Tuesday Tidbits...

Please don't let whatever fair weather we might enjoy today lull you into a false sense of Springtime.
It WILL be getting worse...believe it as sure as the sun will rise in the East.
But that's less than 48 hours away.
Our Hoosierland weather for today will see us with mostly sunny skies, mild breezes and a high around the low to mid 40s. But the clouds will be rolling in later on. Then, the "fun" starts - between 3-7 inches of it.
In other words, keep the snow shovels handy. We might just need them.
So, let's get that morning beverage poured as we see what's going on elsewhere...
*** First out of the toy box is our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
February 23 -
---Today is NATIONAL DOG BISCUIT DAY

(I might have to pass on this one...back over to you, Chris & Scrappy!)
---It's also NATIONAL BANANA BREAD DAY

(now THAT'S more like it)
---And, it's WORLD SPAY DAY

(We can spay ANIMALS, but NOT humans...how inhumane)
*** Next up, time to bring you ALL the police calls that pertain to shots being fired and armed robberies in Fort Wayne, because the media will never tell you about them:

SHOTS FIRED / ARMED ROBBERY CALLS - 2/15- 2/21
===============================================
FEB 15-
16F019789 21:15:10 113 SHOTS FIRED 700 GUILDFORD AVE
16F019816 22:22:23 113 SHOTS FIRED 2900 WESTBROOK DR
16F019818 22:23:29 113 SHOTS FIRED 3100 WELLS ST
((NO armed robberies))
FEB 16 -
16F019867 01:36:24 58 SHOOTING 7300 LAKERIDGE DR
((NO armed robberies))
FEB 17 - 
16F020646 18:13:48 113 SHOTS FIRED 1900 ST JOE CENTER RD
16F020674 19:15:22 113 SHOTS FIRED 2500 GREENWAY RD
16F020766 22:44:37 113 SHOTS FIRED 1200 HUESTIS AVE
16F020771 22:54:18 113 SHOTS FIRED 400 FIFTH ST
((NO armed robberies))
FEB 18 -
16F020811 02:00:03 113 SHOTS FIRED 1700 WAYNE ST E
16F021259 23:37:41 113 SHOTS FIRED 300 COLISEUM BLVD E & COLDWATER RD
16F021255 23:17:32 58 SHOOTING 3200 PORTAGE BLVD
((NO armed robberies))
FEB 19-
16F021393 10:16:03 113 SHOTS FIRED 2700 JOHN ST
16F021599 17:15:13 113 SHOTS FIRED 2200 PETTIT AVE E & WERLING DR
16F021647 18:31:37 113 SHOTS FIRED 1000 FRANKLIN AVE
16F021696 20:06:42 113 SHOTS FIRED 1200 POLK ST & DEGROFF ST
16F021280 00:54:55 53 ARMED ROB 300 FOURTH ST W & WELLS ST
FEB 20 -
16F021855 01:31:20 113 SHOTS FIRED 2100 EDEN ST & GREENE ST
16F021927 06:49:56 113 SHOTS FIRED 3100 WELLS ST
16F022244 19:34:27 113 SHOTS FIRED 3200 BEAVER AVE
16F022353 23:49:31 113 SHOTS FIRED 5200 PLAZA DR
((NO armed robberies))
FEB 21-
16F022381 00:44:23 113 SHOTS FIRED 1200 MICHIGAN AVE
16F022635 15:59:25 113 SHOTS FIRED 2400 WEISSER PARK AVE
16F022749 21:41:42 113 SHOTS FIRED 700 SHERWOOD TERR E
16F022760 22:10:19 113 SHOTS FIRED 3300 REED ST
16F022699 19:09:04 58 SHOOTING 2200 RANDALLIA DR
((NO armed robberies))
============================
Fireworks calls - 2/15 - 2/21
============================
FEB  17-
16F020672 19:05:35 44FW 4700 MANISTEE DR
((ALWAYS has to be ONE asshole out there))
*** Next up, it's always nice to wake up, get the morning paper (that DID arrive when it should have), get that cup of coffee poured, and see SEVEN POLICE VEHICLES show up at a house two doors down.

(There were NO lights or sirens at all)
I decided to get Wifey up (early - this was around 0540 hrs) when I saw two officers hasten up the lawn, one of them armed with an AR. Hey, you never know what goes on these days around here, and I don't like THOSE type of surprises.
Well, after about 20 minutes, the police were leaving the scene, no one in custody, which means whatever did go on netted squat (guess any perps fled the area?).
I mean with THAT many LEOs that near the "Fortress", something or someone should have been found.

