Essie's Bucket List

I started this blog more than six years ago. Since that time, I have written approximately 2,170 posts. I've had a lot of fun and vented a lot of frustration while fulfilling my need to put my words down on paper (or computer screen).

I have many other things on my bucket list, and Essie's no spring chicken anymore! There's so much out there that I want to do and so I'm rearranging and reprioritizing my time. One of the items I've chosen to let go is "Have you seen the news today?"

I'll still have opinions, and I'll probably still verbalize them to anyone who will listen. But I won't be sharing them here anymore.

Even though this blog has actually been more for me than anyone else, I appreciate those of you who have been faithful followers. Who knows? One day I'll probably reprioritize again and I may reappear on Blogspot. Until then -- keep watching the news for the absurd, the zany, the unjust, the biased, and the unbelievably stupid!

They're smarter than we are on this one.

I can't find too many positive things to say about muslim countries, but I do have to say that the United Arab Emirates has more sense than we do on this one. Have you ever heard of Rolf Buchholz? Here's a photo of old Rolf:

 

Yes, those are horns he had surgically implanted on his head. And, yes, those are all holes in his head. You can't see his "ink" in this photo, so compared to some other pics I've seen of him, this one looks quite normal.

 

At any rate, the United Arab Emirates has denied him entry for an appearance at a nightclub in Dubai. They have more smarts than we do on this one!

 

"That hurts: Dubai turns away entertainer." The Dallas Morning News; August 18, 2014; p. 8A.



Is this how our system works?

The press persists in calling the lawless rioters/looters/arsonists/thieves in Ferguson, Missouri, demonstrators. They say that the demonstrators are demanding justice for Michael Brown. From what I've seen and read, Michael Brown received justice about two weeks ago.

At any rate, their definition of justice is "Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson is charged and convicted for the shooting." I don't think that's how our system works. In the first place, we don't know that Officer Wilson is guilty of any crime. The evidence may show that he was justified in what he did. In the second place, it's up to a jury, not a mob, to decide whether justice entails a conviction.

If they're so concerned about justice, what about justice for Officer Wilson? What if Officer Wilson is guilty of nothing but defending himself? Is justice served if he is convicted of a non-existent crime? Let's reverse the races. What if Officer Wilson were black and Michael Brown were white? What would their definition of justice be then?

The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Do you want to know why strong-arm robber Michael Brown had no respect for authority? Here's his mom and dad.

 

 

It appears to me that they're inciting riot more than they're calling for justice. If they really want to know who bears the blame for their "baby" being dead, perhaps they should get a good mirror.



The Penalty Is Death

I feel so sorry for Max Soffar. Max is in prison for killing three people at a bowling alley and seriously wounding a fourth. He's been sentenced to death, but what with one appeal for this and another for that, he's been awaiting execution for 33 years.

Max has liver cancer. He wants a compassionate release. I don't believe the sentence said, "You are condemned to death unless you get sick." I don't believe the sentence said, "If you get sick, you get a get out of jail free card."

And remember the Lockerbie bomber? His death was imminent. But he lived a pretty full life for two years after they let him go. And you know how we traded five terrorists for deserter Bergdahl because his death was close? He looks pretty healthy to me.

So if Max's death is that close, it really shouldn't matter to him where he is when it happens. In fact, the prison should feel a lot more like home than any home on the outside. After all, he's spent over half his life there.

"Attorneys: Free inmate; he's dying anyway." The Dallas Morning News; Aug. 14, 2014; p. 4A.

What a Family Outing!

There was a photo in the newspaper the other day of Janelle Pittman. She had her 6-year-old daughter on her hip. She was in Ferguson, Missouri -- confronting a line of riot-geared police officers. She had the little girl holding her hands up like those idiot rioters have been doing.

Family outings have certainly changed since I was a child. We went on a picnic or went to the park to the wading pool or saw a movie or played putt-putt and went to the ice cream store. I can't recall my mother ever saying, "I know what we can do today! Let's go to a riot!"

"Answers sought in shooting." The Dallas Morning News; August 14, 2014; p. 1A.

Don't do the crime if you can't do the time -- or pay the fine.

In the state of Texas, there are certain traffic offenses that garner the offender a surcharge in addition to the fine. Notices are sent when that money is owed -- I believe it's generally $250 a year for three years. As you can imagine, this does not apply to the person who is stopped every now and again for speeding or the person who accidentally runs a stop sign or a red light or doesn't notice that his registration or inspection has expired. This charge applies to repeat offenders, those who are driving on suspended licenses or with no insurance, and various other habitual behavior.

