Monday Musings...

Welcome to a nicely soggy morning here in the Heartland. Finally got some rain.
And that damnable humidity is making it feel too close out there. Hallelujah!
Our Hoosierland weather for today will see us with cloudy skies to begin with, and some sun later on, with temps topping out in the 80s (and it only gets hotter as the week progresses).
Can't wait for that.
So, what say we get that refreshing beverage poured as we take a gander at what else has been going on elsewhere, hmm?
*** First out of the rain-garden is our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature:
JULY 18 -
---Today is NATIONAL SOUR CANDY DAY

(lemon drops and Sweet-Tarts come to mind for me)
---It's also NATIONAL HAMILTONS DAY

(It's a TGIFridays thing with ribs and a ten-spot...sorry, Garry)
---It's NATIONAL CAVIAR DAY

(it's just FISH EGGS of the Sturgeon variety, folks.)
---And, it's NATIONAL GET OUT OF THE DOGHOUSE DAY

(be easier NOT to get the hell IN it in the FIRST place, right, guys?)
*** Next up, Three LEOs were killed in Baton Rouge, LA over the weekend...by an ex-marine.

Here's the story link:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/07/18/3-law-enforcement-officers-killed-3-others-injured-in-baton-rouge-shooting.html

Remember the fallen

Three other officers were wounded by this shooter.
I thought Marines were on OUR side?
The Corps will not take kindly to THIS, I can assure you.
More blood on our whiner-in-chief's hands, and I don't give a rat's ass how HE feels about this. HE caused this.
It's time he took SOME responsibility for these such shootings of our nation's LEOs.
He precipitated this type of reaction by the radicals among us, and he has to live with it. Simple as that.
*** Next, and if that wasn't enough, there's THIS story:
http://www.wisn.com/news/officer-shot-on-milwaukees-south-side/40749004

A Milwaukee officer is lucky to be alive today after being shot while sitting IN HIS PATROL CRUISER.
This attack on the south side of that city has been called VICIOUS.
The shooter just walked up and shot into the patrol car, but the officer's body-armor vest saved his life.
The suspect is dead. (another happy ending there).
The officer is recovering from his injuries, which are not life-threatening.
*** Next, another meeting about "gun" violence in our fair city, for all the good it's supposed to be doing.
Here's the story link:
http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/police-fire/Meetings-decry-gun-violence-14188452
Yeah, outgoing FWPD chief Garry Hamilton made it out to this meeting.

Rev. Bill McGill held an impromptu meeting at the Wells St. Police and Fire Memorial as well.
Can't fault him for trying (and praying), that's for sure.
At the indoor meeting, Hamilton asked the audience "not to give into hate", which I'm sure none of THEM have had to do, or even made it a conscious choice. It's the ones NOT IN ATTENDANCE, who seemed to be young male blacks, that are at the ROOT of the violence, whether they choose guns, knives, or whatever else they can get their primate paws wrapped around.
The meeting seemed to be made up (primarily) of black women and older black men. There were a few white people in attendance, so it wasn't an "exclusive" venue, as some of these meetings appear to be (and in other cities).
Well, some dialogue is better than none, right?
*** Next up, there was one story that just begged to be picked apart, and I WILL show you why. Here's the story link:
http://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/sunday-centerpiece/Hopelessness-spirals-into-violence-14094880

Okay, so the TITLE of the column is misleading at BEST:
"Hopelessness Spirals Into Violence".
Usually, hopelessness tends to lead more to SUICIDE, if we're to believe that the psychology of such people holds true (and it usually does).
What mostly turns people to criminal activity is the OPPORTUNITY, and the "rush" that comes with getting away with something illegal.
I grew up in a lower class blue collar neighborhood, and I can tell you that while the opportunity to commit crime was always there, as portrayed by those who like to deal the POVERTY card, there was LESS crime (back then) than we see today.
And that runs across the entire racial spectrum.
While there were times when hope had all but fled from a lot of peoples' lives, our Philly neighborhood (and many, many others) remained rooted in a much better mindset. Crime was not an "option" to them. Our parents just did not make that CHOICE to follow a path of crime for the sake of a few bucks. when it was better to keep busting your butt at whatever job(s) came along. Belts were tightened, and you did WITHOUT until you got your head back "above water" as it were.

The people who "give in" to such (criminal) temptations are the weak-minded, the immoral, and those lured into a false belief that crime is the "easy" way out of any situation.
Prisons are filled with people who have been wonderfully duped into such things.
My parents never had a rap sheet, and Wifey's parents never did. And neither did THEIR parents.

