Can you afford to get hurt here?

Eight years ago, Luis Alberto Jimenez, an illegal alien, was severely and permanently injured in an automobile accident in Florida. He was taken to a community hospital which kept him as a ward for years because they could not find a rehabilitation center that would accept an uninsured patient. The hospital racked up costs on Mr. Jimenez of $1.5 million dollars. Of course, that cost was passed on to people like you and me who live here legally, pay taxes, and buy health and accident insurance.

Finally, the hospital took action. They got a state court order, leased an air ambulance for $30,000, and took Mr. Jimenez back to his native Guatemala. An appeals court said, "No can do," but by that time Mr. Jimenez was gone. Though American hospitals are required by federal regulation to arrange post-hospital care for patients who need it, more and more of them are repatriating illegals. The problem, they say, is that Medicaid does not cover long-term care for illegal aliens. Why should it? When it comes to being here illegally, the federal regulation shouldn't apply -- that's for American citizens and those immigrants who have a legal status here.

While I am sorry for Mr. Jimenez's plight, it is a result of his own poor choice. He chose to come here illegally. If his were the only case of this sort, I would say that we need to take pity on that man and take care of him. But you multiply his situation by the thousands of illegal aliens in this country, and I don't think it's an expense we can take on. Many of our own countrymen are struggling to take care of their own medical needs -- there's simply nothing left over for those who have no regard for our laws. So if you risk coming here illegally, you should realize that you are also assuming the risk of being sent home should you become catastrophically sick or injured. We simply can't afford to take care of you.

"Sending the sick home." The Dallas Morning News; August 3, 2008; p. 9A.

Update on FLDS

The State of Texas CPS is trying to remove eight children from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at the Yearning for Zion Ranch. It seems their mothers are not abiding by the agreement to keep them away from those men who practice and promote underage marriage. Well, gee, isn't that every man there?
I don't know why any court thought the mothers would keep those agreements anyway. These people are brainwashed. They believe their immortal souls depend on doing what "Father" Warren Jeffs tells them to do. If you think you and your children will be doomed to hell if you don't live in a harem and force your daughters to marry at age 12, then you'll probably live in a harem and force your daughters to marry at age 12 no matter what the courts say.

One 10-year-old child says she and her sister were brought to the ranch a couple of years ago in the middle of the night. She does not know where her mother is. When she asks about her, she is told that it's none of her business. Sect records show the mother was married to Merril Jessop in 2004, and that she has abandoned her daughters. If I were the police, I'd track that woman down. She's probably lying in a grave somewhere in the Arizona desert.

Everytime I read about this thing, my heart just breaks for those young girls who have known nothing else. A 14-year-old who has been married to leader Warren Jeffs for two years says that the marriages are "pure." "This can't be a crime because heavenly Father is the one that tells Warren when a girl is ready to get married and that he is only following the word of Heavenly Father." God has reserved a really hot spot in Hell for Warren Jeffs!

But not to worry -- Lloyd Barlow, one of the six men indicted last month for forcing children to marry and have sex, was asked what a young woman could do if she were the victim of domestic violence. "The church elders would handle the situation," was the reply. And we all know how those "church elders" would handle the situation. They'd tell the woman to "be sweet" and go back to her abusive husband. It's my bet that's what happened to that missing mother.

"State wants 8 kids back." The Dallas Morning News; August 6, 2008; p. 1A.

Let us have a moment of silence.

Monday's Dallas Morning News reported a "sad day in the blogosphere." It seems Rosie O'Donnell has informed her readers that she's going to discontinue her blog for a while. She says, "It gets to a point where it's too much. It's too draining."

Pooooooor Rosie! She's such a martyr. Donald Trump doesn't like her, they kicked her off The View, and now her millions of fans are literally draining her dry by demanding that she blog every day. Pooooooooor Rosie!

I'm really tickled that people read my blog, but even if no one read it, I'd probably still do it. It's my way of getting things off my chest. It's fun for me to sit down and comment on what I see in the newspapers and in life. But I'm just so upset about poooooooooor Rosie ---- NOT!

"No more haiku from Rosie?" The Dallas Morning News; August 4, 2008; p. 3E.

Latest from Obama - that sounds great!

"I consistently believe that when it comes to whether it's Native Americans or African-American issues or reparations, the most important thing for the U.S. government to do is not just offer words, but offer deeds." Barack Obama ("Talking Points." The Dallas Morning News; August 3, 2008; p. 1p.)

