They Might Not Be In Favor Of Gun Control  -  or  -  Don't Mess With Old People, Especially If They're Armed

     If an older couple asks you why you're stealing their stuff, it might be best if you politely tell them you've made a mistake and leave-----without their stuff. The following incident lends credibility to this advice.

     An Albuquerque couple found a burglar loading a generator, power tools, and other items of theirs into his SUV. The couple asked the burglar what he was doing but being they were 70 and 66 years old, the burglar ignored them. This anti-social behavior was not acceptable to the couple.

     The husband grabbed a shotgun, and the wife got a handgun and held the burglar at gunpoint until the police arrived. I'm just guessing this couple would not vote for gun control.

     The burglar had gotten out of jail earlier that day.

   

Are They or Aren't They?

     One of the age-old relationship questions that most people face at some time during their life goes like this; "Is this person someone I want to spend the rest of my life with?" There is no clear-cut formula to help with an answer. However, a person can look for little clues, like; is the person purposing, kneeling in the middle of a busy freeway and stopping traffic while trying to make this romantic moment as dramatic as possible?
    As reported by the AP; Michelle found herself in this exact predicament. Her boyfriend, Vidal, was down on one knee proposing to her, and this was happening in the middle of Interstate 45, in or near Houston, Texas. The proposal was accompanied by the blaring of horns and shouts from onlookers. I'm guessing not all the shouted comments could be used in print.
     Now Michelle had a choice to make. "Is this guy the person I want to be the father of my children?
     I think any doubt she may have had was justified.
     It turns out that beside being dumb, Vidal's actions of obstructing a roadway is a Glass B misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.
     A small price to pay for a memorable proposal?
     Maybe.

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS RUN AMUCK - PART I

Trending AOL ran an article with this title - 

'Politically incorrect' Georgia welcome sign stirs up major controversy.

     What are they talking about? Recently the Harris County, Georgia, sheriff put up a sign that says;

Welcome to Harris County, Georgia! WARNING: Harris County is politically incorrect. We say: Merry Christmas, God Bless America and In God We Trust; We salute our troops and our flag. If this offends you.....Leave!

     Now like most current journalism, the article hints that these actions are politically incorrect, but does not inform us as to who finds this sign offensive, or why they find this sign offensive..

     And neither do they explain what the "major controversy" is or who feels it is such. Evidently, they would just like us to take their word for it. Otherwise, we are left to think for ourselves. So what are we to make of this "major controversy?" Let's take the sign in small bites.

Merry Christmas - controversial?  Why should it be? If you don't like the phrase, don't feel that for some reason you need to use it. Fortunately, everyone in this country can choose to use the phrase or not use the phrase. There's no controversy involved unless you're the kind of person who thinks that everyone should believe or act like you do.

God Bless America - controversial?   Maybe so if you don't believe in God, or America. Lucky for you, in this this America you're allowed to dislike one of both. This, however, doesn't give you the privilege of keeping me from having my preferences. 

The phrase "In God We Trust" - controversial? - I bet the people who might object to this phrase have no problem spending the paper money this phrase appears on.

Saluting Our Troops - controversial?  If you don't feel like saluting our troops, don't, but please don't take it out on the troops or don't ridicule or disparage me when I salute them. 

Saluting The Flag - controversial?  I don't see why it should be. If you don't like what the flag stands for and the country it represents, I can't imagine why you would want to hand around and take advantage of the relative freedom and economic wellbeing you enjoy in the country the flag represents.

     Are we to assume, (and I think that's what this news blurp is hinting at) that to avoid a "major controversy" we avoid using any of the above phrases or actions because it might offend somebody?

     My question is; Are those offended going to be as careful not to offend others? And where will this all end? I believe that as the song says, "It's only just begun." Why? Because ever slogan, every action, everything is offensive to somebody, and in today's world everyone has a voice that can be heard by millions.

     How did we git so screwed up?                         

As If We Didn’t Have Enough To Worry About – Part I 

                Just about the time we think we can relax, along comes something else to get our adrenaline pumping.

     The latest thing is a bug. That’s right. A bug. Or a group of related bugs. These insects are known as triatomine bugs, or their common name, ‘kissing bugs.’ These bugs tend to bit their victims on the face or lips. Friendly little things, huh?

     The problem is that their bit can transfer to the victim a parasite that causes Chagas disease. These parasites attack the tissue and muscles in the body.

     How do you know if you’ve contracted the disease? This report says that about 8 million people who have it don’t know they have it.

     Formally a south-of-the-border problem, it seems that the bug is now moving north and can be found in many southern states.

