The Dark and Smelly Place

Anti-Drug Dog Commercial

2007-10-16T22:35:00.001-04:00

Ummm... I would worry more about dropping acid than smoking weed at this point...

Another great quote...

2007-10-16T05:41:00.000-04:00

This quote was found here.

There are more people in this country who have kids that shouldn't than have guns that shouldn't.

So true... Read the story - it just proves that America's education system sucks, and perhaps we should ensure we don't marry our cousin, or that idiot down the street =-)

Supreme Court may hear DC Gun Law Case

2007-10-12T06:13:00.000-04:00

Well folks, I got another opinion, seems to be few and far between... Anyways the Supreme Court may choose to hear an appeal dealing with the Washington DC gun laws which basically ban the ownership of handguns. From what I have read this law is by far one of the strictest gun laws in existence in this country, yet D.C. has a HUGE violent crime factor - it could almost be considered independent from the law. The concern here is not whether you should be able to carry a weapon, more to the point of ownership and the restrictions place on them. In essence its my belief that the Second Amendment was drafted to ensure the perseverance of the First Amendment. Let's face it, some of the worse governments in existence started out by disarming their populaces. It ensures that there is less of a chance of armed resistance to what amounts to enslavement in those governments. Now that that opinion is in the open - what does that have to do with America? I believe that the Framers of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution placed the Second Amendment where it is to accentuate the fact that freedom is not free, that the people will have to defend it. By people I mean individuals, I do not mean the National Guard which is not a militia. The Second Amendment ensures that I have the right to arms to protect my life, liberty and pursuit of happyness. "=-)" That does not mean I need to own a firearm to use my other rights, instead it means I have a right to own a firearm if I want to, or feel the need to.

I always look at it this way, if there was a major breakdown in basic services, whatever the reason (think Katrina), the people would be responsible for themselves. This means that those who are unarmed would be subject to those armed. By armed, I don't necessarily mean firearms. Machetes, clubs, 2x4's and many other blunt or edged weapons could be used. This did happen in Katrina, many stories are flying around that said that neighborhoods that were cut off managed to raise militias of their own, those with weapons defending those without. This is a good example of what militias are, normal people rising to arms to defend their homes from a threat, yet free to leave at any time.

Now we will see if the Supreme Court agrees with me. If they do, I predict the amount of "gang" controlled guns will not increase greatly, seeing as if your breaking the law already - why not go all the way? - instead those who walk the streets, doing their jobs, have a right and a choice to defend themselves how they see fit.

Personally I like a S&W 40 caliber.

Good Quote / Bill of Rights

2007-02-03T09:06:00.000-05:00

Well while surfing the net when I should have been writing fireworks support letters I came across a good quote -

"The Christian Right are neither" - Moby

Plus I read something that made me think... Why the hell are we putting the Ten Commandments up in the courthouses? There was a better suggestion. Screw the commandments... They do not belong in our courthouses anyways - better yet lets put the Bill of Rights up where the Commandments used to be. It seems Americans need reminding of what they are, and remember the only way to keep them is for fighting for them, and I do not mean fighting in the wonderful "war of choice" in Iraq.

Personal Responsibilty

2007-01-20T11:57:00.000-05:00

All right folks, I will dust my blog off for a discussion on personal responsibility. This comes from the recent news story about a woman named Jennifer Strange. She was a 28 year old mother of 3. Read about the story here and new information here. This is predictable, the family suing the radio station. My question is - where does the responsibility lie? The woman was the one most in "tune" with her body, if you are distended and have a terrible headache perhaps you should stop. Yes she did have these items, and more, seeing as water intoxication will cause swelling of the brain as systemic water enters cells withing the brain using osmosis. Now I guess I do agree with firing the radio jockeys (somewhat) but the lawsuit states that the radio station held the responsibility for her. THIS IS NOT TRUE... SHE HELD RESPONSIBILITY FOR HERSELF! Medical help is available, strong diuretics and electrolyte replacement in an ER would have saved her, but no.... She went home.... Ignorance.

I hate stupid people. They are the reason why laws state what we can and can't do... Because of the lower 50%.

