The Art and Science of Blogging Well

This blog is quite a beast. Sometimes I wonder how (or why) I'm even doing it. I was thinking about that subject tonight, so I thought...why not blog about it?

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Now playing: Lisa Loeb - How (from the Twister soundtrack)
via FoxyTunes

(Quick aside: yes, Lisa Loeb IS very un-Chris-like, but it's off the Twister soundtrack, which always reminds me of home. That's how she snuck in to my collection, and truth be told, I do enjoy some of her music. She has a nice voice.)

Anyway, I don't know how many of you have blogs of your own. There seem to be certain types of folks online, where blogs are concerned. There are people who are content to search them out and read them. Then there are people who are really hardcore about blogging and both read and write them regularly. Some even make it their livelihood. Then there are people like me...casual blogger-readers who just try to put up something every once in a while.

Heidi reads Dooce (notice I didn't link to it...it's easy enough to find, and I'm not a fan). The lady who does Dooce has been able to make it her main income...out of necessity, as it turns out. Early in the life of her blog, she posted some unflattering comments about her boss. The boss found the comments and fired her. She kept blogging, grew an avid readership, and a couple of years back just went to blogging full-time. She and her husband now get all their income from their own personal blogs.

Honestly, I'd love to be one of those "livelihood" types. Writing for a living, making enough that I don't have to have a real, "normal" job. I could wake up, blog a little, go out and play golf or spend time with my wife and kids or work on the car or whatever, come in and blog a little more, go out to eat, enjoy some quiet time, blog one last time, then go to bed. It would still be work, I have no doubt of that, but the allure of the flexibility and romance (so to speak) of doing nothing but blogging is undeniable. Maybe I could write an Oklahoma news blog, or a Sooner news blog, or something. I could do an information security blog...yeah, sure, like there aren't already a thousand of those.

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Now playing: Sophie B. Hawkins - Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover
via FoxyTunes

But I must say, even though the allure is there, there are a lot of days that I face this blog with a huge blank. Keeping this thing going is a lot of work. Don't get me wrong, it's fun to do, and I suppose the voyeur in me enjoys putting myself, my thoughts, my ideas, and my life out there for all the world to browse as they see fit. Not all of it, perhaps...the parts I choose to put out there...but it's there, nonetheless. There are other days when I have tons of ideas and I leave notes or send myself e-mails with them...and then they go to nothing. There are days when I have a great idea and I actually sit down to blog, but I can't form my thoughts in a coherent way, and I give up. I'm very busy at work, and they've been cracking down on some personal Internet use...and blogging does take up a lot of tine to do properly.

Seriously, take some time and go back to look at some of my old posts in the archive. It's interesting to see how I've changed over the past few years, that much is true. But look at the content. My old posts were long, sometimes rambling, but they were nearly always coherent. They represent me at the start of my new life outside of my first marriage, when I had a lot more time to devote to putting together a good post. I also had the wherewithal to focus my thoughts and really express myself; mental self-expression was something I didn't have as much of in my first marriage. They were deep, sometimes controversial, usually enlightening (at least, for me), relatively positive in tone, and they used a more formal language. Then for a while, I did a more stream-of-consciousness format for my posts. I liked those posts, because I could talk about a day's worth of thoughts in one post. I still had time to put together long-ish posts but there covered more subjects with less depth, usually. Today's posts...well, they're an odd mix. Some are short comments and nothing more, like my post earlier today about the diuretic effect of my medication. Others are a byproduct of other technologies I'm experimenting with, like when I post through Jott. Some are update posts about what's happening in my life directly, others are appeals for prayers, others complaints, others political rants...it's much more of a mixed bag and much less consistent. Most blogs have a style that is fairly set. The author knows how s/he will say what they want to say, they'll say it that way today, and tomorrow, and ten years from now, and the reader will be drawn in by that and made comfortable by that consistency. I am not able to provide that consistency.

