Choot 'em in da Leg!

Yes, I believe we need to have some sort of police reform in this country. But someone please tell Joe Biden, "shooting 'em in the leg" should not be any part of that reform.

I've heard Biden say it at each of his two town halls, as a means of "de-escalating" a situation.

First, how on Earth is shooting someone in the leg a de-escalation tactic? That doesn't even remotely make sense.

De-escalation can be described as a series of tactics to calm a person or a situation down. It's "Verbal Judo," persuading an angry person to do something they may not want to do at first.

Anyone who's been shot in the leg is unlikely to be calm, and if they happen to have a gun too, you can bet they will be returning fire.

By the time the weapon comes out, it's too late for de-escalation. Drawing a weapon is the last resort and the very act itself is among the highest levels of force.

Where the reform needs to come, in part, is giving police more options before drawing the weapon, and training to better recognize situations where a weapon might not be required.

We've done some of that with Tasers and pepper spray and other non-lethal means of subduing a suspect. But we need to do more.

The idea of bringing psychologists and social workers in to help in some situations has merit. We can't expect police officers to continue to take on those roles in society.

We could also take a look at what mental health support we provide to people in need. There are a lot of those types of options that we can expand upon, but shooting them in the leg is not one.

This ain't the movies. Once the weapon comes out and the first trigger pull happens, every round is going center mass and it's not stopping until the target it neutralized.

People often criticize police when they shoot someone 15 times, even in justified shootings. Why can't they just shoot once? In the leg?

Well for one, he's going to keep getting shot until he drops and is no longer a threat. And second, in the heat of the moment, when it's shoot or be shot, and tunnel vision is kicking in, and the cortisol is flowing, and your ears stop working, the only thing you can see is center mass.

I've been through a lot of firearms training, shoot/don't shoot stuff, live-fire shoot houses, high-stress role-play scenarios, firearms scenario simulators. I've even experience the real deal a few times, once responding to an armed robbery in progress, and a couple of times on the bad end of ambushes in the sandbox.

It ain't pretty. Training helps. But no amount of training and experience would make shooting someone in the leg a good option once the weapon comes out.

Party of Freedom? Less Government? A businessman?

Muh Freedoms! I had an exchange on Twitter with a Trumper who claimed he was a proud gun owner who believes in less government and more freedom with a businessman as president. This was in response to my comment that he had been duped by conservative propaganda and I think his response proved my point.

Conservative propaganda wants you to believe that today's Republican Party is for smaller government and individual freedom.

Every president in the modern era has increased government spending over the last, regardless of party, with Trump increasing spending to $8 trillion and the deficit to $28 trillion. How is that smaller government?

Republicans are also actively trying to take away numerous freedoms in the name of freedom. Women's rights, LGBTQ rights, voting rights... just a few of the freedoms targeted by the Republic party.

So what about this businessman? Trump is not a successful businessman. He is a reality TV star, a B-list celebrity, who has failed more often than not in his business ventures. Anyone who claims to support Trump because of his business acumen clearly has a superficial understanding of his background.

So to people who claim the Republican party stands for freedom and small government I say you have been duped by Republican propaganda.

In Defense of Civility

If Donald Trump is evil incarnate, are his supporters evil as well? I've seen that question asked, and answered affirmatively, several times across social media lately. While I lean more toward Trump being a clinical psychopath, I don't think all of his supporters should be put in the same basket.

I have several good friends who are Trump supporters. These are decent, smart people, and they support Trump. I'm sure there are Trump supporters who are genuine assholes and who support him because he is an asshole too, but clearly not all of them fit that description.

Republican Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia was on TV this morning talking about Trump followers, explaining that they have been "misinformed and scared" by Trump. Trump has not told them the truth, Manchin said.

So there is a group of people who have been duped by Trump. He has convinced them that he is right and "the left" is some evil singular entity out to ruin the country. Manchin implored his fellow Republican Senators to help educate their constituents to Trump's lies.

Manchin even admitted that he could tell West Virginians that more coal jobs have been lost under Trump than any other president, but they might not believe him, even though he has the numbers to support his claim. Trump's grip is that firm.

Smart people see through those lies though, right? How can they still support him? Perhaps they are part of another group who supports Trump, but only grudgingly. He might have seemed like the best choice in 2016, the anti-politician coming to drain the swamp, but he didn't live up to his billing. They see through the lies.

