This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Society

  • Maybe There’s Hope After All

    You see so much stupid stuff going on every day.  It sometimes seems as if everything around us is going to hell in the proverbial hand basket – pronto.

    Then you see something like this.  And you realize that maybe – just maybe – there is still hope.

    If there’s a Mellow Mushroom Pizza in your area, it’s worth giving them some business.  They damn sure seem to have their heads screwed on straight.

    Hat tip to Rob at Ranger-Up for making these folks his Hero of the Week this week – I’d missed this story when it came out, but saw it there this afternoon.  I hope he doesn’t mind me helping him spread the word.

  • Terry Achane reunited with daughter.

    Today SSG(Drill Sgt) Terry Achane was reunited with his daughter today.

    It was a happy ending to Achane’s lengthy court battle to gain custody of the girl, who was placed for adoption at birth without his knowledge.

    “I’m very happy,” a smiling Achane (pronounced A-chan) said Friday. “It’s 22 months too long — but the wait was worth it. I’ve got my daughter.”

    The father and daughter will leave for Fort Jackson in South Carolina on Saturday. Waiting for them is Achane’s extended family, who can’t wait to meet Teleah.

    So it looks like this is the conclusion to this who ordeal and that this case is bringing attention to the adoption laws in Utah that have some people caling Utah a place to “buy a baby”.

    Hutchins has served as the president of the Utah Adoption Council and says he wanted to investigate an unsettling hunch.

    He had employees from his law firm called adoption agencies at random. They posed as a woman asking about the process for an expectant mom from another state. The woman said her sister was unexpectedly pregnant, unmarried and wanted to place the child, but the birth father did not.

    Hutchins recorded those conversations.

    One agency said, “If he’s going to just be a total pain in the butt, then we can definitely just not have him involved at all.”

    Another said, “I’d say literally over 99 percent of the time the guys just get caught up in it and everything, and then they find out they’re gonna have to pay $30,000 in legal fees, they’re just like, ‘Whatever, never mind.‘”

    “Many adoption agency actually coach on what they should say and what they should do and what they shouldn’t say and what they shouldn’t do in order to keep birth fathers in the dark,” Hutchins said.

    On the recordings, a counselor said, “Well, [the birth mother] won’t have to worry about [the birth father]. Let’s just put it that way.”

    Another said, “You can tell the birth father anything after you give birth; might be easier to tell the birth father that you were in an accident, and the baby died.”

    Also there is more on this coaching business.

    Hutchins presented the transcripts to the Utah legislature saying the coaching from some adoption agencies is at the very least manipulative and wrong. He used them as evidence that the law in Utah needs to be changed.

    “For example, they’ll say, ‘Don’t tell the birth father that you are coming to Utah. Wait until just before you are ready to come, and then send him a little text message, make sure you keep a copy of it, that you are going to Utah temporarily, but you’ll be back,’” Hutchins said.

    Manzanares says that mirrors what happened to him.

    “I’ll be flying to Utah to visit my father in Feb. for a week maybe a little longer,” A message from Terry said, in part. “In April, I will be willing to sit down and talk with you.”

    On a final note.

    Manzanares is the first father to fight the Utah adoption system and win. His name is now on his daughter’s birth certificate, and he has earned custody rights

    Now it is at least two. Granted this is a win but with all the information coming from this case the people of Utah have some major issues to fix. Thank you to commenter JO for the link.

  • “Good Grief!”

    The actor who provided the voice of Peanuts’ character “Charlie Brown” in numerous “Peanuts” TV specials has been arrested on charges including stalking.

    No, I’m not kidding.

    (Sigh.)  Maybe the Mayans were right after all and we just didn’t get the memo yet.

  • Merry Christmas, 1965

    We are all aware of the way Vietnam veterans were treated by some in this country in the 60’s and 70’s. I came across an article in my local fishwrap about a couple of college students here in my home town that didn’t really care for the way protestors were behaving and came up with an idea to show their support for our local soldiers.

     

     

    Operation Michigan Christmas, an idea that came from Jackson's Dave Trotter and Gary Mugg and championed by Gov. George Romney, delivered nearly 7,500 Christmas packages to Michigan soldiers serving in Vietnam in 1965. Nearly 200 students from colleges and universities throughout the state helped pack boxes and make signs for the charter plane delivering the packages.
    Operation Michigan Christmas, an idea that came from Jackson’s Dave Trotter and Gary Mugg and championed by Gov. George Romney, delivered nearly 7,500 Christmas packages to Michigan soldiers serving in Vietnam in 1965. Nearly 200 students from colleges and universities throughout the state helped pack boxes and make signs for the charter plane delivering the packages.

     

     

    “There were a lot of us here that believed regardless of the war, the soldiers in Vietnam were kids like us and our friends and family,” Mugg said. “Dave especially believed we needed to do something to show our support for the troops.”On Nov. 21, 1965, Mugg and Trotter announced in the Citizen Patriot an ambitious project to gather the names of Jackson-area men and women serving in Vietnam so they could mail Christmas packages to them to help boost their morale.

