Published: November 20, 2009

You may have seen the new t-shirts and bumper-stickers urging folks to pray for our president.  But look closer.  Is there a sinister message hidden behind this Christian exhortation?

Pray for Obama -  Psalms 108:9

The Bible verse specified is short and simple: “Let his days be few; and let another take his office.”

But this statement is also full of double meaning.  Is it a simple request that Obama be a one-term-president – or is it a prayer for his untimely death?  Defenders of the slogan say that it is what it looks like on the surface, a hope that the Obama administration not last into another term.  But others are much more skeptical, pointing to the verse that immediately follows this one:

“Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.”

There’s no doubt about the intention when the two verses are read together.

Are the “Christians” who proudly sport this sentiment on their bodies and their cars really just asking God to make him lose the next election, or are they praying that someone will kill him?  Is this hate speech under the guise of prayer?

Not exactly, according to the law.  In order to fall under that classification, it would have to advocate actual violence against the president.  Still, the statement is definitely ambiguous enough to be considered to have the “potential” to incite someone to violence against President Obama on the pretext that he/she was doing “God’s work.”

Two companies who market items bearing this slogan, CafePress and Zazzle,  pulled the merchandise in response to a large number of complaints.  However CafePress reversed its decision yesterday, based on its free and fair speech policy, and is again offering the items for sale.  They did, however put up a poll on their site asking folks to weigh in.  So far, the response has been overwhelmingly (90%) against the slogan.

What do you think?  Is this legitimate free speech or a carefully crafted hidden message for Obama-haters to wear with pride?

UPDATE
CafePress has decided to pull the Psalm 109 merchandise permanently, saying in an e-mail today to those who had complained:

General consensus has proven that the design does point to a broader interpretation of the Psalm and thus has been deemed inappropriate for sale at CafePress.

Published: November 19, 2009

Ten weeks into college, I’ve had my first epiphany, my first identity crisis, the first horrifying reality check that will likely alter the course of my existence.

Or not. But I’ve been thinking.

Journalism is my major, but contrary to my earlier beliefs, it’s not my calling.

This was a rough realization for me to accept, especially at a school where virtually everyone boasts double majors, extra minors, honors concentrations, work-studies, internships, and various other titles deeming them masters of multitasking.  It’s easy to feel lost when you’re surrounded by 8,000 peers who are all, in some way or another, better than you.

Yet somehow, I’m comforted by my dedication to my journalism major. I’m fairly certain this is what I want to do with my life and pretty passionate about doing it well. But was I born to be a journalist? No way.

Maybe I’m a decent writer, and maybe I know my way around Adobe InDesign, and maybe there’s a career out there suited for those skills. But I don’t believe for a moment that this is what I’m naturally suited for. To be perfectly honest, I don’t have an innately inquisitive personality like the writers I idolize. I can’t sniff out a good story from a mile away like my mentors can. And I thought I could write, but the brilliant work of my peers has shown me I’m nothing special. I thought I had a knack for this, but it’s really just something I’ve picked up. I have learned the trade, but I’m far from gifted.

This doesn’t mean I’m throwing in the towel. I still intend to become a journalist, but in a different direction from my original plans. However, I’m also still on a quest to find something I can study that will accurately reflect who I am.

In a sad attempt to find my calling, I’ve spent this week brainstorming potential double majors, minors, and concentrations to expand my course choices, my degree, and, well, my self-confidence. The other programs of study are impressive and plenty suit my interests, but something’s still not clicking.

Music minor? Mostly only available to music majors, and I’m nowhere near talented enough for that path. Linguistics minor? Too science-oriented. Double major in gender studies? Potentially, but with a high risk of biased emotional attachment to objective topics. Political science? I’d only be doing it for show.

It seems I don’t really have a divine gift – at least not one that can carry me through college. My calling is singing a cappella in an awkward register, stressing over the small stuff, editing my friends’ college essays until they avoid me, enjoying outdated poetry, finding sexist undertones in classic novels, buying presents, overusing puns, and envying my friends’ natural talents when I know I should be proud of them.

But I can’t minor in that.

Published: November 17, 2009

I am not a sport person or for that matter an athlete. I could never ever image myself running in any type of race or working out on any basis. The most exercise I get is walking to and from my car. But I have great respect for people who do participate in sporting events and who work out regularly.

One such person is Ms. Chelsea Bridges, a rehabilitation instructor. This is her account of a recent event that she was a participant.

If anyone had of told me that I, Chelsea Bridges, would enter a 5K run and complete it, I would have thought they were crazy. My record for a continuous run had never been more than 1.5 miles; not the 3.3 miles required for a 5K. I am known for walking great distances and doing it quickly. So a 5K RUN sounded definitely “do-able”.

This run idea all started several months ago when I joined a new fitness center in Carroll Wood.

There were many reasons why I joined this particular fitness center. Some of them were; the closeness to my home, I had read many good things about this center, the facility was very clean, their equipment looked new, and the price of the membership seemed fair and very reasonable. Another reason was that they offered a variety of classes and workouts at different times. They offered individual personal trainers. This was about my fourth or fifth fitness center that I have joined in recent memory. My two personal trainers were Anthony Holland (strength training) and Michelle Curtis (strength training and running).  I became a regular at the center.

(pictures above -  Chelsea working out with Michelle Curtis in preparing for 5K Run)
—————
Today I still continue work out multiple times per week.

While working out one day with Michelle, she suggested that I enter a 5K / 3.3 miles race. With her help and guidance I started preparing for the “RUN”. It would be my first 5K. Michelle thought that the Picnic Island Adventure Run would be the perfect place to start with because of the running surface, lower impact running on sand than concrete.

The race was held on Friday, June 12th at 6:45 p.m. on course off Tampa Bay. When Michelle said that I could run and ‘walk’ I felt that I could successfully complete this event. I had been paying closes attention when she said I could walk too.

I arrived about an hour early, got in line for registration among the hundreds of other runners. As I looked around, the ages of the other people ranged from teens to grand parents.

Michelle joined me after I had completed the registration; gotten a number to wear on my chest and a bottle of cold iced water.

Before the race started I worked out for about 15-20 minutes by running through rows of tires on the ground the same way NFL foot ball players work out. I also stretch my legs and arms.

Then it was race time. The race started off running along the beach, and then across the park, through heavily wooded trails, and a mini-obstacle course (crawling under a cargo net, jumping over a hurdle, and running through tires).

I began and ended the race running, cognizant of whom and where I was, and upright. My goals (along with not being last) were accomplished. There was a point during the race when I was wondering “what the heck I thought I was doing” and whether or not I should stop and walk back to the parking lot and go back home.

During the run, I alternated between running and walking. I finished the race in 45 minutes.

I felt proud of myself for finishing this run. I started thinking about and planning to enter another run event next month. I hope I can finish sooner the next time. The next race is a few weeks away. I am going to start training for it next. If I complete the next one, this could be complete a regular event for me.

Chelsea Bridges
————————————-

John Jerome, a long time co worker, has been running for decades. He gave Chelsea valued advise on preparing for a run and running tips.

John started running 8/8/77 at age 29.
Ran his first race in 1978 or 1979 – a 5 miler on July 4th in Temple Terrace. Since then, he has competed in distances ranging from 1 mile to the marathon (26.2 miles).Steadily improved to where he began winning or placing in his age group regularly by his mid-to-late 30’s.

Best running years for him were between the ages of 40 – 49 when he achieved his fastest times.  His best 5K runs averaged 17:45; best 10K runs averaged 37:15; and best 15K runs averaged 55:48 – 56:15.  Average pace per mile ranged from 5:50 in the 5K to 6:00 in the 10K and 15K.
In 2001, he placed 2nd in the Grandmasters category for the Hops Marathon.  Time:  3:10:56.

For a number of years, He was the fastest runner in the over-50 category (Grandmasters) in the Times Turkey Trot Thanksgiving 10K race.
Fastest run over the age of 60 so far is 20:01, a 6:27 per mile pace.

John is a member of Tampa Bay Runners where he volunteers for various club projects such as race finish lines and our ladies’ training program.  He also serve as a mentor for beginning runners and anyone who can benefit from his experiences, dealing with injuries, etc.
___________
More power to Chelsea and John. I am not known to work out at all. Maybe in time I might join a gym. But forget about me running even a 1/2 K run.

Published: November 17, 2009

It’s hard to tell what the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force actually said about breast cancer self exams and mammograms what with all the near-hysterical shouting on the TV and in the newspapers.  Most news outlets are reporting some version of the premise that breast cancer screening for women 40-49 is actually an unnecessary expense and bother.  This seems to fly in the face of the “early detection equals a better chance of cure” mantra women have been taught for the past two decades.

I decided to read to the report and do some research to try to figure it out for myself.

So, ok, I’m no medical expert, but it seems to me that what the report says, is that breast cancer is actually pretty rare in younger women, and so there are fewer incidents to catch in the 40-49 year-old age group.  The actual data shows that you have to do 556 mammograms on women in that group age to find one with cancer.  The other problem with women between the ages of 40 and 49 is that their breast tissue is denser, making mammograms less accurate, and causing more false positives.  That means that 46 of the 556 women screened would have to have additional imaging to rule out cancer, and 4 or them would actually have to undergo a biopsy.

