Monthly Archives: May 2008

Are fingers crossed for an assassination?

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Continuing with the 2008 Election madness, it is no secret that everyone is trying to understand, while at the same time, eliminate the popularity of Barack Obama. This past week has seen two very clear indications that thoughts are circulating in the minds of those who have their own personal agenda’s.

Beginning with the lesser of two evils, was Hillary Clinton’s comments supporting her determination to remain in the Democratic Primaries through June. She was basically citing the fact that Robert Kennedy was assassinated in June of 1968 as a base for one of her arguments.

For the life of me, I cannot reasonably understand why you would use a situation like that to bolster your own desire to remain in the race. The only reason one would make a statement like that is that, like Robert Kennedy, if the lead horse in the race is somehow taken out, Obama, she would be the next in line.

I would appreciate it if someone could provide me with some positive justification from those comments as they apply to Hillary’s candidacy and not some subliminal desire to hope for the assassination of Obama. If the latter is truly the deep feelings of a major political figure then we should all worry about our democracy.

As I said, this was the lesser of the two evils. Yes, it gets worse, much worse. In a recent Fox News discussion with Eric Shawn about Hillary’s comments, Liz Trotta an Author, Journalist and former New York Bureau Chief for the Washington Times was brought on the air to provide comments about Hillary’s very public gaff. What followed deep, personal look into the mentality of a once respected Journalist charged with enlightening the masses.

“And now we have what some are reading as a suggestion that somebody knock off Osama, uh Obama. Well, both, if we could.”

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<br />Liz Trotta, Fox News Analyst</center>

Trying to obviously get out of a very bad comment as fast as possible, Eric half jokingly said, “Talk about how you really feel!” and then quickly tried to bring the conversation back on track. Do you think it ended there? Oh, hell no. She followed Shawn’s next question of whether or not she (Trotta) really felt that Hillary didn’t think that about Obama with.

“Well, that’s beside the point, whether she meant it or not.”

Seriously, I think this woman has lost her mind! Anyone who follows news in general knows that Fox is known for its strong conservative slant, so Democrats usually never get a break. But this is over the top and it seems they know it.

You would expect that any normal agency would immediately dismiss her for those comments. All that has happened so far is her appearance on Fox News again with Bill Hemmer and offered an apology writing it all of to a bad attempt at humor. Lets see how funny it is with the Secret Service crawling up her ass after comments about hoping for an Assassination.

I am going to leave that comment speak for itself. The one thing I will say is that at least she had the balls to say what she was thinking. I am more frightened by Hillary’s comments as they are hints to much deeper potential concern if true. This leads me to think about all of the pipe dream comments of Hillary accepting the Vice Presidency lets get serious here, if she does, Obama will need to watch his back once she is one roadblock from the Oval office. The more likely VP nod? John Edwards.

Despite all of this ignorance, I will say however, Barack is taking this all extremely well and should be commended for his public restraint. But I would love to be a fly on the wall of his inner sanctum to hear the conversations about these two.

Welcome to Tokyo Duuuuuude!

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Weedsamurai

Having lived in Japan for 16 years, I always said that nothing would ever surprise me. Here is another one. Imagine arriving taking a 4 hour flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo, surviving the Immigration lines for non-Japanese, getting through customs and then suffering the 2 hour Bus trip into Tokyo, checking into your room, popping open your suitcase and finding………… wait for it…..

A BAG OF WEED!

That is exactly what occurred recently with some visitor to Japan. I wonder what this guy’s first thought was? “Haste makes waist, need to decompress and relax… toke up!“

I’m not going to even get into the stupidity of the Customs Official who thought using a “real” traveler for testing the capabilities of drug sniffing dogs, but I hope this guy is demoted to serving up green tea to the “Office Ladies” to give them a break.

