Florida Highway Patrol

I was returning from vacation and stopped on Daniels Parkway to refuel and grab some breakfast.When getting back on the road I realized I missed the Northbound exit for 75. I went a bit further and made a U-turn. Neither my passenger or I saw a "No U Turn" sign. Well apparently one was there because as soon as I made the turn an FHP officer pulled me over. He approached the passenger side of the car and asked if I was "Mary" My heart sank for a moment because I thought something had happened to a family member while on vacation and they were looking for me. Fortunately, I thought, the officer just wanted to know why I made a U turn there. I stated I was sorry but I didn't see the sign. Well that set him off on a unnecessary tirade. He immediately threatened to suspend my license and make me get recertified. I apologized again but explained I had missed my exit and all that. He again said "Tell me why I shouldn't suspend your license?" I didn't know what to say. Apparently whatever I say was wrong. He asked where I lived, where I was coming from and when my passenger answered one of the question he shot out "Just the driver." After handing him my documentation he went to his car. I continued to try to see the sign and at one point took a bite of my breakfast. I saw him motion for me to come back to his car. I got on on the busy street and walked back. He said He wanted to discuss this away from my passenger. He didn't know who he was. REALLY???? He again asked why I made the turn. The answer was the same. He also made the statement that if he was going on a call and I did that what do I think would happen. I thought to myself, but refrained from saying, if you were on a call your lights should have been on. Just an aside, when I spoke to his superior and told him this his reply was well you don't pay attention to signs why would you pay attention to lights?" SERIOUSLY??? Do you guys do chest bumps and drink Red Bull before your shift just so you can be as arrogant as possible? Well to continue I asked him to show me where the sign was and went to put my hand on his door which was separating us. I must have touched him because he jumped back, place his hand to his side and accused me of assault and said "Are you frieking kidding me?" He again said he would suspend my license, told me I was a horrible person for coming back to his car while eating. Then he threw the warning and my license at me and shouted "Get out of here." I did. Now I realize police have a tough job, sometimes. I think I know why though. Why do they act like pompous asses when someone is not provoking them? Is this perhaps why many people have no respect for law enforcement? Its a real problem that they amplify with jerk-like behavior. I realize I should have let it go but being an elementary school teacher I try to make everything a teachable moment. I learned not to even bother to answer the officer just hand them my information. I will no longer open myself up for the abuse I took from a man trying to prove he has power. He can find someone else to pick on and I hope for his sake they don't take a shot at him. The reality is, he was trying to either provoke me or make me cry. I'm too old and experienced to fall for that however. I just wanted to apologize and get home to my father, son and dog. I really believe he needs to have this incident on his record however. The needs to be documentation of his prior bad acts. If he reacts this way when someone is trying to be nice I am afraid some day he will shoot an innocent person or even a dog because he is either paranoid or just psychotic. I did go on Google Earth and see the sign although it was behind a tree, turned sideways and partially blocked by the one way sign. I can honestly state this officer had no desire to be courteous, protect or serve. I wish him luck in the future but feel he will end up causing harm to someone with no justification. I did report it to his superior but he thought I was "reading too much into it." No sir, I just wanted to let you know at least one of your officers behaved inappropriately during routine traffic stops and needs to learn to be polite.

