Highway Deaths and Cash Cows

Recently an acquaintance of ours was killed in traffic accident. A trailer being towed by a vehicle traveling in the opposite direction broke loose, crossed the center median and struck her vehicle. My understanding is she was killed instantly. The tragedy was worsened by the fact her young children witnessed the accident as they were following her in another vehicle.

Although the accident happened in Mississippi, it happens all too often in Louisiana. Several states have taken the issue in hand by installing a cable fence designed to prevent an out of control vehicle from crossing the median into the oncoming traffic. I first saw one of these while driving through Alabama and thought it was good idea. I think natural barriers such as trees and heavy landscaping would also work. In addition to lives saved, a money savings would occur by not having to mow the area. The trees could help the environment and slow the climate change.

I suspect our legislators will be slow in appropriating money for the highway department to construct these barriers. After all, several legislators have made a lot of money filing lawsuits against the state for failing to correct hazardous or neglectful situations. Go figure, a state senator creates his own personal cash cow by not funding state agencies so he can turn around and file a lawsuit against the state in his private law practice. Stopping legislators from filing law suits against the state should be priority in Governor Jindal's ethics reform package and also save lives.

Koodos to the Supremes

June has been a good month for those who favor civil rights. Twice now, the Supreme Court has sent the government the consistent messages: civil liberties, fairness, and, freedom will not be over ridden by political agendas.

The lastest ruling has told local governments they can not outright prohibit the ownership of handguns in a citizen's home. Gun control advocates argue that the writers intended for 2nd Amendment to refer to government militias and not citizens. If that were the case, I suppose the 1st Amendment would only apply to the press. However, Courts have consistently ruled citizens have the right to free speech. Remember, the amendment authors were a bunch of radicals who had just overthrown their British oppressors. I find it hard to believe they would tolerate any arrangement where our government held a monopoly on instruments of deadly force. In World War II, the Germans and Japanese knew all to well that an attack on American soil would be fruitless because of armed citizens. During the cold war, the former USSR officials were aware of the same. For the same reason, it would be very difficult for our citizens to become oppressed by own government. A nation armed to the teeth can never readily be invaded or defeated.

There will always be a readily available black market in guns within our country, ban or no ban. Therefore the honest law abiding citizen should have the right to bear arms to protect ourselves. It is virtually impossible for the police to protect us against an active criminal. Under the best case scenario a victim is on his own for the first five or so minutes, assuming a call was made to 911. The victims best hope for survival during this time is for himself to have ready access to a weapon or an off-duty officer or competent gun carrying citizen to happen into the event. More armed citizens lessons the chance of a violent encounter. After all, most of these thugs or sick individuals seek an opportunity where he has the less chance of retaliation. I have always said if every passenger on airplanes were armed, there would never be a hijacking and 9/11 would still be just a date in September.

Those in disagreement with the gun ruling argue suicides, thefts and accidental shootings will increase. A depressed person hell bent on suicide will find a method. The ruling did not prevent legislation requiring unattended handguns from being locked up. I support such legislation. Most are unaware that all federal law enforcement officers are required to secure their weapons by lock if not wearing the weapon.

Most polls show the majority of voters support the right to own handguns. For this reason, the Republican Party has taken pro gun stance in their campaigns. The Democratic Party should reconsider there agenda on gun control if they wish to retrieve their grassroot supporters who favor gun ownership. Gun control advocates haven't prevented a single gunshot death in the US, but by opening the door to tyrants like Bush, they have caused hundreds of thousands of gunshot deaths abroad.

Perfect Sense Part 2

Roger Waters, former song writer and musician for Pink Floyd, voices his disillusion with the Western World politics and shenanigans in the two part song, Perfect Sense. The monkey in the beginning of Part 1 represents the common person trying to make sense of the world. The song begins with a fade in from "2001 a Space Odyssey." As you may recall that movie began with an ape scene. Roger's distrust of government and authority is a recurring theme in his song writings.