Apparently, in the eyes of the USPSTF, this is far too much of a waste of medical time and energy, which might otherwise be better spent… I don’t know…. maybe on developing more effective treatments for male ED?  Besides, the report goes on to say, there is actual harm done by all this over-screening.  Women can get worried and anxious.  Also, these women might be inconvenienced (their word, not mine) by having to endure additional testing.

Holy mackaroly! Are these guys nuts? 

According to the American College of Gynecology, two out of every 10,000 women who are between the ages of 40 and 49 today will die of breast cancer within the next ten years. Given the latest population statistics, that translates to 42,492 women.  However, if these same women are screened for breast cancer, the number for whom the disease will be fatal drops by 6,800.

Think about it.  That is almost 7000 more women who will live to see their kids grow up.  7000 more women who will get the chance to hold their first grandchild.  7000 more women who may live long enough to retire. 

But to the USPSTF, this “collateral” damage is more than justified by the expense, worry, and inconvenience the other 22-odd million women who didn’t get breast cancer will have avoided.

I’ve got a suggestion as to what the USPSTF can do with their report.  However, this is a family Web site, so I won’t go into detail.  Suffice it to say that IMHO, this report is not worth the paper it is printed on.  I lost my closest friend to breast cancer on Christmas Day, ten years ago.  She was 51. 

So don’t tell me women 40-49 don’t need to be screened for breast cancer.  Don’t tell me a human life is not worth a few hundred dollars worth of medical testing, or that additional testing is too much of an inconvenience.  I’m simply not going to listen to such nonsense – and I pray that doctors and the insurance companies won’t either.

Published: November 17, 2009

If Bucs head coach Raheem Morris tapped me on the shoulder and asked my opinion of why the season has gone so poorly I’d have to borrow a quote from Oscar Wilde and say, “I’m not young enough to know everything.”

Apparently Raheem is young enough to know everything.

Years ago, when I started coaching youth soccer I saw many new coaches make the same mistakes that Raheem is making right now. When they lost they blamed their players. When they won, they took the credit. What they should have been doing was realizing that many times it’s not the x’s and o’s, but the Jills and Joes that really matter.

What many young coaches don’t understand is that a team is like a family, and you don’t say thinks like, “We don’t have big, intimidating linebackers or linemen. We’re just not made right now to knock people back.” Its bad psychology, bad management philosophy, and bad coaching. You can’t draft eight defensive first rounders next year, so you better be able to use some of the guys you already have… if any of them still want to play for Raheem.

Where was Raheem when Tony Dungy and Monte Kiffin built a killer defense on speed, agility and smarts – not size or how “scary” the players looked. How about the University of Florida’s 2006 National Championship win against Ohio? The offensive line for Ohio was the largest, strongest and most intimidating line in recent college football history. Florida had no chance with its puny defense, but we all know who won. Yes they were smaller, but they were faster, and they believed they could win. Who helped them believe this… their coaches.

With the all-knowing Raheem taking every opportunity to “dis” his players in public, I’d have to guess that many of them also think a single personnel change may be the answer to everything at One Buc Place.

Published: November 17, 2009

The Tampa City Council is set to vote this Thursday on adding a new Gender Identity Ordinance to the city’s non-discrimination laws. This new gender identity ordinance would allow, among other things, entry to the opposite sex’s bathrooms for people who may be transgender, gender-confused or transsexual; allow cross-dressing in classrooms and places of business; and may force religious organizations and businesses to hire against their beliefs. The ordinance sounds good without thinking it through to possible repercussions.

The entire proposed ordinance can be seen here. The intended phrase to describe gender identity is as follows: “Gender identity or expression means gender-related identity, appearance, expression or behavior of an individual, regardless of the individual’s assigned sex at birth.”

First, it should be clear that gender-challenged people aren’t necessarily homosexual. In fact, they may want to be another sex so they can have sexual relationships with the opposite sex.

A “gender identity” crisis may mean someone really believes they were born the wrong sex. A person in a gender identity crisis may be in a tremendous amount of pain. Any hope that people may offer - psychologically based or certainly religiously based - to help them feel better in their current skin - may be silenced as “hate speech.”

Contrary to what some may believe, there are Christians who are fully capable of loving all people and treating them nicely with respect, but would still want the opportunity to tell the person in crisis that God doesn’t make mistakes, and that they may be able to love themselves as they are through His love. This new law would take away a chance to offer the person what some may consider hope, for it would be considered hate by others. Therefore, this new classification is protected to the point of being given preference over another protected class - religious orientation.

If Bible believers are soon forced by law to hire or house a transgendered, transsexual or gender-challenged person (as well as anyone of a homosexual orientation), we shouldn’t be hesitant or afraid. This is our chance to show that we can be loving and kind rather than judgmental; it could be a chance to build one-on-one relationships toward earning their respect enough to have an occasion to tell them about the goodness of God, and why we believe in Him. This is way different than shouting what sounds like hatred from bully soapboxes.

However, the transgender person might also be open to the fact that he/she now has a law in their favor which negates the rights of others to conduct business in a manner of their choice. If given the opportunity to work in a religiously oriented business, or live in a building owned by a religious person, and the transgender person wants their own opinions heard and respected, it is only fair that they should try to be open to hearing the people of that faith; as long as it is in a non-threatening, non-coerced conversation. Being a victim of hate is one thing - looking for opportunities to accuse others of hate speech is another.

Although pedophilia is not connected with gender identity crisis, being transsexual or cross dressing, and is often committed by heterosexuals, there is no new proposed law to keep pedophilia an unacceptable act. Most non-discrimination laws that now include sexual orientation do not have provisions differing between sexual orientations. There are pedophilia groups already claiming protection under similar laws.

Pedophiles and other sexual predators may fake transgenderism or cross dressing as an opportunity for their crime. Capitalizing on this new gender protection law, they may pose as transsexuals or cross-dressers as an excuse to invade our required “all orientation restrooms” looking for victims. Where is the would-be victims’ protection? A male sexual predator walks into a ladies’ room dressed as a woman, strikes up a conversation to get someone off guard, and boom – we have a rape, or abduction of a female child.

What happens to these criminals in court if they are caught? Will they simply play on the sympathies of political correctness? This mentality of stretching the definition of what’s okay is destroying us from within.

Please note: This writer does not hate anyone, and will continue trying to peacefully and sensibly express the hope of God and Christ to others, as long as they feel they have the right to express their own beliefs.

Published: November 15, 2009

Gravy Train

“I come from a family where gravy is considered a beverage.” – Erma Bombeck

I am truly grateful for gravy.

This is a much more profound statement than you realize. I am certainly thankful for the surface glories of good gravy, that warm, luscious sauce that coats my taste buds and then goes on to coat my hips. But I’ve come to realize lately that gravy is much more than that. Not being one to exaggerate, I don’t want to ladle it on too thick. So let me just suggest that gravy is actually a symbol for my life.

Sometimes my life flows along smoothly, a rich, flavorful stream of goodness. Other times, it turns into a lumpy, gelatinous mess in desperate need of a sanity strainer. Perhaps when my life gets lumpy, I should sift it in the same way my grandma used to strain her gravy. Perhaps then my life wouldn’t be as strained as this goofy metaphor I’m beating into the ground here. Perhaps you’re wondering what on earth I’m talking about. Perhaps I’ve said “perhaps” once too often.

Anyway, what got me thinking these deep thoughts about sauce is the advent of yet another holiday season. I know it’s supposed to be a time of peace on earth and good will toward men. And for the men, who’ve been ensconced on the couch since the beginning of football season, it works out just fine.

But for the women, at least those in my family, there has not been a lot of holiday harmony since gravy came into the picture. See, I come from a Southern family in which gravy has assumed Holy Grail status. In my family, the quality of a girl’s gravy runs parallel to the quality of her character. A girl whose gravy lacks gravitas (which we all know is just a fancy Latin word for gravy with a kick) can find herself the object of ridicule for generations to come.

And this is what has happened to me. I am a gravy failure, never quite getting the hang of it. To make matters worse, I’m the daughter of a gravy grand master. People come from miles around to sample my mother’s gravy. People won’t even bother asking someone to pass the gravy boat when it’s carrying mine.

Oh, my mother has pretended to try to teach me her gravy secrets. But she’s obviously leaving out a crucial ingredient because mine never turns out like hers. Not even the mother-daughter bond, it seems, can overcome her greed for gravy glory.

I used to get very upset about this flaw in my mom’s character. When I was less mature than I am now (last year), I even got so annoyed by my sorry sauce that I flicked some of it at my mother with a spoon on Thanksgiving Day, coating her carefully coiffured hair with my gooey gravy. She was not amused.