Giving Up

It seems Obama and his supportors are convinced that since they won re-election the country agrees with the way they have been running things. Their overconfidence and arrogance is alarming but apparently nothing will be done to adjust their attitude. Part of the problem is too many people have been trying too hard for so long and not making progress they have become discouraged. I have found myself saying I am willing to pay more just to not be annoyed by stupidity. I don't want to have to spend three for four days a week calling companies, waiting hours on hold and speaking to robotic customer service personnel who were hired for their ability to ignore common sense and never question their superiors. Have you noticed prices spike due to a natural disaster or temporary problem yet when the problem is resolved the prices do not return to pre-crisis levels? That is because as people we get used to the higher prices. There is a saying I love to hit myself in the head with a hammer because it feels so good when I stop. Sad but that is what is happening in this country. Obama played the game of politics better than Romney. He couldn't run on his record. He ran by instilling fear of what may happen if he wasn't re-elected. That doesn't mean people agree with his policies. There was more of a fear of the unknown. Of course Obamas workers put messages out about how Republicans hate women and want to crush the middle class. These stories was repeated to the point where many believed they had to be true. The Democrats played a nasty game of politics and won. They offered not solutions only blame. Now they act as if the country agrees with their lack of action in the prior 4 years. Perhaps people are just overwhelmed with all the bullshit. I want people to understand the basic differences between Democrats and Republicans. Republicans believe individual states should control the way things are run in there state. Local, like minded people fashioning a part of the world that suits their likes. Democrats think the Federal government should control all aspects of our lives. They do this by giving money to states if they play along and taxing businesses and individuals who disagree. I find it fascinating that Obama isbegging people to blame him the Libya fiasco. Only now that he is guaranteed four more years does he have the confidence to welcome the attention. After all as far as he's concerned the people have spoken and they like his style. He's safe.

The Problem Is

Unfortunately the problem is not limited to one. Since I realize attention spans and free time can be limited, this blog will offer insight in smaller bits. Let's start with the Aken fiasco. Yes it is all over now and people may not care. I still feel the need to speak out. I was raised Roman Catholic and went to private schools my entire life. Yes I was sheltered by force not choice. That being said, anyone who went to Villa Joseph Marie High School will recall one teacher explaining why rape victims do not usually get pregnant. Yes that's right: It was taught in school!! Before you go off on the sperm can tell the difference between being shot out during a rape or normal sex think about the chemical change every doctor knows and acknowledges occurs when we are afraid. Adrenaline, for one, is released. I am certain there are other hormones and chemicals released when faced with a terrifying situation. These chemical COULD interfere with both the sperm and egg's ability to survive. Doesn't that make some sense? Nothing is failsafe and I certainly would not jump to any conclusion about whether a rape victim was scared enough to produce the required chemicals. The point is, that "Old wives tale" is out there. You are probably over 50 year old to have heard it, but it was out there at one time. Science has come a long way and so have we. We don't make judgments based on opinions. Unless is suits a particular cause. The problem with the Aken meltdown is not one doctor even addressed where his misconception may have come from. Everyone jumped on the bandwagon and decided to hang em high! That's the problem.

Who's Who of Victims

    Yes both are victims.  Obviously Trayvon died.  That fact does not automatically lead you to the conclusion that George Zimmerman is the bad guy or maniac he has been portrayed as in the media.  If you look and listen to original statement and reports from immediately after officers arrived on the scene and yes, even the recording of the dispatcher, you should see how the story has changed.  It seems are more interested in sensationalism not fact finding.
      George Zimmerman's call to the police mentioned a suspicious black man.  He did not, as reported, use the "N" word but reporting he did got the fire started quickly.  He stated that these punks always get away.  He's right.  For whatever reason it seems by the time officers are able to respond to reports, the perpetrators are gone.  How many of us have witnessed a crime, called and waited thirty or more minutes for an officer to show up.  Perhaps George was only following the person to keep hm in sight and to be able to give the responding officer a chance to stop and question him.
      Of course for events to have unfolded differently everyone would have had to step back and been objective and not looking for a cause to rally around.  What disturbs me is the immediate branding of this incident as a hate crime and racial profiling.  That give the accuser the upper hand since the then accused has to fight on many different fronts.  I question why the father of Trayvon was permitted to speak to the girl who was talking to Trayvon on the phone prior to being questioned by the police.  Even people who originally saw things differently have since changed recollections.  Did they feel pressured by the forces calling for Zimmerman's head?
      I certainly do not feel Trayvon's family is overstating their loss.  They are grieving and want to find some value to the senseless death of a young man, their son.  The community however just wants blood.  They have no business being involved in any way aside from emotional support for the family.  It only adds to the sadness.  As long as people continue to add personal agenda to actual situations the problem will continue.  As long as you cannot trust the media to present objective reports people will be on the defense. 
     We should all care about the truth remembering we are not going to be right all the time and it may be the truth is somewhere in the middle.  It should  not be a winner take all mentality.  Everyone can win if truth prevails and we acknowledge mistakes but don't expect payment for the mistakes in perpetuity.

