Under the Oak

I’m no stranger to calling the police. I’m not sure what it is in my past that got me so comfortable with it, but I’ve probably dialed 911 a dozen or more times now. I don’t call to chit-chat, of course, but if a driver is erratic and endangering minivans full of kids, you’d better believe I’m talking to a dispatcher somewhere. If I’m working in a drive-thru and someone comes through so thoroughly drunk that they can’t remember how to pronounce ‘coke’, then you’d better believe I’m on the phone.

…and if I’m driving through a neighborhood one day and I see a man trying to force a door open with his shoulder, you’d better believe I’m gonna let the police know about it. I’ve been stolen from before and it is not a fun experience for the victim. That is exactly what someone saw and did in Cambridge, MA on Thursday of last week. According to the police report, when police arrived and asked for identification, the man refused and began shouting at the officers. The officers went outside to speak to the person who reported the possible crime, but the man followed on the front porch shouting at the officers and causing a small crowd to gather. When officers tried to calm the man, he continued shouting and being uncooperative with the officers who were still trying to investigate what, if any, crime took place. Eventually, they arrested the man for disorderly conduct. No big deal, right? A police officer deals with this kind of thing all the time, I imagine.

Continue Reading »

So in the past week or so. . .

The great state of Minnesota has selected an actual clown as its representative in the Senate chamber. While I worry that the interests of Minnesotans will be poorly represented, I seriously doubt that the addition of said clown to the Senate could negatively effect the stellar reputation of that body. *cough*

Speaking of clowns…you may not have heard: Michael Jackson died!!!!!!!1 I was sitting in Barnes & Noble when I was accosted by the couple behind me who were receiving constant texts and emails to tell them that Jackson he died. I know its a generational thing, but seriously, people. Get over it. The man was a freak show either by choice or as a product of the twisted environment in which he lived. I feel for his children, but I don’t see why this should be in the news almost a week later.

No clown flavored post would be complete without another cunning strike by the Cult of Green, right? The House this week passed what amounts to a massive tax increase on energy consumption. The chances of it ever passing the Senate are slim, but the very fact that it passed the House scares me – especially now that we have a one-party government. It will “only” cost $150 per year, we are told. Turns out, its more like $1800…and by 2030 $6300 per year for an average family of four (actually, if the CBO is as wrong in their predictions of the cost of this bill as they were about prescription drug coverage, then the cost will be more like $150,000 per year per family). But it is NECESSARY in order to SAVE THE PLANET from IMMINENT DESTRUCTION. I wonder how much a double-decker taco from Taco Bell (which uses energy to produce flour, tortillas, beans, hot water, corn, beef, beef grinding, cheese production, lettuce, paper, and ink on top of the energy cost of the actual retail of said product) would cost in this green future that our politicians dream up. $59.99 Value Meals!!

Meanwhile, President Obama has sided with Chavez and the United Nations against Honduras. From everything I’ve read, the ousted president of Honduras was in direct violation of the constitution of that country. No wonder they got rid of him. And no wonder our government would jump to his defense.

The blazing heat has zapped whatever spirited blog posts I might otherwise have been coming up with this week, but as much as I hate the heat, I wish I was leaving for Jamaica on Friday.