This year, I’ve decided to embrace my gravy deficiency as an opportunity to develop my own character. I am not going to be grumpy about my gravy. I’m going to be thankful for all the things I take for granted. I’m going to remember that my life, even when lumpy, is pretty darn sweet. In fact, most of the time, I am definitely on the gravy train. I hope you are, too. Happy Thanksgiving.

© Jackie Papandrew, All Rights Reserved
http://www.jackiepapandrew.com

Published: November 06, 2009

Something is seriously cuckoo in New York. 

Somehow health officials there figured that sending doses of H1N1 vaccine to private businesses was a better way to protect high risk groups than sending the medicine to actual doctors.  Doses were sent to a number of Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs and CitiGroup, and also to Columbia University, Time Inc., the Federal Reserve Bank.

The firms who received the vaccine say they only ordered it because they were allowed to, and because they have pregnant women and other employees that fall into the high risk category.  It’s not their fault that someone sent it to them before sending it to hospitals and doctors’ offices.

But that argument is beyond silly. When did employers take over the responsibility for providing medication to their employees?  Don’t people with jobs go to their doctor when they get sick or need to update their vaccinations?  Why would they go to HR instead?

Whomever wrote the rules for distribution and procurement of the H1N1 vaccine in NY should be fired, as should whomever in these companies who felt it was right to order vaccine for “internal use.”  People are lined up outside the offices of obstetricians and pediatricians waiting in vain for drugs that have been diverted to non-medical facilities. 

What were these people thinking?

Then there’s the guy in Canada who made sure the Calgary Flames hockey team and their families got their shots.  He actually was fired.  But it’s not just the bureaucrats that are screwing up.  The doctor for the Flames’ farm team got twitchy after several players fell ill, and promptly labeled them all “high risk.”  All but five got vaccinated – ahead of others in the general public who had a greater need.  Tsk.  Tsk.  But I’m sure these are but the tip of an iceberg worth of protocol violations in favor of folks with enough money and/or pull to get the rules bent.  Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter here.
 

The administration is taking a lot of heat for allegedly breaking their promise to provide an adequate supply of the H1N1 vaccine by mid fall.  Detractors need to remember that private, not government, firms make the vaccines. The current method takes six months, and it has just barely been six months since April, when the H1N1 strain started causing global concern.  The government distribution system, while certainly not perfect, is at least more fair that the normal method, which is “biggest orders get delivered first.”

In this time of financial uncertainty, record job losses, and rising internal and international tensions, people are naturally on edge.  Faced with yet another “enemy” in the form of a potentially deadly flu strain, their first instinct is to blame the people at the top.  But pointing fingers at the current administration is not only unfair, it does no good.  The US has never seen a set of circumstances exactly like those our country faces today, and there’s no instruction manual.  Maybe we should all just take a deep breath and give things a chance to get better.

Published: October 31, 2009

Touch. Words. Time. Service. Gifts. 

In his book, The Five Love Languages, Dr. Gary Chapman describes how we give love and what we need to feel loved.  Those who require touch place great emphasis on physical contact; word people need verbal affirmation of their worth; some need time spent with those close to them; others value gestures—picking up the laundry or remembering it’s trash day; some need love in the form of presents.

Some of my students heard a lecture on the love languages in their health class this week.  I found this intriguing: I remember health class as a dull, uninspiring course taught by a reluctant coach who evidently knew everything about coaching football and very little about anything else. 

My students’ health teacher is also a coach, but she has an interest in all students—not just those tall, lithe girls who vie for spots on her varsity volleyball team.  She teaches them about nutrition, she stresses the importance of finding a fitness activity that they enjoy so that staying physically healthy will be an enjoyable part of their lives. 

And she cares about their emotional health.

Instead of skimming through the chapters on human sexuality and avoiding any embarrassing questions, she encourages frank discussion about the topic and places special emphasis on the emotional factor.

I’ve never read Chapman’s book, but I’m intrigued by the premise: understanding what our partners (not to mention siblings, parents, friends and co-workers) need in order to feel loved and appreciated could prevent endless misunderstandings and probably save many relationships from certain failure.

I’ve been thinking about my own intimate relationships.  My mother, for example, shows love through service.  It took me years to understand that if she stopped by my house to pick up something when I wasn’t home, and just happened to fold all of my laundry, that was an act of love rather than an irritating interference. 

I think I inherited my love language from her.  I like doing things for people:  cooking dinner for a friend; feeding a neighbor’s cat while she is away.  I am not so good in other areas.  As much as I love words, I fall short when it comes to expressing my feelings; I find it silly to have to utter phrases of affirmation.  When forced to do so, I become tongue-tied and easily frustrated.  As a result, I am often misunderstood. Even as a teacher, I have to remind myself to tell students when they’ve done a good job. 

I think most men probably think that women need gifts to feel loved, and I certainly know women who do. I have friends for whom every birthday, anniversary and Christmas is marked by a platinum or gold token of affection. 

What I require is time.  Perhaps because I have so little of it, I recognize its value.  A meaningful conversation; a shared bottle of wine; a walk in the park—these are the things I crave. 

Touch. Words. Service. Time. Gifts:  such simple words in our language, yet they are pregnant with meaning.  More attention to them may just result in fuller, happier lives.

Published: October 28, 2009

Last May 14, State Representative Betty Reed presided over the third annual National Letter of Intent Signing ceremony. The event was held at Blake High School. It was an event you would normally associate with sport athletes signing million dollars contracts. But instead, it was an event where over 36 graduating high school students signed letters of intent agreements to attend colleges and universities across the country.

(L-R) Doretha Edgecomb and Betty Reed

Betty Reed represents house district 59. All of the graduates were from that district. It would be great if this type of ceremony was held county wide and included all of the high school graduations.

When I received the invitation to attend the high school graduation, I thought to myself, if I have seen one graduation, then I have seen them all. How wrong I was. This was definitely not the graduation that I recalled attending when I graduated from Miami Killian High School in 1970.

In attendance were many proud parents, dignitaries, school board members and officials, politicians, and many special invited guests. Blake high school students, dressed as chefs, prepared and served a delicious meal.

The highlight of the night was watching the parents of the graduates as they were signing their contracts to attend the various colleges and universities.

State Representative Betty Reed says, “As a champion advocate for education and underrepresented students, I wanted to introduce legislation that would have an impact on all students and encourage them seek out higher education.  So, I sponsored – and the legislature passed- HB 403, Florida Partnership for Minority and Underrepresented Student Achievement.

This bill amended Florida Statute 1007.35, The Florida Partnership for Minority and Underrepresented Student Achievement Act by requiring the Partnerships established in the Minority Student Achievement Act to work with Florida’s School District’s by –
o Identifying minority and underrepresented students for participation in Advance Placement (AP) and other advanced courses.
o Providing information to students and parents regarding the opportunities to take Advance Placement (AP) and other advanced courses.
o Providing information to parents, teachers, counselors, administrators, school districts, community colleges and state universities regarding opportunities to take the PSAT/NMSQT or PLAN.

I fought to get this bill passed because I wanted to make sure that parents were aware of their children’s academic PSAT scores and be made aware of the opportunities to take the PSAT. Additionally, I wanted to make sure that all students were identified and given the same opportunities to take Advance Placement (AP) courses.

I didn’t just stop after advocating academic excellence with the legislature.  I promoted academic excellence at the grass-roots level as well by hosting an Academic Signing Day Dinner.
Often times, we celebrate when student athletes sign letters of intent to attend college. I feel this is a good thing because it means another student has the opportunity to pursue a higher education.  So, with the dinner, I wanted to re-enact the ATHLETIC letter signing with an ACADEMIC letter signing with hopes of making the community realize that District 59 have some of the best of the brightest students. 

With that said, in continuing with my promoting academic excellence in District 59, I hosted my First Annual Academic Singing Day Dinner the first year I was elected.  We started out with 21 students in attendance that graduated with four (4) Advance Placement (AP) courses.  Two years later, after we raised the bar, I’m proud to announce that the 2009 3rd Annual Academic Dinner honored more than 40 students from the Class of 2009 (that reside within District 59) that graduated from Hillsborough County public high schools with six (6) or more college-level Advanced Placement (AP) classes. 

I wanted to recognize and congratulate the students that reside in my District for their academic achievement.  Through this grass-roots effort, my hope is to promote academic excellence in District 59 and throughout Hillsborough County. In keeping with this tradition, I hope to see more students from my district continue to challenge themselves to excel in high school and continue in college. 

Doretha W. Edgecomb, School Board Member says , “Representative Reed must first of all be congratulated for focusing on academic success and celebrating dreams achieved by students who have so worked hard and committed themselves to their goals. The “Signing of the Letter of Intent” is modeled after the process that athletes do across this country as they commit to the colleges or universities of choice. So much attention is given to this “rite of passage” in sports. And to model this letter signing and lauding it, is validation that achieving in the classroom is equally as important and valued as achieving in any of the sport arenas. Both are important and this annual event clearly sends that message to our scholars - that being smart is recognized and the signing is a public commitment to excellence and the promise to continue to excel. It is a wonderful celebration for students and their families. Our school district is so thrilled to have such a partner to help us acknowledge the success of these students.”

