mnaines's Blog

Anyone ever wonder why there is such a large military presence here in the Kansas City metro?  We got Fort Riley to the west, Whiteman AFB (home of the stealth bombers) to the east, Lansing and Leavenworth military prisons to the north, and the rail yard north of the river is the only set of tracks controlling rail traffic between the two coasts, and I hear rumors that we have nuclear missile silos here in the metro as well as a military experimental wireless infrared comms system that spans the Missouri River near Wheeler Downtown, and whenever a plane takes off and lands from Wheeler, that plane breaks the beam, which disrupts comms between Riley and Whiteman until they can get the IR to sync back up again.  It makes you wonder what else the military is hiding here that we don't know about.  I guess asking them for that information under the Freedom of Information Act won't get me anywhere, but I dunno.  I am wondering what is so important to them here that they need both an Army base and an Air Force Base to guard it, and I am wondering what else they are hiding that they need such a large presence to protect.

I watched the video of the brawl at the police station, and because video cameras never lie, I am going to side with the criminals on this - right at the start of the video, you see the cop walk in and push the guy into the pillar FOR NO REASON, then the bad guy's buddy walks in and nails the cop a good one when the cop pins the guy down.  That's what starts the brawl, because a second officer comes in with a tazer...I would have done the same damn thing to that cop if I saw him push my friend into a pillar for no reason.  Unprovoked attacks are just as much of a crime as assaulting a police officer.

I know there are a few of you who do not support Barack Obama, but I think Mr. Obama at least deserves some credit for being able to rally large groups of people behind one common goal.  I think his idea to put the American political process in the hands of the people (the way it should be) is a good idea, and even though I question his lack of political experience, I think that Mr. Obama is a very smart man who deserves as much of a chance as John McCain.  John McCain does have prior political and military experience, I will give him that much credit, but he also wants to continue what Bush started, and for that, I feel he is not worthy of my vote.  I think Mr. Obama has the right idea in putting the American political process where it should be - back into the hands of the general public.  For many years, we have been slaves to the electoral college and for many years America has been a republic - officials elected by representatives of the people - instead of a true democracy.  I feel Barack Obama's idea to let the people have a say in how this country is run is better than what John McCain is doing - John McCain isn't listening to the general public like Obama is; he is listening to Big Money, like all other greedy politicans do. 

I know some of you may think Barack Obama is a socialist who feels all work must be done to benefit the country as a whole, but I am actually going to agree with him and say that if all work is done for the greater good of the country as a whole, then there will be a lot less greedy Americans whose only concerns are making themselves better at the expense of everyone else.  It will force everyone to earn their keep instead of relying on scams or lawsuits for money.  I would actually be happy if Obama mandated a "no work no food" policy, because then it would force all the lazy bums in this country to get off their butts and start working or starve to death.  If you can't work due to injury or maternity leave...I think maternity leave should be an exception to the rule, but injury?  Maybe if you'd use your brain and pay attention instead of yammering away on the cell phone all damn day you wouldn't get hurt.

Anyway, I better shut up before my smartmouth gets me in trouble.  I will end this by asking the rest of you who you are voting for, why, and what you think the new president should do for this country.

I have noticed quite a few things about school supplies lately.  The first is this:  Has anyone ever noticed how thin school notebook paper is?  A sweaty palm and a sharp pencil will turn a brand new notebook into a trash heap in a matter of days.  The second thing is this:  Has anyone ever noticed how quickly children go through pencils?  Pencil sharpeners have a nasty habit of eating even the newest pencils.  Mechanical pencils have lead that is much too thin and snaps easier than a twig, but they are more useful than regular pencils, especially for tests.  And the final thing:  Anyone ever notice how quickly bulk-produced ball-point pens "suddenly" run out of ink?

This is a prime example of "you get what you pay for".  El Cheapo price equals El Cheapo quality, and you end up having to replace half the stuff you bought midway through each semester/trimester.

