Congestion Legislation

There’s a story posted on WTOK’s website about the Mississippi House of Representatives passing a law that requires a doctor’s prescription in order to purchase medications that contain the decongestant pseudoephedrine. The reason this bill was introduced (and is needed) is because pseudoephedrine is an ingredient used to make meth. I don’t think I have to go into much detail about how dangerous and poisonous this drug is and how it can devastate the users and families of users of this drug. I also shouldn’t have to tell you how dangerous a meth lab is but I do wonder if that’s the case, seeing as all anyone commenting on the story is worried about is how this is an inconvenience to them and since the government is trying to take over our lives.

Ladies and gentlemen: Ignorance is not bliss.

Just in case you don’t know, I’m a volunteer firefighter and an EMT. Anytime I get paged to go to a house fire (whether I’m going to fight the fire with the fire department or going to stand-by with EMS), I always keep in the back of my mind, “is this a meth lab” and “will there be an explosion and someone (maybe me?) get injured (or worse) by it.” Sure, anything can happen at a fire for any number of reasons but a meth lab only increases the odds of something bad happening to an emergency responder or bystander. The fumes produced by a meth lab are highly toxic and highly explosive. Do you know what’s in meth? I won’t bore you with all the details but if you want to read up on what chemicals are used in the home brewing of meth and all of the fumes that are present, go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine#Illicit_production. Do you really want that around your family and friends? Even worse, do you want to put this poison into your body voluntarily? The obvious (and sane) response is “no.” However, what amazes me is how many people are opposed to the law that makes it harder to poison us.

Here’s some food for though: If your next door neighbor or even an upstairs neighbor in an apartment complex has a meth lab, you, your family and friends are breathing in the fumes at any time you or them are at your house or apartment. Just because there isn’t visible smoke doesn’t mean there aren’t fumes. These fumes are also highly explosive. One spark at the right time is all it would take in order to level a good chunk of your neighborhood. If your house is blown to bits and you and your family are inside, there’s a good chance I will be recovering you instead of rescuing you. Think about that if you ever get the urge to complain about “big brother” making you go to the doctor to get Claritin D.

What’s wrong with these people? I can’t believe that all they can see is how much control the government is exercising over us and how it’ll be inconvenient to get a prescription. Are they really that selfish? They should be ashamed of themselves. Sometimes we have to make sacrifices in order to benefit the greater good. I don’t mind having to go through my doctor to get Sudafed if it means that some meth head and meth pusher will have it that much harder to make their poison. The fact that so many people are complaining about this law just astounds me. It’s inconceivable to me that people would want these drugs to continue to be easily accessible, thereby making meth that much easier to make

I would rather be able to not have to worry about walking into a meth lab when called to a house fire and I would rather not have to worry about my fellow firefighters, EMS personnel and other responders having the same fears. We need to support legislation that will make the manufacture of meth tougher. We also don’t need to put down the government when, for once, they’re actually doing their job.

They’re protecting us. All of us.

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings on State Budgets

The Mississippi State Legislature will return to Jackson tomorrow to begin the business of running this great state of ours. Traditionally one of the first things they’ve done is pass themselves a “cost of living” raise in their pay (consider this: Being on the Legislature is a part time job; these people all have regular jobs at home). However, they may want to consider whether or not this is wise considering all of the financial gloom-and-doom that Governor Hailey Barbour has been preaching for the last several months. Every month the state’s revenue is lower than expected and every month the governor gets out his budget axe and makes cuts across the board at five percent (the max allowed by law). Things are getting to the point that one has to ask, “what’s left to cut?” I mean, if he cuts education much more we’re going to have to go back to using chalk boards and collected the dust that falls to the floor to be recycled into new chalk sticks for the said chalk boards. Ok, maybe not quite that far but there are things that the State of Mississippi can do in order to save money. Consider the following:

1. There should be an immediate hiring freeze on all non-essential positions within the state payroll (this should not apply to the Department of Public Safety, Department of Corrections, Department of Revenue and education – these departments are too vital to impose a Legislature-mandated freeze and it should be up to them to decide what is and what isn’t essential). Also, raises should be postponed indefinitely except for the departments mentioned above – again, it should be up to those departments to determine personnel matters.

