Thoughts For Thursday...

Yo...feeder's empty.

If you've been wondering if it feels like "one of those days" (all week), then, you're not alone.
And it also feels like it's just one damn thing after another, right? Thank God we have something called TIME so all this crap doesn't happen ALL AT ONCE.
We'll get to my particular brand of that in a moment.
Our Hoosierland weather will be another soft day, with some rain (gee, kinda like yesterday?), with temps reaching only into the mid-40s, so it will be less "outdoor-friendly" than yesterday. Looks like our April showers are here.
Don't expect any real sunshine either (unless someone manages to swipe some), as the clouds will be hanging around as well. So, if you're (also) not feeling on top of YOUR game today, the weather will certainly accommodate you there.
Now, let's get a soothing drink (we're gonna need it), and set about seeing what's been going on elsewhere...
*** First out of the department of redundancy department, is the answer to our WHO SAID THAT? quote:
"Many people want the government to protect the consumer. A much more urgent problem is to protect the consumer from the government."

This was spoken by Milton Friedman (July 31 1912 - November 16 2006) and he was was an American economist who received the 1976 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economical Sciences for his research in consumption analysis, monetary history and theory, and the complexity of stabilization policy (huh, what?). Trust me, it's important stuff.
And here is his WIKI:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_Friedman
Friedman was an advisor to President Reagan, so you know where this could be going (and it's not liberalism).
Let's just say he was into LESS government (intrusion) for a start.
And, let's also say that, like Captain America (aka Steve Rogers), he was "...just a kid from Brooklyn".
Milton found himself in Washington by 1935 (after graduating from Rutgers with two scholarships - the one in economics at University of Chicago was the one he chose), with a master of arts degree in 1933.
Friedman considered FDR's "new deal" a lifesaver as far as job-creation programs were concerned, but not the price and wage-fixing measures of the National Recovery Act.
This is a pretty good read if you're interested in how the government controls money, wages and everything in between, and while Milton was an agnostic and a libertarian (he was for legal drugs and prostitution), what he wrote on economics more than makes up for any foibles he may have had.
If you ever wondered why America keeps printing money, and how it leads to price-fixing and inflation, then Milton Friedman might be someone you want to read about when considering the growing national debt, the GDP, the GNP, and the government manipulation of our currency and how it impacts damn near every facet of OUR lives.
Friedman was keen on using the analogy of "dropping money out of a helicopter"...and Friedman also blamed the Fed for turning a "garden-variety recession" between 1929-1933 into (what he called) The Great Contraction.
He's also got some good views on Social Security, Welfare and a "negative" income tax.
*** Next, it's time for our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
April 7 -
---Today is NATIONAL BEER DAY

(cripes this one can;t come soon enough for ME...hallelujah!!!)
---It's also NATIONAL COFFEE CAKE DAY

(that's two winners in a row)
---It's NATIONAL NO HOUSEWORK DAY

(sure to put a smile on a LOT of faces out there)
---And, it's NATIONAL ALCOHOL SCREENING DAY

(REALLY? With nat'l BEER day? Are you kidding me?
*** Next up, Let's talk about crime...
---Here's one story that's sure to make you go "WTF?":
http://www.21alive.com/news/local/After-a-chase-in-a-stolen-vehicle-and-crash-police-arrest-man--374767771.html

BUSTED!

(mute the ad)
Yeah, a perp steals a jeep (with Ohio plates no less), then steals items from a  T.J. Maxx, and then, during a police chase, purposely crashes into a police cruiser along Fernhill St., behind Glenbrook Square Mall.
Three time loser...sure looks that way.
Bet he lives on the SE side of town, too.
(I suppose living on 3730 E. Washington Blvd or 2731 Chestnit St. qualifies?)
Almarez Davelle Henderson, 49 was arrested on multiple charges. He has a prior for conversion dating back toi February this year.
BTW, you'll have to forgive the typos in the story. I didn't write it...lol.
---Next, we have a mugshot of the 18 year old parole-violating, car thief perp who police had to talk out of a house the other day.

Young-thug

Sounds like a potential career criminal in the making.
Now THIS was definitely down in the ghettohood.
Emmanuel D. Freeman is no longer living up to his LAST NAME, as he's currently a "guest" of the Allen County Jail. No sense in releasing him...he'll be back soon anyway. You just know it.
Plenty of blame to go around for why his life sucks the way it does.
---Next, you know it's tax season when THIS kinda thing goes down in the ghettohood:
http://www.news-sentinel.com/news/local/crime/Woman-robbed-of-tax-money-after-drug-deal-mix-up-ruse
Yeah, something about tax refunds and drug deals doesn't seem like NORMAL behavior to me either.
---This story makes you want to not shop Southtown Crossing:
http://www.21alive.com/news/local/Man-arrested-on-theft-charges-after-he-locked-himslelf-in-gas-station-restroom-374762011.html

Stoner AND a loser

Yeah, a perp was breaking into vehicles in the parking lot at the Wal-Mart there, leads police on a chase and then locks himself in the gas station bathroom outside the WM...sure, that'll throw our officers off the track...NOT.
Jeffery Stephen Woods, Jr, 26 is the offender in question...sure LOOKS like a loser to me.
Woods told police that he had injected himself with heroin a half hour before this all took place.
They STILL call it DOPE for a reason, don't they?
*** Next, I don't really know if this could be considered a "crime"...YET, but it does bear some scrutiny:
http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/Aboite-housing-project-gets-go-ahead-12409302
Those in Aboite might be getting some new "neighbors", courtesy of a housing project that was approved by county planners back in 2014.
The apartments, called CANAL FLATS, have been beset with challenges, not the least of which was the proximity to Eagle Marsh, and the surrounding wetlands.
The area is across from the Luteran Hospital complex an will include 19 3-story apartment buildings )along with clubhouse, swimming pool, etc).
And this is supposed to be "no big deal" and something the area "needs?
Gimme a damn break.