You know what that means? More taxes to fund checks to blacks just because they're black. There is not a black American alive today who has the slightest concept of what it's like to be a slave, just as there is not a white American alive today who has the slightest concept of what it's like to own a slave. No white today owes any black an apology or anything else for something that happened more than 150 years ago. There is probably no one who doesn't have at least one ancestor who suffered some sort of injustice -- there's just no way to go back and right all the wrongs of history.

Obama has proposed a windfall profits tax to fund $1000 emergency rebate checks for consumers besieged by high energy costs ("Obama may back drilling." The Dallas Morning News; August 2, 2008; p. 4A). Sounds real good, doesn't it? Stick it to the energy companies and send us all $1000 each! But do you really think the energy companies are going to take that loss? Of course not! They'll raise their prices to recoup all that money. And after the money is recouped, do you really think the energy companies will bring the prices back down? I really doubt it, so payments on that $1000 check will be made by the consumer in perpetuity. Doesn't sound quite as good when you analyze it, does it? And that holds true for pretty much everything Barack Obama says.

Do you get time off to pray four times a day?

The Dallas Morning News reports that "North Texas companies are increasingly making space for quiet rooms as Muslim employees play a larger role in the U.S. workplace and feel more secure about verbalizing their faith." Businesses nationwide, the article says, are seeing more and more religious discrimination charges. The most prevalent charges deal with time off for religious activities and wearing religious garb in the workplace.

Texas Instruments, American Airlines, Nortel, and Electronic Data Systems all have quiet rooms where their Muslim employees may go up to four times a day. However, that is not to say that companies providing prayer rooms are in the majority. Brian Mershon, a spokesman for Fluor Corporation, said they have not provided such rooms, but "if we had requests from Muslim employees or nursing mothers as well as any prayer room for employees, we would accommodate their requests."

I find that just a little hard to believe. If Mr. Mershon's Christian employees ask for a prayer room so they can go pray three times a day, I kind of doubt that will be granted. He would probably say, "Pray on your own time." I could be wrong now, but I don't think so.

On the other side of the coin, I can just imagine if a Christian employer provided a prayer room for his employees and placed Bibles there for their convenience. If he happened to employ an atheist or a Muslim, the atheist would file a discrimination suit saying the room made him uncomfortable, and religion was being pushed on him. And the Muslim would file charges on him for not placing the Koran there. Who do you think would win those suits? I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be the Christian.

While Muslims may feel more secure in "verbalizing their faith," goofball government rulings are making it more and more difficult for Christians to do the same.

"Area employers answer prayer room requests." The Dallas Morning News; August 2, 2008; p. 1A.

Did you ever play Shoots and Ladders?

Caption on the front page of this morning's Paris News:

"Brian Kelso shoves a horse out of the shoot Friday as saddle bronc rider Matt Cameron of Mount Pleasant begins his ride Friday during the Paris Rodeo and Horse Club Rodeo."

Aw, chute! You reckon ol' Cowboy Brian can chute a gun, too? I bet he can if it's on Friday.

Won't you be my neighbor?

I wrote the other day about a new Dallas Housing Project for poor blacks ("I want what you want . . . I just don't want to pay for it"). The townhome style project was built in an affluent North Dallas neighborhood. The affluent whites were understandably apprehensive about their new neighbors. People are quick to yell about racism and "not in my back yard" attitudes, but I believe these people are justified in their apprehension. Case in point . . .

A low income housing project in Dallas called Pleasant Village Apartments is anything but a Pleasant Village. Police have been instructed not to make calls there without taking at least four officers. This past Tuesday night, a couple of pre-teen girls, with the approval of one of the mothers, got into a fight. Other kids quickly became involved, the mother called her mother and some other relatives, a crowd of adults from the other girl's side showed up, and soon shots were fired. Chaos ensued as people scattered and ducked for cover. The mother who originally gave her approval for the fight called 911. The police arrived with more than the requisite four officers.

Rumors went wild and "they" told the residents that as soon as the police left, "they" were going to start shooting again. At 1:14 a.m., Wednesday, another 911 call reported that nine men had gathered with weapons behind the apartment complex. As some fearful residents left the complex, their car was fired upon. Three children were shot, one injured critically. Rumors are flying that more violence is in the making for the next few nights. Police will beef up patrols at the complex until things die down.

The manager of the complex said, "We actually have very good residents. We do background checks on every one of them. We don't allow criminals." Yeah -- sounds like a really high caliber people to me. Bet they'll fit right in up there in North Dallas.

"3 kids shot after girls' fight incites brawl at apartments." The Dallas Morning News; July 31, 2008; page 1A.