‘All Lives Matter’ Dangerous Rhetoric Threatens Cops, Deputy Murdered Today

It’s fashionable lately to accuse all law enforcement officials of being unthinking brutes that victimize the public they serve.

Lost in the rhetoric of “Black Lives Matter” activists is the fact that all lives matter.

It matters a lot that the national dialogue has been anti-law enforcement. An “Us” versus “Them” mentality is threatening to further degrade respect for all lives.

(Deputy Darren Goforth, pictured in this official image from Harris County Sheriff's Office. Handout / Harris County Sheriff's Office)

For example:

Authorities have arrested a suspect in the "execution-style" shooting of a uniformed Texas sheriff's deputy, Darren Goforth, today. The suspect, Shannon J. Miles, 30, is black.

Investigators did not know what the motive was and believe the suspect targeted the married father of two simply because he was in uniform.

"We've heard black lives matter — all lives matter," a visibly angry Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman told reporters. "Well, cops' lives matter, too."

Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson said that law enforcement needs support despite there being a "few bad apples" — an apparent reference to the recent spate of police shootings of unarmed people. (source)

Here’s a thought; who would protect us from people like Shannon Miles – a cold-blooded murderer – if we didn’t have cops? It’s really quite simple, without cops we slip into total anarchy.

Sadly, I suspect that’s just what some people want.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

USA has 5% of world population and 31% of world’s mass shooters

Good Day World!

Why does the USA have the most mass shooters per capita than any country in the world?

The answer may lie between the availability of guns and people seeking fame.

A just-released study found that although the United States has just about 5 percent of the world's population, it has 31 percent of the world's mass shooters.

The possible association between mass shootings and a desire for fame is particularly eerie, given the nation's latest high-profile killing.

A former employee at a local news station in Virginia killed a reporter and a cameraman on-air, while filming the shooting with a GoPro camera. He later posted the film to social media.

The apparent desire to broadcast the crime places the killer in the same company as many notorious mass shooters of the past decade. (The History of Human Aggression)

YOUTH MOVEMENT

Experts are finding that younger shooters want attention. That's why you see them wanting to have a bigger head count, a bigger body count, to try to outdo the last one or to do something that is going to cause more of a rise.

OVERALL CRIME STATS DROPPING

Interestingly, the rise in active-shooter events bucks the general trend toward less violent crime in the United States: Overall violent crime dropped 14.5 percent between 2004 and 2013, according to the FBI.

What did predict the number of mass shootings, however, was the prevalence of firearm ownership. Countries with higher firearm ownership rates have more public mass shootings. [Private Gun Ownership in the US (Infographic)]

Studies within the United States have also found links between gun ownership and gun crime.

Research published in July found that states with more gun-owning households had higher rates of firearm assault, robbery, homicide and overall homicide compared with states with fewer gun owners.

There is a 'fame at any cost' mentality.

Many mass killers explicitly cite fame as their motivation: A quick Google search for "wanted to top Columbine" reveals multiple news articles about killers or would-be killers mentioning the 1999 school shooting as their inspiration.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

The answer is simple, but probably unattainable thanks to gun lobbies and the NRA – make it harder to buy guns by having a nationwide backround check on prospective buyers.

Also, get the media to focus more on victims instead of their killers who are looking for their 15-minutes of fame.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Presidential Candidates Range From Cats to People With Fake Names

Good Day World!

It started with a 15-year old prankster.

Brady Olson filed to run for the President of the United States with the FEC on July 26 as Deez Nuts.

The rest is viral history.

Deez Nuts – running as a Republican - polled at 9 percent in North Carolina against Trump and Clinton setting off a firestorm of imitators.

Some people don’t think fake candidates running for president are very funny.

For example:

‘Deez Nuts’ Copycats Are Giving Election Officials a Headache

Imagine a presidential debate that includes Frank Underwood from “House of Cards,” Ronald Reagan’s Ghost, a Bill Clinton imposter and three fraudulent Joe Bidens.

But these wags — including a bunch whose names crudely refer to body parts or sex acts — are also potential headaches for federal regulators, who already struggle with limited resources and massive paperwork backlogs.

What follows are actual Statement of Candidacy filings from presidential pretenders I’m (almost) certain are giving America the business.