But he's still a "Republican" (and I put that in quotes because I don't think he is). If you embrace conservative social and economic ideas, then Trump is your only option, especially if the Senate swings the other way.

You could make the argument that despite his failure as a leader, he is getting the job done for those conservatives. There are more Republican-appointed justices on the Supreme Court, judges in the federal courts, less regulation on business, etc.

Those are all political issues, with many angles, that have nothing to do with Trump as a person, or his incompetent leadership, or his botched COVID response. Political issues are why we vote and making these decisions at the ballot box is the cornerstone of democracy.

What we can't do though, is put everyone in one of two baskets, the left or the right, because we're more than that. By many accounts we are living in one of the most politically divided times in our nation's history, division that was created by putting people into those two baskets and spreading fear and hate of the other side.

If voting to decide the issues is the cornerstone of democracy, the walls are civility and compromise. How can we remain civil and work together for a better country if it's always us versus them, one or the other?

The divided nation.

There has been much talk in the last few years about our divided nation and equally as much assigning of blame for the divisions or failure to heal them.

I think the division is not the responsibility of Obama, or Trump, or any other politician, but technology.

Not very long ago, our sources of information were somewhat limited.  There were three major networks to choose from and one or two newspapers depending on where you lived.  For the most part, the majority of people in the U.S. got their news from the same sources and these sources usually reported the same facts in varying amounts of detail.

Generally, major news outlets broadcast news and very little opinion on the 5 o'clock news.  Newspapers also printed mostly news, except for one page clearly labeled "Opinion."

Then came a cable news network.  It takes a lot of news to fill 24 hours and really, not that much is going on of national importance.  Why not fill that extra time with opinions?

Next came other cable news networks and the quest for ratings and advertising revenue.

With more than one news network, each network could be tailored to target a particular audience, an important element of marketing and advertising, creating entire news networks that focus on one target audience and as such give the appearance of being politically biased (Don't believe me? Compare commercials on Fox News and MSNBC.)

Opinion is always more entertaining than news.  People like someone giving an opinion that they share.  They don't like opinions that they don't share.  People like opinions more than facts, even opinions that aren't based on facts.  It's much easier to form an opinion by listening to someone else's opinion than compiling facts and forming your own.  That begins the rise of Bill O'Reilly and Rachel Maddow.

Enter the Internet.  More and more people get their news from the Internet.  Now there are not only two or three sides to choose from, but thousands.  You can find sources of "news" and opinion that fit exactly your way of thinking, facts be damned.

In fact, you can can find sources of information that support your opinion and tell you why all other opinions are wrong.

We are no longer all getting the same set of facts and forming reasonable opinions based on those facts.  Instead, we are fed custom streams of information that support our beliefs and shun competing beliefs, creating huge divisions.

If that's the case, what's the fix?

Down with Veggie people

There are just too many hippie liberal know it alls in this world. The time has come to thin the heard down some and put America back on top. We as Americans can not sit by and watch these soft goody goody's run this great country into the ground. Too many times we law abiding conservative Americans have let these liberal goof ups get away with murder. We are not talking about your run of the mill Bud Light drinkers here, we are talking about vegetarians. Yes these non meat eating grass smoking home brewing vegetarians must be stopped. I will not let these hippie do gooders take my steak! We need an action plan right away one that will ensure there will be no interruptions in the protein intake of our children and grand parents. The time is now and the place is here let this day go down in history as the day we as American stood up against the oppression of these hippie liberal vegetarians and their hate speech against meat! Get out your grills and burn some meat on this historic Labor Day weekend!!!!

Tragedy in Democracy

Recent tragic events have awakened me from my blog slumber like a mama grizzly... er, never mind.  So some "unstable" gentleman tried to kill Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and ended up critically wounding her and killing a half-dozen others.

Coincidentally, Giffords name was placed on a political "hit list" drafted by Sarah Palin sometime early last year.  At the time, people criticized Palin, claiming she was inciting violence.

So do you think Palin's political life, all 15 minutes of it, flashed before her eyes the moment she heard one of the people on that list was just shot and killed (as was first reported)?   I suspect it did.

