The Most Dangerous Cities in the U.S.

Yay, Richmond, VA is #15! Not something to be proud of necessarily, but considering there are some lists who have ranked us in the top 5, this is an accomplishment.

Note the cities who made it into the top 5 most dangerous cities in the U.S. though:

1. St. Louis, Missouri
2. Detroit, Michigan
3. Flint, Michigan
4. Compton, California
5. Camden, New Jersey

Here are the next 5:

6. Birmingham, Alabama
7. Cleveland, Ohio
8. Oakland, California
9. Youngstown, Ohio
10. Gary, Indiana

Some states have 2 cities on the list so it's not so bad living in one of the nation's oldest capitals with a crime rate that sucks.

Do take note though that 3 of the top 5 worst cities are also the best for getting recruits for the military.*

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*Note: I can't find the actual proof right now, but I do know it has been found the worse the neighborhood is, whether it be economically or otherwise, recruiters get the most sign-ups because young women and men feel the military is their only way out.
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And the irony continues

See? Doesn't this make you want to run right out and support your neighborhood republican?

"A fence will slow people down by a minute or two, but if you don't have the agents to stop them it does no good. We're not talking about some impenetrable barrier," T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, a union representing Border Patrol agents, said Wednesday.

As the cliche' goes, where there is a will, there is a way. And I seriously doubt the repub's will be winning this, or the next, election.
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How's this for irony?

The Repubs are romancing the Hispanic/Latino vote. What could their possible tag line be do you think?

"We're trying to ban you, but vote for us because we'll help you open your own business."
or
"You are not the only illegal immigrants in the U.S. but we're building that wall just in case so please vote for us."
or
"Vote for us, we just voted to build a huge wall to keep your family safe from bigotry."

I know I'm not the only one who finds the reasoning the Repubs are pulling out of their ass for garnering the Hispanic/Latino vote hilariously ironic. Focusing on the economy is a direct contradiction of their reasons for building the Great Wall of Divisiveness in the first place: immigrants come to the US illegally and steal all the jobs thus driving the economy down. But now the Repubs come with promises of personal businesses and low taxes as incentives.

And who is the wishy-washy party exactly?

I thoroughly enjoyed this little quip:

"Our message is simple. Choose between a Republican Party whose successes are obvious in the lives of Hispanics or a Democratic Party that has no real solutions to offer to the problems of the country," said Alejandro Burgos of the National Republican Campaign Committee.

I guess Burgos forgot about the mass demonstrations held nationwide once the Repubs declared a War on Illegal Immigration.
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Last ENRON Exec gets sentenced

And I can't say I'm too disappointed in his seemingly light sentence of 24years in a federal penitentiary, yet at the same time, I really wanted him to get something life (or closer to it) considering he ruined the lives of so many others by taking away their pension plans and such.

Skilling will wear an ankle bracelet and be on house arrest while waiting for the Bureau of Prisons to recommend when he should show up to begin his 24year sentence with parole after about 10years of good conduct.

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R.I.P. Storm

(She's the one getting lots of wet sloppy kisses from the black dog with the hot pink collar.)

We got her July of 1993, just 2 months after I graduated high school. A neighbor found her wandering at a truck stop on one of his trips and, feeling sorry for the emaciated but loyal pup, brought her home in hopes of finding a loving family for her.

The people a few doors down from him had a dog named Thunder and a cat named Lightning, hence the name Storm. But she scared the Mom so we were asked to take her. And obviously we did.

We were about to leave on a 10day vacation to Hawaii and would have to find someone to dog sit or put her in a boarding kennel. My mom didn't care about any of that and took her anyway. My dad didn't speak to my mom for a week, I think. I was aware of his silence, but I can't remember how long it lasted.

Within 6months I had taught Storm how to sit, stay, roll over, play dead, shake with both her left and right paws (which later turned into "Gimme a five!"), speak and to jump for treats.

She was the best dog I ever had and probably will have. Storm listened so well and was hardly aggressive toward other dogs - until they stepped into her house that is but most dogs are like that.

Today she was placed into eternal sleep at appx 4pm laying on my mom's lap in the vet's office. She will be greatly missed but definitely not forgotten. She was 13years old.

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"Unusual and Disturbing Feature"

Only to those who have turned mostly a blind eye to the whole Violence Against Women Act, Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault/Rape Statistics, etc.

But this premeditated attack, like another one five days earlier in which a drifter corraled teenage girls, killing one, at the high school in Bailey, Colo., have an unusual and disturbing feature: girls as targets.

Am I the only one getting frustrated with this lack of understanding with the much bigger problem that is gender violence, especially when the media recounts it over and over and over again yet continuously fails to connect the dots?
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Isn't this nice.

MSNBC thought it was important to compile a list of the top 10 myths regarding school shootings. Interesting to say the least, but they forgot one thing. See if you can pick out the 1 common denominator:

Myth No. 1: "He didn't fit the profile."

Myth No. 2. “He just snapped.”

Myth No. 3. “No one knew.”

Myth No. 4. “He hadn’t threatened anyone.”

Myth No. 5. “He was a loner.”

Myth No. 6. “He was crazy.”

Myth No. 7. “If only we’d had a SWAT team or metal detectors.”

Myth No. 8. “He’d never touched a gun.”

Myth No. 9. “We did everything we could to help him.”

Myth No. 10. “School violence is rampant.”

Oh wait, I guess almost every.single.shooter. being male isn't really a myth, is it? I wonder when our society will start asking the really hard questions: Why are boys (and sometimes men) turning into mass murderers, but not girls/women? Why are boys (and a lot of men) resorting to this type of violence when girls/women are not?

Then again, we are a society that still allows Domestic Violence to be punishable with a misdemeanor assault charge.

(Note: 2 movies of worth on this topic are Tough Guise, which is available at college/university libraries, and Elephant.)
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And yet....

People still keep saying they're the #1 place to work for.

Wal-Mart Sucks Ass Again

If you live in the U.S. that is.

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