It’s The Most Post Office Time of the Year
December 2, 2009
Filed under Culture, economy
Tags: Arthur Godfrey, Benjamin Franklin, Christmas, Letter Carriers, USPS
Yep, the Christmas mailing season is upon us and really began several days ago. That glorious time of the year in which we try our very best to make sure those cards, letters and packaged treasures get to their appointed destination at the appointed time. We always deliver for you, but we do try a bit harder this time of year.
As a proud member of the letter carrier fraternity, it is a special joy for me to pick up and deliver Christmas packages, knowing that there is joy and good cheer being sent and received. And, besides, I am a customer also.
So, as Arthur Godfrey famously said many years ago( slightly modified here) keep those cards, letters and packages coming.For over 200 years, since the days of Benjamin Franklin, your Postal Service is here for you.
Merry Christmas!
I Believe We May Have Too Many, But Then What?
November 27, 2009
Filed under Culture, Legal system
Tags: New York, Congress, Presidents, United States, Physicians, Baseball, Washington DC, Massachusetts, Reader's Digest, Michael Crowley, Attorneys, Politicians, Salem, ESPN The Magazine, Staten Island, Little League, Obamacare
Reader’s Digest has a somewhat regular feature called ” Outrageous,” which is written by Michael Crowley. It features articles about actual events that are almost impossible to believe in their audacity. Of course, politicians are a frequent subject. There is another group that makes regular appearances. Theses are our good friends from the legal profession. There were 2 items in his year-end article involving those legal eagles that so irritated me that I could not narrow it down and thus felt compelled to comment on both.
But first, a few numbers. There were, as of 2007 , almost 1.2 million attorneys in the Unite States. Depending on whose numbers one cites, we seem to have about 1/2 the world’s total. The legal profession is the #1 profession for members of Congress. And, good old Washington. D.C. has more lawyers than all but 6 states. But this next one caught me by surprise. Only slightly more than 1/2 of our Presidents have been attorneys.
On to the patently outrageous. his event took place in Salem, Ma. A young man driving a Ford Mustang ran head on into a Honda van. The driver of the Mustang( who w as driving way over the posted speed limit ) was injured . His passenger was severely injured as was the driver of the other vehicle. Pay close attention to this next. The father of the passenger who was injured filed a lawsuit against the driver of the van, who, according to authorities, had done nothing amiss. The lawsuit said that she carelessly and negilently failed to avoid the vehicle which hit her. The attorney’s explanation, ” Under Massachusetts law, I’m trying to get compensation for my client anywhere I can.” From an untrained perspective, it seems to view that the point being made was that the driver of the van was somehow at fault, wrong place, wrong time, or maybe just had more insurance. Outcome, don’t know.
Example #2 and this outcome, we know. The even in question took place a few years ago and was settled this year. It took place in State Island, NY and involved Little League baseball.This one on some level actually made some sense, at least as compared to example#1. A young man incurred serious knee damage sliding into second base. The base was detachable and thus designed to prevent injury. The manager said he had taught the young man to slide properly. However, his mom sued the manager, the coach who told him o go to second and the state and national Little League. She ultimately settled for $125,000. Probably the saddest part of the story is the attorney telling ESPN The Magazine that he had been flooded with calls about other parents desiring representation. Ahhhh!!
So, too many lawyers, too many laws or what? Wish I could say. But do you e remember any news articles bemoaning the shortage of attorneys in a given area in the way there is a shortage of physicians? Me neither.
I have to ask this. Wonder if either of the above cases would have been settled differently under Obamacare? Just kidding, a little.
In A Word Scandalous,But is it?
November 20, 2009
Filed under Culture, Sports
Tags: ACC, BCA, College Basketball, college football, Dick Baddour, Eastern Michigan, Floyd Keith, George O'Leary, Georgia Tech, Kansas State, Miami(Ohio), Mississippi State, New Mexico, New Mexico State, Richard Lapchick, UNC Tarheels, University of Central FDlorida, Washington
Richard Lapchick is the director of the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport. He is very involved in efforts to increase the number of minority football coaches in college. (Fyi, the school at which he teaches has one George O’Leary, former Georgia Tech head man, as its head football coach and no Coach O’Leary is not a minority) Mr Lapchick is working with the BCA, the Black Coaches and Administrators Group, headed by Floyd Keith, to increase the number of minority head coaches at major football playing institutions.