Perfect Sense Part 2

Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense
Expressed in dollars and cents
Pounds shillings and pence
Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense
Little black soul departs in perfect focus
Prime time fodder for the News at Nine
Darling is the child warm in the bed tonight
Hi everybody I'm Marv Albert
And welcome to our telecast
Coming to you live from Memorial Stadium
It's a beautiful day
And today we except a sensational matchup
Bur first our global anthem
Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense
Expressed in dollars and cents
Pounds shillings and pence
Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense
And here come the players
As I speak to you now the captain
Has he cross hairs zeroed on the oil rig
It looks to me like he's going to attack
By the way did you know that a submarine
Captain earns 200,000 dollars a year
Oh that's less tax Marv less tax
Uh thank you Emery you're welcome
Now back to the game he fires one yes
There goes two both fish are running
The rig is going into a prevent defense
Will they make it I don't think so
Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense
Expressed in dollars and cents
Pounds shillings and pence
Can't you see
It all makes perfect sense

Perfect Sense Part 1

The monkey sat on a pile of stones
And he stared at the broken bone in his hand
And the strains Viennese quartet
Rang out across the land
The monkey looked up at the stars
And he thought to himself
Memory is a stranger
History is for fools
And he cleaned his hands
In a pool of holy writing
Turned his back on the garden
And set out for the nearest town
Hold on hold on soldier
When you add it all up
The tears and marrowbone
There's an ounce of gold
And an ounce of pride in each ledger
And the Germans killed the Jews
And the Jews killed the Arabs
And Arabs killed the hostages
And that is the news
And is it any wonder
That the monkey's confused
He said Mama Mama
The President's a fool
Why do I have to keep reading
These technical manuals
And the joint chiefs of staff
And the brokers on Wall Street said
Don't make us laugh
You're smart kid
Time is linear
Memory's a stranger
History's for fools
Man is a tool in the hands
Of the great God Almighty
And they gave him command
Of a nuclear submarine
And sent him back in search of
The Garden of Eden

Written by Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) 1992

Did Walmart Violate My Rights?

Last night, I was once again hassled by a Walmart cashier. Anyone that knows OWO is aware I like my wine. OK, times are getting tough with rising gas and food prices so I had to stoop to buying my wine at Walmart. I am not yet down to Sam's Choice wine, but close. It was a couple bottles of that Yellow Kangaroo Wine. Anyway, I was checking out my wine and other groceries when the girl held up the wine and said, "can I see your ID?" I looked at her with that WTF(?) look and said, "I am more than double 21 and you know it." The last two cashiers that tried that lost the argument when I refused to show my ID. They settled on taking a chance the OWO really was pushing 50 than restocking my buggy of groceries. Well, I must have felt sorry for the cashier last night because I cut her some slack when she said she was new and her supervisor told her she would be fired if she did not card everyone under forty. Maybe it was the fact that she was hot, at least on Walmart standards and she told me, "I was handsome and carried my age well."

Why do I have to prove I am obeying the law when I buy liquor at Walmart? Is this not a violation of my rights? I struggle to understand why Walmart will not allow their employees to display a little common sense. I respect their effort to keep alcohol away from minors, but they should not force someone they know damn well is over 21 to prove they are of age. It is time Americans stop allowing themselves to be force to prove their innocence.

Same Song, Different Verse

If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break,
When The Levee Breaks I'll have no place to stay.

Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan,
Got what it takes to make a mountain man leave his home,
Oh, well, oh, well, oh, well...

Cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do you no good,
Now, cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do you no good,
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to move. Led Zeppelin

"When the Levee Breaks" was written as a Blue's song following the Great Flood of 1927. Rock star Robert Plant re-worded the song and his rock group Led Zeppelin made the song a hit on their fourth album.

This years song verse comes from Iowa, Missouri, and Illinois. Three years ago the verse came from New Orleans. Fifteen years ago it was Missouri and Illinois. And so on. Why do levees keep breaking? The title of an article in today's New York Times sums it up well. Call for Change Ignored, Levees Remain Patchy brings out two important issues. 1) Politicians continue to ignore scientists and engineers and 2) one flood control project can save the funding area but be detrimental to other areas.