But, according to Steve Blow and other bleeding hearts, this is just a way for the big bad state to keep people impoverished. He says it unfairly targets low-income workers. Well, duh! It doesn't if they obey the traffic laws. And even if that were not the case, there is a program available that will adjust the surcharge in accordance with the offender's income.

But Steve holds up for our admiration a fine upstanding citizen named Devin Mitchell. Devin says she feels like a criminal. Perhaps that's because she is one. I looked up her record, and it's not by any means pristine. She says she fears leaving her house because she might end up in jail. Unfortunately, that's the price one pays for living outside the law.

She says all she wanted to do was work and take care of her own (tell that to her probation officer). But she said this desire keeps her from being a "viable member of society." What a stretch that is!

This all started, Devin claims, when she drove her deceased sister's car not knowing that it was not insured. Mistake number one, Devin, is not taking care of business. She knows insurance is required in Texas. Steve Blow says it's that "small transgression" that continues to plague her.

She says she paid the ticket, but no one told her about the surcharge. She says the first she knew of it was when her boss at Pizza Hut told her that her driver's license was suspended. So she switched from being a delivery driver to working inside the restaurant and set up a payment plan to pay off the surcharge.

But she "still had to drive to work with a suspended license." She said, "It's not like I had a choice. I had to work. And I had to drive to get there." No, she didn't. She did have a choice. If she couldn't get her live-in boyfriend to take her to work or catch a ride with a neighbor or ride a bike, she could have walked. I checked, and it's only two miles from her house in Cleburne to the Pizza Hut where she works. I used to walk home from school that far carrying an armload of books (I'm so old, that only nerds carried book satchels back then). 

And guess what? She got caught driving without a license and received another ticket. Since she didn't have a license, she didn't have insurance, either. And without insurance, you can't get a car inspected. So there's two more tickets with accompanying surcharges. Then she got a letter about an amnesty program. So what does she do? She hops in her uninspected, uninsured vehicle with no driver's license and drives to the DMV. And she was stopped again and ticketed again -- no inspection, driving on a suspended license. No insurance.

She tried to explain, she says, that she was going to get amnesty. It just doesn't seem to occur to her that amnesty is usually extended to those who are trying to mend their ways -- not to those who openly and defiantly and repeatedly break the same laws over and over again.

So Devin's solution is to just not pay anything. And now she has warrants out for her arrest. And it's all everybody else's fault. She quit her job and she and her boyfriend and their 7-year-old "scrape by" on his income. What would you like to bet that she's "scraping by" with a little help from food stamps, Section 8, etc., etc.?

Steve Blow says it's just terrible - $3.2 billion in surcharges have been assessed in what he calls the "Poverty Preservation Program." He says this translates into financial misery for low-income families. We'll see if he feels the same way when an uninsured motorist driving on a suspended license totals his car and causes injury to him and his family.

"Low-income workers driven to misery by state program." The Dallas Morning News; August 13, 2014; p. 1B.

Come out from among them . . .

Paul Stevens of Waxahachie is "deeply saddened." He can't believe that Christian-owned businesses don't want to do business with customers that they feel would compromise their principles. We're supposed to accept anything and everybody. He says he asks himself, "What would Jesus do?"

Then he uses the example of the woman at the well. As do most people of Paul's persuasion, he left out the most important part of that story -- Jesus let the woman know that He knew she was living in deep sin, and He told her how she could be saved.

Paul says, as Christians, we are very diverse and don't agree on things like gay marriage or religions different than our own. We don't have to agree -- if God said it's wrong, it's wrong -- and Jesus never shied away from calling a sin a sin.

Paul says we shouldn't "isolate ourselves from those with differing opinions and practices." So are we to accept everybody and everything? I don't think so. What does Paul do with " Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you"?

What does Paul do with "I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators"?

What does Paul do with "have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them"?

Paul says that Jesus constantly taught his disciples to love one another. Yes, He did. He also took a whip and drove the money changers out of the temple. Paul said that Jesus "ate with sinners, hung out with the undesirables . . ." Yes, He did. But in the process, He always pointed out their sins and the consequences. And I don't think that's what Paul is aiming at when he says a caterer or a photographer shouldn't be allowed to refuse to do a queer wedding.

"'What would Jesus do?'" The Dallas Morning News; August 10, 2014; p. 2P.

You call it unadulterated hype; I call it . . .

Do you know how much our government has spent on high-speed rail since Obama took office? Nearly $11 billion. And the fastest train we have averages less than 110 mph. It reaches 150 mph only on a 30 mile stretch of track. And now, Obama has asked for $10 billion more to pour down this sinkhole. And what will we get for our $10 billion more? Don't know -- on the crowded New York-Washington corridor, it will take at least $150 billion and 26 years to get trains up to the Japanese bullet-train speed of 220 mph.