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Now playing: Rush - Ghost of a Chance
via FoxyTunes

It's funny to look at why I started this blog. I have always maintained that this blog is primarily for me, and that you're all just along for the ride. That's still true to a degree, but there's more now. First, I rarely have time to review it, and see where my thoughts and attitudes have brought me. Second, it provides a lifeline to those who can't stay in regular contact with me to check in every once in a while. It does still give me a forum to dump brain contents, and I suppose that is a valuable thing for anyone. This blog reflects well who I am, though, because it not only mirrors my personality and my thoughts, it mirrors my life-state. It goes as I go, and it represents where I am. Like I said at the very beginning, sometimes I wonder how or even why I keep up with it, coming on here sometimes for no other reason than that I haven't posted in a few days, or because I have an urge to say a great deal about very little. Sometimes, as you've seen I have to express anger at the vast injustices I see in the world, or the lack of common sense and foresight that we seem to continually demonstrate as a species, both individually and collectively. Sometimes the reasons I post are good ones, and sometimes...well, they're really not.

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Now playing: Pet Shop Boys - DJ Culture
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There have been several times, even as recently as a month or two ago, that I have seriously considered closing it down for good, never posting again. It's a very tough thing, putting a post together, because I don't want it to be stupid or vapid or waste your time or my time. I want my posts to be something I'm happy putting out. It's difficult to keep them relevant and timely and somewhat important. There have been so many times that I've had a story, or a set of stories, or something I've wanted to discuss, and I e-mail links to myself and even maybe put down a basic 3-point or 4-point outline to get me going, and I end up not having time to do anything meaningful with that for four or five days...by which time, the subject is usually irrelevant or stale. There have been so many times that I've wanted to continue a previous subject, or finish something I started in the past (like the Saga of the Car, for example...that one still sticks in my craw).

I had and have so many things I wanted to do with the blog but just don't have the time and/or energy. I'd love to redesign the site, put something in place that's professional and serious but not the cookie-cutter stuff that Blogger provides. I'd love to have regular features, something like the old "Daily Chuck Norris Fact" was, only more elaborate. I'd love to have real stories, things I put together myself on subjects that really matter to me. I'd love to develop them and move them and make them real. Like I said, though, that takes a lot of time and energy...commodities I'm lacking these days, and I really do have enough "hobbies."

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Now playing: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Melancholy Mechanics (from the Twister soundtrack)
via FoxyTunes

As I said, this blog is quite a beast. It's like any other pastime, I suppose, it takes a lot to do it right. I guess I just do it because it's become a part of my life. I also don't like letting my readers down, strange as that is to say. Thanks for reading along.

Not A Prostate Problem

I don't do many middle-of-the-day posts any more, but I needed to say this (it's quick).

You all know, I think, about my blood pressure problems. Very high...loss of vision in my right eye because of it...blah blah blah. I've been put on HCTZ by my doctor. For those of you not familiar with it, it's a diuretic. I was also recommended by my doctor to drink more water, ostensibly to help lose some weight and keep myself well-hydrated with the drug. THAT doesn't help much, I tell you what.

You know those commercials about older guys that have to go to the bathroom a lot? I can TOTALLY relate. I think I'm in the bathroom about every 20-30 minutes now. At least I can safely say it's not prostate-related. It still stinks, though; I don't recommend it.

Enjoy your day, and thanks for reading along.

'Tis The Season

Even though we had some more of the wonderful Colorado April rain yesterday, we still are early in a new season. Not baseball season, though that's good, too. No, I'm talking about grilling season. We grilled pork chops tonight. Grilling's so great because you always do it outside when the weather is nice, and it was VERY nice today. (You can do it when the weather's bad, too, and I have; however, like golf, it's much better with good weather.) Overall, I'm not much of a cook, but I'm getting better at grilling.

Oh, and I make a mean pina colada or Long Island Iced Tea, too.

Where Are We Going?

I've been thinking quite a bit lately, in the light of some things that have happened, about where we're going and what might happen if Barack Obama somehow wins not only the Democrat nomination for President, but also the Presidency itself come November. I've been thinking a lot more about it in light of Mr. Obama's claims for "hope," "change," and a departure from the "old politics." Let's look at some recent news items and discussions that show us where we would ACTUALLY be headed, should Mr. Obama win the November election.