Wonder what the environmental impact on the wildlife AT Eagle Marsh will be...
Let's do the math - more traffic, more noise, more exhaust emissions...the typical result of overdeveloping an area that should not be that densely populated.

Add it all it up. Doesn't look promising.
All the developer can see if the dollar signs, believe me.

We're AGAIN paving paradise, and putting up a parking lot (for the apartments).
Sounds like the basis for a song.
There will be 81 one-bedroom units, 87 two-bedroom units and 36 three-bedroom units.
Rents will range from $725 (1-bedroom, 625 sq. ft) to $1300 for a three-bedroom unit.
Two-bedroom units will rent from between $1000 to $1200.
Sounds like a place where Section 8'ers will FLOCK to...you wait and see.

This project should have NEVER have been approved (imho).
Those in Aboite will find that out soon enough.
*** Next, we have this "problem" in our immediate area (that makes 328 by my count)...

 We have too many people creating too much TRASH. Seriously.

Spring cleaning? Happens all year.

What amazes me is that whenever they move IN, they never bring that much crap with them, and I never see more stuff going in (with the exception of Rent A Center visits now and again).
So, WHERE does all this shit come from? Is it being trucked in during the dead of night from some unnamed location in another state?

Where'd he FIND all that crap?

Does it just manifest ITSELF whenever these lowlifes move into a hovel?

Add to this, the kids across the street carried (from somewhere else) one of those portable basketball hoops and set it up in their driveway (along the alley)...nice uneven ground, lots of rough stones and grass and puddles to shoot from.

And the ball comes across the street (with traffic going by) onto our property.
They have a large YARD...use THAT area rather than along an alley or street, you dumbasses.
Or better still, what about that new (and highly-touted) McMillan YOUTH CENTER...(indoors and away from moving traffic)?
Gonna love "splaining" property boundaries to these little thugs-in-training.
*** Next, our newer computer decided to pack up shop and move to the Land of Non-Functionality. Crapped out last night when I tried to reboot it (without using my foot).
Got the old "boot-loops" thing again. Had some very CHOICE words to say about it, too.

E-Machines EL-1200 - buh-bye.

Looks like we'll be getting windows 10 sooner than we expected (oh, joy). Here we go yet again.

They DO make good desktops.

Thank God the older system (still running XP,  that we got from Stone Computer about 7-8 years ago) is still wanting to hang around for a while longer.
I love when you never know WHEN these damn things will give up the ghost.
One moment all's fine, and the next...nothing.
I am going to see about recovering the data on this system. Luckily I back up stuff from the OLDER system (been doing so, just in case), and besides, the majority of more important data is on the older system (as well as on a couple thumb-drives).
I like to be VERY well-prepared when it comes to these crappy-ass computers.
You can never be prepared ENOUGH.
*** (( Editor's update - 1135 hrs - On a very sad note, the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo has lost Bill the lion. ))
Here's the story link:
http://www.21alive.com/news/local/Fort-Wayne-Childrens-Zoo-Bill-the-lion-has-died---374900741.html

Another of God's creatures leaves us

And nothing EVER seems to stay the same...does it?
*** Last back to the department of apathy and sloth...if there is one thing you can always depend upon, it's that this guy Murphy is STILL practicing his own unique brand of "law".

And you have to be on guard when the law decides to come house-calling.
Some things you can plan for...prepare for, and take preventive measures against, but other times, it's like being caught in the bathroom doing some much-needed "paperwork" when the smoke alarm goes off...or worse.
(that has never happened to me, and I hope to hell it never does)
The way things are made these days shows us that planned obsolescence is alive and doing VERY well (for everyone but the consumers). Crime also seems to pay nicely (must be that rise in the minimum wage?), but the consequences STILL have their own merit.

Some days, there is no avoidance of the whole "cause and effect" in our lives.
The best we can hope for is to be aware of such things, and act accordingly when confronted with it.
Maybe a good case can be made for planned obsolescence in some PEOPLE these days.
I mean, if we are talking about FAILING, we see evidence of people failing either society or themselves and families. And in some places, we see it every day. I know I do.
There really needs to be a sort of "reset" - a time to back the hell up and perhaps start over again.
With the lack of civility, morality, ethics (in both business and life), it's little wonder we find ourselves in such a state that we wonder WTH is going on most any day.
A fresh start, with a better sens of values and an adherence to principles that really MATTER is what is needed. Might not begin today...but perhaps tomorrow.

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