At this moment, there are 120 Football Bowl subdivision schools. Alas, there are only 9 minority head coaches and I agree with Lapchick that the number needs to increase. But he is not just looking at the hiring but where they are hired. Case in point. Three minority head coaches were fired after the 2008 season. They coached at Kansas State, Mississippi State and Washington. Four coaches were hired, a small increase, but an increase nonetheless. The problem as seen by Dr Lapchick is that the schools where these hirings occurred; New Mexico, New Mexico State, Eastern Michigan and Miami(Ohio) are not powerhouses. Neither is Kansas State, but I digress.
Lapchick calls it “scandalous” that five of the six BCS conferences have no minority head coaches. Is it a problem-yes, does it need correcting-yes. But does it fall in the realm of scandal? I submit that it does not by any definition of the word. He also thinks that there should be a civil rights movement in college sports. Some even think that a lawsuit might be the way to go.
Again, I have problems with that approach, although I am not dogmatic about it. There is a need for more minority head coaches, but at the right schools. How does one define that? By size, by winning percentages, by bowl games, by what and who defines it? Conveniently left out of the discussion is the number of minority basketball head coaches. In my conference of choice, the ACC, the numbers are even, for example. Nationwide, I would guess that the numbers are pretty good. It has taken a while but I don’t think a lawsuit was necessary.
In the interest of full disclosure, my Tarheels have yet to hire a minority as a head coach for any sport. Although, i don;t wish per se for someone to be fired, I hope that the Heels will rectify that situation in the near future. Listening, Mr Baddour?
The Forgotten Holiday
November 17, 2009
Filed under Culture, Holidays
Tags: Afghanistan, Burton Grove Elementary School, Christmas, First Family, Ft Hood, George Washington, Halloween, Iraq, Music, Scrooge, Shopping, Snoopy, Thanksgiving, Valley Forge, Wal-Mart
Wanted to get this out a little ahead of time. My far and away #1 candidate for the most forgotten holiday is Thanksgiving. Overwhelmed by the growth in Halloween preparation and paraphernalia on the one hand and the holiday shopping season on the other, the humble day of thanks has no chance. Perhaps it even should get a new name. Oh, how about Holiday Shopping Eve. Since the Friday afterwards is known as Black Friday and people must shop or else, it makes perfect sense. Rest up on Thursday, forget the big meal and hit the mall and Wal-Mart ASAP.
In my family, I am sometimes indicted as one who “hates” holidays, modern-day Scrooge, if you will. But Thanksgiving, now that is one that I like. Can’t really eat as I once could, but that’s not a problem. The food is just a backdrop, I think for the reconnecting with family that we wish were more commonplace.
I remember with great fondness songs like, “Come, Ye Thankful People Come and “Over the river and through the wood”. If my memory does not totally fail me, we even sang some of those in elementary school. Not so sure that would happen today.
I know, I know all of the stories about the 1st Thanksgiving are not 100% accurate but there are elements from that day that remain with us. The day itself has only been a federal holiday since 1941 and who knew what was going to happen in just a couple of weeks. obviously, there are stong religious underpinnings but the day is much more secular now than religious. Wonder how long it has been since families actually started eating out on Thanksgiving, have even done that myself. Perhaps the pressure to create a culinary masterpiece has just become too great. Here’s a thought, it doesn’t have to be a biiiggg deal meal to be a time for thanks. I will admit that Snoopy’s thanksgiving meal left a bit to be desired though.
I understand that the First Family does not give Christmas gifts to their children and that’s ok. Hope they celebrate Thanksgiving though. And, if you need a little extra something for which to give thanks, try this link, militaryfamiliespray. That could include those in Iraq, Afghanistan, Ft Hood and… you get the picture. 
To Whom Can You Pray?
November 14, 2009
Filed under Culture, Religion
Tags: Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Christian, Muslim, Indiana, ACLU, Senate, U S Court of Appeals -9th Circuit, ACORN, Federal Judiciary, David Hamilton, Senate Judiciary Committee, U S Constitution, U S Court of Appeals-7th Circuit, U S District- Southern Disrict of Indiana, Allah, Prayer
This might appear to be a post with a religious theme and in a minor sense it is that.But there is more of a judicial/political element that will dominate our story.
