Radioactive Used Cars in Japan

If this wasn't such a serious subject, you could make so many jokes about used cars being radioactive. But, since this was a disaster of biblical proportions, I will resist the temptation. I suppose it should come as no surprise to people that radioactive used cars are now being sold in Japan. Of course, this is due to the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant meltdowns in Japan in March of this year. Now, these cars in the nuclear fallout zone were supposed to have been destroyed. But, used car sales dealers doing what they are noted for doing (worldwide I can see now), radioactive cars are finding their way into the used car market in Japan. In fact, one car was found to have 300 times the legal amount of radiation. It is appalling that someone would sell a car like that. It is no excuse to say he or she probably didn't know. That dealer knew it was radioactive. That should be enough to put that dealer out of business forever.

As stated above, the radioactive cars were suppose to have been destroyed. But, by what method? Crushing them and burying them at sea is not something I would think a nuclear conscious Japan would do since so much of their livelihood depends on the sea. Japan at one time sold used cars to Russia and South Africa. But, any vehicle coming from Japan is now carefully inspected before being off-lifted from a cargo ship. So, what to do? Melt the cars? That is a fear I have. If these cars make it to the scrap metal stream, everyone could eventually have radioactive tools, garages, manufactured homes and...yes, radioactive cars made right here in the USA.

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Richard Branson and Spaceport America

Richard Branson, the British billionaire and owner of Virgin Atlantic, is going to send people into space. No, I mean outer space, as in space flight. He already has a home base in New Mexico called Spaceport America. From this port of departure, he intends to someday send tourists aboard a spacecraft. He has no shortage of people willing to plunk down the $200K to be among the first civilians in space. In fact, Richard Branson stated that enough tests will be done by Christmas of 2012 to start sending people into space. Branson expects that he and his family will be the first to board the spacecraft into space once all the tests are completed successfully.

Personally, I find the idea exhilarating to say the least. I suppose the flight itself will be nothing more than Alan Shepard's first flight in space. It lasted about 15 minutes. The article I linked above did not say how long the flight would last. But, it is difficult to imagine it lasting longer than half an hour. I suppose I will never be among the people who will ever get the chance to go aboard Richard Branson's spacecraft. I can think of a whole lot more things I would like to spend $200K (if I even had that kind of money) on than 15 minutes of fame in traveling around the planet. I have to admit, as a young boy who was thrilled by the idea of space travel, the idea does excite me. But, after hitting 60 in September, I think I can get by without that particular thrill.

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"Get the Old Geezer!"

Eight-four year old Jim Shea was out for his afternoon walk in Wissahickon Valley Park. This is something he normally does about three days a week. What happened to him earlier this week is unconscionable. Three black punks brutally attacked Mr. Shea, beating him mercilessly. He was knocked to the ground after being hit from behind. That wasn't enough for these punks. They then proceeded to kick him in the face, neck and stomach. While they were beating this elderly gentlemen, the attackers were laughing and cracking jokes about him. This attack continued for several minutes. Mr. Shea was left bloody and unable to walk. Thankfully, a bicyclist rode by and rendered assistance. Mr. Shea was taken to a local hospital in Philadelphia, PA. He was there for four hours receiving stitches in his face and treatment for a broken nose.

I read this story with great anger. How in the hell could kids today be this callous, this mean-spirited? A man who lived through World War II (he may have served for all I know), served as a vice-president of Temple University in Philly. How could this happen not just to this elderly man, but to anyone? How? This man was bothering no one. He just going through his daily routine. What was even more telling about this attack; the attackers did not even steal his wallet or cell phone. What does that tell you about the mindset of these bastards? They were just wanting to beat up someone who was vulnerable and who couldn't fight back. They were all cowards in that respect. They would not want someone who would be able to defend themselves. No, they are too cowardly to do that. The only good thing about this is that Jim Shea is not going to let this incident deter him from continuing his daily walks. To quit his walks would give these cowards a win. This is the right attitude to have. We must all be like Jim Shea in this regard.

Police have no leads at this point. I just hope someone in the City of Brotherly Love will give up these punks to law enforcement. Someday these punks will be old (being as stupid and cowardly as they are, that is debatable). It would only be fitting if they meet the same fate as Jim Shea.

