Two Party System Does Not Work For Us!!!

Earlier this month we elected to keep President and though I am happy with the outcome of the election, mainly because I thought that Mitt was the Anti-Christ, the question I ask is how much longer do you think we as a country can stand divided. Our political system must change, and change drastically in the near future if we are going to remain a powerhouse.
Here our some of my thoughts on the  situation...
1)First and foremost I feel that a two party system is outdated and useless. Only having two parties downplays the importance and relevance of many other political views. We have these debates on television involving the two major political candidates and no one else. Why is this? Considering the state of affairs that we find ourselves in, would it not make sense to bring in some new ideas? What about the reform party? What about the green ticket? After watching those three painful debates I am quite sure that there are one or two politicians out there who have a better understanding of what this county needs. I do not give a s**t if he or she belongs to the crackhead,do not shower and incest party; if they lower my taxes, bring our sons and daughters back from fighting in some country that most of us cannot spell and keep us relatively safe from some terrorist freak... they got my vote.
2) Should everyone's vote really count the same? Well, that is if you really believe that your vote actually carries any weight. But think about it, you may be a member of Mensa, reading the paper everyday, educating yourself with all the latest political news only to have your vote be of equal value to some guy wearing his tighty whiteys on the outside of his sponge Bob square pant pajamas, who dropped some shrooms before he entered the voting booth and is thinking more about rushing home to watch some Japanese cartoon porn than he is about which lever he is pulling. Sad... but true.
3) What an astronomical amount of money to waste. The winners and loses of these political races spend enough money to run small countries. Linda McMahon of Wrestling fame has spent over 100 million dollars of her own money in the last two years only to lose twice.... that is a lot of body slams people. I can't even begin to fathom the amount of good that much money could do. Rebuild houses recently damaged in Hurricane Sandy, start day care and after care programs for underprivileged youth, literacy programs, food banks, nature preserves, etc... Instead the money was spent on bashing an opponent who ended up beating you anyway. Besides, doesn't it scare you that he with the most money to spend is most likely the winner?
Listen, I am not saying that I have the answer on this one. But ask yourself this, did either option in the last election really represent you? Were they passionate about the things that matter most in your life? Could they relate to you? Would they even be someone that you would converse with if you met them at a party?
The popular vote in this last election was close to 50/50... that means half the people woke up that Wednesday disappointed. Maybe not within the next four years, maybe not the four after that, but sooner or later those unrepresented people are going to act up and if you think we are in an unstable situation right now, you have not seen anything yet.
Is it hot in here am I Crazy?

The month in review...

Sorry that it has been a while. Been working on something, but let us recap some of the last month...
For starters we were subjected to the wisdom of Missouri Senator Todd Akin who wowed us with his knowledge of the female body and biology by stating that abortion would not be necessary in the case of pregnancy by rape because the body knows to reject the unwanted sperm of "legit" rape. Is this man f**kin serious? I know Missouri isn't really jammed packed with Mensa members but who elected this clown? You know who he should talk to? He should spend a nice afternoon with Jaycee Dugard. Remember her? She was the baby who was kidnapped and spent the next two decades being the sex slave of a demented name. I am surprised that she had two of his children since I seriously doubt that any of the sex was consensual... oh wait, no I am not. It is called science a**hole and it is just one of the many reasons why abortion must be available to those who truly need it.
We also saw the start of another school year, and as usual in this gun crazy country we saw another school shooting. It is insane that we have to worry about our children being taken out by some freak who got teased one too many times. My attendence sucked to begin with in school, if I had to worry about someone shooting me, I would have just ended up mailing it in. All I was afraid of in high school was running out of beer and my fat a** splitting my pants.
And the craziest thing that happened in the last thirty days was the reality show "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" getting higher ratings than the Republican National Convention (RNC). Is anyone really shocked by this? You know why no one was watching the RNC? The same reason why no one is watching the Democratic National Convention. Because regardless of the outcome nothing in our lives will really change. The Wednesday following the election I will wake up in the house that isn't worth what I owe on it, paying taxes for services that I have no intention of ever using and still have a wall full of diplomas not worth the ink it was printed with or the frame it is in. Watching Chris Christey up there sweating really will not make much of a difference. So yeah, I would much rather watch "Honey Boo Boo". Nothing makes me feel better about myself than watching some morbidly obese woman live in filth with her inbred husband and mentally challenged offspring. It is much more entertaing than the RNC. Besides, if I wanted to see a bunch of old rich white guys flirting with death I would start playing golf.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Another shooting... Where is the coverage?

Unfortunately, this weekend the lives of innocent people were shattered and changed forever by the actions of another gun wielding mad man. Now, I could easily go into my often discussed barrage on gun control but that is not what this post is about. It is about something that goes beyond guns, something that is inside us. It is about something we do not talk about and something we many people say is not there anymore. It is about racism.
You see, a few weeks ago someone shot up a movie theater and the world rightfully came to a halt. News stations from around the country sent out their best reporters and set up shop quicker than a Kardashian will sell their soul for another fifteen minutes. The coverage was non stop.
This time it was a Sihk temple that was shot up and seven people who should have been protected in their chosen house of worship lost their lives. Where is the media? Why is this horrific shooting not getting the same treatment as the Colorado movie theater shooting?
Let us be honest, if this was a house of Christian denomination that got shot up by a member of the Nation of  Islam, I am pretty sure there would be a hell of a lot more cameras there. Every politician in the country would be soap boxing and holding vigils, crying with the victims and holding in every tear until he made sure that the camera's were rolling.
We talk a great game, but that is just it... talk. We like to say that we accept everyone for who they are and what they may believe in but deep down that is not true.  When something is foreign to us, we feel removed, as if it does not effect us. Were these victims not human? Did they not bleed the same? They may not have had the same beliefs as you, they may not kneel before the same god, but their death is just as painful as the losses in Colorado. As of this morning, they were still covering the Batman shooting. I bet you my rosary that  we'll still be talking about the "Twilight" breakup long after the Sihk shooting.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Colorado... An Avoidable Act of Violence!!!

Once again we see faced with the ugliness and horror of what a gun in the wrong hands is capable of doing. You will hear numerous television interviews with the countries top psychologists over the next couple of weeks about why this man did this and what could drive someone to such madness, the story will either fade away or be replaced when the spawn of Snooki's drunken irresponsibility enters the world or Miley decides to reviver her career by posing nude with her dad again. This tragedy will be brushed under the rug until another piece of s**t gets his hand on a gun.
We do not need to waste our time discussing mental illness. We do not need to talk about heightened security. We need to keep weapons out of the hands of those who have no need for them and who will only bring pain once they acquire them. Not to repeat myself, as those of you who read this blog already know that I previously did a post on the second amendment, but it is the right to raise an army against tyranny that must not be infringed, it is not the right to arm yourself like Dirty Harry and take the lives of innocent people. Besides, let us not forget that those words were written over two hundred years ago at a time when the democracy and stability of this country was at risk. This same time this was written, slavery was still considered okay and women were not allowed to vote, among a slew of other ill considered laws.
This animal was able to get his hands on over six thousand rounds of ammunition. How does this not set off a red flag? How is there no data base in check that keeps track of all of these rounds of deadly ammunition? I am almost more frightened by the fact that he was able to obtain the guns and ammo legally, and still stay under radar, than I am by the heinous and cowardly act he committed.
I am beyond tired of hearing people say that it is their right to own a gun. It is my right to be able to go see a film and not fear for my life that some freak who never passed any background checks was able to go to his local twenty four hour wal-mart and buy a gun. Do not give me the sport b.s. either, if you want to take up a sport try bowling or golf. Hell, you can drink while playing those sports and get away with wearing funny outfits.
As far as hunting is concerned, which I personally think is a load of garbage because unless you are an Inuit there is practically a food store every two miles, you should be allowed to rent an appropriate rifle upon entering a designated area and must return it when your innocent animal killing spree is over.
I agree that big brother already has a lot of say in our lives but this is one area where I would be fine giving them even more power. As far as arming ourselves against tyranny, history has shown that there has been more successful non-violent rebellions than the countless failed armed revolts. Though it is an old cliche... the pen is still mightier than the sword.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy!!!

Boy Scouts keep Ban on Homosexuals... Really?

The Boy Scouts of America have decided to keep their ban on homosexuals becoming scouts or den leaders. Are they serious? Is this really the type of morals that we want to instill in the future men of this country? It is hard enough being a young man, and you are influenced and shaped by so many factors (music, television, books, etc...) that an organization like the Boy Scouts should be there encouraging the youth to accept everyone. How can we continue to see all of these advertisements and programs preaching against bullying yet still allow one of the oldest youth groups in this country to teach exclusion? Young people, especially homosexuals, will have to face enough exclusion, from not making the cut on an athletic team to not making the grades for academic clubs.
What about the homosexual men whose children are boy scouts and who would make great den leaders? It is a shame that these men are still not allowed to bond with their sons while also teaching the value of acceptance to other members of the pack. Besides, if my son was in the boy scouts I would much rather he make a bird house with a fashion minded homosexual than some sloppy drunk with the red vein running through the bridge of his nose ( I am referring to my boy scout leader and the seven weeks we spent on a milk carton bird house that didn't even survive the ride home!!!)
And exactly what are the Boy Scouts of America afraid of? It is not like homosexuality is contagious, it is not like chicken pox. And by the time children are old enough to join the boy scouts I am pretty sure that they have encountered a gay person. And lastly, I always assumed that a group who excluded women and forced their members to wear yellow ascots promoted homosexuality!!!
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

The Time to React is Long Overdue!!!