The President has nominated Judge David Hamilton of Indiana to the U S Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit. He is currently Chief Judge of the U S district Court for the Southern District of Indiana. He was nominated in March and the Senate Judiciary Committee approved him in June. Sen Harry Reid has set a vote for the full Senate on Tuesday the 17th.
A couple of interesting facts about Judge Hamilton. In 2005, he ruled that the Indiana state legislature could not open its sessions with so-called Christian prayers and that these prayers must not use Christian terms such as Jesus Christ or savior. His ruling stated that the use of proselytizing terms in prayers at the Indiana statehouse was in violation of the U S Constitution. This quote from his ruling is oddly disturbing and I am not sure why. ” Those who wish to participate in a practice of official prayer must be willing to stay within constitutional bounds.” I’m uncertain which part disturbs me more; that there is such a thing as official prayer or that there is some type of constitutional bounds for prayer. Somehow, I don’t think prayer can be contained within any bounds known to man. Anyway, Judge Hamilton also ruled in a post-judgment motion that it was not sectarian for a Muslim imam to offer a prayer to Allah. Confused, yep, me too. Kinda, sorta sounds politically correct, does it not?
A couple of other items. The judge was briefly a fund-raiser for ACORN, great thing for your resume, if you want to be an Obama guy. The other you will either like a lot or dislike a lot, depending on your political point of view. He was an officer in the Indiana branch of the ACLU. Presumably, that would indicate his somewhat sympathetic to their viewpoint.
In all probability, given the composition of the Senate, he will be confirmed next week. If so, the 7th Circuit could bear watching along with that left coast bastion, the fabled 9th Circuit.
Why Vote?
November 1, 2009
Filed under Culture, economy
Tags: Alma Adams, Chapel Hill, Daily Advance, East Carolina University, elections, Elizabeth City, Elizabeth City State University, Greenville, Guilford County, North Carolina, State legislators, University of North Carolina, voting, Wal-Mart
Short question that could generate a virtually unlimited number of answers, I guess. Because we are supposed to, I don’t know, it’s the American way, use it or lose it, to get my candidate elected, to defeat the candidate I don’t like, etc. I know there are many more, some very meaningful and others not so much.
I read one yesterday that I don’t think I had seen before, but upon reflection, it may be all too common. But I hope that it isn’t.
There was a meeting or forum, I guess here in our community a couple of days ago at Elizabeth City State University. The event was hosted by the N.C. Legislative Black Caucus and featured 9 state legislators addressing and listening to a packed auditorium of ECSU students. Brief historical reference here. I applaud the legislators for holding the event and the students for attending in such good numbers. i am not so sure that a similar event held when I was a college student would have done nearly as well.
So, the meeting was agood idea and a good opportunity for give and take between the legislators and the assembled students. One question and its answer intrigued me just a bit. One student asked what was one supposed to do when the local community did not support his university? His question was apparently based on his statement that the local Wal-Mart stocked apparel and merchandise from East Carolina University in Greenville (about 2 hours away) and the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill (about 3 hours away). Ok, a legitimate question for him. But the answer which I might have expected would deal with retail or economic issues, was a surprise.
The answer came from Rep Alma Adams of Guilford County. This is what she said.”You can control everything that’s going on by making sure that you vote.” She added that “if you sit down, if you don’t vote, people will continue to do what they want to do.”
Perhaps, I mis-interpreted her answer but it seemed to me that she was saying the reason to vote is control. If you want to control what is going on you vote. If you choose not to vote, you relinquish that control.
Very interesting response, I thought.
Scary Things
October 30, 2009
Filed under Children, Culture
Tags: Afghanistan, Capitol, Chris Matthews, CNN, dogs, Great Pumpkin, Halloween, Linus, McDonald;'s, MSNBC, NCIS, Peanuts, pets, Taliban, Tony DiNozzo, Washington DC
Tomorrow is Halloween and that means different things depending probably on your age as much as anything else. For the little people, it means legally sanctioned plundering. All the candy and goodies and McDonald’s coupons you can persuade people to give you. Fyi, don’t you hate it when people who are old enough to know better come to your door with no costume and a pillowcase, asking for a handout?
