The Goodfella

Unreasonable Men

Today, I'm very upset. I'm not upset over business being off, expensive gas, the high price of food, or that my dog took a dump on the carpet. No. I'm upset over a story I heard on the local news tonight, that gnawed at the very heart of what I call, "government interference". Keep in mind now, I don't consider myself anti-government. I am not promoting the campaign of some unknown candidate who thinks the entire social fabric should be dismantled. I am a regular hard working American citizen who believes in this country, understands that we need laws, and will fight for the rights that our forefathers died for. But when those I voted for to lead us, and those I support to guide us, whether in my voting district, or not, do unreasonable and un-American things, I have got to speak up. I have to use my right to free speech and press.

Now that I'm done with my preamble, let's look at what got me going.  My local news (ABC 7 San Francisco), reported that the city of Clayton, California, shut down a roadside fruit stand operated by two young (ages 6 and 11) girls, based on a single anonymous complaint. The police explained to them,that it is illegal to operate a business such as this in that zoning area, without a license, and that the stand was causing a traffic jam.  The ABC reporter interviewed the neighbors, and none of them noticed a traffic problem, nor did they care about the stand being there, and that the produce was actually quite good. Next they interviewed the mayor, a Mr. Greg Manning, who stated, "The rules are the rules" and regardless of the fact they were just little girls they had to shut them down. He also stated, "Who knows, next they might be selling chickens and eggs"!  The only chicken they should even think about selling is this sniveling little weasel of a mayor!

Now, there is what is called the letter of the law, and there is also the spirit of the law. All cops and attorneys are taught this concept in their respective places of education. Here, we have the letter of the law being enforced. Now some of you hardliners are saying , Well, it is the law, and they broke it".  Think about this though, if every police officer, prosecutor, and judge went by the letter of the law in minor incidents like this, we might all do some jail time.  These are kids, selling fruit in a little stand in front of their home. I can picture this Norman Rockwell slice of America now. It's not three guys from Budapest selling carpets on a street corner, or two guys from Italy selling meatballs out of their garage. ( I'm Italian so I used this one so nobody is offended). It is two little girls. They should be commended for their efforts in American capitalism, and selling a healthy product, not some sugar laden soft drink. They are learning to run a enterprise, not glued in front of a computer or TV, or out trying to learn how to run drugs.  Get over it Mr. Mayor !!  Protect those kids from child predators, or terrorists, and protect their parents from crooked mortgage brokers or burglars.  I mean you got one - read again -one complaint about this, and the person didn't even have the guts to identify themselves. Maybe it was you Mr Mayor, because you were bored.

Now some of you reading this from Kansas or Maine are probably saying, "So what, it doesn't affect me".  Think about it. If one person, and some bureaucrat can do this to a couple of kids, what about you? In America we have rights, and they shouldn't be eradicated by some small town dictator. What will be the letter of the law that comes down on you or your loved ones? Yes, we do need laws, but real laws that protect the good from the bad.  Let our police go out and catch some real crooks.

I urge everyone reading this to send an email to the Mayor of Clayton, telling him to find another job. His email is gmmann@hotmail.com. I'm sending this blog directly to him. He's gonna love me for this one!

National Confusion

So many things to write about. So little time. Occasionally, like now, I have trouble picking a subject to write about. There are so many things going on in the world that affect us. I mean we've got economic issues, security issues, an upcoming presidential election, war in Iraq, thinking about war in Iran, and the possibility of the world ending in 2012, just to name a few. There's so much, it's confusing, and confusing to all of us. 

I've already put my two cents in about the election, and some economic factors on other blogs, but what I never realized is that some of the things I read and hear about are just strange. Everything seems to be tied together in some nonsensical juxtaposition that makes everyday living just friggen confusing!  Everybody I talk to, or deal with, is having a problem, and they walk around like they have cranial rectalitus ( the medical term for having your head up your ass). Why? I don't have a firm answer, but let's look at few things.

