As the Youth Die

When I wrote my book, “Mitch” I tried to put passages in it that would drive the youth away from drugs. As you can see, that didn’t work. Not many read the book. If they read it, they haven’t paid any attention. I would say my words fall on deaf ears, but they fact is my words don’t reach their ears.

In one of the passages, the main character, Mitch, is explaining to Margo one of his worst fears as policeman in drug enforcement is to one day look down the barrel of a gun held by a twelve year-old. In the book, he doesn’t explain it further. The reason for his fear is obvious. Does he kill the youth in self-defense or because of his age, does he allow the youth to pull the trigger on him?

As I wrote the words, and more over the years, I do wonder if there are similar situations that police officers are put in from time to time. I suspect it does happens. Sometimes the officer allows the youth to pull the trigger. In some cases, the officer pulls the trigger, knowing that he will live with the regret… knowing that those who appointed him to protect and serve will accuse him forever and a day. For sure, many times the officer goes to prison.

Don’t get me wrong. The officer is not always right to pull the trigger. I would never make a good cop. I would be among those that might pull the trigger when the kid has a B-B gun. Then I would have to suffer the rest of my life knowing that I made a mistake, though it isn’t really a mistake. B-B guns frequently do look like real guns, especially in the heat of the moment.

When I was a kid, that sort of thing didn’t happen. Why is it so commonplace today? There might be many reasons. However, I know of two. When I was a kid, kids were not involved in crime. Today, it is more and more common for younger and younger kids to have real guns and pull the trigger with little or no reason. Without police, the eleven and twelve-year-olds would be shooting each other as, to some degree, they do today.

The second reason is a little more difficult to see, but it’s there. The proliferation of the drug culture. At first, it was just the adults that were the only ones shooting at each other over the drugs and money. I guess, in the future we can look forward to 10 or even 9-year-olds shooting at each other.

As the youth die, the dems don’t care. They do nothing to curtail drug use. In fact, they seem to do things to encourage it and the accompanying violence, you know, like letting the cartel import the poison over the border.

You never, ever see the dems shedding a tear at the loss of the lives of children, actually over anyone. It facilitates the goals of ridding the country of law enforcement by decreasing their funding, which only adds to the problem, which, of course is by design.

The A, B, Cs of Truth

A prints the lie. B and C repeat the lie, citing A as the source. Almost a week later, A is forced to retract the lie. They actually do print the retraction, maybe an apology. Guess what, according to B and C, they are standing by what the printed. After all, they were just quoting A, which makes what they printed the truth. And so it is that the lie stands and the truth never gets out.

It’s the way gossip works and it’s the way gossipers spread the lie as truth. It’s sort of the way the dems work and it’s sort of the way the mouth piece for the dems work, you know, that wonderful great paper in NY, NY.

The Inevitable Results of a Godless People

Most of those who regularly read my posts know that I am not a person who likes surveys. However, I would like one survey made of one question. I would like it asked of all criminals immediately after they are convicted. The one simple question, “Do you believe in God?”

I wonder how many would say, “Yes,” but I don’t wonder much. I would guess you would go through a month or two before you would find so much as one.

And then, people are puzzled over why the country is full of liars, thieves, child and wife beaters, and murderers. If only the parents would teach their children about God. If only they would take their children to church. If only our schools teach one hour about the Bible a week.

Don’t misunderstand me. Some very bad people come out of churches; some are even the leaders of the church. Moreover, I’m not sure but I got the impression that Al Capone and his like went to church on Sunday; regularly went to confession and had absolutely no respect for the law.

However, we do need that survey. I wonder if they would permit me to do it. More important, I wonder if they would permit me to publish it. I don’t think too many would like the outcome.

The fact of the matter is, the nation that is Godless will inevitably soon be lawless as well. Indeed, today we are a Godless and lawless society today. Truly, guns don’t kill people, but rather Godless people kill people, not the law biding Christians. To be sure, you can include the Godless politicians who are in favor of murdering the unborn, even to the point they kill the child just before birth. Why should anyone wonder when even our doctors practice murder? Why should anyone be surprised when the Ten Commandments are no longer permitted while homosexuality is permitted and and encouraged?

Where nothing is morally wrong, all is permitted, including murder.

