RSSDon’t Steal a Plasma TV in NC
From the files of the Shawshank Redemption comes the following story. After 35 years in prison for stealing a black-and-white television set, Junior Allen is a free man.
Allen was a 30-year-old migrant farm worker from Georgia with a criminal history that included burglaries and a violent assault when he sneaked into an unlocked house and stole a 19-inch black-and-white television worth $140.
Some state records say Allen roughed up the 87-year-old woman who lived there, but he was not convicted of assault.
Instead, he was sentenced in 1970 to life in prison for second-degree burglary. The penalty for the offense has since been changed to a maximum of three years in prison.
How did this guy piss off? Reminds me of Pops from the original ‘The Longest Yard’ who got his sentence extended for punching the warden.
Allen, 65, walked out of prison Friday, ending a case that attracted widespread attention because he remained in jail while other inmates convicted of murder, rape or child molestation were released.
As long as it wasn’t me I guess I could joke about it.
“For a black-and-white TV, how much do you have to pay?” Hasberry said. “We’ve got an in-house joke here: How much time would he have gotten if he had stolen a color TV?”
Allen, I beg of you. Stay away, far away from the Plasma TV’s.
Oliver Stone”d”
Can I say I blame Oliver Stone for being drunk or stoned after the box office results of his last movie, Alexander? Or was it that was the reason why the movie turned out the way it did?
Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone was arrested on suspicion of drug possession and driving while intoxicated, police said Saturday.
Stone, 58, was arrested Friday night at a police checkpoint on Sunset Boulevard after showing signs of alcohol intoxication, police Sgt. John Edmundson said. A search of his Mercedes turned up drugs, Edmundson said. He did not specify what kind, but Lt. Micaela Garland said police confiscated pills that were being analyzed at a lab.
Stone was released Saturday morning after posting $15,000 bail.
I’m glad to see someone else, The Moderate Voice, had the same reaction to Stone’s latest effort disaster, Alexander:
Oliver Stone was arrested in Beverly Hills.
And, no, it wasn’t for Crimes Against Humanity for his latest film Alexander.
Hmm … So that’s where he comes up with these conspiracy theories, its a paranoid “alleged” induced state.
Looks like Oliver may be back to that endless revolving door called Hollywood Drug Rehab.
Bush to Senate Dem’s on Bolton Documents; Pound Sand
In response to Senate Democrats to produce confidential unredacted documents that Biden & Reid had requested; President Bush says, “No”. What is rather hypocritical is the fact that when Democrats justified the judicial filibuster and vilified the so called “nuclear” option, they stated that they were defending the right of the Senate’s checks and balances. What part about this Senate Democrats is not privileged Executive material and part of those same checks and balances? Biden knew when he made the request to receive the Bolton documents he would never get them. Today, President Bush said exactly what Biden already knew, NO!
The Bush administration said yesterday that Democratic senators should not expect to get the documents they are seeking before they will allow an up-or-down vote on John R. Bolton, whom the president nominated to be ambassador to the United Nations.
“They have what they need,” White House spokesman Scott McClellan said. “The Democratic and Republican leaders of the Intelligence Committee have had access to this sensitive, highly classified information. The Democrats clamoring for it have already voted against the nomination. This is about partisan politics.”
It appears that the harmony that they Democrats and Harry Reid claimed would rule the day following the filibuster compromise was as shorted lived as an early John Kerry exit poll lead. The Democrats are back to their old games.
”John Bolton enjoys majority [Senate] support, and it’s a shame that Democrats are stopping a vote,” said Erin Healy, a White House spokeswoman. ”This is about partisan politics, not documents.”
The Democratic response,
”If this administration was really serious about getting an ambassador in place at the UN to deal with reform or any other issue, they would have cooperated with the Senate long ago so that it could have all the information necessary to make a sound judgment on John Bolton’s fitness to serve,” Kurz said.
No, I think more to the point if Senate Democrats were serious about what they claim they would not request documents that they know could and would never be given to them. This would be obstruction and a lose-lose for Democrats. One, they look like liars in that they promised harmony and then continue partisan politics. Two, Democrats lose face as they are never going to get these documents and will be forced to have the vote on Bolton.
