Ohio is rejoining the United States of America!

"Is it safe to come out yet?" Almost, Blink - Almost! This little pit bull impostor just heard news that Ohio Governor John Kasich is expected to sign HB14 in his home state. When he does, dogs just like her can come out of hiding -- They can be judged by their behavior instead of their looks. History is ALMOST here!

(Alright, she really is a pit bull, but if she lived in Ohio I'd have to pretend (and believe me they killed them anyway even without proof on just looks alone) she was something else or they would of killed her)

Those days are coming to an end.  Thank you to all the pit bull advocates who work so tirelessly to bring sanity back into dog laws across the country.

"It's Halftime in America"

I saw this commercial being talked about on Facebook.  Which means people have probably been talking about it for a while.  Since I'm about a week behind everyone else's times I'm sure you've seen it.  But it's a first for me so I'm sharing.  I read that there have been complaints that it is political.  I really like the message.  It must have worked as a commercial too, since I wanted to go out and by a GM product. 

I don't care if it's political.  I get annoyed by people who get their panties in a bunch over "political" stuff.   If you don't like it.  Tough!

What's Next?

First it started with tobacco. It was slow and insidious. Creeping up on us, you know, for our own good. Starting with warning labels and no smoking sections in restaurants it has now evolved into banning smoking even in the great outdoors.

Helmet laws followed. I was even almost sucked into that one. After all I don't want my taxes paying for someone to be hooked to life support because he didn't wear his helmet. But guess what? Since PA has rescinded its helmet law fatal motorcycle accidents have gone down. Guess they decided to be more careful now that they aren't wearing helmets. It also helped that motorcyclists in PA have been advertising "Watch for Motorcycles" all over the place. Makes you think.

Next it was seat belt laws. You must wear your seat belt for your own protection. We must save you from yourself.

Then laws banning trans fat in restaurants; then in whole cities. What about labeling foods and letting the buying pubic decide? Okay, I get your point. Not everyone wants to think, they want to be led. Well the way I see it, that is great, they'll just do it without thinking and the Mother Nature's rule of survival of the fittest will prevail. Doesn't sound like such a bad idea to me.

Somewhere in there fast food became the evil empire out to destroy us.

Now it's salt. They are trying to get processed food companies to lower the amount of sodium they put in their food. Do they think that will stop people from just adding it back at their table? Are they going to start taxing salt like they do cigarettes. Testing people for sodium content levels in their blood and denying them work because of it. If you don't believe that can happen check out the part of this post that deals with a company trying to do just that to smokers.

Who are these people who are so desperately trying to save us from ourselves? Doctors who can't wait for us to come to them, so they track us down and tell us what to do? When we don't listen to their satisfaction do they get the FDA all hyped up? If that doesn't work they use the media to put pressure on lawmakers to do something about it.

Thomas Jefferson put it quite simply in 1776: "Laws provide against injury from others, but not from ourselves."

At least that's the way it's supposed to be.

In the News

So many things are going on right now.

A local town had been having problems with people not controlling their dogs. The town council tried to get a state representative to introduce a bill allowing them to pass local laws regarding specific breeds. Right now it is illegal in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to do that. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed. Many people worked hard to make sure that real facts were studied and not just feel good information passing as facts. After all his investigating the representative found that local laws on the books, when enforced, would take care of the problems they were having. Bummer for a local councilwoman from that town who will now have to walk her two wiener dogs on a leash. Much to the pleasure of some locals who had been charged by those wieners in the past.

Also, in our area. A large local hospital network has announced that it will no longer hire people who smoke. Current employees will be grandfathered. They will be testing for nicotine along with illegal drugs. I don't smoke, just so you know. What's next? Sorry you're BMI is too high you can't do this or that. You dye your hair, no job for you. Cigarettes are not illegal. They are a personal choice. Should the hospital be allowed to ban smoking on their grounds? Sure it's their property. Last time I checked we still have a constitution that allows us personal rights. One of those rights is to slowly kill yourself with tobacco, alcohol, or food. It's your choice as long as you don't take anyone with you.

After the bombing in two of Russia's train stations recently Russia said it's not gonna take any crap from Islamic extremists. When Russia says it's not going to take any crap from someone or a group, you don't want to be a part of that group or even appear to be part of that group. During WWII Germans were terrified of being sent to the Russian front. Russia couldn't be bothered taking care of prisoners. So all prisoners we questioned and killed. Kept down on their prison camp overhead.

