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Where I’ve Been – Travel Brain
46 cities in 11 countriesAsiaSouth Korea: SeoulThailand: BangkokThailand: Chiang MaiEuropeBelgium: BrusselsFrance: Le HavreFrance: NiceFrance: ParisGermany: BerlinGermany: DresdenGermany: ErlangenGermany: Frankfurt am MainGermany: HardheimGermany: MarktheidenfeldGermany: MunichGermany: NurnbergGermany: TauberbischofsheimGermany: WertheimHoly See (Vatican City): Vatican CityItaly: RomeItaly: VeniceLuxembourg: LuxembourgNetherlands: AmsterdamUnited Kingdom: LondonNorth AmericaUnited States: Ann ArborUnited States: AnnistonUnited States: AustinUnited States: CelinaUnited States: CherokeeUnited States: ClevelandUnited States: ColumbusUnited States: GettysburgUnited States: JasperUnited States: MandanUnited States: MetairieUnited States: MiamiUnited States: NashvilleUnited States: New OrleansUnited States: Oil CityUnited States: PittsburghUnited States: RedmondUnited States: RestonUnited States: San FranciscoUnited States: San JoseUnited States: SeattleUnited States: ShermanUnited States: Washington
From the children…
We were driving up to deliver a meal to friends who lost their house to a fire. Thankfully, everyone is safe, although they’ve lost almost everything to the fire. All the kids were with us; I explained to them that not all of us would be going in to our friends’ apartment, since they were pretty worn out (the fire was just three days ago), and probably not really up to seeing anyone.
From the back of the van, my almost-6-year-old said, “Well, if I got to go in, I’d be very gentle with them.”
Zero Tolerance or Zero Intelligence?
The principal of McKay High School, in Salem, Oregon, told a student she couldn’t post a photo of her brother on a classroom bulletin board. Why? He’s a Marine, and the photo was of him and two of his friends. In Iraq. With firearms!
KATU-TV has the story, along with this follow-up. Apparently after a community outcry, the principal relented. The second photo does have a weapon pictured, “but it is not the most prominent piece of that picture,” explains Kay Baker, Superintendent for the Salem-Keizer School District.
This is just ignorant. The photo was of a McKay graduate at work, as requested. He works in a combat arms field in the Marine Corps. He is a “rough man standing ready to visit violence on those that would do us harm,” to paraphrase George Orwell. As the Marine’s mother says, this is real life.
One of the sad parts to me is the comment by the principal. In the first story, she says, “What message am I sending to my students if I post that picture?” What message indeed? Perhaps that serving in our military is an honorable thing? What message is sent by saying “You can’t show what your brother does because of the weapon?” For that matter, what message is sent by the school mascot, who carries a sword? “He has a sword. (That is) so true. We might have to revisit that,” said Richardson. :bangs head against wall: It’s one thing if the image showed a gang-banger in a gun pose. But this is a United States Marine, and Marines carry and use guns. Every Marine is first a rifleman (rifleperson?). It’s sad that something like that invokes the school zero-tolerence policy. I suppose on the brighter side, it’s a good thing they didn’t suspend Shea for bringing in that picture of the big, bad evil weapon.
When I mentioned the story to my wife, she asked what they did when teaching about war? “Do they say, ‘They were really mad at each other, and used strong language’?”
Stories from work
In this post, I talked about a funny story from work. Just a few days later, a co-worker radioed me with his own story.
Seems that he was blocking traffic at the bottom of an off-ramp, as his 35-car procession was coming off the freeway. He was blocking both lanes with his motorcycle when a lady pulled up on his left side and asked if he was OK.
He responded in the affirmative, and thanked her for her concern. Then she asked him why he was sitting in the middle of the road. She was apparently oblivious to the flashing red and yellow lights on the back and sides of his motorcycle, as well as the procession passing by 20 yards or so down the road. My colleague pointed the procession out to her, and she responded with something to the effect of “Oh, that’s what those things are.”
Sigh.
Today, that same co-worker was on an off-ramp when he managed to ride through a large spill of concrete that had apparently spilled from a truck. Not his day, I guess.