I thought this was a wonderful event. It would be great if the business community got involved with this noble recognition of our high school graduates.

Published: October 27, 2009

According to an AP story published Tuesday the man we Floridians trust to steer our ship of state told reporters be was unaware that the President of the United States was in Florida.

President Obama arrived Monday to honor servicemen and women at the Jacksonville Naval Air Station.  On Tuesday, he traveled to DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, near Arcadia to announce an investment of $3.4B in a new technology for transmitting electric power.  President Obama equated the significance of the new “smart grid” system to the building of the interstate highway system half a century ago.

But our feckless leader, Clueless Chuck, was too busy celebrating with tribal leaders at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, FL to give the president the courtesy and respect of a visit.
Perhaps he was worried about the possibility of another “kiss” photo, like the one taken last February.

The picture, which made its way around the Intertubes with lightning speed, caused fellow Republicans to express doubt about Charlie’s allegiance to the Grand Old Party.  With Mark Rubio nipping at his heels in the primary race, you can be sure Ol’ Charlie doesn’t want anyone mistaking him for an Obama supporter these days.

But I have to wonder, if the governor didn’t know the Prez was here in Florida, what else isn’t he aware of –How much H1N1vaccine is being made available to residents? How our share of the stimulus money is really being spent? Pirates off our coast?

Gee, Gov. Crist, I know you’ve got your heart set on that senate seat so you can be a big influence in DC for Florida, but doncha think you might want to show some manners to the guy who’ll be your “boss” if you ever do get to Washington?

Published: October 25, 2009

I promised my kids, after much begging on their part, that I’d dress up for Halloween this year. Maybe, I thought, I’d continue my longtime childhood role of witch – one of those wonderfully hideous hags with a pointy black hat and hooked plastic nose complete with wart. Or maybe I’d reprise my polyester princess phase, with a few adult modifications.

But when I went costume shopping with my family, I found that the hags have turned to hoochies, and the princesses are parading more than their tiaras.

I searched through dozens of costumes, all of them offering a shrink-wrapped style that ranged from sexy to slutty to skanky.

The witches were wearing very little. There were naughty nurses with uniforms so low-cut they could induce heart failure, and a deviant housewife ensemble that seemed ill-suited for mopping floors. Little Red Riding Hood, sporting thigh-highs, was definitely not headed to her grandmother’s house. And Goldilocks, with her plunging neckline and platform heels, looked ready to sleep in everyone’s bed. It was all more strip club than storybook.

For the briefest of moments, I considered buying one of these outfits, actually mulled over the suggestion on the package of one costume that I channel my inner vixen. But my vixen vanished when I saw the looks of horror on the faces of my children. Mom in a minidress was an idea more monstrously frightening than they could fathom.

So, still in need of a disguise, I pondered my predicament. My Halloween attire would have to be homemade, something funny and familiar, or perhaps soothing and sweet, or maybe even slightly scary. But not salacious.

I could dress up as one of the most important items in our house – the remote control – with custom buttons designed to appeal to each member of my family. There’d be a Fulltime Football button and a Constant Cartoons knob, along with one labeled Law and Order 24/7. And, for laughs, I could include one they’d find highly useful on occasion – Mute Mom.

Or, I could get creative with the cardboard and felt and appeal to the stomach by appearing as a plate of nachos or a tray of chocolate chip cookies, the kind of eye candy that would spark my gang’s gratitude.

I could remind them of all that I do. I could cut a circle out of a laundry basket and insert it over my body, with pieces of dirty clothing dangling from clothespins. Or I could pose as a giant red spoon with Betty Crocker scrawled across my forehead. I could cover myself with foil marked as leftovers. Or maybe I could stick some toy tires on my arms and legs and masquerade as a minivan.

In the end, I decided on something very simple. I realized that, in a way, I wear a disguise every day. Every morning, I am transformed from a bleary-eyed creature straight out of Night of the Living Dead into something resembling an attractive human being.

I paint my face, and I fix my hair. I get dressed up in slimming garb designed to trick people into thinking I’m a treat. So this year, I’m going to skip that step and stroll the streets as myself. And my kids will probably think that’s the scariest costume of all.

© Jackie Papandrew All Rights Reserved

If you’d like to receive my column free via email, click here.

Published: October 14, 2009

Is this an accurate depiction? You be the Judge.

Post your comments below, or write to me, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Published: October 14, 2009

According to a study by the American Journal of Medicine, more than six in every ten bankruptcies are due to medical expenses.  I believe them.

After my emergency appendectomy in July, which was very straight forward, no complications, and for which I spent less than 1 ½ days in the hospital – I now owe more than $25,000 in medical bills.  The private insurance, for which we pay nearly $400 each month covered less than 10% of the total costs associated with my hospitalization.  I must not have read the fine print, or misunderstood the legal jargon in the contract, because what I thought was a reasonable policy turned out to be a total rip-off.

So now what?  Where are we supposed to come up with that much money?  Let’s say we could get a $100 a month payment plan.  It would still take more than 20 years to pay it off.  And the docs and hospital deserve better.  I received excellent care.

My experience illustrates the goal of the health insurance reform now being debated in Washington.  “Obamacare,” as obstructionists like to call it, is NOT socialized medicine or the first step down that slippery slope.  Its aim is simply to ensure that all Americans can purchase insurance at a reasonable price that provides a minimum standard of care.  That’s what I thought I was paying for, but obviously wasn’t. 

Of course I’ve been researching other insurance options since getting the news from my current provider.  The best I’ve been able to come up with for my husband and myself -  both over 60, in good health, no pre-existing conditions, and never smoked – requires a premium of $607 per month and a pays 80% of medical costs after I have already spent $7,000 out of pocket.  The next best plan has a $455 per month premium, but a $12,000 deductible.

But I can’t afford either one.  The monthly premiums are more per month than I spend on food.  If I had $7000 laying around, I’d use it towards my existing medical bills. This is an untenable situation – not just for me, but for the nearly one out of six Americans, have no medical coverage, and no money to buy it with. 

We need health care insurance reform, and we need it now.

Published: October 12, 2009

Residents in thirteen communities of the East Lake Orient Park (Eastern Hillsborough/Tampa, Florida) are praying that Catholic Charities stop trying to destroy and ravage their family neighborhood with a PUP Tent City for 250 homeless people. Over 150,000 lawful residents could eventually be negatively impacted.

Tomorrow, October 13, the County Commissioners will decide on these neighborhoods’ future. The residents have been protesting and fighting the Catholic Charities for months.

If the County Commissioners approve the zoning change, this whole area of 12 square miles, could get the label of Pup Tent City. It could leave a negative and permanent anti family, anti law abiding, anti economic development and anti good future stigma. Such a negative label designation as Pup Tent City, could have similiar branding as that of “Suit Case city”. It would be a disaster for these good family communities in the area.

It would be doom and gloom for the area.

What will the future be like for these communities? Will it be a future with hundreds of people with felony arrest roaming through their back yards? Will it be a future of horrific declines in property values? Will it be a future of people with sex crimes in their past stalking some of the 5,000 school children in the area? Or will businesses simply giving up on the area near and around the pup tent city?

This Pup Tent City, in my opinion,  is simply a money maker for the Catholic Charities on the backs of the homeless. They stand to make up to $3,000,000 per year in government grants, donations and individual contributions. The residents will lose the peace and tranquility of their home life, neighborhood stability, and the safety of their children.

If the Catholic Charities care so much about the homeless and really want to help them here is what they can do. First the members of the charity could adopt a homeless person or family. They would live in the homes of with the various Catholic families. Hillsborough County would pay them $ 600 per individual or $ 1100 per month per family for four months. Or secondly the Catholic Charity could just buy an apartment with a housing capacity of 300, and set it up for homeless services.

Either way, it would be better that herding around the homeless like animals

Here is what the resident say about their plight.

, 

(L-R) Mr. Gloster, Mr. Hart

Stanley Gloster, concerned citizen says, ” Homless is a problem and few people have came with good ideas on how to tackle the issue.But for what I know tents is not and will not be the answer. We need to address and get it right the first time on fix the problem.Why I said not tents is because there isn’t any running water or indoor plumbing. Plus tents are not design to help homless families.Tents can not and will not protect them for long hot summers or rainy nights.And lastly why i said no tents, it is inhumane. Listen the homless are people too.They do deserve help but not to be treat like a third class citizen because of their situation.They need indoor plumbing and running water,and they need progams that will help them mentally and physically. We need to be able to conquer this problem and help these people with love and understanding. They do not deserve a quick fix, they deserve a place they can restart they lives.You don’t place a blanket over a manhole so people do not see the manhole. You put concrete and water to fill the manhole so people will see you have identified and corrected the problem.

Hal Hart, resident of the area, and Principal protest organizer, says, “For an organization, posing as a charity, to force the poorest of the poor into tents is to deny human beings their right to the most basic of needs - housing.  Catholic Charities is the worst kind of offender as they have charged the taxpayers of Pinellas County over $2.1 million in tax dollars to put 250 homeless adults into their Pinellas Tent City!  Have they no compassion? Is there no accountability?  Why have they been allowed to rip off the citizens of Pinellas County only to treat human beings worse than I treat my own dog?!?