2. All of those holding elected state offices should be forced to take a pay cut. I know I don’t like my paycheck to be messed with but elected officials need to lead by example when asking all of these other departments to be cut to the bone and even lay people off. Governor Barbour’s salary is $101,800. I think he could stand to have a couple of thousand shaved from his salary. That’s more than most of the state’s workers make in three or four years.

3. Go to four day work weeks for most state departments and allow the public schools to have four days weeks. Yes, this would mean employees and students would have to attend their respective jobs and classes for longer periods but this would save money in transportation for these employees and students and energy savings would be seen since electricity and other utilities wouldn’t be used for an extra day per week.

4. Cull the state’s motor pool. There is no reason for the state to have as many vehicles as they do. There is no reason why certain departments should even have vehicles in the first place. Doing mileage and gas reimbursements should save the state money since they would not have vehicles of their own to insure, maintain and replace.

These are just a few steps the state could take to save money. Feel free to post your own ideas. Also, write your state Representatives and Senators and ask them to consider areas where money can be cut besides gutting Medicaid and education.

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings on Adam Lambert/Filth

An interesting debate broke out on my Facebook page today. I posted a status saying that Adam Lambert and his ilk have no right to be mad at ABC for their decision to cancel his appearance/performance on Good Morning America tomorrow (CBS was stupid enough to bring him on their morning show – a ratings stunt and nothing more). The debate raged on about everything from homophobia to double standards. It was a good discussion for the most part. Now, I’m no homophobe but I have a problem with a sex act being depicted or actually performed on national broadcast TV during prime time. THAT is what I have a problem with.

Award shows, for the most part, are nothing more than two-three hour long publicity stunts and popularity contests. They’re also venues for someone to show off their “artistic value.” People, I have a wake up call for you: Just because someone calls something art doesn’t mean that it’s worthy of displaying in the Louver. In fact, a lot of what people refer to as “art” today is flat out garbage and filth. Someone who performs or simulates a sex act on broadcast TV during prime time is no artist. Yet, we’ve come to accept such garbage to the point that nothing is done about it. We’re so complacent that we just go on and expect someone else to do something. Well, people, these days need to end right now. It’s time we stopped sitting around and start acting up. Yes, acting up. I don’t mean we should be out to incite riots or bloody revolution but we need to let the networks and the FCC know that we are tired of having to shield our kids eyes when it should be safe for them to be watching TV. No way should we have to explain to our daughters why someone was “sniffing the guy’s pants.”

The truth is, there’s no such thing as talent in mainstream music, television or even movies now. It’s all popular because of shock value. If a celebrity needs ratings, face time or wants to hype up their upcoming CD release they’ll “leak” a sex tape or act like they’re getting a hummer on national TV. Do you think it was an accident that Adam Lambert did this stunt and that his CD came out today? When Janet Jackson had her infamous “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl, she had a single out the following Tuesday. Accident? Right, sure. Lady Gaga… don’t get me started on her. She can no more sing than I can… actually, I think I can sing better than she can. She relies on her freakish appearance and stunts to sell CDs.

Radio and TV shows thrive on this kind of junk as well. Howard Stern is a filthy joke. The fact that people actually pay (and extra on top of the regular subscription fee at that) to listen to him is beyond me. If I want to hear about strippers or non-stop fart jokes, I’ll hang out in an NFL locker room. Law and Order, one of my favorite shows, also is guilty. I recently saw a rerun episode that opened with a man and woman very obviously having sex. I can’t believe that they show this junk in prime time.

FCC? Hello? Are you there?

Do you see my point? We are a hype society and, unfortunately, a lot of people buy into it. I’m sick of it. I want to be able to let me (future) kids watch a show without worrying about having to explain the birds and bees to them at age five. I want an artist to succeed without having to sell out and create some kind of scandal for themselves. Most of all, I just want common sense to be common again. All of the junk that happens today is flat out annoying, which is why I feel so disconnected from mainstream culture for the most part. Am I the only one who’s sick of all the junk?

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings on Anti-Christian Sentiment

Link to story I’m blogging about: http://tinyurl.com/yfgoyxj

I just read a story that ABC did about a Psalm that some are using as an anti-Obama slogan. To be exact, the verse in question is Psalm 109:8. According to the translation they quote (I have no idea which – they didn’t indicate which translation they used; I believe they are required to do so, therefore they may be in violation of a copyright) it reads: "Let his days be few; and let another take his office."