This is why I go straight to the local office supply store and buy the exact same stuff corporate CEOs generally go after - high-end business notebooks with paper as thick as copy paper, gel pens that can write even on an airplane at 45,000 feet and last longer than a 24-pack of pencils, and I even stockpile those pens, the white-out tape guns and post-it notes.  As for a "planner", who needs a school-bought planner when you can buy a PDA that has everything a planner has and more.  Two 80-sheet Cambridge Limited Business Notebooks per class will last the entire school year, and a four-pack of gel pens with one refill each will last through the entire school year.  Those things and a two-pack of white-out tape guns plus tax will run about $90, but you won't have to buy anymore for the entire school year, so you end up saving money in the long run, because anything you have left over at the end of the school year can just be used next school year.  Those business notebooks have paper thick enough to handle sweaty palms and needle-point pens, and the ink won't bleed through no matter how hard you try.  On typical 8lb school notebook paper, the ink will bleed through before you even know what's happening.

Consider this when you go shopping for school supplies.

A 4-pack of gel pens will cost as much as a 24-pack of pencils, maybe a little less, but will easily outlast the supply of pencils.  A single 80-sheet Cambridge Limited Business Notebook will cost as much as two spiral notebooks for school, but they are more durable and (in most cases) last longer than a single spiral. A PDA with a built-in calendar will easily outlast any planner the schools make you pay for, and the "smartphones" that combine the functionality of a PDA with the capabilities of a cell phone will pay for themselves over time and prove far more useful than a single school-bought planner.

The way I see it, a large initial investment stockpiling office supplies for school is actually better than buying el cheapo every 3 months or so.

My girlfriend was raped and her 1 week old son murdered in Florida yesterday. They found the guy who did it and locked him up (he was the baby's father), but the fact he will have food, drinks, and privileges behind bars makes my girlfriend and I both very pissed off. When her baby was taken into CPS custody at the hospital, it was puking blood. The 5 police officers and 3 social workers guarding the room the baby was in would not even let her say goodbye to her only son...They told her if she did not leave, they would arrest her. She feels the system failed her because of that, and she no longer trusts the system or the police because they would not let her see her son before he died. She doesn't even know how he died, and the police are refusing to answer her questions about it. She is also worried the guy who did it will get out on parole and then come back to finish the job. She wants to kill him herself because she doesn't trust the system to do its job anymore. The crime took place in Lee High County in southern Florida, and she feels the system there failed her. Her neighbor's husband is the county sheriff and the neighbor's father is the main judge at the courthouse, and my girlfriend tried to get both of them to find out what happened to her son, but they were not given any answers. The guy is facing a whole list of charges: Rape, murder, attempted murder, child abuse, and child neglect. His name is Daniel Smith, but I do not know his middle name. He was the kind of man who wouldn't let anyone have Bridgett (my girlfriend) or her son without a fight, and anyone who tried to take them away from him was beaten brutally. Right now, the only thing keeping her sane and from going War Goddess on Daniel is me, but knowing what all Daniel did to her and her son, I am only giving the legal system ONE chance to lock him up permanently. She wants him to suffer for what he did...Not physically, mind you, but she wants him to live with the haunting memories of what he did to her and her son the whole time he is in prison. I want him somewhere where he will never be able to lay a hand on her or even come after me to get her back. She has lost all trust in CPS, the police down in Lee High County, and she is about ready to give up on the legal system, too, because she feels they will be too lenient with him.

This article is taken from the main page of this site and was posted by MyFoxNewYork:

Radio Host Michael Savage In Trouble Over Autism Remarks


Last Edited: Monday, 21 Jul 2008, 12:22 PM CDT Created: Monday, 21 Jul 2008, 10:37 AM CDT Children's advocates want conservative radio talk-show host Michael Savage fired after he called autistic children "brats" on the air. (function() { try { var td, img, p; if (document && document.getElementById) { td = document.getElementById('story_image'); if (td && td.getElementsByTagName) { img = td.getElementsByTagName('img')[0]; } if (img) { p = img.style.paddingLeft; img.onload = function() { img.style.paddingLeft = '1px'; setTimeout(function() { img.style.paddingLeft = p; img.onload = null; }, 0) } } } } catch (e) { } })(); SideBar
Related ItemsLinks AutismWeb or just enabling jstl so that we can just write ${bean.property} and jsp takes care of the new lines. --> MyFoxNY / MyFoxNational

Parents plan to protest outside WOR's studios on Monday to show their anger at conservative radio commentator Michael Savage for referring to children with autism as "brats."