I love this idea from Baldilocks in the Democrats only chance to get these documents from the White House.
Send Sandy Berger in to get those Bolton classified docs. However, the good senators might want to wear a mask while reading the info; after the heist, the papers might not smell too good.
Send Berger, that’s priceless. However, may just be the only way.
Your Tax Dollars at Work for Sex Offenders, Part II
In a follow up to the New York State audit on sex offenders receiving prescription drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra comes this revelation from 14 other states.
An Associated Press survey found that nearly 800 convicted sex offenders in 14 states got Medicaid-funded prescriptions for Viagra and other impotence drugs.
HOW IT HAPPENED: Medicaid, the health insurance program for the poor, is administered differently in every state. Thus, while some states allowed Medicaid payments for prescriptions for the drugs Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, other states did not.
No, most likely how it happened is there is never any common sense used by law makers when proposing these bills for recipients to receive services. How no one could have thought that this may have been a ramification of the bill is astounding.
The 14 States in question and some 800 sex offenders subsidized with impotence drugs are as follows:
The states that provided registered sex offenders with subsidized impotence drugs are Florida, 218 cases; New York, 198; Texas, 191; New Jersey, 55; Virginia, 52; Missouri, 26; Kansas, 14; Ohio, 13; Michigan, seven; Maine, five; Georgia, three; Montana, three; Alabama, two; and North Dakota, one. That comes to 788 cases.
Others have stated that these changes are not warranted for the minor the amount spent on these medications and number of sex offenders actually provided are so small that these proposals to stop such actions are dumb, irrelevant and nonsensical.
This has to be the dumbest way to solve an incredibly minor problem. Whether states should subsidize medication for erectile dysfunction to begin with is an interesting question but not really at issue here. To stop doing so for the sole purpose of ensuring that sex offenders don’t get it is asinine.
For one thing, those who are willing to commit the most heinous of crimes are surely willing to steal either the drugs or the money to buy the drugs. For another, the percentage of those getting subsidized Viagra who are sex offenders–or for that matter, the percentage of sex offenders fueled by subsidized Viagra–has to be exceedingly small.
I would have to vehemently disagree with that notion. It is about time that this country and our government start taking children’s safety in to account and not the rights of the criminals. The idea that a sex offender can get a prescription drug paid by tax payers to create an even greater threat to society is disgusting. The mere idea that it can occur is sick. We are supposed to be so concerned about crimes against children and preventing sexual predators from exploiting victims, yet we should not do what is obvious? Because a criminal can steal the medication is a reason to let let have it at tax payer’s expense? I am going to have to respectfully disagree with James this time. Personally, sex offender or no sex offender; there is no way Medicaid or Medicare should be covering these types of drugs. That is a waste of resources that could go to much better use. Medicaid & Medicare were not intended to be all things for all people.
However, the prevention of Viagra to a sex offender would seem to be a no brainer. I can surmise that the ACLU will voice their opinion on this as we are some how taking away the right of the sex offender’s “individual rights”. The ACLU’s claim will sound something like this, [they have already been tried for their crimes. They are being discriminated against the right to have Viagra.] Why will it not surprised anyone when this is said? The hell with the fact that it is like giving tax payer subsidized bullets to a killer. No wonder many law makers think they most likely have to stop all Medicaid reimbursement.
Since this issue was brought to the forefront, Viagra and other erectile dysfunction drugs reimbursement as been stopped in New York State and Virgina. California governor Schwarzenegger’s called for his state agencies to cut off such medication until related legislation is passed.
“Today I am directing all of my agency secretaries to take the necessary steps to stop this dangerous practice in California,” the former bodybuilder and actor said. “Our first responsibility is to keep our citizens safe, and providing these drugs to known sex offenders is a policy that only threatens more innocent people.”