Some people are still complaining about Vice President Biden dropping the F-bomb during what he thought was a private moment with the President. Give me a break people. It wasn't directed towards you. It was said in a private conversation. Are we trying to control private conversations now too? If you don't like it don't listen to it. It wasn't intended for your ears anyway. The media should have just ignored it. They couldn't resist the possible rating coup over their latest media fueled so called scandal. What a waste of electrons, trees and ink over that whole dog pile.

Have a great day!

BSL - The Harsh Reality

Breed-specific legislation (BSL) bans or restricts certain types of dogs based on their appearance because they are perceived as “dangerous” breeds or types of dogs.

It is a cruel type of law that does nothing to protect people and punishes responsible dog owners. It's just another example of a feel good law. They are costly both financially and to the responsible owners of the targeted breeds.

Picture this if you will. You've had a dog for years. It is a loyal family pet. Your town has a problem with loose dogs roaming the streets. You never paid much attention to it though because you don't let your dog roam. You're pet is neutered and receives regular veterinary care. Some of these roaming dogs attack a jogger and he is severely injured. The person identifies these dogs at pit bulls. The local media grabs onto the story and they next thing you know some legislator is writing up a law to ban "pit bull" dogs in your town. Right now let's just gloss over the point that a "pit bull" isn't even a breed. People are freaking out. They demand that something be done.

Now in the beginning pit bull owners didn't believe that something like this would happen. This is America after all. Common sense would prevail. They were sure of it. They wouldn't punish responsible dog owners? After all, even identifying a "pit bull" is not as easy as it sounds. Jump on over to this site and take the test. Then let me know how many times it took you to get the right answer.

Well, in many areas common sense didn't prevail. Laws were passed and thousands of family pets were turned into shelters and destroyed. Or confiscated by animal control to meet the same fate. All it took was a phone call from a disgruntled neighbor and you're beloved family pet could be seized. Pit bull owners who wouldn't part with their dogs moved out of the towns or went underground with their dogs. Afraid to walk them in public they hid them. They would forgo veterinary care for fear of their pet being seen in public. As I type this I am reminded of how Jews in Europe hid and feared for their lives as the Nazi's took control.

Let's not feel comfortable by thinking you're safe because you don't own a pit bull. They are not the only targeted breed. There are 75 breeds of dogs that are targeted by BSL for one reason or another. Some you would expect to see on the list. Pit Bulls, Rottweilers, German Shepard Dogs, and Akitas are a few. What caught me by surprise was seeing the Labrador Retriever, Airedale Terrier and Australian Shepherd on the list. Want an eye-opener, google "BSL lists" and take a look at how ridiculous it is. Somewhere in this country some town has decided that the Pug is just to dangerous to live there.

One thing that scares me is you don't even have to live in these towns to have your dog taken from you. If you're breed is on this list and you travel through an area with BSL they can and will take your dog. There are many stories of this happening but one story sticks in my mind. A couple was traveling down Int 95 through Prince Georges County, MD when they got a flat tire. Their dog a female American Pit Bull Terrier was in the car with them. A police officer pulled up to help them and seeing the dog confiscated it. The next morning their lawyer filed an appeal to get their dog back. They were notified that the dog had been destroyed after being brought in the night before.

There are groups all over the country fighting these laws. They have had some success, but it isn't easy. Study after study has shown that these laws don't work. There are laws, when enforced, that will protect people from dangerous dogs. They are working.

Dog bites in this country have been on the decline for years. Even as the number of dogs in this country has more than doubled during the same time period.

So what do you do? Be proactive. Get to know your lawmakers and talk to them about your concerns before something happens to bring up the subject. Make sure your dog is a breed ambassador. Get them out in the world so people can meet real pit bull owners and their dogs. Most importantly don't pretend that it can't happen where you live.

In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania BSL has been deemed unconstitutional and is against the law. That hasn't stopped several communities from enacting these laws. They are being challenged in the court systems. I watch these cases like a hawk. Where we used to live our local representative knew me, how I felt and had met my dogs. The kids wrote letters asking him to protect our dogs from BSL. Now that we live in a new area we have to start over. But that's okay it will just be another person on our side.

Punish the deed, not the breed.

Longer School Days?

I'm taking a break in my story to talk about an article I read today. According to the article Mike Feinberg, co founder of the KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program), feels that children benefit from longer school days and even though schools around the country are cutting their hours, and in some cases their days to save money, he is increasing the hours each day the kids spend in school and even adding two Saturdays a month to the schedule.