Was this due to "white privilege"? Hell no, it was due to a better morality and a sense of ethical behavior on their part that kept them out of the hoosegow.
So, I become incensed when I hear this chronic bullshit from people citing poverty or hopelessness as a root cause of crime. Let's try something more basic (and true)...like IGNORANCE.
And let's face it, people are not BORN ignorant (just uninformed). Ignorance become a CHOICE later on, and often after the truth has been presented to them.
One new "catch-phrase" you're hearing about in regards to poverty is something called SPATIAL DISPARITY.
Expect to hear this a LOT and mostly from the (low-information) black communities and assorted libtards.
The definition is a "difference" in relationship to space, (as in living space). Now we can take this to mean that poverty can be "cured" by moving the poor folks into better neighborhoods.
Sorry, that hasn't worked so far, and it only leads to more tensions as this ploy is rolled out, so I am dead set against such things. I'll save all the supporting stats backing this up for another day.
---Here's a related story that paints a dour picture of redevelopment down here:
http://www.journalgazette.net/news/local/Deal-to-tout-south-side-renewed-14113706

The city has ALREADY blown $30K on the people hired to promote the south side to investors...and have come up EMPTY (a few nibbles at the bait), and now the city wants to RENEW this contract at another $5K per month...for another 5 months (that's $25K for a total expenditure of $55K, and counting).
Who wants to invest here when the crime rate stats are SO damn east to look up?
Only a fool fights in a burning house, right?
These people want out of a poor part of town...go WORK for it, like others have done (and succeeded).
In OUR case, the area we live in CHANGED around us, and went downhill from there, because these (gov't-sponsored) people were moved into the area (never saw ONE white family looking at ANY house down here) and many have taken to crime as the easy way out of things.

As a result of such bad decisions by those liberals wasting out money, the SE side has gone to hell over the last decade or two. There develops two sets of standards as well. One for the law-abiding, and one for everyone else.
Also, with such double-standards comes differing levels of responsibility and accountability (as could be expected).
And this has got NOTHING AT ALL to do with "poverty", because all these "hopeless" people are driving expensive vehicles, have big-screen TVs and every damn amenity that the HONESTLY poor among us can only dream about.
So that's another lie.

An oldie but a goodie.

Now, Jonathan Ray (writer of the column)  states that "Fort Wayne must unite so that ALL can escape poverty". (my emphasis)
Thing is, if he is a GODLY man, then he KNOWS that what the BIBLE says refutes that statement of his.
---Deuteronomy 15:11 says:
"For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land.'"
There are also passages in Matthew (26:11), Mark (14:7) and John (12:8), as well as Galatiians (2:10), so it's not something that "just came along recently". Let's stay grounded in REASON here, shall we?

Learn the flow of the $$$

Ray cites poverty rates in specific zip codes (in comparison). If such is ACTUALLY true, then WHY does the SE side have the SECOND HIGHEST level of "disposable income" (next to the NW area)? I'd love to hear his answer for that.
I didn't know poor folks HAD income that was that disposable (for new cars and FIREWORKS)...
Hell, most of our income is NOT disposable (call it pre-allocated) - it's for bills, food, clothing, utilities (car payments) and such...ALL without any "government-sponsorship", mind you.
We don't choose to live hand-to-mouth by a cavalier use of such funds, like others around us seem to do (and with glee).
Many of these other folks ARE subsidized (and quite well) on the taxpayers' dime. THERE is your disposable "income", such as that is.
Funny, I never know we subsidized the poor. Another form of "wealth" redistribution?
(sounds like a liberal socialist plot to me)
*** Last back to the rain-soaked foliage...You want true economic opportunity down here on the SE side?

Then, get rid of all the damn CRIME, people. WHY the hell can't any of them SEE that?
You will NEVER fix this by begging businesses to come here in the HOPE that crime will suddenly go away.
Take crime out of the picture FIRST, and businesses will be LINING UP to come down here, but not before, and certainly not for the long-haul.
And, if that suggests taking the black community (as well as the fringes of the other race groups) to task and hold THEM accountable for all they do, then by all means, have at it.

You can't legislate stupidity (I'm still working to change that one myself...lol), but by God, you CAN make the laws EFFECTIVE by enforcing them with the SAME standards applied to everyone equally.
The solutions are already there, all that needs to be done is for people to SEE and then enact them.
But don't create more problems than you're willing to solve (by creating even more problems). That never works.

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