The middle class has all but disappeared, we have been engaged in warfare for over a decade and when most people reach into their pockets all they feel is their leg. How much longer can we take this? What will be the breaking point?
There are many ways to revolt and let your voice be heard and as most of the people who visit this site already know, I am anti-violence. With that being said, think about all of the people in history who have chosen the spoken word and the power of print above the saber and the gun. Think of John Lennon and Yoko Ono sitting in their bed during their love in protesting the war and violence in the world. Think about Rosa Parks and the many others like her who refused to sit in the back of the bus or those who participated in sit ins at white only counter tops demanding service. Remember Walt Whitman and his refusal to pay taxes to a government that still supported slavery, even to the point of finding himself imprisoned. Who could ever forget the picture of a young man in Tiananmen square standing his ground against a tank, risking his life. And of course the powerful words of Martin Luther King will forever echo in the halls of history. The list goes on and on, from women in the congo refusing to be intimate with their husbands until the wars stop to the swarm of people representing the 99% setting up camp on wall street.
The point is, you do not have to go to extremes to be heard. You do not have to be a celebrity (but it helps),   and you do not have to be wealthy. All you have to be is concerned and involved. There are soup kitchens who would love a helping hand, if you can't find one, do one better and start one. You can start a blog concerning something you are passionate about. If you do not like the local politic scene, run for office. If you care for animals, volunteer at a shelter. Just do something!!! There are so many outlets to be heard nowadays that one only has to choose what they are most comfortable doing. Between social media networks and the affordable power of print there is no reason for your voice to be stifled.
Of course, you could always be a lazy bastard content with viewing life from the sidelines and accepting whatever fate comes your way, just remember don't complain when the shortest straw is drawn for you...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy???

I too am guilty... Materialistic Gluttony!!!

Last week I downloaded a game called Logo Quiz. I was able to successfully name the majority of the logos that the game displayed. As silly as it sounds, that is quite sickening considering I cannot name all the supreme court justices, that I could not fill in a map of the United States and would not be able to identify the different phases of the moon. I am embarrassed to say that even with all my b.s. about trying to be different, I too am guilty when it comes to buying into this materialistic attitude.
It is a sad state of affairs when the citizens of this country can easily sketch the emblems of every designer car and can sing the jingle of most fast food joints but they would give a blank stare if asked to recite the Bill of Rights or the Pledge of Allegiance. We have become so impressed with what money can buy that we are blinded to so many other things around us. Kids today want the latest video games and sneakers more than they want to spend time with their family.
There are a thousand things that you can do that cost absolutely no money. There are nature hikes that no movie can compare to. There are lakes to fish that every download would fail in comparison to. There are countless elders who are just waiting for someone to talk to, someone to tell their story to... stories that cannot be duplicated in any lame reality show which so many people sadly live vicariously through. In our never ending quest for the best and biggest we started to overlook what was right in front of us. People are so used to being entertained and catered to, with all the luxuries that they think they can afford (most live way above their means) that they have long forgot about the little things that they once enjoyed. Everyone is so obsessed with outdoing their neighbors that they lost track along the way somehow confusing physical assets with happiness and enlightenment.
My new goal is to become more of a minimalist. To focus more on the mental and the spiritual and not the physical... until then, I am going to go to sleep on my Ralph Loren silk sheets:)
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy???

The cost of independence...

Today we celebrate our independence. Now, before you go outside in some hideous red, white and blue shirt, drink yourself into an oblivion and watch your neighbor's kid blow off his index finger with a cherry bomb made in a third world sweat shop, I feel that you owe it to those who risked it all to provide you with the freedom that so many of us take for granted today.
Freedom is something that cannot be priced. It cannot be truly appreciated until it is gone. Ask anyone who has been incarcerated what the most precious thing in the world is and I am sure they will tell you it is the feeling of being free. To live independently, without rule from tyranny, without censorship. The importance of freedom is never stressed enough until it is being infringed or it is too late.
All too often I hear and read people bad mouthing America, bad mouthing our President and his healthcare system and just rotten attitudes towards the government in general. My only problem with these people is that the whole time they are ranting, they never stop and and give credit to the government that actually allows them to question, allows them to rant and rave. They need to take a step back and at least acknowledge that they have been given the freedom and liberty to speak their mind and make change. Some other countries sentence their subordinates to death or prison for the simple act of thinking against the rule of the land. Here we have the freedom to not only speak out against the law but the power to take to the streets and possibly change it.
I sit at my computer able to type whatever I like without fear. I will go outside later and go wherever I please  shrouded by the protection that freedom brings with it. I do not always agree with this country. I often fear the decisions that we make might destroy us some day. But, I still fly the flag in front of my house 365 days a year and will always be grateful for the freedom that this country grants to its citizens. Maybe you should be too...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

How do you measure success? What would you tell a recent highway grad???

Are you successful? Would other people consider you a success? Are you happy? How do you measure that success? That happiness? All too often we are comparing ourselves, comparing our children to others that we aspire to emanate. We see parents spending their entire retirement savings driving their children all over the country to different leagues and clinics just at the rare chance of them being the next David Beckham or Alex Rodriguez. Let me save you a lot of the mystery... The guy with the bad skin who dips the fries into the oil at Wendy's has a better chance at banging a supermodel than you average child has at making the big leagues. I am not trying to be a d**k, it is just pure statistics. And, with that said, there is nothing wrong with being average.
As a society, we have gone so off track when it comes to what we consider a successful person that it is downright sad. Each year people make a big deal out of Forbes' list of the wealthiest people. If I cared any less about that list you would have to check me for a pulse. And what does such a showing of excessiveness show our youth. Make more money than everyone else and you will be admired? Pablo Escobar was a multi-billionaire, a Columbian drug lord, but a billionaire nonetheless. Should he have been recognized for his determination and ingenuity? How come there is never an article in a major publication recognizing those who volunteered the most? Why is it that we never get to see the news showcase the best soup kitchen worker? the best foster parents? Class mother? The news has spent a great deal of time and energy discussing how wrong it is for a pregnant Snooki to be wearing stilettos but they couldn't care less about some community group going around handing out sandwiches and water to the needy.
I would like you to picture a single mother, holding down waitress gigs at two separate diners, keeping a roof over her head and putting a healthy meal on the table all while ensuring her teenage daughter has the newer threads. Now, ask that young girl who she thinks is a success... she'll probably name some celeb reality freak who would have crumbled under the pressure the her mother has been enduring for years.
Let us think about some of the people that are showcased as being successful. Sports : Alex Rodriguez - Steroid Abuse and extra marital affairs with paid escorts. Kobe Bryant- Affairs. Michael Vick - Animal Cruelty, gambling.. Entertainment: Kim K- Haha... Twice divorced, sex tape, etc..., Bill Cosby - Racist, affairs, etc... I could play this game all day.
We need to get back to the basics. We need to let our youth realize that success can come in many different forms. Being a good friend to others, being a good parent, teaching your students that honesty and integrity are the measures of a man. We should preach that the ends do not always justify the means. It is in my opinion that the successful man goes to sleep at night with peace of mind and a clear conscience. He owes nothing and writes off the debts that were owed to him. He is able to go to his grave with no regrets only the knowledge that he did his best and made the world a better place for others.
Of course, I am not a success and just maybe way off base... Maybe I should go apply for that fries opening at Wendy's???
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Welcome to Arizona...License and Registration please....

Hispanics in Arizona are pissed and I do not know why? The supreme court overruled three out of four of Arizona's immigration laws, keeping only the law that requires law enforcement to ascertain the legal status of  people they pull over or question for possible connection in a crime. So? What is the big deal? Why is everyone in an uproar?

Before I continue let me just say to those who do not know me that I am the furthest thing from racist. I am an American of Italian, Columbian, Irish and Swedish descent! I am a mutt! With that said, if I get pulled over for any reason, I will be asked for a driver's license. Not because I am a mutt. Not because I am a large scary looking tattoo freaky freak. I will get asked to reveal my identification because that is the law of the land!!! When did we get so caught up in being concerned about everyone's feelings? If you are in this country legally, which a driver's license says you are. Or if you are in the process of being in this country legally than you would have nothing to worry about. If you in this country illegally, then you do not have the same legal rights and therefore should be dealt with accordingly. It is almost as if we care more about the ones who are not supposed to be here in the first place than those who have a right to be here by either birth or naturalization. If you and a group of your friends are up to no good at three in the morning in front of a 7-11, hey we all been there, there is a good chance a law officer will ask to see identification. Is he busting your balls because of the color of your skin? No, he is just doing his job because you are loitering and it is illegal.

Now, I am not saying that these people should be subjected to cruel or unusual punishment. I believe that all human beings deserve to be treated like a human being regardless of their citizenship. However, this country is at a very sensitive and critical time in its existence. We are stretched way beyond our means as it is. We are at the risk of financial collapse at the same time of being a constant target for terrorist groups.

Everyday there is an article or news segment involving racial profiling. You know what? When it comes to the safety of myself and the rest of the law biding citizens of the United States, I am all for it! When was the last time you saw or heard about a ninety year old trying to blow up a plane with her girdle bomb? I don't give a damn if they subject me to a body cavity search by Edward Scissor Hands, if I am able to hop on that plane with a clear conscience I am dropping draws...

Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Who haven't we given guns to???

According to the New York Times it appears that the C.I.A has found a new group of rebels to arm with the tools of the trade. My question to you is... haven't we learned our lesson yet? Do these so-called "covert" operations ever work out as planned? Does anyone recall Somalia?  How about the government that the C.I.A installed in French Indochina? For those of you that forgot, that one led to the Vietnam war. I would rather have a vasectomy performed by blind Stevie Wonder using a rusty fork than to see us get caught up in another mess again, which is exactly what this looks like from the early reports. This is the problem with being a world power, we always feel the need to police the entire planet and put bullies in their place.
Now, I am by no means saying that the actions be taken by the Syrian government are anything short of atrocious, what I am saying is that maybe it is time for us to stop getting up in everyone else's affairs and pay more attention to what is going on right here on our own soil. We are sitting in a pretty precarious position as it is, do we really want to push the envelope by getting involved in another conflict? Have we forgotten about the boys and girls we already have in the deserts of the middle east engaged in two wars?
Syria is also an ally of Russia. The Russian government has been repairing the helicopters of the Syrian army and has publicly avowed to continue doing so. Great!!! Let us get that whole cold war thing up and running again. Who wants to live in peace anyway? Maybe if we are lucky the British are still sore about the revolution and are now looking for a rematch!!!
Being the biggest kid on the playground will always come with its responsibilities. The feeling that we should be doing more to ease the pain of those being brutalized will always be there. Pressure from the rest of the world to help those in need will be a constant. Staying on top, now that is a completely different animal. To stay on top you must learn to pick your battles. You must decide which fights are worth risking lives for and which ones you'd be better off turning the other cheek to.
For those of you who think that I am wrong, for those of you who think that it is our duty to police the rest of the world I would like you to think back a little. Think about us helping a small group of afghani rebels fight off the supposedly big, bad Russians. We armed them and schooled them in the art of tactical warfare. They paid us back a few decades later when their current leader, Osama bin Laden decided to wage a holy war against us and took down the twin towers...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy???

We Have Become Weak Generation...

This country is falling down... and I will tell you why.
Recently my wife and I have been having dinner about twice a week with my 88 year old grandmother and some very important things occurred to me. 1) I will never live to be that old and 2) I will never be that strong. And it is not just my grandmother that I am speaking of, but her whole generation who makes us look like a bunch of wimps.
Have you ever listened to your grandparents? I mean truly listened. They have seen things and experienced things that most of us would never be able to handle. They have lived in times that we could not fathom and do not even like to talk about. They not only lived through these things, they fought and strived.
I remember that horrible day of September eleventh and the reaction of my grandmother and my wife's grandparents. I am not saying that they were indifferent, they are in fact very warm people, yet neither were they destroyed like the rest of us. Why not? Because they have seen it before. They remember when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, they recall the threat of Nuclear War and the air raid drills, they shipped their spouses off to war with nothing more than a ream of paper, some envelopes and a book of stamps.
Nowadays we get watery eyed watching a Hallmark commercial and change the channel when the news is too depressing. Our grandparents watched their President get assassinated, they dealt with polio, race riots and the red scare.
We fear a recession and hope that our we get our raise this year. They had the depression, waited on bread lines and were forced to choose between putting food on their table or clothing their children. They worked two hour, sometime three jobs, twenty hours a day. They did not have the aid or the option of Prozac, no one wanted to hear their sob story because everyone had their own. They made due with what they had and shared with their neighbor when there was excess.
We are in a severe state of emergency here and no one wants to talk about it. For the first time in a very long time this country is at the risk of not being the strongest nation in the world. We do not make things like we used to. We do not dream as big as we used to. And we do not dare to take the chance like we used to. We need to get back to the toughness of our grandparents and restore this once great country to what it once was. We need to take pride in our work, regardless if we are splitting atoms of scrubbing toilets.
It is not too late. There is still time to change. But if we do not change, and change in a big manner, soon we will be the ones on the bread line asking if there is any more bread left.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Father's Day!!! A Tribute to Dads...

As most of you know today is Father's Day. I am one of the few people who cannot honestly say that I have the greatest dad in the world. As I have grown up my father has become one of my best friends and the person that I go to whenever I have a question. So with that said, here are a handful of funny stories to back up my claim...

1) When I was sixteen years old my father acquired a car to use for work. Though used, it was in great shape and would make a perfect station car. He picked up the car around noon that perfect summer day. About nine hours later, I took it upon myself to drive a buddy home with some other friends coming along for the ride. Mind you, I had no experience and no license!! About ten minutes into our little road trip I take a sharp turn way too fast and smack up his newish car!!! (Thank you Brian for blaming the landscape design of the turn and not my driving) This had to be one of the worst phone calls that I ever made. Of course this was about eight years before cell phones so after walking my fat a** to a pay phone I finally got in touch with my dad. Did he scream? Did he flip out? No, He asked me if everyone was okay... them told me to walk home. Being extremely out of shape I think I would have rather he balled me out then picked me up...

2) My father's dad was not the dad of the year. Having a second family in Jersey he did not spend too much time with the one he left behind in Queens. My dad was forced to either buy a pizza on credit or eat a mayonnaise and onion sandwich. I have never been subjected to a mayonnaise and onion sandwich. As anyone who knows my dad will tell you, and all my friends growing up who saw it first hand, my father was the hardest working guy they ever met. Averaging about four to five overtime shifts a week an addition to his normal forty hours. To put it in perspective we work for the same place, and though dad retired making six dollars an hour less than I do now he somehow more than doubled my salary fifteen years ago. He did not do it for fancy cars, designer clothes or exotic vacations... he did it to make sure that we never had to live the childhood that he did.

3) Dad showed me that it was okay to party all night but make sure that you are up for work, regardless of how crappy you feel. It told me to never, ever be a snitch and take it like a man. Regardless of what you are threatened with. He never raises his voice or lifted a finger to hit me or my three siblings. He does not judge anyone and could break bread with princes and paupers alike. He told me not to make the same mistakes and make sure I spend more time with my wife and that the money can be made tomorrow if needed. He showed me how to always dress like a respectable man and to never disrespect a lady, even one who deserves it!!!

4) The most important thing my father has ever told me: "Don't tell me where you've been... show me where you're going." Those few words have stuck with me more than anything. I do not give a damn if you were valedictorian of Yale or if you spent the last five years of your life in Sing Sing Correctional facility. I don't care how much money you made or how fancy your zip code is... show me what you are doing to be a better person.

Other notable fathers who I have seen set the bar higher for the rest: My Father in law: Doc Scotto, My brothers Ron, Pete and Bob, my wife's grandfather Doctor Sapienza, My uncles Pete, Artie, Tom and Frank, The late Mister Anthony S who taught me so much during my daily visits to his house, a great man. Mister Phil D and his son Brian following in his footsteps already. I am sure I forgot one or two but you know who you are and that you are an example of being a true dad!

Sandusky Trial... Oh Jerry, Jerry, Jerry

The trial of former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky started this week and already it is stomach turning. The amount of people who are coming out of the woodwork who says that they have seen something are piling up faster than disco singers are dying off (Robin Gibb, Donna Summer are now at Studio 54 in the sky in case you don't read the paper). What bothers me the most is the amount of people who actually stood by and allowed this to go on for years and years.
Now I will let Joe Paterno off the hook a little because he is dead and cannot defend himself. I will say that knowing he was aware of the numerous allegations against Sandusky yet chose to go to the University brass instead of the police makes me lose all respect that I ever had for the man. I do not care how many games he might have won, he chose to sweep this under the rug to avoid any controversy and now his legacy has forever been blemished... No biggie, I am a Notre Dame fan anyway.
Here is where I start to get a confused. First, the parents of these accusers. Why on earth were your children ever allowed to spend so much time with another adult unsupervised? Where were you when all of this was going on? If an older man asked to take me out my parents would have laughed in his face after they kicked his a**!! Sleepovers??? Are these people insane? You would actually let your child spend the night at some man's house?
Second, his wife. She could not have been blind to all that was going on around her. No woman would find it normal if their husband spent more time with little boys than he did with her, regardless of what his profession or charity was. How long did she think something was going on? Did she ever confront him about it? Why did she stay with the guy? Why didn't she ever go to the authorities? As anyone who watches college sports knows, coaches and the staff are treated like God around the University. Could it be that she put the lifestyle that she became accustomed to before the health and well being of those boys?
Third, and this is my biggest problem, is assistant graduate coach Mike McQueary. I do not care what anyone says, but this man deserves to be in prison. He says that he actually witnessed Sandusky in a compromising position in the showers with a young boy. Why did he not do something right then and there? Why did he not smash in that man's face? I do not care that he told his superiors. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am a pacifist, but if I was to witness such a thing only one of us would have left that shower alive. How could he have possibly walked out of that shower knowing what he saw, knowing that he left that young man to be abused and still look at himself in the mirror???
The sad part about these stories is that everyone overlooks the victims. We talk about the University, we discuss the honor of their sports program and we dissect endless tape video trying to spot something. It is a sad day when a man can get away with playing in the underoos of little boys because he can strategize on the football field and bring his school money.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

The Week in Review!!!