First is a wonderful piece from the always insightful and relevant Peggy Noonan over at the Wall Street Journal. Her piece from last week talks about the resentment bred in average folks by what our country has become in the wake of 9/11 (fear of terrorism), the Iraq war (lack of patriotism, or at least, American feeling), and how those changes have affected both liberals and conservatives. For example, she talks about how liberals like Mr. Obama (and let's be honest here...he's a liberal, regardless of what he says; the record speaks for itself) bristle when they have their patriotism questioned, even in oblique ways. However, the charges don't stem because people think they're unpatriotic; it's because they seem to truly hate all of America's history and past, they act and speak as though America's present is completely wrong, and they behave as though EVERYTHING in and about America and its future MUST change. They claim to support the troops but they vote to reduce their funding and they support the illegitimate actions of cities like San Francisco that do everything possible to run the military out of town on a rail. They're NOT proud of America, ever...they're ashamed of America every day, and it's only when America considers a man like Mr. Obama for president that they are really proud of their country, for the first time in their life (to paraphrase Mrs. Obama). Would you be wrong to question the patriotism of anyone, let alone a presidential candidate, who spoke and behaved in this way? On the other hand, Ms. Noonan, talks about how conservatives are looking back to Reagan more than ever, precisely because their party (primarily in the form of George W. Bush) has let them down so badly. Increased government spending, amnesty for illegal aliens, misguided actions in the Iraq war, a general appearance of not being connected to his base, particularly over the past 2-3 years. I suggest you read the article in full and see if you can disagree with the points it makes.

Then we have today's revelation regarding Rev. Jeremiah Wright and his recent remarks about "public crucifixion" for his past comments during his sermons. I don't really need to rehash them, because I'm sure we've all heard them by now. Obama made a very nice speech regarding his connection to Rev. Wright, and he has distanced himself (sort of) from his pastor. But let's face it; Obama sat in that pew for 20 years listening to this man. Whether he agrees or disagrees, he must come out categorically and disagree, or he should have left the church and let it be know why. But that's neither here nor there; again, those points have been hashed and rehashed by more competent commentators than I.

Next is today's report of Rev. Al Sharpton inciting riots in New York City after the acquittal of three NY policemen in a murder case. I can certainly understand the anger that has risen from the verdict. It's a difficult situation for anyone to fairly judge; how many of you have been under direct fire or felt you were about to be fired upon, by live weapons firing live ammunition? I don't count myself in that number. I don't put my life on the line every day. On the other hand, police officers must be responsible and use deadly force only as a last resort, in defense of themselves or other innocents. Again, a difficult case. But the more difficult aspect is what always seem to happen when blacks don't have it their preferred way: they riot. And their "leaders" such as the Rev. Sharpton only make the situation worse. It's shades of the OJ Simpson case, this time in reverse. Everyone knew (and still knows) OJ probably did it. But the verdict is the verdict. You didn't have whites out rioting because they didn't like the verdict. We may disagree, but we accept the verdicts of the system. No one has gone out and assassinated OJ for his crimes. No one has turned over cars or burned houses or looted stores because of this disagreement. Blacks never seem to follow these simple conventions, and it comes from a completely different world-view.

That is the crux of this post. I will not vote for Mr. Obama, but not because he is black. I will not vote for Mr. Obama because I do not agree with his positions on many issues. If this makes me a racist, then so be it. But I would also point to millions of blacks who will vote for Mr. Obama ONLY because he is black. How would my reason be racist, but theirs not racist? There are also millions of whites who will vote for Mr. Obama because he is black. Is this also not racist, the sort of reverse racism that whites are guilted into by liberals of all stripes and colors? If you ever vote for anyone merely because of their skin color, and NOT because of their positions on the issues, you are racist; any liberal will tell you that (well, if you're white and voting for a white person, anyway). If Mr. Obama excoriates those who are racist and claims that race plays such a huge part of this election, how is this a change from old politics?