Another thing I was thinking was about the individual who was used. What would I think if I was pulled with my bags by a bomb sniffing drug that found planted marijuana in my bags? Did they tell him they were doing it? They have to know who the mule was that they used from the information on the landing card. But do they? The last sentence in the article is an interesting plea to the masses:

Anyone who finds the package should contact Tokyo customs as soon as possible, the spokeswoman said.

You have got to be kidding me……

TOKYO (Reuters) – One of the travelers who arrived at Tokyo’s Narita airport over the weekend may have picked up an unusual souvenir from customs — a package of cannabis.

The site “They” don’t want you to know about

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Opencongresslogo

The Election of 2008 is garnering many of the headlines as of late. It seems every 4 years everyone’s attention is diverted towards who will be the next President of the United States of America. In many regards, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

The theme for this election has been all about change. Change, change, change. It can be done in dramatic fashsion as it is playing out in this election, but what we all need to understand is that it can also be started at a much lower level. Every day the House or Senate is in session. You see, that is where the real fate of our nation lies. In the every day business of our elected officials.

In my recent foray into the various blogs out and about, I ran across a site I had never even heard of before, but one that if known to those who truly wish to make a difference, can drive change long before it hits the President’s desk. The site is called OpenCongress.organd it puts the power of awareness right at your fingertips.

The first thing I noticed after registering is that it displayed who my Representatives and Congressmen were. I could then tag them and add them to my OpenCongress Dashboard for future reference. From there I had full access to all of the Bills currently in the Pipeline. I can then browse and if interested, mark them for tracking, also on my Dashboard.

Opencongress-billstatus

You have the option of selecting a bill where you are taken to that Bill’s page that displays the Sponsor, Committees and Amendments to the Bill. Off to the right, you are also given the opportunity to Vote on the Bill. 

Opencongress-vote

It would be my hope that someone in Government would be monitoring this to guage what the concerned public thinks.

You are then presented with a host of information regarding the Bill itself including a summary of the Bill. A handy offering also provided is a simple graphical display of the Bill Status outlining the various steps that it must progress through before it is made a Law. As each phase is passed it is highlighted through the chart.

Finally, you are also given all related Bills, Issue Areas and News/Blog coverage for that particular Bill. The typical features are available as on most sites these days RSS feeds, Widgets to help you stay on top of things.

We often wonder what goes on up on “The Hill” but never really have the time to do the research to find out what proposals are being made that affect “We The People.” For that reason, I applaud OpenCongress.org for bringing it all into one place and giving us the tools needed to become educated and engaged in our Government.

I would also add that with a site like this, none of us can get away with saying “I didn’t know” when some law is passed that we disagree with. If you want to make true change past 2008, I highly recommend you take the time and get educated towards what our Government is up to. OpenCongress is a helpful tool in that effort.

Permits! Permits! Permits!

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Permits

As a home owner you are actually led to believe that you own your home and as such can pretty much do whatever you want to it.  For the most part that is true.  However, there is one thing that you really need to understand.  You can do what you want within reason, as long as you have the local government tell you it is o.k. to do the work.

If you are a home owner, and you are thinking of doing renovations or installing anything that taps into the existing plumbing, electrical of your home, you may want to head down to your local township or city office to determine whether or not they require you to obtain a permit for the work to be performed.

For the obvious work, like having a kitchen completely gutted and rebuilt from scratch you would obviously need a permit for the Electrical, one for the Plumbing and one for the Building.  This is something your contractor is will usually arrange for you prior to the work beginning.  It also costs money to open a permit.

Local governments have a set of “codes,” which are standards for various types of work and how they are to be implemented to ensure a certain level of safety and standards for your protection and investment.  To enforce these codes, inspectors are dispatched to manage the jobs at various stages as sort of a checks & balance between the homeowner and the contractors.

What is often overlooked is that most contractors are only responsible for opening the permits.  It is not, in their best interest to also be responsible for closing these permits out.  Closing the permits out involve the local inspector returning to assess the quality and integrity of the work performed.