Then there are us old curmudgeonly types who just wish the holiday no longer existed and we did not have to be with the incessant door knocking and door bell ringing, even though we did it ourselves once upon a time. Halloween etiquette says you must give out treats if you turn on your porch light. That one was shared by DiNozzo on NCIS just recently.
Of course, there are adult Halloween parties and haunted houses to attend. No, the Capitol building is not one of them. Costumes at these parties seem to run the gamut from ridiculously expensive to just ridiculous.
I would be remiss if I failed to toss a memorial bone in the direction of our sainted golden retriever, Rameses. This kindly soul, who loved all and thought that all loved him was quite excited by the constant parade of visitors to the house, just to see him, of course. I remember one year in which he slipped out the door and proceeded to accompany a group of trick or treaters on their rounds for a while. Apparently sensory overload brought him back home.
Scary movies, pass;try to avoid them. MSNBC OR CNN is usually enough for me. That brings me to this and I really hate to admit it. When channel surfing earlier today, I came across Chris Matthews and heard him speak of Afghanistan. What I heard sounded something like us. Either defeat the Taliban or get out. Wow, something that sounded rather close to what I think. Did it really occur or was it a Halloween mirage?
Don’t know for sure. Gotta go and write that letter quickly to the Great Pumpkin. Wait for me Linus.
Traveling Through Medina
October 11, 2009
Filed under Culture, Technology
Tags: ACLU, Crime, Department of Homeland Security, Doug Honig, Jeffrey Chen, Lucius Biglow, Manhattan, Medina, Michael Bloomberg, New York City, privacy, Robert Rudolph, Saudi Arabia, Seattle, Washington
Not the city in the Saudi Arabia, but the one located in the state of Washington; actually should be considered a suburb of Seattle, I guess. It is a small city of 3,100 with an extraordinarily high average income of several times the national average. It also has a relatively unique sign welcoming those who enter the city limits. ” You are Entering a 24 hour Video Surveillance Area.” Bet that gets the attention of first time visitors.
The stated goal is a worthy one, of crime prevention and solving crimes if they indeed happen. Opinions vary on that count. Police chief Jeffrey Chen is a fan, maintaining that the cameras(installed at intersections to monitor all incoming traffic) give him an advantage over criminals. Since the system takes a picture of the license plate of all vehicles and then runs it through a database( don’t know what kind) information can be transmitted directly to police if a vehicle has been involved in a crime. Voila, a leg up on the evildoers.
Now, the city seems to have a low crime rate, 11 burglaries last year for example. But,according to Chen, one burglary is too many. One other intriguing fact is that the info is kept for 60 days, just in case something turns up later. If it does,gotcha!
Here comes an unusual thing, at least for me. I am somewhat in agreement with the ACLU on this one. Doug Honig is a spokesman for the Washington ACLU. He has this to say.”Government shouldn’t be keeping records of people’s comings and goings when they haven’t done anything wrong. By actions like this, we’re moving closer and closer to asurveillance society.”‘ Strongly agree with that. But, a council member in Medina begs to differ. Lucius Biglow says that preventing crime outweighs concerns over privacy. Hope he watches his speed through town.
Another member of the council had this to say. “We’re not elitist at all….What we’re doing here is protecting our citizenry.” So said Robert Rudolph.
Just to add to the above story, there is similar activity, albeit on a somewhat larger scale, going on in New York City.Mayor Michael Bloomberg has said that an existing network of surveillance equipment already place in Lower Manhattan will soon expand uptown. This is due to a Homeland Security grant received to assist in those efforts.
This comment was made by the myor in response to a criticism of the efforts.To me, it says volumes and I am afraid is a bit chilling. “We live in a world where we have to have a balance. We can’t just say that everybody can go everyplace and do anything they want.” What he did not add was that if you do, we will very likely be abe to see you do it.
Will This Fix California?
October 10, 2009
Filed under Culture, Politics
Tags: Arnold, Berkeley, California, Congress, Doug Richardson, Eric Holder, Greg Kerlikowske, H D Palmer, Justice Department, Los Angeles, Marijuana, Nevada, Rush Limbaugh, San Francisco, taxes, White House Office of Drug Control Policy
The great state of California is in a mess. The state has no money to pay its employees and has even resorted to the use of IOU’S. Yes, this is a state, that if it were a country, would have one of the top 10 GNP’s in the world. After convoluted wrangling, they passed a budget. Yet, a mere 10 weeks after its passage,the budget is in the red. What is a governator to do? A spokesman for Arnold, H D Palmer, said there is concern, but whether short or long term, they do not know.