As those of you who read this blog on a regular basis know, I like to review some of the more crazier stuff that happened over the weekend that I might not have had a chance to discuss. So, here it goes...

1) An al Qaeda affiliate located in Somalia has put a bounty on the head of Obama and Clinton. How much you ask? The life changing sum of 10 camels for the leader of the free world and 20 chickens for his secretary of state. For real? Are you telling me that the President of the United States is not worth more than that? Damn, we'll give al Qaeda 30 camels if they just go away. I for one would be insulted. Even worse, how do you think Hillary feels? For twenty chickens you can't even buy an ugly non-virgin for a wife in some of those areas. Then I stop and wonder... If they would attempt to kill American leaders for such a paltry sum, how is it that we cannot get them to give up their al Qaeda leaders. I think we have been going about this the wrong way. We have spent billions of dollars in the capture and killing of Osama, Hussein, etc.. when are we needed was to run down to Costco or BJs and stock up on bulk produce!!! If they are willing to kill for camels and chickens and can't even fathom what they would do for jalapeno poppers or mozzarella sticks!

2)The United Nations is concerned about the number of "baby boxes" that have been set up around Europe. The purpose of these boxes is that parents who do not want their infants any longer can safely and secretly drop off their little ones and then go on with their European life; smoking cigs, drinking wine, cafes... Not only am I for this program, hell, I think that it should be expanded! Why should we stop at crying infants????  I say if the kid is a pain in the a** dump him off regardless of his age. I don't care if the kid is sixteen, if you outgrow them, recycle them. And set up the boxes for more than just unwanted rug rats! Too many miles on that old car? Drop it off. Dog barks too much? Ditch it? Husband doesn't earn enough? Trade him in... no questions asked. I don't know but I think we are on to something here...

3) Hardware stores throughout the country have hopped on the zombie bandwagon by promoting zombie apocalypse items. This is just strange, it is actually making light of a serious situation as reports of the drug nicknamed "bath salts" continue to rise. So far we have heard of the young man in Florida gnawing off another man's face and also of another man cutting out his own intestines and throwing them at the cops. Is business that bad that you need to market for something like this? Exactly how many items are needed to survive this incoming zombie invasion? At what point are you stretching this sales pitch? Flashlights... okay. Generator... okay. Fire pit and outdoor furniture... mmm I don't think so. What are we going to pitch next? The slap chop for the upcoming Mayan calendar prediction?
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

If Your Country Was So Great... Why Did Your Ancestors Leave?

When I was a kid my mother told me something that has stuck with me to this very day. "If some one asks you what you are, tell them that you are American." I believe that now more than ever and wish that more people would instill this feeling into children. Now, I am not saying that one should forget where they came from and the many great traditions that their ancestors brought to this country, those are what make each of us unique. Those beliefs and customs intermingled is what this country is supposed to be based on and therefor are more than welcomed.
Here is where the problem lies. Where is your allegiance? When someone asks you what nationality you are, what do you say? What flag do you have hanging from your rear view mirror or tattooed on your arm? Everywhere you look you see shirts that say "Kiss me I'm Irish" or "Full Blooded Italian". People do more for the holidays of their home country than they do for this one. The Puerto Rican Day Parade attracts more people than any Fourth of July celebration will ever see. Nationalities of the world come here and spend more time fighting for the signs to be translated into their home language than they do learning the language of the land.
When I sit and talk to family and friends about their grandparents they beam with pride about how hard they all worked to assimilate themselves into the country, how they always held special the day that they became a citizen and how they were able to do all this while not losing their identity. Now, I doubt many people even bother becoming citizens. Most I hear about get a visiting Visa and when that expires, they get lost somewhere in the shuffle.
But these people are not the ones who get me angry. The ones who make my blood boil are the ones who go on and on about how much this country sucks. How many things this country does wrong. The people who talk about their country like it is Nirvana, as it is heaven on earth. How beautiful their landscape is and how cultured their fellow countrymen are. To them I say... Go Back! If your country was that great you or your ancestors would have never come here in the first place. Your family left for one reason or another, didn't they? Be it religious persecution, lack of work, starvation, war, etc... They all came here in search of different things that were not available to them in their home land, and how do you repay them for taking that risk? You badmouth the country that offered them that opportunity. And a second thought, these are usually the same people who take full use of all the programs available to them, the same ones that "their" country is still decades away from offering.
I am not some nationalist extreme freak. If you are a visitor of this blog them you know that I have questioned authority often, including decisions made by my own government. (To be honest, this would please the forefathers of our country) And I am not naive, I am well aware that many atrocities have been done in the name of God and Country. But you will never hear me say that I would be better off somewhere else or that my allegiance is to another land. If I did utter such nonsense you have my authority to slap me across the face with an apple pie and choke me out with an American Flag.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Bin Laden Died Broke??? Damn Jihad Is Expensive!

A recent report revealed that celebrity terrorist Osama Bin Laden was practically broke when the United States sent him to meet Allah. Really? This was a man whose net worth at one time was estimated to be in the ballpark of 300 million dollars. His family was in the billionaires range. So where did all that cash go? 

Though this man was a despicable creature I would have loved to have a sit down with him for a few minutes just to get into the mind of a religious fanatic terrorist. Why would this guy choose this life when a much more enjoyable one was in his grasp? The money that this man once possessed was enough to ensure that he could have whatever he wanted just for the taking. With that kind of wealth there was no limit to the lifestyle Bin Laden could have lived. I am not talking about the flash in the pan money that you see these reality "stars" have, I am talking about Rockefeller money. Mansions, women, cars, jet setting around the world at the most luxurious resorts. You could spend the morning studying art in Italy and the nights learning surfing in California. So with all of that infinite wealth did he do any of these things? You know the answer to that... no.

Instead, this man funds a holy war. Why? What can drive someone to be that extreme about anything? What would compel someone to blow their whole fortune plotting, planning and devising acts of terrorism that would only wreak havoc on the world and put a bulls eye on their own head? And what did all of this money spent buy him? Put it this way, after his biggest terrorist act, 911, the man was forced to spend the next decade in hiding living in caves and filthy compounds!!! Running from hideout to hideout with his kidney dialysis, covered in filth and bugs. I cannot imagine the amount of his own personal money this man spent on arming and training his army. Then you must ask, did he ever really think, at any point, that he was going to win? Can you picture him sitting in that decrepit broken down complex, looking at his assets and thinking, "What they hell did I do here?"

He was not the first and he will not be the last. There have been men throughout history who've lost their empires in pursuit of their extreme hatred. All I know is that if I ever had that kind of money, I would be living it up as if I was a member of the Rolling Stones or shortstop for the New York Yankees. I am talking about weekend trips to Versailles and Prague, strip clubs, motorcycles, prostitutes in Amsterdam, double fisting Dom Perignon at the super bowl, yachts with Victoria Secret Models making me pigs in the blanket, tattoos, comic books, guitar lessons from Eric Clapton, a lap dance from... you get the point. I know what I would not be doing... blowing my cash on teaching a bunch of crackpots how to hijack a plane and blow up buildings half a globe away. But that is just me...

Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Man was not meant to live this way!!!

Are you tired of busting your a** every day? Being out of the house for twelve or thirteen hours? Only to try the impossible task of fitting in a week's worth of fun during the weekend? And what is your reward for all this? The opportunity to do it all over again come Monday morning? How many of you have been reduced to the likes of zombies, just barely going through the motions of your day? When it comes the the daily hustle and bustle we have become as numb as the genitalia of one of those porn stars who are always attempting to break the world's gang bang record!
Is this how we are really supposed to be living? F**k, this is not even living... it is surviving, poorly for that matter too. People are tired of being broke. They are tired of stressing about paying their bills. They are tired of having to say no to their kids for those little extras. They are tired.... of being tired. The saddest fact is that we are the first generation of Americans who are not projected to make more money than our parents. Though more of us have college degrees and graduate degrees than the generations before us, our life is actually expected to be harder to survive than theirs. That is an utter outrage. Our quality of life is going down, not up. People are working like dogs with absolutely nothing to show for it except for the roof over their head... if the bank hasn't repo'd it yet. Those of us who are still fortunate enough to have a roof over our head are never there to really enjoy it, we are at work. If I spent any more time out of the house I would be a f**king gypsy.
People who are employed should not feel guilty about buying the occasional latte or treating their wife to a night out on the town, but they do. They should be able to ensure their child could have the proper equipment to play a sport or an instrument, but they cannot.
This may be a stupid example but think about it, in Dirty Dancing those people spend the whole summer at a resort. As a kid, my mom's family would leave for Lake George two days before Memorial Day and come home the day after Labor Day... for real? I worked the fourth of July for the last five years!!! S**t, I didn't even get a hot dog.
This life is beginning to suck. The degrees have never paid off and the patience is starting to wear thin. I am at the point where I would rather get ball cancer than continue being a hamster in the wheel...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Legalize Prostitution?... Hell, we all pay for it one way or the other!