If you do not stay on top of this, when you are ready to sell your home, you can be hit with several permits that are still open which will need to be closed out prior to the sale of your home.  This involves coordinating with your local governmental offices to schedule the final inspections for work that in some cases may not have even been performed by you, but by previous owners of the home.  Either way, you are responsible, at that point, for whatever the inspector may or may not find.

It is all a complete nightmare unless you are aware of these practices.  Before you purchase a home, ensure that no permits are still open by the seller.

If you own the home, make sure you stay on top of the permit process with your contractors for any work performed on your home. More importantly, never take the word of a contractor that a permit is not needed.  It is best if you do the leg work and inquire on your own.  If you don’t it can cause you serious problems down the line.

National “Do Not Call Registry”

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Tired of the random solicitation calls that constantly occur? You can do something about it. Get your numbers registered on the National Do Not Call Registry. One way to try and head off all of the Telemarketing companies that consistently find a way to call you right in the middle of dinner at the end of your day when you really don’t want to be bothered.

Of course there are no guarentees, but at the end of 31 days, by law no telemarketers should reach out to you as they are liable by the Federal Trade Commision’s (FTC) Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007 which became law in February 2008. At the time of this posting, there are approximately 157 million phone numbers, plus the 3 that I just registered that should no longer have their days interrupted by annoying calls. There are additional details around how all of this works, but in general the FTC manages the list. If a number is registered and owned by you then it will remain on the list forever. If there is a change in ownership of that number or the number is dropped by you then it will be flagged as disconnected or reassigned and made available to Telemarketers until re-registered.

Here is where there is a potential flaw in the system. Apparently Telemarketers have to pay an annual fee to access the list. At $54 per area code or a max of $14,850 for all area codes (whichever is less), I can see some scam companies avoiding the list in its entirety. All you as the consume needs to know is that if this occurs, you can file a complaint with the Do Not Call Registry either via their website.

One final caveat to all of this is that there are organizations that are free to access the list at no charge. These include charities, political organizations and telephone surveyors. Ugh! To see who is not necessarily restricted from calling you, check the list here.

As with anything in life these days, it is ultimately up to you to protect your privacy. Ignorance is never an acceptable excuse in this day and age.

The Military Criminal Mind

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A very disturbing report out today on Reuters that somehow brings into the question of values that we are teaching in America in this day and age. In a country that was founded to uphold the values of respect and tolerance of other cultures, beliefs and religions, why is it then that extremely dumb acts of ignorance pop up to jeopardize not just an unpopular war but inherently put lives at risk and in the worse case, shame on lives already lost defending the values that we are supped to believe in.

I am speaking of the recent discovery of a copy of the Koran discovered on May 11th, not in a home or a mosque, but on a firing range. Apparently, some bright, highly intelligent U.S. Military member decided to bring his frustration and stress onto the range and taking it out on the Koran with his weapon and 14 rounds. What’s worse here is that in the next strategic move, the damaged holy book was simply left to be found by locals.

Not knowing much about the individual in question here, it is difficult to fully understand why he decided to express his personal beliefs out in this manner. All one can say is that a statement like this, in an environment like Iraq during a time of strained emotions does not do much to help gain the trust and respect of the people you are “assigned” to help and protect.

And lets not also forget to bring into question the acts of another dumb asses on the other side of the globe honorably representing Americans to yet another culture…… The Japanese in Okinawa. 2006, 2 Marines Rob Taxi Goes to Trial Courts Martial convicts Marine NCO on Sexual Abuse Charges

The list could go on in countries around the world, but no need to go that far. Personally, I am entitled to, after having served this country for 8 years of my life, that I am personally offended each and every time one of these dumb asses decides to go it alone and do what the hell they think they can.

It is easy, after-the-fact to hope that each and every one of these individuals are being dealt with accordingly. However, the larger question is why are these events occurring in the first place? What is missing in their training? I do recall receiving cultural sensitivity training when I was in the Marine Corps, however, this often came into conflict with the messages I was exposed to which were designed to motivate warriors.