NRA and various items of interest

2006-12-12T22:52:00.000-05:00

Well the school year is over, and it looks like I did alright in my classes... One more semester to go...

Anyways, I was looking at renewing my membership to the National Rifle Association and found a rather interesting web page. Give them Back is the name of the web page. This stems back to the time shortly after Katrina when the government managed to regain some sense of control over the city of New Orleans. Now New Orleans even during its best days was never what you would call a crime free city, and in the days after Katrina there was no significant government influence. This meant no 911, no emergency services, no significant health care, and especially no police presence. These things are significant because when you with draw those controls on a society, the criminal elements within that society go on a hay day. This is what the days following Katrina were like.

Now seeing that I never lived through this, I have no first hand knowledge. I watched it on TV like everyone else. I know that doing so will bias you to whatever opinion that the networks you frequent, be it Fox news, CNN, MS NBC, or the network news providers. This means that you only get the producers take on the news they are reporting. This web page is somewhat the same, it is another view completely. Basically the gist of the thing is that the local governments, New Orleans and the parishes, decided to disarm the populace. The people they got were not the criminals for the most part, it was the people relying on their weapons to protect themselves, or those who were getting their valuable firearms out of their houses. Anyways I blogged before on the importance of the second amendment. I will reiterate this fact - In a situation like Katrina (which people in Indiana think won't happen here - ha! more on that later) you need your protection. You DO NOT need to own a gun. I don't care what you think about the statistics regarding gun violence, because there was significant violence LONG LONG before guns were ever created. I want to protect my right to protect myself and my family. Will I shoot to protect my home and family? Absolutely, any other answer would put you in danger, because if you pull a gun but can't pull the trigger, you are pretty much dead. Anyways, enough of my highly conservative views.

Oh by the way - people in Indiana - You may be safe from a hurricane, probably fairly safe from a terrorist attack, and a tornado - well that is a small area disaster... What you are not safe from is pandemics, earthquakes (yes, I said earthquakes, there is a major fault capable of massive damage a couple hundred miles away, and that is too close) These are major disasters that would stretch the response capability of emergency services probably even more than Katrina. So the idea of it can't happen here... well it can and very well may.

I'm going to go clean a gun.

And so it begins...

2006-11-08T15:23:00.000-05:00

Convenient... Very convenient... Click Me

Its good he waited until they found out that they lost the house. By they I mean the GOP. Bush is going to try to clean up his act, but we shall see... I doubt the Democrats are going to go too easy on the man, maybe they should consider impeachment. I think the next two years will be interesting. I hope the Democrats will fix the wrongs created in the last few years. I would additionally like to see the shift of governance from fear, to, well, almost anything else.

I like... A couple of Images for the new year

2006-11-08T01:24:00.000-05:00

I liked these...
http://www.libertystickers.com/anti-bush.htm

Fourth of July picture

2006-09-20T15:56:00.000-04:00

I'm posting this so I can add it to my profile. Yes, those are mortor shells, 6" to be exact.

Weddings, school, and such

2006-08-23T02:05:00.000-04:00

Well, time for my monthly post.
I got married on August 5th. It was a wonderful ceremony, and a good reception. I'll post pictures once I get them. I also had a great honeymoon. Needless to say I won't go into too many details, but the area we went to is great. I loved the place we stayed, Ravenwood Castle was great. It is modern bed and breakfast which borrowed its looks from a castle. The entire experience was great. The suite we stayed in was very nice. There were no TV's, alarm clocks, or phones in the room. It has a nice bog four poster bed, a 2 person whirlpool tub, an upstairs reading room and a nice balcony that overlooks the grounds. Sheena wasn't sure that she would enjoy it initially, but when we were going home all she wanted to do was to go back. Sheena, being Sheena, she loved Raven, the castles black lab. We also saw the sites in Hocking Hills State park. The caves are great, though not really caves as I tend to think of them (I lived in Southern Indian, which has several limestone caverns) they are huge sandstone hollows, very impressive. Sheena and I also found out how out of shape we really are. Hiking has managed to perk my (continuing) interest is backpacking, so I will most likely be purchasing a backpack and sleeping bag (suitable for hiking) eventually, after I get back into some sort of shape for backpacking I will introduce Sheena to it. Back to the honeymoon. We also went canoeing. That was fun, though Sheena doesn't like it when I threaten to swamp the canoe. Overall it was a great time, we're going to go back after Sheena gets through her nursing boards.