There are a lot of people on Facebook and Twitter who have posted things like “Pray for Obama Psalm 109:8.” ABC’s story didn’t seem to have a problem with that part so much as the verse that follows it. The translation they used (again, they didn’t identify which and, again, they may be in violation of a copyright) says "Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow." That part they seem to have a problem with. The ACLU also seems to have a problem with this.

In fact, Chris Hansen – an ACLU staff attorney – seems to think this could be hate speech.

What?

I don’t agree with very much of President Obama’s politics and I really do hope he only serves one term. However, I do not condone violence against him or his family and no real Christian would either. If any group is so sick and twisted as to use God’s word to incite violence I hope He shows them the error of their thinking (and if they’re stupid enough to actually try to carry something out I hope the law of the land deals with them as well). ABC spent a good bit of time talking about how this is part of some kind of movement and how it could possibly be hate speech. But don’t get me wrong, they also presented views from the other side… by interviewing a random Twitter user.

This is journalism? This is what we put our trust into? The truth is, this is just another example of how disgraceful our media outlets have become. They provide hate speech of their own, by making Christians look like a bunch of fringe lunatics who want to blow away anyone who disagrees with them. To even suggest that this is how Christians are thinking is, in fact, hate speech if you ask me. This could bring about mental and even physical abuse to Christians by people who are misguided enough to believe that this is how we think. Seems far fetched? Hide and watch.

The media spend a great deal of time trying to make it look like extremists claiming to be Christians speak for all of us. No, real Christians do not condone violence against anyone for any reason. To even suggest that these people speak for all Christians is ridiculous Yet, that’s what they want everyone to think.

Christians are losing more and more of their rights everyday and the media are all too glad to help in the process. This is sickening and I really hope we see a day where such actions will not be tolerated.

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings on the Proposed State Budget

Have you read the proposed budget for Mississippi that Gov. Barbour posted today? It’s interesting to say the least. State agency budgets are being slashed, mergers are being proposed and puppies and kittens are being skinned by the thousands.

Ok, I made up that last bit. No kitties or doggies are being harmed as a result of the proposed state budget.

If you missed my posting the link earlier go back and read it at http://www.governorbarbour.com/news/2009/nov/FY11EBRFINAL.pdf. Make sure you read the whole thing because you will surely miss a lot of information. The areas of education and state government seem to be getting the most attention from the budget hammer. The governor plans to appoint a committee in December to study which public school districts should be consolidated. Now, this is sure to be a huge political football. After all, not many people want their kids bussed to a new school that may be farther away. However, this move could save the state approximately $65 million. In a lot of these situations the students would benefit from more resources being available to them that may not be available to them at the moment. Also the governor is proposing mergers of Mississippi University for Women and Mississippi State. Again, this is a move that makes sense that will ultimately benefit students at these schools (ex: MSU students can now have access to a culinary arts program while current students of the W will be able to participate in athletics).

Other state agencies are going to feel the pinch too. As far as public safety, Governor Barbour isn’t proposing any more cuts than are necessary but probably one of the biggest changes might be with MDOT’s enforcement division. The governor has proposed that the Department of Public Safety absorb MDOT’s enforcement division, a move which makes sense. Other departments will be merged with others, such as the Egg Board merging with the Department of Agriculture (again, a move that makes a lot of sense).

Of course, this is just a snapshot of what may be to come in the governor’s budget proposal. I don’t like all of it because it will mean that people are certainly going to lose their jobs and kids will likely be going to new schools in some cases. Services are going to be reduced and eliminated and even the Medicaid levy on hospitals is going to go up (hopefully this doesn’t mean closure but I know they’ll feel the pinch). The bottom line is, though, that the state government is going to do what the federal government needs to do: Cut costs or face raising taxes. Unlike the federal government, the state can not, and should not, “print money.” Instead of spending more money in during these tough times, Mississippi is looking at ways to save money.

I wish President Obama would follow Governor Barbour’s lead.

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings 11/15/09

“Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re gonna get.” – Forrest Gump

The above quote… isn’t that the truth?! I never thought that when I wrote again we would have looked at and made an offer on a house. Assuming that all goes the way it appears to be going, we should close on the house just before Christmas. The house is just outside of Stonewall, probably about a mile from where we’re living now. It’s three bed/two bath, has about 1800 square eet and is in the Enterprise school district (one of the top ten school districts in the state). We got an outstanding deal on it and we’re both very excited. As soon as we can, we’re going to start the moving process. I doubt we’re going to throw a packing party or anything like that but if you have boxes or anything like that please feel free to message me and we’ll work something out. Not sure when the big day could be yet, probably not until the first of the year or so. All in all, it’s an exciting time and we’re excited beyond measure.