It's Just Not Right

I have a home health care worker who comes out to help with my Dad.  Recently she lost physical custody of her 9 year old son because she did not have a house of her own.  She rented a room but that was not considered enough.  Now she has been ordered to pay $300+ per month child support.  The problem is she does not make enough money to cover that expense. We are her only client and she only works 10 hours a week. She often cannot make it to her job because she has no gas.  I have given her gas money and begged her employer to find her additional work.  Apparently many people won't let a nice black girl into their home.  I understand not allowing "Hoodrats." but you need to give a person a chance before making a judgement. So here she is doing everything she can to do the right thing.  Her attorney was not her advocate or it would have never turned out the way it did.  Her "ex" ridicules her when she can't afford a birthday gift for her son.  She is in tears many times but she still does her job.  When she has no fuel she has someone drop her off.  She, like many others just can't get a break. 

Yes there are some out there who use and abuse the system.  Others however are trying their best and still falling further behind economically and emotionally.  How long before good people just give up? Programs out there to help people need to do a better job screening people's needs.  It may not be politically correct but why throw money and assistance at people who have no intention of getting out of the system? There are people who just need a little bit of help and they could get on firm ground and take it from there. The milionaires who won the Power Ball Lottery should set up an organization that help people like this; people who don't qualify for existing programs and are trying their best to get ahead and just need a break.

Don't Believe Everything

I have been watching television lately trying to get some Christmas shopping done. I noticed many shows have now decided to oversell, actually come close to committing fraud and I wanted to talk about it because I fear the general public is being taken. Several years ago I tuned into jewelry television or JTV and they were selling pearls. Apparently they've run out of the perfectly round pearls now and are selling globs of nacre and calling them Baroque Of course these are the most make magnificent things in the most desired among celebrities and rich people so all the poor people need to run now and grab these globs of nacre so that they can be as cool as the rich people.  Jewelry should be purchased based on if you like it on the sales pitch which claims it is valuable or rare. Remember when Tanzanite came out. The blue/purple color was GEM quality. Now they say lighter color is "gemmy" to have you think it is as good. Most recently I have seen blue/green tanzanite marketed as rare and valuable. Not really but if you like it buy it, just look for the best deal. Don't get caught up in the hype. Have you noticed when the hosts on television are trying to get you to buy something they tell you that this is what you'd see on Rodeo Drive. This is what you see on the red carpet. This is what all of them really it people are wearing or buying so you know you want to be like them. You know you just have to be considered rich and well-to-do and classy so you'll buy anything that somebody else bought just so you can be part of that club. Just us stupid do they think we are? It really disturbs me that several years ago you would watch these sales pitches on television for different gemstones or gemstone jewelry and they would talk about the clarity of stone now that they're having difficulty finding clear stones a has become fashionable to have defects basically in the stone because it gives it character. It's more natural that way and all that truly does is make you believe it's more valuable than it actually is they're making you pay a higher price for lesser quality goods. Now that gold has become such a high priced item they've taken to calling sterling silver the noble metal . I'd like to just give you some advice when it comes to shopping on television. First of all appraised value is determined by figuring you need to go to a jeweler and custom order that particular piece of jewelry. In other words you'd be paying top dollar for that particular stone the size that cut the caller the setting you wouldn't be picking it out of a stock showcase so an appraised value should be 2 1/2 to 3 times more than what you pay for it on television. Also remember to consider the shipping as part of the cost of the item if you look at the price they charge you plus the shipping and handling that gives you a true cost of the item. Some of the shows offer payment plans and that's helpful but you are paying for it one way or another and carefully look at the retail value versus what you're paying before you get fooled into believing you're getting a huge value.