Here's what Obama said in his 2011 State of the Union: "Within 25 years, our goal is to give 80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail." Think about that. Eighty percent of Americans? That would mean running trains through every little Podunk village in the country.

Transportation experts said that it didn't take an expert to see that was an unrealistic fantasy. Kenneth Orski, the editor and publisher of a transportation newsletter, called Obama's statement "unadulterated hype." I call it a big fat lie.

"High-speed rail going nowhere fast." The Dallas Morning News; August 10, 2014; p. 5A.

This and That from Letters to the Editor

Eric Foster of Gun Barrel City doesn't like it that we recruit businesses from California to come to Texas. He says that money should be spent on "taxpaying" Texas companies to create brand new "taxpaying" jobs and "rehire" Texans and Texas college grads.

Does he think that the businesses that we recruit won't hire anybody from Texas? Does he think that they will in no way contribute to our economy? Does he think that they will not pay taxes and that their employees will not pay taxes? (Granted, most of them receive big tax breaks, but those are not perpetual). Just what do you think, Eric? Incidentally, I googled Eric and discovered that he's a bit of a fruitcake. He claims to be a famous screenwriter for movies and TV, but he doesn't name any of the shows he's responsible for. IMDB seems to have overlooked him. Looked up the satellite view of his house, and it reminded me a bit of the homes I've seen on Hoarders.

Then there was the letter from Joseph Sartoris. Joseph opines about people having the freedom to "opine on things they know nothing about." He wants to see their credentials. Right back at ya', Joseph. Show us your credentials.

And last but not least among this edition's letter writers was Ron Johnson of Plano. Ron says that he's tired of the Tea Party and Ted Cruz not "stepping up" when they need to. He complains that they "withdraw" when they don't get 100% of what they want. Well, gosh, Ron, do you mean like all those Texas Democrats who fled to Oklahoma a few years ago to avoid a vote? Do you mean like Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid who won't bring bills to the floor for a vote? Do you mean like Obama who refuses to enforce the laws he doesn't like? Or are you one of those people Joseph is irritated with for opining on things you know nothing about?

"Letters." The Dallas Morning News; August 8, 2014; p. 16A.

You're too stupid to be a Republican.

Just when you think you've heard it all . . . Roland D. Freeman is forsaking the Republican party because he doesn't like his middle name. It seems that Roland's drivers license has his middle name on it, and his voter registration does not. So he received a brochure encouraging him to change his voter registration -- I'm sure in an attempt to make it easier for him when he goes to the polls.

I face the same thing when I vote. My voter registration has my middle name on it while my drivers license has my maiden name on it. All I have to do is sign a little affidavit that says that my drivers license and my voter registration belong to the same person, and that I am that person.

At any rate, Roland says it annoys him to have to use his middle name, and it's stupid to ask him to use it. He says that the Republicans will be losing a 50-year loyalist. I guess it hasn't occurred to Roland that his gripe is not with the Republican party but with his mama. Frankly, Roland, I think you're too stupid to be a Republican.

P.S. I did a little Google search and discovered Roland's middle name. Think Donald Duck's nephews.

"Voter registration." The Dallas Morning News; August 6, 2014; p. 20A.

What was that argument again?

Hasn't one of the arguments for legalizing pot been that it will reduce crime since it will make marijuana readily available and there will be no need to secure it by nefarious means?

A couple of weeks ago, a legal pot dispensary in Colorado was robbed by a couple of bandanna and cowboy hat wearing bandits who pepper sprayed the workers. In another robbery, a man took a large amount of pot from a dispensary in Pueblo County.

What was that again about reduced crime?

"3 Texans accused in 2 Colorado pot thefts." The Dallas Morning News; August 6, 2014; p. 4A.

Maybe Jacob should have taken that into account.

Jacob Lavoro is facing charges for making and selling pot brownies. He had hash oil in his possession -- which carries a much stiffer penalty than marijuana possession because it has much higher TCH concentrations. He has been offered a plea deal which he has rejected because, according to his attorney, they fear prosecutors would be "overzealous" if he missed a mandatory meeting. Well, duh! The solution to that is not to miss the meeting.

Anyway, Lavoro says, "I'm 19 years old and still have a whole life ahead of me. Take that into account." Perhaps Lavoro is the one who should have taken that into account before he opened up his brownie business.

"Pot-brownie suspect 'very scared.'" The Dallas Morning News; August 7, 2014; p. 2A.

I don't really care about your opinion, Jonathan.

