The Fort Hood Shooter

Let’s talk Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter.

I would like to start by saying that his crime being classified as workplace violence is ludicrous. It was by his own admission an act in defense of Taliban soldiers that might be killed by the men and women of this country, that were his fellow soldiers. It was an act of terrorism, plain and simple. The only reason I can fathom for this not to be called terrorism is to limit the benefits of those affected by his actions.

Why was a trial held? Why did he not just plead guilty? He admitted his crime at the beginning of the trial. Many thought he would use the trial to make a case for the Jihad he decided to support by killing and maiming his fellow soldiers. In fact, he offered no defense at all. He cross-examined only one witness that I'm aware of, and then asked only one question.

Now in the sentencing phase, his tactics have not changed. He offers no defense and sits quietly listening to the people whom he wounded and the families of those he killed. He still has a couple of opportunities to speak, but at this point I do not think he will use those opportunities. His only goal can be martyrdom. He hopes for the death penalty so that he can be a hero to the cause he betrayed his fellow soldiers for.

I am not against the death penalty for those cases where there can be no doubt of guilt. If there was ever a case that screamed for the death penalty, this is it. I believe the punishment should fit the crime, but this is a unique case. As a country we have the chance to send a strong message to those who would follow in this man’s footsteps.

His crime is horrendous; his punishment should be the same. He wishes for death, for martyrdom, a hero to his cause. By sentencing him to death, we give him what he wants. So, I hope he is sentenced to a life of hard labor at all costs. When not performing labor, he should be kept in solitary. If he decides to hold a hunger strike, tube feed him; the goal should be to keep this terrorist alive as long as we possibly can. To Hasan this would be the ultimate punishment; exactly what he deserves.

Once a year we get a network to take those he injured, or the families of those he killed to visit him in his new life and produce a documentary on how would be martyrs are treated for their actions. Air the special a couple of times a year so that the images stay fresh in the minds of those who would harm us.

As a country we should wish him a long, lonely, painful life. His only visitors should be his victims, a constant reminder of his failure to break the spirit of “We the people.”

Those who would harm “We the people” deserve the ultimate punishment, but in a case like Hasan’s that means life, not death.    

Gun Control and Concealed Carry

Let’s start at the beginning, with the 2^nd Amendment.

“A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

So what is all the argument about? It boils down to two interpretations of what the founding fathers meant. So as we begin this journey we must realize that both sides of the argument use the amendment’s wording to support their arguments.

To people who support gun rights this statement protects the right of the individual to keep and bear firearms, period.

To those who support gun control this statement was meant solely for the purpose of forming militias in defense of the country or state.

Stipulations of the Amendment protect the right of the individual to keep and bear arms. This was a personal liberty that would deter oppressive government or invading forces. The American people wanted to ensure that never again would they fall under unjust rule such as the British Parliament had imposed on colonists.

We made adjustments to what a citizen could own with the National Firearms Act in the 1930’s. Mainly aimed at weapons favored by gangsters, it sought to regulate the sale and movement of machine guns and other short barreled weapons. It also addressed the use of silencers and destructive devices, such as bombs or grenades.

The Gun Control Act of 1968 further revised not only what a citizen could own, but it also laid out the rules for citizens that would be barred from owning firearms due to criminal history or mental illness. The Federal Firearms Licensing System was adopted to further control the flow of firearms and to provide a paper trail as firearms were bought and sold.

The adjustments made in the 30’s and again in 1968 were all met with resistance. It is still argued today that the Gun Control Act of 1968 was and continues to be unnecessary.

So, where does that leave us? We’ve outlawed fully automatic weapons, silencers, grenades, and bombs. We have to purchase our firearms through a licensed dealer and pass a background check. We are now allowed concealed carry with Illinois finally joining the rest of the nation. In most states it requires a training certificate for concealed carry, but that seems to be a reasonable requirement.

For those in favor of stricter gun control, please pay attention; the above statements apply only to law abiding citizens. The criminals do not care, nor do they abide by these rules. 

This leads us to concealed carry.

The reality in America is that our love of guns and the right to own them has led to more than 100 million guns within our borders. This a best estimate; it could be many more. Include the black market and that number could land anywhere. We now find ourselves in an era of budget cuts across the nation. Many of these cuts were made within law enforcement, thinning the number of officers on duty and forcing them to cover more and more territory. Despite the best efforts of our officers, response times have increased. Worse yet, many times they find themselves outnumbered and outgunned. A recent article stated that response time in Detroit could be as much as an hour.