Savage also called autism “a fraud and a racket” last week during his syndicated show. Savage's program airs in New York on WOR radio.

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• Video: Radio Host's Autism Comments (MyFoxNY) – click to view

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During his comments last week, he went on to label children with the disorder as “idiots” and “morons.”

Children's advocates want Savage to apologize and retract his statements. They are also calling for a boycott of stations that air Savage's show.

Reaction online from parents of autistic children

“Well, all I can say is I hope none of his grandchildren or loved ones happen to develop autism. But I'd like to see how grandaddy would deal with this ‘made up’ disorder while babysitting. And why would you send them to institutions if this is only made up? Who's going to pay for all these institutions? What parents are ‘getting money from the government?’ Nothing in his comments make any sense. He needs to get informed before he starts another ignorant, meaningless rant.”

“If Savage thinks parents of autistics are scamming to get disability, what does he think about all those adult autistics out there who can't work and are on disability and other forms of public assistance? Are they all conning the system as well? In the long run, it's all those unemployed, high-functioning adult autistics living on the dole who will get the worst scorn from this type of backlash. Savage isn't the first person to call autism ‘just bad behavior’ in children and he won't be the last.”

“As the neighbors of our autistic children start having friends, grandchildren, nephews and co-workers with autism they will slowly start to realize that this is real. They will realize the damage that ignorance does and their attitudes will change. In the meantime, ignorance will always be there.”

”As a mom of a child with autism (and one with ADD), and knowing the difficulty that day to day life at our house entails, I find it hard to believe that anyone would find it easier to use these things as an excuse for behavior, rather than just parenting their children appropriately. The things that we do at our home, the lists, the ‘coping skills’ (as we call them) the major deviation from ‘normal’ (whatever that is) that our lives are is just so much more of an effort than actually providing discipline and guidance to a child. I can't imagine a parent choosing that path because it's easier. It's 100 times harder.

Whoever gives the cops marksmanship training should be a guinea pig for how well that training is really working...Here is video proof of why I say that: http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&brand=&vid=7
d5a6278-b9b3-4e63-a0ee-8da6714e5b2e

Title of the video: "Cop's STRAY BULLET kills 5 year old boy.  Cop's intended target:  A snake"

In civilian hunters safety courses, they always tell you to check the area around and behind your intended target to make sure that you won't accidentally hit another human if the bullet misses its mark.  Maybe someone forgot to tell the cop that when they gave him marksmanship training.

Here's proof that cops are lazy:  An 11 year old boy decided not to wait for the police to act on the amount of people speeding through his neighborhood: http://www.abcnews.go.com/GMA/Parenting/story?id=53990
93  The cops were slacking off, so the 11 year old resorted to his own form of civilian justice.  I often feel like joining the likes of people like him and taking matters into my own hands since police never seem to even do their jobs, and when they DO their jobs, they never do the job right or see it through until its complete.

I am starting a fishing club for those who own kayaks, sailboats, paddle boats, or other non-motorized watercraft.  All information about the club can be found at the website: http://www.freewebs.com/kayakfishersclub/index.htm
and anyone who is interested in joining may register with the forums.  Membership with the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society is required, and all club members must become BASS members within 6 months of joining.

WASHINGTON - It's not just the American dollar that's losing value. A government agency has decided that an American life isn't worth what it used to be.

The "value of a statistical life" is $6.9 million in today's dollars, the Environmental Protection Agency reckoned in May — a drop of nearly $1 million from just five years ago.

The Associated Press discovered the change after a review of cost-benefit analyses over more than a dozen years.

Though it may seem like a harmless bureaucratic recalculation, the devaluation has real consequences.

When drawing up regulations, government agencies put a value on human life and then weigh the costs versus the lifesaving benefits of a proposed rule. The less a life is worth to the government, the less the need for a regulation, such as tighter restrictions on pollution.