By the way, I highly recommend working with a Realtor® if you buy a house and not just the one representing the seller. We’re working with an awesome lady who’s made sure we got a great deal and that all the details are taken care of!

Are you on Twitter? I have to admit, I fought getting a Twitter account but I’ve actually really come to enjoy it. It’s got some interesting people and you can find things on there that you can’t find on Facebook and the other social networking sites. Twitter is truly its own little world and it’s an interesting one. Some things that people tweet (Twitterism for “posting”) about are just plain crazy but often great information and even wisdom can be found on there. It’s truly a great way to keep up with what people are doing, thinking or complaining about.

Different topics pop up as “trending” (which means lots of people are tweeting about it) and right now there’s one called “#youmightbealiberalif.” I found one from a guy whose screen name is @GumboCzar: “#youmightbealiberalif your only standard is a double standard.” Great food for thought and so true! Want an example? There is a public school district in Indiana that has several Muslim students. This school district will allow these students to leave in the middle of class to pray several times a day. I don’t have a problem with someone practicing their faith and I’m glad that the school district will respect their beliefs (although I can see where it would be a distraction). What I do have a problem with is that if a Christian student wants to pray then it’s a major issue, one worthy of the Supreme Court getting involved. It’s absolutely ridiculous that people of faiths other than Christianity can do as they please while Christians are often scorned and attempts are made to prevent them from practicing their faith as they see fit. Christians lose their rights while people of other faiths gain more. Jesus warned that we would be persecuted in the last days. Well, that right there should tell you something. People, get ready: Jesus is coming! I pray He comes quickly.

Sorry, I had to stop for a minute because I had a knock on my door from the FBI. They were investigating allegations that I was openly praying.

People really do keep an eye on what people Tweet about. We found this out first hand not long ago. I tweeted about the fact that our electric company left a big pile of tree limbs in our yard. A few days later, the district manager called the house to find out what happened. Apparently they have an employee who as part of his job checks Twitter for tweets containing the company’s name. They found mine, tracked down what happened and contacted us about it. I have to admit, it was kind of cool… and also scary!

Can I complain about the media again? I just don’t understand it. A few days ago I couldn’t watch the news because it was all just making me mad. The news itself wasn’t making me mad (although a lot of it does do just that) but rather the spin was making me impatient. I can’t stand all the junk the various networks and writers have to put along with the news. There is no news anymore, it’s all just rhetoric. You get your news from CNN and ABC if you’re a lefty and from Fox… well, only Fox if you’re a righty. It’s ridiculous! Why can’t we just have news, straight and unbiased? I guess that’s never going to happen again. Joe Friday summed up what we should have from our media when he told a lady that all he wanted was “just a facts.” That’s all we need! I don’t care about your opinions on the stories, I want to know what happened and what the data is so I can form my own opinion. The media’s role is to report the news, not define it. Will we ever return to those days? Probably not. What it does mean is that we all are going to have to work hard to sort out the junk from the actual news.

Unless, of course, you just want to swallow the Kool-Aid from your particular political party’s ideology.

If you saw my Facebook or Twitter status today you know that I’ve been having an issue with AT&T. See, we live in a town that, according to the map, only had moderate coverage. Normally we have a good signal, even in our house. Every so often it will go to virtually nothing and will remain that way for several days. This has been happening off and on for the years that my wife has lived here and, of course, during the year that I’ve lived here. It’s ridiculous. Finally, after talking to three separate customer service reps (one of which tried to make it sound like I’m crazy and don’t even get me started on the one Jess talked to; I likely would have had a word with him if I could have), I find out that there’s been a trouble ticket on this tower for quite some time and they’re finally going to have a crew climb the tower to check the antenna. There may also be a problem with the transmitter. So, all this time they’ve likely been putting “Band-Aids” on the problem but not actually fixing the problem and now we’re without a cell phone signal until they finally have someone say, “yep, it’s broken!” This type of thing is how many companies operate today. They put temporary fixes on problems, knowing they won’t permanently fix the problem, and keep doing it until the problem is so bad they don’t have a choice but to take definitive action. Here’s a bright idea: STOP WITH THE BAND-AIDS! Fix the problem when you know there’s a problem. Make it right with customers and stop treating them like morons. As it stands right now, we would likely look at another cell phone provider if we were in a position to do so. This kind of aggravation is stupid and it would not have happened had AT&T just fixed the problem right after they should have realized that there was a bigger problem. It took them this long to realize that there might be a problem with the antenna? Please.

