Pat & Oscar's ... A No Response Company

For many years, I had the pleasure of dining at Pat & Oscar's Restaurant chain in the San Diego area. The food was always a cut above, the service excellent, and it was just a fun place to go.

In the beginning, it was just Oscar's, before Oscar added his wife Pat to the name. And for all those years, it was a gathering spot for myself and my employees for luncheons, catered meetings, informal business dinners, carry-out meals and family meals. I brought clients to "P&O's" as I came to call them, because they were a great place to go. A highly responsive organization and great food.

But something changed. A recent experience soured my last perhaps fifteen or more years experience with this chain. Following what I considered a very poor take-out order, I contacted them twice via their site, and they never responded. I attempted to contact them via their office phone, which was not answered; it simply invites you to leave a message.

In short, all those years of business has come to a halt. Although they are close by, we'll no longer do business. There are way too many fast food places available to simply be ignored by a company when you have a valid complaint about an order. And, it's the first complaint in all those years.

It's not that I was unwilling to "give it another try." It's that I feel as if the company doesn't care about their customers. Nobody can tell me they don't get nor read their e-mails that originate on their own site. It doesn't go to spam. It simply tells me they just don't want to be bothered with consumer issues.

And they wonder why you don't come back? The restaurant business has long been one with a difficult survival path, with about 30% failing in the first year. Pat & Oscar's has had a remarkably successful run, and I sure wish them continued success. But I won't be one of their customers anymore.

California's Bureaucracy is Way More Than Sacramento!

Whew. Over the past year or so, I found out just how screwed up the State of California really is. I mean so screwed up that it makes you want to vomit explosively. Especially when you realize that the lackadaisical attitude of the elected officials spreads all the way to the offices throughout the state. Yes, the same people who whine and cry that it's the "big politicians in Sacramento" who are at fault for this mess we're in." Sorry to use an expletive, but bullshit!

I have found that State offices pass the buck for not doing things that need to be done by saying they are too busy, don't have the manpower, it isn't their job, call someone else and then have phone systems that just don't allow you to make any choices at all, not even leave a message.

Example. A contractor is working with a suspended license. The State Contractors License Board enforcement unit in Norwalk indicates they actually need to physically see the contractor doing work, but won't have anyone available for three weeks to send to check the contractor out. Will he still be doing work in three weeks? WTF? The guy is doing work NOW! Get your ass out and see, and levy the fines that will fill the state coffers, protect the public against an unlicensed contractor and do your damned job. But no, nothing ever happens.

Illegal activity 1 State 0 Consumers -1

Example. Contractor is working without Workers Compensation insurance for his employees. While he states he has no employees and doesn't need to provide the State proof of a policy, he shows up for work each day with four or more workers for the job. Probably day laborers but still employees. State Division of Workers Compensation wants nothing to do with it. They only regulate insurance companies, and handle complaints against insurance companies by insured people. If this guy is uninsured, you need to go to the Labor Commission, part of the Department of Industrial Relations and let them know. We don't do that here.

Illegal activity 2 State 0 Consumers -2

Labor Commission phone system is a recording that plainly states it's not equipped to take messages. It provides you with a street address and tells you the business hours and that a Deputy Labor Commissioner is on duty. Also that you can call back and then you are done. No other options. Nobody to talk to, nobody to register your concerns with, nothing. Do they expect you to drive to the office and hope someone will actually be there to talk to you. Or, would you think that somehow, like a miracle, they might take action during this millennium? Oh, wait, the recording did say that they are not open certain days anymore since the State furlowed employees due to the budget crunch.

Illegal activity 3 State 0 Consumers -3

So, this teaches us several lessons. First is what a crap job the State is doing in many areas when you have to deal with them. Secondly, it reinforces most citizens "don't give a rat's ass" attitude about what goes on illegally since you can do all in your power and nothing gets resolved. Frankly, you're better off calling Channel 10 News investigations and asking them why these things go on like they do, and let them do the legwork if they care to.

Then we have the office that says we'll actually go out and check this situation out. It's just to appease you and they allegedly take down the information. They never do go out and when you contact them again to determine the results of their "action", they give you the cold shoulder or hang up on you. I believe that's because they think if they ignore you enough you'll simply go away. Oh, and while they have you on the phone, should you dare criticize their actions, they'll tell you what a wonderful job they are doing given the current budget constraints!

Honestly, the attitude of the State workers and the politicians here is why, in my opinion, Obama and the bunch of imbeciles in Washington got elected and some re-elected. People who can't do what is necessary to serve the people, and just let everything slide. Waiting for change.

November 2010 showed that change came. Not enough change perhaps, but some change nonetheless. Lots more is needed to dump these politicians and slackers on their butts. People are still screaming for change, and if you read the blogs, California State workers, they're screaming for YOU to get your butts booted out of your jobs, and replaced by people who will work for less money and do a better job. Most believe we could employ twice as many people for less money, reduce the ridiculously rich benefits packages, and save the State hundreds of millions to boot. Don't take my word for it, just read the blogs about the State financial conditions. Those are taxpayers' comments and those people pay your salary!

Maybe more State workers should look at and take lessons from the true public servants and quality professionals of our state and communities, our Emergency Service personnel, Highway Patrol, Cal-Fire, sheriff, police, fire, EMS, and those who lay it all on the line for the community every day, many making much less than the almost useless paper pushers who do so little to make this a better place to live. When you need our public safety professionals, they just respond. No bunch of buck passing...they just do their job. What the hell is wrong with the rest of you?


It's sad, but combined with those who want everything and contribute nothing to the system, there's is little to wonder about why we're in this financial condition.

Ethanol - And the Corn Cob Isn't the Only Part You're Getting Screwed With!

Ethanol, also known as corn alcohol, was once touted as America's road to independence from foreign oil. Turning corn into alcohol to fuel internal combustion engines, as an abundant, relatively low cost, All-American homemade form of fuel, while boosting farm output and helping America's farmers. A grandiose idea of being energy self-sufficient with clean fuel dripping from that familiar yellow ear of corn all over the Midwest. Touted as a massive, never-ending supply. Gasohol stations sprouted up in the south and Midwest with over 1000 stations selling gasohol by January of 1980, with this new-fangled, and costly fuel in pumps ablaze with bright corn symbols.

Sounds great on the surface. doesn't it? Too bad most of it is...well..bullcrap! Let's see just how the Washington bureaucrats and administration has foisted a miserable hoax on the American people, costing us billions of dollars, not only in taxes, but also in fuel costs and repairs and added to the lousy gas mileage for our cars. And, providing 7 billion dollars in farm subsidies to grow corn strictly for ethanol fuel use, which we actually have little use for. Supporting farmers is one thing but why not grow the corn for food for impoverished people?

First, let's look at the BTU (British Thermal Units) equivalency of gasoline to ethanol. According to experts, there are 116,090 BTU's of energy in a U.S. gallon of regular grade gasoline, 76,000 BTU's of energy in a U.S. gallon of ethanol. Thus, it takes 1.53 gallons of ethanol to equal the same energy output of one U.S. gallon of gasoline.

Ethanol costs approximately 57 cents more per gallon to produce than gasoline! Add that together with the fact that it takes 1.53 gallons to equal the power of one gallon of gasoline! That alone equates to 87 cents in real energy costs for every gallon you put in your tank, using only ethanol. So, if gasoline was $3.00 a gallon in real cost in California, a guesstimated price for ethanol would be $3.57 a gallon. However, to produce the same energy of that gallon of $3.00 gasoline, you would have to fill up with 1.53 gallons of ethanol at a cost of $4.59 per gasoline gallon equivalent to drive the same miles. Now do you understand how you've been conned and screwed by the ethanol hoax?

Ethanol mileage tests showed that vehicles operated on ethanol gave exactly 2/3 the mileage of the same vehicles operated on gasoline!

"The EPA measured the gas mileage of what are called E85 (up to 85 percent ethanol) vehicles on the 2006 flexible fuel models. For the 31 models they tested the average reduction is 26% fewer miles per gallon. For example a car that gets 30 mpg on regular would typically get 22.2 mpg with E85. This is exactly what is predicted from the fact that E85 has less energy per gallon than gasoline.

For these calculations, the EPA assumes that E85 costs $2.00 and regular $2.20/gallon. Obviously they are way off on the low side, especially for ethanol, but this proportion is similar to what DOE predict for the next few years. The loss in mileage more than makes up for the cost savings, and on average the EPA predicts driving on E85 will cost 23% more than driving on regular."

Ethanol is corrosive, and damages rubber and other engine parts. When it was introduced, motorists had major problems with engines that were not manufactured to allow the introduction of ethanol into the system, and seals leaked, and parts failed, necessitating expensive repairs. Lawnmowers, chainsaws, garden and landscaping equipment, outboard motors and marine engines suffered damage because of the ethanol blend. Now they have been re-designed to run with the current 10% ethanol, but not any greater percentage! But hold on...our government is allowing even more to flow into your tank!