I blame Rev. Wright, Rev. Sharpton, and Mr. Obama for bringing race into everything and making it impossible for us to transcend race. Martin Luther King was a true visionary and believed that there could a a true brotherhood of man, where whites and blacks lived side-by-side in equality. Well, I suppose in a twisted way, Rev. Sharpton, Rev. Wright, and Mr. Obama are realizing their dream; they have revealed that we ARE all equal...equally racist.

The net outcome of this also demonstrates the patriotism problem of liberals. Take, for example, Rev. Wright's past statements from his sermon. "America's chickens coming home to roost." "God d*** America." "The United States of KKK America." He speaks in these cases as though neither he nor those in his audience are part of America. That's another clue to the puzzle. I'll give Rev. Wright and Rev. Sharpton the benefit of the doubt that they are Christian men, so I'll assume that God has the #1 spot in their lives. But it's obvious that America isn't second, or perhaps even third. Maybe the #2 spot is family, or church. Whatever the order, there is a key distinction that these black men and their followers appear to make in their life priorities, and that is that they are black before they are American. They are loyal to their blackness before they are loyal to their city, state, or country. This is anti-American, as in against the principles that America is founded upon, and it is this aspect that makes average Americans question the patriotism of men like Mr. Obama. Mr. Obama appears to set his priorities thusly: #1 God (again, giving him the benefit of the doubt as a "man of faith," as he claims to be), #2 family, #3 race, #4 the entire world, #5 America. I'm hoping America has a #5 spot, anyway; there may be others that stand ahead of even that lowly position. I know very few white Americans who would put race before country.

To a degree, Rev. Wright, Rev. Sharpton, and Mr. Obama are all doing the things they have been brought up to do in today's American socio-political culture: if someone disagrees with you, or if you don't like something, make yourself the victim, and you will win. Notice how Rev. Wright audaciously compares himself to Jesus Christ, the ultimate victim for all mankind, with his "public crucifixion" remark. Rev. Wright makes all blacks the victim of the unusual verdict from last week. Mr. Obama makes himself a victim of "old politics" and racism. It's what they do, because it's what they've learned to do. It works for them. But again, how is it a change from "old politics" to use the tricks of "old politics"? Where's the change you claim to represent, Mr. Obama? Why aren't you out trumpeting the line of Martin Luther King himself, "judge me not by the color of my skin, but the content of my character"? Martin Luther King represented true change, he began the change, and you are even now betraying it. Whether they learned that it works, their racial victimhood MUST become irrelevant if Mr. Obama's change is to come about in America, the America of he and the other black leaders are a part of. This folly is doubled not only by these men's belief that as blacks they are always victims, but also by their apparent belief that I cannot rise above my own prejudices.

So, the big question becomes, where ARE we going?

I don't believe for a second that, if Mr. Obama is elected president, all our societal wounds will be magically healed. I also don't believe that Mr. Obama would truly change politics in America and rise above the old ways. He is a dyed-in-the-wool liberal, and if that's your thing, so be it, but it isn't mine. As I said, I wouldn't vote for him because it's obvious he wants to move the country even further toward socialism. He wants to weaken America's position in the world, both militarily and diplomatically (yes, those two are inextricably linked; you can't be strong diplomatically without the necessary force to back up the diplomatic solution). He's already said his first goal in Iraq would be to withdraw, as quickly as possible. That in itself isn't bad, but if our withdrawal makes Iraq a worse place than it already is, how is that progress? It only shows our antagonists that they just have to wait us out, wait for us to get bored, wait for the next news cycle, and they can win. I am an American citizen, born and bred, and it is my right to disagree with anyone and withhold my vote from anyone who I feel would make America a worse place than it already is.