What is most disturbing about Pinellas Tent City is that only 16% of the residents still have housing 6 months after discharge.  This is a miserable failure according to our local homeless coalition members, as more than 40% of their discharges still have housing after this same time period.

Catholic Charities is a wolf in sheep’s clothing:  they talk like a charity when their hand is out for our tax dollars, but the reality is they don’t care about the homeless and they certainly don’t care about our community.  Their proposal to put 250 tents for 250 homeless adults in our community will not benefit our homeless population and will certainly blight our community.  Of the 113 names of Pinellas Hope residents we were able to obtain, 75 of those residents have amassed more than 775 criminal charges, including murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, robbery and burglary!

The only explanation there could be for replicating this type of operation in Hillsborough County is money.  It’s all about the money.  What else could it be??”
_______

The residents have spoken loud and clear. Now its time for the County Commissioners to feel the pain, the fear, and the apprehension of the community.
May the wisdom of our elective county commissioners prevail and they deny this zoning change. I also hope they don’t use a back door tactic and change the housing codes so non profits are exempt.

We all would like to help the homeless people in our county. We know that anyone of us is only 6 missed paychecks away from being homeless.

This zoning change must be denied.

Send me your comments, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Published: October 11, 2009

(Hey teensagers, just pick the store nearest to you)

It will start very soon or it has already been launched. There is a pilot program where teenagers can premeditatedly decide to go into selected Wal-Mart stores and shoplift without being arrested or going to jail. If the pilot goes well, then maybe all stores in Hillsborough County/ Tampa Florida could be a shop lift jail free zone for teenagers?

To avoid being arrested, the teenagers would need a valid ID, keep the merchandise under $299.99*  with taxes included,  never been charged before at Wal-Mart, and have a guardian on standby for ride home, but not to jail. Be sure and steal a calculator to add up all the merchandise. How many adults will drop off children just to shoplift ? * ( The shop lift dollar amount could be different than $299.99)

Here is my position on the subject of anyone shoplifting. They should be caught, arrested, prosecuted and sentenced.

I am vehemently against this program. It will only encourage much more shop lifting (once the word gets out, ooops) and it will save the world’s largest corporation, Wal-Mart, the cost of prosecution.

I don’t have the complete details on this program because;

1. The Wal-Mart security chief associated with the program has an arrogant attitude and would not even tell me his name or answer any questions. I have since discovered his name and the Wal-Mart store where he works.

2. The official in charge of the program for The Judicial system, in Hillsborough County, told me at a recent meeting on the project, “Alvin, come in, take a seat, be quiet and don’t ask any questions”. I was deprived an opportunity to ask critical and key questions to the principals about the program. I considered the treatment of me that day, as marginalization and humiliation of a private citizen and taxpayer at the hands of government bureaucrat.

At that meeting were ranking officers from the Hillsborough county sheriff department, the unknown Wal-Mart security chief, and four officials from Hillsborough county government.

3. The Hillsborough County officials in the know about this program, refuses to return my phones calls about this program.

4. Out of mere frustration and having a desire to find out the facts of this pilot program, I called the Wal-Mart Corporate office in Benton, Ark.
They were clueless to what I was talking about.

Here is some background on how teens can shoplift at Wal-Mart and not get arrested. A few years ago, the State Legislature in Florida passed a law giving delinquent teens an option of not getting a criminal record for minor crimes and acts of senselessness.

985.12 Civil citation program

(There is established a juvenile civil citation process for the purpose of providing an efficient and innovative alternative to custody by the Department of Juvenile Justice of …
children who commit nonserious delinquent acts
… and to ensure swift and appropriate consequences. The civil citation program may be established at the local level with the concurrence of the chief judge of the circuit, state attorney, public defender, and the head of each local law enforcement agency involved. Under such a juvenile civil citation program, any law enforcement officer, upon making contact with a juvenile who admits having committed a misdemeanor, may issue a civil citation assessing not more than 50 community service hours, and may require participation in intervention services appropriate to identified needs of the juvenile, including family counseling, urinalysis monitoring, and substance abuse and mental health treatment services. A copy of each citation issued under this section shall be provided to the department, and the department shall enter appropriate information into the juvenile offender information system.)

Basically here is how the Civil Citation Program is suppose to work.

There are several minor crimes that are considered for a civil citation. The children plead guilty, without the benefit of an attorney, and get to work off his sentence with various forms of community service. Then after they have completed the work, no criminal record?

Shoplifting should not be on that list of minor crimes.

The Hillsborough Public school system has had a Task Force for several years now for in school violations.

There are about 12,000,000 cases per year in Hillsborough judicial system involving kids. Our county pays the state about $8,500,000 annually for housing our youths with issues. The Sheriff can provide the same services with medical and dental for about $3,800,000 annually.

It would cheaper and more beneficial to send these kids to Disney World for three days than pay the state for just housing?

Now the county wants to roll out this Civil Citation program county wide. Wal-Mart is the first non school environment for this program of citations.

This program was passed under the disguise of keeping minor child hood infractions from causing criminal records. But connect the dots; I believe the driving factor behind this program is its cost savings element. It’s about almost $3,000 to arrest a teenager. Under the Civil citation program, the cost is under $600.

This school board civil citation has and the county wide program would have many problems. Some are;
1. Many consider the citation as an actual arrest,
2. No efforts are being spent on prevention,
3. There are copies of the citation distributed to law enforcement, the courts, and to the State Attorney’s office and to third parties.
4. These copies could end up in a Database and come back in the future to haunt many.
5. The children are pleading guilty without the benefits of criminal attorneys.
6. Each county seems to be doing things their way.
7. Who is in charge? Why is it not the school board?
a.Who sets meeting schedules?
b.Why are there no establish by laws after 3 years?
c.How did certain private enterprises get contracts for work with the Task Force?
d. Were there competitive biddings for those contracts?
e. How would the administrator of the county wide program be selected?

There should be two important considerations in the administration of the civil citation program. First, that there be a lawyer present before the children plead guilty. Secondly, all of the copies should be held by a non law enforcement and non judicial party until after two violations. A church could be such of a place. After the completion of community services, all copies would be destroyed. If there is a third violation, only the church would have the names and determine that the teenager is not eligible. The pre civil citation rules would apply.

In The Hillsborough County, the African American leadership under Pastor Favorite is beginning to examine closely the civil citation program. The largest group of pastors in Hillsborough County, The Pastors on Patrol says that African Americans are disproportionately over prosecuted in the criminal justice system. Mark Ober, the State Attorney and prosecutor is carefully investigating the allegations.

Hello JUST – US system.
____
Contact me> almccray @aol.com

Published: October 10, 2009

I don’t want the President of the United States to be directed, cajoled or “schooled” by any foreign entity on what is right for the American people.

The Presidential Oath of Office clearly reads, “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

The President is the leader of the United States, not the World. America can lead the world by promoting freedom, human rights, racial and gender equality, education, financial and environmental stewardship – but the world should not lead the United States.

Nobel – through its Peace Prize – now appears to be just another powerful special interest group trying to steer the American President into a global agenda. According the Lech Walesa, former President of Poland and Nobel laureate, “Sometimes the Nobel committee awards the prize to encourage responsible action, but for now, Obama is just making proposals.” Hisham Qasim, an Egyptian human rights activist, says that he is “shocked (at the award) because Obama has not achieved any of his promises.”

Other Prize winners in Literature, Chemistry, Physics, Physiology and Medicine won for major advances in their fields. Women were among winners in Literature, Chemistry, Physiology and Medicine – which could not have happened under Taliban-like regimes where females are not worthy of formal education. Most winners are citizens of, or received their formal education in Western democracies, which makes a clear case that excellence in worthy endeavors spring from free societies.

Yes, we should listen to and work with our global neighbors. However, we should not seek the approval of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Hugo Chavez, Kim Jong-il or the Taliban. We should not delegate the well being of the United States to ineffective organizations like the United Nations; but instead, stay true to an American way of life that has lifted the lives of many nationalities for generations and continues to offers hope and opportunity to the oppressed of the world. No we’re not perfect or superior as a people, but America need not apologize continually as some would have us do. 

My biggest fear is that the “World” and second-term considerations are having too much influence over the decisions of our current Administration. Obama criticized Bush for not concentrating on Afghanistan and finishing the job after 911, which rang true for many Americans. Now, it’s time for the President to act wisely on that criticism and do what is in the best interest of America in the long term, without regard for what the Nobel organization expects him to do in return for their precious Prize. After all, they can’t take it back as far as I know…

Published: October 09, 2009

The Hillsborough / Tampa Florida county commissioners are soon going to decide on a zoning issue. If the backers of the zoning change prevail, they would have converted abandon property, with low value and that will flood, into an estimated $3,000,000 annual cash cow. In the process, I feel that they would have misled the commissioners.