On October 13, the EPA allowed an increase in the amount of ethanol in your fuel from 10% to 15%. The automakers, as well as 38 other groups, including environmental and others asked for congressional hearings, but were waved off and the EPA simply went through with the okay.

Does increased use of ethanol reduce dependence on foreign oil? Hell no! In the ten year period between 1999 and 2009, U.S. ethanol production increased from approximately 100,000 barrels per day to over 700,000 barrels per day. During that same time frame, our oil imports actually increased in excess of what the ethanol production was! I have heard that during the same time period, US oil exports doubled to 2 million barrels per day. That's amazing. We import more as demand grows yet we still export oil? And then provide 7 billion of dollars in farm subsidies to grow corn for ethanol to provide fuel we don't need? Ethanol production levels obviously have had had no apparent effect on oil imports or consumption.

What about pollution? The EPA admitted back in 2007 that increased use of ethanol in gasoline would increase emissions of key air pollutants, including volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides, by as much as 7 percent. On October 20, the agency again acknowledged that more ethanol consumption will mean higher emissions of key pollutants.

On a personal note, we had a gasohol station in Florida that dispensed this wondrous concoction to the public without warning of the consequences of use. Seems that someone, somewhere, believed that high ethanol concentrations would be fine in cars. Much like a physician failing to warn you of the dire consequences of a new prescription, vehicles quickly stopped running as fuel filters clogged, rubber gaskets started leaking, carburetors became inoperative and the local repair shops were overwhelmed with repairs. Seems the gasohol was a poor fuel, but a wonderful solvent that ate everything in sight! It scoured the gas tanks so clean that all the gunk was dissolved into the fuel lines and clogged the filters. Either you had to drain the tank of 20 gallons of gas, or change the filters numerous times until all the gunk was out of the tank and lines. Then the gaskets in the carburetors needed changing, the rubber gas lines from tank to steel lines needed replacing, any under hood rubber lines containing fuel needed replacement. Lots of dollars lost here. And the gasohol station? It became a no-name regular fuel station quickly no longer selling gasohol. The end of the corn fuel history in my area.

Bend over, folks. That corn cob isn't done with you yet! The increased percentages of ethanol will obviously create problems for your cars and other power equipment. The bad noises you hear from under your hood are just your cars way of telling you that those people in Washington don't have your welfare at heart, unless you're on welfare that is. The noises will get louder and no, you can't take the repair bills off on your taxes either. Thank the EPA and the current administration for that.

The Elections Are Almost...Over..Will the Trash Be Picked Up?

Every time we have elections, the candidates seem to think the more paper, and card stock signs they can plant all over, the better chances they have of being elected. Well, frankly, I don't see it that way. I see it as a blight on the streets of America and a mess that is seldom cleaned up immediately after election day.

For example, several days ago, I was driving on beautiful Pacific Coast Highway in Carlsbad, California when all of a sudden there was a blight of signs. They were blocking the view of traffic coming down a particularly bad intersection, where one road enters another. The signs were literally one on top of the other, as each candidates helpers jammed their sign as close to the other candidates sign, either to block it from view, or to get as much view for their own as possible. Take your pick, but what really occurred is they blocked the motorists' view, and created a traffic hazard! In about a half mile stretch of that beautiful road were hundreds of signs for candidates. It's almost as if one sign is planted and others grow up immediately along side of it!

On fences, on sticks, posts, poles, walls, anywhere they can be fastened, it seems they show up. On lawns and trees (if they don't get caught) and even attached to homes, the signs stare out hoping you'll vote for some candidate for a particular office, many of whom you have never heard of before. Or whom you have already passed over in the voter guide. Or whom you now wish you had never heard of, perhaps!

Then comes the election. And it's over. And the signs remain, although it's now illegal and subject to fines if the signs are nor removed within a certain number of days following election. But what happens? It seems the energy of the campaigns becomes drained and people now don't have the energy to go around and remove all the signs. Or don't remember where the last hundred or so signs were placed. And so, since it's illegal to remove another person's signs, they remain as a blight, and you curse the winner or loser, as the case may be, until the winds and rains wash away the vestiges of yet another election.

And you wonder why Election Day is so close to Halloween? Hmm...just watch the ads, the lies, the half-truths, the smears, the innuendos and how the candidates act, and you can see why some intelligent soul decided that placing it close to a day that commemorates the dead was such a good idea! Spooky to say the least!

Delta In-Flight Entertainment...NOT

On a recent Delta Airlines flight from Minneapolis to San Diego, passengers were treated to a new type of in-flight entertainment. Well, not actually new, since the silent pictures preceded the talkies for many years.

Problem here was that for a three hour and six minute flight, there were no headsets handed out either because the airline didn't stock them for the flight, or as the flight attendant noted, some aisles didn't have connections for the headsets. WTF? So if some couldn't listen, the idea would then be to have the rest of the almost 200 passengers look blankly at the pop-down screens in silence because we also could not listen, although our rows worked? For three long hours the screens showed what appeared to be television programming of some sort in silence.

Of course, this was aboard a MD-90 jet where many of the passengers were too busy trying to get warm or cool, depending on the moment, since those aircraft are notoriously horrible for maintaining decent cabin temperature levels. That has been the case since the DC9-31 and 51 series of which the MD-80 and MD-90 are variants, and simply newer models in my opinion.

Strangely enough, there was a gate change for this flight and when on board, the flight attendants began making excuses for the lack of luggage space on the plane, saying it was because of the gate change, etc. What the hell does a gate change have to do with a change in luggage space? It's the same type plane and the same seat numbers and seat configuration we booked 5 weeks before! It's absurd to think that moving a plane between gates somehow changes the luggage space! So passengers had no place for their luggage and it took extra time to depart because bags had to be checked. I do have to say the plane arrived on time.

Speaking of seats, our seats were not the correct seats for their placement in the plane. They had trays that swung out of the arms and we were not in exit rows or in the first row of the cabin. The center heavy metal trim piece was loose and hanging and could be lifted off; great in an emergency to have flying loose in the cabin.

It's always good to be on solid ground, better to be off anything that resembles a DC-9 and sadly, glad not to be flying Delta, whom I used to fly so regularly. Comparing the outbound trip via United to the inbound via Delta was like day and night. And I sure saw the light in this trip!

What's Wrong with Rental Cars...

I recently flew to the east coast and had the displeasure of renting a car. Hell, it's just one of those things you just have to do if you don't want to walk or take a bus, taxi or whatever. And for most of us who fly into an airport (where else do you fly into?) you're stuck out in the middle of BFE and need a car to get around, especially if you're not just going to a local hotel or a meeting, etc.

In many years of renting cars, it seems they tend to be in three categories. Good, bad or horrible. Not much else to describe them anymore. The service you receive when making the reservation would lead you to believe you're going to receive a great car and great service. Don't believe it. If you reserve a Ford Fusion, you might get a Nissan Maxima. If you're told you'll get a new car, you might get one with almost 20,000 miles on it. Think it will look good when you pick it up? Guess again. Most of the cars I've received over the past years needed a better wash, had dings and scratches and were not very presentable. Good Lord, the US rental cars are starting to look as bad as the Yaris from Ireland that went through the thickets with each driver, and they thought the long lines of scratches on both sides were normal!

Some examples of really crappy cars, and service:

• A Ford Taurus where the tire went flat within a mile from the airport. I had to change the tire in a thunderstorm (no cell service) and the rental car company refused to swap the car for another one and wanted me to drive hundreds of miles on the spare "donut" tire! (Not allowed in any case...it's a TEMPORARY spare) I had to call their home office to get them to agree to swap the car out for another one.
• An Oldsmobile with a huge dent in the side and when I walked to the other side, the tire was already flat, yet they rented it to me anyway. That entailed another 60 minute wait to get another car, since they were low on vehicles and had to wait for a car to be returned.
• A Dodge with a dead battery within several hours after I rented it. The rental company insisted I must have left the headlights on. It was bright daylight and the headlights were not on. They would not deliver another car and pick up this one or at least jump start it; I had to ride the light rail back to the airport, take the shuttle to the rental pickup, and pick up another car while they sent a tow truck for the dead vehicle. Cost me a half day of work.
• A Ford Taurus that the steering wheel locked up on when you made a turn. It was defective so every time you turned a corner, the steering wheel would not release and you had to force it to come straight. Rental car company wanted me to keep driving it, but to drive slow! Really bright!

And those are only the really bad ones I can think of off hand. The latest one was just a piece of junk. A 2010 Nissan Altima with over 17,000 miles on it already, scratched, gouged, front end road rashed, and dirty. The positives were that it had comfortable seats and a big trunk.

Add to the cars that are sub-par, the staff at many of the rental places, and the entire experience is less than ideal. Some are actually surly, and on the latest rental, the attendant at the exit, who simply checks your contract to be sure you're not stealing the crappy car, wouldn't lift his ass off the seat to provide assistance. Yet the rental companies send you thank you e-mails? Send me a survey and let me tell you what I really think of your service!