Consider, for example, a hypothetical regulation that costs $18 billion to enforce but will prevent 2,500 deaths. At $7.8 million per person (the old figure), the lifesaving benefits outweigh the costs. But at $6.9 million per person, the rule costs more than the lives it saves, so it may not be adopted.

Some environmentalists accuse the Bush administration of changing the value to avoid tougher rules — a charge the EPA denies.

"It appears that they're cooking the books in regards to the value of life," said S. William Becker, executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies, which represents state and local air pollution regulators. "Those decisions are literally a matter of life and death."

Dan Esty, a senior EPA policy official in the first Bush administration and now director of the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy, said that "it's hard to imagine that it has other than a political motivation."

Agency officials say they were just following what the science told them.

How figure is reached
The the EPA figure is not based on people's earning capacity, or their potential contributions to society, or how much they are loved and needed by their friends and family — some of the factors used in insurance claims and wrongful-death lawsuits.

Instead, economists calculate the value based on what people are willing to pay to avoid certain risks, and on how much extra employers pay their workers to take on additional risks. Most of the data is drawn from payroll statistics; some comes from opinion surveys. According to the EPA, people shouldn't think of the number as a price tag on a life.

The EPA made the changes in two steps. First, in 2004, the agency cut the estimated value of a life by 8 percent. Then, in a rule governing train and boat air pollution this May, the agency took away the normal adjustment for one year's inflation. Between the two changes, the value of a life fell 11 percent, based on today's dollar.

Just how the EPA came up with that figure is complicated and involves two dueling analyses.

Viscusi wrote one of those big studies, coming up with a value of $8.8 million in current dollars. The other study put the number between $2 million and $3.3 million. The co-author of that study, Laura Taylor of North Carolina State University, said her figure was lower because it emphasized differences in pay for various risky jobs, not just risky industries as a whole.

EPA officials say the adjustment was not significant and was based on better economic studies. The reduction reflects consumer preferences, said Al McGartland, director of EPA's office of policy, economics and innovation.

"It's our best estimate of what consumers are willing to pay to reduce similar risks to their own lives," McGartland said.

Economist at odds
But the EPA's cut "doesn't make sense," said Vanderbilt University economist Kip Viscusi. The EPA partly based its reduction on his work. "As people become more affluent, the value of statistical lives go up as well. It has to." Viscusi also said no study has shown that Americans are less willing to pay to reduce risks.

At the same time that the EPA was trimming the value of life, the Department of Transportation twice raised its life value figure. But its number is still lower than the EPA's.

The environmental agency traditionally has placed the highest value of life in government and still does, despite efforts by administrations to bring uniformity to that figure among all agencies.

Not all of the EPA uses the reduced value. The agency's water division never adopted the change and in 2006 used $8.7 million in current dollars.

From 1996 to 2003, the EPA kept the value of a statistical life generally around $7.8 million to $7.96 million in current dollars, according to reports analyzed by The AP. In 2004, for a major air pollution rule, the agency lowered the value to $7.15 million in current dollars.

Just how the EPA came up with that figure is complicated and involves two dueling analyses.

Viscusi wrote one of those big studies, coming up with a value of $8.8 million in current dollars. The other study put the number between $2 million and $3.3 million. The co-author of that study, Laura Taylor of North Carolina State University, said her figure was lower because it emphasized differences in pay for various risky jobs, not just risky industries as a whole.

Advisor: 'Numerology,' not science
The EPA took portions of each study and essentially split the difference — a decision two of the agency's advisory boards faulted or questioned.

"This sort of number-crunching is basically numerology," said Granger Morgan, chairman of EPA's Science Advisory Board and an engineering and public policy professor at Carnegie Mellon University. "This is not a scientific issue."

Other, similar calculations by the Bush administration have proved politically explosive. In 2002, the EPA decided the value of elderly people was 38 percent less than that of people under 70. After the move became public, the agency reversed itself.

This gentleman is a man I work with.  He and his band are looking for an audience and the possibility of going big-time.  At this time, I do not have any songs to upload, but I should have a video of his band playing sometime soon.

Edit:  This show will be a battle of the bands, 5 bands total, including Bill's band.