1. Dat Ass (Independent-New York)

2. Sidneys Voluptuous Buttocks (Independent-New York)

3. Sir TrippyCup aka Young Trippz aka The GOAT aka The Prophet aka Earl (Federalist-Wisconsin)

4. Underage Candidate (unaffiliated-California)

5. Buddy the Cat (Democrat-Arizona)

6. Captain Crunch (Independent-California)

7. Jeffrey Dahmer (Independence Party-Maryland)

8. Mary Jane (Libertarian-Tennessee)

9. Dank Ass Kaptain Kush (Independent-U.S. Virgin Islands)

10. H. Majesty Satan Lord of Underworld Prince of Darkness (Republican-Texas)

11. Ronald Reagan's Ghost (Independent-Minnesota)

12. Slim Sack Shady (American Party-California)

13. Jack Sparrow (Independent-Oregon)

(candidate source)

Currently, there are about 850 registered candidates running for president this election. And counting…

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Why stop at green when spray painting your lawn?

                                 Good Day World!

There’s a new slogan; “Brown is the new green in California.”

In other words, it’s cool to stop watering your lawn and let it turn brown. But a lot of folks can’t hang with that “dead look.”

The answer to their concern is a proliferation of “drought free” yards. They range from using rocks of various sizes surrounding drought-resistant plants, to artificial turf.

Oh yeah. And spray painting brown lawns green.

The paint is non toxic (according to the manufacturers) and grows out with the grass, similar to temporarily highlighting one’s hair. Furthermore, this practice is already quite common in golf courses, ballparks, and other athletic venues.

I have to ask…why stop at just one color?

Imagine designer lawns that match with the colors of your house?

The possibilities are endless. You could change colors every three months (that’s how long the paint is supposed to last before needing touched up).

Red-white-and blue lawns would undoubtedly be popular during patriotic holidays (4th of July, Veteran’s Day, and Memorial Day).

Go retro at Christmas with a green lawn. Maybe add touches of red reminiscent of Santa’s outfit for that extra festive look.

Valentine Day offers romantics a chance to paint their lawns pink with purple letters spelling out their names.

Yeah…you have to have a green lawn for St. Patrick’s Day, but that doesn’t mean you can’t add a dash of gold for good luck. 

Perhaps the best chance for people to really get crazy with their designer lawns is Halloween. Black and orange lawns will be di rigueur. Blood-red lawns will also blossom in neighborhoods celebrating All Hallows Eve. 

Personally, I like the color blue. What about you?

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

 

I’m a bit confused, maybe you can help me

Good Day World!

I’m trying to understand where the line is between political correctness run amok, and legitimate claims of racism.

It’s not easy.

For example:

A recent news story reported that members of a mostly black women's book club said a luxury Napa Valley wine train kicked them off because of their race.

Okay. So I did a little research.

The fact is that Napa Valley wine train kicks off a group every month (on average) for being too rowdy. Think about it. People drinking booze and partying.

I’m not saying any of the women were drunk. I don’t know that. But, according to the story they were warned multiple times to keep their hilarity down to a low roar because they were disturbing other passengers.

Getting kicked off the Napa train is not an unusual circumstance. However, this group of mostly black women are claiming they were kicked off because of their race. If that isn’t playing the race card I don’t know what is.

In the tense atmosphere of racial accusations of injustice, Americans are divided on what to do to make things better. One of those camps is all about political correctness gone wild. They play the race card regardless of the situation.

That camp is a problem for everyone.

Legitimate accusations against authorities and racists are watered down by those who chose to take advantage of certain situations to benefit themselves – or make themselves appear to be innocent victims of racism.

My problem is trying to figure out who is taking advantage of being black, and who isn’t.

If you have a formula for figuring this out, please share it with me.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

USA skies threatened with barely regulated drones

(Illustration source)

                                    Good Day World!

I’m down on drones.

Not the one’s the military are using – that’s another story.

I’m talking about much smaller drones.

The one’s that are available to American hobbyists/consumers, businesses, and people with bad intentions. 

Rogue drones operators are rapidly becoming a threat to our national security as they interfere with private, commercial, and firefighting aircraft. They invade sensitive airspace and private property — with the regulators of the nation’s skies largely powerless to stop them.