They call it the oldest profession in the world, prostitution, yet as of today it is illegal in forty nine of the fifty states. We have people who consider themselves as professionals in all sorts of fields, then why not the sex industry? If a woman is good with numbers, she may enter the world of finance. If a guy is a good debater, he might go into the field of law. What if a man or woman's talent is more suited for the bedroom? It is a service just like the others, is it not? And let us be honest, I am sure that in your life time you looked for great sex more than you did a great lawyer or accountant.
In my opinion prostitution should be legal in all fifty states the same way that they do it in Nevada. As long as it is taxed and regulated, it is a win-win situation for all parties involved. The state will make a killing on the taxes and those who provide the service will make a hell of a better living utilizing the goods that God gave them than they ever would have bussing tables or pumping gas.
It would be a hell of a lot safer too. It is not as if prostitution is going on anyway. If performed in a legal, sterile and regulated environment, men and women would no longer have to walk the streets at night subjecting themselves to the threats of murder, rape, etc... It would also practically remove the risks of disease, as each patron would be forced to use protection. It would also free up countless man power hours spent by the police in ridiculous prostitution stings that could be better utilized chasing down real criminals.
The perfect example of how this could work is The Bunny Ranch in Nevada! Here is an establishment that has been in business for over fifty years and has made a lot of women very wealthy. It is safe, it is taxed and it is off the beaten path so kids would not have to walk past it on the way to school or the mall. The employees are screened often for any diseases and are free to come and go as they please. No pimp with the big fedora ever needs to raise his bitch hand to keep a hoe in line!!! The girls who work there make an amazing living.
Seriously, we all pay for sex one way or the other. Some of us buy engagement rings, houses, fancy cars or dinner if she/he is easy. The good thing about legalizing prostitution is that everyone still gets what they want they are just more direct about it.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

New Format!!!

As much as I enjoy writing this blog and getting all of the great responses, I will only be posting four time a week now due to the research that I have started for a new novel in the works. Until this book is finished, new articles will be posted Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Thank you and make sure you continue to enjoy the insanity!

So Poor... Can't Even Pay Attention!!!

Gas is up. Milk is up. Bread... you get the point. The only thing that has not gone up is the poverty level. Right now in the United States a family of four has to be making less than $22,350 to be considered poor. Seriously? That is a disgrace! What the hell can a family of four do with that small amount of money. Even if every individual decides to sleep on the couch and they rent a studio apartment you would still be looking at close to half of the yearly income spent on housing alone regardless of what state they live in.
At this level you are not living, f**k you are not even surviving! This is why so many people just opt out of trying to better themselves, stay at home, collect unemployment and this way they will be entitled to all the benefits that the skells of the world get. It is a sad state of affairs when a man who is busting his a**, working two jobs on four hours sleep, paying his taxes, and cannot get a little assistance because he makes a couple dollars over the poverty level. On the other hand, while he is trying to steer his car through bloodshot squinted eyes he passes the house of that one lady on the block who decides to pop out a kid every twelve months or so. Of course, she still sleeping in, but she does not have to worry about getting up like you and me! S**t, she does not even have to shower today. It is not like she has any plans to go job searching, why would she? By staying home and not working she is already way ahead of the poor schlep who is out there trying to provide for his family.
His kids are getting messed with in school because of their outdated clothes and crooked teeth while her army of children are sporting the latest threads and top of the line braces. His poor wife attempts to put together a healthy lunch from leftovers for the kids to take to school every day at the same time that the spawns of our lady friend are entitled to "free" breakfast and lunch!
It is easy to see how some people can become defeated. There is only so much someone can take before they throw in the towel. After a while, you feel like a hamster in one of those wheels while a bunch of freeloaders reap the benefits. When our country gives a helping hand to the ones who sit on their a** all day smoking weed and watching Jerry Springer but welcome the struggling worker with a slammed door in his face, it is time to take a step back and evaluate the direction we are going.  Or, you can just pop open a can of warm Schlitz Ice, get comfortable on the couch and wait for your government check to arrive. Me, I have to go to sleep soon, people on welfare depend on me...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

You Can't Make This S**t Up!!!

It appears that the zombie apocolypse has indeed begun my friends. Police in Miami Florida are confirming that they were forced to fatally shoot a naked man who just happened to be gnawing on the face of another naked man underneath a bridge in an otherwise sunny Saturday afternoon. The accused attacker,31 year old Rudy Eugene, continued to tear apart the face of his victim even after bing shot once by the police. Seriously, you have got to be on some pretty strong stuff to a) feel the urge to eat someone's face & b) continue to do so after taking a bullet. The victim, Ronald Poppo, is in grave condition with one witness saying that his face was "just a blob of blood".
Really? What the f**k is going on people? As if we do not have enough stuff to worry about with letting our children out to play or just going for a casual stroll, now we have to add naked zombie like guy trying to eat my face off on to the list! And now some are blaming it on a LSD like narcotic that they are referring to as "bath salts", which have shown to make its users aggressive and have a tendency to attack with their jaws??? With all the recreational drugs and alcohol that mankind has available why do they keep trying to invent another one? At what point do they just say, "You know what... I am going to draw the line with crack"?
As usual a former neighbor of Rudy Eugene when he was a child has come forth and said that he was a "quiet boy".... Isn't it always the same line? "quiet boy", "kept to himself". If your kid is sitting alone in his bedroom shooting at things all day on the computer and ripping the wings off of flies... seek help.
I have to say, I have been reading three to four newspapers a day for the last ten or so years and this has got to be one of the most craziest things that I have ever come across. Maybe J.D. Salinger was on to something, write one great book and then spend the rest of your life as a recluse...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Students to be tracked via their school passes... big brother is watching!!

Northside Independent School District in San Antonio Texas has decided to keep track of their students by placing a Radio Frequency Identification tag inside the student's I.D. badge. This is a horrible idea! If the school district cannot keep track of where these children are, maybe they should not be left in charge of these young people. When you drop your child off in the morning you should feel confident that the district can account for their whereabouts until you pick them up, without the help of a homing device as if they were runaway cattle! The school says that the main purpose is for revenue as per state funding is largely based on attendance. What ever happened to taking attendance at the beginning of the day and keeping track of your students?
This is wrong on many levels. First, it is telling the children that we do not trust them to follow orders. How can we expect the future of our country to grow and take on more responsibilities as the enter adulthood if we cannot even believe in them enough to follow a class schedule? This is not supposed to be a prison, it is supposed to be an institution of learning. But if you begin to treat them like criminals that is exactly as they will start to behave. Second, this is big brother watching over us at its worst! This is the beginning of Orwell's 1984 for God's Sake. Many people will brush this under the rug because they are just children and it is only a school district that is doing the tracking, but where does it end?  Would you want your boss to know every step that you made throughout your workday? Would it not be an invasion of your privacy if they were able to track how long you spent in the toilet, at the water cooler or talking to the lady in the cubicle next to you?If we brainwash our children that it is okay for an authority to keep track of every move they make, what is going to happen to them when they enter the workforce in a few years? You can laugh at this, you can think that I am blowing something out of proportion as usual :) but I think that this is not laughing matter. Orwell wrote that book in 1949, over sixty years ago!!!, but even then he saw the writing on the wall. The more freedoms that you give up the more you are at risk to becoming a slave. Maybe not a slave in the conventional sense, but a slave nonetheless. A slave to the punch clock, a slave to the school desk or a slave to the computer. A slave and this time the whip is going to be in the hand of big brother...
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

First Chapter of My New Novel "God Quit" Warning: Profanity

Are you a good person? I know that you probably tell people you are and that you might actually think you are but if you were to look deep down inside yourself would you really find someone that you would be proud of? Are you the type of person that you wish your son or daughter would bring home to marry? Or deep down are you a piece of shit in the cloak of a saint?  We will get to that later on…

 How far apart is the one who thinks about murder compared to the one who actually commits it? It is a simple question but one that I doubt you have ever thought of before.  Is their soul already in hell the moment that the thought lasts more than a split second running around in their confused heads?  Who do you think is worse, the guy who spends all of his free time thinking about showing up to work one day armed with an assault rifle and turning the place into a fucking meat factory  but gets side tracked somewhere along the way or the poor schlep who just finished up a sixty hour work week, at some job that he never really wanted in the first place but took so he can provide for his loving family, to come home and find the love of his life wife bouncing up and down on the gardener’s cock, loses his cool for a split second and kicks the gardener in just the right spot on the temple only to find himself facing twenty five years to life in a cute little cell somewhere upstate? He thought he was doing something nice coming home early to surprise the mother of his children with a nice bouquet to start the weekend and the next thing he sees is tiger lilies and baby breaths covered in blood and spittle. You may say it is an act of jealous rage but can we really refer to it as murder?

