You all didn't think I'd let the Occupy protests get off without a comment did you?
Here in Chicago you have a group of protesters who are protesting the corporate greed and influence on our government. I agree with them in concept. You also have people who are protesting the Tea Party, I'm okay with that, it is their right. Then you have people who are protesting just about everything you can think up, gay rights, student loan forgiveness, legalizing marijuana, racial harmony, I've seen it all, and again I don't have a problem with this.
What have I not seen at these protests? I have not seen one anti-Obama sign, not one. It made me think just who is behind this Occupy Movement? (Occupy by the way is a horrendous name for this movement one of the very definitions of occupy is "to take possession of or control a place as in a military invasion, not very non-violent sounding there)
Let's take a little lookie into just who is at these protests
SEIU - The Service Employees International Union, per CBS news the SEIU PAC spent $27 Million on Obama's first campaign.They also backed him in 2004 for Senate. Is that a little like a corporation influencing a government entity? You decide.
Jordan Farrar - The leader of the Young Communist League, what else has Mr. Farrar done in his life? Oh yes that's right I remember he is a member of Obama's Organizing for America group, ANOTHER Obama tie? Let's see who else is behind this...
Lisa Fithian, who is Lisa Fithian? You remember those riots in Seattle a decade or so ago? Yes that was her group who led that protest, she's also behind Cindy Sheehan's antics. What does she have to say about protesting? Well here is a quote right from her mouth "I have no issue with property destruction. I think sometimes it’s appropriate, sometimes it’s not. Again, I look at it strategically. Does this help us or does it hurt us? Does it help us achieve our goal, or does it not? We’re in a society where property is idolized, so a lot of people don’t get it yet that it doesn’t really matter. It’s just glass or products." That's right Chicago Lisa doesn't care if a building gets destroyed if it helps her cause. Fithian started in the 1970's working with Abbie Hoffman, she has advocated violence in the past. Most recently during the 2008 elections at the Republican National Convention. There were two radical left wing protesters who were turned in by one of their own and arrested for the planned Molotov Cocktail bombings at the convention. Fithian when asked about the arrests supported the arrested and condemned as a traitor the member who turned them in (people they planned to throw fire onto other human beings and she supported them). Who is Fithian affiliated with? Not Obama directly silly! She is a self described SEIU Commander who trains protesters on how to protest for the group. Fithian tied to SEIU who is tied to Obama.
Folks I'm just scratching the surface here, it's all right there for you to google. I have given about an hour to two hours of research for this article, it's not really all that hard to peel away the layers of the onion to get to the core. Now am I suggesting that our President is behind all these protests? As much as it would make me a genius to uncover that fact, I can not say that he is, nor do I think he is. I do think people around him are though.
The name George Soros keeps popping up as a possible financier for the movement but proof of it keeps coming up empty. Reuter's did publish a story where he did finance Adbusters a group that is credited for being one of the designers of the OWS movement, but it ends there. Soros is a huge supporter of the Democratic party and Obama in general, it is interesting to note that you can go on the Internet and find that SEIU spent 27 million dollars on Obama in 2008 but a search of how much money Soros spent is not available, must mean he knows how to hide what he does with his money. Possibly even fund protest groups...
Is the Occupy movement a tool of the Democratic party, I would hope it is not any more that the Tea Party is for the Republican. Are the protests of the Occupy movement valid? Hard to say because as of right now it is a jumbled mass of requests, as I said before on the main points I can get behind some of them but some of the others, please, a living wage? You want to get paid for living? By whom?
In parting a few things I would like to point out to the protesters, the real ones, not the professionals who are only there for their own egos, the real ones who want to make a difference.
1. Stand strong, while I might not agree with you, the fact that you are an American gives you the right to protest which is why this country is so great.
2. Do not get caught up in the moment, antagonists are within your ranks and they could care less if you take the heat for a bad situation, in fact they hope you do so they can get camera time for themselves.
3. If the police tell you it is time to go somewhere else, then please do that, you can continue the protest tomorrow, or at your house or a friends house that same night.
4. If you do get a chance to "Occupy" the streets en mass do it responsibly, if you hear a siren move aside! That ambulance is not trying to trick you, it's trying to save a life.