BAD INTENTIONS

Men Planned to Use Drone to Fly Contraband Into Md. Prison, Authorities Say

CLOSE CALLS

This year, two drones flew illegally near the White House, with one landing on the lawn.

HOBBYISTs or BAD INTENTIONS?

$75,000 in rewards offered to catch operators who flew drones above fires

Cheap Drones Are Interfering With Firefighters' Work

FAA records detail hundreds of close calls between airplanes and drones

BUSINESS DRONES

37 Critical Problems that need to be Solved for Drone Delivery to become Viable

ACCIDENTS WAITING TO HAPPEN

Meanwhile, the lax regulation we have consists largely of an educational campaign that warns drone pilots of the few rules that exist, such as no flights more than 400 feet in the air, or no flights within 5 miles of an airport.

Lack of U.S. drone regulations creating dangerous ‘Wild West’ in American skies

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Fake African-Americans Hurt the Black Rights Movement

Good Day World!

There’s a lot of confused people out there.

Some “disremember” things and come up with alternative realities. Others are blissfully ignorant or looking for some other form of recognition.

Some are just clueless.

For example, take Rachael Dolezal, a former NAACP leader and Africana studies professor whose white parents publicly disputed her claims of being a black woman. Why did she have to lie about her race?

Dolezal ended up sapping legitimacy from the black rights movement.

It seems whites claiming to be African-American are fashionable nowadays. It’s kind of hard to understand, considering all the challenges blacks in America face. But it’s becoming a common theme.

Most recently Shaun King, a leader of the 'Black Lives Matter' movement, has been accused of lying about his race.

I’m sure these racial imposters mean well. They just over compensate by trying to take on a racial identity to show solidarity. Nevertheless they aren’t helping black activists when they get “outed.”

Attacks from the right delegitimize the white folks who find value in the “Black Lives Matter” movement in finding them, in some cases, untrustworthy and, in other cases, crazy.

I can think of other efforts by whites disguising themselves as black, that were more effective.

In 1948, journalist Ray Sprigle disguised himself as a black man and wrote a series of articles under the title, "I Was a Negro in the South for 30 Days," which was published in many newspapers.

There’s also the more well-known story of “Black Like Me” a nonfiction book by journalist John Howard Griffin which was first published in 1961.

Griffin was a white native of Dallas, Texas and the book describes his six-week experience travelling on Greyhound buses (occasionally hitchhiking) throughout the racially segregated states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia passing as a black man.

You’ll notice however that in both cases the men reverted back to their white identity after a certain period of time. Their deception was short-lived but it gave a realistic look at the lives of blacks without ultimately lying about their own race.

Black activists – regardless of their color – would do well to read both accounts. That way the minions on the Right won’t have fodder to discredit the “Black Lives Matter” activists.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

What does paradise look like to you?

Good Day World!

Simply put, paradise is a term for a place of timeless harmony.

There are many versions of paradise.

Christians, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, and followers of Islam all have their own versions.

Individuals often have their own concept of what paradise looks like. I know I do, but before I share that with you, what’s your version of paradise?

“The Abrahamic faiths associate paradise with the Garden of Eden, that is, the perfect state of the world prior to the fall from grace, and the perfect state that will be restored in the World to Come.

In old Egyptian beliefs, the otherworld is Aaru, the reed-fields of ideal hunting and fishing grounds where the dead lived after judgment.

For the Celts, it was the Fortunate Isle of Mag Mell.

For the classical Greeks, the Elysian fields was a paradisiacal land of plenty where the heroic and righteous dead hoped to spend eternity.

The Vedic Indians held that the physical body was destroyed by fire but recreated and reunited in the Third Heaven in a state of bliss.

In the Zoroastrian Avesta, the "Best Existence" and the "House of Song" are places of the righteous dead.” (Source)

SO WHAT IS MY VERSION OF PARADISE? 

A lush landscape. Unpolluted air. A place where I’ll be reunited with friends and family forever.

There’ll be free high-grade marijuana plants growing in endless rows with vaporizer stations nearby with compassionate bud tenders.

Led Zeppelin will be playing “Stairway to Heaven” while we all dance the days away. Oh yeah, and there won’t be any politicians, or lawyers, to harsh our highs!

Time for me to walk on down the road… 

 

I don’t mean to be facetious, but…

Good Day World!