School is great. I like the teachers, and really enjoy the clinical. Right now I'm on OB. Very opposite of what I normally do as an aide (Medical, Oncology). And lets face it, who doesn't like seeing a VERY young baby?

Jenny - you remember that we're coming over this weekend? Satuday to Monday morning (I have clinicals at 2:30pm Monday afternoon)

Ann Coulter Nude

2006-07-24T06:43:00.000-04:00

I feel the need to see if this will actually work to increase traffic. =-)

Stuff in the news

2006-07-24T06:33:00.000-04:00

First time I have seen Indiana on the US section of Google News. I guess yesterday (I believe) someone took several shots at a car, killing one person. The story is here.

Anyways, Bush veto'd the Stem Cell research bill. He's still an idiot, imbecil, etc etc. I really wish we could elect someone who at least maintained a better than C average in high school.

I'm getting married on August 5. So I'm busy, I think, and yes, I will email you Jenny =-P.

New Fireworks Law

2006-07-18T19:14:00.000-04:00

It seems I'm a major proponent of the new fireworks law in Indiana. For obvious reasons. Anyways, recently I have been noticing a lot of flak in the northern papers about the law. I will call this the vocal minority. I think a lot of people are pissed off that they can't call the cops when they hear fireworks going off, seeing as its legal now. Mostly from northern Indiana. I have no complaints, I live in a major town and it was intense around the 4th of July, but other than the occasional firecracker, its quiet. Now the law makers are considering a change that will allow the local governments to choose for themselves. This means of course any government that chooses to take after our wonderful federal government will be making fireworks illegal. One town wants to make sure fireworks don't go up after 9pm. Anyone ever been outdoors after 9pm? Its still light. Course I am old enough to know that government doesn't necessarily think before suggesting these things.

Anyways, if your interested in helping fireworks, join the Fireworks Alliance and help keep our freedoms.

Government forced health care

2006-07-13T07:39:00.000-04:00

First off... *blows dust off blog*
There.
Now since I'm in nursing school and work in health care I have taken a special interest in this case. I'm currently watching Today about a case about Abraham Cherrix in Alabama. This teenager has decided to seek an alternate method to chemo to treat his Hodgkins disease. A social worker decided that the fact that he refused chemo and his parents support his decision constitutes neglect. I find this interference in health care to be sickening. The patient, especially a 16 year old, should be able to choose if they decided to go through chemo again when he has the support of his parents. The fact that chemo is basically a contest between the cancer and the patients body on who dies first. It is VERY nasty.

The thing that bothers me is the fact that the government is taking this important right from the family. The fact is the government is once again sticking its nose into areas where it is not needed, and even is even of questionable legality. The fact that a judge says its ok does not mean it is legal or should be allowed. Neglect could be considered doing nothing, they are trying an alternative method. Then again, could abuse be considered putting a toxic drug (that's chemo) into the veins of an unwilling recipient? I would rather be beat every other day for 3 months than take 3 months of chemo. At least I would feel good some of the time after the beatings. I can't stress how bad chemo can be for people.

I will write about this later once more information is released.

Thunder Over Louisville

2006-04-28T03:14:00.000-04:00

Well, recently returned from Thunder Over Louisville. I have to admit, as much of a pyro prude as I have become, this show is amazing, of course it displays America's facination with excess, and believe me 60 tons of fireworks in 30 minutes is a great amount of excess. Though choreographed, this is not a very "artsy" show. The music is a counterpoint to the fireworks, though when compaired to the whole show its just background noise. The true star of the show is the excess. The show is shot from three locations, features huge shells, a fake finale, turns a bridge into a giant spark waterfall, and makes great use of one of my favorite shells, the crossett. Overall, this is a GREAT fireworks show. Not the most choreographed, we'll save those for the L'International des Feux Loto-Québec (which I'm happy to say, Melrose Pyrotechnics, one of the companies I work for was chosen to represent America). Thunder wouldn't be good as a artsy show, pyromusicals will rely on a single shell or a small group of shells to express the feelings the music express, where as at Thunder a "lull" is usually 10-15 shells in the air at a given moment. Watch Thunder '06 online at: Channel 32 WLKY. I am of the mind I would like to be on crew at Thunder for a few years, lots of pyro...