As always God bless this country
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
# 5. Political Correctness
I have a feeling the top 5 will really rankle a few people, but this is my blog and how I feel so be it.
Why am I so against political correctness? The fact that it has failed and started creating a bizzaro world. I mean think about it. In the 70's America had a beloved show called All in the Family, it featured a bigoted main character. This kind of bigotry would most likely not be allowed on the big three networks any longer, possibly not even basic cable stations like FX. In All in the Family you did have a main character who had a flawed way at looking at things and it often led to comedic spots in the show, but in the end the main character could always be trusted to do the right thing in the end, mostly for his family. What was missing from that show? Swearing, nudity, sexual situations, etc. etc. etc.
So with the growing movement of political correctness you have more gratuitous violence and sex, drugs, but you can not have a character who has biased opinions. The only show I can think of in recent memory would be Rescue Me on FX, but that still had all the sex and drugs alcohol, violence etc that All in the Family did not need. The main character in Rescue Me was biased for sure but it was more like biased lite, they never pushed it too far for fear of the backlash.
Now am I saying there should be a comedic show featuring the Klan or Black Panthers? Absolutely not. My feeling here is that when we censor free speech and reality we lose part of who we are. Our country is filled with bigots and the best way to handle them is to laugh at their absurdity and perhaps try and show them the errors of their way.
Then there is the thing called "Hateful Speech" this has gotten out of control as well. I understand that we should not be going around yelling blatantly hateful things to each other, but it has gotten to the point where everyone has some kind of pet name so as not to speak the truth. As an example I will describe myself as a fat, lazy, crude, slob of a man who likes to speak his mind mostly at the wrong time. Translate that into "non-hateful" speech and I am a gravimetrically challenged, non-overachiever, who sometimes does things that would be described as non-happyish.
My feeling is hey, I'm a big boy tell it like it is. I grew up and was called fat, stupid, retarded, even a gayrod (5th grade), amazing I was called all these things and yet I made it through and became a productive member of society. Why? Because I grew a thick skin, that's why, it could be a reason for why I am crude but I can live with that. I'm more productive as a matter of fact than most people I knew that were never called those names and were sheltered by their parents from the mean hurtful words.
Political Correctness became a big thing in the 90's and I have seen a decline in our society ever since then. Maybe its time to start calling it like it is again. Maybe then we will have less cases of bullying. See when you have kids who have been sheltered from the meanness of the world and are suddenly exposed to one side or the other of it bad things happen. On the bullied side you have a person who is suddenly getting picked on and is not prepared to shrug it off and even worse becomes easy prey for more bullies. On the bully side you have people who have suppressed their natural animal instinct to dominate others (Alpha male/female), once they turn on that side of their psyche it's almost like they need to make up for lost time and go a bit off the deep end. Incidences of bullying have become shocking at just what is done to the bullied. We've gone from calling people "idiots" to group beatings, that's insane but is expected when you have people making up for lost time.
It's time to start letting people be people again, if you don't like the way a person treats you, stand up for yourself or don't go near that person, it works!
Why am I so against political correctness? The fact that it has failed and started creating a bizzaro world. I mean think about it. In the 70's America had a beloved show called All in the Family, it featured a bigoted main character. This kind of bigotry would most likely not be allowed on the big three networks any longer, possibly not even basic cable stations like FX. In All in the Family you did have a main character who had a flawed way at looking at things and it often led to comedic spots in the show, but in the end the main character could always be trusted to do the right thing in the end, mostly for his family. What was missing from that show? Swearing, nudity, sexual situations, etc. etc. etc.
So with the growing movement of political correctness you have more gratuitous violence and sex, drugs, but you can not have a character who has biased opinions. The only show I can think of in recent memory would be Rescue Me on FX, but that still had all the sex and drugs alcohol, violence etc that All in the Family did not need. The main character in Rescue Me was biased for sure but it was more like biased lite, they never pushed it too far for fear of the backlash.
Now am I saying there should be a comedic show featuring the Klan or Black Panthers? Absolutely not. My feeling here is that when we censor free speech and reality we lose part of who we are. Our country is filled with bigots and the best way to handle them is to laugh at their absurdity and perhaps try and show them the errors of their way.