Sometimes it’s best to have flippant views of the news.

The world is so damn serious it’s stressful. Of course, it’s all on how you look at things.

A playful attitude can put a silly spin on almost any news items. Being irreverent can also be about scathing condemnations.

PLAYFUL

North Korea is threatening war. Again. International observers have lost count on how many times the dark and dingy communist bastion has declared war on someone. They liken it to the cautionary tale of the boy crying wolf.

This latest dire warning is over eleven loud speakers. Talk about a war of words. This story would be scary if it wasn’t over such a stupid reason. Someone needs to tell the moon-faced leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, that words won’t hurt him.

FLIPPANT

The current birthright citizen debate has been like Brer Rabbit (from Tales of Uncle Remus) getting stuck in the briar patch for some GOP presidential candidates.

Both Marco Rubio and Bobby Jindal's parents were not citizens at the time of their sons' births, although they were in the United States legally. Can you say awkward?

Sticky wicket eh? Other GOP candidates are calling for nixing birthright citizenship, apparently specifically targeting the children of undocumented immigrants. That ought to be popular with Hispanics…NOT!

IRREVERENT

The last story I’m going to comment on is this one:

'Super Predators': Humans Hunting Animals of Wrong Size and Age

How many studies does it take to figure out mankind is the ultimate predator? That fact was evident when early man fashioned weapons and went on a killing spree that has spanned the centuries until modern times.

Frankly, I’d rather see a study about saving animals. Or, why humans have to kill for sport? We know that we’re the most powerful and cruel animal on Earth. Maybe someday we’ll figure out how to live with other species without slaughtering them!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

 

Sexual medicine: ‘You’ve come a long way baby’

                                          Good Day World!

Equality at last!

The world of sexual medicine has finally opened up it’s doors to women. Now they can get horny with the help of a little pink pill.

Let’s face it, men have always been able to find something to enhance their sex lives. I wager they were eating roots for boners before they were able to write or make weapons.

But, this is the 21st century and science is catching up to women’s needs. I couldn’t help smiling when I read how this new pink pill – Addyi -  makes women passionate.

The FIRST vast difference between men’s Sildenafil, aka Viagra, and Addyi is how long they take to work. Within hours, Viagra takes hold and it’s rodeo time! Addyi is another story. You have to take it for weeks and months in order to see any benefit.

The SECOND vast difference between these two sexual enhancers is all about location.

Viagra is like having an Erector Set (remember them?) assisting longevity with an assurance of several hours of rock-hard performance.

Addyi, known generically as flibanserin, is the first drug that acts on brain chemicals that affect mood and appetite. The key here; it puts women in the mood for love.

Are you surprised guys need something more than sexy thoughts? I’m not. I’m also not surprised that women need more cerebral arousal than physical methods for getting jiggy.

It all fits neatly into the theory that Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus.

Now the real kicker:

We know Viagra only is supposed to last for a matter of hours. But what about Addyi? If it takes months to reach that pleasure plateau what happens when the big day arrives?

How long will that loving feeling last? The possibilities are mind-boggling!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

No Family Dynasty Zone: Say No to Bush and Clinton

Narrator: “There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call the Twilight Zone.” The Twilight Zone

Welcome.

There is a sixth dimension beyond that which is known to many voters.

It’s called the Family Dynasty Zone, and Americans will find themselves trapped in it if either Jeb Bush, or Hillary Clinton, win the next presidential election.

Strange as it seems, there appears to be cases of mass amnesia when it comes to candidates with the last name of Bush or Clinton. Their demons are exorcized by Super PACS and billionaires with private agendas.

Despite having former family members in the Oval Office, the Houses of Bush and Clinton feel the need to occupy it again. And again. And again..

The vacuum that’s created when a Bush or a Clinton is in the White House is soul-sucking. Into that void of nepotism, and cronyism, all hope for improvement for most Americans is abandoned.

The wealthy welcome them both.

After all, they all live in the same rarified atmosphere and suck money from the same source (you and me) like vampires running rampant through a blood storage warehouse.

But there’s hope.

I don’t care who you vote for, but please, just say NO to political family dynasties at the voting booth in 2016.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Oh, the humanity! 1200 beers opened but not consumed!

Good Day World!

If you’re a beer lover this story may disturb you.