Let’s Take a Quick Look at the Difference

I didn’t see the whole press conference with Old Joe but I did hear a few parts. From what I heard, he didn’t do himself much damage. On the other hand, I didn’t see as he helped himself either. If he is going to hold on, he is going to need to a much better performance, and that is ignoring calling Trump his VP.

However the one thing I am concentrating on is that it took him about two weeks to prepare. On the other hand, if Trump were to hold a press conference, it would be the next day, if not the same day. Trump does not need a big team to prepare him asking practice questions. Old Joe needs a lot of practice, a big team and a lot of rest.

I don’t know about you, but I would not consider this a real “big boy” press conference. If it had been Trump, he would have had to field far more difficult questions and more of them.

One more quick note, the press would not have treated Trump nearly as well as Old Joe and Trump would have still looked far better.

Looks like quite a difference to me.

The Tragedy

There will be many that will disagree with me. Then again, as I have said before. I try to be honest in my posts in the way I think and feel. I do believe, frequently, I do have proper and or logical reasons for what I write.

There has been a recent news story about a 13 year-old shot by police in Utica. To be sure, I cannot claim I know everything about the situation other than it was a tragedy and that should never have happened. Yet, it happens all the time. As I said in one of my first posts, sometimes decisions are made that cannot be undone. I did so by saying that life does not have “undo” functions. There are no backspace keys. I used the case of an old woman shooting her own son thinking that he was a burglar. Certainly that woman would have done anything to reverse the last ten minutes. But, sometimes, it is just impossible to change the past.

Sometimes, while driving, I take a wrong turn. It can have consequences, but generally, I think little of it. On the other hand, I have made mistakes, big ones that I will never be able to change. It does happen. I am sure most others have too.

Going back to the shooting and what I know and what I suspect. I would think right now, the officer that shot that boy would do just about anything if he could hit that backspace key. When he left for work that day, I am pretty sure he did not say to himself, You know, I think I will just shoot a 13 year-old-boy today. It was not part of his plan. It was likely the farthest thing from his mind.

In one of my books, a detective told a woman that his greatest fear was to look down the barrel of gun being held by some 14-year-old. The book is fiction. However, I am sure many policemen do live in that fear for real.

As near as I can tell, he saw the pellet gun and thought it was real. So I ask, one and all. If you were a policeman and some thirteen-year-old was pointing a gun at you, would you shoot him or would you let him shoot you and others.

As I said, it was and is tragic. It should have never happened. As with most tragedies, there were likely many things that led to the time the officer pulled the trigger. Now, I am going to guess at some of it. They said he was an alien. I would suspect he and his parents were here illegally.

Does that make it alright to shoot him. Of course not. However it is part of what led to what happened. He ran from the policeman. Why? Maybe because he was illegal and didn’t want to be caught. No one will really know the reason he ran.

The instant the policeman confronted him, he should have told the officer he had a pellet gun and then followed the instructions. Regardless, run or not, he should have never pulled the gun out. He had to know the policeman would have thought it was real.

Running was a mistake. Pulling the gun was a mistake. Then again, 13-year-olds do make mistakes. I certainly did. It just so happens, the mistakes he made became fatal.

And now, the shooting will have repercussions. It will change the life of the officer who shot him. It will likely change the city and the police department. I guess it can be said that there are and will have repercussions throughout the country.

There will be those who will say the officer should not have shot. There will be those who will rush to the officer’s defense. I suspect that few will consider that which led up to the tragedy.

In the end, as bad as it is, we the public will have to face it. It was a horrible accident. However, it was an accident. It was one that did result in a death, which I hate and I’m sure most others dislike it too.

Now, let’s get realistic. As the official observer of Memphis, I notice that there are shootings about everyday in the city. It seems there is an average of a murder a day and most go unsolved. There are just so many they don’t have the manpower.

Where is the concern for those lives. And I might mention, many of those people killed are not running from the police. Sometimes we are talking of children lying in their bed at the time the bullet hits them. Where is the concern for them? Where is the outrage? Why are we releasing people guilty of crimes involving guns without bond?

Sorry. I don’t understand the outrage of a policeman doing his job and the lack of outrage at real murders and murderers.

Also, let’s take another look at the media. Why do they like to make the officer the villain before the investigation is started, while making the criminal just an unfortunate man down on his luck. To me, that in itself is a tragedy.

People Intentionally Spreading the Wrong Info About God and Salvation.

