really. Not the 1970s. It’s I-Pods and PSPs now. He seriously needs to get with the times…
Police: Man sold hallucinogens in candy – [Yahoo/AP]
Paris Hilton Has a Cause!
And guess what. It involves inebriated pachyderms:
Paris Hilton is being praised by conservationists for highlighting the problem of binge-drinking elephants in northeastern India.
Activists said a celebrity endorsement such as Hilton’s was sure to raise awareness of the plight of the pachyderms that get drunk on farmers’ homemade rice beer and then go on a rampage. – [Yahoo/AP]
You know seriously, with all the jacked up stuff that is going on in the world today, the one cause she decides to champion, is elephants getting drunk on rice beer that their owners forgot to put away? I suppose that is par for the course for this lady, but honestly…
Hilton tries to help drunk elephants – [Yahoo/AP]
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