Friday Follies...

Finally, we made it to the end of another week. Must be all this cold weather that makes the week seem to drag on forever.
But that's going to change for a few days.
The Hoosierland weather today will find us with a high of around FORTY DEGREES.
Now THAT will cause some melting...at long last.
(and be sure to bring out the "boomcar boyz")
So, let's top off that warm morning cup of coffee, tea, or cocoa, and see what's been going on.
*** First out of the icicle factory today is this story that follows on the heels of the part of my post yesterday that referred to communication...and how we're losing to ability to do so effectively.
Here's the story link:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20140307/LOCAL/303079969
And an article by Kevin Leininger of the News-Sentinel:
http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140307/NEWS/140309753/1012/LOCAL

Be better if PRISONERS were doing this.

Okay, so here we have some City Council members who have "volunteered" to attempt to fix the problem with people (and some businesses) that have not cleared the snow from their sidewalks.
Now, at THIS point in time, it pretty much is a case of trying to fix the gate after the horses have all gotten away, but that's what we come to expect from downtown these days.

Get off the damn phone and get your asses on the sidewalks

The 5 members debated the issue yesterday regarding the city snow removal ordinance that has NEVER BEEN ENFORCED in the FORTY YEARS it's been on the books. Well, it MUST have been out there (originally) for a good REASON, don'cha think?

Just frigging RETIRE already!

Council president (and FWPD captain) Marty Bender is open to suggestions on HOW to address this.
They agreed there's not much they CAN do to clear the streets (how about clearing off the sidewalks on the BRIDGES in the city that YOU people own and maintain?), but there is something that can be done better when it comes to sidewalks of residences and businesses...they just figure out what the HELL that is, can they? They don't want to levy FINES (that is part of the ordinance, so we're seem to be looking at a REFUSAL to ENFORCE a law...
((...ahem...))
Well now, this sure wouldn't be the FIRST time that's happened.
We can always cite the NOISE ordinance, the LITTERING ordinance, the JAYWALKING ordinance among a few, but you get my drift.
And while the FWPD will tell you they DO cite a couple HUNDRED of drivers for loud car stereos, they never mention the THOUSANDS that roll by OUR "Fortress" yearly, and how they NEVER get caught.

Welcome to City Hall!

There is certainly a duplicity at work at City Hall, and I'm getting damn tired of hearing the same old from everyone there.
My Father once said (when I was growing up) that "Can't means won't", and he was right most all the time.
I would defer to HIS wisdom in this matter. City Hall WON'T enforce the snow removal ordinance.
Bender goes on to say they haven't the manpower OR the money...well, that's certainly a load of bullsh*t and we ALL know that.
The manpower you DO have, and the money...well, if you all weren't busy blowing the wad DOWNTOWN for nonsense sh*t, you'd have a lot MORE of that money to work with, but you council people can't seem to see beyond your OWN backyards (in those nice neighborhoods), can you?
Bender also say they haven't the TIME to enforce the law...((...yawn...)).
Well, you WOULD if you knew how to PRIORITIZE things better, but I suppose that the safety of citizens and schoolkids doesn't amount to that much in YOUR opinion, whatever you might choose to tell us to the contrary.
Funny, the city DOES enforce the WEED ordinance, but high weeds doesn't place ANYONE in harm's way along our roads and streets, does it?
(again, common sense and logic wins out)
"Smiling" Tom Smith adds they don't want a "snow police"...well, you already have the SEATBELT police, and the WEED police.
And not ONE WORD from our "director of public SAFETY", Mr Russell York...thought this might come under HIS jurisdiction?
(what the hell ARE they paying him for again? I keep forgetting.)

You want people like HER to have to walk in the street?

This crapfest will get tabled until next winter, with little if any real concern...because the weather will be getting warmer soon enough...and these idiots won't have to hear from the taxpaying masses for about 8 months.
Helluva way to handle things, people, especially when FINING people will work, as well and emptying the JAIL and putting the orange jump suit brigade to some honest work clearing sidewalks...oh, that's just a thought on a lot of peoples' parts.
Feel free to LISTEN to us and act accordingly, and that doesn't mean practicing your IGNORANCE.
Moving on...
*** What was stolen was found...and finally returned.
A Thompson sub-machine gun that was "borrowed" from the Auburn, Indiana PD back in 1933 by the notorious John Dillinger was finally found it way back to the department.

Here's the story:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20140307/LOCAL/303079976
The value of the weapon is believed to be between $50K and $1MIL...
Currently, it does not fire, but could be restored easy enough.
The weapon wound up in Tucson, AZ where the Dillinger gang was on the run from police.
While members of his gang were taken into custody, Dillinger escaped...but the Thompson remained behind.

In 1966, the Tucson police presented the weapon to J. Edgar Hoover, head of the F.B.I., who displayed the weapon at their headquarters.
It remained there until 2010 when the purchase number from Auburn matched the number of the weapon held by the F.B.I., and after fours year (of paperwork), the weapon was brought back to it's "home".
*** Next up, Allen County prosecutors finally FORMALLY charged two thugs with threats to a witness set to testify against a third thug (see my post from this past Wednesday (5 March 2014) for the back story.
Suffice it to say that these two perps are STILL at-large.
*** The city (Ft. Wayne) plans to use $20 MIL to fix the roads and streets...
Here's the story link:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20140307/LOCAL/303079965

I found issues with loading the map at the WANE site to see WHERE these repairs would take place.
King Henry says "This will make us the envy of other cities".
REALLY?
Is that the best you can do...play "keeping up with the Joneses"?
Screw what other cities think...THEY don't live here, do they?

Why not concern yourself with the safety of the CITIZENS HERE, and maintain your infrastructure in the manner the taxpaying public expects from their money?
*** Lastly today, again, we see the value of PROPER communication, as in telling people the truth, however painful it might be, rather than dress a bunch of lies up to pose AS the truth.
In Steuben County, they have their OWN communication issues, with their dispatch and new radios that don;t work all that well.
I'd wager the FWPD may have similar issues, but since we're now "in the dark", we can't hear about things like computers that won't work, or  air-card problems, or Spillman issues...we're supposed to think all is well here.

A quote from the movie Cool Hand Luke.

Communication is the most important thing next to breathing and eating in life.
It's how we get THROUGH life, in fact.
And the better you can communicate, the better you can be understood.
President Reagan was an excellent communicator...Obama...just a schoolyard bully in comparison.
MLK was a great communicator...Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson...just two hacks fleecing their own pockets on the backs of others.
Hell, Hitler was even a good communicator...he managed to BS an entire NATION to follow him...into DEFEAT, I might add.
Charisma has something to do with that, unfortunately.
We go for the "nice" person...the "cool" guy or gal, and follow those who tell us exactly what we WANT to hear (which is often far from the truth).
Communication is both easy and difficult, to say the least.
And all of us need to remember that, and hold onto the way such things can be used, rather than misused.
We all be as eloquent as Dr. King, or as forceful as Patton, or even as noteworthy as Franklin...but we can always TRY.
And that's the best first step any of us can take.
DO have yourselves a good weekend.

Be well, make a difference to someone today, and as always...
Stay SAFE out there, America.

((Also - don't forget to set your clocks AHEAD one hour  - by 0200 hrs Sunday morning))