Have we lost our will? Have we become so complacent? Are we ready to give in to fear? Is America today, so big and beautiful and powerful after 200 years of hard work and sacrifice, ready to collapse on itself from the inside? To me, that is the real question of what this election represents. Yes, regardless of the outcome, America will live on. It isn't dead yet. But look at Europe and its member states; France, England, Germany, Italy, Spain, all have been around for centuries, much longer than the ol' USA. What did they have to do to be taken seriously in the world again? They had to join, to become the European Union, and even then, they're economically irrelevant and can't solve their own societal issues. Their guilt from their past, driven by intellectualist-socialist idiots, has killed their drive to grow, build, and succeed, and has weakened them all. Look at Spain's last big election; one bombing in Madrid, and the whole country goes into its shell like a turtle and completely succumbs to the terrorists' demands of withdrawal and surrender. Is that what we want? "Just leave us alone, let us do our own thing, and don't bother us"? Are we patriots who believe America was built on strong principles and hard work, or have we lost our history?

Mr. Obama doesn't wear a flag pin because he believes "dissent is patriotic." And it is, but all of this comes down to whether or not you are proud to be an American. It comes down to whether or not you want America to continue to grow in strength and prosper in wealth. It comes down to whether or not, at the end of the day, regardless of your skin color, your history, your family's history, your country's history, you are proud of who you are and what country you are from. Mr. Obama and Revs. Wright and Sharpton are not proud to be American. The liberal wing of the Democrat party is not proud to be American.

I'll close with a counterexample, one I saw all the way back in 7th grade. At our school, there was a teacher there who headed up the "I Can" program. Indeed, their slogan was "I CAN because I am an AmerICAN." I never had a class with him, but I heard him speak many times that year. He was incredibly positive and inspirational. He was a great man, and he tried to teach us all that we could be great, too, if we believed in ourselves and worked hard. He was greatly loved by all students there and greatly respected by his peers and principals. He was proud of who he was and what he had done, and he was proud to be an American. Unfortunately, I don't remember his name, and I wish I could, because he deserves special mention.

I do remember one thing about him in particular, though. He was black.

Thanks for reading along.

Taking The Right Turn At Albuquerque

So I just spent the last couple of days in beautiful Albuquerque, New Mexico. Not a bad place, really...pretty good-sized town, not what you expect when you think of it. It's close to 600K people there now, and I didn't expect that; that's about the size of Tulsa. A few notes on this trip and travel in general:

If you are ever in Albuquerque, eat at Tucano's Brazilian Grill...unless you're vegetarian. It's nothing but meat, meat, and more meat. I had some bacon-wrapped turkey, 4 different cuts of beef, fried whitefish with mango sauce on it, honey-BBQ chicken, glazed ham, brisket, WOW! Oh, and I can't forget the deep-fried banana, grilled pineapple, and grilled peppers. They do have salad, too; you don't have to eat meat. But then, why would you go?

The next night, hit the 66 Diner on Central Street (aka Old Route 66). And order a banana split...trust me on this one.

One of the greatest things the airlines did was introduce online check-in for their flights, and check-your-own-bags kiosks. If you're never used these services, I HIGHLY recommend them. The days of taking 45 minutes to check in for your flight are so...well, so late-20th-century.

This trip allowed me to add another wonderful town to my travel record. For business, there's Albuquerque, Atlanta, Anaheim, Baltimore, Boise, Chicago, Dallas, Elko (Nevada), Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, South Bend (Indiana), and Toronto. Throw in pleasure trips to San Diego, Orlando, Cancun, New Orleans, Kansas City, St. Louis, Jackson Hole (Wyoming), Tampa, Bethlehem (Pennsylvania), Louisville (Kentucky), Hilton Head, Tucson, Austin (unfortunately), and Santa Fe, and I am beginning to surprise myself with how much traveling I've actually done in my life. I don't consider myself "well-traveled" but apparently I am.

If you haven't seen the car keys of the future, you might try a late-model Jeep. They don't even bother with something as archaic as a metallic key like we're all used to. Nope, they give you a fob with an end that actually just plugs into the ignition switch. The "key" part of the fob is the RFID signal to the ignition switch, so that when you turn the switch with the fob plugged into it, the thing starts. That took a little getting used to, I tell you what.

Thanks for reading along.

Tales Of Interest!!!

Connor scored his first real touchdown in a live football game this weekend, on a nearly-30-yard run. It was awesome to see, and I was so happy for him! He did it like a true pro, too...he crossed the goal line, and just ran back and gave the ball to the referee, and headed back with his team. (I don't know if it's because he didn't realize the awesomeness of his touchdown or if he just was relaly low-key about it, but it was a great thing to see.)