Folks, that's one of the problems in America today. Service industries forget what the word service means. They can't figure out why people quit using their "service" and go somewhere else because they didn't provide the service they promised. But the big issue is that so many have defaulted on providing a level of service commensurate with what they charge, and promise, that the public doesn't know where to turn anymore. And that loss of public confidence starts a downward spiral that's hard to recover from. Factually, some companies don't deserve to recover at all.

Home Depot Comes Through in the Clinch!

First off, we had nine vinyl replacement windows windows installed by Home Depot's THD at Home Services. Five of the nine windows were wrong. The installation was beautiful...the windows themselves were made wrong; wrong glass, wrong coating, etc. Visually and cosmetically, the windows were beautiful. Functionally, they worked well; just that they did not meet the specifications of the original contract, nor did they meet the IRS Tax Credit program.

THD at Home Services offered to make nine all new windows, but my spouse was adamant that the east side of our home was not going to be pulled apart again. The windows on that side did meet the energy standards, just not the glass coating we expected to receive. I acceded to her wishes and those four windows remained in place.

Home Depot ordered new windows to replace the other five windows. And ordered them again, and again; the windows that came in still were wrong. Finally, the fifth set of windows, counting the ones already in place, met the requirements and were ready for installation.

The same crew came out and tore out the existing new windows and installed the correct ones. Excellent workmanship again. I have to say that Home Depot has high quality personnel on their subcontractor crews and although this was the first crew we dealt with, we were to be pleasantly surprised again in the future, with additional THD work.

We had discussed purchasing two sliding patio doors and THD offered to discount the doors in return for all the trouble and problems we had with the windows. We chose the French Style doors with the wide frames and internal grids, or mullions, to match the windows in the house, and they turned out perfect. In addition, the installation crew, a different one than did the windows, did an excellent installation job on the doors as well.

So, Home Depot truly stepped up to the plate, and made a significant effort to make things right. It gives a very positive impression of their ability to cut through the red tape and get things done. Sure, it took some time. Yes, we did complain. Yes, we did make inquiries to the manufacturer of the glass and the windows. But actually, in essence, the real culprit in making the windows wrong lies with the manufacturer, since Home Depot sells them and installs them, counting on the manufacturer to make the windows and doors that meet their specifications. If any blame for the original windows and doors lies with THD, it was not checking them before they were even brought to us for installation.

Does the salesman "puff" the product a bit? Maybe? Are the brochures out of date, and do the brochures confuse the buyer some? Maybe. But in the final analysis, did Home Depot make it right? Absolutely!

Making an Ash Out of Yourself…and others too

It’s around 7:41 AM on Thursday, September 9, 2010 and you’re driving south on Interstate 5, between La Costa Avenue and Leucadia Boulevard in your blue Mazda Protégé. Driving down the freeway, you’re obviously very interested in the cigarette you’re smoking, more than public safety, as you mindlessly continue flicking your cigarette ashes out of the open car window. After all, you wouldn’t want those stinking, dirty things in your car, even though they’re filling your body with tar, nicotine and about a hundred or more carcinogens that are roasting your lungs just as surely as a barbecue at the beach.

As you near the end of that cigarette, you take one last puff and flick it out the window. It bounces a few times, sparking, and rolls to the edge of the highway, near the unburned vegetation. Yes, the same type vegetation that you can remember we were still trying to extinguish over a week after the most devastating wildfires in San Diego County and California history. But, obviously, you don’t care much about the losses and suffering other people have endured, the toll on humans and animals, property, and the huge costs involved in fighting the fires, nor the huge task in rebuilding. Because you just tossed that lighted cigarette out the window without a second thought to what it could do to our lives and our community. You

How do I know this? Because I was the one behind you who watched your callus act and took down your vehicle description and license plate number. You see, I was a fire and accident investigator most of my working life, and I saw the results of what irresponsible people like you did to others and to our communities. Your act is a misdemeanor under California Code, as follows: CA Vehicle Code Section 23111 - No person in any vehicle and no pedestrian shall throw or discharge from or upon any road or highway or adjoining area, public or private, any lighted or nonlighted cigarette, cigar, match, or any flaming or glowing substance. A fine may be assessed up to $1000 for the first offense, which, in my opinion, is not nearly enough; given the current circumstances we face in this county and all of this state!

If you want to make an ash out of yourself, stay home and do so. You can make your own decision to smoke and discard those cigarette butts all over your living room or bedroom or wherever you like. If you don’t have the common sense or decency to use an ashtray, then it will be your home and family that suffers, not the rest of the community.

Maybe the moral here is simple. Just like drinking, if you can’t smoke responsibly, you shouldn’t drive while smoking. Stay home.

FedEx Smart Post ... Not All That Smart for the Customer

Businesses looking to save a few bucks on shipping, while not passing on those savings to the consumer in many cases, are using a service called FedEx Smart Post. This is a service where the shipper sends out the package with FedEx, and then it gets handed off somewhere down the line to the US Postal Service for delivery to your home.

Problem here is that the packages take an inordinate time for delivery. Considering a package coming from the east coast to California, it's not the usual Postal Service delivery time of five to seven days for Parcel Post, not the usual two to three days for Priority Mail, not the usual 5 days for FedEx Ground, not even the usual 7 days for UPS. It's 10 days for Smart Post! And to me, that's Stupid Post at best!

Maybe smart for the shipper, but stupid for the consumer who's waiting for a product. And, in most cases, you don't know your product is being shipped by this system, as the seller tells you it's being shipped FedEx! And you think you're getting a FedEx package with reliable FedEx service. and you're not. You lose the reliability of FedEx and the reliability of the Postal Service all at once.

And, when things get lost, you're really screwed. Because that's when nobody seems to know where the package got ripped, torn or damaged or where the pieces went missing, and the finger pointing starts. I was fortunate the last time and the Post Office found the item later in a bin after the package had been decimated through handling. But by whom? Who knows. Luckily my description was so good they could identify the item and since it was literally one of a kind, I was able to claim it.

So, be aware. When you order FedEx, you may not be getting FedEx service to your door. And, sellers like X10.com don't tell you that it's not really FedEx until you get your shipping info much later. Then it's too late because your order has already been shipped by the slowest method I know of, other than by walking it across America. Even bus service is faster than this!

Agent Orange ... Too Little, Too Late, Too Bad

Finally, after about 50 years, the government is finally bucking up and taking responsibility for the illnesses that came calling on veterans, as a result of the herbicide and defoliant, Agent Orange. Known as AO by most, it was so called for the orange bands around the fifty-five gallon drums containing the mixture, that was sprayed as a defoliant over the vegetation in South Vietnam during the war. Most was sprayed during Operation Ranch Hand using C-123 aircraft, although a significant amount was sprayed using helicopters as well. Millions of gallons of herbicides of various kinds were sprayed, 21 million gallons alone attributed to Agent Orange.

Oh, there were many other sprayings and releases of this super toxin in the world, and right here in the U.S., but the ones we remember most were those associated with Vietnam. The ones where the droplets fell from the sky like rain, where men slogged through the residue, where ships and patrol boat decks were covered with the mist, yet the government said it never was sprayed in those areas, not at that time, and every excuse to avoid rightfully owning up to the misery caused by this deadly chemical.

Only recently, after lawsuit after lawsuit and delay after delay, has the Veterans Administration stepped up to the plate (more like being bulldozed to the plate according to most) and accepted that so many illnesses are associated with this chemical. Not only to the veterans themselves, but to their children, and perhaps to their children's children. Not to even mention what this did to the people in the country we were trying to bring a sense of democracy to.

Sadly, many who were affected by the ravages of Agent Orange never lived to see any benefits. They died from cancers and other maladies foisted on them by the insidious diseases that this chemical brought. Never expected it, most figured it was probably something they got in Vietnam, since so many were ill. Service in Vietnam was the common denominator. But the government said no, and after all, would the government lie and withhold the truth from our men and women who fought for our country? I want to laugh and cry at the same time when i ask that question. Seems they always have and it seems they always will to cover their collective asses.

Spina Bifida, where the spine of the fetus fails to close during the developmental stages of pregnancy has been shown to be an effect on the unborn children where either parent served in Vietnam or in some cases, Korea, where herbicides were also used in the late 60's to early 70's. The long term effects of spina bifida include care far beyond the formative years, often resulting in permanent physical defects, including paralysis and inability to control bladder and bowel functions. There are also about eighteen other birth defects presently recognized as resultant to Agent Orange exposure by women veterans.

There are over a dozen diseases associated with exposure to AO currently listed by the VA. This does NOT mean that because one has one of these diseases that it was AO caused, but there is now a presumption that if you were in Vietnam during the war, that you were exposed. The old "boots on ground" theory is gone so those on ships and patrol boats can now make claims for the benefits they are rightfully entitled to if their conditions are Agent Orange related.