As more details unfold about the shooter, Jared Loughner, it seems he might be a leftist nut job and probably wasn't influenced by Palin's list at all.  (But then there's the mysterious missing suspect, the one behind the grassy knoll, who may be the right-wing mastermind of the shooting... we'll save that for another day.)

Regardless of whether or not he was influenced by Palin, Glenn Beck, or Keith Olberman, the fact that the connection with Palin was and could be made is the problem.  It clearly demonstrates the hatred and anger between political groups that has spread throughout the country.

This tragedy should be used as a catalyst for change to more civil and peaceful political discourse.

Busy very busy

Go North!

It turns out even a staunch Republican thinks the health care system in the US sucks and has traveled to Canada for treatment in a socialist system.

Sarah Palin admitted that she has traveled to Canada to take advantage of their socialized medicine.

I guess socialism ain't all that bad when it comes to taking care of yourself.

Palin Writes on Cheat Sheet on Her Hand!

Former Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin appears to have been caught "red-handed" with notes on her hand.  I guess the notes were talking points or key things she wanted to hit on during the interview.

Here she is below.  You can see her right about at 0:47 looking into her hand.  Earlier in the tape you can sort of make out writing in her hand too.



Now is this really such a big deal? One NPR blog I read asked that question and even included a poll. They point out that President Obama uses a teleprompter for his speeches.

The poll on the blog above showed (at least when I looked at it), that the majority of people thought Palin's hand notes were worse than Obama's teleprompter.  After all, don't most big public officials making a speech use a teleprompter?  I'm know G.W. did.  In fact he was accused of having debate answers radioed into a mic in his ear (a more sophisticated version of Palin's attempt).

In my opinion, Palin's hand notes really demonstrate what I don't like about Palin.  She is not quick-witted and she can not think on her feet.

Listening to her talk is very annoying to me because I can hear the sound but I can't make out what she's saying.  It seems painfully obvious to me that she doesn't even know what she's saying.  She just rambles on, throwing out a few catch phrases here and there.

Her hand notes show that's exactly what she's doing.  And she looked stupid doing it.  She would have seemed more intelligent had she come out with notes or talking points written on an index card or something.

Granted this is not the best option, especially for someone who aspires to be President, but it would have been better than writing the answers on your hand.  That smacks of cheating on a test in school.

A funny email joke, I love it

You are in Florida , Miami to be specific... There is chaos all around you caused by a hurricane with severe flooding.. This is a flood of biblical proportions. You are a photojournalist working for a major newspaper, and you're caught in the middle of this epic disaster. The situation is nearly hopeless.

You're trying to shoot career-making photos There are houses and people swirling around you, some disappearing under the water.. Nature is unleashing all of its destructive fury. ... See More

THE TEST:

Suddenly you see a man and a woman in the water. They are fighting for their lives, trying not to be taken down with the debris. You move closer. Somehow they look familiar.. you suddenly realize who they are.

It's Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi!! At the same time you notice that the raging waters are about to take them under forever.

You have two options:

You can save their lives or you can shoot a dramatic Pulitzer Prize winning photo, documenting the deaths of two of the world's most powerful people.

NOW,
Here's the question; and please give an honest answer...

Would you select high contrast color film, or would you go with the classic simplicity of black and white?

Go Obama go (away)

From CNN not FOX news!

Brighter signs in economy haven't boosted confidence or hiring.

However, the unemployment rate is staggering. The national rate hit 10.2 percent last month, the first time it has been double digits in more than 25 years.

The jobless rate increased in 29 states and the District of Columbia in October, according to a recent Labor Department survey. Thirteen states reported an unemployment rate above the current national rate.

FOX News At It Again!

Not a week after they ran fake footage of pro-conservative protest footage, Fox News does it again and runs old footage of Palin during her campaign to give the impression that people are flocking to her book signings.

When do people start to recognize this and turn away from Fox News as a reliable news outlet?

I doubt people will because the Fox News fan base are the uneducated masses looking for entertainment and conflict, not news.

It's much easier to believe something factually incorrect but spectacular than something true but boring.

Fox News should quickly change their slogan from "Fair and Balanced" to "News Doesn't Happen, We Make It Happen!"

Or, as Jon Stewart says below, "We Alter Reality."



And for more on Fox News, check this out. And of course, here is the faked Palin footage:



And here...

