Headlines I have collected

Ex-Marine, 72, Teaches Pickpocket a Lesson
New Jersey mutt wins ugliest dog crown in California
Judge rejects $54 million lawsuit over lost pair of pants
Millionaire, 84, died fleeing Harris probate court
Disney to scrap lucrative direct-to-DVD animated sequels
Is Earmark Disclosure a True Measure of Transparency? Actually the question is do we actually have a conservative or at least honest democrat?
Embattled Duke Rape Case Prosecutor Mike Nifong Could Get Jail Time
Senate Votes to Increase Fuel Economy Standards in Cars, SUVs
Sens. Hillary Clinton, Barbara Boxer Dispute Conversation About Reining in Conservative Talk Radio So who do you believe, a moderate/conservative republican or two flaming liberals
Prince William Turns 25, Gains Part of Diana's Inheritance Now the question is will he be king instead of his father, and who will he marry....
Bush Administration Opposes Making Immigration Bill Easier on Employers
Vatican Reverses Annulment of Ex-Rep. Joseph Kennedy's First Marriage
Computer Hacking Plagues Department of Homeland Security
County rescinds Westpark Tollway fee hike
Plan for new taxes on oil companies stalls
N.H. Town Hopes to End Standoff Between Police and Couple Barricaded in Home Since January
FOHacker Claims to Have Posted 'Harry Potter' Plot on Internet
Police Say Washington Baby Died After Mom Taped Pacifier in Infant's Mouth
The perils of carving a path to the Taliban's front door
Fireworks sales likely to blast off
Duke prosecutor testifies; ex-lacrosse player weeps

Complaints Prompt Bush Administration to Delay Passport Rule

Complaints Prompt Bush Administration to Delay Passport Rule - Now why does this headline not surprise me in the least. The Bush Administration has time and time again shown that they can come up with a solution for every problem the country faces, however if you ask them to implement them, the fail miserably.

At a Senate hearing Tuesday, Maura Harty, assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, took the blame for the passport mess, even as she offered a wide array of explanations.
Part of the problem, she said, was that in 2005 Hurricane Katrina reduced the capabilities of the agency's New Orleans passport office. She also said the agency had not expected so many Americans to actually obey the new law.
And, she said, many people were applying for passports with no specific travel plans in mind — but that is precisely what northern state lawmakers had warned would happen for those living along the U.S. border who do not plan such trips far in advance.

Now these comments are just what you can come to expect from a bureaucrat who is covering up for his or her boss. The one that nearly had me falling out of my chair was the one about so many Americans actually obeying the new law. What country and group of people did she expect? I mean the majority of the citizens of the US are law abiding citizens, and will do what they can to obey new laws when they come out no matter how insane they think they are.

So here we are, looking at another Bush Administration idea that was implemented without looking at the whole picture. And to think we have nothing better on the horizon when it comes to candidates on either side of the fence for 2008.

It is time to vote for NONE OF THE ABOVE.

Are we nearing the end in the Duke Lacross Rape story?

Here we go with the final chapters of the Duke Lacross Rape case.
to summarize
1) Duke Lacross team has a party, strippers are invited
2) underage drinking occurs
3) one of the strippers, a black woman, with a past history accuses them of rape.
4) the DA, in a tight race for re-election takes the case
5) People are up screaming for these rich spoiled brats to face justice.
6) DNA testing is done to verify if a crime occurred
7) The accuser's background is made public, and her credibility is brought into question.
8) the DA calls the Duke players hooligans and swears that they will face a trial.
9) Charges of rape are brought on 3 of the players
10) DNA Testing shows that the 3 are innocent
11) The DA refuses to release all DNA Testing
12) the accuser' changes her story so many times, any reasonable person would question its truth.
13) Duke suspends the lacross teams season and fires the coach
14) the DA wins re-election
15) Pressure to drop the charges because there is no evidence increases
16) the DA turns the case over to the State AG for completion
17) the State AG drops the charges and calls the DA's actions deplorable
18) DA faces multiple charges both civil, criminal, and professionally
19) DA is disbarred for over 10 violations of conduct code but he shows no remorse