There has even been talk in recent weeks that California could become the first failed state. To add insult to injury, the state is losing population to the likes of Nevada and risks the loss of a Congressional seat, which could be a good thing.
There may be hope on the horizon to fix many of these ills or maybe just to help Californians deal better with their trial and tribulations. Marijuana advocates are working at getting enough signatures to place three pot legalizing measure on the ballot next year. And, we know how they loc=ve their ballot initiatives out on the left coast’
A law passed in 1996 allows people to smoke the happy weed for medicinal purposes, uh huh. Thus there is already a healthy marijuana industry in the state. But, one teensy pronblem exists. The feds are against legalization. Federal drug czar Greg Kerlikowske says that legalization is not in either his or the president’s vocabulary.Curiously, the Supreme Court has ruled that the feds can crack down on those in California, both distributor and user, who comply with state law. Now that seems to be a conundrum.
But, if the state legalized the drug, no longer would there likely be federal state co-operation in making drug busts. Since state officials usually take the lead, that would create issues. The most interesting scenario would be one that would allow local governments to make city by city decisions on legalization. Hello, San Francisco, Berkeley, etc, And if the measure or one of its counterparts becomes law, cities and perhaps the state could very well see a gold mine of new tax revenue.
I close with these interesting counterparts to the statement made earlier by Obama’s drug czar. Attorney General Eric Holder has said that the Justice Department would defer to state law on marijuana. And, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy,Doug Richardson, said the office is currently re-evaluating its policies on marijuana and other drugs.
Remember what Rush is wont to say on an issue, follow the money. If the state sees that the money gained would be worth its while, things out west could become interesting . the smog over Los Angeles could have an entire new component.
Paging Al Michaels
October 9, 2009
Filed under Culture
Tags: Al Gore, Al Michaels, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Denmark, Desmond Tutu, George Bush, Iran, Jimmy Carter, Lech Walesa, Nobel Peace Prize, Norway, Olympics, Poland, South Africa, Steve Martin, Theodore Roosevelt, Three Amigos, Woodrow Wilson
Or,The Three Amigos ride again. Just to show that upsets happen in other venues beside sports, President Barack Obama was named the winner of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, surprising both friend and foe alike and leaving the President “surprised” and “deeply humbled”. Not sure I buy either of those statements but shall let them go.
He joins Woodrow Wilson,Theodore Roosevelt and Jimmy Carter as US presidents to have won the honor, with Wilson, Roosevelt and Obama winning the honor while in office. Those are not the Three Amigos that Steve Martin and friends made famous. These three would be Jimmy Carter, 2002 Nobel winner, Al Gore, 2007 winner and Obama. Carter won for , uh his decades of tireless work to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts and Al Gore won for changing the climate, no, uh telling us we have to change the climate or else, I guess. Obama won for what? I think it had something to do with climate change;creating a new climate of co-operation and moving us toward a non nuclear world(better ask Iran about that one) , I think. Maybe he won because he is the anti George Bush in the minds of the committee. Ironically, all three of the amigos won during or just after Bush’s term. Maybe they all owe him.
To be far, I shall repeat the comments of 2 former laureates, one in favor the selection and one not so much. First, Desmond Tutu of South Africa , the 1984 winner was pleased. He saw Obama as a younger version of co-winner Nelson Mandela. “It is a very imaginative and somewhat surprising choice.It is wonderful.”
On the other side, Poland’s Lech Walesa, 1983 winner , said this. “Who, Obama? So fast? To fast- he hasn’t had the time to do anything yet.” His response was described as incredulous.
I tend to lean toward Mr Walesa’s view and not for the reason some might think. The President could very well have accomplishments that would make him a deserving winner of the award, but not yet. For example, what if he brokered a strong peace treaty in the Middle East? Would he get the award again?
But, probably the most chagrined observer of the outcome is probably Bill Clinton, the odd man out as Democrat presidents. Why not me, he has got to wonder.
So, Obama did not get the Olympic bid in Denmark, but from its neighboring country of Norway he has won a bigger prize that only he can keep. Do you believe in miracles, Obama sure does. Yes, he can and yes he did(win, that is).