“Blood makes the grass grow…. Kill, Kill, Kill!” “Rape, pillage and plunder!” “One shot, one kill!”

I understood these phrases to have been passed down through the course of 200+ years of Marine Corps history, designed to instill a sort of mental invincibility to the stresses of war. In no way did I ever assume these to be a re-wiring of how I should live life. Where I think things begin to go wrong, is when individuals take this training a bit too much to heart and begin to believe there is a “Free-Pass” entrusted to them by being part of the U.S. Military.

Personally, I do know my actions were based on personal beliefs:

  1. I was an “Ambassador” of the United States where not all Americans are as bad as the “Ugly” ones
  2. I wanted to treat people the same way that I wanted to be treated.
  3. I wanted to seriously understand and learn about the culture I was immersed in.

This held true in all of the countries I was assigned. I even carry this with me in business post-military.

So where is this all going wrong? I am not blaming the Military, I believe it goes further back then that. It has to be part of the beliefs of the individuals. This is a hot topic for sure. This is just my take on bringing it up for discussion and thought.

Uncomfortably Dumb

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“That was Barack Obama. He just tripped off a chair. He was getting ready to speak and somebody aimed a gun at him, and he dove for the floor,”- Mike Huckabee speaking at the NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky, in comments that aired on CNN.

And to think, this guy was running for President of the United States! All jokes aside, would one really need to be so ignorant as to make references about pointing guns at public figures, or anyone for that matter, in this day and age? I don’t care if you are speaking to the NRA. Is the GOP support really worth it? From what I can gather even the audience was taken back by this comment.

I understand the right to own firearms, even though I do not. I was raised with them, hunted, reloaded my own shells and even fired a round or two during my 8 years in the Marines. I was taught to respect firearms, I have attended safety courses to obtain my hunting licenses and of course, was trained, first and foremost, as a Basic Marine Rifleman.

For these reasons I understand where the NRA is coming from. The last thing they should want is to be lumped in, yet again, with the crowd that is obtaining firearms illegally, killing people on a whim or by accident during a senseless petty crime. If anything I would think that the NRA would be completely pissed at his “comment.”

All I know is that as each day goes by in this election, I am growing more and more disgusted with those who claim to represent the “People” when they are constantly pandering to whomever they are speaking to at that moment. In this instance, it is just plain stupidity. Way to go Huck!

Full Article Here

I am an IDIOT!

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Chimney

So I am not ashamed to say it. I am the victim of a scam. One that is not so clear to identify and is, in retrospect, one of those “I should have known better” events.

We were hit by the Chimney Maintenance Scam.

Having lived in Japan for over 16 years, I became complacent in the fact that everyone you deal with in most business situations is an honest individual and when they say they are doing work, especially on your home, they are true to their word.

Not so in the New Jersey, New York area.

We are selling our home. Around the time we were preparing the home for the inevitable home inspection from the buyer, we received a call from a chimney cleaning service to come clear out our flue. I thought this was a good idea to have done prior to the inspection.

When the guys showed up, they headed straight for the basement to check out the connections and the base of the chimney, then they headed for the roof. With one guy sitting on the chimney they explained that the inside liner of the chimney had broken and was blocking a portion of the flue. The flue to the Gas Water Heater. They said that as a result there was a possibility that the exhause from the gas was not venting properly and could be seeping carbon monoxide into the home, or would in the future causing health issues.

A bit panicked because we didn’t want this to become an issue on the inspection for selling, I agreed to have the broken terra cotta lining removed and a new stainless steel liner installed. Given the price, the Mrs. obviously had issues with doing this at a time when we were in the middle of buying/selling and didn’t want to expend the cash. In the end, given the “Gas” issue, and the fact that I understood and agreed with the assessment, she reluctantly agreed to have the work done. The work was scheduled for a later date and that was that.

