This is one way we should be solving the growing problem of dog overpopulation and rising taxpayer expense of Animal Control Services

"The program partners with schools, juvenile detention facilities, community centers, community based organizations......" not to mention the benefit to our youth, communities and society.

http://www.knockoutdogfighting.org/

Ft. Worth City Politics affecting Animal Welfare

Most animal control calls/concerns/problems/issues come from the same zip codes with greatest release of x-cons, heaviest crime, poorest residents, and the most populated areas of black & brown residents. Those are statistical facts. So, when Animal Control enforces the animal laws in the those areas and the City Council Reps., who represent those areas, holler racism or 'you're picking on my people,' or 'you're picking on the poor,' or any of that nonsense, it is the job of a leader to stay the course and address the facts. Funny how those City Council Reps don't have a problem looking at the factual stats when there's a chance of them getting taxpayer money such as with home foreclosures and such, but boy, let it be something that is sucking money from our pockets and they want to turn a deaf ear and blind eye. HA! Time for some real change in Ft. Worth!! I hope it comes soon.

Eighty nine percent (89%) of all marijuana violations are 'possession only.'

" Present enforcement policies are costing American taxpayers tens of billions of dollars, ruining the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans, and having no impact on marijuana availability or marijuana use in this country. It is time to end this failed policy and replace prohibition with a policy of marijuana regulation, taxation, and education." http://norml.org/
NOTE: Above is from NORML.org......I'm not endorsing any 'taxation'......NOT!!!
ANOTHER NOTE: Please consider voting Libertarian. "The thinking Party."

Racism doesn't belong to just one group of people. This is how we can all participate in the change. In a Free Society one does this...

"gains a sense of himself as an individual, rather than developing a group or victim mentality. This leads to a sense of individual responsibility and personal pride, making skin color irrelevant. Racism will endure until we stop thinking in terms of groups and begin thinking in terms of individual liberty. Liberty means having a limited, constitutional government devoted to the protection of individual rights rather than group claims. Liberty means free-market capitalism, which rewards individual achievement and competence - not skin color, gender, or ethnicity.

Racists believe that all individuals who share superficial physical characteristics are alike: as collectivists, racists think only in terms of groups. By encouraging Americans to adopt a group mentality, the advocates of so-called "diversity" actually perpetuate racism. "

It is the federal government that most divides us by race, class, religion, and gender. Through its taxes, restrictive regulations, corporate subsidies, racial set-asides, and welfare programs, government plays far too large a role in determining who succeeds and who fails.

http://www.ronpaulforpresident2008.com/pages/issues.html#Racism


Glad I come across readings that make perfect sense every once in a while. This one did!

When Government doesn't listen to the people this is what happens

it ends up taking much longer for things to improve, much longer for businesses to thrive, much longer before the tax revenue is increased to its potential, many more lives lost and on and on and on. I know for the past 3 years I, along with Mike Phipps, Flora Brewer and others, have been pleading with my City Council representative, Kathleen Hicks and Mayor Moncrief to do something about the drug business and criminal activity along E. Lancaster by the homeless shelters and on down into the neighborhoods of East Ft. Worth. Asking that they provide more treatment beds, accountability and stop the revolving door in the jails. Finally, as their re-election season is slowly coming around and they are hearing the same words from people in the influential political circles to do something about it, seems that may be taking some action.

On another note, yesterday at the joint meeting with the Gas Drilling Task Force and City Council, we heard several times, experts tell the members, and members admit, that time is not on their side with cleaning up the environmental damage that they have, and are, allowing the gas drilling operators to do to our air quality. Perhaps if our local government, including Neighborhood Associations, would have listened to the concerned citizens about environmental issues with drilling that were raised years ago, studied the issue like they study other things such as Modern Street cars, our air quality would be much better and we could wholeheartedly believe Mayor Moncrief when he so emphatically says that "Quality of Life has always been a top priority here in this City and will continue to be."

http://westandclear.com/2008/10/01/joel-burns-streetcar-blogging/
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/974464.html
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/968503.html

City Councilman Frank Moss is getting it

OMG I could not believe my eyes when I saw these words:

"City Councilman Frank Moss said Tuesday he wants to make sure the "Pull ’Em Up" campaign reaches parents, not just teenagers and young men.
"We’re going to continue to encourage parental involvement," Moss said in a briefing on the campaign at the City Council meeting Tuesday. "They don’t know it’s hampering their [children’s] opportunities."

http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/929685.html

Parental involvement, parental involvement, parental involvement, parental involvement! I can't say it enough....parental involvement, parental involvement, parental involvement......