Then there is the thing called "Hateful Speech" this has gotten out of control as well. I understand that we should not be going around yelling blatantly hateful things to each other, but it has gotten to the point where everyone has some kind of pet name so as not to speak the truth. As an example I will describe myself as a fat, lazy, crude, slob of a man who likes to speak his mind mostly at the wrong time. Translate that into "non-hateful" speech and I am a gravimetrically challenged, non-overachiever, who sometimes does things that would be described as non-happyish.
My feeling is hey, I'm a big boy tell it like it is. I grew up and was called fat, stupid, retarded, even a gayrod (5th grade), amazing I was called all these things and yet I made it through and became a productive member of society. Why? Because I grew a thick skin, that's why, it could be a reason for why I am crude but I can live with that. I'm more productive as a matter of fact than most people I knew that were never called those names and were sheltered by their parents from the mean hurtful words.
Political Correctness became a big thing in the 90's and I have seen a decline in our society ever since then. Maybe its time to start calling it like it is again. Maybe then we will have less cases of bullying. See when you have kids who have been sheltered from the meanness of the world and are suddenly exposed to one side or the other of it bad things happen. On the bullied side you have a person who is suddenly getting picked on and is not prepared to shrug it off and even worse becomes easy prey for more bullies. On the bully side you have people who have suppressed their natural animal instinct to dominate others (Alpha male/female), once they turn on that side of their psyche it's almost like they need to make up for lost time and go a bit off the deep end. Incidences of bullying have become shocking at just what is done to the bullied. We've gone from calling people "idiots" to group beatings, that's insane but is expected when you have people making up for lost time.
It's time to start letting people be people again, if you don't like the way a person treats you, stand up for yourself or don't go near that person, it works!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Chicago disgrace
Been away for a little while. I was a bit busy with selling a house and buying a new one, and just got access to the Internet again late yesterday.
With that in mind I'm going to stop the top ten countdown for the moment and speak on a new issue that has come up.
The closings of police stations to save money.
See when I read the first hints that the 013th district and 021st districts were slated for the axe I didn't really bat an eye. They are two old antiquated buildings in areas of relatively low crime. I felt bad for the officers who would be displaced but I actually saw the sense in shutting down small stations to save money (savings in heat, electric, maintenance, etc).
Then I read that the 019th district, the one I work in was slated to close as well. Well that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. It has a range in it, a lock up that houses female prisoners from all around the northside districts, has gas pumps to refuel the squad cars and a repair garage to keep the fleet moving. I still wasn't that angry about it because it is a big tract of land and if the city truly closed it down and sold the land they stood to get quiet a sum of money. The station is not that old, in fact it's younger than I am, but if it saved money I would be willing to sacrifice and work somewhere else.
Then the announcement that it is not closing, but will be housing all the northside detectives. I thought "Where is the savings gained on that?" "What about the upstairs of Area 5, or the 25th district? Is that just going to remain empty?"
Now this just doesn't make sense. See the city keeps saying they are putting more "boots on the ground." and "streamlining the force". Bull Sh*t!
Will the 019th, 021st, and 013th districts lose police, no I don't think they will. Will it take longer to get to you if you need help fast and the night happens to be busy? Absolutely. Take as an example, you need help and are at say Wrightwood and Clybourn. Currently that is about a 3 minute trip driving fast coming from the Belmont and Western Station, about 45 seconds with lights and sirens and low traffic. Now under the new plan let's say the car that is assigned to patrol that area is in the new station, at Addison and Halsted, how fast are they going to be able to get there if they get the assignment? I'm guessing based on my experience, even with lights sirens and favorable traffic it's going to take a minimum of 5 minutes for that car to get there, if the gods are with you maybe a car is closer and available and you might get service quicker. But lets say there is a Cubs game letting out, now that same car has to get through vehicular traffic and pedestrian traffic and even with lights and sirens the best you can hope for is at absolute best 7-8 minutes but probably closer to 15 minutes. That extra car that might be closer to you? Forget it there is a Cubs game letting out, everyone available is busy with other things. So if you are being robbed, beaten or raped you now have to fend for yourself for between 7 - 15 minutes before help arrives instead of 45 seconds to 3 minutes.
