Poem

Sent to me by a friend

It's winter in Kansas
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles and hour
At twenty five below

Oh how I love Kansas
When the snow's up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut

Yes, the weather here is wonderful,
So, I guess I'll hang around
I could never leave Kansas
My ass is frozen to the ground

$$$$$$'s

As a registered Democrat, I get many money solicitations. Very rarely do they receive anything from me. Prior to Obama it was different. It seemed to me the party in power was in the hands of scoundrels. As an example, the FDIC lost nearly 1,000 auditors from 1999-2007 (Denver Post, 12/28/09). Not surprising we have massive bank failures. Now the party in power is in the hands of looney social engineers. AARGH!

These fund solicitations are starting to have a whiff of panic. Maybe they are reading the tea party tea leaves! I can only hope the GOP will offer up a slate of candidates not smelling of corruption. Yeah, I am a foolish optimist!

Jobs Rant - Long, Skip if You Want

A sawmill operated upwind of the town containing my high school. Sawdust was burned and often smoke drifted into town. One citizen complained to my father, "Bob, isn't this smoke terrible"? My father loudly sniffed and replied, "I smell a $100,000 payroll." My father was in the middle birth order of twelve children. At one time, he and his brothers slept in a dirt floored hillside dugout near the small family cabin on a dry land homestead in Northwest Colorado. He was always working, or looking for work. Sometimes he worked two or three jobs. His siblings, his children, his nieces and nephews and his grandchildren have the same values. We may all be pulling a plow for the man but it is our plow and we pull it for whom we please. We own our pride and dignity. My great fortune is to have this heritage on both sides of my family.

Job destruction seems to be our national policy. About the time someone achieves a certain level of comfort and security or, worse, inherits it, they start campaigning to "save" something. My father defined an environmentalist as, "someone who bought his five acres last year." Everything has a cost. Basic economics describe the multiplier effect. Every dollar spent is multiplied by the number of times it changes hands (what that dollar is worth is another subject).
The multiplier works both positive and negative. Take that dollar out of circulation, by loss of jobs or remitting it to another country, and the economy shrinks. For proof, look no further than small farm towns or small to medium cities in the "rust belt". Today, tax revenues at all levels are falling caused by loss of jobs.

What drives job loss is corruption. Corruption in the unions, corruption in the banking sector, corruption in the board rooms. Our USA corporation aren't; they are registered offshore so they can use our services, infrastructure, and military to protect their assets without paying for their use. The top of this smelly heap is the past and present corrupt leadership in Washington, D.C.

I don't have all the answers but I do have two tools, my vote, and my wallet. I will no longer vote for the lesser of two evils. I will research where I spend money and not patronize corrupted businesses if I can avoid them. Great tool, the Internet, for find information.

A job is essential for dignity and self respect. As for those who won't work, my parents referred to what they called, "the belly flapping principle". Great motivator!

The question becomes; will any of this make a difference? Yes it will, to me.

Petty-Mindedness

Is it wrong to enjoy the sight of a jerk being pulled over by the police?

Returning home last night after a nice supper, featuring pronghorn meat, with my sister and her well cared for dogs, I shared the road with a jerk.

This road is a four lane rural highway with several small towns. The speed limits in the towns are reasonable but slower than the open road. Said speed limits are diligently enforced. A small SUV was speeding through the towns then slowing way down on the open highway. He was driving with his high beams on. Not a good idea on what is known as DUI alley. In the third small town he ignored the 50 mph limit by ten or more and was caught.

Probably doesn't say much good about my character but, carefully passing the Crown Vic and SUV in the inside lane, I couldn't stop grinning.

Way Over The Top

People and their pets are often out of control. The question becomes, is the pet well cared for, or spoiled beyond belief? A case in point is my sister, ranch raised and otherwise sensible, who has small stairs at the foot of her bed so her Schipperke can easily access the bed. In my role as elder brother, I have tried to counsel her about the dangers of spoiling animals. These efforts have not been well received. In fact, they have been most rudely received. Oh well, a prophet in his own land, etc.

Compounding Irritation

This is a story of a $400+ hit to my wallet courtesy of a small town police chief.

The car dealership where I worked was located on twenty five acres along the frontage road of an Interstate Highway. The property is fenced on the three sides not facing the frontage road. A deep, wide ditch runs the entire length of the lot.

One night someone stole one of my personal vehicles, an older 2wd 1/2 ton Chevy, off the lot. They drove at an angle through the ditch. From the tracks, they got stuck and the bumper was bent from a tow hook when I got it back. Here we have two high traffic roads patrolled by three different agencies (state patrol, county, and city) 3/4 of a mile from three large gas station/truck stops and seven fast food restaurants, a truck in the ditch being towed out, brilliantly lighted, middle of the night and nobody sees anything? Or decides to check? Like that activity is normal?

After my report, a BOLO goes out and my truck is found about 20 miles away. It has a few missing parts, different tires and rims, but is drivable. No, prick small town Chief of Police has it towed and impounded. Guess his crime techs needed some practice. Of course, I get the bill for the tow and impound fees. Lots of reassuring blather about victim compensation when the thief is caught. Glad I didn't hold my breath.

Now the bad guys here are the thieves (may karma bite them in the ass). I am grateful for the sharp officer in another jurisdiction that spotted my truck parked back in the weeds. What bites is the small town Chief who compounded my loss for some b.s. crime scene investigation, I guess, because he could.

One bright spot was Officer Sweetheart took the initial report. She is a medium sized blue eyed blond way beyond good looking who looks much younger than her age. Her personality makes her a delight to be around. Alas, she is married. She is good at her job. One evening I saw her arresting a man at the truck stop. He and his companions were foreigners and seemed unwilling to take orders from a woman. I made eye contact with the two companions and stood there with them until her backup arrived. Very impressive, the way she handled the other man. He slowly and reluctantly complied with her orders but he did comply. After her backup arrived, I went about my business. Never found out why he was arrested.

Detailed

Another car lot story for DA. Bored car salesmen are dangerous; idle hands and minds can create major mischief.

At the time of this story, Mel S was a 70 year old salesman and weird beyond even car salesman standards. He drove a bright yellow VW diesel powered Rabbit pickup that appeared dark brown as it had never been washed in the five years Mel owned it. Mel lived at the end of a three mile dirt road.

We were working an off site sale at a race track parking lot. Business was slow and the group was bored. A couple of lot men were standing around. Mel's filthy pickup was parked nearby. A collection was taken up and the two lot men were put to work detailing (cleaning) Mel's VW. They did a great job!

At the end of the day, Mel came for his truck. He stood in front of it a good three minutes yelling about his truck being stolen; who did it, who saw it, etc. before it sunk in. After finding his key opened the door of a shining yellow truck, he started cursing. He was proud he never washed any vehicle he owned from the day he bought it to the day he sold it. The more he damned the group, the louder the laughs. Bored car salesmen = danger.

Sorry DA, you needed to be there.