Now what really becomes of our little friend while he festers in the minuscule concrete cubicle with barely enough room to sweat?  We will get back to him later because while he is in there staring at the bars the hostile employee will continue to dream about his day of reckoning. He starts out small beginning to think about what exits he might have to end up using in case his melee does not go as it was planned.  He laughs at these ideas at first just telling himself that it is nothing more than silly fantasy. But his mind continues with this game and he takes it a little further with each of their offenses. It does not really matter why he wants to do this heinous act. Overlooked for that big promotion?. Too many ribbings at the water cooler? He starts to size up his fellow employees at the office, thinking about which one of them might actually be a threat to him.  Who out of this group of fucking weakling derelicts actually would have the nerve to stand up to a gun wielding psychopath with nothing but a bloody rampage on his mind?  There is Steve to consider, the onetime jock who spends every morning in the gym staying in shape and doing all that martial arts and kickboxing shit, nothing a bullet could not distinguish, he is the only true obstacle in his way.  In a perfect scenario he must be disposed of first before anyone really knows what is going on.  Not only is he a pretty big guy but there is a chance he has the balls to back it up and the last thing that he wants is for his spree to be stifled before he even gets a chance to put an exclamation point on his opus.  Blake, Bill and the big guy “Timbo” are a bunch of two beer queers who will most likely curl up into ball underneath their desks. They are all talk in front of the women of the office, spewing shit about being tough when they go out bar hopping and not taking crap from anyone.   Hell, if everything was to go as planned “Timbo” might actually blow chunks or empty out his bladder right there in the office on the coffee stained floor.  Which even I think is quite fitting, any asshole who adds the suffix “bo” to the end of his name deserves to throw up and embarrass himself in front of his co-workers just once so they have something to fuck with him for the rest of his life if he miraculously survives the rampage. Maybe he will spare him just to leave him with a life of ridicule…

Our other friend who just happened to have the unfortunate fate of marrying a putana with a taste for El Salvadorian landscapers experiences some culture shock at first but begins settling nicely in his new surroundings and the day to day routines that go along with being incarcerated. For a while he retraced all the wrongs that he did in his life, wondering what he could have possibly done wrong to warrant this payback. But those thoughts like most just seem to fade away. He learns the hard way and real fast that the currency in a place like this is much different than it is outside in the real world.  When you are serving hard time the normal five or ten dollars have now been conveniently replaced by hand jobs, cigarettes, anal and oral sex and everyone’s all time favorite, junk food purchased at the commissary.  This honest man with only one blemish on the behavior record of his soul is an alien in this environment; the worst crime that he has ever willingly committed was letting his inspection sticker on his sedan run out. He would get up for an elderly woman on the train and always lent a hand to a friend in need but he is quick to learn that these attributes mean shit inside the big house. The longer he sits there surrounded by these animals he begins to ponder maybe just how mundane and boring his old life used to be.  Fuck, this jump suit is soft and comfortable and besides, it used to take him two or three times to get his tie right in the morning anyway.  Oh you would be surprised that there are some benefits to serving this type of time;  it is nice to know that you no longer have to worry about your credit report, when is the next time that the tires on that piece of shit car of yours need to be rotated or being sure that you tip the neighbor’s irate ugly kid  the correct amount before your daily paper starts ending up three inches from the curb covered in dog piss instead of the welcome mat in front of  your door. The things that you thought would force the world to tilt on one side should they become uneven. These petty little things that one time not too long ago ruled your whole world, these miniscule little laughing matters that you assumed the galaxy was based on have now been replaced by trying to avoid getting anally raped, keeping an eye out for that violent someone who just might be trying to shank you and figuring out just how many Twinkies you are going to need for another week’s worth of protection without putting your muscle man into a fucking diabetic coma.

While our honest husband hardens a little bit more with each day, our distraught employee takes some more baby steps toward his life’s greatest achievement.  He goes on line and visits gun shop as he researches all different types of side arms, which ones reload the quickest, how many bullets can certain guns hold if you go ahead and purchase the extra clip which also happens to add comfort, sweet bonus!!! And which ones are known to have the least amount of problems with jamming because the last thing that he needs is starting his rampage only to have the kibosh put on it because of a faulty gun.  He spends his nights online investigating the quickest way he can acquire a permit and his weekends visiting all of the local trade shows seeking the perfect solutions for his problems.  He does not purchase the death machine just yet but goes ahead and picks up all the little attachments and doo-hickies first.  He buys that really cool extra big freaky looking survival knife, the same one that you see Rambo use to kill a small country of brown skinned people with.  He makes sure to even buy some sturdy rope to tie up those who treated him alright so they can still watch the slaughter of the scum bags but be out of harm’s way.  He even wanders over to the local flea market and picks up a pair of handcuffs for the portly guy who might break the rope; what the fuck is his name… who cares? It took him a little while to find a pair that did not have pink ruffles and glitter on them.

The skin of our once happy go lucky husband has now thickened to that of sun baked clay.  All those scenes and images that had once repulsed him to the point of actually vomiting, he has now learned to stomach without so much of looking away or a blink.  Then after some more time passes by he begins to actually enjoy witnessing some of these scenes and finally when enough time has passed he becomes the aggressor, he becomes the one who is inflicting the pain. He becomes the feared, the man that others seek for protection because he no longer cares anymore and nothing is more dangerous than a man with nothing to lose. When he first arrived at this concrete cube his days moved as slow as molasses pouring from a Bell jar in January but that will all change too.  Time is no longer an object for him, it doesn’t exist in here. Quickly with a blink of an eye his weeks will blend into months and he begins to forget more and more of the outside world that he was so much a part of before entering this new realm of insanity.  There were countless things that he once found quite enjoyable; like the sound of a train applying its brakes slowing down to come into the station, a sun shower with the rain cooling you off in the summer when absolutely nothing else will and of course one of his favorites being the sight and screams of countless children running after an ice cream truck… the memories which now elude him. All that he knows now is pain and hate, how much is needed to get what he wanted and just how much he can inflict without getting in trouble and that is what he begins to thrive off of.

After the years have passed and all is said and done, and this now jaded ugly man serves his allotted time to society he is let loose only to be released into the world which no longer recognizes him and one in which he doesn’t recognize any longer because it differs so much from what he has become accustomed to.  It is also a society that has no space for him and no acceptance of him due to the fact that he is a convicted felon, a society which no longer welcomes him to be a member. They consider him a threat and a loser; he is dangerous to the social well being of their society regardless of what actually went down in that master bedroom with the huge maroon flowers on the shams so many years ago.  He will find countless doors being shut in his face and work near impossible to find because he will wear the tattoo of shame that comes with being an incarcerated man. Nobody cares that he served his time and paid his so-called debt to society, no one even cares about the truth or his side of the story. In their opinion of him, once a criminal always a criminal.  All they see is some thug who they do not want as an employee, neighbor or in-law.

When the frustration is too much for him to take anymore and he does act up and break parole, everyone is so surprised as if this is coming from nowhere.  They blame the penal system for failing, they get mad that the prison system does not rehabilitate but instead creates a stronger and smarter criminal. And this once loving family man is now quickly becoming a statistic that will continue to bounce to and from institutions until he is a harmless old man, no longer a threat to anyone. He will be a life wasted, potential thrown away.  You will pity him when you see him eating the daily chef’s special all by himself at the counter in some grungy diner and you’ll quietly question aloud ‘how did this man end up in this predicament’?  Then you will get a little frightened when you start to wonder if maybe someday you can be that guy sitting at the diner counter all by yourself silently hoping that someone strikes up a conversation with you because it has been so long that you have spoke to anyone besides the voice in your head you fear that you might have lost use of you vocal chords. Men like this will not live to a ripe old age, collecting his pension and rocking back and forth in their favorite chair, the parole system does not have much of a health care program and could give two fucks if this guy sees another day as long as he does not commit anymore crimes.  He will pass away alone someday in a filthy apartment located in the shittiest part of town. No one will be out there pounding the pavement looking for him and after weeks have passed by the only reason that he is even found is because the guy in the apartment upstairs could not withstand the smell of rotting flesh any longer. Of course, there was no article in the paper remembering his life.

Our disgruntled employee has a much different fate than are incarcerated friend.  He does go ahead and purchase that gun. When his wife takes the kids food shopping he pounces around his house with his new toy and plays quick draw with the man in the mirror as if he was Gary Cooper. He was upset about being forced to wait the mandatory background check period but after that he was excited about getting down to work.  He loads up his shiny Bill Blass suitcase, the one his wife was so happy to put his son’s name on the tag when she gave it to him for his first day at the new position,  with all the ammunition that it can carry without being too heavy. He wants to make sure that he has enough fire power to take out as many people as he needs to but at the same time he cannot be slowed down by anything that is bulky. He is so proud of himself for thinking of this and at one point even thanks God for putting the thought into his head.  He wraps the knife around his leg like the muscle bound freaks in movies do as if he is about to go into the Congo and then continues to walk out the front day just as he has every weekday for the last seven years and five months.  The drive in to the office is just as normal as any other day except his mind is running through his plan over and over like a quarterback trying to memorize a new play book.

 Except his destiny now takes an unexpected turn, one that he never counted on, one that will affect the lives of many… his piece of shit car gets a blow out. With all of his planning and time spent on this the last thing that he thought of was his ride to work, fuck, in all the years that he has worked there he does not remember ever being late due to car trouble.  He is fumbling and nervous and this doubles when he notices the donut he kept in the trunk was taken out last year to fit beach chairs for his aunt’s annual barbecue and he never bothered to put it back.  He tells himself everything will still go to plan as he waits for the tow truck but deep down he knows the dream has died; he has completely lost his nerve and is damn well convinced that it will never come back.  He begins to laugh a little bit and then he finds himself disgusted by the thought of what he was prepared to do to his co-workers only minutes before and is downright frightened with himself for how far he let this crazy fantasy go. Tears roll down his face uncontrollably as he contemplates what he was moments away from doing. He decides to call in sick that day and after the repair of the tire he freaks out a little more about his plan and tosses his arsenal into the lake he has passed on his way to work every day for the last seven years. He stops at a strip mall and picks up some take out on the way home and spends the rest of the day watching Twilight Zone episodes that he has already seen a thousand times but never grow old.