    It was first envisioned as a local effort however, then Gov. George Romney (yes, Mitt’s father) got wind of the idea after returning from a trip to Vietnam and decided to make it a state wide effort.

    News of the effort reached Gov. George Romney, who had just returned from a visit with Michigan troops there.

    On Nov. 26 – the day after Thanksgiving – Romney made Mugg and Trotter’s plan a statewide effort to put Christmas packages in the hands of every Michigan man and woman serving in Vietnam.

    Operation Michigan Christmas was born.

    The Pentagon was unable to provide names and addresses of Michigan soldiers so 9 newspapers across the state put out the call and just 4 days after Gov. Romney made it a statewide effort, over 3000 names and addresses had been submitted.

    Dow Chemical Co. gave bottles of aspirin, tissues and Saran Wrap that covered Michigan apples. Ford, General Motors and Chrysler all contributed model cars so soldiers could give the toys to South Vietnamese children.

    The packages contained candy, nuts, fruit cake, peanut butter, mixed nuts, raisins, apple sauce, gum, canned pop, ballpoint pens and stationery, sewing kits, toothpaste, razor blades, shaving cream, insect repellent and foot powder.

    200 college students helped pack up gift boxes totaling more than 7,400 packages and the newspapers that collected names and addresses pitched in to pay for a charter flight to deliver the goodies.

    The flight left Willow Run Airport on Tuesday, Dec. 14 and the gift boxes were in the hands of grateful soldiers by Christmas. Pentagon officials later called the “gift lift” a “logistical miracle.”

    When I was in Desert Storm the most memorable thing about the holidays for me was an Apache pilot that landed in our AA on Christmas Eve, jumped out with a Santa suit on, and handed out Christmas cards from anonymous folks back home.

    Please feel free to leave your holiday deployment stories in the comments below!

    Merry Christmas everyone, and a special Merry Christmas to those of you spending it away from your loved ones this year.

  • Married to the Army: Alaska is now airing.

    Well last year I talked about how there was going to be a reality TV show about the Army wives of Alaska. Well it looks like it is now airing. Here is a list of the seven wives that are taking part.

    OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network will give viewers unprecedented access into the complex challenges, personal sacrifices and extraordinary lives of military families through the eyes of seven Army Wives living in Alaska whose husbands deployed to Afghanistan in the new docu-series “Married to the Army: Alaska” premiering Sunday, November 18 from 10-11 p.m. ET/PT before moving to its regular timeslot on Mondays from 10-11 p.m. ET/PT beginning on November 19.

    All I can think of from the preview is that his is a very sanitized image of military life. It is almost like they are trying to recreate the Army Wives format.This is a bad idea then and it is a bad idea now. Because there is a LOT of drama that happens in family life and some of it would make the Army look bad. What you ask. Well as a sample I can use the time that our street section was blocked off because a unidentified resident had a meth lab in the basement of their on post housing. Or how about when one your wife’s friends comes over with their marriage drama and brings in my then immediate Squad Leader’s NCO and NCOIC of our section to deal with the issues in question. Or how about hearing all the fights that the neighbors have with each other through paper thin walls. Or even better how a married couple tried avoid the deployment by having the wife pretend to leave the Husband with a child in Alaska. When he was taken off the roster she came back a few days later with the story that the had made up between each other. Because this is the stuff that Big Army wants to bring out in the open? No? So I have to wonder what happens when the camera crews run into these situations? Do they look the other way for something more trivial like the wife who is grossed out by having to clean up moose nuggets in the yard?

    Again who thought this was a good idea again? Really?

    Update: For some reason people are buying into this as a real view into Army Life as a wife.

    Here is a somewhat better review of the show.

  • For Once, Justice

    I have to hand it to the Brits this time around.  In spite of their bizarre (by US standards) laws regarding firearms and opposition to capital punishment, they still appear to take murder seriously.

    Even when it’s an honor killing.

    Nine years ago, Shafilea Ahmed disappeared.  Her body was found in 2004.

    Turns out it was an honor killing.  Her own parents killed her in front of her siblings for “bringing dishonor on the family”.

    How did she “dishonor her family”?  By wearing jeans and makeup, wanting to be a lawyer, and resisting an arranged marriage.

    However, killing her in front of her siblings was a mistake.  One was later arrested for burglary – and turned state’s evidence against the parents.

    Gee, I wonder why?  You mean murdering one of your own kids in front of their siblings isn’t a good way to ensure their loyalty and love?

    Earlier this year, Shafilea’s parents – Iftikhar and Farzana Ahmed – were convicted of her murder.  They received life sentences.  Under English law, that means they’ll serve at least 25 years.  By then both will be in their 70s.

    Hopefully they’ll die in prison vice ever see another day of freedom.  And then they’ll have a chance to explain their acts to Allah – and, possibly, to Shaytan as well.