In January 2009, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said, "I think the school day is too short, our week is too short, our year is too short." And he was referring to a five-day week, 180-day school year, let alone the truncated version that many cash-strapped districts will provide this year. Take away time, take away learning. As the co-founder of the Knowledge Is Power Program, a national network of extended-day public charter schools, I know there is no substitute for the hours a student spends with an effective and inspiring teacher.

The last sentence is what really matters. If students had effective and inspiring teachers I wouldn't be homeschooling. Sure there are wonderful teachers. But the system is set up to drag them down too. Teacher's unions protect bad teachers leaving them to damage children and pulling down the entire system. Education is not a"thing" you can buy in a store. It is a philosophy taught by the parents, nurtured by the teachers and embraced by the student. Until the system that confines our children for a hundred and eighty days a year, subjecting them to test after test, inspires them to learn, nothing will change in the education system. KIPP's programs appear to be working because of the overall effectiveness of their teachers. Also, as a charter school they are not bound and gagged by the requirements so many public schools are. This I believe is the key to their success. Public school systems don't set out to fail our children. Teachers don't set out to squash the love of learning from our children. Pouring more money into the system won't fix it. Adding hour after hour, day after day to the school calender won't change a thing and may do more harm than good. It's all about quality, not quantity. Just like so many things in America, the school day is full of waste. Wasted time, wasted money, wasted effort. That's where schools should start looking. Pouring more hours into the day and more money into the system isn't the answer.

Comparing schools in the US to other countries is like comparing apples to oranges. Their entire system is different. Not just the hours or the money they spend. Parents don't value education in this country like in many other countries. KIPP is proving that it doesn't have to start at home but the kids who need a program like KIPP wouldn't even be necessary if parents truly believed in the value of education, then put the effort into passing those values on to their children.

What I've noticed that many (not all, of course) parents are happy to just ship their kids off to school and let the school system deal with them. That causes the school district to shift from educating kids to housing them. That creates an environment for kids who really want to learn to become discouraged. Standardized testing which affects funding causes the schools to focus on the tests instead of learning. Who can blame them? Most of them are surviving on a shoe string and can't risk losing funding.

I don't believe more hours or money is the answer, at least now. First you have to fix what's really wrong. Then work to improve from there. A new paint job on a junker just makes a shiny junker. It's still a piece of crap underneath.

Conjecture, Lies and Speculation

Now that the truth is filtering through....

Once again it is obvious that the news media doesn't care about facts. One article I read said the medic was possibly stabbed. Another said he appeared to be beaten. Some said there didn't appear to be a weapon involved (well they guessed that one right). Others at least used the word speculation during their endless conjecture as to what happened.

One article even went so far as to say the subject who killed the medic was mentally ill and would be tried for the murder but would probably spend the rest of his life in a mental institution not prison. I expect this crap from the rag mags at the grocery store not a major news outlet.

So let's get this straight. At least this is what I know so far. The paramedic chased after the patient when he ran away. While running he suffered a massive heart attack. He fell to the ground and sustained a head injury. There was no physical contact between the medic and the patient.

I'm jaded so I don't really expect them to get it right, but I'd hope they would at least try to pretend that the truth is important.

A Local Loss

Last night a 37 year old paramedic was killed in the line of duty. I worked with him as a dispatcher and he was a part of our extended EMS family.

We have a dangerous job, we just don't talk about it. We've all be hit, kicked and punched by patients to ill, either mentally or physically, to know what they are doing. It is part of our job.

I go to work every time with the attitude of safety first. I'm going home to my husband and children, that's my plan and I'm sticking to it.

But we all know how the best laid plans go sometimes. This was a reminder in case anyone was starting to forget.

He left behind a wife and two daughters. We will be there for them but their lives will never be the same.

Anything for a buck

When I was 17 years old I joined the local fire company. Over the years I fought many a fire, responded to countless accident scenes and even did my share of public relation programs.

Many times the local newspaper would report on what ever had been going on. Sometimes it was spectacular. Like the time a lumber warehouse burned. The wood and paneling stacked inside burned for days. When we arrived on scene flames were 30 feet in the air. It made good news with great pictures. No need to embellish with that one. As you would expect not every call made for such good copy.

I read the newspaper every day. I don't watch TV news, I'm not interested in traffic accidents, shootings and other mayhem. There are so many things going on that are important, but that doesn't make ratings. Fear mongering does though and TV and newspapers thrive on it. But that's another post. Cable news is worse than Congress when it comes to predilection.

The newspaper isn't much better. There were so many times that I would be at a scene with the fire department, or even later as a 911 dispatcher and I'd read about it in the paper the next day and wonder if we were talking about the same incident. The outline was the same but the devil is in the details and apparently when they couldn't get the facts they'd construct their own version of what may or may not have happened. They also don't have a problem leaving out details that make the story less exciting. Apparently, embellishing details doesn't keep anyone up at night either.