I'm certainly not anti-war. Guess as I age, I'm just anti-death and destruction when you don't expect it because it's insidious. Much like the current warriors, and the Gulf War syndrome, and the Depleted Uranium issues that nobody gave lots of thought to until after the fact. WTF? Uranium not being a problem? And we pay scientists to figure these things out before the fact? Good Lord!

I am including some links below, and I want to warn you, some of the photos are not nice. They are horrible in fact. Don't look at them if you are squeamish. And, these are not even the worst of the lot. You won't find veterans there, but what we left behind as an unfortunate legacy of war. Yes, many veterans suffer horribly from what this chemical caused, as do their families. Yet the pain that is suffered by others seems to make ours pale in comparison. I suppose that's because those who remained continued to have exposures unabated for so long.

We didn't condone chemical warfare, nor do we now. Yet our children, and the children of those we tried to bring a better life to, are now paying the price, for trying to spread democracy across the treetops of their country. A sad legacy for everyone.

Courtesy of Phillip Jones Griffiths: http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0401/pjg_thumbs.html

http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/agentorange/chi-091204-vietnam-agent-orange-pictures,0,4281985.photogallery

http://www.whale.to/b/nguyen.html

Rebates Redux ... Cuisinart this time

Once again, I've been bit by the rebate vampires. Bit right on the keester when I counted upon a reputable, or what I thought was reputable, company to honor a rebate on a product I purchased.

On March 19 I purchased a new Cuisinart coffee maker through from an Amazon.com with a $10 rebate. The coffee maker was received on March 25, and the same day I completed the requisite rebate form, cut the UPC from the box, and sent it, along with the original sales invoice to the address for Cuisinart Rebates in Douglas, AZ, aka Promotion Fulfillment Center, a division of Blue Monde LLC, with the website Rewardsbymail.com.

After waiting three and a half months, I checked the website and find my rebate was denied. I sent them an e-mail and all they could tell me was that it was invalid. Nobody could tell me why it was invalid, but that it just was invalid. Nobody contacted me by e-mail or phone, although they had both contacts on the rebate form. Why do they want those contacts? Probably to sell the names and numbers like most do for profit! A Shalonda stated they must have sent me a postcard but I sure never received anything.

Frankly, I think these rebate companies process the rebates and stick the money in their own pockets OR they make a profit by denying the rebate and get a bigger cut from the manufacturer when they don't give anything back. That makes so much sense it's nauseating.

To compound things even more, several contacts with Cuisinart, a division of Conair (sounds like the people who transport prisoners, huh?) were to no avail. They could do absolutely nothing and told me to contact the rebate company. WTF? I told them I already did that and they were no help. The next contact was to tell me that they considered every customer a pleased customer and were sorry I wasn't one of them. LOLOL. What a bunch of morons. Certainly I'm not pleased. You just screwed me out of ten bucks.

It's not the ten dollars that really matters. That's a couple of salads at Jack-in-the Box for God's sake or a couple of Carl's Jr. Burgers. It's the principle. A manufacturer lures you into purchasing their product by offering you a rebate and then, after you do so, they renege on the rebate and you find you paid more than you were willing to pay in the first place. In this instance, I settled for the black chrome model rather than the Stainless Steel because the rebate made it such a good deal. Whoops...bit by the rebate vampires again. Gawd, an imported product besides.

I'm boycotting Cuisinart and Conair. Plus, I'm suggesting we send a message to manufacturers:

Don't buy products with a rebate. There is absolutely no reason they can't do like Costco and give you an "instant rebate" at the point of sale. Let the merchant hassle with the manufacturer if they want your business.

If enough people say no to rebates, prices will either drop, or instant rebates will become the norm, and put these rebate scams out of business.

JUST SAY NO TO REBATES!

NOAA, Hurricanes and the Spill

Strangely enough, about a week after I posted about the Gulf Oil Spill and the potential for disaster from a hurricane, NOAA, which is of course a government agency, published an article on the same issue. What I find really strange is that they say the exact opposite, but in many ways couch their statements with wording that leads me to believe they are just trying to soothe say the entire issue. Just like BP and the government has been doing about the entire oil spill.

Here's NOAA's statement on oil in the rain from a hurricane:

"Will there be oil in the rain related to a hurricane?
• No. Hurricanes draw water vapor from a large area, much larger than the area covered by oil, and rain is produced in clouds circulating the hurricane.

NOAA tries to tell us that a hurricane won't be influenced by the oil because it picks up water from a bigger area. Sure. Are they trying to say it won't pick up the oil laden water too? They say the water from a hurricane is produced in the clouds. For God's sake, man. The water in the clouds is picked up from the water's surface, and that will contain oil! And these people are scientists trying to feed us this this crap? Do they think we're all that stupid that we can't see the illogic in what they're saying here?

Sadly, I used to have a lot of faith in NOAA, and think highly of their ability to function independently of the charlatans and shifters in Washington. This changes things for me. I don't know about you, but it sure makes me suspicious of their statements and seems they must be just as much willing to sacrifice credibility as anyone else in that bunch, to help dismiss what could happen before many weeks or months pass.

Gulf Oil Spill... What Nobody's Talking About!

Several points nobody seems to have thought about...the first hurricane of the season that enters the Gulf of Mexico may become more powerful than ever expected, due to the oil on the water. The oil will block the natural release of heat from the water into the atmosphere during the nightly cooling cycle, and retain the heat in the water. Hurricanes feed upon heat and just a few degrees of water temperature increase may have a tremendous increase in the power of a hurricane. That has been a concern in past hurricane forecasting; wonder why nobody has been thinking of that here?

There has been talk about the oil being driven onto beaches and roads near the coast in the event of hurricanes or severe storms. But, nobody seems to have given thought to the fact that a hurricane picking up the oil laden water will drive it far inland mixed with rain, and as the water evaporates, will leave the oil as a combustible layer on everything it touches, severely raising the fire potential. Vegetation and frame dwellings will become highly combustible and any fire, unless immediately quelled, may lead to a conflagration of immeasurable proportion, one that could make the California wildfires look tame in comparison. And perhaps in highly populated areas as well!

Sometimes I think the government wants to assure we're treated like mushrooms. Kept in the dark and fed lots of bull crap. In that manner you get the Alfred E. Newman syndrome and don't worry about what might happen. Same with the gusher. Most have never been apprised of the really catastrophic potentials if this thing goes further sideways than it is. As bad as it is now, it's nothing compared to what could happen if they fracture the cap on that deposit. How about the other plumes that BP and the government don't seem to be talking about or accounting for? Are they other leaks from the same deposit? How bad did the release of "toxic dispersants" foul the Gulf waters when it broke down the oil into smaller particles, and how will that be cleaned up? Or will it simply poison the food chain as it slowly makes its way through the layers of the Gulf? Why does the Department of Energy contradict the government's own engineers and scientists when it comes to the amounts flowing into the Gulf? And contradict civilian scientists and engineers also? Because they don't want anyone to know the true scope of what's happening and how bad it really is.

The "light ahead" that Obama sees may well be the headlight of a runaway locomotive that's coming out of the tunnel headed our way, or it may be the fickle flame starting to ignite a 25,000 PSI gas and oil explosion that will be unlike anything we've ever seen on this earth.

We can all hope and pray that the light is nothing more than the click of a Zippo lighter as someone relaxes and lights up a Lucky Strike, saying the problem is solved. That would be a relief to every American, no matter where you live, and to the world too.

BP Louisiana Gulf Oil Spill

The following comment was on Yahoo regarding the amount of oil flowing at a rate much higher that the figures given. It was published today, June 10 and was credited to a writer who used the handle Exxon1. I tried to contact them to assure they were the originator but was unsuccessful. In the interest of scientific information, I wanted to share this viewpoint, whether it is all too real or just conjecture. At least we know it's not being mouthed by BP or the government, so we can remove those lies from the mix.

Exxon1

"WARNING: DEPRESSING Not to scare anyone, but from someone familiar with spills like DH, including the magnesium blocks and risers, this is the way I see it. First, the problem started when an axial drill bit system was moved while the seal was in a ''closed'' position. This damaged the rubber seal and pieces of that seal came to the top in the mud used for drilling. When the engineers saw that, the tested the blowout preventer with a pressure test. OK, no problem, but the test they used was based on a 1960's patent using an algorithm that never though humans could drill 5,000 feet underwater. Took 8 hours for pressures to equalize, BP rushed everything, and the top blew off. Whooops.