Now, every team has to supply a dad as a volunteer referee for every game. I happen to have refereed flag football before, when I was in college, so I am it for our team. So to make a long story short, the best part of seeing Connor score the touchdown for me was: that referee he handed the ball to? It was me. I was standing 10 feet away as he crossed the goal line. I got to make the call, standing at the goal line with my arms raised in the standard touchdown signal, blowing my whistle happily. What a wonderful feeling! And of course, the real winner here was Connor. It's great that occasionally, as a parent, you get to fully participate and watch up close as your child does something great for the first time; I was fortunate, blessed by God, to get to be a minor participant in his achievement.

Donovan is doing great with his karate. He's nearly ready to test for his yellow belt, in just a few short weeks of training. Yellow is the first belt after white, the first step forward on the journey toward black belt. He's really enjoying karate so far, and I think it's helping him with his physical energy (which he has a lot of, by the way). It's an interesting bit of role reversal, since it's normally Connor doing karate and Donovan doing football or something else.


More work on the truck for me this weekend; I spent some time fixing the brakes, this weekend. It's the third straight weekend of some serious mechanic time, and frankly, I need a break from it. I love working on the cars but sometimes I'd rather be doing something else when we have a beautiful weekend like we just had...something like playing outside with the boys or spending time with Owen and Heidi, or some combination of the two.


Heidi and I are thinking harder and harder about how we can accelerate our plans to move to Oklahoma. I think we both are beginning to realize that life in Colorado is good, but we would be in better shape (or at least, I would be in better shape) if we moved back. The stress of having to do so many things here continues to weigh on me pretty heavily, and I've been pretty much swamped for the last several weeks. The new year started off difficult and it hasn't let up much for us. Don't get me wrong, we're not in the midst of a catasrophe...but we are looking at some serious stuff, like how to get things caught up financially and how to get to a point where we're not running ourselves ragged with all of our obligations. We're looking at some extreme options, and there's a lot of juggling behind the scenes right now. Unfortunately, I can't elaborate on them because there are a lot of puzzle pieces that have to fall into place, and discussing them openly might affect how things turn out. Just please keep praying for us that things will happen the way they need to happen. It's tough to keep the faith, that God will guide everything the way He wants it to go, the way He knows is best for us. The good news for me is that I'm so busy, I don't have as much time to worry about those puzzle pieces.

Thanks for reading along.

Yesterday, we got a...

Yesterday, we got a lovely bunch of Colorado April rain...known to the rest of the world as "snow." Spring is so wonderful here. listen

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I Gotta Say It Was A Good Day

"Today I didn't even have to use my AK...I gotta say it was a good day." --Ice Cube, It Was A Good Day

I'm not much of a hardcore rap fan, but some days I think of this song. It talks about what a good day is like for him, and it makes me think of what a good day is like for me. Today was a good day.

First, I wasn't working, and I don't care who you are...a day not working is usually a good day (there are exceptions).

Second, I spent the day at my boys' school, doing annual faculty evaluations as part of my Board of Directors work. Every year, we take a day and sit in classes and evaluate how the teachers are doing. This gave me a packed day, as from 8:00 am until 3:00 pm I was either sitting in 30-minute class sessions scheduled for me, frantically working to fill out the eval forms while actually trying to pay attention to what's happening in class; or I was rushing to my next class session to observe, as quickly as possible. I didn't even get a lunch break, but I did have lots of cookies and candy. Fortunately for me, all the activity easily offset any poundage gained. Though I was busy and rushing around all day, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the teachers in action. It was fascinating, seeing the contrasting styles, noting the differences and watching how students were engaged by the different activities and techniques, and seeing the teachers' personalities coming out in the classes. I learned a lot about how education works at the classroom level. I only wish more parents had the opportunity (and willingness) to actually observe classes, and not just the ones their students are in. It is so valuable to experience that objectively and understand how education is actually applied. I hadn't been in an elementary classroom during a "normal" day in over 20 years, and I know they did things a little differently back then.