As a pit bull owner I'm affected by this bias more than most. Pit Bulls don't get to make an ass of themselves in public the way other breeds can. They aren't alone in this, German Shepard Dogs, Rottweilers, Doberman Pinchers, Chow Chows and Akitas also have to be twice as good as their brothers the Lab's and Poodles. Pit Bulls are a lot of dog. They are intelligent, strong, tenacious and have a mind of their own. The key to training one is to make it think it wants to do something then reward it for doing it. They are not for everybody. But they are a wonderful, loving, faithful dog. As a general rule they make lousy guard dogs, other than the intimidation factor. Most dogs will protect their owner if the need arises even without protection training, it's instinctual to protect a pack member. So when I read a story of a middle aged woman who was killed by a pit bull recently and how the police had to shoot it to get it to stop I wondered what details were left out of that one. It took a little research but this is what I found. The woman killed was a drug addict who had gone to her mothers house to get money. The mother had previously cut off contact with her daughter and when she showed up at her house an altercation occurred. The dog came to the defense of it's owner and attacked the daughter. Police, who had already been called, arrived on scene and shot and killed the dog. They then shot another dog who came to the defense of the first dog. I can't say that the same thing wouldn't of occurred if it was a different breed. The police aren't going to take statements while a dog is attacking someone. There is a percentage of people who own these types of dogs for the macho factor. Contrary to popular belief the majority of Pit Bull owners do not fit the stereotype. I also have no way of knowing what this family was like and the news doesn't want to go there because that might shine a different light on a breed they love to vilify. They also quoted as "fact" that the dog had the woman by the throat when the police arrived. This is exactly the type of "fact" that I used to find scattered throughout calls I was involved in. Of course this is exactly the type of "fact" that is picked up (or made up) listening to spectators comment on what they think happened.

So a tragedy happened. A woman is dead. Another woman has lost her daughter, first to drugs then when her dogs were protecting her and she lost two of her dogs. And The American Pit Bull Terrier suffers another blow to it's already ravaged reputation. There were no winners, except the media who had another story to sensationalize to boost ratings and sell papers.

Gays in the Military, Part 2

This article in the Washington Post articulates my point so well. Please take a few minutes and go read it.

It is an inteview with Colin Powell on this topic. I have tremendous respect for him, even though he proved himself to be human with his errors on Iraq. By the way, I think he was used by people he trusted when forming that opinion but that's another post.

Gays in the Military

Lift military ban on gays, officials say

That was today's headline in our local rag newspaper. This on going debate is becoming an old one. Please folks, haven't we had this conversation many times before. First it was blacks in the military, then women fighting next to men, then women as fighter pilots, now it's whether gays should be allowed to serve openly in the military. All of the same excuses have been laid down over the years. You've heard them, it will be to distracting to the heterosexual men to have to live, work, fight, sleep (in the room not bed) with gay men. I haven't heard much from the women and how they feel about lesbians, probably because most of them don't care. They've been harassed by those poor heterosexual men so much they are not worried about a bunch of gay women.

New Flash Folks: Gays have been serving in the military for as long as there has been a military. Since don't ask/don't tell has been in effect many more have joined and are bravely serving our country.

Defense Secretary Gates is saying they are reviewing how to drop the ban, not whether is should be dropped. This has many Republicans in a tither. Like the military is skipping a step by not getting Congress' approval to drop it before they figure out the best way to do it. In 1948 President Truman signed an executive order integrating our military. That caused quite the uproar but what do you know, now blacks and whites serve together without much thought. Do a little research and find that most countries do not ban gays in the military and haven't for a long time. Spain, France, Britain, Sweden, Norway, Israel, Canada and most European countries are many of the examples you will find.

Does that mean that there isn't racism in the military? No. If gays are permitted to openly serve does that mean it will wipe out homophobia, no. Are women still harassed and sometimes worse, yes. Does that mean that we shouldn't have blacks, gays and women in the military? No it doesn't. Are we trying to punish the wrong people?

Whether or not you believe that homosexuality is a sin is not the point. That is a personal opinion to which you are entitled. Just like if you do not like people of a certain race, religion or hair color, that is your opinion to which you are entitled. Is it wrong to punish those people because they do not fit your idea of how people should be? That is the question, you know my answer.

Don't forget that all those men and women (no matter what their race, religion, sexual orientation, or hair color) have protected your right to judge or even hate them, and many have given their lives for you to do so.