They go out where the ocean is about 5,000 feet deep and drill another 18,000 feet into the crust of the earth. This it right on the edge of what human technology can do. Well, this time they hit a pocket of oil at such high pressure that it shot up through several seals and barriers before exploding, causing the rig to sink. Take a moment to grasp the import of that. The pressure behind this oil is so high that it destroyed the maximum effort of human science to contain it. Pressure estimates are 15,000 psi for the BOP and 21 inch riser. Some speculate the pressure in the area where they dilled (Mississippi Block 252 aka Macondo Prospect) could be a multiple of 10x, incredible pressure that can move about anything on earth. This is a HUGE deposit, Natural Gas and Oil is leaking out of the deposit as far inland as Central Alabama and way over into Florida and even over to Louisiana almost as far as Texas. If things break apart, it could be like the Yellowstone Caldera, except from below a mile of sea, with a 1/4-mile opening, with up to 150,000 psi of oil and natural gas behind it.

That would be an extinction event.

A junk shot or similar mud/heavy cement measure might bust open additional weaknesses they don't know about (or blow the thing wide open), hence their attempt to x-ray the remaining visible pipe before attempting the next "guess." Even the "relief" well is not a sure thing, that's why BP is drilling TWO reliefs in case the 1st doesn't work. Some countries require 4 relief wells.

Matthew Simmons told Dylan Ratigan that "there's another leak, much bigger, 5 to 6 miles away" from the leaking riser and blowout preventer which we've all been watching on the underwater cameras. Was this bigger leak caused by destruction of the well casing, or caused by some opening of a larger natural "fracture" oil seep? This might explain the strange red plumes of oil a few hundred feet under the surface.

For the relief well to succeed, the bore hole must precisely intersect the damaged well. If it misses, BP will have to back up its drill, plug the hole it just created, and try again.

If we can't cap that hole that oil is going to destroy the oceans of the world. It only takes one quart of motor oil to make 250,000 gallons of ocean water toxic to wildlife. Not toxic to whales, but the smaller organisms that begin the food chain. Are you starting to get the magnitude of this?

Imagine what happens if that oil keeps flowing until it destroys all life in the oceans of this planet. Who knows how big of a reservoir of oil is down there.

Not to mention that the oceans are critical to maintaining the proper oxygen level in the atmosphere for human life.

The only piece of human technology that might address this is a small nuclear bomb. I'm not kidding. Google "russian nuke oil spill" I pray the 1st relief well works in August! By then the Gulf will be black, but hopefully the east coast can be saved. If they put a nuke down there in the right spot it might seal up the hole. However, the nukes worked to seal the oil channel from a LAND rig, it's never been tried under 5000 ft of pressure on a sandy bottom, but still, nothing short of that will work."

Again, this is NOT my scenario or my scientific opinion, but I did find it interesting in any event. Scary as hell, but interesting. I'd love to hear from factual, actual scientists with opinions on this. The nuke theory is unnerving to say the least. If it went wrong....

Rocks, Guns and Crossing No Man's Land

No, I'm not happy that two Mexican nationals were killed crossing into the United States illegally. I believe anyone who would find joy in the death of another human being is deeply disturbed, regardless of whether that death is justified or not.

That's not the point here. The issue is that once again, we have a border war. A war by people who think it's okay to propel rocks and create a dangerous situation for our Border Patrol officers, and then decry the situation when the Border Patrol reacts to protect themselves. Other situations when people attempt to cross illegally into the US and resist apprehension and arrest, turn violent and are subdued by whatever means, and then die, it's never a good thing for anyone. But in the final analysis, it's not the Border Patrol's fault.

Nobody gave the right for people to throw rocks at the officers and try to injure them. An intelligent person wouldn't be with a group of people doing so. Not much different than a crowd of rioters who suddenly are swept up in a police rush and someone gets injured or killed. There are always those who say they were not rioting, just bystanders. In my opinion, if you're not part of the crowd, then you don't belong in the crowd!

If a person attempts to enter the country illegally and is caught, they simply submit to arrest and detention. Seems like many thousands do that each year from what records I have viewed. Yet when a person resists arrest and tries to avoid legal detention, and fights with officers, they place themselves at risk of harm. Yes, of being Tasered or perhaps worse. And, if they have an underlying medical condition, even death, as the recent unfortunate case in San Diego shows. But, it was the illegal border crossers' fault, not the officer who tased him. Because the initiation of the illegal act of crossing the border, compounded by resisting arrest, made it necessary to initiate force in subduing the subject.

I do understand this person was illegally living in the US for 20 years, was deported and was illegally coming back in again. The shame is that our system is so screwed up that he wasn't caught 20 years ago, and permanently deported before having a bunch of children that are now fatherless. Had the system worked as it should have, this would never have played out as it has, and this man would likely still be living south of the border. So, in a way, our system of failed immigration policies that are so politically oriented and wishy-washy, that fails to apprehend illegals, is more responsible for this situation than any Border Patrol action.

Yet we hear the Mexican president whining about rights being violated. What audacity this person has to judge anything when he can't effectively run his own country! When Americans die in Mexico we don't hear him whine about it. He can't control the violence that saturates his own country, yet he has the balls to complain about how we handle illegals, and attacks on our own people in our own country? He can't fix his own country's problems, and that's why the Mexican citizens want to get the hell out!

Do I blame the Mexican people for wanting out? No! I blame the government there for not fixing the problems that drives their own people out of their own country. Does anyone think for a minute that if the people in Mexico could make a decent wage, and have a decent home for their family, and live in safety within their own country, that they would be headed north? No. But that won't happen as long as corruption remains king and the government points their finger north for the blame.

Just remember, when you point a finger, 4 more are pointed back at the real problem in your own front yard!

THE Oil Spill

It's been a month and the undersea gusher continues. As the oil fouls everything seen and unseen, the anger grows at the destruction of not only wildlife and sensitive marshland and coastline, but of peoples' livelihoods. Now and for the foreseeable future.

What happened here wasn't a simple "oops" in a mechanical failure. According to all accounts, it was management exercising its usual "screw your rational judgment...do as I say at all possible costs" pressure on a drilling operation. The drilling crew knew the high potential that removal of the heavy drilling fluid would allow gas and oil to escape from the well. They also hoped the "pinchers" referring supposedly to the "blowout preventer" would work in the case of an emergency. As we know, it didn't. In the ensuing failure, 11 lives were lost and the worst ecological failure of an oil company property came to be.

Add to this debacle the missed inspections by the Minerals Management Service, the Federal agency that was supposed to safeguard lives and the environment on this and all oil rigs. 12 missed inspections out of 60 so we are told? Sounds like what happens in mines when MSHA doesn't do its job and a mine explodes killing numerous miners. They either inspect too infrequently, or cite the mines and allow the citations to be contested forever, while the safety violations go unabated! Then we have OSHA which allows some of the states to handle some of their inspections and I don't even want to go down that road with what I have witnessed personally.

Obama is making more trips to the Gulf region as the beaches become fouled and the summer tourist season gets into full swing. The jobs lost, the toll on the economy, the loss of livelihoods, damage and death to wildlife and wetlands will never be mitigated. He waited too long before jumping in with both feet and ordering the federal government to pour all necessary support into this catastrophe, without waiting to see if BP could solve its own problem.

Why don't we have a plan for such catastrophies? Why not have a warehouse full of oil eating microbes ready to ship out to places like this when disaster strikes? Why not have a pollution task force that can handle this? Where are the hundreds of oil skimmers and vacuum barges that should be descending on this from all over the globe? Like Katrina, this is a dollar short and a day late in execution by the government. Waiting until it's too late and hoping someone else will take care of it. Did contributions by big oil dull the response?

No, I'm not an environmental activist. I know we need the oil and energy, but we don't need to destroy out coastline and wildlife to do it. Nor do we need big oil to run the show while the most powerful government in the world sits on its hands wondering if this will turn out okay. Putting the Coast Guard in charge is fine except they have been hamstrung for decades with budget constraints on equipment. They should have had a fleet available for issues just such as this, if not their own, at their beck and call.

Watchful waiting is not the answer. Because, like some cancers, it grows beyond control and kills everything in its path before it can ever be stopped.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a time to take a few moments and reflect on the sacrifices that have been made by so many, and so often virtually forgotten by all but those they have left behind.

The grassy fields of Gettysburg, rows of crosses on a foreign land, rows of graves in the National Cemeteries, the names engraved on the granite walls, the plaques and memorials, the statues and emblems of wars gone by, and those still underway. What differs seems to be only the faces and the names; perhaps the name of the memorial, or the name of the war or action. And, the faces and names of the loved ones who mourn timelessly for those who sacrificed all for the country they loved.

Those of us who served alongside others who were killed in action, or who never returned, will never forget those brave and noble warriors. Even now, those who served in a conflict long over, Vietnam, are having their names added to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, known to most of us simply as "The Wall," having succumbed to wounds and injuries inflicted long ago.

So, on this Memorial Day, bow your heads and say a prayer for every fallen warrior who has allowed you to enjoy this day. Because without them, and those who follow in their silent footsteps, there would be no freedom for you to enjoy. And while you're at it, if you see a service man or woman, tell them "Thanks for your service." They deserve a big thank you.

And, finally, should you meet a veteran, tell them "Welcome Home." Many never got that when they returned, and it would mean a lot to them.

Have a safe and happy Memorial Day.