Third, I scored a MAJOR victory with the Ramcharger today. You might know the background info on the Ramcharger...got it in early February...very old but runs well...still needs some work...needed to pass emissions. Well, today, the time and money I've spent over the past 2 months tuning, shoring up, repairing, replacing, and generally getting dirty and bonding with the truck in a meaningful way, all of that paid off. I took it over to the local emissions testing facility, and...IT PASSED EMISSIONS! So the last bit is to go pay for the tags, and I can finally just drive it for a while, rather than having to worry about if it will be OK. That was a huge weight off my shoulders, getting those results.

Finally, I got our taxes finished and filed, and you all know that's a great thing. We don't get much back, just about $300. In fact, I still owe the Feds from a few years back, so we won't be getting any sort of refund from them for quite some time, because I won't be able to pay that off any time soon. Oh, and thanks to the geniuses here in Colorado being so willing to let the incompetent state government take more of our cash with Referendum C, I owe the state for the third straight year. Until that stupid thing passed, I got a decent refund every year. Not so these days...thanks so much, fellow citizens.

It's actually been a pretty good week so far, because Monday was a decent day, too. Keep those prayers coming! Thanks for reading along.

Anger Rising...

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Just when I start to believe that there is good in humanity, just when I start to believe that mankind will not ultimately destroy itself through its own cruelty, stupidity, and short-sightedness, I see something like this:

Torture Tape Spurs Shock In Alva

This is the story of how two men in Alva, Oklahoma tortured a 21-year-old autistic man and videotaped the entire episode to emulate "Jackass," with the claimed intention of selling it.

Here's the kicker:

Wallace, 21, and Tarver, 22, were charged Tuesday in Woods County District Court with maiming and assault and battery with a deadly weapon. The combined maximum sentence is 17 years in prison upon conviction. Wallace is on probation after pleading guilty last year to child abuse, domestic abuse and two cruelty-to-animals charges. The child abuse involved a spiral leg fracture and bite marks on his 2-year-old stepchild. Wallace gave conflicting accounts about how the injuries occurred, court records show. One of the animal cruelty charges involved a kitten that was thrown against a wall.

This jerk, Wallace, will probably live to see the rest of his life, despite the obvious and repeated cruelty he displays toward those he perceives as weaker than he is. Brutally torturing an autistic man? Biting a 2-year-old? Twisting its leg until it breaks? Throwing kittens against walls? WHEN IS SOMEONE GOING TO STEP IN AND DO SOMETHING TO THIS GUY? Seventeen years, the maximum for this crime that he surely WON'T get (thanks to our toothless criminal "justice" system), would not be enough. With the disregard with which this "man" acts toward others, he should either put away for good, or have his license to live revoked. Sadly, there are enough liberal idiots out there who would scream for clemency...morons who claim he could be rehabilitated...fools who believe no person should be killed in the name of justice, even when all the evidence points to their defectiveness, their lack of ability to be a decent, honest, productive member of human society.

I would say this: notice the interesting escalation in each crime. He began with kittens, then abused a toddler, then tortured a man his own age. This is a common pattern and will end badly...and unfortunately, he will have to kill someone before someone else decides to step in. We can assess blame, or we can fix the problem. Let's call a spade a spade, admit that this man has evil in him that won't go away, and dispose of him quickly and painlessly, before he really does some damage...oh, wait, we're already there. Until we're ready to do what must be done, lives will be ruined by people like this "man."

I'll be watching this case to see how it is resolved, and I'll let you know. Thanks for reading along.

Another Life Lesson

I don't know if I've said this before (and I'm too busy to run a search on my own blog), but I'll say it now. Money may not buy happiness, but it sure does make some very important parts of your life easier if you have it. That's all I'm going to say about that.

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY, OWEN!!!

Wanted to get this out really quickly...today is Owen's first birthday! WOOHOO!!! Way to go, little guy...you made it to your first year, and we're SOOOOOO proud of you!! I'll post some pics soon, because we have some great ones of him.