Does anyone know what a robber or rapist can do with an extra 10 to 15 minutes? I do and it isn't pretty.
Am I bitter I'm being moved? Not really I've been doing this a long time, I'll be doing it for years to come unless I get fired for writing this, my whole concern is with you, the citizens of the city of Chicago and your safety.
Oh and by the way just announced today several top positioned police and fire and mayoral aides receive an average of 9% raises in this same budget, the police got an average of 1.5% and waited 2 1/2 years to get that. Makes you think just how much are things changing? How much have the aldermen sacrificed for you, the voting base? Have they given back their expense accounts and said "I'll pay my own way?" No. Have they said let's look at reducing the number of wards and streamline that so less of us draw funds from your taxes? Not even close.
It's time to wake up Chicago, your safety is being compromised and the top echelon is still sitting pretty.
With that in mind I'm going to stop the top ten countdown for the moment and speak on a new issue that has come up.
The closings of police stations to save money.
See when I read the first hints that the 013th district and 021st districts were slated for the axe I didn't really bat an eye. They are two old antiquated buildings in areas of relatively low crime. I felt bad for the officers who would be displaced but I actually saw the sense in shutting down small stations to save money (savings in heat, electric, maintenance, etc).
Then I read that the 019th district, the one I work in was slated to close as well. Well that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. It has a range in it, a lock up that houses female prisoners from all around the northside districts, has gas pumps to refuel the squad cars and a repair garage to keep the fleet moving. I still wasn't that angry about it because it is a big tract of land and if the city truly closed it down and sold the land they stood to get quiet a sum of money. The station is not that old, in fact it's younger than I am, but if it saved money I would be willing to sacrifice and work somewhere else.
Then the announcement that it is not closing, but will be housing all the northside detectives. I thought "Where is the savings gained on that?" "What about the upstairs of Area 5, or the 25th district? Is that just going to remain empty?"
Now this just doesn't make sense. See the city keeps saying they are putting more "boots on the ground." and "streamlining the force". Bull Sh*t!
Will the 019th, 021st, and 013th districts lose police, no I don't think they will. Will it take longer to get to you if you need help fast and the night happens to be busy? Absolutely. Take as an example, you need help and are at say Wrightwood and Clybourn. Currently that is about a 3 minute trip driving fast coming from the Belmont and Western Station, about 45 seconds with lights and sirens and low traffic. Now under the new plan let's say the car that is assigned to patrol that area is in the new station, at Addison and Halsted, how fast are they going to be able to get there if they get the assignment? I'm guessing based on my experience, even with lights sirens and favorable traffic it's going to take a minimum of 5 minutes for that car to get there, if the gods are with you maybe a car is closer and available and you might get service quicker. But lets say there is a Cubs game letting out, now that same car has to get through vehicular traffic and pedestrian traffic and even with lights and sirens the best you can hope for is at absolute best 7-8 minutes but probably closer to 15 minutes. That extra car that might be closer to you? Forget it there is a Cubs game letting out, everyone available is busy with other things. So if you are being robbed, beaten or raped you now have to fend for yourself for between 7 - 15 minutes before help arrives instead of 45 seconds to 3 minutes.
Does anyone know what a robber or rapist can do with an extra 10 to 15 minutes? I do and it isn't pretty.
Am I bitter I'm being moved? Not really I've been doing this a long time, I'll be doing it for years to come unless I get fired for writing this, my whole concern is with you, the citizens of the city of Chicago and your safety.
Oh and by the way just announced today several top positioned police and fire and mayoral aides receive an average of 9% raises in this same budget, the police got an average of 1.5% and waited 2 1/2 years to get that. Makes you think just how much are things changing? How much have the aldermen sacrificed for you, the voting base? Have they given back their expense accounts and said "I'll pay my own way?" No. Have they said let's look at reducing the number of wards and streamline that so less of us draw funds from your taxes? Not even close.
It's time to wake up Chicago, your safety is being compromised and the top echelon is still sitting pretty.
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