The buyer’s home inspection came next. The chimney was flagged as being improperly vented. Of course I called the company who did the work for us and insisted that the re mediate this. They said they would have the guys come back to me who did the work. Shortly after I got the call from one of the guys who did the work, I explained the inspector’s comments and he said that there was nothing wrong with the Furnace venting and to have the buyer call them about it.

I informed the buyer of this conversation and they in-turn requested the option to have the chimney inspected again. And they did.

They brought in a chimney guy who commenced to ripping the chimney apart and pointing out the fact that whatever this company did, it wasn’t done or wasn’t done right. On top of that the cost to do the work was almost 4x that of the original work done. Now is when I begin to stress just a bit.

I countered with having the chimney re-inspected by another company and when I called, they conversation went like this:

New Chimney Co.: “What was the name of the company?”

Me: “Union Maintenance.”

New Chimney Co.: “Did they get a permit?”

Me: “Not that I am aware of. Didn’t know they needed one.”

New Chimney Co.: “You were scammed.”

At this point I locked up and couldn’t talk….. I finally said I would call them back. Of course now the hindsight begins to develop and I go on line and start researching. Damn…… First I call my lawyer to understand what we need to first and foremost fix the inspection issue. The decision was to contact the reputable, certified, chimney company to come in for a 2nd quote on ONLY the Furnace venting issue. They are due to inspect/quote on the issue this next Tuesday.

So here I sick, reading more and more about these scams. The pit in my stomach is getting deeper and deeper. Pissed with no recourse as I continually call the company that did the work and am getting either a fax tone or some new company called B&K Masonry and Chimney’s voice mail. Deep in my heart I know they will never call me back after leaving the messages for them to do so. Talk about feeling like a complete idiot.

My skin is turning into a shell since moving back to the U.S.. I should know better than to go into these things with trust that I am working with a professional, but old habits die hard and as such, needed to share this story with the masses in hopes that you will not run across the same issues I have. I am not sure what it is going to cost us to now get this sorted, I only know that I have been sucked into throwing money into the wind. I look back and find myself screaming at my memory… “SAY NO!” “ASK THIS QUESTION!” When in reality, what I am really saying is “TRUSTING DUMB ASS!”

Radiation in your house!!!

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Radon

This was something I was not aware of until a Radon test was performed on our home in preparation for a sale. It seems that there is a radioactive particle called Radon (Atomic Number 86) that is a naturally occurring cast of from the earth. In older homes with basements and limited ventilation, these atoms become trapped in the air as they seep up from the ground. This could cause a problem over time as Radon has been linked to Cancer and needs to be mitigated to reduce that risk.

For residents of New Jersey, the legal limit on these tests is 4.0 picocuries per liter (pCi/L). Unfortunately our home registered slightly above that at 4.1 picocuries per liter (pCi/L). This meant that we needed to have it mitigated prior to the sale. The good news for us is that the new house registered just below 2 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) which is what is usually found in the outdoors.

Radonpipe-225x300

Fortunately, the process, aside from the hit to the wallet, is pretty straight forward. They drill a 3″ hole in the floor of the basement, insert a 3″ PVC Pipe into the ground beneath the foundation, then up and through the wall to the outside where a small cylindrical pump waits. From there it pumps the air up above the house and out into the air where it dissipates naturally.

The next steps now that the pump and piping have been installed is for a new test to be taken to validate the drop in Radon readings in the basement.

For the sake of family or if you plan on selling your home, be aware that this is something that should be looked at. It isn’t too bad if you don’t spend much time in your basement. If you have a finished basement however and spend quite a bit of time there, it could increase your exposure and as such increase the possibility of contracting Radon induced cancer.

For us the basement was pretty much utilitarian in use and therefore was not as big of an issue. I am just pleased that in New Jersey Home Inspectors now perform this test routinely. The higher the number the more exposure you and yours have to Radon. At the very least, do your own research on your area and whether or not something needs to be done.