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End of World...Again on October 21

Here we go again. It wasn't enough that radio preacher Harold Camping made himself look foolish on his prediction of Judgment Day on May 21, 2011. He had to do it again in the same year. Mr. Camping had caught the attention of the news media with his May 21 prediction that had many people preparing for the end of the world. When May 21 came and went with people still going to work, going to school, etc., many of his followers were disappointed in him. Trying to recapture the "following" he lost on his failed May 21 prediction, Camping said that he had miscalculated. The end of the world would really occur on October 21. Strangely, he states that the end of the world will go "quietly" this time. It sounds like he has established himself an out with that statement. Incidentally, Mr. Camping suffered a stroke in June, a month after his May 21 end of world scenario.

Mr. Camping's prediction is not biblical. No one knows when the world will end, when judgment day will happen. Camping states that is "Old Testament" law, that it doesn't apply to this generation. I am not a biblical scholar. But, I am pretty sure Jesus stated that "...no one knows the hour or the day, not even the angels in Heaven know..." That makes it New Testament. I'm not sure what people like Mr. Camping get out of these type of end of world scenarios. Is it for attention? Self-gratification? I am not really sure. I just know he duped a lot of people in his last prediction. Some people actually sold or gave away everything they had in preparation for the Final Day. I am hopeful that people have learned that this man doesn't have a clue. In fact, I suspect he may be mentally ill. I just hope the people that follow him now do not get fooled again. He doesn't know what he is talking about. That should be apparent to anyone now.

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Lost in a Cornfield Maze

I guess some people enjoy getting lost. I have never been one of those type people. In fact, I have some kind of phobia about getting lost. I'm not quite sure what kind of phobia that is called. In any case, I doubt there was anyone that was happier than me when GPS devices came onto the market. I was thrilled to say the least. One thing I have never done, however, was get lost in a cornfield as this couple with a three-week old baby did in Danvers, Mass. The cornfield maze was designed so that most people can find their way out of it in 45 minutes or less. But, this couple, along with their three-week old baby, were still lost in the cornfield maze an hour after starting. Soon, darkness starting falling and the mosquitoes were attacking mom, dad and, unfortunately, the infant baby. They were smart enough to bring a cell phone along with them. So, they had to call 911 so the Danvers Police could come to save them. Which is exactly what happened. The mother told the 911 operator she was embarrassed. Well, I guess I would be also.

The first thing that came to my mind, when reading this story, what the hell were they doing in a cornfield maze with a three-week old baby? Where were their brains? People today just don't stop to think of all the possibilities that could happen before they take an action, such as going into a cornfield maze. My ex-wife was like that. She was a very "spur of the moment" type person. I'm not. I am a planner, I like to think things through before I do them. It doesn't matter what it is. I still stop to think before I act. I can damn well guarantee you, I would not have gone into that cornfield maze with my lousy sense of direction. But, even I know that if you keep going in one direction (you know, like following the sun), I would come out of the maze. I damn sure would not have called 911 to rescue me. If I didn't have a cell phone, I'd probably still be in that cornfield. I'm a man. I don't ask for directions.

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Video Vigilante

This is a rather unusual story about a man who basically has taken on the world's oldest profession; prostitution in Oklahoma City. Brian Bates has been making videos of prostitutes and their johns, in Oklahoma City, for the past 15 years. What is remarkable, at least to me, is that he has not been physically assaulted for his efforts in all that time. Mr. Bates even has his own YouTube Channel, and his own web site, JohnTV.com. Ironically, when I checked his web site, there was an advertisement from Fiverr with a very attractive girl advertising that she will be your "girlfriend" for five bucks. Anyway, Brian Bates has videotaped these prostitutes and johns and placing them on various places on the web.

Basically, Mr. Bates got fed up with the seedy south side of Oklahoma City when police were unable to clean up the prostitutes that walked up and down Highway 77 in OKC. Mr. Bates crusade began 15 years ago when he caught a high school principle and a prostitute in a van close to his home. Bates filed a formal complaint against the "john." Long story short, Mr. Bates was in court on the day when the jury found the john not guilty. The lead prosecutor told Mr. Bates he probably needed video evidence. And, with that comment, the Video Vigilante was born to bring scorn and ridicule upon the world's oldest profession. I just hope Mr. Bates sticks to video taping prostitution. Providing video on drug dealers might not turn out as well for him. In fact, I'm not sure he would last 15 days doing that.

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Entrecard - A Political Bias?

I have mentioned a couple of times that I have started a new political blog called "The Right Commentary." It is just starting out and, like with any new blog, traffic is slowly coming to that blog. I decided to add that blog to the Entrecard network about two weeks ago. I have been a member of the Entrecard Network since 2008. I joined them in late 2008 after the ill-fated and mismanaged BlogRush network shutdown. Entrecard has introduced me to some fine blogs since that time. I've met a lot of interesting and not so interesting people. Traffic is abysmal from Entrecard. It causes my bounce rate to increase. But, I don't keep my Entrecard account active because of the "traffic" they send my way. I keep my Entrecard account because of the many great blogs on the network.