Second edit:  This band will also have a show at Marty's Blues Cafe in Merriam, KS, Thursday July 10th.  The meeting starts at 7pm to determine the order the bands will play, so arrive at or just before 7pm.  I would greatly appreciate some assistance in giving Bill's band some recognition in the music arena, so anyone who can show up to support the band, please do so.

Update:  The band is working on getting a CD made with some songs on it.  The CD should be ready in a few weeks.  I will get a copy of the CD and upload some songs when they get one made.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25530569/

This is more proof the military never thinks before it acts, and they make up every excuse possible to avoid having to take the blame for their carelessness.

I went and got the windows tinted on my car...38% visible light transmission on the sides and back, with 49.5% heat blocked and 99% UV blocked. Its a metallic tint with a high amount of reflectivity, too. I chose to have it done because it was advertised to provide a noticeable difference in how much cooler the car will be if it sits out in the sun all day. I think this idea could be one solution for those of you who don't want to come out of work to an oven each day. I will give it a few days and keep you all updated.

Here is a photo of the tint taken with the sun to my back. This photo shows the light transmission and reflectivity of the tint when the sun is shining on the window:


This is what the tint looks like from the shade or at night:


And this is what the tint looks like from the back:


Here is what the tint looks like to traffic behind me:


This is what the car looks like to traffic beside me:


These two pics show what an officer would see if he looked into my car:

and
 

I have noticed several bloggers on here judging people without first learning about the person. I was raised on the old saying "Don't judge a book by its cover", yet it seems that's what most Americans are guilty of...Judging others simply based on looks, "the initial first impression" or even a simple 5-minute conversation. Cops are notorious for this, as are persons of authority. I think prejudice should be just as much of a crime as discrimination. I also think that people should not blindly make judgments about other people without first learning about the other person and getting a much more accurate picture of what that person is like. I do my best to learn everything I can about a person before I judge them, and I wonder why nobody else is willing to do the same. Those bloggers I speak of know who they are, and I would like to hear their excuses (er, reasons) as to why they judge someone like they do, and I would like to hear the points of view of those who learn about others before judging them.

I am sure many of you have changed your eating habits because of the way the economy is.  I would like to know what you all do when there's very little money left for food.  Share your thoughts and advice here for saving money on food.

Yesterday, I started stockpiling those Maruchen Yakisoba Hokkiem Noodles with Teryaki Sauce, Carrots, and Sesame Seeds pre-packaged meals ($0.93 at Hen House).  Its not much to go on, but its good food on the cheap.  I also buy the 6-packs of Ramen Noodles (any flavor is fine with me, but I prefer Shrimp flavor).

If anyone else has any ideas to share, please do so.

My 1991 Accord can run 0-60 in 7.6 seconds, and whenever I go up an on-ramp onto the highway, I make sure to go wide open throttle and get up to highway speed as quickly as possible BEFORE I merge. I do not care if that wastes gas, what I care about is safety. If it costs me more gas to get up to speed and merge safely on the highway, then so be it. I always fear for my life when people come off the on-ramp at 35mph and merge with 70mph traffic while doing 35mph, because my only option is to lock the brakes up to avoid hitting them, and then when I blast my horn at them, they jump out of the car and yell "You need to SLOW DOWN!!!" I yell back "The speed limit is 65, not 35. You need to accelerate faster before you merge." Most acceleration lanes only give you enough room to get up to speed ASSUMING YOU PUT THE PEDAL TO THE METAL. If you lightly tap the gas, those acceleration lanes are often not even half the length you need to get up to speed. If you have a 300hp car, use all 300 of those horses and get up to 60mph BEFORE you merge, because I am so tired of people merging while driving slow that next time someone merges in front of me at 35mph when I'm doing 70mph down the highway, I will just launch their car 150 feet down the highway without caring how much trouble I get into.

It doesn't seem right that my little 140hp 4-banger car can get up to speed faster and more safely than anyone in a 300hp+ car even TRIES to. A 300hp V8 car should be able to run circles around my car, yet it seems like my car is always the one getting up to speed the fastest and merging the safest.