District Attorney Mike Nifong was disbarred Saturday for his "selfish" rape
prosecution of three Duke University lacrosse players -- a politically motivated
act, his judges said, that he inexplicably allowed to fester for months after it
was clear the defendants were innocent.
"This matter has been a fiasco.
There's no doubt about it," said F. Lane Williamson, the chairman of the
three-member disciplinary committee that stripped the veteran prosecutor of his
state law license.
Even Nifong and his attorneys supported the decision,
though the veteran prosecutor refused to admit to the end that no crime occurred
at a March 2006 lacrosse team party

20) DA resigns from office and offers to leave middle of July
21) State superior court judge bars DA from office and removes him from his position ASAP
22) Duke and accused players reach settlement

The players said in a joint statement that they hoped the agreement would "begin
to bring the Duke family back together again."
"The events of the last year
tore the Duke community apart, and forcibly separated us from the university we
love," they said. "We were the victims of a rogue prosecutor concerned only with
winning an election, and others determined to railroad three Duke lacrosse
players and to diminish the reputation of Duke University."

23) NCAA gives accused players extra year of elegibility

OK now with all of this that has happened over the past 13 months, have we learned anything? I would say no, simply because there are still to many people who feel that they deserve something, and will do anything to get it. The DA in this case was so desperate to get elected after being appointed to the position last year that he failed to look at the whole picture, as well as failed to keep is personal feelings out of the case. He is lucky that he only lost his job and not all of his retirement and benefits. But that may well be coming as it looks like the 3 young men who were WRONGLY accused of this crime are looking into a civil case against the DA. I hope they take him for everything he has and he has to start over. I will not say that this is a liberal democrat that is getting busted, but what it is plain and simple is a person who let their ambitions and the public outcry and outright local hatred of a group that was better off than them cloud his decision making to the point that he eventually realized that he could not just walk away with out completely losing all credibility. He has convinced himself that a crime did occur, and that he simply pursued the wrong "criminals". Really sad if you ask me.

Time to for the Astros to be HONEST with the fans, as well as themselves

Ladies and Gentlemen, after last night I have officially declared this years Houston Astros season DEAD... Yes I know that there is still more than half the season left, but this team has shown me no spark, no cohesiveness that I have seen from teams in the past. It is time for Drayton to give GM Tim Papura the green light to make some wholesale changes and look to build a long term contender starting today.
Now here are some of the things that if I were GM would do:

• First I would sit down with Jason Jennings and get a long term deal worked out, and if that fails then I would admit that the trade was a mistake and get rid of him. Trade him to a contender and get a couple of prospects. As a team the Astros cannot afford to let this guy walk and only get a draft pick for him.
• Second I would make sure that Chris Burke got as much work at second base as possible, Biggio would play at most 3 days a week, and if that means he has to pinch hit to get more at-bats to get to 3k hits so be it.
• Next I would end this joke that is the Luke Scott, Jason Lane, are everyday MLB players, I would get Josh Anderson up here and see if he can cut it. Put him in the leadoff spot and hit Berkman 3rd, Lee 4th, and Pence 5th and see what happens.
• I would make sure that Eric Munson gets about 50% of the catching assignments
• I would be trading some of the following pitchers, Lidge, Wheeler, Qualls, Williams, Jennings if I cannot sign, for AA or A prospects.
• I would then bring up the kiddie corp of pitchers and let them go.

There is ZERO reason for this team to be bringing up players that are rookies that are 26-28 years old. It has been proven many times that 95% of all players have their best years between the ages of 26 and 31. So that means you should be seeing guys that are in their early 20's as rookies. There is no reason for someone who played 4 years of Division I college baseball to be sitting in high class A baseball 2 years after drafting them. The management of the development system for the Astros is screwed up and needs to be fixed.

