Come Heller high water …
- What’s it going to take in this country before police rules of engagement are changed and body cameras are mandatory? The video of the Tulsa police essentially executing an unarmed black man whose car had broken down was stunning to say the least. The cop’s lawyer said he didn’t listen to commands. OK. But is that grounds for shooting him to death? I’ve heard the phrase “driving while black” but I think we’re way beyond that point in this country. I think “breathing while black” is becoming a crime. Seriously, what the heck is going on? And why aren’t changes being made? Everything’s a crisis in the country except for the things that really are.
The length of a train is usually the same as your hurry level – big hurry, big train. Got all day? Short train. Never fails.- Fall golf is better than summer golf. I realize this is not a profound or interesting observation but it’s true nonetheless and needed to be said.
- The state House just passed a bill to ban local officials from taxing grocery store paper and plastic bags, as Washtenaw County did in June to push people toward reusable bags. The reason: Well, we don’t want a “patchwork” of local regulations. My question: Wait a second, aren’t conservatives always hollering about the sanctity and purity of local control? Guess that goes out the window when the grocery store lobby wants something quelled? (But now that I think about it, why would stores care? They don’t make money on bags. In fact, they’d probably save money if everyone switched to cloth.) Personally, I love Washtenaw’s idea. We should all be using reusable bags anyway, if for no other reason than to never again see a plastic bag flapping from a tree limb all winter long. That’s just depressing.
- And, of course, our charming state government is joining 20 other states suing the federal Department of Labor to block a new law requiring overtime pay for workers. Their reason: Government overreach (ignore the irony related to the last paragraph). The real reason: Well, c’mon, you know that. Employers don’t want to actually pay people for working, much less working more. They want free labor. So they can hire more people. Who they can get free labor from. So the company makes more money. People are just tools anymore.
- My view: ArtPrize in Grand Rapids is the single coolest event in the state. Wouldn’t it be great if there were ArtPrizes in other cities around the state all year long? Artists would flock to live and work here.
- Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have split. Why is it, no matter how hard I try, I can’t give a rat’s patoot? My empathy gene needs recharging.
- After the New York and New Jersey bombings, Donald Trump griped about how the suspect will get legal representation and medical care. Darned rights. They’re so inconvenient.
- Last week, Trump revealed his child care plan, which will give new moms six weeks of maternity leave — 14 if they promise to raise them as Republicans.
- And finally, Trump also admitted this week that Obama was born in America, which is sad for the birther movement. What are these people going to do for a hobby? It’s all they’ve known for eight years. Suggestion: Loch Ness Monster.
- “Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action.” – Benjamin Disraeli.
Wouldn’t be a cop for all the money in the world right now. I’m with you though what are they thinking shooting unarmed people.
Plastic bags are dirt cheap compared to paper. You don’t see them at the big box stores, but you still see paper at some of the local guys. I always tell them paper. Republicans want the plastic for their buddies that are in their back pockets.
We take cloth bags, and once you do you feel bad for all the paper and plastic you used to throw out.
I don’t throw the paper away. I always use them for something. When I went to the catholic school we used them for book covers!!! Bet not to many kids do that today.
Any action that gets rid of plastic bags is wonderful. Hate them not only because they damage the environment but because they spill their contents all over the trunk if you turn a corner. If taxing them means their demise, I’m all for it.
Completely agree. It’s like the bottle deposit – we won’t even notice how many bags are floating around until they’re gone.
Police officers have to make instant decisions when they feel threatened. It’s easy to analyze a situation afterwards and make judgments about what they should have done. They go through extensive training on how to handle dangerous situations but they are not robots, they are human beings. They want to go home to their families after their shifts just like everyone else. So far this year 87 law enforcement officers have died in the line of duty.
Very true, Angie, but police officers also have a responsibility to use force as a last resort not just because they have a feeling someone might be armed. According to the Washington Post,706 people have been shot and killed by cops so far in 2016.
I would be curious to know how many of those 706 killings were justified.
Well said Angie. This could all be a lot easier if people followed the orders of police when they are pulled over: When the officer says “Stop-do not move”, then Stop and do not move! People who are pulled over need to comply with the commands and that might prevent worse things from happening!
There is all kinds of speculation about who had a gun, was there a book, etc. When people do not comply with orders, exit their cars with a gun, try to reach in their pocket, then try to reach in their car window, keep walking when there are orders to stop, and still do not comply with orders, worse things do happen.
Either way, right, wrong or otherwise, this all has to stop. Who are we waiting for to take some action besides destroying a good part of the city, starting fires, destroying police vehicles, looting stores, etc. That’s not accomplishing a thing. Get Hilary and Trump off the TV screen and convene a panel to begin working on peace because we are getting nowhere.
Remember the series of billboards that were around the city? One was written: Do I have to come down there?
—–God
I do reuse my paper bags to hold my paper recyclables (I know, I know) and two plastic bags accompany my dog and me when we go for a walk and you must agree that is a very good thing.
I reuse them for the kitty litter even so, I’m still overrun with plastic bags. And those that have holes in them? I tie a knot in them so they won’t catch the wind and put them in the recycle bin.
“It’s true nonetheless and needed to be said”. I’m dying here. What a great line.
Today we have a problem with the scale of our issues: The poor guy who got shot for no good reason versus grocery bags. That poor guy should not have died. Who gives a comparative rip about all this other small-scale stuff? That said, Andrew, I am glad you wrote, “patoot,” rather than what you might have written.
Please don’t stop using plastic bags. I make mats for the homeless out of them that our church distributes. Everything is recyclable. Just need to get people doing it.
Andy;
Have you ever seen the cell phone video of Milton Barnes in Saginaw being executed by the police there when he was brandishing a small knife a few years ago ??? It is sickening to watch the police kill this mentally ill man. Just Google ” Milton Barnes Execution ” and I think you will see it —