Other posts:
Sex Offenders Receive Viagra on the Tax Payers, Government Reacts
New York, Your Tax Dollars Hard At Work
Memorial Day Weekend – George W. Bush
As part of the Memorial Day weekend services George W. Bush honored the men and women who have died in the nation’s service during his Saturday radio address.
Our citizens live in freedom because patriots are willing to serve and sacrifice for our liberty,” Bush said Saturday in his weekly radio address.
“Today a new generation of Americans is making its own sacrifice on behalf of peace and freedom, and some have given their lives,” he said.
The full radio address can be seen and heard here.
Also: Radio News America
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On Friday President Bush gave the commencement speech at the Naval Academy before midshipmen send their hats a-flying as the Class of 2005 celebrates its new status as officers.
Go to the Gateway Pundit for video and the commencement speech.
More can be found here as the President Discusses War on Terror at Naval Academy Commencement. But not before some classic Bush humor…
And I am proud to stand before the future leaders of the Navy and Marine Corps, and to celebrate the occasion, I thought I would bring along a small graduation gift. Too late to give you a “Staubach Day,” — so I’ll do the next best thing: In keeping with long-standing tradition, I hereby absolve all midshipmen who are on restriction for minor conduct offenses. (Laughter and applause.) I leave it to Admiral Rempt to define exactly what “minor” means. (Laughter.)
You worked hard to get to this moment: You survived Plebe Summer, and having your parking tickets scraped. (Laughter.) You climbed Herndon Monument, and threw pennies at Tecumseh, god of the 2.0. I knew him pretty well when I was in school. (Laughter.) Now, at last, you’ve made it to graduation day, and in a few moments you will receive your military commissions and your diplomas. Your parents are proud of you, your teachers are proud of you, and so is your Commander-in-Chief. Congratulations on a great achievement. (Applause.)
A lot has changed since you arrived at Annapolis four years ago. Navy football went 0 and 10 in your plebe year. This year, you went 10 and 2, and you won your second Commander-in-Chief’s trophy in a row. (Applause.) I’d like the record to show that your turnaround started the year after I delivered your commencement address. (Laughter.) So to ensure the continued dominance of Navy football, I thought I’d just swing by for a return visit.
Some more great and poignant passages from President Bush’s speech at the Naval Academy.
In this time of unprecedented dangers, we need you to take on two difficult missions at once: We need you to defeat the terrorists who want to destroy what we stand for and how we live. And at the same time, we need you to transform our military for the 21st century, so we can deter and defeat the new adversaries who may threaten our people in the decades ahead.
The lesson of September 11th is clear: new dangers can arrive on our shores without warning. In this era of surprise, we cannot know for certain who might attack us, or where, or when. But we can anticipate how we might be attacked, and we can transform our capabilities to defend our citizens and deliver justice to our enemies.
To meet the threats of the 21st century, we are developing new technologies that will make our forces faster, lighter, more agile, and more lethal. In our time, terrible dangers can arise on a short moment anywhere in the world, and we must be prepared to oppose these dangers everywhere in the world.
Some of our men and women in uniform have given their lives in this cause, and others have returned home with terrible injuries. America honors their sacrifice, and we will uphold the cause they served. You are the ones who will take up their mantle, and carry on their fight, and ensure the triumph of liberty in the century ahead.
You are now part of the greatest force for freedom in the history of the world — the Armed Forces of the United States. In the years ahead, you will see dramatic changes taking place all around you. Yet amid all the tumult and change, there is one thing that won’t change — and that is character of our men and women who wear the uniform. This is your generation’s moment. Your mission is necessary and it is noble. The weapons you use will be more powerful and precise than those available to Annapolis graduates who came before you, and you will face enemies they never imagined. But what will make your success possible is the same thing that made their success possible: the courage and honor and personal integrity that you learned at this Academy.
We’re going to give you the tools you’ll need to prevail in today’s war on terror, and the capabilities you’ll need to protect us against the dangers that may yet emerge. Now the task is in your hands, and that means it is in the best of hands. Thank you for your courageous decision to serve. Bring honor to the uniform, security to our country, and peace to the world. And congratulations to every member of the class of 2005.
May God bless you. (Applause.)