Since I "officially" can't bitch about the firework laws anymore...

2006-03-28T00:17:00.000-05:00

I will bitch about the health care situation. I just read a post that GLHS (http://www.glhsproven.org) just bought land over on the OTHER side of town from me. That means that their centralized base will now be serving more the east and south sides of Lafayette. Course, screw West Lafayette. Then again, work will be closer if I'm still in this town when the hospitals get built, but hopefully I will be travel nursing, with my lovely fiance, who doesn't read this blog, but I will still say that. Oh and by the way, the fireworks law was officially signed into law a yesterday, according to this. By the way, I hate the Fort Wayne newspapers, they are about as unbiased as a born again Christian in an argument about Bush.

Fireworks stuff

2006-03-28T00:06:00.000-05:00

Well, my parents are out of town and I am taking advantage of what will most likely be my last large project for awhile. I build 35 10 mortar racks. Course I only have 300 mortars that will fit, I will have to think of a way to alter these so that my fiberglass tubes will fit. Right now I have 14 racks finished and sealed, and I have the rest cut out ready to screw together. Once I get a memory card for my camera I will post a how-to for assembly. I'm slowly getting ready for June 1 when the fireworks law enters law.

Bills that passed, and one that didn't...

2006-03-15T10:32:00.000-05:00

Whelp, the Senate and House are now out of session. Read this from the Journal and Courier to see how it faired. Basically, the fireworks bill passed, a handgun bill thats much like the Florida bill passed, and the abortion bill didn't pass. These are all good things. Lets see what Mitch signs in (Fireworks bill he has already committed to =-)

Basically, FIREWORKS ARE NOW LEGAL IN INDIANA. yay!

A personal post

2006-03-06T07:19:00.000-05:00

I like writing in my blog today. So I will do a little update on my personal life, as if anyone REALLY cares. Anyways... I'm looking forward to my impromptu vacation, after Jenny talks to me that is. That's this coming weekend. I also have a busy month up ahead. I have storm spotting training in a week and some change, then about 2 days after that I'm going to the advanced spotter training. Some where in there is a couple of tests in school, and some wedding stuff we needed to get done last month. My next holiday will be Thunder Over Louisville, which is like crack for the pyro's soul. Huge (I mean HUGE) fireworks show with one of the best air shows in the country. This year they got the Blue Angels and are showing off the F-22 Raptor, all good. Last year was friggin freezing (I mean literally, before the fireworks went off it sleeted, and it was windy, Sheena was glad for my tent). Anyways, I'm hoping for a better year, and I imagine that Sheena is hoping that she doesn't have to storm chase with me on the way down this year (which was part of the reason it was freezing on Saturday). Then the next break would be our honeymoon. I'm going to the same place my best friends went to, Ravenwood Castle in New Plymouth, Ohio. They said it was quite, and great for a honeymoon, and I tried to map out there, and its in middle of nowhere (which is great for me and Sheena). Anyways, I'm looking forward to that most of all (forget the wedding planning, I want to elope and go on a good honeymoon... =-) ). OK I'm done, I will stick to tirades about storms coming up (This week is severe storm awareness week).

That letter to the Editor

2006-03-06T07:12:00.000-05:00

Whelp, I got into the newspaper again, must be a slow day. Anyways my letter is here, though I like the version below a lot better. It is the third one down. I'm going to go back to cleaning my room for my fiance . Also Jenny, there is a possibility that I will be able to get down there this weekend till Monday or Tuesday (depending on if I manage to trade a day at work) so be happy! (Me and Sheena) =-)

Realities of the Situation

2006-03-05T08:07:00.000-05:00

Alright folks, I have resisted writing anything on some basic realities. This article has forced me to explain something that should come as no surprise. Generally the people making the decisions, HAVE NO CLUE. This may be my anti-authority side coming out, but generally this is true, especially when you are speaking of government, or hell, health care. Lets review both these operations now.