This is today’s justification of the 2^nd amendment. Because the 2nd amendment has allowed gun ownership for centuries, we now need its protection to defend ourselves, Law abiding citizens cannot afford to give up this right and leave ourselves helpless to those who would commit crimes against us. We have to protect ourselves from those who would do us harm. In many areas of the country “we the people” have no choice but to protect ourselves. Not all crime happens at home, thus concealed carry. A criminal is less likely to risk a robbery if he or she doesn’t know how many citizens are carrying. Do we need military style assault weapons? The honest answer is, we might. 

Shouldn’t the law abiding people of this country be as well armed as those who would harm us? The only reasonable adjustment to current gun laws would be to make the owner of a gun responsible for its use. If it’s used to commit a crime, you are an accessory. If it is stolen or sold, it is your responsibility to report it as such.  

Having carried a gun while working at a gun store, there are a couple of things that should be pointed out. Carrying a loaded weapon is a huge responsibility. Proper training is a must for anyone carrying a gun in public. Pulling and/or shooting that weapon should always be a last resort.

The second point is to plant a seed for those of you who choose to carry a weapon. Assume the worst case scenario; you are down to your last resort. Are you truly capable of shooting another person? If you cannot answer with a confident yes, leave the gun at home. Hesitation could get you killed and put others in harm’s way.

Let me finish with this. To those of you who think your weapons can protect you if our government becomes too oppressive, I wish you the best. If you want to take on an M1 or a Blackhawk with your M4, make sure your affairs and funeral arrangements are in order. To those of you who choose to own and carry firearms to help protect your family, neighborhood, or country, Thank you!

Driving is a privilege, not a right.

Too many times in my life and the lives of my friends we have experienced the loss of a loved one in an automobile accident. Some of these are under circumstances beyond anyone's control. Others fall into a couple of different categories; driving under the influence and distracted driving. These are not new facts, but the loss of a friend’s aunt and uncle last week started a thought process that required venting.

So, here we go. We'll take them one at a time.

Driving under the influence.

As I said, this is not a new problem, but our efforts to prevent people from driving under the influence do not seem to be working. The police are doing their job in finding people who are too drunk to be behind the wheel and arresting them. I believe it is in the court system that we are being let down. Part of the reason for this is that the general public refuses to see this as a problem that affects them. None of the measures taken to date seem to have grabbed their attention. We see reports of accidents every day that maim and kill innocent people because someone decided to drive drunk, and still we remain silent and the penalties remain wanting.

As Americans it seems that in order to get everyone’s attention, we need to declare war. So we'll have the War on D.U.I., complete with mandatory sentencing depending on the crime. We also need to be able to alter the process that allows someone found driving under the influence to continue to drive awaiting a court date.

So, surprise, I have a few suggestions.

Any person who blows above the legal limit is guilty. It does not take a judge to figure this out, nor can a defense attorney change this fact. So why are we wasting the court’s time and our money. The penalties need to be put on a level that would make a drug dealer squirm. The penalties could still be progressive dependent on each case, but no one should be allowed to keep a driver’s license or license plates after arrest for DUI. They should be confiscated at the time of arrest and only returned after their sentence has been served.

What gives the police the right to take the license and plates? Because in my plan anyone who drives under the influence will have no need of them for at least a year. That should be the minimum sentence along with a very large fine for what I'll call the accidental drunk. This would be a first time offender who blows no more than 10% above the legal limit. In Illinois that would be .08 to .09 blood alcohol level, and there is no accident or injuries involved. The in car breathalyzers have been an option here, but they only work if the offender drives that vehicle.

As the blood alcohol level rises, so does the obvious irresponsibility of the driver. The judge can use an escalating penalty scale based on the blood alcohol level of a first time offender. Assume the driver blows a 2.3 at the time of arrest. Up to 5 years no license or plates, and let’s make the fine five times the minimum sentence.

The part of my plan that every person who owns a car needs to realize is this: If you allow someone whose license is revoked to drive your vehicle, you lose your license and plates for a year and you too get to pay a large fine. You are an accessory, guilty of everything the driver is and subject to the same punishments.