Jonathan Rauch wrote an op-ed that I started to read. The sub-head on it said, "When conservative Christians isolate themselves from changes in secular society, we all lose." I assumed he was probably talking about Christians who stand fast by the faith and refuse to go along with every trend that comes along. I think I was right, but I'm not sure. You see, the first paragraph Jonathan wrote said, "I am someone who believes that religious liberty is the country's founding freedom, the idea that made America possible. I am also a homosexual atheist, so religious conservatives may not want my advice." You got that right, Jonathan! And that's where I stopped reading.

"A wall that's not worth building." The Dallas Morning News; August 3, 2014; p. 6P.

Tell the truth, Zeigler!

John Zeigler says the president is being sued by Congress for doing too much and asks if we can't sue Congress for doing too little. John isn't telling the truth. The president is not being sued for "doing too much." He's being sued for violating the separation of powers laid out in our Constitution. However much he wishes it, he is not King Barack I. He is President Obama.

However, if we could sue Congress, we should sue them for "doing too much" -- passing that monstrosity of Obamacare for one thing.

"What's good for the goose." The Dallas Morning News; August 3, 2014; p. 2P.

How's this for arrogance?

The ever-lovely Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "holds out hope" for the five male Justices who voted for employers' religious rights in the Hobby Lobby case. She says, "As long as one lives, one can learn." I hold out hope for Justice Ginsburg, too. As long as one lives, God can still deal with an arrogant, rebellious, prideful heart.

"Ginsburg: Court won't duck gay marriage." The Dallas Morning News; August 1, 2014; p. 8A.

We just want to be tolerated . . . Part 534.

Remember: queers, transgendered, and other assorted weirdoes just want to be tolerated . . . or so they continue to assert.

Miss Manners received a letter from a man (and I use the term very loosely) who is part of a "two-dad family." He's had his little feelings hurt. It seems that at the school his children attend, they have a "Mom's Night Out" every so often. Is he offended because he wasn't invited? No, he was invited, but he's offended because he doesn't like that they call it "Mom's Night Out." After all, he would like to go, but he's not a "mom." He says the organizers should have checked with him first about that name so that he could have given them the benefit of his expertise in "evolving language."

And of course, the wimpy, PC, Miss Manners agrees with him. She thinks the "organizers would welcome the change [for the name of the group]." She says his polite response just might inspire the mothers to "ponder updating the name."

I can tell you one thing, if I were one of the moms in that group, I'd be inspired to ponder something all right, but it wouldn't be changing the name of my group!

"Dads feel left out of 'Mom's Night.'" The Dallas Morning News; August 1, 2014; p. 1E. 

And that's the goal!

Bleeding hearts were rallying in Dallas recently for "compassion" for all the illegals flooding into Texas. Laura Mendoza was one of them. She says she's proof of the good that can come from "addressing the needs of immigrants." Her parents were illegals when she was born here, granting her illegitimate citizenship.

She says, "Now, I have a voice. I have a vote." And that, my friends, is the whole point of the Democrats' compassion.

"Both sides rally on immigrant crisis." The Dallas Morning News; July 19, 2014; p. 5B.

It was global warming, of course!

Did you hear about the big, unexplained crater in Siberia? It's that nasty old global warming causing it -- "a build-up of excessive pressure" underground due to rising temperatures. Wow! I didn't know that a few degrees warmer outside could cause such disruption underground. Wouldn't you think it would take a very large temperature change to cause a 66-yard-wide crater?

Remember the summer of 1980 around here? Do you remember all the holes that opened up then? The only holes I remember were the holes the work crews had to dig to repair shifting water pipes. I don't remember any craters. However, they certainly should have existed. If you have any pics, let me know, and I'll share them.

"Russian crater blamed on rising temperatures." The Dallas Morning News; July 18, 2014; p. 10A.

How about 3rd and 4th and 5th chances?

I think I've posted before about Scott Walker. He's the poster child against mandatory sentencing. He received a life without parole sentence on drug charges. Unfair! He says everybody deserves a second chance. I don't agree with that (think Charlie Manson, Ted Bundy, the BTK killer and on and on). But for the sake of argument, I'll grant him that everybody deserves a second chance. Now let's take a little look-see at Scott's record.

He started using marijuana at age 14. That's chance number 1, and he chose wrong. Just as an aside, those who advocate legalizing marijuana deny it is a gateway drug. But Scott says he "graduated" to meth. That's chance number 2, and he made the wrong choice again. By his late teens, he was trafficking marijuana, meth and LSD. That's chance number 3, and Scott still hasn't learned to make good choices. He enlisted others to sell drugs for him. That's chance number 4, and he's dragging others down with him. When he was finally caught in 1996, he wouldn't cooperate with police, because he didn't "want his friends to suffer." That's chance number 5. He refused pleas deals he was offered -- that's chance number 6.