KUDOS to Mr. Frank Moss. This is how you keep dollars in the pockets of the people instead of in the pockets of corrupt politicians, this is how you save people from becoming homeless, this is how you "help" the "other Ft. Worth," this is how you lead, this is how you...., this is how you....., this is how you....., this is how you......

Irresponsible Parenting & City Councilmembers

It really interesting to pay attention to what our City Councilmembers do and don't do, attend and don't attend, what they choose to speak out on and what they don't, what they have passion about and what they don't have passion about, etc.

As I was listening to a pre-council meeting on our local cable channel, I hear Sal Espino (District 2 North Ft. Worth), say something along the lines of ...taxpayers need to pay for a JPS Health Clinic be placed in FWISD schools to help lower the Infant Mortality rates (since Ft. Worth has some of the highest in the nation). ( need to source this, I know, but you can research it yourself if you want proof, and I feel sure it will prove itself). In other words, disregard teenage (many times underage) sexual promiscuity, it's up to you the taxpayer to cover that tab. Mr. Espino also gave an example of a mother of three at 19 who's family had "kicked" her out so the taxpayers need to build four walls and a roof for this child and her 3 children.

What about Irresponsible Parents? Don't they have a responsibility? Aren't we going to hold them accountable to any degree so that they build some self esteem? How much can we as a Society really put on the taxpayer? IMO, we are at our limit. It starts locally. I don't see Councilmembers taking a strong stand and really reaching out to discourage teenage sex, etc. Our Councilmembers are too "safe" too "political" in Ft. Worth, IMO. Not enough guts for the people. Weak & meek and severe lack of leadership when dealing with "sensitive" race based or cultural based issues like Infant Mortality, Abuse of Dogs, Teenage Pregnancy, High School Dropouts, where the statistics represent a high percentage in their base constituency.

Obama walks on water

"Black America has reputation of biting the hand that feeds them," Dr. Manning explains

This man says just about everything that I have been saying about The Obama campaign for Black America - just in a much more concise way and with authority and permission to say it because he is black. Thank you Dr. Manning -- you are a courageous man, something Barack Obama tries to be, but fails the test IMO.

http://www.geneclark.net/BarackHusseinObama.html

Another opinion that involves..."slavery."

I came across this guy's comments and I'm glad to know that there's yet another person in the universe that see's what I, and many others see, in Obama. This is reassuring in that, there are like minds out there. Like minds as well as "nonlike minds" much of the time, make for great conversations and friendships, togetherness and all that warm fuzzy stuff. BTW, I have a quote by Budda/Dhammapada on my refridgerator that reads: "Togetherness arises out of separteness, begin with separateness. In this way there can be both togetherness and separateness."

OKAY, back to this guy's comments that I agree with,

"I read the speech that Barack Obama and I must say I found it shocking, provocative and disturbing. Obama admits that there are strongly and widely held, anti-white, anti-establishment views in the Black community. He makes no apology for them; indeed he seems to credit their source as having been born in our imperfect Constitution and a product of a society that imposed slavery and Jim Crow on the people for years. Never does he suggest that perhaps it is time for the madness to end, that the Black community must turn the page. Instead he suggests that he must come to the larger society and heal it of its racist beliefs and tendencies. In his cool, egomaniacal way he declaims that he himself embodies the healing that is necessary. Should he not be working, agitating even, within his own community, starting in his Church, to end such divisiveness? Or is he simply the emissary, a Trojan Horse , sent to educate and heal non-black America? Either way it's not for me."
Pete Kent, Union, KY USA

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article3591359.ece

Obama "Passing the Buck" not very "wise"

However, guess we'll see if the majority of Americans agree with me when the next primaries come up for grabs. Perhaps it's just a small handfull of us that percieve Obama the way this article explains his rhetoric of his "major speech" yesterday. A side note that this article doesn't go into was that Obama choose to exploit his "White Grandmother" which I found to be his way of telling his Black supporters to keep up the good fight and excuses that racism is the cause of the ills in Black America and, yes, there is still hell to pay by the White people for slavery and racism in America.