New Award!

I'd like to thank Laura at OurScented Cottage http://ourscentedcottage.blogspot.com/ for bestowing this great award on my site. It's much appreciated. I never think my site can hold a candle to hers, with her fine poetry, and ability to purvey the finest in recipes and homemade cures for just about everything under the sun, so her nomination is that much more special.

As time goes on, I'll be nominating some special sites to share this award with and post them right here on WWW in America.

The Joys of ...Car Washing!

How many of you can remember the old days when we washed our own cars? When only the well-to-do, those whom we considered the lazy, and of course, those who didn't care much about their cars, would subject them to the evils of the automatic car wash?

When a bucket of suds, a garden hose and a Saturday morning meant washing that American Iron, or even that little foreign car, with every inch carefully washed and wiped clean of dirt and grime. Then, for the lucky vehicle, there was the anointment with polish or wax. For those with muscle to spare, the Simoniz Wax job was the supreme gleaming effort, where taking the wax residue off was much harder than putting it on. Those who dared open that yellow can, and smear that concoction on their paint, were treated to a shine that seemed to last for months, or at least longer than the cheap and quick waxes and polishes on the market. Or, maybe it just seemed that way, because of all the hard work.

You knew every inch of your vehicle. Every tiny flaw, every scratch, ding and imperfection. The pride of ownership, the knowing that you personally had maintained the finish and put heart and soul into making it look its best. Same with the interior as you cleaned, vacuumed and polished. Especially important for those with a Saturday night date, or other important social schedule, such as cruising the car hops.

The "quarter car wash" came into being in the 1960's and it truly was a quarter. Not that you could wash and rinse your car for a quarter, but all it took was a quarter to get it started, and for fifty cents, you could get the winter salt off your car or at least the heavy grime. Sometimes your car became encased in a block of ice if you lived in the colder climes, but what the heck, it was a cleaner block of ice anyway! Many learned the trick of putting tape over the drivers' door keyhole so the door lock wouldn't freeze! (Remember, the only "remote" door locks was on de-chromed custom 1950's Mercs with solenoid buttons hidden in the rocker panels!)

The ubiquitous car wash that it seems everyone now uses seems so generic. What'll you have, brush or brushless? Car pummeled by plastic brushes, alleged soft cloths that just cleaned a muddy 4X4, or high pressure water that could peel the paint off an Army tank? Of is it the "hand wash" by a group of people that really don't care how clean your car is, who allow it to sit in the sun and water spot after it leaves the wash bay, haphazardly clean the windows, (don't even ask if they clean the window on the fastback or hatchback) and watch in horror as the dropped towel is again used to wipe the $50,000 vehicle in front of yours...or was that yours? All for a mere $12.00 including tip, with coupon.

No, thank you. Today I washed both our cars, and had a major appreciation for fine automotive craftsmanship. The flowing lines and the finish, several hair thin scratches that only show up in certain light, the location of each tiny rock chip that has been carefully touched up, and the appreciation of looking at the finished work and being pleased with the results. It took me back to my boyhood washing my first car, and all 38 cars since then. It's a pleasant tiredness when I wash and shine two cars in a morning, a feeling of satisfaction that still comes about after all these years.

I must confess that some have, shudder, gone through the car wash, due to circumstances which were unfortunately unpreventable. Such as the vehicle which had to be parked outside and under the pine trees, and saw the soft touch car wash often. But it was a work vehicle and I waxed it often and tried to use only one car wash, but the ravages of the wash still showed in the swirls in the paint.

A point to make about the washes with the plastic brushes is that the rough plastic brushes will actually strip the wax off your vehicle. It's like sanding the paint with a weed whacker with thousands of tips. I felt the outside of a vehicle after a wash and the paint actually felt rough, needing to be clayed and waxed again, only weeks after a thorough waxing. Not what you'd want to do to your finish!

There are some great automotive products out there to make your job easier and more enjoyable. I don't hawk labels, but the products from Griot's Garage fill my cabinets and not only do they work extremely well, but they back everything with a super guarantee. For wheel cleaner for factory wheels, however, I really like Hot Rims by Meguiars. Dissolves brake dust immediately, virtually no scrubbing and leaves wheels with a shine.

Happy Motoring...

Immigration...Thank You Arizona!

Way to go Arizona! If the US Government won't do what they are supposed to do, then the States must take action.

Yet, we see cities, and yes, school districts passing "resolutions" condemning Arizona's new law. Where in hell did they ever get the idea they have the right to condemn another state's laws? What balls! You want to know why San Diego Unified School District and others want so badly to see laws like Arizona's defeated? Because they will lose money! Sure! They get paid by the State and Federal governments to educate, feed and transport illegal alien kids while we, the taxpayers, foot the bills! The schools cut transportation schedules so our kids ride public buses that we pay taxes for, and pay for each and every ride too, and don't get don't get free school bus transportation, increase the requirements so our children don't get to participate in the free lunch program, and guess who gets all those freebies? You got it! The illegals. Hell, in some school districts, they actually come across the border for the free education and we have to teach them in Spanish at the expense of our education system and our own students!

Want to be mad as hell? Read the following:

"Every day along the 1,952-mile border, children from Mexico cross into the United States and attend public schools. No one keeps statistics on how many.

Citizenship isn't the issue for school officials; district residency is.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled illegal immigrants have a right to an education, so schools don't ask about immigration status. But citizens and illegal immigrants alike can't falsely claim residency in a school district.

Enforcement of residency requirements varies widely along the border. Some schools do little to verify where children live beyond checking leases or utility bills, while others dispatch officials to homes when suspicions are raised.

Jesus Gandara, superintendent of the Sweetwater district, with 44,000 students along San Diego's border with Mexico, said tracking children at the border goes too far. "If you do that, you're playing immigration agent," he said. "

Even more disturbing was the television interview yesterday with the girl who is an honor student, who admits she is an illegal alien, and who is protesting the Arizona Law. Here is a kid who appears to be about sixteen who should be sent back to Mexico, or wherever she comes from. Honor student or not, illegal is illegal. That doesn't give her or any other person the right to be here illegally.

What the hell do these people not understand about illegal. Is it the word that somehow loses something in translation in their language? Or is it because in their country nothing is illegal, so they think nothing is wrong with whatever they do, or wherever they go, and someone else should bear the consequences for their actions?

Wait...that's it! It's finally sunk in! To them there is no difference between legal and illegal. They have tons of kids without marriage, the hospital ER is the family doctor, they lavish their babies with gold jewelry but they can't afford medical care, drive cars without licenses and insurance, run away from accidents, but then want all the benefits afforded to legal US citizens. They then call us racist when we want them to go the hell back to wherever they came from because we don't want to support them!

It wouldn't matter where they came from. Mexico, Peru, Germany, Holland, Poland, Canada or anywhere else. If you didn't come here legally, don't let the door to my country hit you in the ass on your way out. And take your illegitimate kids with you! Oh, by the way, take that damned sign with the family running across the freeway with you too.

Medicare Cuts and the Reality of Medical Care

The truth about cutting doctors reimbursement from Medicare lies not simply in cutting money from the Federal budget. Not simply in allowing Obamacare to move money from a program for Seniors, into what has become a pork-barreled promissory note to senators and congressmen in a greedy grab for their votes. It's not about cutting doctors' salaries or the money that goes into their pockets. America, you need to wake up and see the big picture far beyond what this entails.
First, most doctors are not getting rich on Medicare money. Sure, some might have huge practices that specialize in the elderly patients and, yes, some might make a good living at it. But, far and large, most doctors do not make a lot of money on Medicare. Why? Because Medicare pays a set rate for everything that a doctor does. And that rate is lower than the "usual and customary" charges for the service. So, even with the patients co-pay, the doctor doesn't make as much as they normally would.

• Example: Doctor charges $120.00 for a "level 4 (lengthy)" office visit. Medicare allows only $65. Patient co-pay is $15. Total is $80. There is no "Balance Billing" allowed so the doctor is now out $40.

When Medicare reimbursement is cut, does anyone think that insurance reimbursement cuts will be far behind? Since many insurance companies now pay a percentage of Medicare reimbursement, such as $110% or 125%, in the above example the insurance company would either pay $71.50 or $81.25, still leaving the doctor short on payment.

• Leaping forward, cut those rates by the proposed 21% by the current Obamacare package as a way to jump start their health care reform package, and in the first example, the doctor is now out over an additional $13.00. If you don't think the big insurance companies, who have jacked up the rates on their policyholders, while making billions by their parent companies, will not cut reimbursement rates too, you're sadly mistaken. Because that's just what will happen.

Every year, the big insurance companies make deals with hospitals and large physician groups to accept contracts, to allow them to pay less for their policyholders bills, while the rates increase. Year after year, more and more medical groups and hospitals say NO to the insurers and won't buy into their deals, reducing the policyholders choices of plans and increasing their health care costs. Do you blame the hospital for not accepting ten cents on the dollar for treating the patient? Or is it the insurance company who pockets your premium, raises it every year whether you are ill or not, and still changes your benefits so that it costs you more out of pocket if you do get sick? Not hard where to place the blame here.