Sorry, Scott. Looks like you had a second and a third and a fourth and a fifth and a sixth chance, and you chose wrong every time. It's hypocritical for you to be whining now about second chances.

"'Everyone deserves a second chance.'" The Dallas Morning News; July 27, 2014; p. 25A.

Richard Miller has a screw loose!

Richard Miller is one of those whose heart bleeds for convicted murderers who are executed. Richard says that we are no different from Islamic countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Pakistan, Libya, and Yemen and totalitarian states such as North Korea. He says we are the only democracy whose citizens claim to be Christian that uses the death penalty which is neither democratic nor Christian.

Yes, we are different, Richard, and here's the difference. We don't execute people because of their religion. We don't execute people unless they have been tried by a jury of their peers. We don't execute juveniles, neither do we force children to watch executions. We don't execute people for witchcraft or sorcery. We don't execute people because they "dishonored" their families. We don't execute people until they have exhausted numerous appeals. We don't execute women for committing adultery while letting their partners in crime go free. We don't execute people for not dressing the way we think they should. We don't force people to kill babies because they've had more then their allotted number of children. We don't allow our politicians to execute those who threaten their political power.

I can list some more things, but Richard should get the idea here. If he doesn't, he should be really glad he lives in America where we don't execute people for being mentally deficient.

"The company we keep." The Dallas Morning News; July 25, 2014; p. 20A.

Here's your credible evidence.

Richard Grant takes issue with Governor Perry calling out the National Guard to secure our border. True, it is not the job of the National Guard, but when the President refuses to do his job, it becomes necessary to take matters into our own hands.

Richard says that he doesn't think it's fair that we call up these people because it will cost them personally and economically. That is true. Most citizens appreciate the sacrifices our armed forces make. But let's be perfectly honest about this -- they all volunteered. You can't take the benefits and then complain when you're called up. That's what the National Guard is for, and I'm sure those people understand that when they sign up.

Richard then worries about the economic cost and the loss of productivity for our communities. He says he's not willing to impose such a burden unless someone can produce credible evidence that not doing so gravely endangers all Texans.

OK, Richard, you asked for it. Many of these children are carrying communicable diseases -- TB, for example. I doubt any of these children have been vaccinated against measles, mumps, chickenpox -- they're being turned loose into our communities. I heard the other day that there is now a leprosy clinic in southern California. Look for all sorts of epidemics in the near future.

Teenage gang members for the El Salvadoran gang MS-13 are coming across the border. They must be treated the same as all the other children. So even violent criminals receive the same consideration and benefits. Attorney General Greg Abbott reported that, "The purpose of adding more resources on the ground is not to address the women and children, it’s to address the growing reality that a lot of people coming across the border are here for criminal purposes. They’re killing, they’re raping, they’re robbing, they’re doing all kinds of harsh criminal activity.”

Is that enough, Richard, or shall I give you some more evidence? Yes, it's costing Texas $12 million a month, but how much was Obama's initial request  -- not to secure the borders but to take care of these children? $3.7 billion. And that will be like bailing out the Titanic with a teacup if we don't stop the flow coming across the border.

"Why put Guard on border?" The Dallas Morning News; July 22, 2014; p. 10A.

It doesn't matter.

Three animals in Albuquerque have been charged with the merciless beating of a homeless man. They repeatedly smashed his head with cinder blocks. Why? Because one of them was mad at his girlfriend, so he solved that problem by attacking a helpless man he didn't even know. This wasn't the first homeless person the trio had attacked -- they had been assaulting people for a year or more.

Now they're all pointing the fingers at each other. "I only watched while they attacked him" goes the line. It really doesn't matter whether they watched or whether they wielded the cinder blocks and threw the punches and kicks. They are all equally depraved and guilty.

"3 teens targeted homeless, police say." The Dallas Morning News; July 22, 2014; p. 3A.

SURPRISE!

Eighteen of twenty illegals didn't show up for their hearings in Dallas last month. The judge didn't order that they be rounded up -- he just reset the date in case they didn't have "proper notification." What do you want to bet that the two who did show up aren't going to be deported, either?

If we extrapolate, 90% of the estimated 57,000 who've recently arrived won't show up for hearings. That's 51,300 who just got a free pass. Of the 5,700 who will show up, I'd wager that only 25% will face deportation. That's another 4,275 with a free pass. That means that out of that original 57,000, we'll deport a whopping 1,425. And the Democratic Party accomplishes its purpose.