Gamble or Not to Gamble? That is the Question.

I was working on another entry regarding this issue but just couldn't get my thoughts together on it. I stepped back to think about it and maybe I can get my point across on it this time.

I am not a gambler. I have been to a casino five times in my life. Twice on a casino cruise off the coast of Georgia; once in Montgomery County at the Poarch Creek Indian casino; once in Las Vegas; and once in New Orleans. I got better things to do with my money than throw them into a machine, but I wanted to say that I tried it once. The times I won, which is twice, I walked away with more than I put in and the three times I lost, I lost a total of $60 - total.

The legality of "electronic bingo" is the debate here in Alabama. Several destination points here in the state have legalized charity bingo but some of these places have thrown in the "electronic" version into it which in my opinion is a slot machine. No matter how much you argue it - it looks and acts like a slot machine. Do I really care? NO! It doesn't affect me directly so I really don't care.

There are bills going through the State Legislature to allow this type of gambling in the state and possibly higher classes of gaming which would include card games, roulette, etc. The bill is not meaty enough myself and leave too much wide open. It is so vauge that I do not know if it will recoup the taxes owed to the state and if it will give special considerations the gaming facilities already open. Personally, I think we have plenty at this point.

My proposal - if were to be legalized - tax the heck out of the profits of the gaming facilities - at least 50%. Take that money and put it in an Education Trust Fund and a Public Safety Trust Fund - 75% and 25% respectfully. Current budgets for both will still submitted to the legislature and Governor and will be increased based on inflation on the cost of "doing business". The two trust funds are strictly "extra" money out there NOT a replacement. There should be no relying on the spending habits of gamblers. The money cannot be used for anything else EVER. Two other provisions is that facilities owners must give at least 10% to charities that benefit Alabamians and last but not least, the facility owners would have to dump money into programs to deal with people who might have a "problem" with gambling.

Everyone talks about the "moral" question of gaming. I guess you can call me a liberal, anti-family, anti-religion on this or hoping for the Apocalypse but maybe I just cant see how my losing of $60 over the last 6 years makes me immoral. I have lost more money on other crap.

Years ago, there was a former Governor of Alabama trying to institute a "education lottery" much like Florida and Georgia. It failed miserably but when a county needs to up the property taxes in a vote the answer is HELL NO! If an extra $50 a YEAR is going to keep my kid from being in a classroom with 50 kids, have a teacher overworked, and have to possibly buy $200 of classroom supplies every year, I will pay it. Every time I got across the state line into those states, I always buy lottery tickets. Does that make me a gambler as well? Heck, I call it a donation to keep that kid in school in the hopes that it keeps them from coming to my house and making me have to put two in them for breaking and entering.

According to the US Census in 2006, there were 4.6 million persons living in Alabama. Nobody likes taxes but lets say that half of Alabama's resident purchased a lottery ticket once a week. That would $119,600,000.00 a year. Now of course, that is just so I can get a big number figure in your head. Not money people buy one lottery ticket a week and throw in people visiting or passing through the state that might was to "donate" to the education of Alabama kids than so be it, it could be a windfall.

My thought on it is to take advantage of the people (gaming owners) who in a sense take advantage of people who work hard for their money. If they have no problem taking it, let's fix some things with the money we collect from them in taxes and programs. Sometimes the simpler the solution is better.

The Age of Ignorance Continues

An entry two days in a row, I must actually have time on my hands. LOL. I guess I am a little more inspired to write lately.

Well today's entry is about the ignorance of SOME people on a side of Montgomery that does see more than its fair share of the criminal element that makes up the population in this city. Montgomery's West Side does unfortunately carry the distinction of being the "bad" side of town. It is predominately black.

The Montgomery Police Department, under the leadership of Chief Art Baylor, a personal friend of mine, has helped changed the face of the Montgomery Police Department. Forget the old days of the Civil Rights Movement; the arrest of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.; or the allowing of a white mob to beat Freedom Riders at the Greyhound bust station - this is a modern department that is doing what they can to make my and family and I safe. Chief Baylor has tried to make the department more proactive instead of reactive; been an outspoken critic of the court system that puts criminals back on the streets with slaps on the wrists or bail to commit more crimes; and give the department more respectability that it has had under previous leadership.

Yesterday, in an attempt to curb the crime in the west side area, the police has put up a "Taking Back Our Neighborhoods" operation and command post (as they have done in two other parts of town) to get a handle on the criminal element. This is the third such operation. The first day - let me repeat that FIRST DAY - there were 27 arrests (including 6 felony arrests); about 300 citations written; confiscated marijuana and cocaine; and recovered a stolen car. I call that a pretty good damn day.

The last operation, last year in another part of town (Ridgecrest) which sort of "borders" the east and west side of the city, yielded the following results: 153 felony arrests; 509 misdemeanor arrests; 2502 bench warrants; 5771 citations; 3098 field interviews; and implemented 3 apartment watch and 1 neighborhood watch programs.

Now the real reason I am writing this is due to the ignorance of some people that feel that this operation is unfair targeting of a race of people. Where on my side of town, you tend to have more residential burglaries (which are bad); on the West side, you tend have more murders, shootings, out in the open drug issues, prostitution, and assaults. On the interview below, a lady feels that she was targeted due to her vehicle because it was a Crown Victoria. If she truly believed that, then I would think she would drive something else. That is just plain IGNORANT! I would venture to guess that she has that vehicle because EVERYONE else has one. Which goes to my belief of not trying to be like everyone else - be an original. I admit that I could be way off base with that statement about her though.