Doctors have a hard choice. Many have a large clientele of Medicare patients. But cut their income so much that they can't afford to continue with that type of practice and they say they'll have to stop accepting new Medicare patients or slowly clear their book of Medicare patients altogether. That's a sad commentary on Obamacare when they're telling America how they want to make things better for Americans yet in the process they could be screwing millions at the same time. A group of greedy myopics working with blinders on and hands out in Washington, caring not about the nations' Senior Citizens, or really anyone but themselves and their political future.

Speaking of doctors, has anyone ever figured out how much it costs to actually run an office? Nurses, physician's assistants, medical assistants, receptionists, medical records clerks, an administrator, office equipment, laboratory equipment and supplies, computers, medical equipment, medical supplies, medications, disposables, special sanitation, rent, utilities, paperwork and all the rest? The cost is actually staggering. Some new physicians actually fail to make money during the first several years in practice! Ever notice how many doctors join together as a group? Mostly because they share expenses, or they couldn't survive as a single practitioner? It's expensive!

So if anyone thinks it's a good thing to cut money from the local docs Medicare reimbursement, they need to think of where they might need to go when they have to see a doc when they're on Medicare, Tricare or any other similar product. And, you needn't be old and a "geezer" to be on Medicare either. If you're disabled, you could end up on Medicare in your 20's under Social Security Disability and find you have a long road to health...or to see a doctor too.

And, don't think you're in the clear if you're not on Medicare or a similar program. Because those big insurance companies have you in their cross-hairs too. And their finger is right on the trigger...

The Harsh Reality of Life, Death and Love

On Thursday, February 25, in the early afternoon hours, several thousand miles way, my beloved sister Fran passed on to another life. Her years of suffering through one affliction, and then another, suddenly lifted from her shoulders, as a yoke might be lifted from the shoulders of a burdened soul.

Quietly and without much notice, she was gone. Little time for all the family to gather and say all the things they might have wanted to say in those last moments. Yet, in this case, we had not wasted those moments when the important things could, or should, have been said. Those special words from the heart, spoken to the dearest and nearest of kin and soul, "I love you" were said often and repeated back, signs of heartfelt caring and love between family. In this case, between a brother and sister, who shared many magical moments in life, some from a continent apart, for over six decades.

Strange but little things come to mind, such as the first time I ate pizza. Fran brought it home one evening and the family sat and stared at the new food and slowly ate it. We all laughed at the shape and the strange taste, but it was a new adventure and Fran was like that, always an adventurer.

One of the last times we spoke, only several weeks ago, we laughed about her going to Bingo with our mother in Maine. Bingo was held in the hall above the fire station, and they played for sugar and bacon instead of money. It was a big night when someone came home with a grocery bag full of food items! Quite a memory for a couple of kids to hold on to all these years.

I watched my "big sister" grow up into a beautiful young woman who loved to ride horses, and would chide her about the "horse" smell of her Levis when she came home after a weekend of riding. Fran was more at home in a shirt and Levis than a dress, but when she got dressed up she was absolutely gorgeous. I remember her wedding to Rich, and how beautiful she was in her wedding gown. Somehow, at that moment, it appeared that she outgrew the jeans and shirts, although in truth, I think that jeans remained her favorite method of dress most of her life.

On March 2nd, the funeral service was beautiful, and God listened to our prayers that day for no more rain. The morning was rainy and windy with thunderstorms, but it cleared up and the sun shone for the services, and although it remained windy, and later cloudy, Fran was laid to rest near the river, close to the water she always loved, with friends and family there to say good bye.

Things will never be the same. I won't have the phone calls to look forward to, to chat, exchange jokes, or family stories, or simply just enjoy hearing her voice again. I won't be able to tell her how much I love her. But, there is one bright spot. She always knew how much I loved her, and I know how much she loved me. Because we never held back on telling each other every chance we got. Each and every conversation ended with "I Love You" and more, from the heart.

So, if you love someone, tell them. Don't let the opportunity pass by to say "I Love You" while you can. There may not be another chance today, tomorrow or ever. Time is a precious commodity and there is so little of it to share with those you love. The sadness of the passing of a loved one will become more bearable as the days pass, and along with it more joy in the knowledge that you knew you loved, and were loved in return, And said it well and often.

The Middle Class Becoming Poor

I've recently read accounts where the middle class working Americans, those who have supported those who never worked, have now suddenly and through no fault of their own, have become poor. And know what? The government turns their back on them!

That's right. The people who worked, paid taxes, paid for all those lazy bastards to sit on their asses and have illegitimate child after child, receive subsistence from state and federal agencies and free health care, are suddenly finding themselves with no lifelines or safety net when their lives go bad. It's not a black, or white, or any color issue, folks. This crosses every line you can think of. It's an AMERICAN ISSUE! It's happening to your fellow countrymen and women each and every day, and could happen to YOU! As one of my co-workers used to say when we saw a homeless person: "There but for a few paychecks go I." How very true!

One article was about a Nevada couple who both worked their whole lives; the man unfortunately tripped and fell and broke his back. Then a broken hip, skin cancer and the onset of dementia. Out of work and living on social security, his wife had to quit her job due to non-flexible hours, and take a low paying job to be home to take care of him. They lost their home, have no insurance, have nothing, yet the government says they're not poor. Don't qualify for food stamps or Medicaid. WTF? We support all these people with multiple illegitimate kids who never worked, and the illegals, yet an American who worked his whole life can't get help because he gets a meager Social Security check and his wife works for what amounts to fast food wages?

A woman from Mississippi worked her whole life and now has become disabled and living on a very meager $679 Social Security check plus $41 in food stamps. She has to decide which of her 15 prescription medications she can live without since state regulations limit Medicaid recipients to 5 low-cost prescriptions each month. By the Federal government's standards, this lady is living in poverty, and receiving aid, which she obviously needs. But in my estimation, it's clearly not enough! Why should she have to pick and choose what medications she has to live without?

It doesn't just happen to people on lower incomes. A Hollywood prop master making $100K a year ended up living in a trailer in a mobile home park Nevada after sickness wiped out his savings and cost him his home in a once affluent community in California. He stopped repairing his car and let the tags expire to save money; he sometimes overdraws is bank account to pay the utility bills, costing him large bank fees. According to the Federal government, he is not poor enough to get assistance.

A health care bill is not going to fix the inequities in our system. What will fix it is getting the politicians off the dime and stop paying welfare to those who are able bodied and can work, put them into public service jobs , limit the amount of time welfare is paid, limit the payment of welfare to one child per mother, and quit all the payments to illegal aliens for anything.

If an illegal has a child, bundle them both up and ship them back to the country of origin. Close the border tight and quit pandering to those who seem to have no consideration to the sovereignty of our country, and who think we should be the great provider for every other person on earth. If a politician thinks Mexico is so great, send them there and let them live there as an ordinary citizen for a year. Then come back and tell us how nice it is. If you want to spend money, make Mexico nicer for those living there so they want to stay, not come here and live off of us!

I understand the want for a better life and the "streets paved with gold" north of the border story. But it's not true, and life here isn't about making good for those making the trek north anymore. It's hard times for everyone and work isn't plentiful for immigrants. Americans are tired of bearing the burden of health care and welfare for so many illegals. We have enough problems with our own recession, and our government isn't taking care of our own people. The system is failing us, yet people still want the system to take care of them. Is it any wonder there is a deep resentment that continues to grow?

It's not racist. It's not anti-Hispanic. We'd feel the same, and do, about anyone who illegally comes here and mooches off our system. We feel the same about the generations of welfare recipients who perpetuate the same fraud upon the government by raising yet more generations of recipients. Unwed mothers who give birth to yet additional generations of welfare recipients, who do likewise and continue to pump out burdens on the public dole. It's an unending cycle that the government does absolutely nothing about.

Daycare in high school so the unwed pregnant teens don't drop out? And just where do you think most of them go or do after that? Have more kids and live off the system! Sure, there are some success stories and we laud those teens who do go on to bigger and better things. But listening to the multitudes of kids who are still teens or maybe twenty and on their third child or more, all with separate fathers who don't support any of the kids, makes me sick. Because we support the kids simply because they exist, and some dumb ass wasn't smart enough to keep her knees together!

Yet our disabled and elderly who worked their entire life can't get enough to live on when they're out of work and ill.

Shame on our government for failing the Americans who pay the bills.

Anthem Blue Cross - Greed or Need?

No, it's not the National Anthem, but one that you're less familiar with, unless you happen to need individual health insurance in many states. One of 800,000 policyholders in California for example. And what has this Blue Cross / Blue Shield company now named Anthem Blue Cross done now? Made an announcement that it will raise rates as much as 39% to some policyholders in California. And, perhaps raise rates more than once a year too!