But the truth of the matter is that officers do not KNOW the area as well as they SHOULD.
There are way too many places to hide and too many "escape routes". It's very easy to be several streets over with a quick sprint (no fences or hedges to impede travel).
My guess was that was a robbery (burglary) attempt, as I heard pounding later on, like someone was nailing up some boards, but I'll have to wait for SPOT-CRIME to catch up and send me a report.
Never a dull moment down here...and sadly, it's "by design".
Thanks to all those downtown who've had a hand in this "quality-of-life" thing.
*** Next up, looks like our gas prices are going UP again, and the reason I heard was that production was being SCALED BACK due to the downturn of the economy.

I thought our economy was doing okay, according to our "fearless whiner-in-chief"?
Here's the lowdown on this "slow down":
http://wane.com/2016/02/22/gas-prices-rise-in-the-midwest-as-oil-prices-go-up/
If it's not a production decline, it a refinery maintenance deal. Just can't seem to win, can we?
*** Next, another federal agency pushes for tougher laws.
Here's the link:
http://wane.com/2016/02/22/bac-level-could-change-to-0-05/

Now, having the Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) lower looks like a good thing at first, and personally, I'm in agreement with law-enforcement (big surprise), but other factors are to be considered.
Whenever the limits for the BAC are set, it does reduce traffic accidents from DUIs...at FIRST.
Then, the numbers start rising once again, so it's never a permanent fix.
Next, the BAC is a SET number, whereas the BODY MASS (and absorption rate of alcohol) of everyone is DIFFERENT.
See where I'm going here?

If a 0.05 level SAYS you're drunk, and a larger person with a better tolerance for alcohol isn't REALLY drunk until they hit 0.08 (or higher), isn't that being a bit unfair to some?
On the other end, suppose a 0.05 BAC isn't low ENOUGH for thinner, smaller individuals (who would be considered impaired around 0.02 BAC)...then what do you do?

Deangelo Evans - deadly DUI

It all depends on the PERSON, and the choice they make when it comes to imbibing.
Too many think they can handle booze, and are rudely mistaken.
Just like that drunk black guy (from Chicago) that killed several Manchester students when he lost control and struck a van in the median, as they were fixing a flat along I-69 the other day.
Trust me, many of us have been down this street before over the years. We've all driven somewhat impaired for whatever "reason", right? And many of us have come away clean (lesson learned by the grace of the Almighty).
When people make the wrong call and never know their own limitations, NO amount of legislation will help them.
It has to begin with each and every individual.
*** Next, Country music legend (from my era), Sonny James died yesterday. He was 87 years old. Remember the song "Young Love"? Yep, that was his.

Here is his WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_James
And he had a SLEW of hits (twenty years on  the charts meant something), which I'm sure our resident music afficianado, Chris Martin will tell us about by this Friday's Time Machine.
*** Last back to the coat closet...I've spoken (at great length) as to many of the conditions of mankind that are responsible for all the problems we encounter these days.

And much of it is nothing "new". People have been plagued with issues since the model came out. Does the Garden of Eden or Cain and Abel ring some bells?
And the list from the entire OLD Testament is longer than you would realize. Ditto for the NT.

So, humans having problems, and either dealing WITH them, or NOT doing so has been a common theme across the many millennia.
Sometimes, we (as a species) DO manage to learn, often THE HARD WAY.
But that doesn't always have to be the case.
A lesson learned should be sufficient. As children, we KNEW what to expect if we "misbehaved", right?
As we grew up, and were on our "own", we learned NEW lessons from the new mistakes we made.
Hopefully, they weren't costly mistakes, for there are no real "do-overs".
Through all this, we (hopefully) gleaned some knowledge as to what was RIGHT and what was WRONG.
Then, we applied that knowledge to our lives, so as not to repeat that "process". That's called WISDOM.
And yet, for some people, this whole learning curve is beyond their comprehension.
They opt for an "easy" way out, learning nothing along the way, no matter HOW many times their lives experience  the same pitfalls. Mediocrity should never be taken as the new "normal" for any society.
That's the real shame here, because the stakes they are playing at have far-reaching effects.
Life was never mean to be a "spectator sport", and understanding the "rules of the game" will ensure a better path along that journey.
How we view life is as important as how we live it.
We are better than what we believe we are.

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