Levees cost the politicians a lot of their money. Following a flood, levee projects get lots of attention and funding. Unfortunately levee projects take years to build. Levees provide flood protection which is rarely needed, albeit damn well worth every penny when they are needed. The problem is when they are not needed, they are forgotten. Traffic jams and other infrastructural problems happen continuously and the need for flood control is put aside for the "more pressing issues." Politicians take money from levee projects and put into highways, betting another flood will not happen during their tenure. Call it political roulette with George Bush, Kathleen Blanco and now Midwest officials being the latest losers.

Following every flood, we hear the same rhetoric regarding levee failure from scientist and engineers such as levees were poorly constructed and no central control. When polled, most voters believe the Army Corps of Engineers has control. This could not be farther from the truth. Although the Corps has some control of major levees, most are controlled by various local and state agencies. Some are even controlled by land owners. It has long been known some materials are better than others for building levees. In times of haste or waste, who cares?

Take for instance a local farmer who tires of having his bean field flooded out every so often. The farmer decides on his own to build a levee around his land and uses whatever fill materials are close and cheap. This sets the stage in time for two problems. First, the water that no longer floods his land has to go somewhere. Now a lower levee which was once adequate is no longer protecting the folks on the other side. Try filling a saucer to the point it overflows. Now tip one side a little higher. You will notice now higher side no longer floods, but water rushes over the other sides. A second problem may later occur due to the substandard materials used in construction. Lets say fifteen years later, developers buy out the farmer and turn the once large bean field into a mixed residential development. A few years after the land is fully developed, one of those now frequent "500 year floods" occurs. The fact the levee was built un-engineered and with substandard materials was unbeknown to the new residents. The flood waters breach through the substandard materials and cause loss of life and millions of dollars of damage to what was formally a bean field.

At some point in time, hopefully sooner than later, the politicians will quit playing roulette and adequately fund levee construction, then properly manage them. This might not happen, because, sadly, disasters tend to be good for the economy as money is poured into rebuilding into the same area to await the next disaster. Despite the fact lives are lost and individuals finances are ruined politicians like a good economy. Just ask South Louisiana officials how is the economy following Katrina. Then ask flooded New Orleans residents how much of their life savings was lost.

Look for different verses of this song to continue.

On Rendition and Torture

Rendition involves secretly taking persons suspected of terrorist activities to a foreign country where torture is practiced. Instead of staining American soil with blood of potentially innocent parties, you do so on foreign land where such tactics are accepted interrogation techniques. Think of it as imprisonment without trial, no rights, and no due process. Then add torture to the process. What better way to do protect your human rights record than by giving the nod for another country to use whatever means necessary in the name of protecting more lives.

One's first thought is it might not be so bad for a savage terrorist. Then ask yourself - how are we sure this person is not innocent? Remember they have not been given any due process. It seems to me that Americans are above savage treatment. How can someone who approves of torture go to church every Sunday? You can not tell me Jesus would approve of torturing another human being. I remember the torture scene in The Deer Hunter where the North Vietnamese tortured an American POW. The scene made me furious - like I wanted to drop a nuke on North Vietnam. Well what kind of leader allows us stoop to that level?

It has been said that for every person tortured one hundred people rise up to perform acts of vengeance. You get an ever increasing cycle of violence. There is little evidence that torture actually provides useful information. There is no way two wrongs can make a right. I guess this stance makes me a bleeding heart liberal to those who shut their minds to the facts that this does happen.

Americans have prided ourselves on being world leaders and a society governed by the rule of law. Part of that was innocent until proven guilty. It was also based on the principles laid out in the Geneva Convention. The Clinton administration actually approved renditions. However, the presidency of El Supremo (Bush) and his band of party loyalist, have taken renditions to a higher lever. This administration thinks people have no rights when accused of anything. That’s quite ironic for an administration whose party platform was based on family values, morality and religion. (Personally I think he duped the voters.) Americans remain oblivious to these actions because they think it doesn’t effect them. As our rights are eroded away, it will slowly become easier for a future and smarter El Supremo to seize all of rights. At that point we will be powerless to stop them. At that point, the government starts accusing everyone and society turns into complete chaos. Torturing and killing people, guilty or not leads to anarchy.

Those who claim that rendition, torture and the abuse of basic human rights are necessary to protect our way of life are as wrong as the terrorists and suicide bombers.