If while serving one of the above sentences, you are caught driving, your sentence should double. If you are caught D.U.I. while serving one of these sentences, your sentence should become a lifetime ban on driving and ten times the original fine. If caught driving a friend’s vehicle, that friend will receive the same sentence.

A third offense should result in confinement as determined by a judge, but let’s not fill our prisons with these folks where we have to support them. Let’s improve the ankle bracelet house arrest system beyond its current level. Currently these bracelets are monitored and when someone leaves the authorized perimeter, law enforcement is notified. Many times by the time an officer arrives the person is in the wind, and we have wasted more money. Let the ankle bracelet work like a dog’s shock collar; try to leave your house, you get tazed by the bracelet. Like the current ankle bracelet program, leaving the assigned property requires advanced notice and the permission of the court.

I know it seems pretty harsh, but it does keep the streets safer by making the penalties draconian. The shocking ankle bracelet may seem cruel at first glance, but give it some real thought. Is society better served with putting a drunk in prison with hardened criminals where we will support them, or by agreeing to stay at home with family and letting the family support them and suffering a shock if they should stray? Is not the drunk also better served?

If while D.U.I. you cause property damage, injure or kill someone, the penalties need to be even stiffer. We as a society must demand that these laws change to protect the innocent lives lost on a daily basis. My personal opinion is that anyone who causes a loss of life while D.U.I. should never drive again, as well as facing all other appropriate charges.

Distracted Driving.

This is a tough one to address. Most states have now passed or soon will be passing legislation that bans the use of handheld cell phones. Penalties vary from place to place, but most laws only allow a fine. I’m not sure these laws will have much effect unless the penalties become painfully expensive. This is another area where repeat offenders need to face draconian penalties. Like someone caught D.U.I. and having caused property damage, injury, or death, similar penalties should apply as well as any other appropriate charges.

Bluetooth phones remain legal, although how less distracting they are is debatable. Newer vehicles have complex entertainment and communication systems that will continue to distract drivers, and these systems will become more complex exponentially through necessity every year. One thing the handheld ban will curb is texting while driving, until voice texting becomes standard equipment on newer vehicles.

I do not think there is a way to approach this problem other than sticking with the bans and making the penalties painful. People will continue to use new technologies in ways that were not considered, and we as a society need to adjust our laws to keep up with these changes.

The last couple of generations have been raised in an age of technology that older generations only dreamed of. Because of this they are born multi-taskers. They can surf the web while having multiple chat sessions, and a phone conversation all while texting three friends at the same time. To them the addition of driving to the list seems irrelevant. We need to help them understand that adding driving puts them and all those around them in danger. Not an easy sell, but we must keep trying and providing a good example.

One note on distracted driving; when all of this started I thought it was ridiculous. I considered what the driver of a Model T Ford had to do to operate the vehicle. You had a parking brake/shifter on the left next to the seat. You have clutch, brake, and gas pedals. On one side of the column you had a lever to adjust fuel mixture; on the other side you had a lever to adjust timing, and you had to work all of these as you drove down the road. Talk about distracted driving! But my reasoning was flawed because cars today are more powerful, and the streets are much more crowded.

So, what’s the bottom line? As a society we must insist that penalties for D.U.I. offences be made so painful that even the worst drunk won't risk driving, and if they do, justice needs to be swift and the penalties severe. I think the same should hold true for distracted drivers.

And most importantly; driving is a privilege, not a right.  

545

Today’s topic will be our government. So why is the title 545? We'll get to that. It is obvious to anyone living in America that our government is broken in more ways than can be counted. There are many things one can point to, our tax code, our crumbling infrastructure, what seems to be unending unemployment, and our legal system rarely seems just anymore. Worse yet, as a country we are swimming in debt, but cannot seem to find a way to reduce spending while refusing to pay debts we have already incurred. Our government continues to be gridlocked on almost every issue, each side pointing to the other to lay blame. The general public seems to be apathetic about these problems and the ability of anyone coming into office that might have answers; Real answers.

So who’s to blame for this mess; Republicans, Democrats, The Independents, or all of the above? The answer is none of them. We the American people are at fault. We elected these men and women to protect the interests of all of us and even when they fail miserably, we re-elect them. Why?

It comes down to choices and the only ones we have are already tied to an agenda. We have a two and a half party system; the Republicans on the right and the Democrats on the left. The few Independents available, trying to find the middle, lack funding, and candidates to challenge the big two. Campaign financing laws have become a joke, with special interest groups spending millions to get their candidate elected. Do any of us think this support comes with no strings attached?