Is this an animal shelter or a future pup tent city for Hillsborough’s homeless people?

This to me this is simply a project to make $ millions off of the sufferings of the Homeless in our county. It’s nothing more than exploration of the homeless.
And in the process the zoning change will;

Lead to decrease home values of up to 25-45%,

Introduce undesirable criminal elements and activity into established family neighborhoods,

Discourage new investments in the area.

With the new zoning change, the land owner will be;  $ Mooooo, $ mooooo, $ moooo, mooooo, $ moooo-ing all their way to the bank.

I have studied this proposal in detail; I must say I am very impressed by the way the land owners are pulling this off. I am so impressed that I am going to spread word so others would have the same knowledge so you too can make millions $ off your land.

So here it is, step by step, of how you convert abandon property into millions of dollars annually;

Review your holdings in real estate in the county.
Pick the parcel that’s abandon, hard to resell, or that floods, or that’s the least desirable.

Decide on a noble cause with a wide humanitarian appeal value.

Here are two suggested causes;

Become a phony/ fake farmer, acquire a herd of rent-A-cows and apply for County Greenbelt protection. Some real estate developers often get Greenbelt protection to save from paying huge property taxes until they sell the property for millions of dollars. They simply rent cows. (Greenbelt offer a huge reduction in property taxes for legitimate faming activities)

That would not work because The Hillsborough County Property Appraiser, Mr. Rob Turner, will bust you in a heartbeat. He has a top secret and very aggressive “Greenbelt Patrol”. The Greenbelt patrol chief is Mr. Paul DeGuenther, Director of Agriculture. This patrol carefully reviews all applications for Greenbelt protection. They make regular onsite inspections and make continous audits of Greenbelt properties and suspected phony Greenbelt properties. They are extremely critical of Greenbelt applications requests. If they suspect that a phony farmer is applying for Greenbelt protection, they will be all over it in no time. The Greenbelt patrol will get you.

$ Mooooo, $ mooooo, $ moooo, mooooo, $ moooo

Start a shelter to feed and house the homeless. Acquire a herd of homeless people.  Now this is a very noble cause. We all can relate to that because the estimates vary on the amount of homeless individuals in Hillsborough County.  Some figures run up to 15,000. Others say it’s less than 8,000.

Whatever the number is, these homeless individual need housing and food.

Pick number B.

Create a religious charity or affiliate your organization with a religious charity.

That way you can always say, ” God spoke to you and told you to start this project to feed and shelter the Homeless”.

People never questions those on a mission from God, especially not politicians and other devoted religious people.

Lobby gently and heavenly before the Hillsborough County commissioners.

When you speak in from of the Hillsborough Commissioners at a public hearing, follow this script carefully,

Be sure to bring Father Joshua wearing his robe and Sister Terisita in her Nun outfit when you appear before the Commissioners.

People of The Cloth make heavenly impressions. And when you all speak,  mention The Lord’s name many times, Jesus Christ many times and Biblical verses often.

Keep a bible visible in one of your presenter’s hands.
Have someone from your group saying the Lord’s prayers on the front row with their hands in a prayer position and looking up.

Use as, “for example”, a similar set up in another county.

But don’t tell the commissioners the following about that other place;

1. They have a failure rate of 84%. People still homeless after 90 days of living there.
2. Let the commission think that any pup tents would temporary.
( In reality you know that your organization won’t be building any structures. You will always need an easy
exit when the $ mooola stops coming in. You could just roll up your pup tents)
3. There have been scores police incidents and collectedly some of the residents have hundreds of arrests. These arrests include drug use, rape, thefts and murder.
4. The place resembles and animal shelter,
5. That most if not all of the services, tents, and food is donated free,
6. That the facility is not open for on demand inspections,
7. That the facility is miles away from homeless services and treatment facilities,
8. That the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County and its 65 member homeless organization will never approve of such a pup tent city project,

And for God Sake, do not and I repeat, do not mention any word about the $2.4 millions or so dollars raked in during the first year of operations.
NEVER NEVER mention that our books will never be open for an audit of how much profit we will be making because the land is paid for and
most of the services and supplies will be donated.

$ Mooooo, $ mooooo, $ moooo, mooooo, $ moooo

If you should fail on round 1 and not get an approval, use an around about trick of having
the whole county housing code change to allow that all non-profits to be exempt from county’s housing code.

Now that I think about it, it is actually cheaper to put a herd of homeless adults on the property than it is to put cows there. With cows, you have to feed them, make sure they are in good health (vaccinations), and provide adequate fencing so they do not wander around the community.  With homeless people in tents, all you have to do is get someone to donate a tent!  The latest recommended conditions don’t even require fencing, doesn’t require that the homeless be fed, and doesn’t require them to provide health care for them.  Any profit realized by selling a cow on the market is offset by the cost of taking care of them.  It is definitely more profitable to put herds of homeless on the property.  You don’t have to wait for a return - you just sit back and collect millions in tax dollars in governments, the public and other charities.

Now you have the free scoop on how to make millions of dollars on abandon parcels of land.

$$$$ mooooo, moooo, mooooo, moooo $ , mooooo, moooo, mooooo, $ moooo , mooooo, moooo, mooooo,  $ moooo

Make comments below or write to me, almccray @aol.com

Published: October 06, 2009

Domestic Violence victims frequently don’t show up at court hearings or they plead and beg that their attackers not be prosecuted.
Often this leads to the victims being murdered.

What makes women seek to have charges against men who beat them and abuse them dropped or dismissed?

SaQuanda Tamika Simon (center)  was killed on September 9, 2009            

Cedrick Salter killed SaQuanda in front of her kids

She wrote on the form,

“We do not have any past violent situations, he is a good father and provider, Cedrick is not perfect, he made a mistake and is very remorseful. He truly does have a good heart and deserves a second chance”.

How tragic. This is a copy of the form that Ms. Simon filled out to have the pending charges dropped against Cedrick Salter.

So how must the prosecutors handle future requests to drop pending cases of Domestic Violence?

almccray @aol.com
813 244 0664

Comment below.

Published: October 05, 2009

Today in Tampa Florida, Cedrick Salter pleaded not guilty to gunning down and killing his girlfriend and mother of his children. SaQuanda Tamika Simon was shot multiple times as she protected her children from the hail of bullets.

Ironically enough, Ms. Simon pleaded and begged for the authorities not to prosecute Mr. Salter. At the time of her murder, the case, number 2009-CF-3925, was still an active on going case. Cedrick Salter was still being investigated by Mr. Mark Ober and The State’s Attorney office in Hillsborough County.

On March 23 of this year, SaQuanda completed a form called ” Victim’s Request That State Not Prosecute “. She wrote in her own handwriting,

“We do not have any past violent situations, he is a good father and provider, Cedrick is not perfect, he made a mistake and is very remorseful. He truly does have a good heart and deserves a second chance”.

The second chance that she requested, lead to her horrific killing in front of her kids.

This month has been declared ‘Domestic Violence Month’. In Florida this year alone there have been almost 100 incidents of ‘Domestic Violence‘ where there have been deaths. In Tampa there have been just under 17. In the country there have been a reporting of 739 cases and so far in October there are 18 cases. Last month there were 161 cases. Today is October 5th.

I first started my trek through Domestic ViolenceLand about 19 months ago. In that time period I have discovered many things. Most have been very disturbing and troubling.

Here is what I have discovered:

1. An abuser would get into more trouble for beating his dog than beating his wife or girlfriend or child.

2. There isn’t any central registry of Domestic Violence abusers.

4. There is no coordination between Domestic Violence groups. Most groups are very territorial and they heavily protect and guard their limited resources. They actually compete among them selves for grants, funding, staff, and facilities.

5. There is no organized sharing of information between Domestic Violence groups, law enforcement, and the community organizations.

6. There is no one entity, whether it be law enforcement, the courts, victim groups or the prosecutors has ready real time stats on the most basic numbers about Domestic Violence case pending, in progress, or adjudicated. The same lack of stats also applies to the victims and the abusers.

7. No one seems to have the answer to the whys?

8. And very sadly, there is a lack of a Synergy of Consciousness to do something about Domestic Violence.

I shall explore and investigate the many issues and sides of ‘Domestic Violence‘. I shall get answers, raise questions, and get an education and opinions from, social workers, experts in Domestic Violence, victims, support groups, the courts, law enforcement officials and from the general public.

So what is the cause or blame for the rampant carnage, disruption of families, and destruction of civility cause by ‘Domestic Violence‘? Is the question just this simple as, “Why do women continue to stay with men who abuse and beat them and often kill them”? This was certainly my simplistic question and maybe the only question I thought was applicable to this issue. If Johnny, Leroy, or Pablo beats you, just leave. I have found out that, it’s just not that simple by a long shot. Often leaving creates additional levels of fear and traumas.

Who is there to blame for these continuing deaths cause by ‘Domestic Violence‘?