Government: You elect someone. This person was most likely on the debate team, or just very charismatic, and their thoughts run generally along the same lines as yours do. Though when you get right down to it, they may vote on a hundred bills while in office, though they may have specialized knowledge in just a couple. So basically, on many of those bills, they HAVE NO CLUE, except what is told to them, lie or truth...

Health Care: This industry many times is run by business majors. Nothing to bad about that right? What happens to the level of care when you cut a few hours in the nursing staff? Yeah, so it help to have someone who has been on the "front lines" to make some decisions, instead of eliminating their positions. Don't rely on MD's either, they know about as much about actual patient care as a first semester nursing student (AKA when is the last time you saw a doc wipe a patients ass?). Not that they need to, its not their job, but many hospitals will put them in charge of making patient care decisions. In the long run this never turns out good for the patient, though it sometimes works out for the money. That's what happens when someone with NO CLUE is put in a decision making position.

Indiana and Fireworks

2006-03-03T18:15:00.000-05:00

Well it looks like the Senate passed the fireworks bill. Now it goes back to the House. Looking good so far, only changes were liability concerns. Just because the bill has only gotten bad press I decided to write something for the local paper (letter to the editor). I'll post the original 500 some odd word one, and the link to the slim 230 some odd words one, once its printed.

I am writing to express my support of HB 1099 and the provisions it provides. This bill is a chance to correct the hypocrisy of the current laws and to provide us with a means of celebration, especially on our countries birthday. HB 1099 has been getting a lot of media attention. Please allow me the opportunity to provide some facts regarding fireworks.
The first and most common argument is that this bill will provide Hoosiers with the legal means to remove a finger, hand, etc. With the CPSCÂs oversight of the pyrotechnics industry, fireworks have become very safe. In fact, a CPSC report states that the total weight of fireworks used in this country has doubled in the last ten year, though the total injuries attributed to fireworks has decreased. According to a report on the American Pyrotechnics Association website (http://www.americanpyro.com/Safety%20Info/Facts02/irates90-03.pdf) the injuries per 100,000 pounds of fireworks has decreased from 17.7 per 100,000 lbs in 1990 to 4.4 per 100,000 lbs in 2003. Another argument is fire risk. While fireworks do present a fire risk, the actual numbers do not support hysteria. The American Pyrotechnics Association website has a table outlining the numbers during 1998 (http://www.americanpyro.com/Safety%20Info/Facts/1997fires.pdf). Of the 656,548 fires reported nationally, only 2,532 fires were attributed to fireworks, that is only 0.3%!
The real risk from fireworks stems from irresponsible use by parents and children. In reality, fireworks present less of a risk to children than writing utensils. A report on the American Pyrotechnics Association website outlines the injury risk for kids 5-14 years old (http://www.americanpyro.com/Safety%20Info/Facts02/IratesChild.pdf). The results are that the number of emergency room visits per 100,000 children for writing utensils is 35, whereas the number of emergency room visits for fireworks is only 9.Overall legalizing fireworks will help provide sales tax support and with HB 1099Âs 4% public safety fee, fire academies. The risks from fireworks are negligible, and present less of a danger than many common items. This does not mean to mistreat fireworks, because they can cause injuries. Use common sense around fireworks, do not shoot things too big for your yard (if you live in middle of town, stick to fountains and do not use aerial shells). Do not point anything at anyone; this includes bottle rockets and roman candles. Wear safety glass when using any type of fireworks, and do not place any part of your body over the firework. Following these simple safety rules will prevent many of the few injuries consumer class fireworks cause.

Indiana Fireworks Law

2006-02-05T08:52:00.000-05:00

OK heres the law, my concern is where it changes IC 22-11-14-8 to read:

Sec. 8. (a) A person shall not sell at retail, or offer for sale at retail, any consumer fireworks, novelties, or trick noisemakers to a person less than eighteen (18) years of age other than the following:
(1) Dipped sticks or wire sparklers. However, total pyrotechnic composition may not exceed one hundred (100) grams per item. Devices containing chlorate or perchlorate salts may not exceed five (5) grams in total composition per item.
(2) Cylindrical fountains.
(3) Cone fountains.
(4) Illuminating torches.
(5) Wheels.
(6) Ground spinners.
(7) Flitter sparklers.
(8) Snakes or glow worms.
(9) Smoke devices.
(10) Trick noisemakers, which include:
(A) Party poppers.
(B) Booby traps.
(C) Snappers.
(D) Trick matches.
(E) Cigarette loads.
(F) Auto burglar alarms.