http://ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=290732552237836

Beyond Race and Gender - Some of us haven't made the turn

Today I was blogging on one of the the great local blogsites http://www.westandclear.com/ under the Post "Ft. Worth.....not so progressive." There was a great discussion going on about race, gender and bigotry being intertwined in this Presidential election, etc. When I got home I had an email from one of the North Dallas local Democratic organizers which included the email below:

If Hillary Clinton wins the nomination, I truly believe that the minority people will not vote in the election. And without them Cain will win and we will all go down. He is Bush on crack. I am sorry but I am going with Obama because I cannot let that happen. I am a black women and I know my people. If they don't get what they want they will boycott the election and that scares the life out of me. It is not about the issues it is about the person and we need a Democrat in the office. I am sorry but I am going Obama, I want my children to have a good and happy life. God Bless America, Carla Clark

The last time that I referenced "your people" when talking to a Black person, they got defensive and asked me something about it, I forgot exactly what they asked, but the point is that many Black people are still behind the "turn" of being able to look beyond race in dealing with white & black America. So are many Whites. My point again, that racism is not just a "White thing," it cuts both ways forward and reverse and it is intertwined in all of our everyday lives and politics and every level by BOTH races.

Someone explained it to me today that made perfect sense. This White lady stated that the problem she has with Obama is that he rides on this notion of "America is not a divided Country, we are the United States not the Divided States, etc." However, he called for the Blacks to get "Cousin Pookie and Cousin Ray Ray off the couch and vote for him." I asked what was wrong with that -- if I was Obama and I thought I had a vision for making America better for them and could help their lives if they voted for me, I'd ask the same. This Lady said, "Yes, but Obama isn't holding Cousin Pookie and Cousin Ray Ray accountable at all and saying "We need to do better Cuz, get off the couch........" He isn't encouraging "his people" to do better like for instance Bill Cosby does. This lady said if a Black Man was running that put truth where it belongs that she would like him much better and be happy to vote for him, but it's Obama's backdoor, sly salesman type, entitlement style that makes her turn the other way.

Kicked Out By Intimidation.....well almost.

On a gorgeous night in downtown Ft. Worth, I think it was in October of 2007, I was invited by a dear friend of mine to attend a benefit for the Tarrant County Sickle Cell Association inwhich my City Council representative happens to be Executive Director. Since my friend had my ticket I could not get in without it as I was told at the check in desk (which happened to be my City Council representative's mother). I called my friend on my cell and met her at the entrance where she was waiting. It was a very nice event, lots of political office holders City & State, etc. After sitting down at our numbered table, a tall black man walked over to me, (one that had been called to the front desk when I arrived), and asked me to leave. I said, why I have a ticket. He replied, "because "they" don't want you here." He told me that if I didn't "get up," there would be a "Police escort" to get me out.

My first thought was to get up, so I proceeded to stand up....

My dear friend, basically said, "Over my dead body," she is my guest and I'll turn this MF out if you want to play that game. Go Ahead and call the Police.....she's my guest and she's gonna sit right here!" People sitting around us started to turn around to see what the ruckus was about. Then a female crony of my Council Rep's Moma came over to the intimitador and motioned for him to walk away ie. leave us alone now that the game was on.

Needless to say, I sat back down and had a lovely evening -- I knew my friend meant what she was saying and I surely didn't want the scene to escalate.

Interesting. ......Should I ask "why this happened?" ..........Huuummmm........I think not. Not right now at least. I just know it was "very odd." I felt like I knew exactly what it must have felt like back in the 60's when black people were asked to leave, or get off the bus, or you can't come in here, etc. I do at times wonder.... was it because I speak the truth when the truth hurts in regards to District politics? Is it because I'm a white girl who speaks the truth when the truth hurts in regards to District politics? Is it because I'm so outspoken in regards to District politics and what my City Council rep does and does not do? Is it because I DO NOT bow down to my City Council rep and act as if she were a "god?" Is it because I show respect to those who have earned it instead of giving it freely just because of a title? Why? Why was a "known community intimidator" sent over to kick me out of the benefit? Oh....and who is "they?" Would the definition of "they" be my Council Rep, her mother and their cronies? Lots of questions. Wonder if I'll ever know the answers...and do I really care?