Now let me ask you a question my friend; who do you think God was really with on that fateful day? Did he decide to shine his grace on our angry employee who was stopped before sending his soul towards eternal damnation?  Or his co-workers from the blood bath that awaited them at their cubicles?  Then there is the bigger question; was this disturbed man’s soul sent to hell immediately following the moment that he decided to go on through with this heinous act?

Here we are shown two separate men.  Both of them received different fates. Does one deserve to spend eternity in hell anymore than the other? Hasn’t one of them already been through hell wasting away in that jail cell?  This is my journal, it will be the first entry of many that are part of a rehabilitation designed to help me get back and these are the thoughts that go through my head.  Is it hot in here or am I crazy?

The week in Craziness!!!

As usual, at the end of the week I like to spend a little bit of time discussing some of the crazy, funny or just out right wrong things that I saw this week. Here goes...

1) A sign outside a plastic surgeon advertising gift certificates: Really? Is that the type of gift that you can honestly purchase someone without insulting them? What are you telling someone if you hand them a gift certificate to a plastic surgeon? Basically you are telling them that their hideousness is too much for you too handle and you would much rather that they change their appearance by way of extreme reconstructive surgery. I also heard a laser hair removal place advertising gift certificates... almost as insulting! If you hand your wife a gift certificate for hair removal you might as well just castrate yourself because you will not be using your genitalia for a while. A gift like that says; "I find the hair on your body so repulsive that it is beyond the help of a razor's blade." You know what... buy a gift basket.

2) You know those cut out clings of family members on people's rear windows? I saw one with just one lady and three cats: How sad can you get? If you do not have at least one other human being on your family then avoid the family cut out cling, The last thing that I need when I should be focused on driving is worrying about this lady going home to a house with nothing there to greet her except cats.

3) Rev. Charles Worley of North Carolina was filmed preaching that 'homosexuals should be put in an electrified fence until they die off': So much for love thy neighbor!!! It kills me how often one of these houses of worship goes on and promotes so much hate. I do not know what was scarier, his insane comment or the fact that the people in his congregation all shouted "Amen". How can a man stand up there one second telling people to go forth and spread love and then in the next breath talk about killing homosexuals? And they wonder why attendance in the church is dropping...

Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

My Favorite Hangout... The Barbershop!

A lot of people choose a bar to sit and relax. Others might hit some golf balls or go to a day spa. Me, I am old school, I prefer to shoot  the s**t at my local barber shop, Rockabilly Barbers!!! It is a real barbershop, not some poser salon, with neon on the wall and a guy with leather pants, frosted hair and a shirt opened at the waste.
After going there once, they know your name. Twice, they know your name and what hair cut you want. There is nothing like enjoying a hot shave while listening to Johnny Cash and Elvis. Don't waste your money on an expensive therapist, at the barbershop you can get off whatever is on your chest. Hell, you do not even have to be getting a hair cut and you are still welcomed to hang out there.
So if you are in the Stony Brook area and want to take a step back in time, stop by Rockabilly Barbers and spend some time with Blaine, Laurie, Vincent and Nick. I guarantee you'll laugh your a** off!

Fate Of Mankind Hangs in Balance...

The fate of the human race, and the planet for that matter, literally is being held together by an already damaged concrete wall... Does that not scare anyone else? Though it has been a year since the earthquake that caused a tsunami resulting in the partial collapse of the Fukushiam Daiichi Nuclear Plant, the threat of a global disaster on a level that has never been seen before is more likely than most will acknowledge.
As am I sitting here typing this reactor number four has structurally unsound. It is literally on the verge of collapse and radiation continues to leak out. Japan itself is also in huge trouble both financially and politically from the effects of the tragedy at the plant. Thousand of people have already perished and there is a real threat that millions, yes millions, of people will die from the radioactive fallout in the coming years. Why are we not talking about this? Why has this topic not been mentioned on a newscast for month now? Why aren't the best scientists in the world working endlessly attempting to figure out a solution for what just may be the end of mankind? The paper yesterday mentioned that Snooki was having a baby boy and Miley was all grown up because she went out wearing a shirt showing side boob... Really? This information takes precedence over what many are calling the worst nuclear accident in the history of the wold, something that will make Chernobyl look like a fireworks display in comparison?
You do not have to be a genius to see the threat here people. It is simple food chain science. The water is extremely contaminated and radioactive. The fish live in the water, obviously. We eat the fish.... That is the best case scenario!!! The worst case is a complete collapse of reactor four resulting in airborne particles capable of traveling as fast as the wind can take it. This is not some stupid play to make people worry about nothing. It is not another y2k or Mayan calendar prediction. This is science, plain and simple. But don't waste your time concerning that... they are just about to announce who Khloe K's real dad is!!! Yeah, much more important.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Don't Forget the Real Meaning of Memorial Day!!!

This weekend most of the country will have three days off in celebration of Memorial Day. My problem is... do people even know what they are celebrating anymore? Do they even remember that Memorial Day is meant to be a time of grieving? The purpose of Memorial Day is to honor those who have died in service to this country. As time goes on the true meaning of this somber day gets blurred with each passing generation... but do not worry. I am here to remind you.
On Monday when your fat kid is double fisting ball park hot dogs like he hasn't eaten in years and your spouse is pounding beers like he is a roadie for The Rolling Stones remind them of those who have given the greatest sacrifice. May they never forget those who stormed the beach at Normandy. Tattoo in their brain the image of the men who raised the flag at Iwo Jima. And though it is most recent, continue to tell of the men who turned Osama Bin Laden's head into a canoe. You must ensure that our future never, ever forgets those men and women who have dedicated their lives to carry a cross that most of us could not bear.
And though it is not Veterans Day. Be sure to get off your lazy a** and thank those who have served who are still with us. When you are out taking advantage of the holiday sales take two minutes of your time if you see a man or woman wearing their uniform, extend your hand like a man and thank them. Thank them for the sacrifices that they made so that the rest of us are allowed to continue to live free.
During this time I think of man like my father, an eighteen year old kid from Queens N.Y. parachuting over Okinawa half a world away. I remember my good and departed friend Craig B telling of being drafted and a twenty four hour flight to Vietnam to go land down in the "s**t" as he called it and the tragic images that he carried with him to his death bed. I think back with a huge smile on my face as a recall Jim M, a.k.a Pop, a man who literally bled Red, White and Blue. A true American who after serving his country as a Marine in Korea was honorably discharged and went on to work at the Pentagon the next four decades!!! I cannot even fathom the knowledge of what went on behind closed doors that man had to lay down with each night, a knowledge kept from the public to avoid hysteria, a knowledge most of us could not handle knowing.
So I close this post by thanking these men the best way I know how, words. I thank them for giving me the opportunity to choose whatever path I wanted in this free country. I thank them for keeping us safe. And I thank them for the liberty to write this post...

Sneak Peek on Sunday

I would like to thank everyone who has been following the blog. We are averaging over a hundred visitors a day from all over the world! We have faithful readers in the United Kingdom, Russia, India and many more places. For those of you who like what you have been reading, on Sunday I will be posting the first chapter of my soon to be released first novel "God Quit". Thank You again for visiting, I hope that you continue to return daily and keep those comments coming.

The 2nd Amendment Does Not Allow You To Be Dirty Harry

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

This is the wording of the second Amendment and anyone with average intelligence could decipher that its purpose is much different than what many today believe. It is basically stating that the people of the United States have the right to bear arms in case an army needs to be assembled against tyranny. Let us not forget that this amendment was added in 1791, over two hundred and twenty years ago! This was written into law at a time when our country was still very unstable and the need for a militia was possibly something that would be needed.
Unfortunately, this law has not evolved with the rest of the country and its very vague writing leaves it open to too much interpretation. Crazy wanna be G.I. Joes dressed in camouflage, wearing Oakleys and "Gun control is aiming with both hands!"  have stretched this law to allow them to purchase, trade, stockpile and use some very destructive weapons. They play shoot 'em up in the backwoods and gun ranges all the while fantasizing about the real deal. Everything from semi-automatic rifles and hand guns are available to anyone with enough money and a clean record. Rifles are even scarier, all you need is a license and a ride to Wal-Mart! There is no mental test? Just because you have never been convicted of a crime does not mean that you should be allowed to own a gun. I can safely say that everyone reading this blog knows somebody who really should not be a gun owner but in the eyes of the law is allowed to own one. Is it not a little frightening how easily someone can acquire a weapon capable of killing many people in a very short time from a distance?
And please do not give me that bulls**t that you should be allowed to hunt. We have a supermarket every mile and a half, it is not like anyone will be starving to death if we took away their so called "right" to hunt. And I am also sure that the deer, bear, elk, etc... population will be fine without your itchy finger help. It is called natural selection, believe me, it works much better without your influence anyway.
Treyvon Martin is just one of many victims who perish each day because a weapon ended up in the hands of someone not able to handle the responsibility of owning a gun. George Zimmerman was not a constable. Nope. He was not a security guard. Nope. For God's sake the man was a member of the community watch!!! There was absolutely no reason for him to be carrying a sidearm. Was he forming a militia against a hostile government? Was he protecting his rightful property from invaders? Was he standing post from an outside threat to the country? No. He was pissed there was a minority walking through his neighborhood and damn it he just had to do something about it. He was going to play "vigilante" and live out all those Charles Bronson movies. What he did instead was cut a life short and remind us once again how this law needs to be tweaked before another tragedy like this happens again.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Let's Drop Some Bombs!!!