I don't have all the answers as to how we fix the system, but I have a few suggestions.  

Eliminate the Electoral College. With today’s technology it is no longer needed. As long as it exists it is always possible that the election can be won through the Electoral College, even when the popular vote would give a different result. The popular vote would be us, we the people. That is the vote that should count.

Establish term limits. This should have been done a long time ago. Our founding fathers imposed these limits on themselves. Their vision was not a country run by career politicians.

Establish recall procedures that do not require an act of God. They are our employees; if they are not doing the job, we need to be able to fire them and replace them, like in the real world.

Adjust the salaries and benefits of our representatives to the median American household income, and those salaries and benefits end with their term just like the rest of us when we lose our jobs. Adjustments should also be made to their expense accounts which many times exceed the salary they are already drawing.

Foreign aid needs to be cut drastically. We continue to send our tax dollars to countries that hate us and everything we stand for. Why? What benefit have we gained from this practice? We have been at war for almost 15 years. We destroy the country to free their people at a cost in dollars that can be measured, and a cost in American lives that cannot, only to spend millions more to rebuild that country, and they still hate us. As long as Americans are homeless, hungry, and out of work, our money should be spent here to help Americans. Humanitarian aid where required should continue only when that aid is guaranteed to reach those it was intended for.

Adjust military spending to reflect the world we live in. We continue to build a military that is designed on cold war enemies and being the policeman for the world. Let’s turn in that badge and let other countries do what we had to do. Let them earn their own freedom; we of all the people on the Earth should realize that freedom must be earned. The freedom of Americans has been earned by the blood of their countrymen. When we won our independence it was not handed to us, nor were the supplies we needed furnished to us. We borrowed money to support our cause and repaid those loans. Name a country we have freed from dictatorship that has reimbursed us for the cost. Anybody?

Our membership in the United Nations seems neither cost effective nor beneficial to our country. Its recent decisions are comical and we the American people are the only teeth they have to enforce these decisions. This organization seems even less successful than its predecessor, The League of Nations, and I didn't think that was possible.

We need to stop trying to make things equal for all where it damages our competitiveness  Make no mistake, I do not mean the equality between race, creed, sexual orientation, or color that we have worked so hard to achieve. I speak of the generations we are raising now. Our schools teach children the same curriculum regardless of ability. The problem is that instead of lifting those that might be a little behind up, we insist on slowing others down. It carries over into sports; there are no losers, everyone gets a trophy. How does this prepare them for the real world? This is the equality that is killing our competitive edge.

We the people need to stop buying products made in countries that are not our allies. We need to focus on buying products made in America by Americans. Many of the jobs we have lost have moved overseas because labor costs are so much less. Large corporations need to stop focusing on billion dollar profits and bring their jobs back to Americans. It means a little less profit for them, but would quickly help the economy recover, which can only have a positive effect on all. We the people can force this issue; buy American or not at all. Call it an expansion of the Buy Local Program.

The bottom line is, it always has been and continues to be we the people’s decision. This is our country and we should elect people who support the view that our people will always come first.  When we have repaired our infrastructure, when we have the finest schools, when our people are no longer hungry and living in the streets, then and only then should we be rebuilding other countries.

When the next election rolls around we need to end this grid lock. We need to elect people who put country before party, those that are willing to compromise to begin to fix the problems we face. If this type of candidate cannot be found within the existing parties, we can only hope a strong third party will emerge. In the past this would have been almost impossible to achieve. The money to compete was just not available. The internet has the ability to change this. A grass roots party with the correct platform could keep costs at a minimum while reaching more people than any media campaign in history. The only question is do we have the type of courageous people left to mount this type of campaign?

This is America, sure we do!

Now why is the title 545? A man named Charlie Reese died in May. Charlie was a writer for the Orlando Sentinel; his column was syndicated and read world-wide. He explained this better than I could ever hope to. Here is Charlie’s article. I wish every American could read it, maybe then we would be willing to change those things that need changing.

545 vs. 300,000,000 People

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. (The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.)

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? (John Boehner. He is the leader of the majority party. He and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want.) If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to. [The House has passed a budget but the Senate has not approved a budget in over three years. The President's proposed budgets have gotten almost unanimous rejections in the Senate in that time.]