Fox News Caught In The Act!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Sean Hannity Uses Glenn Beck's Protest Footage
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

The real news

Limbaugh Assails Obama's 'Radical' Agenda, Predicts One-Term Presidency - FOXNews.com

Limbaugh Assails Obama's 'Radical' Agenda, Predicts One-Term Presidency - FOXNews.com

Posted using ShareThis

Heil Beck!

Pres. Obama is Turning this Ship Around!

OK, Pres. Bush is out of office and Pres. Obama's changes are starting to take effect. The economy is turning around and we are officially pulling out of the Bush-induced recession.

GDP was up 3.5 percent last quarter. That is huge! Unemployment is still high but that will turn around with time.

Don't worry everyone, Obama will fix this mess.

The future with Obama

Once upon a time, there was a little red hen who scratched about the barnyard until she uncovered some grains of wheat.

She called her neighbors and said, "If we plant this wheat, we shall have bread to eat. Who will help me plant it?"

"Not I," said the cow.
"Not I," said the duck.
"Not I," said the pig.
"Not I," said the goose.

"Then I will," said the little red hen, and she did.

The wheat grew tall and ripened into golden grain. "Who will help me reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen.

"Not I," said the duck.
"Out of my classification," said the pig.
"I'd lose my seniority," said the cow.
"I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose.

"Then I will," said the little red hen, and she did.

At last it came time to bake the bread. "Who will help me bake the bread?" asked the little red hen.

"That would be overtime for me," said the cow.
"I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck.
"I'm a dropout and never learned how," said the pig.
"If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination," said the goose.

"Then I will," said the little red hen.

She baked five loaves and held them up for her neighbors to see. They wanted some and, in fact, demanded a share.

But the little red hen said, "No, I can eat the five loaves."

"Excess profits!" cried the cow.
"Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck.
"I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose.
And the pig just grunted.

And they painted "unfair" picket signs and marched around and around the little red hen, shouting obscenities.

When the government agent came, he said to the little red hen, "You must not be greedy."

"But I earned the bread," said the little red hen.

"Exactly," said the agent. "That is the wonderful free enterprise system. Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants. But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must divide their product with the idle."

And they lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who smiled and clucked, "I am grateful. I am grateful."

But her neighbors wondered why she never again baked any more bread.

They Will Rule The World!

Pres. Obama says the winner of the clean-energy race will lead the global economy.

I just watched a GE commercial that talked about the same thing. They are creating new jobs, solving our fossil fuel problem and saving the planet!

But GE aside, we are being left in the dust by other countries. We need to wake up and get out of our oil-induced stupor.

Media v. Whitehouse - In Perspective

Here's a good article in the NY Times about the battle between the Obama Administration and Fox News. In the grand scheme of things, it's nothing new. Republican and Democratic presidents throughout our history have complained and fought with the media.

It's sad that news channels have to have a bias one way or the other but I think the real problem is not really in the news but in the opinions. The difference being with news, you can make up your own mind and with opinion, someone has made it up for you.

When you look at CNN, they are mostly news with very few opinion talk shows thrown in. CNN Headline News is even better because it's almost all news.

Fox is the other way around. They have very little of what appears to be news and mostly opinion talk shows like O'Reilly, Hannity, Beck, et. al. After all, that's what sells.

And what sells? Prepackaged opinions. Someone has already gone out and read the news, put their own spin on it, wrapped it up with a bow, and gifted it to someone who isn't capable of or doesn't want to make the effort to form their own opinion.

In Fox News' response to the Whitehouse criticism, they said people should be able to tell the difference between page one news and page 2 opinion. In a newspaper, this is easy because page one really is news and opinion comes later. On TV, there is no page one, unless you would consider that prime time, which at Fox is occupied by opinion.

Fox is no longer a news channel but an opinion channel. They have made this shift because polarizing opinions bring more conflict which brings more ratings which brings more advertising dollars.

All these other news channels are trying to compete for advertising dollars which makes them do the same stupid things. What a sad day in the world of journalism.

On another note, the Washington Post says that hunters and anglers are in favor of curbing greenhouse emissions. Because I like to stereotype... Most hunters and anglers, according to the article and in keeping with the stereotype, should be more conservative, country folk, driving big gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs and claiming to be Republicans.

It seems, however, that climate change could change their sport so of course they want the government to do something.