The fire that destroyed the governor’s mansion in Austin, TX has been reported to be an arson. I had to wonder if the arsonist wasn’t a person suffering from Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS). So blinded by his hatred of the current President, the arsonist sought to do harm but somehow got the White House and the Texas governor’s mansion confused. Well, it’s at least a theory.
Read about the fire here.
Here at That’s Elbert, we pray for all men and women, political friend or foe. Over the weekend it was reported that Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts had two seizures and as a result was hospitalized. Tests were run and it was reported today that he has a malignant brain tumor. Pray for him and his family during this difficult time.
Former Ku Klux Klansman and current Democrat Senator Robert Byrd has endorsed Barack Obama. That’s certainly weird. Hillary has got to be really annoyed about that, considering she won his state, West Virginia, by a wide margin. I have to admit that I didn’t hear about this until Jay Leno joked about this Monday night.
Mark Beverly got fired. Who is this guy? He used to work for SuperAmerica, a convenience store owned by Marathon Petroleum Company. Beverly was fired due to helping a fellow employee during a robbery at the store. SuperAmerica says he violated store policy by getting involved. Essentially in this situation he should have just stood there and watched another employee getting assaulted by a crook. I disagree in this case. Read the story and decide yourself.
This is from an article in the New York Times. The Dallas public school system is using an electronic tracking device to keep an eye on their kids who just don’t want to go to school.
Jaime used to snooze until 2 p.m. before strolling into school. He fell so far behind that he is failing most of his classes and school officials sent him to truancy court.
Instead of juvenile detention, Jaime was selected by a judge to be enrolled in a pilot program at Bryan Adams in which chronically truant students are monitored electronically. Since Jaime started carrying the Global Positioning System unit April 1, he has had perfect attendance.
They certainly attempt to make the devices look good.
Last year, case managers used a G.P.S. system to locate a truant student on the verge of overdosing on drugs, and they discovered that a student had skipped school because he was contemplating suicide.
So these tracking devices not only take care of truant kids, but they also save lives. They must be good! It sounds like snake oil or the promises found on an infomercial to me.
Dave Leis, a spokesman for NovaTracker, which makes the system used in Dallas, said electronic monitoring did not have to be punitive. “You can paint this thing as either Big Brother, or this is a device that connects you to a buddy who wants to keep you safe and help you graduate.”
Am I overreacting or does this just disturb you? Truancy can certainly be a big problem as it is for Dallas but even the suggestion of tagging someone with a device that will electronically keep track of them disturbs me. Apparently they are fine with it down there.
On Slashdot, from where I found the article, here is a sample of some of the comments:
*I’m just amazed that anyone can say that and not realize how Big Brother-ish they sound.
*As scary as programs like this are (and they are scary) we need to start thinking about when, not if, these kinds of things happen. At least I can see a giant transmitter strapped to my ankle. In 10 years it will be possible to pick up a box of microscopic RFID tags for relatively little cost. In 20 years it will probably be possible to create microscopic GPS systems that radio back their location.
Maybe reactionary, but it’s something to think about. Let me know what you think. Really.
UPDATE: I did overlook the fact that the kid mentioned in the article could have gone to jail or wear this thing. This may be seen as nothing more than what an adult might receive if they were given house arrest. Convicted criminals loose most of their rights anyway, right?
The multi-car accident that happen at Gravel Hill east of Georgetown Saturday was caused by an illegal alien. The News Journal reports:
The driver of the vehicle that triggered a five-vehicle, chain-reaction fatal crash over the weekend east of Georgetown has been identified as 30-year-old Noe Gonzalo Mendez-Perez, of Georgetown, state police said Monday. The crash killed Mendez-Perez and three others.
What the News Journal (and WBOC) failed to report was what WGMD reported:
Both Gutierrez-Santico and Mendez-Perez were in the country illegally.
38 year-old Apolinar Gutierrez-Santico was driving a Grand Am which fled the scene. He turned himself in on Monday. Gutierrez-Santico lived in Laurel while residing illegally in this country. He was charged with leaving the scene of an accident, driving without a license and failure to have proof of insurance. Again, to be clear, he was involved in the accident but did not cause the accident. The accident was caused by illegal alien Noe Gonzalo Mendez-Perez.
Michelle Malkin has reported about problems with illegals involved in traffic accidents here and here. The latter post was about a widely reported story involving a school bus accident. Not much was reported about the women’s illegal status either.
Today is April 20 or, in numerical form, 4/20. I have heard that this is unofficially National Smoke Weed Day. The reason: “420″ is a code-word for smoking marijuana, thus 4/20 would be the best day for inhaling an illegal substance. Wikipedia has some historical information on “420″:
Although many diverse theories exist to explain the origin of the term, one central root of the phrase stems from a group of teenagers at San Rafael High School in San Rafael, California in 1971; the teens would meet after school at 4:20 p.m. to smoke cannabis at the Louis Pasteur statue. The term became part of their group’s salute, “420 Louis!”, and became popularized in the late 1980s by fans of The Grateful Dead. Many North American cannabis users continue to observe 4:20 as a time to smoke communally. By extension April 20 (”4/20″ in U.S. dating shorthand) has evolved into a counterculture holiday, where people gather to celebrate and consume cannabis.
And here’s the charm to the Wikipedia entry:
In some locations this celebration coincides with Earth Week.
That speaks volumes!
There is some information posted here about marijuana. The web site provides a list of dangers which include:
The article also points out:
Although dangers exist for marijuana users of all ages, risk is greatest for the young. For them, the impact of marijuana on learning is critical, and pot often proves pivotal in the failure to master vital interpersonal coping skills or make appropriate life-style choices. Thus, marijuana can inhibit maturity.
So maybe the best thing to do on 4/20 is don’t smoke weed.
A Cambridge, MD teen was arrested today and charged with three counts of manufacturing explosive devices. The incident happened on Sunday, April 6 in a shed on West 7th Street in Laurel. According to the news article, the teen set off a soda bottle bomb. There were two other teens involved but only one was charged. Curiosity has me wondering why only one teenager was charged. Apparently no one was injured when the bomb went off. This might have been a tragedy averted, and to that I’ll say, “praise the Lord.”
Story reported at this link.
Last week on February 26 the Laurel Police seized 105 pounds of pot. How did they get it? They got it from a vehicle they stopped for running a red light. The driver, Donald P. Gayle, was coming from Virginia Beach heading to his home in New Jersey. Also last week on February 29, Harrington Police seized 140 pounds of pot. How did they get it? They got it from a vehicle with the wrong license plates. The driver, Sherri N. Taylor, was coming from New Jersey heading to Norfolk, VA.
Both Gayle and Taylor were stopped for simple traffic violations. One was going from VA to NJ, the other was going from NJ to VA. Maybe Gayle should have stayed in NJ and hooked up with Taylor and shared the wacky weed. Then they would have been off the road and out of jail. Well, that’s why I call them stupid criminals.
Two thumbs up to officers in both towns for getting 245 pounds of marijuana out of circulation.
The News Journal article is here.
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Elbert lives in the thriving metropolis of Laurel, Delaware, with his family. If anyone else posts on this blog, they may or may not live in Laurel. It is up to them where they decide to call home. You will find posts on here about almost anything. For the record, Elbert is politically conservative. His Christian theology is generally conservative, also some would disagree. He hold to the foundations of the faith, and on the theology, he is a mash-up of Wesleyan-influenced Pentecostal/Charismatic thought. He’s not “old school” Pentecostal/Charismatic though.
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