Can we blame the State Attorney’s office who refuses to prosecute these monsters at the crying insistence of the victims? Is it the women who just won’t leave bad situations soon enough? Is it the lack of community resources to shelter the victims? Is it the lack of education? Is this a low priority with the police department, the prosecutors and the courts? Do kids make it difficult to leave? Is it a taboo to seek help or to discuss the subject of abuse? Is there not enough high profile attention to this problem from all quarters? Is Domestic Violence a trait of heredity?

Are restraining orders mere jokes or useless pieces of paper with a judge’s signature?

In researching this article, it has been an eye opening experience for me. ‘Domestic Violence‘ is extremely complex, has many critical elements and its many dimensions are complicated to understand.

The first thing we must do is to clearly understand the meaning and definition of the term ‘Domestic Violence’. The answer will surprise you.

In the articles forth coming, I shall add to / make comment and follow the outline and thoughts on the subject of:

The Domestic Intervention Project, 
202 East Superior Street, Duluth, Minn, 55802,
212-722-2781

* (seek link at the end)

Their circle of Power and Control,
‘Domestic Violence’ include the following;

1. Using intimidation,        2. Using emotional abuse,
3. Using isolation,          4. Minimizing, denying and blaming,
5. Using children,          6. Using male privilege,
7. Using economic abuse,  8. Using coercion and threats

I will also discuss ‘Domestic Violence‘ cases with tragic conclusions, local help organizations, and seeking public comments and public experiences with acts of ‘Domestic Violence‘.

I wish that our County Commissioners in Hillsborough County would pass a proclamation recognizing that this is a big problem. It would be nice if one of them took the lead and make this a special project, like A TASK FORCE TO STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. That would attract the high profile that Domestic Violence needs. With a Commissioner comes attention media,  other governmental agencies involvement like Sheriff David Gee and Mark Ober ( the State’s Attorney) and others,  meetings, resources, public awareness and synergy to solve the problem.

And yes, men too are are victims of Domestic Violence. But unfortunately, this subject appears by societal eyes, to be a female issue.

If you care to contribute, please contact me.
almccray @aol.com
813 244 0664

*The Duluth Project, info on Domestic Violence

Published: September 29, 2009

This month’s murder of pro-life sign carrier Jim Pouillon in Owosso, Michigan has still gone largely unnoticed by what we call “mainstream” media…big stations like NBC, CBS, ABC. All have been silent, in stark contrast to their immediate and nearly never-ending coverage of abortion provider George Tiller’s murder some months ago. I wonder how Bay News 9 and TBO.com would handle this story if the murder happened here.

Dr. Tiller’s murder was tragic, heinous and a sad day for the Christian community as we will all, once again, be unjustly placed in the same general stereotype as his hateful killer. However, Jim Pouillon’s death is no less important.

Pouillon, a disabled activist, was involved in a peaceful pro-life protest across the street from Owosso High School when he was shot several times and killed this past 9/11. The suspect now in custody is Harlan Drake, whose license plate number was cited by several witnesses to the crime.

With respect to CNN’s coverage as pretty much the only visible “mainstream” journalism on this case, even CNN kept calling Pouillon anti-abortion rather than pro-life. In nearly every sentence where victim Pouillon’s name is mentioned, the words anti-abortion follow or preceed. Here’s a question to “pro-choicers” – if choice is a good thing, then why not say Pouillon chose to be “pro-life”? Why must the term anti-abortion always be used to make pro-lifers appear more hateful and intolerant?

The media originally avoided the pro-life murder as being some “random” incident. To the liberal media, any shooting of a person who’s on the “correct” side of today’s politically correct causes is cruel, pre-meditated murder; but killing a conservative must be a random shooting. Drake has apparently admitted to another murder that day, the murder of business owner Michael Fuoss. So to liberal forces, Drake was on a random shooting rampage.

Not according to the CNN report. Authorities feel the shootings were not random. Drake admitted being offended by Pouillon’s anti-abortion sign, and Drake was no stranger to Fuoss. Could this be another reason why the Big Three haven’t picked up the story?

That the politically correct crowd are always the “tolerant” ones is debatable. On several articles, for instance this one at Andover, MA’s Eagle Tribune, several bloggers have said things like “Thank you Harlan Drake [the accused] – the world is a better place,” and “He [Pouillon] deserved it.” This coming from the ones who call themselves tolerant.

President Obama’s statement had been immediate on the day of Tiller’s murder. He waited until two days after Pouillon’s murder to speak up. However, he did state that violence over our differences is never the answer. This writer agrees.

The original version of this article was published here at The Underground Online Magazine.

Published: September 28, 2009

If you want to ruin a perfectly good weekend just say the word BUDGET on Friday evening just as your significant other trudges through the door after a grueling week at work. The death stare is the least you’ll get, but you’re more likely in for a high pressure emotional storm resulting in a two-day cold shoulder.

Just about everyone we know is being more careful with their money these days. People are selling cars, using coupons, eating out less, cutting back on the “extra” things in life and yes… making out budgets.

My wife and I recently enrolled in a thirteen week financial management class that starts out by having participants create a formal written budget. We have an informal budget and pay our bills on time, save for retirement and help our kids pay for college, but we knew in the back of our minds that we could do better.

The biggest problem with a formal budget is that two people have to agree on where every penny is spent after essentials like food, shelter and transportation are covered. Sounds simple enough, but this is where you discover that each of you have vastly different financial priorities.

My wife loves to fill our garage with strange things that she finds at garage and estate sales while I prefer to fill it with tools from the local home improvement store. A formal budget forces concessions on both sides, and that’s why the class recommends doing the initial budget in a public place to avoid heated exchanges and possible bloodshed.

We stayed home and managed to peacefully negotiate our way to a budget that balanced our individual wishes with our finite income. Smooth sailing ahead, or so we thought.

During the first week of our new financial life we woke up and our ten year old dachshund was not moving. Closer inspection revealed that she was alive but extremely lethargic. She went out back and wandered around more slowly than normal, but the next day she started to stagger like she’d been binging on Nyquil all evening. Tears flowed as we thought she wasn’t going to make it another day.

As loving pet owners we took her to the vet where she needed an exam – cha ching, x-rays – cha ching, admission to the doggie hospital – cha ching, IV drug therapy – cha ching, a follow up visit and meds – cha ching! In total, she broke the budget to the tune of $350 and was back to terrorizing lizards in our yard without a hint of any lingering problems.

My wife, who appears to love this dog more than me at times, was initially willing to spend whatever was needed to get little Pebbles well. At the vet – post formal budget - she turned into an accountant. Before the budget, cost wouldn’t have mattered, but now that this medical treatment was competing with her garage sale and Starbucks coffee indulgences, life became more complicated. Though I can’t verify it I wondered if she was thinking that Pebbles had lived a long and happy life and maybe we should let nature take its course.

The economizing continued later at the home improvement store where I was grilled about the type of mask I chose to filter out fumes from paint stripper and floor finishing chemicals.  I had purchased the expensive one that prevents organic solvents from causing brain damage, but my wife wanted to know if the $1.99 mask would have been just as effective considering how I act at times?

Putting these minor things aside, we are making real progress on our budget.  Round two of the negotiations are coming up this week as we develop our pre-holiday budget. I think I’ll secretly save some Starbucks cups and refill them with cheap grocery store brew and see if there is any change in my lioness’s behavior. Hopefully for me, there won’t be.

Published: September 27, 2009

We are coming up on the one-year anniversary of the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). According to some experts, it’s done its job; stabilized the economy, kept big banks from going under, has even turned a profit for the American taxpayer. 

But after the latest progress report from TARP officials, Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard Law professor and economist appointed to chair the congressional oversight committee, was highly critical of TARP activity so far.  She was especially disappointed in TARP’s failure to make progress on one of its main goals – buying toxic assets held by the banks.  Until there is a plan in place for disposing of these liabilities, she said ,

Toxic assets – it’s a term we’ve heard a lot about, although recently not so much.  What are they, and what’s the big deal about them? 

A few months ago, I read an article in Wired Magazine that explained them better than anything I’ve read to date, and now that I understand what’s going on a little better, I am scared – really scared. Let me attempt to explain.

One type of toxic asset is called Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO). CDOs are groups of bonds, loans, and mortgages, both good ones and bad ones, all mixed together. They were invented around 1995 as a way for financial institutions to move debts off their balance sheets by selling them as collateral. From the beginning, however, there was a problem – how to figure out exactly what the CDOs were actually worth.

But then came mathematician David X. Li, who pioneered a formula, the Gaussian Copula Function, that provides a way to assess the relationship between the various types of loans in the CDOs, thus making it possible to assign a value. Since these securities were fairly new inventions, Li couldn’t rely on the traditional historic data to arrive at a valuation, so he used market data about the prices of companion securities known as Credit Default Swaps (CDSs)

CDSs are like insurance on CDOs.  Investors pay a premium to ensure the CDO retains its value.  If the CDO defaults, the insurer is liable for the entire cost of the CDO (the insured value).  As we all know, insurance is based on the small likelihood of something negative happening versus the larger likelihood things will continue to go well.  The financial world thought CDSs were a safe bet because a very large part of the debt that made up the CDOs was home mortgages, and houses had been steadily appreciating in value for years.