Also today, I was headed south on the same street involved in my previous story, blocking traffic for the procession to move through, when a white four-door sedan with out-of-state plates zipped past me on the right, then turned down a side street. There wasn’t much I could do except blow my whistle in frustration.
About five blocks later, I pulled up to a light just as a white four-door sedan with out-of-state plates arrived at the side street. I realized it was the same car. He started to pull out, and I blew the whistle and raised my hand to a “stop” signal. I pointed to him, and made the stop signal again, just so he was clear. He unbuckled his seat belt and stuck his head out of the sun roof to ask me, “Is that illegal or something?”
I replied, “As a matter of fact, it is. Check out ORC section 4511.451 if you’re curious, and have a nice day.” He looked perturbed as he sat back down. Oh well.
Livng Wills and Laws
A Lancaster, OH attorney saw an advertisement for a Living Will seminar, to be held at a local hospital, with information presented by a nurse. The attorney, Frank Green, decided to file a complaint with Ohio Supreme Court’s disciplinary counsel. Against the nurse. For practicing law without a license.
Hello? Since 1992, federal law has required hospitals to educate people about these documents, or lose Medicare & Medicaid funding. Oh, and by the way, hasn’t there been something in the news lately about how important these documents are?
What’s even more disappointing than this attorney actually filing the complaint, is the fact that the disciplinary counsel is taking it up. They’ve written a letter to the nurse, giving her until 1 April to respond.
Just nuts.
“We’re not giving them legal advice — we’re explaining what their options are,” said David Bickham, a hospital spokesman.
Judy Snyder, Fairfield Medical’s patient-representative supervisor and Phillips’ boss, said the hospital has put on similar seminars twice a month for years.
“I was completely astounded by this whole thing,” she said. “When (Phillips) received a letter from the Supreme Court of Ohio, I almost fainted.”
Here’s local coverage. There’s another article here, but it’s a paid subscription, and BugMeNot doesn’t have a listing there yet.
Strike One for Jeremy Hinzman
Specialist Jeremy Hinzman, formerly of the 82d Airborne, has lost the first step of his attempt to seek asylum in Canada. Hinzman had claimed the war in Iraq was illegal, and that any act he might commit while there would be the equivalent of an atrocity. For the record, Hinzman also was sent to Afghanistan, albeit in a non-combatant role, when he tried to seek conscientious objector status.
The Adjudicator for Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board said in part:
“Hinzman has brought forward no evidence to support his allegation that he would not be accorded the full protection of the law pursuant to the court-martial process.”
“The U.S. has in place military regulations that allow for both exemption from military service and for alternative, non-combatant service for persons who can invoke genuine reasons of conscience.”
Hinzman enlisted in November 2000 on a 4-year enlistment. If he didn’t want to serve in a combat role, he probably shouldn’t have joined the infantry, or gone through Airborne School, and should have tried to get into a unit other than the 82 ABN.
Gonna be hard to get into college with a dishonorable discharge for desertion.
Red Lake and Gun Control
Philadelphia Daily News columnist John Baer (bugmenot login: bgates@hotmail.com/password) weighs in on gun violence, complaining that the PA State Legislature isn’t going to do anything about gun violence in the state. He cites, among other things, over 80 homicides in Philadelphia already this year, and then points to the recent shootings at Red Lake High School as an event that requires more gun control.
Might I remind Mr Baer that the teenage gunman involved killed his grandfather, a BIA police officer, then stole his grandfather’s guns, vest, and cruiser before starting his rampage. So if you really wanted to keep guns away from Mr Weise, maybe we should disarm the cops, or require them to keep their guns at their station? After all, they’d never be in a situation where they’d need their guns right away, would they?
Unintended Consequences
Wired News among others reports that a ruling has been handed down on a domestic violence case that could affect Ohio Issue 1.
Issue 1 was touted as a way to “protect the sanctity of marriage” and was supposedly designed to ban gay marriage. It was widely believed to be the broadest of the amendments passed in November. Issue 1 says:
Only a union between one man and one woman may be a marriage valid in or recognized by this state and its political subdivisions. This state and its political subdivisions shall not create or recognize a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals that intends to approximate the design, qualities, significance or effect of marriage.