And finally, a quote from one of my favorite new websites: TextsFromLastNight. Now, I’m not going to lie to you: They have some texts on there that, we shall say, are “adult” in nature but they also have some really funny texts that people have sent or received when they probably shouldn’t have done so. Here’s one of my favorites right now:

(310): i just made an omelette with the cheese and ham from a lunchables. and ketchup packets
(818): julia child would be proud.

Jonathan

Random Thoughts and Ramblings on Veteran's Day

So how about some randomness for the AM? In case you’ve never gone on this journey, sometimes I like to just write whatever random stuff is going on in my mind at any given moment. I may spend more time on some topics than others; some topics may only contain a sentence or a question. Also, the fact that my Community Coffee is just now taking affect may make this post particularly interesting.

I posted a story courtesy of WCBI-TV in Columbus, MS that reports that Governor Haley Barbour (R) will likely recommend that Mississippi State University and Mississippi University for Women be merged. There are a lot of good things that would come out of that (ex: MUW students having a chance to participate in athletics – the W closed their athletic program during the 2002/2003 school year) but there would also be a lot of history sent out the door. The W was opened in 1884 as Industrial Institute and College. MUW is also the country’s first state-run college that was intended for women. The W has been admitting men since 1982. The W offers several majors and areas of study including culinary arts and nursing and they boast several notable graduates including Eudora Welty (and if you don’t know who she is, Google her and read some of her work). All in all, the move would be beneficial to the students, bad for those who will surely lose their job and an all around interesting endeavor.

Healthcare reform is, obviously, a big topic right now. The bill was approved by the House of Representatives and the debate has now moved to the Senate. President Obama wants the bill voted on and signed into law by the end of the year. Yeah, file that under “unlikely.” The simple fact is, this is a complicated issue. There are lots of details to iron out and, quite frankly, I think there are too many issues and they may not be able to get it passed. Abortion is one of the biggest hot buttons. Currently there’s an amendment stating that federal insurance money can’t be used to cover most abortions. NOW and liberal Democrats want that taken out. That’s just one of the issues to be ironed out. As for my opinions on it, I’ve been pretty vocal on that already. Now, I don’t like insurance companies excluding people due to pre-existing conditions, canceling coverage for people who are “too sick” and other practices like those. I agree that they’re wrong, especially being a victim of such practices when I was a child. But the question we need to ask is do we really want Uncle Barry Obama and his ilk having so much control over our healthcare that it amounts to a complete takeover? I’m not sure I want that to happen. There are many countries that have government-run healthcare and, in a lot of cases, they’re complete train wrecks. Do we really want this for the US?

I vented in a Facebook/Twitter status about how I’m sick of teenagers having babies. The number of kids having kids these days is outright scary. I’m telling you right now, a big part of the problem in Mississippi is because sex education is non-existent. Like it or not, the schools are going to have to step in and educate these kids on the harsh realities and consequences of risky sex. You would be amazed at how many teenagers don’t know that sex can result in pregnancy. Read that again. Yes, you read it correctly. Parents are afraid to talk to their kids about sex. A lot of the rationale behind that is that they’re scared it will encourage their kids to have sex. OH PLEASE! We need to wake up and educate these kids on the consequences of their actions. If parents won’t do it then the schools ought to and fast.

Finally: Today is Veteran’s Day in the United States. I’ve had several relatives serve in the military and I’m proud of every one of them. Had it not been for men and women who serve in the armed forces we would not enjoy the freedoms that we have today. Even back in the days of the Revolutionary War and Civil War and as recent as the war on terror we’ve gained protection of our freedoms from the soldiers’ sacrifices. I thank all my friends reading this who are serving or have served in the military. Thank you for sacrificing yourselves, your time with your families and all that you have for my freedom. Thank you for protecting me and my family. Most of all, thank you for just being you.

I hope you have a wonderful day. Thank you for going on this strange journey with me yet again. May God bless you and keep you!

Jonathan