Although Anthem's parent company, WellPoint made a 4.75 billion dollars profit in the last quarter of 2009, it seems they have lost millions on health care. Good Lord! I'd be willing to lose millions to make billions! Seems like a damned good trade off if you ask me. But then again, it seems greed has no boundaries where health insurance is concerned. Blue Cross also states their proposed rates reflect anticipated medical costs. Don't you wish you could ask that your salary reflect your anticipated living costs? It seems Anthem doesn't give a damn about your living costs at all, as long as they can nail you on your health care. To add insult to injury, the State of California estimates the rate hikes would affect 700,000 customers and average 25% with some as high as 39%.

The State of California has asked, and Anthem has agreed to postpone its rate hikes from March 1 until May 1 so the State can conduct an audit. Here's a link to the news story:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100213/ap_on_bi_ge/us_insurance_rates_wellpoint

The individual policies are purchased by people who are out of work and are no longer covered by employer policies. Many take relatively high deductible policies so they can afford the premiums, then when they become sick or injured, that have a big deductible of thousands of dollars to pay before Anthem pays a cent on their policy.

When people are forced to make a choice between the roof over their heads, food and insurance, it's a no-brainer that the insurance is dropped. Plus, if you feel well, maybe you believe you won't need the insurance coverage right now. Many out-of-work people can't afford the standard premiums and when they are increased, drop the coverage, adding to the huge pool of uninsured people that in the event of emergency the taxpayers somehow support, or that the medical providers and insurance companies, in their greed, will drive into bankruptcy. There are the two choices and I need not delineate who falls into either category.

A friend received a big increase on her policy premium, and when she asked what she could do about it, Anthem representatives suggested she "increase the deductible." She already has a $5000 deductible, so they suggest she consider $7500 or even $10,000 deductible to keep monthly premiums down. Pretty shrewd since they won't pay for her doctor visits, tests, or any procedures until she pays at least $7500 or $10,000 out of pocket first. And that's in addition to the high premium she already pays for coverage! And, don't even think that any deductible amount is all you will have to pay. On some policies, the "annual out of pocket limit" excludes the deductible, so you might have a $5000 deductible plus a $2500 out of pocket limit making your costs $7500 plus the cost of the policy, before you see any significant policy benefits.

Another ripoff, in my opinion, is the "calendar year" scam insurance companies pull. Purchase a policy in mid-year and if you become ill in any following year just before the policy year ends, they will tell you everything is based on the policy year which is 12 months. So some of your benefits are in the current policy year and some in the next, which boggles up your calculations when figuring out your actual deductible and out of pocket limits. Yet when January 1 rolls along, your deductible starts all over again, and your trips to the doctor and medications become your expenses until you reach that deductible and out of pocket plateau. The only benefit is that if you see a doctor or other provider who accepts your insurance, they have set fees for the insurance companies versus cash patients, and you pay only what the insurance company would pay.

I don't agree with the current administration ramming health care down the peoples' throats in the way it has been done. But we need some form of affordable health care for all Americans. There needs to be a way to take companies that abuse the trust of their subscribers, and make billions while doing it, and say, you're done. You'll not sell another policy until you prove you are not making money on the policies you are already holding. The states regulate the property-casualty and workers compensation and other insurance markets. Time to step in and lasso in these mavericks before they destroy the lives of more Americans with their greed and careless approach to human life. Because that's what health care is all about. Caring...for and about humans and their lives and their future. Corporate greed doesn't have a place in care.

Appliance Energy Rebates...Too Little Too Late

Once again, our illustrious government waste precious time and energy ramping up a program to get taxpayers to dump old, inefficient products, and purchase new, with the promise of government rebates to help them out. Or, better yet, should I say taxpayers who actually pay taxes helping pay for new cars, or in this case, appliances, for people who decide they need them, or maybe just want new ones.

The problem with the "Cash for Clunkers" program was that it didn't really accomplish anything but waste lots of taxpayer money. It's funny, actually, to find that many of the vehicles taken off the streets and ostensibly crushed, were replaced with vehicles that didn't get much better gas mileage. Lots of Ford F-150 trucks were sold in numerous configurations, as well as Chevrolet Silverado's . In fact, according to Edmunds.com, these two trucks were in the top ten vehicles purchased, including 4 wheel drive versions!

Now we have the big appliance rebate program for purchasing Energy Star rated appliances. But, instead of starting the program January 1st in all states, the Federal Government let the individual states decide when to start the program on their own turf. Thus, the start dates are all over the map. Some start in January, some as late as April. Kansas already ran out of money in January, as they used the money to give to low income families to offset purchases of energy efficient appliances. In fact, they gave vouchers of $800 for clothes washers to low income families...no wonder they ran out of money. There are lots of energy efficient clothes washers that don't cost $800 bucks!

Frankly, these programs become a disincentive to many people. What if your appliance truly breaks down before the rebate period? You're out of luck. No rebate for you. However, you can have your appliance fixed if you wish, and keep it running just long enough to slide into the rebate window, then go for the new one. Whether that works for you or not depends on the rebate, which again, isn't a constant across all states. Which makes no sense.

Speaking of clothes washers only, some states base the rebate on the energy savings of the machine, with several categories available.
Arizona for example offers either $125 or $200.
Connecticut is $100
Delaware is $75
Georgia is $50 or $99
Illinois offers a 1 week 15% markdown at point of sale and a $50 recycling mail-in rebate
Maine is about the lowest, offering only $50
Michigan is also in that $50 category
Minnesota is offering $200
Texas offers $150 or $180 plus a $75 recycling rebate as well = $225 or $255
Oregon is using this to provide new residential heating systems to low income families
Rhode Island's site excludes clothes washers at this time; nothing about rebates for them.
Washington is $100

Plus, the other requirements for a rebate are somewhat asinine as well. For example:

Alaska: Only for Alaskans with disabilities. Further enhanced if in a rural area. WTF??

Here's the site so you can look for yourself.

http://www.energysavers.gov/financial/70022.html

Another fiasco where the people get little and some bureaucracy gets bigger and bigger building more and more government and in the name of a green earth. Not that a green earth is at all bad...but when you add in all the delivery trucks, crushers, energy and work to dismantle and reprocess all the junked appliances and waste materials, I'd bet the savings don't amount to much at all, except to those who get them for free or close to it.

Another idea for a give away program that just doesn't do much for the American struggling to make ends meet. If you can't put food on the table, you don't need a new range to cook it on, or a new refrigerator to keep it in. A few bucks a month in energy savings won't help you make the payments on the big appliance you just bought, will it?

More smoke and mirrors, brought to you by same the people who promised change. Next we'll hear about a "chicken in every pot"...oh wait...some say they heard that one before!

Those of you who wanted change sure got it...maybe it isn't the change you wished for?

School Bus Accidents...Ignored?

It seems most school bus accidents go largely ignored by the press here in California, unless a student is severely injured. Some may think there are few school bus accidents, but if you simply view the CHP logs, there are many, and the press is simply either ignoring them, or for some reason, doesn't want to "let the cat out of the bag" because the real numbers of buses in accidents would probably alarm parents.

Every day there are numerous minor bus accidents in San Diego County alone, yet the only ones you ever see reported are those where the student is transported by ambulance, due to injuries. And, you might not actually see those if the news doesn't care to report on it.

Parents need to demand an accounting for the safety of their children on school transportation, be it privately operated under contract, or operated by the school districts themselves. There are many highly qualified, safe operators out there. But I can tell you from first hand experience, there are operators who regularly exceed the speed limits daily, and calls to their district and supervisors, while met with surprise and promises to take action, do nothing to slow them down.

In numerous cases, while operating FCC licensed moving radar, school buses have been clocked at 15 to 20 miles over the 55 mile per hour mandated speed limit with students on board. Some buses pass all too frequently, fail to signal and allow students to stand while the bus is in motion. All of which lends to the severity of injury in event of accident.

Children are our most precious resource and the most precious cargo carried on the buses of any transportation system in the world. For them to be anything less than 100% safe is tragedy waiting to happen.

With Great Pleasure...Good News for FORD

The one out of the Big 3 US automakers that stood on its own two feet, or four wheels, and didn't take a government bailout, has now turned a profit!

Today, Ford Motor Company announced a 2009 full year net income of 2.7 billion dollars, and a 4th quarter net profit of 863 million dollars, the first profit in four years. It will also start giving out profit sharing checks to US hourly workers in March, the first time that's been done since 2004. And Ford expects 2010 to be profitable as well.

My congratulations to the management and all the people at Ford who made it through the storm. They have fought hard and kept their hands out of the government till, while keeping the government hands out of their pockets as well. They have succeeded where GM and Chrysler have failed. In Chrysler's case, failed multiple times, and judging by the way things continue to go, will likely fail again. Not to beat a dead horse, but how many times do they think they should be bailed out anyway?

Once again, American ingenuity and ability can do the job. Congratulations Ford on a job well done!