    Many Islamic extremists subscribe to conservative forms of Islam that condone honor killings.  They also want to eventually impose Shaira worldwide.

    We should probably remember that.

  • So, You Think Letting Everyone Vote By Mail Is a Great Idea?

    If so, maybe you should take a close look at Ohio this year.  It could prove quite . . . entertaining.  As well as provide another example of why good intentions pave the road to hell.

    Prior to this year, some Ohio counties sent absentee ballot applications to all registered voters; others didn’t.  Ohio decided to standardize their voting procedures.

    So this year, all counties in Ohio mailed registered voters absentee ballot applications.  (A side benefit would be to make it easy to vote by mail.)  All told, 6.9 million of the state’s 7.8 million registered voters were mailed an absentee ballot application.

    As expected, many took advantage of that opportunity – roughly 1.3 million as of about a week ago.   And as of about a week ago, roughly 950,000 absentee ballots had been returned.

    No one knows just how many absentee ballots ultimately will be requested in Ohio, or how many of those absentee ballots will be unused. In Ohio, this year absentee ballots may be requested up until November 3; they must be postmarked NLT November 5.

    Also obviously, a number of those who requested absentee ballots will change their mind and decide to vote in person instead.  Based on how many were outstanding a week ago, we’re talking potentially 350,000 or more people who could change their mind.

    Now the law of unintended consequences comes into play.

    In Ohio, if you (1) requested an absentee ballot, and (2) then show up to vote in person, you don’t get to just waltz into the voting booth and vote normally.  Instead, you must cast a paper provisional ballot.  Those provisional ballots are counted only after the voter’s eligibility to cast that vote has been verified.

    In the case of those who requested absentee ballots but did not vote absentee, that means after verifying that no absentee ballot bearing their name was cast.  The intent is obvious:  to prevent people from abusing the system by voting twice.

    So that means each unused Ohio absentee ballot can potentially generate a provisional ballot.  That’s potentially 350,000+ paper provisional ballots.

    Now, here are the unintended consequence.  Ohio law specifies that provisional ballots cannot be opened until 10 days after the election.

    So . . . that means in Ohio there could possibly be 350,000 or more paper, sealed provisional ballots.  Ballots which by Ohio law cannot by even be opened until 16 November.  Ballots which must be securely stored for those 10 days.  And they’re paper ballots which then must be counted – presumably by hand, with all the potential for honest mistakes, partisan arguments, and outright fraud inherent in counting a bunch of paper ballots.

    And remember:  this is happening in a state that could well determine the outcome of the 2012 Presidential election.  So it could well be 2+ weeks after Election Day before anyone knows who won.

    “Hey, ho, way to go Ohio . . . .”

  • If you would have served our country better you would not be a disabled veteran (Updated)

    It seems that a Disabled Veteran is suing a bill collector for the statements he received about a undisclosed outstanding debt. According to Michael Collier was told the following statement when he refused to allow is military benefits to be used towards the debts.

    Mr Collier is according the the link disabled with a neck and spine injury at rated with a 100% disability rating. Earlier this year a court had ruled his benefits could not be garnished in May 2012, the funds have not been given back.

    Collier says he called Gurstel’s office, and an unidentified paralegal told him he would have to sue to get the money. When he said the money was exempt veteran disability payments, “the assistant told Michael, ‘F— you! Pay us your money! You can’t afford an attorney. You owe us. I hope your wife divorces your a–. If you would have served our country better you would not be a disabled veteran living off social security while the rest of us honest Americans work our a– off. Too bad; you should have died.’” (Spelling as in complaint.)

    Mr Collier is planning on legal action.

    The Colliers seek actual damages, statutory damages, and punitive damages for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, conversion, privacy invasion, and malicious infliction of emotional distress.

    Originally posted byArmy WTF when they cited Russia Today. I wanted to find another source since there are comments like the following below.

    The debt collector is right. American wars help no one and soldiers are criminals…

    Typical America. Ah well i have no sympathy for any American. Wake up and rise against your pathetic Governments and corrupt politicians and criminal corperates, bankers, and zionists. Its time for a revolution.

    This Faker isn’t the only US military veteran living off Social Security while the rest of us honest Americans work. As paid Mercenaries they Volunteer for the military because they’re too stupid to go to college and too lazy to get real jobs. Working for the military they learn theretofore unknown skills like basic hygiene, how to make their own beds and polish their shoes. Once discharged they get free education, affirmative-action in hiring and promotion for civilian jobs, free lifetime healthcare at the VA and a host of other benefits. Once civilians, the many that are criminals, drug addicts and drunks now have the lifetime excuse — “I was traumatized in the service”. We need to bring back the draft and eliminate all exemptions so that the military better reflects the regular society and is not comprised so disproportionate of society’s dregs.

    Update Sporkmaster: It seem that JM has found some more information on the law firm in question.