In a mind-numbing raid, thieves broke into a shop in Muelheim, Germany and opened 1,200 bottles of Koenig Pilsener beer…

so what’s the big deal?

They DID NOT drink the beers.

Not even one bottle. Instead the cretins left the untouched bottles in their crates – their destiny unfulfilled. The amber brew inside left to spoil.

From the start, investigators thought it was an odd robbery because only one brand of beer was violated. The Koenig Pilsener. When they discovered pieces of metal on the ground the mystery deepened.

Clever heads prevailed however, and the authorities soon discovered that lots of bottle caps were missing and why.

The bottle caps had tokens printed on them — with some entitling the holder to tools and speakers. (source)

It seems to me that all the brewing company has to do is sit back and wait for some clown to redeem a bag of bottle caps. Or, maybe the booty was divided up between several clowns, in which case the purloined bottle caps should still stand out when compared to normal submissions.

In any event, a lot of good beer was wasted. And that’s a damn crime!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Ads Will Soon Come Straight From the Moon

"One of these days Alice—pow! Straight to the Moon!"

Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleeson) from the Honeymooners - Image via CBS

  Good Day World!

Lunar advertising is the next big trend.

For those of you who were unaware that advertising from space is NOT a new thing:

In 1997, an Israeli dairy company filmed a milk commercial on a Russian space station.

In 2001, Pizza Hut delivered vacuum-sealed pizzas to the International Space Station.

The moon was the next natural frontier for advertisers like Pocari Sweat, a Japanese sports drink that tastes like Gatorade and resembles, well, sweat. It’s looking like this sports drink may be the first product promoted from the moon.

With a target date in the latter half of 2016, an American firm devoted to space exploration, Space X, plans to land a rover on the moon. Among the rover’s cargo: a can of Pocari Sweat, which will be left on a lunar plain near a giant crater named Bürg.

Astrobotic, the U.S. firm designing the rover that will plop the Pocari Sweat can onto the moon, expects more advertising dollars are coming.

Astrobotic recently told the GlobalPost that ads probably won’t be the “driving force” funding non-governmental space projects.

But they’re open to offering “numerous opportunities for marketing on the moon from corporate sponsorship, educational and inspirational marketing opportunities.”

WHAT A DEAL!

In the rare air of the world of advertising the cost of dropping that Pocari Sweat can on the moon will be less than $8 million, the cost of a single minute of advertising during the Super Bowl.

Astrobotic wants to take on more advertisers for its voyage next year and expects more “sponsorships” to fall into place closer to the yet-to-be-determined launch date.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

That dirty water…Olympic athletes will have to compete in scum

                                      Good Day World!

Just a year away.

The Summer Olympics.

An estimated 1,400 athletes will participate in rowing, sailing, triathlon, canoeing and distance swimming around Rio de Janeiro.

But those athletes will be swimming and boating in waters so contaminated with human feces that they risk becoming violently ill and unable to compete in the games, an Associated Press investigation has found.

Local politicians claim they will be clean, but most experts say it’ll take a lot more than a year to get bacteria levels down to safe levels.

RECENT EVENT

Thirteen rowers on the 40-member U.S. team recently came down with stomach illness at the World Junior Rowing Championships in Brazil - a trial run for next summer's Olympics - and the team doctor said she suspected it was due to pollution in the lake where the competition took place.

On July 30, The Associated Press published an independent analysis of water quality that showed high levels of viruses and, in some cases, bacteria from human sewage in all of Rio's Olympic and Paralympic water venues, including the Rodrigo de Freitas Lake, where the rowing competition took place. (Source)

Related:

Olympic athletes to swim and boat in "raw sewage"

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Bad Intentions: Caught Before Anyone is Harmed

Good Day World!

The bad guys don’t always get to carry out their bad intentions.

Sometimes they are thwarted by chance, good police work, or alert citizens.

For example:

A New York cop pulled a vehicle over the other day for a traffic violation, and was surprised to find a loaded Bible during a search brought about because of the scent of marijuana. (Source)

Loaded Bible? Well, actually it was container that looked like a leather-bound King James Bible. But instead of the word of God, it contained a loaded Glock 17, 10 bullets and a magazine.

In my book, that means the owner had bad intentions. The police felt the same way and arrested him on a weapons charge.

