A nation where laws mean nothing

In case you missed it Sunday night, and have been in the wilderness for the last few days, Congress and our President set a new precedent…the United States of America is no longer a nation of laws.  It is instead a nation of politicians, who will stop at nothing to try and get votes in their next election.  218 years of Constitutional rule went out the window, in hopes of getting a few more “pro-life” votes.

At the middle is Terri Schaivo, or what is left of Terri.  Debate has gone on for 15 years as to whether or not Terri is alive anymore.  That is not my point today.  My point is that the systems that we have in place to decide such issues had universally decided that her husband had the power to make that decision.  There had not been 1 dissenting viewpoint in this.

However, our “leadership” decided that they knew better than the multitude of people who came before them.  Instead, they trampled over several parts of the Constitution, and the laws that were written based on it.  It was a legal “trick play” that seems (for now) to have backfired. 

How can any American trust our “leadership” now that they have proven that they do not care about the very document they are sworn to protect?  How can they lead when they have proven they think themselves above the law?  What is the next part of the Constitution that they will ignore: Freedom of the Press, Protection against Self-Incrimination, Freedom from Unreasonable Searches?  Or will they just throw the whole document out, and do whatever they feel like?

 

An interesting side note…wasn’t this the same “leadership” that was touting the “bond between a man and a woman in marriage” not too long ago?  Good to see that bond is only in force in a limited set of circumstances.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Mom.

 

I don’t know if you can read this…I’m sure Microsoft is working on MSN afterlife, but it may not be ready yet.  Know that we all miss you down here. 

 

It’s hard to believe that more than 10 years has gone by since you passed.  Most memories fade, but the events of that week are still as vivid as they were when they were happening.  Everyone has defining moments in their lives; the moments that make up who we are.  I know that your passing was the first such moment for me.  Having to lead a family that suddenly looked to me for guidance, plan out the funeral, and somehow try to keep myself together (which didn’t always work), brought out qualities that I didn’t know I had.  It was a horrible price to pay, but at least a little good came out of it.

 

I know we left things with a lot of unanswered questions.  I’m sorry we never talked about what happened when I was a teen.  There will always be lingering doubt in my mind, but there’s nothing I can do about that now.

 

I know you always taught us to live life with no regrets, but that’s impossible at times.  I regret that you never got to meet Tiffany…she’s a wonderful person, and I know you’d be proud.  I regret that the family fell apart after you passed…although I am making efforts to maintain contact with at least a couple of people, you were the glue that held us together.  And, although the rational part of my mind knows there’s nothing I could have done, I regret I didn’t make it home for what turned out to be your last weekend.  Part of me will always wonder if I could have helped if I would have been in the car with you.

 

Todd and I love you.

 

Matt

The energy "crisis"

So, gas is up way above $2 a gallon here in SW Michigan.  It’s a fascinating situation, from the causes through the effects.

 

At first, like many consumers, I thought this was gouging by the oil companies, and the local stations.  I’m sure that there is some profit taking going on locally, but I think the real explanation is that “big oil” is just realizing that the demand for oil is so inelastic that it can charge pretty much whatever it wants.  So, who is to blame in that situation…the company, or the consumers that act “irrationally” in an economic sense?

 

Take, for instance, a sight that can be found at any corner with two or more gas stations.  The gas in the tanks under the different gas stations is pretty much identical.  Therefore, price is the only factor that should determine where the consumer buys.  Therefore, if one station is even $.01 higher than the other, that station should get 0% market share.  That would be the economic “rational” customer.

 

Now, tell me if you’ve ever seen that.  The local news ran a story on how people wouldn’t drive ¼ mile down the road to save $.30/gallon.  That’s the complete opposite of “rational”.

 

Not only are consumers not acting rationally in the short term, they aren’t even making the changes in the long term that the mythical “rational” consumer would.  Inefficient large SUVs aren’t showing up en masse on used car lots, as their owners grab up Priuses. 

 

I wonder where the outrage went.  A couple of years back, when gas skyrocketed, there were protests, and state governments took steps to help consumers.  There is none of that this time around.  Have we as a nation really become that lazy?