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it's because they want them in Iraq and Afghanistan.

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power.

Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people and they alone, are responsible. They and they alone, have the power.

They and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses. Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees... We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

I saw the Doctor today

I saw the doctor today, and he saw me. It’s an annual ritual that has been going on since I was nineteen. I’m fortunate to have known this man for most of my adult life, especially the last ten years. This is a man I trust implicitly, and in turn, the others that he would send me to, which leads us to the topic of this blog.

Most of my friends know that I have been having health problems for several years. I kind of fell off the planet for several years; rarely left the house, still don’t. At the same time I stopped going out because getting around is tough, I realized part of it was I just got tired of trying to explain the problems. An explanation always brought a sympathetic response, which even well intentioned, was not something I cared for.

So to answer the question; “What the hell is wrong?” This will be the answer I will refer all askers to.

In 2005 I experienced excruciating pain that radiated through my right shoulder and chest. It was like a hot ice pick constantly being twisted. My right arm and hand became useless.  It was at this point a prominent neurologist was brought in to run tests to determine if there was a neurological reason for it. The testing confirmed that the nerves were not functioning correctly, and a medication was recommended. I spent most of 2006 in bed, as much from the side-effects of the drug as the pain. In 2007 I took a desk job and learned to deal with the pain and slowly rid myself of the medications. In 2009 the pain became body wide, non-stop, and the level went to indescribable levels. I also suffered from a lack of strength and stamina, and my hands would tremble uncontrollably.

The 2009 visit to the doctor would be the one that changed my life. I was not going to be able to work. Until we could determine what was wrong, continuing to work could cause irreversible damage. They recommended I apply for disability. Applying for disability is a subject for another blog. At this point the medical procedure to diagnose the problem is by trying different drug regimens until something works. First you build them up in your system, and then if they are ineffective or the side-effects are intolerable, you back off. Sounds like fun so far, right? So what happens when nothing works? This is where it gets interesting; you start taking drugs whose side-effects may be beneficial to your condition. Same drill, ramp up, then back down. In 2011 I made the decision to stop the medications. We had tried everything, improved nothing, and learned very little.

I would spend some time on side-effects, but I’ll make this easy. Most of the drugs came with an information pamphlet to tell you about the drug. The first page will tell you what it treats; the next ten will list possible side-effects. An important note here: many of these listed death as a side-effect. When did death become a side-effect? In honesty it might be preferable to some of the other side-effects these drugs cause.

So, to answer the question; the pain falls under the heading of Neuralgia and can be referred to as idiopathic neuropathy. The lack of stamina is caused by Myasthenia Gravis. Neither will kill me nor shorten my life expectancy. What they have done is cause me to make drastic changes in my daily life. No more buttons or zippers. Shoes and socks have been replaced with sandals and slippers. Research is used as pain management instead of drugs. On the really bad days, pain management is to stay in bed. Everything has to be taken in small steps.

I continue to have an active life, just at a much slower pace. My best weapon to combat the pain is to exercise daily, with a goal of increasing the level of exercise over a few months, possibly years. The goal is to return to work. I miss working, I miss the people. Maybe it’s just that I miss feeling useful. Maybe it’s a combination of them all.

Today’s visit doc and I reviewed the progress over the last two years, and we both agreed that some progress has been made. This is what I’d been hoping for; a glimmer of light at the end of this horrific tunnel. I wasn't willing to wait any longer; I needed the answer to the one question that haunts me daily. So I asked.  “Do you think I will ever be able to go back to work?” I wanted the truth and knew I would get it from Doc. He knew there was no need to pull punches with me. His answer you might have guessed was not what I had hoped for. He wouldn't rule it out, not impossible, but very unlikely.

Something new to come to terms with, but in reality my research has given me a head start on how I want to spend my time. The family research has led to enough information for a book. This can be the legacy I leave for my descendants. On the good days, I’ll write the book. Suddenly I’m feeling useful! My other immediate goal is to attend a car show. I miss going to the shows, but by the time I walk from parking to the show, I’m spent. The Route 66 show is in September and I plan to attend. I may not see it all, but I’m going.

One last thing and I’ll end this diatribe. If you see me out, know that I neither want nor need sympathy or pity. There are many people in this world who are much worse off than I am, and I have outlived many of my peers. I’m on top of the grass, surrounded by family and friends, sucking air and taking nourishment.

What more could a man want?