The Astros are dead and we need to scrap this season and look towards next year and get some of the players that we know are dead wood out of here now and let the young talent see if they have what it takes. PLAIN AND SIMPLE

Collection of Headlines

7 Sex Offenders Arrested in Texas MySpace Crackdown
Schwarzenegger to Immigrants: Avoid Spanish-Language Media
Markets Surge on CPI Data; Dow Jumps 100 Points
Hamas Seizes Control of Main Gaza Road as Civil War Breaks Out
Rays: Former foster teen says she is carrying Dukes' baby
House tentatively OKs plan to replace TAKS test
The ultimate hoops game from hell
Man Sentenced to Life for Killing Teen Who Walked on His Lawn
$152 billion Texas budget pact boosts education
Grand jury clears shooter in March Metro fatality
Rift seen in Iraq insurgency -- some groups reject al Qaeda
Bill, Hillary Clinton Sold Drug, Oil Assets to Avoid Conflicts of Interest

Immigration Reform for Dummies (or Congress) your choice

Well over the past few months we have seen just about every idea regarding immigration reform discussed and argued about and still Congress sits on their collective asses and does nothing. Why well for one the liberals cannot make up their minds, and the conservatives are afraid to take a position and fight for it. So I have taken it upon myself to sit down and look at the issue and see if we the people cannot come up with a solution that we can send to Congress for examination.

In order to do that we need to look at the what are the things that have people trying to enter this country illegally in the first place. Next we need to find a way to either eliminate that incentive or make it easier for the goal to be achieved. Finally we need to set things out in a way that allows for easy and consistent enforcement of these guidelines.

That being said I know of at least 5 reasons that people are crossing the borders illegally:

• better paying Jobs than at home
• Free Health care
• US Citizenship by birth
• little or no taxes
• Family already here

I know there are others however for discussion I think that these five cover the largest portion of the pie. So how do we fix things and eliminate the incentive or if necessary make it easier to enter legally?

Well for starters we can eliminate two of the issues really fast, US Citizenship and Health care. Citizenship requirements need to be cleaned up, and eliminating the Citizenship by birth for all, and change it to Citizenship by birth for those here legally. If you are in the country illegally your children born here are not citizens of the US plain and simple. Refuse to recognize these births and you reduce and probably eliminate the pregnant woman coming across the border and having her kid in a border town hospital. This also will reduce if not eliminate the problem of splitting up families because mommy and daddy are illegal.

Along those same lines you eliminate free health care and other government programs for non citizens and several things will happen. First the local support programs, hospitals and police, will not be stretched as thin because of all the expenses that they have to write off due to non payment or indigent care, and at the same time the quality of care should improve for those that need it. This means that every facility should be allowed to refuse service if they feel that the person who is requesting care is not a citizen, that and the emergency clinics should be able to refuse care for those that are truly not in need of emergency care. Cut out food stamps, welfare, and any other program that enables illegal to be attached to the teat of the government.

Now as far as dealing with the employment issue, it should be cut and dried. Every person who wants to enter the country strictly as a worker should be allowed to provided they follow these steps.

• They enter the country from a legal point of entry
• They submit to fingerprinting
• If they want citizenship they have to return to their country and start the process.
• They will be given a work visa that expires 365 days from date of issue and needs to be renewed annually for a small fee. This renewal could be done at any consul or point of entry or INS office .
• If for any reason they are convicted of a felony, all rights and access would be revoked permanently. Misdemeanors would be different, however habitual offenders could have their rights and access revoked as well.
• Eliminate sanctuary cities and find a way to withhold federal assistance funds for local projects if for any reason immigration laws are not enforced within any part of the country, be that city, county, or state.
• Accept the issuance of a federal foreign worker ID card that is tied to a unique tax id number, and that is accepted as a form of ID that way employers can take care of the payroll taxes and such. Also they would during the process forfeit the right to claim any of their income taxes that are withheld. They would have the option if they obtain citizenship get a partial refund of these taxes provided they have been legal the whole time.
• They pay an administrative fee of no more than $200 that would cover the above expenses

Now you all may be saying that is all well and good, but how do we deal with the twelve million plus that are here illegally right now. To that I say, we give them ONE chance to come clean, after that we go after them with no mercy or quarter, and here is how that is done. On the first day of the month after this legislation is signed, the following rules would be put in place.