The next case is about a Cincinnati man accused of bringing a loaded gun to campus during officer's visitation day.

Kamaron Lyshe had a gun concealed under his shirt and told officers three different stories about why he was there.

At his sentencing the Judge concluded he brought the gun with bad intentions. “It could only be one thing” the Judge said regarding the reason Lyshe had the gun.

In some cases bad intentions are avoided by the sheer stupidity of the person committing a crime.

Authorities say a New Jersey man planning a burglary inadvertently dialed 911, allowing dispatchers to listen in on his conversation. Somerset County prosecutors say Branchburg police received the errant call on July 27, but were unsure of the caller's location.

They learned that the phone number had recently been assigned to 42-year-old Scott Esser, of Elizabeth who was promptly arrested.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Editor’s Note: I’ll be gone Aug. 15th & 16th. Back on Monday the 17th.

 

Finally! A Reproducing Robot!

Good Day World!

I Robot is a reality.

The movie “I Robot” came to mind when I read about what researchers were doing with artificial evolution experiments recently.

More on that shortly.

One of my favorite robot movies harkens back to the silent film era. If you have a few minutes watch…

METROPOLIS

In the future city of Metropolis, people are divided into exalted thinkers and downtrodden workers, and a robot disguised as a woman causes sexually charged mischief. Fritz Lang's masterpiece (1927) was the most expensive silent movie ever made.

BACK TO THE FUTURE

Researchers have demonstrated a sort of rudimentary artificial evolution: a robot that creates generations of smaller "baby" robots, evaluates them and selects the best to "live" on — just like Mother Nature.

Check this video out

“The study was led by Fumiya Iida at the University of Cambridge.

A "mother robot" assembled smaller robots by gluing together pieces, some of which were equipped with motors, in various configurations.

It then observed how quickly the resulting "children" could move, and then kept the designs of the fastest ones and disassembled the rest.

It then included this information when creating a new "generation" — either mutating the successful designs or integrating them into less successful ones.” (Source)

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

Sing along with ‘It’s My Party and I’ll Whine If I Want To’

Good Day World!

Are you ready to sing along with the latest big hit in political tunes?

“It’s My Party and I’ll Whine if I Want To” (to the tune of It’s My Party by Leslie Gore) is currently the number one hit on the Political PlayBill Chart.

The source for this tune came from Donald Trump in a recent NBC interview where he declared;

“I do whine because I want to win and I’m not happy about not winning. And I am a whiner and I keep whining and whining until I win.”

Okay then -with apologies to Leslie Gore’s classic - here’s how the new song goes:

It's my GOP Party, and I'll whine if I want to
Whine if I want to, whine if I want to
You would whine too if everyone was after you!

Nobody knows how to solve immigration
But me
So quit calling me a racist
When I’m telling you how things should be

It's my GOP Party, and I'll whine if I want to
Whine if I want to, whine if I want to
You would whine too if people picked on you!

Watch all the re-runs of my TV show all night
But leave me alone for a while
while I dance with extremists
And I sport a smile

It's my party, and I'll whine if I want to
whine if I want to, whine if I want to

Oh, Jeb and Hillary just walked through the door
Like a queen with her King
Oh what a campaign surprise
Hillary’s wearin' his ring!

It's my party, and I'll whine if I want to
whine if I want to, whine if I want to…

                                                                         ****

Time for me to walk on down the road…

You Aren’t Going to Like This: Air Traffic Controller Study Suppressed

Good Day World!

It’s never good when a government entity hides something from the public.

It’s even worse when public safety is at risk.

If you’re a frequent flyer who thinks air traffic controllers’ are always alert and rested, you may want to sit down for a moment.

(Illustration source)

Nearly four years ago, Federal Aviation Administration officials knew there was a problem – air traffic controllers’ schedules were causing chronic fatigue. That meant they knew most workers were less than alert.

The suppressed study found that nearly 2 in 10 controllers had committed significant errors in the previous year — such as bringing planes too close together — and over half attributed the errors to fatigue.

So why have Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials been so secretive about this study that was produced by NASA at the FAA's request?

You’d think it was in everyone’s best interest to keep the national air traffic system safe. But in spite of repeated requests and a Freedom of Information Act request by The Associated Press, the FAA stonewalled them.