Try as I may, I cannot make a person accept Jesus as his savior. All I can do is present the truth and people seem determined to believe the lie they were told earlier. By the way, while I am on the subject, salvation is a gift. It is a lie that it can be earned. That’s right. It must be accepted or lost forever. No one, not even Moses or Abraham will be able to say they earned their spot in Heaven. No one told me as much, but it does seem a good way to keep pride out of God’s presence. No man, woman or child will be able to say to God that he is there because he earned it, or even partially earned any of it.

Yet, today, people are walking this earth proclaiming a person must be good to go to heaven, which is a lie from Hell. The fact is no one, but no one has, is, or will be good enough to be able to say to God he made it by being good.

Daily writing prompt
What are you passionate about?

Days of Competition

In the not too distant past, newspapers, radio news and TV news all used to compete. Their effort was to bring accurate news faster than anyone else.

Now, not so much. The competition is gone. Now, they cooperate, even to the point they use the same terms, the same phrases and even the same stories. I would have to assume they make sure to cross check their stories to make sure none gets the least out of step with the other.

The really sorry aspect of it all, most of the public is unaware of it. Much of the public doesn’t care. The worst part is that most actually believe it.

Root of Evil

What is it that can cause a person to steal from friends and relatives. What is it that can drive us to risk the well being of ourselves, our friends, our community and our nation.

Some have indeed abandoned oath of office and the good of constituents. It has caused judges and upstanding citizens disgrace and ruin.

I am sure, by now, most of you have figured it out. It is as Jesus said. The root of all evil is the love of money.

Indeed, when a man loves money more than than his brothers, then his brothers are not safe from him. When a president loves money more than his country, you get someone who looks a lot like Old Joe.

When a husband loves money more than his wife and family, he loses that which he has in casinos because of sicknessof greed. Moreover, he will steal so as to lose even more.

The love of money will drive a soldier or sailor to betray his country and the nation that loves money more than God will fall suddenly. For the one citizen will not trust the other.

Money causes man to do ugly things such as selling his fellow man into slavery and the woman into evil so as to increase his wealth. t will destroy the guilty man’s conscience so he knows no guilt.

In a strange ugly way, there are those evil men who seek money by distortion of God’s word, by promising wealth to those who will only have faith.

Why Can’t My Son Go to the 4 Grade

WRONG QUESTION!!

I was watching news last night and I heard a woman complaining, Why can’t my son go to the 4th grade?

I understand her grief. I understand her desires. My older son spent time in a California school. He also spent some time in a Memphis school. It is the primary reason we moved to Desoto County.

My advice to that woman or to anyone who has his child in Shelby County schools, get them out! just as fast as they can.

Many things can be done to improve the schools, but that would take time. You don’t have time. Besides, I don’t think they want to improve the schools. Their purpose is to take your money and gain power. Some teachers try, but, for them, they are swimming upstream. When they make the other teachers look bad, the union reps have words with them.

At this point, I’m not sure Desoto County schools are that good. I saw signs of degrading the last few years my sons were there, decades ago. Today, I would do what I could to keep my dependents out of any public schools completely.

Moreover, my advice to this and all parents in Shelby County is to ask the right questions. My question, above all, is why is it that OUR children can’t read. I emphasize OUR, because we aren’t talking 2 or 3, or 5 or 6. We are talking thousands. Shelby County schools are some of the worst performing in Tennessee and the US.

If it were individuals, we could say the child is the problem. The fact is, it isn’t the failure of the students I’m concerned with. It is the failure of the system, one which has money flooding in, and failure flowing out.

The long term solution, vote Republican. Get those dems out of there just as fast as you can. Fire teachers who can’t or won’t teach. Better to have 8th graders who can teach than a PhD who can’t.

Finally, minimize control by teachers unions.They have no business at all in the control of the schools, teaching methods or what is being taught.

Lest We Forget

Every time I turn on the news, it seems the first words are something to the effect, First president to stand trial….

May I remind one and all, Clinton admitted to felonies while still in office. Quite possibly, the only reason he was not removed from office was a number of hard-headed dems who did not want to admit the truth.

Moreover, the FBI director effectively told the whole world that Mrs. Clinton committed crimes for which she should have been permanently placed behind bars. Then she was let go. She had 2 things going for her, her name and her political party.

Then there is the granddad of them all, literally. Old Joe is escaping prosecution cause he’s too senile to stand trial. This is on record from the special prosecutor, though he put it a little more politely.