     So now you have something else to worry about. And your dog should also worry, for they can get ‘kissed’ and contract the disease.

     You can thank me---if  you survive.

As If We Didn’t Have Enough To Worry About – Part II

   

                 This thing to worry about is sort of a good news, bad news thing.

     In the last several weeks we’ve had two E. coli outbreaks. One at Chipolte Mexican Grills, and the other at Costco. It’s a typical outbreak where a number of people have gotten sick after eating or after eating food bought at these places.

     I’ve not heard that anyone died from these outbreaks, but a number of people are, or were, or will certainly be uncomfortable. That’s the bad news.

     Now the good news, well I may be the only one who has this view. Why? It seems that the food carrying the E.coli in both cases was some kind of produce. In the case of Costco, it seems to be celery. So my conclusion is that I should, if I’m really concerned for my health and general well being, abstain from raw vegetables, at least the ones I don’t particularly care for.

When A Lick's Not As Good As A Promise
     For me the following story is not about the story, but how behavior this weird gets started. 
     A Houston police officer pulled over a female motorist and then asked to lick her feet or in lieu of that, she could give him her underwear.
     Okay, strange, but he did ask and he did give her a choice. At least he was reasonable and polite. It could have been worse for the motorist.
     However it gets a little sticker as he said that if she would permit him to lick her feet or leave with her underwear he would ignore the marijuana paraphernalia in her car. Evidently, when she refused he changed him mind about the paraphernalia and let her go.
     He was arrested, charged with 'Official oppression,' and sentenced to one year in jail.
     So what prompts a guy to try something this bizarre? Had he tried it before with some success? Are there some ladies out there saying, "You mean all I had to do was say, 'No?'"
     At least the guy was polite.
     But some questions do spring to mind.
     Like where did he learn that he liked licking feet? I mean, that's not something a person would accidentally do and say, "Wow, that's neat, I'd like to do that again."
     And why the feet?
     Was he torn between what he really wanted to lick and what he thought he could get permission to lick?
     But to trade a lick for underwear? What's that about?
     To me, how something this bizarre gets started is a conundrum. It reminds me of a number of early Central and South American tribes who discovered that the secretions of certain frogs would kill other humans, or animals. So they started smearing some of this secreted stuff on their arrows to improve the success rate of their hunting. They also found out that a small amount was hallucinogenic and would give them visions and a generally happy time. 
     So imagine when the first guy licks a frog (And that brings up a whole set of new questions), and falls over dead. Is the reaction of the rest of the tribe to look at their dead friend and say, "Wow, I need to try that?" It's hard to imagine. 
     Then after four or five people die, one person only has the nerve to do a little lick, and instead of dying has a vision and exclaims, "Wow, you need to try this!" So how many people died before they figured out the difference between a lethal lick and a vision lick? Maybe that's why many of those tribes just disappeared.
     Like I said, to me it's a conundrum. 

How To Entertain an Owl
     A man in a Seattle park was attacked by an owl, or at least the man felt talons on the back of his head. Maybe his hairdo looked like a big mouse or something. Anyway, this man made the mistake of running and screaming, while the owl continued to chase him.
     And no wonder, if an owl can make something that outweighs it by about 1,000 times run and scream why not. Where else is an owl going to get that kind of cheap entertainment.
     The report says that the man was able to get away. Duh! How many owl attack fatalities have there been in the world over the past fifty years anyway?
     This man reported a small cut on his head. I'm surprised he even reported the incident. Most of us would be embarrassed to make such a fuss over a neat, if unusual, adventure.
     According to the report, there have been other owl attacks in this same park. And why not? This owl has found a fun thing to do, so Seattle residents can expect it to continue seeking similar entertainment. 

If At First, Second, Third, or Fourth You Don't Succeed, Maybe You Should Try Something Different

     And then there is the report of a young man in Florida who drove a stolen car to the police station to pick up court papers relating to a previous car theft he was evidently being charged with. In this guys pocked they found the keys to yet another stolen car. That car was located a block away from the police station. So that's three cars. The report states that in another stolen car that the police recovered, (that makes four,) police found court papers relating to the first car this two-legged crime wave had liberated, so I'm guessing they're assuming he had at one time stolen this fourth car also.
     The report was a little vague and written in a slapdash fashion.
     So, we have this young man who stole four cars and evidently didn't make any money for his efforts, plus got caught four different times. So right away we know this guy's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, or just does not have the aptitude for this kind of career. The problem as I see it, is that there is no entrance exam for would-be car thieves. If there had been, this person could have been counseled to pick another career where his lack of ethics, inability to envision himself ever getting caught, and his natural talent for sneaky behavior could be put to better use---say like politics.