It speaks of the mentality that has been ingrained in people's mind of the police being the bad guy. No matter how much you want to "f$%# the police", who is the first person you call when something bad is or has happened to you? THE DAMN POLICE!



I have run through many a checkpoint here in Montgomery and everyone I have encountered has been professional but then I have my $hit in order - license, insurance, registration, pistol permit, etc. Maybe the ones that complain the most are the ones that don't take care of business to prevent "harassment" by the police. If you have no license, don't get behind the wheel of a car; if you do not have insurance or registration, leave the car in the driveway; if you carry a concealed weapon, get a damn permit and if you are a felony, don't freakin' have a weapon at all.

All I can say is don't allow the rhetoric of some who "poison" the minds about how things have not changed or being left behind into your life. You make your own path, don't rely on someone clearing the way for you.

A little bit of irony, one of the streets involved in this police operation is Rosa L. Parks Avenue here in Montgomery. Imagine that!

Senator Richard Shelby - Hostage Taker? I am Not Paying!

You know I have to poke fun at politicians whenever I can because they seem to forget that they represent the people sometimes. Another United States Senator has put Alabama on the map - Richard Shelby, Republican from Alabama. Of course, I go to my favorite news source, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, to get the info. Senator Richard Shelby had earlier blocked about 80nominations including the undersecretary of defense for military readiness and top officials at the Departments of State and Homeland Security

Just like Senator Evan Bayh from Indiana, I am getting fed up with the bickering in Washington D.C. Republicans blame the Democrats; Democrats blame the Republicans; Independents blame Republicans and Democrats; Tea Party blames everyone. I am getting so tired of the damn blame game. I guess that is the goal of Washington - blame someone else so you can hide that you are not doing anything but getting a paycheck. Everyone in Congress is acting like a bunch of children on a playground fighting over a swing.

It seems that the Senator that is supposed to represent me has blocked nominees of President Obama for key posts over "pork spending" for the State of Alabama. For those that know me as a person, I am proud and glad when the state prospers and moves forward. Even though, he has since lifted the blanket block but is still holding onto three Pentagon slots. Why are grown ass folks playing the quid pro quo game? You say Obama is soft on National Security and maybe these three appointments will not lean either way but do not be a part of the problem. You can't blame anyone for a problem when you do not give them the proper tools (or the ones they request) to do the job.

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I am not party bashing because I consider myself a Conservative Democrat and a Liberal Republican (yeah I think it is funny too). Please correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Republicans bitching about programs that are putting us further in debt HOWEVER this Republican wants to spend more money on more programs. Depending on who you talk to, it differs on whether they are "front burner" issues or things that can wait.

I am disgusted with everybody in Congress at this point. Here is another "waste" of my tax money below that I saw on the NBC Nightly News a couple of weeks ago.

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Maybe we need to take a page from the rhetoric of retiring Senator Evan Bayh and vote all incumbents out and start fresh with people that want to get stuff accomplished in Washington. This is my rant for today!

Retarded - Aren't We All A Little Bit?

This world is getting a little too politically correct and sensitive. This thing with the word retarded is getting a little out of hand. Now it is the "R-word" (to be made in comparison with the use of the "N-word".)

I will admit growing up that when you saw a person with Down's Syndrome or some other sort of developmental problem, you would refer to them as retarded. As a kid, there was nothing hurtful meaning behind the use of the word. I guess you can say it was the "way I was raised" (the same excuse that some individuals use who call black people nigger). [Just in case you missed it, that was a joke]. Don't want someone to write something on their Facebook page about me like Palin did regardng Rahm.

As a child, I didn't shy away from someone who had mental deficiencies. I think that was truly due my parents having some close friends that had a son who had cerebral palsy and in a wheelchair. So I got to see this first hand - not from a distance. Does that make me some sort of saint? Hell no.

Now Rahm Emanuel, the White House Chief of Staff, uses the term "fucking retard". I will admit that the context, on first look, does not shine a positive light on those with developmental disabilities. Rush Limbaugh, who has no sense of respectability in my book, is droning on and on and on and on and on (get the picture) about this. Yeah, it might have been inappropriate for Emanuel to say but it was in a "closed" strategy meeting and not a public forum. How many people have said things about other people behind closed doors and kept it to themselves in public? Not trying to excuse Rahm's tirade, just making a point. And if I am hearing right, this happened in August of 2009. Damn Rush, let it go like you did your prescription drug habit.



The rash of apologies have started. Rush wants to bash Rahm for using the word and now he is using it to describe Rahm's attempts to make it right with mental disability advocates by calling it a "retard summit at the White House". The fact that I am not mentally handicap (99% of the time) makes it hard for me to understand any kind of derogatory effect that the use of the term evokes so I can only speak for myself.

But since the apologies are making the circuit, I guess we are going to have to demand an apology from KJ and Da' Fellas (if they are still around). According to the Urban Dictionary, to get retarded is "to consume intoxicating alcohol or drugs to the point where you are incapable of verbally communicating past incoherent mumbles. Motor skills are also severely hampered thereby giving the overall impression of severe retardation."



According to the Webster's Dictionary, retarded (as an adjective) means "slow or limited in intellectual or emotional development or academic progress." Come on! Haven't we all been there? Retard as a verb is "to slow up especially by preventing or hindering advance or accomplishment [impede]" or "to delay academic progress by failure to promote".

Perhaps the idea Rahm was trying to get across regarding the strategy of liberal activists regarding the passage of a health care bill was "lost" in our overly sensitive being to make sure we don't hurt a class or section of people. But just think about the definition of the words, apply them to yourself or someone you know fairly well and ask yourself "aren't we all just a little retarded sometimes?"