Ratings agencies like Moody’s relied on Li’s formula to rank the CDOs.  Li’s theory stated that the correlation of the components of any CDO was more important than the health or value of the individual debt instruments.  This assumption made it possible for a CDO to receive a higher rating than any of its individual components carried, and created a false sense of safety for those who invested in them.

Per the Wired article:

So how do we fix this mess?  We could cancel all the CDSs and let the firms holding them just go under, except for one thing – the CDSs provide the only mechanism for determining the value of the CDOs.  So we need them to stay.  The only way to find a way out of this craziness is for some other genius to come up with a method for valuing CDOs that doesn’t rely on CDSs. 

Is your head spinning yet?  I know mine is.  I’m also good and mad.  I’m mad at all the financial types who bought into an unproven “theory” from a math wunderkind and based our country’s financial future on it.  I’m angry at the greed that provoked the unrestricted and unregulated trading of financial instruments that were nothing more than a giant house of cards.  And I’m really P.O.’d that, Wall Street, the Banking industry, and the SEC are more occupied with handing out big bonuses and pointing fingers at each other than trying to undo the damage they’ve caused.

President Obama put them on notice in his recent speech, warning that much stricter regulation is coming.  But this is closing the barn door after the horse is not only gone, but has won the Kentucky Derby, retired, and begun pulling in exorbitant stud fees.  I sincerely hope that someone finds a way to solve the financial chaos caused by CDOs and CDS’ - but I’m not optimistic. 

Published: September 24, 2009

On October 13, 2009, The Commissioners for Hillsborough County, Florida will decide whether or not to change the zoning on land near The Seminole Casino. Catholic Charities is proposing to build a tent encampment for homeless people.

It is my contention that the Hillsborough County Commissioners have been consistently mislead about this project. They should either delay the vote and do the research, or deny this request for Catholic Charities.

This Pup Tent city will house up to 250 men for a maximum stay of 90 days without essential services.

Even if the commissioners change the zoning back to a church and re-write the law “whereas” non profits and charities are exempt from housing codes, it will still be wrong. It will just be a back door maneuver to do the same thing after the fact.

This was first not approved by James Scarola, Hillsborough County land use master. He reversed himself, and now it appears that there are those on the commission going through extraordinary measures to get this project done. Why?

I have thoroughly reviewed all aspects of this proposal. It does not look pretty. I find it to be just be a cash $ cow for the Catholic Charities to enrich its coffers by taking advantage of homeless people and their situation. It is my conclusion, that this project does absolutely nothing to end the homeless problem in Hillsborough County.

I feel this because;

1. It’s a disguise and slick way to convert land that they own that they had practically abandoned into instant moo-la $$. This parcel has little or no commercial development value and it floods.  The property in the Pinellas project is of similar little or no commercial value.

This similar Cash Cow, in the Pinellas project, Pinellas Hope, raked in $2,415,277 from 10/08-09/09.

They are spending $201,274 per month.

The Catholic Charities own considerable real estate in both counties. This parcel is the least desirable of all their real estate holdings in Hillsborough County.

How much will the Catholic Charity rake in from Hillsborough County?

2. It destroys home values. It’s a disaster for home values in the immediate neighborhoods. Real estate could decline by another 25%.
  It could also discourage retail shopping for the immediate area. Its down from the Seminole Casino, Net Park, Steak N Shake and Sun Coast Credit Union.

3. It no way solves the homeless issue because going by their own model ‘ Pinellas Hope’, in Clearwater, they have a failure rate 84%. That is of all the people entering the Pup Tent city there and going through their so so services, 84% were again homeless after 6 months.

4. According to The National Alliance to End Homelessness,

a. “It seems that anyway you slice it, tent cities are a lose-lose for everyone”.
b. “Study after study, program after programs have proven that housing is the right answer. In fact , several studies have shown that providing permanent supportive housing to the chronic homeless- the most likely to stay homeless after the recession- not only get these people safely off the streets, but turns out to be more cost-effective for tax payers.”

5. Expose the family orientated neighborhoods to the   criminal elements. At the Pinellas project, there are numerous police reports. These reports even include people being arrested for possession of 7,000 images child pornography, rape and murder.
 
Within a 3 miles radius of that proposed site there are 8 schools with over young 3,000 children, 13 neighborhoods, and students attending Tampa Bay Area Tech.

6. The proposed site is almost 11 miles from downtown, where 94% of homeless services and programs are located, where temporary day labor companies come to get workers, and there is limited transit service at the site.

7. The Homeless coalitions (with 65 member organizations) oppose this plan.

8. There will be no long term treatment for the homeless.

9. The Pup tents will subject to rain, flood and high winds.

10. Pup tent city would doom the economic developmental potential and new commerce on East Hillsborough Avenue from 56th Street Eastward to Faulkenburg Road.

11. And sadly enough, the Pup Tent City evironment gives Catholic Charties an easy exit and way out from the project for what ever reason. Especially when the Moo-la $ stops. They will just simply pack up their tents and move on, just like a circus. There is nothing to permenantly tie them to long term community development.

We must all ask ourselves these questions;
Can an apartment building with 250 units be bought and operated for $200,000 per month? Why is not the Catholic Clarities seeking out foreclosed properties to buy at discounts for the homeless to live in? Should the taxpayers in Hillsborough County support a project that has an 84% failure rate in Pinellas County?

I am not in any way denying that the Catholic Charities don’t have noble intents in helping the homeless somewhere else. But this particular project does not appear to help homeless. It helps Catholic Charities and its pocket.

I think pup tents should be use for things like emergency housing after natural disasters, housing for firefighters, camping trips, and overflows and temporary stays at border areas.

The Pinellas facility looks like an animal shelter. It robs people of the basic destinies, self esteem, and essential long term services to end their homelessness.

I ask that the Commissions at least postpone this decision until all the independent facts are known.

Post your comments below.

Published: September 23, 2009

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not very good at this whole “college student” thing.

I moved into my dorm here in Evanston, IL a whole eight days ago (I know, I know, we start late. Blame Northwestern’s quarter system). One week ago, my parents flew back to Tampa without me, leaving me here to fend for myself. An adult. A grown-up. A self-sufficient citizen (though one still living off her parents…so I suppose that doesn’t count). And at first thought, it doesn’t get any better than that.

Little did I know, living on your own is harder than it looks, especially in a town - nay, state - where nobody knows who you are. So while I’m enjoying the opportunities to start over, meet incredible people, embrace the tabula rasa that is my life, and all that other stuff you see in the movies, I’m also not ashamed to say it’s been a rough week.

My roommate and I are getting along famously, but she’s far more loquacious than I; when we meet people in a group setting, they tend to think I’m mute in comparison. As a mere freshman, I got the last pick in choosing my schedule, and was forced to watch the spots in my desired classes dwindle away while waiting for my assigned registration time. And this week, I put my heart and soul into six auditions for various choir groups, held on to my sole callback with all my might, and cried myself to sleep when I didn’t make the cut.

But c’est la vie, right? These experiences are necessary. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, especially in college.

However, I’ll also admit that what intimidated me most about college in my pre-move-in days was not the classes, or the auditions, or making friends. Nope; I feared the trivial, day-to-day things, like waking myself up every morning, remembering to eat right, and particularly, doing laundry. And today, I tried it for the first time.

Eight days and nights of clothing had piled up in the conveniently collapsible IKEA hamper stashed under my bed, so today, it was finally time to do the deed. I scanned my dorm’s laundry room ahead of time, seeking some kind of machine that would accept a credit card; I only had enough quarters to work a washer or a dryer, but not both.

I was thrilled to find the machine I was looking for in the corner of the little room, and dragged my ten-pound hamper down the stairs to start the dreaded task. I slid my debit card into the machine and pushed the appropriate buttons. Nothing.

The machine was completely out of service and had taken my card hostage. Expletives arose in copious quantities.

After raking my card out of the slot with a key, the grace of a ninja guiding my frustrated hand, I reluctantly fed the washer my quarters, dumped in my clothes and began a 36-minute panic. I’d found one quarter in my purse and needed three more, or I’d have to dry my clothes out the window.

Since I don’t know my dormmates well enough to beg for spare change, I settled for drastic measures and took off for the CVS down the street. I strategically bought a 99 cent eyeliner, which cost me $1.09 with tax, so that I’d receive three quarters in change when I paid with two dollar bills. I didn’t need the eyeliner. I needed those quarters. Smart move? Probably not. But you gotta do what you gotta do.

A half hour later, I transferred my wet clothing first to one dryer, which was clogged with the nickels its previous user had tried to sneakily slip into the coin slot, and then another, which worked beautifully. An hour later, I had a hamper of clean clothing. Mission accomplished.

The moral of the story is that I’m not adjusted to college life by any means. I’m still working on finding my group, I fear the freshman fifteen are knocking on my door, and to be perfectly honest, I’m writing this column instead of reading about comparative politics.

But at least my clothes are clean.