FAA officials also refused to share the report with researchers from the National Academies, which advises Congress on science issues.

However, the AP was finally able to obtain a draft of the final report dated Dec. 1, 2011.

WHAT PROMPTED THE STUDY?

The impetus for the study was a recommendation by the National Transportation Safety Board to the FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association to revise controller schedules to provide rest periods that are long enough "to obtain sufficient restorative sleep."

The study was completed several months after a series of incidents involving controllers falling asleep on the job embarrassed FAA officials and led to the resignation of the head of the agency's air traffic organization.

After the incidents, the FAA and the controllers' union announced several changes to address fatigue, including requirements that there be at least two controllers on duty after midnight and that controllers be provided at least nine hours between shifts to rest.

But the transportation safety board told the FAA in 2013: "We are concerned that, given the realities of the time required for an employee to commute home and back to work, and to attend to personal and family needs, a nine-hour break may not allow enough time for an employee to obtain eight continuous hours of sleep." (Source)

So far, nothings changed. There’s a lot of talking going on, but no action. Meanwhile somewhere in an airport near you there’s an air-traffic controller struggling to stay awake!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Bullying Others Doesn’t Lend Credibility to “Black Lives Matter” Activists

  Good Day World!

African-Americans have a good reason to be upset with policing practices that marginalize them.

(Photo -Mara Willaford, Black Lives Matter activist, disrupts Social Security Works Coalition's celebration of entitlement services, where Bernie Sanders was scheduled to speak. ALEX GARLAND)

But that shouldn’t mean acting like rude asses to get their message out to the public.

Black activists have a forum in the mainstream media and social media. They can apply for permits to march and protest their plight in any state, or city.

Some protestors – in particular “Black Lives Matter” activists – however, are going too far with their methods of getting their message out.

For example:  

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders had to leave a campaign event in Seattle without giving his speech Saturday after "black lives matter" activists took over the podium.

Two black women walked up and literally pushed the presidential candidate aside, shredding any pretense of being civil.

They approached the podium just as Sanders began addressing the crowd of several thousand, and demanded the microphone. Sanders stepped aside, and one woman got into an argument with an organizer, shouting "We are angry!"

After she got the microphone, the crowd booed. They didn’t come to hear a protest, they came to listen to a man who was running for president and to see what he stands for.

It was the second time in a month that “black lives” activists protested racial inequality by interrupting an event. On July 18, "black lives matter" demonstrators entered a Netroots Nation forum and took over that program.

But these activists felt that their message was the only one that mattered. By rudely taking over a public forum they overstepped the bounds of decency. Sander’s should have been able to speak without being intimidated.

It’s called Free Speech. 

If “black lives matter” activists want to get their message out to a receptive audience they need to respect others, and to stop bullying people who are only exercising their First Amendment rights.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

‘Lone wolves’ are stalking our judicial system

Good Day World!

No man-made judicial system is perfect.

The United States boasts about it’s justice system with 12 jurors ultimately deciding a person’s fate.

But let’s be clear on one thing; the system can be gamed.

(Illustration source) 

Instead of talking about all the ways lawyers can subvert justice through technicalities, I’m just going to center on ONE WAY our judicial system can be sabotaged.

First, this recent story:

“The jury deciding whether Aurora movie theater shooter James Holmes should be sentenced to death ended deliberations Friday after it became apparent one juror would not budge from her opposition to a death sentence, a juror told reporters.

Because the jury could not reach a unanimous decision, Holmes will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for opening fire during a screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" on July 20, 2012, killing 12 people and wounding 70 others.” (Source)

If you haven’t already guessed where I’m going with this, it’s simple: one person can prevent justice by ignoring facts because they don’t believe in something – like the death penalty.

Yes, potential jurors are vetted by the prosecution, and the defense. But, if that person choses to lie about their real feelings about a certain subject - like their beliefs regarding the death penalty, they can.

In that case, the trial is over before it begins. One person is all it takes to disrupt justice. That same person could have other reasons to lie, like concealing their connection to the accused (friendship or a bribe to lie) in order to obtain a mistrial.

Today, you often hear the term “lone wolf.” It’s usually in reference to a terrorist activity. I’m suggesting that “lone wolves” are also stalking our justice system.

Time for me to walk on down the road…