Two weeks ago, as I said, I applied for a linked blog (The Right Commentary). I was turned down within 48 hours. Stunned, I read the rejection notice. It stated that my Entrecard widget was linking to some place called "Seek No More." Again, stunned, I clicked on the widget and it took me straight to Entrecard. The first thought that occurred to me was that since I got the code straight from Entrecard, how can it be my fault it is linking to "Seek No More?" Figuring that there had to be a mistake, I emailed them and inquired. Of course, I got no answer despite trying three different times. So, I deleted the widget and tried again. 48 hours later, I got another rejection notice. This time it stated that my widget was linking to "Automated Backlinks." Thinking that I must have a virus on my computer, I ran four different antivirus programs online and then ran my resident antivirus program. Nothing came up. I refuse to believe that Blogger would allow a virus to go undetected for any length of time.

So, I tried a third time. This time, it was rejected because the widget needed to be placed at the top. Now, I was furious. How many Entrecard widgets are at the very top of the blogs in the network? Few, very few. I sent an email to Entrecard asking them what was going on. I told them that I believe there was a political bias from the moderator who kept rejecting my new political blog. And that is precisely what I believe now. Yes, like The Right Commentary, there are many political blogs on Entrecard that are as conservative or even more conservative than The Right Commentary. So, why does my blog keep getting rejected? I believe it is a reflection of exactly how divided this nation is today. There is probably one insecure individual who has a God-complex who keeps rejecting my blog because he or she disagrees with the content. My political blog is politically incorrect. I state that at the very top of the blog. I have never received a reply to my many emails to Entrecard. Nobody wants to enlighten me to the real reason. I do know at least three different conservative bloggers in the Entrecard network have been threatened with being kicked off the network because their blog borders on "hate speech." They are in deep disagreement with our current President. According to Entrecard, that is now "hate speech."

I am enclosing a couple of the rejections below to show you the complete absurdity of it all. Entrecard has always stated they want the widget ABOVE THE FOLD. If you will go to my poltical blog, The Right Commentary, I had the Entrecard widget just below the American Bald Eagle image on the right side of the blog. Now, if Entrecard wants to ban me for posting this on this blog, they can have at it. I get 90-95% of my traffic through Google, Yahoo and other search engines. I don't need them for that. But, I do invite you to take a look at the emails below. Like the movie "Jaws," this time it's personal.

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Your account 'The Right Commentary' on entrecard.com has been rejected. The administrator gave the following reason:

Please place the Entrecard widget at top of the page.

Please contact deleted@entrecard.com if you have any questions regarding this action.

Please include the following:
User ID: 79916

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Your account 'The Right Commentary ' on entrecard.com has been rejected. The administrator gave the following reason:

"Seek No More" is not the link for Entrecard. Please place link for Entrecard on the Entrecard widget.

Please contact deleted@entrecard.com if you have any questions regarding this action.

Please include the following:
User ID: 79698

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Ashes to Ammunition

In what has to be one of the strangest ideas for a business, two Alabama conservation enforcement officers have started a company that will take the cremated ashes of loved ones and place them in shotgun shells. Yep, if you ever wanted to go out in a blast, you need to contact Officers Thad Holmes and Clem Parnell of Holy Smoke LLC (appropriately enough). The company caters to mostly outdoorsman, hunters and sports shooters. According to Parnell and Holmes, they take this business very seriously. Both men reiterate they do not consider this a joke, but a most reverent way to scatter the cremated ashes of loved ones. So, for the low, low price of just $850.00, you can have "Uncle Carl" loaded into 250 shotgun shells. You can take a loved one for that final deer hunt, rabbit hunt, skeet shoot or whatever.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this. I thought for sure it was a joke at first. But, after visiting the web site (Holy Smoke), I came away with the impression it is a most legitimate business. They reportedly are getting a lot of traffic to their site. So, I imagine a lot of people are inquiring into this way of "going out with a bang." The question that kept going through my head, what about the ash that goes into the animal that is shot? Well, they warn you not to "eat" the portion of the meat, where the ash went into, for reasons I'm sure you will understand. Uh huh. After reading that, all my questions were answered. I think I'll just pass on this. I'll wager you might have second thoughts also.

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