Anyone who is in the country right now illegally has 6 months to come clean, return to a legal point of entry, and begin the process as described above or face forfeiture of any and all future access to the program. Then at the end of the 6 month period you start hitting cities one by one and holding massive immigration sweeps, unannounced, and hit all of the day labor sites, as well as spot checks at employment sites where immigrants are known to be employed, as well as social spots. No other choice, and from then on if you are caught in this country illegally you will be fingerprinted, and shipped back to your country of origin. If for some reason someone is caught a second or even a third time they will face prison for at least 15 years.

I realize this is not a perfect plan and some would call it amnesty, however we need to do something, and the sad thing is if we leave it up to Congress it will be nothing more than a hollow convoluted mess that cannot be enforced let alone understood. Just look at the Medicare Prescription plan that was enacted.

This crap has to stop and soon

I have been sitting back and watching what has been going on in Florida lately and I have had enough. No I am not talking about some political scandal involving Jeb Bush, or Kathleen Turner. I am talking about Billy Donovan, the onetime head basketball coach of both the University of Florida, as well as the Orlando Magic. As i said before in a previous post about how I can trust professional and college coaches about as far as you can throw them, I now am willing to move Donovan to the head of the class of liars, frauds and thieves. Here is a coach who after eleven yes eleven years at an institution, walks away for a huge contract to coach in the NBA. I have no problem with that, Donovan had a contract extension from the university in his desk drawer that he never signed. He had turned down other college coaching positions, and had said no to the NBA on at least two other occasions. So he decides to explore his options, and here come the Orlando Magic, a team that needs a good coach, and they throw almost SIX MILLION DOLLARS a year at the man. Only a fool would not look at the opportunity that was presented, however here is where Donovan, and many of the other frauds, go wrong. Instead of taking a couple of extra days and really going over the whole scenario with his family, Donovan apparently after only two days jumps at the money and the "prestige" of being an NBA head coach, then less than forty eight hours after he has signed his contract, and that is another mistake, Donovan tries to beg out of the contract. Here is a quote from Donovan on the whole fiasco.

"I realized in less than 24 hours after signing a contract with the Magic that I had made a mistake that had nothing to do with the Magic. Instead, I realized that, in my heart, I belonged in college basketball. As soon as I realized that, I contacted the Magic immediately to let them know. I have enormous respect for the Magic -- including the DeVos family, the management, the team and the fans.
"In these circumstances, it would have been entirely unfair to the Magic and their fans to have continued on. Although this has been a difficult time for everyone, for which I am profoundly sorry, in my heart I know that this is the right thing for the Magic and for me.
"It's my admiration for the whole Magic organization that led me to this course of action. I believe that the Magic has a great future ahead of them, and I wish them all the best."

All I have to say is BULL SHIT. I really am glad that as part of the agreement that was worked out there is a FIVE year no compete clause that keeps Donovan from being in the NBA. It does not preclude him going somewhere in the college ranks, however I really doubt that many Universities will want him now that they have seen that he is so willing to change his mind. I also hope that the new contract that he is about to sign with the University of Florida has some very stiff buyout/abandonment/resignation clauses in it, because the last thing they need is him bolting again and looking to come back.

Now I want to make one thing clear, Billy Donovan is a very bright and talented basketball coach, and he has proven that he can build a winning program at a school that for the most part is a football first athletic department. My issue is with the fact that as a coach, whether he likes it or wants to admit it, he is a role model for the young men that are on his squad. And his actions only show to those young men that contracts were made to be broken and that your word is only good until your feelings change on a subject. What sort of message is that sending? You tell me