The way that reads is someone under 18 can buy everything that used to be legal in Indiana (the changes seem to allow the stuff that was sold as "out of state" fireworks.

Any opinions?

Bush and Indiana Fireworks law

2006-02-05T08:13:00.000-05:00

Well, time to dust off the blog.

Since my last post a new year has arrived, and with this new year comes the State of the Union address. I have this wonderful resource while I'm at school (Ivy Tech) that they added to their library. They have all the Gallop poles for years. Anyways I was reviewing that latest and reading the articles (I'd post the URL but its inaccessible to anyone outside the college) and Bush's numbers REALLY suck, even compared to Clinton's while he was being impeached. I can see how this will bean important roll as people goto the polls in some states to elect new representatives. Maybe that Republican congress will swing to the Democrats. That's scary, I'd rather have a Republican congress and a Democrat president. I guess what I'm getting at in this ramble, maybe the president will be brought upon charges once the Republicans are out of office.

On to a more local concern:
I noticed that a law that will change Indiana's fireworks law has just passed the State house and is going towards the Senate now. I am VERY happy that this has happened. It has removed the hypocritical you can buy it but can't shoot it rule and changed it to a you can buy it and shoot it rule. I'm sure somewhere along the lines we will here the "parents groups" get up and shout their bit on how dangerous pyro is and how kids will get their hands blown off. The will show video of watermelon getting blown up, and talk about consumer class type (stuff the public can buy) fireworks. First off, the CSPC does the video and when they are making watermelon wine they announce this is what an M-80 does. Folks, an M-80 is not a firework, instead it is an explosive that is governed by a law that dates back to '65. The "parents groups" will use this video and dub their own views onto it. Are fireworks dangerous? Absolutely. Are they unreasonably dangerous? Nope. If people would use their heads (yeah right, that'll happen the same time hell turns into a meat locker) they would realize that doing stuff like shooting roman candles at each other is dumb, stupid and asinine. Stupidity is behind most of the injuries, that and drinking usually.

Is there something I would like to change about the fireworks law? Yes, as a I read it now kids under 18 can come into a store and buy fountains and novelty fireworks. I don't like that. I have to make sure this is true, and I will reread some of the Indiana Code pertaining to sales. I would like to see a minimum age attached to that, something to the tune of 16 or so. I figure its the same age you can buy a air rifle, so it would make sense to make it the age to buy fireworks. Maybe I will write my Senator about that, once I make sure that's the case. Last thing I would like to see is a small percentage of the use tax (4% on top of 6% sales tax) be used to sponsor education around the state, it may help address the injuries that happen around the Fourth. (Don't worry if I remember my statistics right, your at more risk driving home with your fireworks on the 4th than you are lighting them off).

Alright, I think that's all, time to sleep.

Airmarshals

2005-12-10T20:59:00.000-05:00

Well the airmarshal program has saved 0 lives, cost 1 life so far. Most of us have heard of the recent shooting on the JETWAY of an airport. Mind you it was not on the plane itself. The suspect one Rigoberto Alpizar was running off the plane. Reports from the passengers suggested that he did NOT suggest there was a bomb in his bag, second that his wife was calling that he was mentally ill. Still he was shot. I believe that the punishment for police shooting an unarmed person mistake or no should be the same as a civilian shooting an unarmed person. Manslaughter at least. Well I know that these marshals were acting in the best interest of... the people? nah the victim was exiting the aircraft when he was shot, in addition SWAT and police flooded the plan brandishing weapons, 113 people won't fly again, the plane? This victim does not fit the bill of a bomber, and I don't mean his "history". I mean his actions. Ahh well I'll post and maybe edit this later, I have to get to work.