"NOBODY DIED WHEN CLINTON LIED"

How many times have you heard that said? The "moral" conservatives called for impeachment, censure, and all sorts of action against Clinton for getting a blow job in the White House. Where's this same group of assholes now?

WALGREENS

I heard an advertisement on the radio this morning calling for a full boycott of a new Walgreens going in not too far from where I live. The boycott apparently revolves around Walgreens' refusal to hire local contractors and/or employees in both the construction and day-to-day operation of the new store. They're apparently bringing in people from out-of-state. I've never heard a public ad calling for a total boycott of a business. When WalMart came in here several years ago, they refused to stock Kodak film -- in a city where Kodak is THE major employer. They sold only Fuji film at the time. There were various letters to the editor and articles about boycotting WalMart and, surprisingly, WalMart started stocking Kodak film...at least around here. Walgreens apparently didn't do their research into the local job culture. With Kodak having layoffs again recently, and Xerox laying off, and Bausch & Lomb laying off, as well as General Motors' announcement to shut down some of their facilities, I don't think they really have much of a clue when they refuse to hire anyone local. But, perhaps the plan is to have the store fail, and use it as a tax write-off.

ENDANGERING A CHILD?

In a local news story, a 3 year old girl survived a rollover crash, and remained in the vehicle for eight hours before it was found. The driver of the vehicle was thrown from it, and died as a result of the crash. The vehicle apparently rolled over several times and was crumpled in from the roof down, but the child was in an approved safety seat and wasn't crushed.

The 20 year old driver was the boyfriend of the child's 20 year old mother. He had gone on an errand with the little girl and, when they failed to return after a reasonable amount of time, the police were called. The litle girl's paternal grandparents found the wreckage, and the girl.

She has some cuts and bruises, and her little arm is broken in two places but, other than that, she's in good shape and has been released from the hospital.

Yesterday, the police charged the mother with endangering a child's welfare and permitting unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. Apparently, the boyfriend's license had been suspended in 2002 due to a medical condition (possibly seizures, they said this morning on the news).

Maybe I'm only thinking one-dimensionally but here's what I don't get. In New York State, when your license is suspended for medical reasons, you still possess the little card. You've been sent a letter from DMV saying you can't drive, but they don't require that the license be surrendered until there's a final resolution on your ability to drive. Often, there's a periodic update required from the attending physician or others who have knowledge of the person's ability to drive. So, when you started dating your S.O., did you check to see if he/she was in possession of a valid driver's license? Did you refuse to believe that actual possession of the license meant it was valid, and call the DMV to see if it really was valid? It seems to me that the people who really need to be charged with endangering children always seem to avoid those charges so the D.A.'s office hangs them on some everyday schmuck who's doing the best they can, honestly.

Even the little girl's paternal grandparents refused to talk badly about the mother (not the parents of the driver that was killed). They said "For a 20-year-old, Courtney has always done a very good job with Britain." What's to be gained by charging this young mother in this tragedy? What's to be gained by holding her responsible for her boyfriend's irresponsibility? I don't get it. The cops say she knew he didn't possess a valid license, yet she claims she didn't know. While the endangering charge is only a misdemeanor without any real consequence, she could lose custody of that little girl as a result of this.

VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS

I'm sure we're not alone, but last night people spent the night (in the cold and rain) on the sidewalk outside places like Best Buy, Electronics Boutique and WalMart in order to buy a new X-Box 360 (price range, $300-400). Maybe I'm getting old but, if you've got to spend the night outside freezing your noogies off in the rain in order to buy an overpriced TOY, you need to get a life. Or grow up. Or both.

LAUGH OF THE DAY

Mrs. Wilson appeared before the judge in a divorce action.

"How old are you?" asked the judge.

"Thirty-five," said Mrs. Wilson.

The judge noted her greying hair and wrinkled cheeks. "May I see your birth certificate?"

She handed the judge her birth certificate.

"Madam," he said severely, "according to this certificate you are not 35 but 50."

"Your honor," replied Mrs. Wilson, "the last 15 years I spent with my husband I'm not counting. You call that a life?"

*ba-dump bump*

Guess that makes me.........................somewhere around 40 or so.