"... the influential classes, and those who take upon themselves to be leaders of the people, are fully liable to all passionate error that has ever characterized the maddest mob."
                                                                                    Nathanial Hawthorne

About a year ago during that skirmish going on over in Libya, a co-worker mentioned how we should just go over there, bomb them back to the stone ages and pillage the oil. At which point another gentlemen who rarely gets involved in such conversations asked the most simplest of questions; "Have you ever seen a bomb? Have you ever seen the damage that it brings?" It is a simple question, one that most of the people reading this blog would most likely answer no... Yet, this fellow had indeed seen the damage of war first hand. Having grown up in Grenada he was subjected to an awful scene of warfare where he saw many of his family and friens die in what we now like to call "Collateral Damage".
It is a cute term is it not? Very safe, very politically correct when you are being interviewed on television or making a statement. Two people are mostly known for using the term. The first, and the most popular would be General "Storming" Norman Schwarzkopf. After the first war in the gulf he used the term as an excuse when asked to justify the killing of innocent lives during the battles.
I could not imagine a loved one of mine being reduced to the term "Collateral Damage"! I am a huge supporter of the troops and my prayers are with them but if you have been reading this post, then you are well aware that I am against any unnecessary military action. Considering that most wars are either fought over religion or money, NO ONE ever truly wins. You see it all starts out the same, everyone is gung-ho and everyone is a patriot at the onset of the war. Everyone rushes out to buy the yellow ribbons and put out Old Glory to wave in the wind. They stay like that until the first  young American boys and girls start coming back home in flag draped coffins. Then the tune starts to change.
Support for the war is dropping faster than you can count the number of young starlets getting photograhed coming out of a limo without undies! (... an about that, how come when they do it, everyone laughs but when the old guy who spends too much time at the playground even though he does not have any grandchildren shows his junk... he's a pervert?) A recent report shows that support for the war in Afghanistan has reached a new low, with only 27% of Americans say that they continue to back the effort.When was the last time you even saw one of those ribbons that weren't faded? Most have already been replaced with some other cause; autism awareness, transvestite awareness, etc...
 It is time to bring our soldiers home. This war has lasted long enough and too many innocent people have perished and too many soldiers have given the greatest sacrifice. War is draining, at first everyone loves to rush to the television to see what s**t we blew up that day and which area is now in our control. But as time passes, so does interest, and as the death toll of America's sons and daughters increases... so does anger.
By the way, the other guy who is famous for the term "Collateral Damage"... Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City terrorist.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

"Call it peace or call it treason,
call it love or call it reason
but I ain't marching anymore."
                        Phil Ochs

School Budgets... How can they not pass?

All across the country this week people hit the polls to vote on their perspective school budgets. And as usual many of the schools did not pass. Really people? How is that possible? Are our children not worth the few extra dollars that would have been tacked on to our taxes? Are we content with letting the children of this country fall further and further behind in education?
Let us look at this from a handful of different angles...
1) Special Education - Special Education has changed drastically in the last decade. When I went to school these poor children were given some crayons and left in room for seven hours. The field of Special Ed has advanced by leaps and bounds since then. These teachers do everything from getting these kids to read and write, proper situational behavior all the way to prepare them for life after school. Some of these teachers play the role of instructor, parent and doctor. If these cuts are made... what is to happpen to these children?
2) Electives - When budgets fail, the arts will also suffer. So I ask you; what about the students who do not excel in accademics and athletics? Some of these children receive little to no praise in any other aspect of thier life but may be gifted when it comes to music or painting. It is their one chance to shine, to be seen as special. It is also a chance for some of these students to get scholorships that otherwise would not be available to them. You start taking these options away from our children and you are stifling them, you are limiting their chances for success in a field that they may have otherwise been great at.
3) Those whose children have already graduated - Many people feel like they do not have to continue paying into the district because they no longer have children in the school system. So, it was fine when your child had all of these resources available to them but you could care less if it is there for your neighbors child? School districts should go only one way... forward.
I was an awful student and did not utilize one tenth of the resources that were avaiable to me... my loss. I had many classmates who took full advantage of these opportunites and ran with it, and good for them, that is why it was there. I am just forced to laugh at the people who have money when it comes to that extra six pack or that pack of smokes at ten dollars a day but close their wallet when asked to pitch in for the future of this country. Just think about this the next time those ballots are being cast... a generation ago we would never have imagined buying our cars and electronics from another country. We would never have guessed that our kids would be second to any. Keep this up and soon we will be adopting teenage children from other countries just because they are smarter than ours.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Week in Review...

As you might know by now I like to re-cap the week on Saturday and talk about some of the more crazy stories that occurred in the last week.  I would also like to thank all of the people who have been coming to the site every day and those commenting!!! We are averaging about 100 viewers a day and this is only our third week!!! So tell your friends... Join the insanity!

1) Virginia is for lovers... Unless you're Gay:  After a honorable 20 year career in the Navy and a quick rise to being one of the top prosecutors in the state of Virginia, Tracy Thorne-Begland was a shoo in for the position of judge in the General District Court. But just before he could achieve his goal, Virginia delegate Bob Marshall  had him removed because he was gay!!! Marshall had the balls to say that "I don't think it's proper to put his name forward because of his behavior," and that he is "..a homosexual activist". "This behavior"???? Is he a crack addict? Did he rape someone? Did I miss something here? How can people still possibly feel this way? Isn't there enough discrimination in the world to begin with? Besides, does it really matter in the courtroom who this guy is banging in the bedroom? I respect the fact that he was honest about it. Would Marshall rather he sit on a chair of lies while holding court? Hooray Virginia!!! Set your state even further back in time.

2) Here is a recent statement written by Penn. Republican representative Joe Pitts in a response to a question regarding the Israeli-Palestinian peace process,"with the growing war on terrorism, it is now incumbent on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat to clamp down on Palestinian extremists that have perpetual violence and to restart a peace process that has collapsed." huh...? Is that guy for real? Is that not some sort of I.Q. test to get elected? All Joe Pitts really needed was a wi-fi connection to realize that Ariel Sharon suffered a stroke on January 4, 2006 and has been in a vegetative state ever since. I doubt that he could be of much help in settling the peace talks. This is just an utter embarrassment, not just for an elected official but for literate adult! Well, is he at least half right? Can Arafat be of some help in the peace talks? God No!!! Fucking guy has been dead since November 11, 2004! If this clown gets re-elected...I am running for office.

3)J.P. Morgan Chase... Really? Again? It has been reported that they have lost $2 Billion dollars! That is a lot of zeros people. My wife freaks out when I misplace my keys or the R.S.V.P card to a wedding! How much longer is this going to go on? Can we really afford for these banks to continue to take such risks? Even if this was supposedly their own money, would you fell safe now letting them control your assets? You know what... do fret over it. Unlike you and me they could afford to lose all the money they have, big brother is always there to bail them out.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?

Do They Give Any One A Record Contract?

Have you heard some of the shit that they are actually calling music on the radio nowadays? To say that it is unlistenable is being polite. Half of the songs today would not have even been a radio jingle years ago and now every poser thinks it is musical gold. I think that Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and the Lady Antebellum chick is the same girl for God's sake! I cannot tell one of their songs apart. Do you know why? Because it all sounds like shit.
I would rather pass a kidney stone the size of Webster than even attempt to watch the twelve minutes of music videos that they play on television. Majority of these bands do not even last long enough to learn their name, bad enough the words to their songs. It is sad that this young generation is going to grow up without any real rock stars. Where are the Beatles of our generation? The Doors? The Temptations? Elvis? The so-called experts had the balls to compare Kurt Cobain to John Lennon... Huh? John was the walrus people. Kurt didn't even die like a real rock star. He quit! Why could he not overdose like a real rock star? Hendrix, Morrison and Joplin... now that is the way to go baby. It is better to burn out than fade away, and these three didn't even get a chance to hit the big 3-0. Good for them,
Even if a real original band does come along, most of them end up selling out in a matter of weeks. Just when there is a song out there that you like, you hear it two weeks later as the background to a video game. Even the Woodstock reunion was a sell out!!! The original attacked commercialism and promoted peace. The 30th anniversary was sponsored by Pepsi and had more violence than the Casey Anthony Day School.
Bands do not even live the cool rock and roll lifestyle anymore. Instead of trashing hotels and doing the perp walk on the news for beating the shit out of a groupie, they are busy taking on global causes. Years ago you could not walk 10 feet at a concert without being offered alcohol, weed or hash brownies. Now people are selling gluten free bran muffins and wheat grass shots... are you fucking serious. I would have so much more respect for Justin Bieber if there was a video surfacing of him doing crystal meth while bare backing a Ukrainian  call girl. If he did that, I would be forced to call into work because I would be sick in bed with Bieber fever!!! There are still real bands out there, recording and playing in bars all across the country. They still have the love of music in them. Bands like my buddy Blaine's "Heartless Devils" and "Social Distortion". Bands that play instruments and write their own songs, playing the music that they want, regardless who is in the crowd.
Years ago there were anthems like "Free Bird" and "Stairway to Heaven". You have never heard someone say "Turn that off... it's played out." Those songs have been on the radio for over four decades!!! Yet,  it has been only three weeks but if I hear that "Somebody that I used to know" song one more time I am going to follow Kurt Cobain's lead and go down for the long nap.
Is it hot in here or am I Crazy?