The stock market is up one day, down the next. Normal you say? Yes it varies, but it has more highs and lows lately than my Bi-polar ex-wife. Oil goes up, it goes down- Wal Mart has a good week, it goes up- General Motors tanks, it doesn't move at all- and McDonald's comes out with a new menu item and everybody starts buying on margin!  Confusing? You bet! Anything at all makes it move 200 or 300 points. Our illustrious leader G.W.Bush said the market is "drunk", and dumb as this sounds it also makes some sense.  Where is the validation?  The Wall Street gang is as confused as the rest of us.

Here's some more. $4.00 for a loaf of bread! $20.00 for a Pizza, (A good one, not that Little Nero's crap or whatever the name is)!  I won't even touch the gas thing. How much to send the kid to college?  The adjustable rate mortgage kicked in and the payment is how much?  Whadaya mean I'm laid off? Heating oil is going up this winter?  What, this is a toll road now?  My son is broke and coming back home to live?  My sixteen year old daughter is pregnant!! The dog has aids?!?!  Wow, I'm confused.

And more. Tomatoes have salmonella- no, wait, it's jalapenos- or is it just peppers? Booze is no good for you- no, wait, those that have one or two drinks a week live longer!  Chocolate makes you fat, but dark chocolate prevents heart disease. Cell phones give you brain tumors, but just some of them. Little cars save gas, but big cars save your life, especially when a big car hits a little car- or is it when a little car hits a big car?  Open a free checking account, but the bank might fail. Drink tap water to save money, but its contaminated, so drink bottled water that has no minerals which is bad for your health, or drink vitamin water that has calories, or spring water that who knows if a deer didn't take a dump upstream and contaminate the spring??   Still confused?

Here's a beauty. Being widely distributed on the internet, is the information of our demise in an apocalyptic ending of the world on December 12, 2012. This will happen by the earth being slammed by a huge asteroid, or more popular, a planet called Planet X, in a rogue orbit, will collide with earth. Another theory is attack by aliens from another planet, and of course nuclear war, which will, naturally, begin the the middle east. More confusion. Which one is it?  Nobody really knows, but this was all started because the Mayan calendar stops at December 12, 2012. Think about this. What makes this calender so damned important? Were they really prophets as reported on the internet?  I say, a couple of Mayans assigned to work on the calender had a little problem. Maybe, they just quit. "Hey, Jose, I'm tired of this calender crap. We been at it for 500 years. Let's just quit". "You know what Miguel, you're right. I just saw the Chief's daughter in her new outfit for the alter sacrifice, let's go chase her around"!  And they left. Or, "Hey Miguel, you put one more date on this calender wheel and I'm gonna break your knee caps because you're doing this instead of tryin' to get the pesos you owe me!" And Miguel just ran away, never to be seen again.  I think that was a scene in The Godfather, but they used Italian guys and a roulette wheel. Anyway, maybe they just quit. Maybe that's when the Spaniards invaded. No one can validate this story anymore than 2012 being the end of the world. It's just more confusion.

In spite of it all, like you, it drives me nuts if I think about everything. Concentrate on living one day at a time. Do whatever you need to do to provide for yourself and your loved ones (no robbing banks though). Be happy you're here another day, regardless of how screwed up everything is. Sure, the economy might collapse, but what can you do but keep on going until it does. Even then, keep a safety net of a little cash or gold under the mattress. Don't want those salmonella infested peppers, or whatever, switch to brussel sprouts (yuck!), or eat the peppers anyway and get a good clean out.  Will the world end in four years, maybe. It might end tomorrow. If you hear about the big asteroid coming, and see that bright fireball in the sky,what can you do about it anyway?  Me, I'm going to the highest hill I can find and enjoy the best fireworks display ever, second only to dying while having sex with the woman I love.  I can tell you this much, worrying about it all, and becoming more confused and frustrated, might give you a heart attack guaranteeing the end of your world. That's the one thing I'm not confused about!