muff528

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Posts posted by muff528

  2. Very sad. This poor guy was killed by the same incompetence that pervades VA clinics and many other "civil service" bureaucracies.....low level, incompetent "workers" who drift through their days making life-altering decisions with a casual, almost frightening indifference. These people are largely a protected class, insulated by strong labor (and other) unions and ridiculously one-sided contracts. Punishment for their incompetence and even their criminal misdeeds is routinely projected upward, with mid- and upper-level management taking the heat while the person who actually is "responsible" for the screw-up is not even considered to be a problem ...and, indeed, is also sometimes portrayed as a victim. This mindset sometimes spills over into the corporate world, the BP oil spill being an example.

    Was the cop wrong in arresting the guy for theft? No. That was his job. He was hired to do exactly that. It is not his job, in a cumbersome, bureaucratic society to judge the perp, nor do we really want it to be his job.

    But there was a judge who did address the guy's problems, and it appears that he did the right thing:

    "On May 21, General District Court Judge Morton Whitlow found Mitchell incompetent to stand trial and ordered him transferred to Eastern State Hospital in the care of "qualified staff."

    He never made it. Perry, the master jailer, said Mitchell was awaiting transfer at the time of his death because the hospital had no room for him."

    I wonder why there was no room in the hospital. Some folks might say "build a bigger hospital". Others might say "do a better job in the hospitals". Who knows the answer there?

    But, in the end, bureaucratic incompetence seems to be the cause of death. (Maybe an incompetent public defender, too).

    "The Guardian news organization in Britain, which broke the story, quoted Mitchell's relatives as saying they believe he starved to death after refusing to eat or take medication for his mental illness. (Mitchell's aunt) told the Guardian that family members were unable to visit him because he never filled out an official list of visitors".

    Curiously, they didn't seem to have a problem getting him to sign a form waiving his right to representation.

    But, maybe if the arresting officer or the judge, at his first appearance, had a list of crazy people.....

  6. The article you referenced from "The Blaze" says he shot 4. One dead, three wounded. I think you were only counting dead folks ...2. But one of the dead guys, the perp, was shot by a few cops, so he doesn't count. So, it looks like "mass shooting" probably begins at 4 shot, maybe 3, but not 2. Misses probably don't count, either, although those are technically "shots".

  7. normiss

    ...

    Fix the background checks for all guns.
    Fix the lack of the insanity database tied to it as well...



    Agree with background checks for firearms transfers of any kind, including inheritance, gifts, personal transfers, etc.. Didn't used to agree, but do now ...if only as a compromise. However, I do not agree with keeping records of any type regarding b/g checks, including gun "registry", etc. Check background, approve or deny, destroy record. You want another gun, submit to another check. No need to keep these records because ATF will already have a record of any acquisition (already an illegal defacto "registry").

    I think I'd be more fearful of an "insanity database" than the current possibility of a chance encounter with a crazy with a gun.

  8. turtlespeed

    *********http://www.forbes.com/sites/merrillmatthews/2015/02/13/busted-obamacare-co-ops-are-underwater-and-sinking-fast/

    Quote

    And it’s more than just “controlled by policyholders.” People connected to the health insurance industry—that is, people who might actually know something about health insurance—are explicitly prohibited from being on a co-op board.



    Insolvency feared for Obamacare co-ops after $376 million in losses in first year
    http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jul/30/obamacare-co-ops-flailing-falling-behind-loans/?page=all

    ***Obamacare’s co-ops, designed to give more choices for insurance, lost hundreds of millions of dollars in their first year and didn’t attract anywhere near as many customers as they had hoped, meaning they may go insolvent and default on taxpayer-funded loans, according to a government audit released Thursday.

    One co-op already went belly-up, and all but one of the 22 others lost money in 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services inspector general said. Maine’s co-op was the only one to make money, reaping $5.86 million after it won 80 percent of the state’s Obamacare consumers.


    Turns out making money in the insurance business isn't all that easy. I predict this is the future of Obamacare. You can't make money covering everything unless people who aren't making claims pay you as well.

    Obama care is the new f-35

    I saw an F-35 at Oshkosh. Very impressive.

    Was it worth the money?

    I think he got in free. Maybe did a demo or something.



    :)

  10. billvon

    ...(and perhaps face charges)....



    I'm curious about Zimbabwe's call for extradition. Doesn't he have to be indicted? Unless I missed seeing it, I haven't seen any specific charges. I think our extradition treaty specifies that his "crime" must be illegal in both countries. How can this be determined without Zimbabwe formally charging him?

    I've seen "illegal hunting" and "poaching" mentioned, but I haven't seen anything like "Palmer has been charged with xxxx".

  11. normiss

    True.
    Italian women, cheese steaks, Italian food, and ... ummm...a couple of mafia owned establishments I used to frequent. :)
    That's my list.



    That would cancel out all the bad stuff.

    But, to be fair to Philly, the Hitchbot incident could have been an accident.. After all, they did break a 2000 lb cast iron bell as soon as they got it.

  12. rehmwa

    ******If it wasn't for the US, you guys would all be speaking German today.



    If it wasn't for Europeans, you would be sleeping in a tent, sticking feathers in your hair.


    you mean more so?

    Well, I don't mind sleeping in a tent ...as long as it has a shower and facilities.

  13. aphid

    ***If it wasn't for the US, you guys would all be speaking German today.



    A hilarious response to a DZ.com poster from Germany - very tongue-in-cheek humour.

    Good one. ;)

    (Presuming of course, you actually were making a light-hearted joke)

    ;)

  15. Anvilbrother

    Do you work for RL? Hit me with a RL AD then had me watch a RL ad till I stopped it. Why is this on its own thread?



    Not sure what that is. I just saw the ad on TV and saw a little timely dark humor in it. Yes, it looks like they sometimes play an ad before the content (which is really just another ad.)

    Won't hurt my feelings if thread is deleted.

  18. RMK

    They get "touchy" about immigrants coming to take their jobs.



    No ....no, you're probably thinking of Texas. This happened in Philadelphia, "The City of Brotherly Love". Could have been a union hit, I suppose.

    Go Eagles.

  21. :o At least a squirrel will run under your tires rather than jump. Mighty nice of them.

    Several years ago I was driving home from Zhills on a dark winter night. South on 39. I had a 280zx at the time. So a low profile car. I saw a giant deer head appear in my windshield. It seemed like it was over the hood and right in my face. I instinctively ducked and heard a very loud thump. I pulled over in the dark and walked up and down the road looking for what had to be at least a very hurt deer. Then I looked the car over ...nothing. I drove down to Crystal Springs store and looked at the car again under the lights ...nothing. The next day, after a thorough examination, I noticed that the "anti-static" ball on the antenna was bent over about 45 degrees. I'm guessing that she jumped over the car and her hoof caught the retracted antenna on the left rear fender. No other damage considering how loud the noise was. Scared the hell out of me, though.