Ohio’s domestic violence law is found in ORC §2919.25, which says in part:
(A) No person shall knowingly cause or attempt to cause physical harm to a family or household member.
(B) No person shall recklessly cause serious physical harm to a family or household member.
(C) No person, by threat of force, shall knowingly cause a family or household member to believe that the offender will cause imminent physical harm to the family or household member.
The problem arose from the definition of “family or household member:”
(F) As used in this section and sections 2919.251 [2919.25.1] and 2919.26 of the Revised Code:
(1) “Family or household member” means any of the following:(a) Any of the following who is residing or has resided with the offender:
(i) A spouse, a person living as a spouse, or a former spouse of the offender;
(ii) A parent or a child of the offender, or another person related by consanguinity or affinity to the offender;
(iii) A parent or a child of a spouse, person living as a spouse, or former spouse of the offender, or another person related by consanguinity or affinity to a spouse, person living as a spouse, or former spouse of the offender.
(b) The natural parent of any child of whom the offender is the other natural parent or is the putative other natural parent.(2) “Person living as a spouse” means a person who is living or has lived with the offender in a common law marital relationship, who otherwise is cohabiting with the offender, or who otherwise has cohabited with the offender within five years prior to the date of the alleged commission of the act in question.
42-year-old Frederick Burk is accused of hitting his live-in girlfriend during an argument over a pack of cigarettes. Because this was his second DV charge, it became a felony. His defense attorney argued that the domestic violence law was now unconstitutional after Issue 1 passed in November 2004, saying that the statue created “a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals that intends to approximate the design, qualities, significance or effect of marriage,” which Issue 1 prohibited. The judge in the case yesterday reduced the charge from felony DV to simple assault, reducing the potential sentence from 18 months in state prison to 6 months in county jail.
Prosecutors in the case are arguing that “Issue 1 was not intended to negate the statute, and that the domestic violence law does not create any new legal status for unmarried persons,” according to a Cleveland Plain Dealer article. But it does. The ORC defines “Person living as a spouse,” which is direct conflict with the amendment, in that it does “create…a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals that intends to approximate the design, qualities, significance or effect of marriage.”
As a Christian, I have certain feelings about gay marriage, But I and several other Christian friends voted against Issue 1, because we felt the language went too far, and could be used in ways other than the legislature intended. Sometimes I hate being right.
How You Drive vs What You Drive
This article revelas that (gasp!) how you drive may affect things as much as, if not more than, what you drive! Maybe that’s why the Pontiac Firebird has a more dangerous rating than even the Chevy/Geo Tracker!
Things You Don’t Want to Hear
My almost 6-year-old son just said “Hey, she didn’t even cry when her head hit the floor!”
He was referring to my 11-month old daughter. 
The Beginning of the End
I know it’ll never happen, but I’d really like to hear from the nursing staff about Terri. I’d like to know what the independent third parties who interact with her every day have to say.
I know what it was like when my brother and I made the same decision for our mother; it was very clear-cut for us, and we had legal authority to do what we did.
She was on an IV drip of a med to help sustain her blood pressure, and at the highest possible dose. When we shut off the IV, her blood pressure didn’t change. Her heart was shot, and she had suffered a stroke about a week before. When the last of the liquid food ran out, the nurse pulled the tube. For the next 36 hours, we used wet swabs to moisten her lips, until she died 22 December, 1998.
But there was no question about our actions, and they were rooted in love. There was no question about our motives for doing what we did. I think there are tremendous questions here about Michael Schiavo’s motives. If he really didn’t want to deal with her anymore, and really wanted to legitimately move on with his life, then why didn’t he divorce her years ago? It might have been precedent-setting to divorce an incapacitated person, but what of this case hasn’t been? He’s already moved on to a great extent: he’s got two children from another woman. Precious little has been said about her; I’m sure that would be an interesting interview.
Raven’s Beak on Flickr
