Black Friday and Divorce Court
Did you go shopping on Black Friday? I was determined to avoid the insanity at the shopping malls on this, the busiest shopping day of the year. I did, for reasons I won't go into, did end up having to go to an electronics store in search of an emergency item. The store, of course, didn't have what I needed. But then I spotted a couple of CDs on sale. I picked them up and headed for the checkout area where I spotted a long line with a befuddled-looking teenage cashier trying to cope with the job. I laid the CDs down and left the building. Argh! The traffic was bad but the drivers were worse. The lack of civility in society is a peeve of mine and so being exposed to rude drivers tends to shorten my life with toxins pumped into my system. I try to be Buddha-like and go with the flow but when jerks in autos do their jerk things I just want to strangle them. But all I succeed in doing is making myself upset because roadways are not conducive to chasing down jerks and strangling them.
That's why I keep an Enya cassette tape handy for calming on days like Black Friday. So today, as I idled in line watching jerks speed down a closed lane and nose into line ahead of those of us who get in lines I was glad I had Enya there with me. Oh, happy holidays.
Then I stopped in SuperCuts for a haircut. I was third in line and there was nothing to read while I waited. The women who were cutting hair had a TV blaring with a program I later learned was called Divorce Court. A series of the most irritating, inarticulate people were screaming and crying on this horrid show. The "judge" hearing their cases was almost as irritating as the fools that had placed themselves on national television to air their most embarrassing problems. I couldn't shut it out, the TV was turned up high. The women in the shop were eating it up. The men who were waiting were rolling their eyes or tightening their jaws. I contemplated leaving without my haircut but I stuck this one out. I vowed that next time I'd bring my portable cassette player and Enya cassette with me to the barbershop.
Friday, November 29, 2002
Dogfighting in Creek County
The day before Thankgiving, in Creek County, county sheriff deputies arrested four "people" for engaging in dogfighting. The deputies took possession of 53 dogs, many of them in terrible condition. According to the Sapulpa Herald there were three dogfighting arenas west of Sapulpa, one inside a barn. "The indoor arena's sideboards were caked with blood," said Creek County investigator Cpl. Terry Burton. "What we found was just disgusting, just disgusting," he said. "To think there were people who would put two dogs together to fight is just disgusting."
The deputies also found drugs and firearms on the property. Humane groups and law enforcement officers have tied dogfighting and cockfighting to drugs and other crimes but this may be the most recent confirmation of the claim. According to the Oklahoman, those arrested were James Fiarris, 55, Jamme A. Fiarris, 54, both of Sapulpa, Roger M. Scott, 50, of Tulsa, and Steven King, also know as "DJ Spinmaster," of Broken Arrow. Scott reportedly works for the City of Tulsa and had driven to the areanas in a city truck.
An investigator said fights were held on Sundays at the areanas and that at least 30 vehicles were seen to be parked there.
Let's thank the Creek County Sheriff's office and detective Cpl. Terry Burton for investigating and arresting those alledged to be involved in this most barbaric of cruelties. Let's also urge maximum prosecution. Thank you calls should go to:
Creek County Sheriff's Office
P.O. Box 927
Sapulpa, Oklahoma 74067
Phone: (918) 224-4964
The day before Thankgiving, in Creek County, county sheriff deputies arrested four "people" for engaging in dogfighting. The deputies took possession of 53 dogs, many of them in terrible condition. According to the Sapulpa Herald there were three dogfighting arenas west of Sapulpa, one inside a barn. "The indoor arena's sideboards were caked with blood," said Creek County investigator Cpl. Terry Burton. "What we found was just disgusting, just disgusting," he said. "To think there were people who would put two dogs together to fight is just disgusting."
The deputies also found drugs and firearms on the property. Humane groups and law enforcement officers have tied dogfighting and cockfighting to drugs and other crimes but this may be the most recent confirmation of the claim. According to the Oklahoman, those arrested were James Fiarris, 55, Jamme A. Fiarris, 54, both of Sapulpa, Roger M. Scott, 50, of Tulsa, and Steven King, also know as "DJ Spinmaster," of Broken Arrow. Scott reportedly works for the City of Tulsa and had driven to the areanas in a city truck.
An investigator said fights were held on Sundays at the areanas and that at least 30 vehicles were seen to be parked there.
Let's thank the Creek County Sheriff's office and detective Cpl. Terry Burton for investigating and arresting those alledged to be involved in this most barbaric of cruelties. Let's also urge maximum prosecution. Thank you calls should go to:
Creek County Sheriff's Office
P.O. Box 927
Sapulpa, Oklahoma 74067
Phone: (918) 224-4964
Monday, November 25, 2002
Brad Henry's Transition Team
Governor-Elect Henry announced his transition team on Friday and everyone is scratching their heads to understand why there are so many academics on the lightweight, but bi-partisan team. Not that there's anything wrong with university professors and administrators but where are his cronies? There's a lot of term-limited State Senators fresh out of jobs and wanting to know where their cushy jobs are. The most likely scenario is that the real powers are behind the scene and the transition team will not be selecting a cabinet for the Governor-elect. None of the expected cabinet members are on the transition team. Senators Dave Herbert, Kelly Haney, Brooks Douglas, etc are not on the transition team. Dave Herbert and Kelly Haney would be good choices but lets hope Brad Henry does not load his agencies with friends and cronies from the State Senate. That would be an early kiss of death for his administration.
Another kiss of death to success is a Governor that surrounds himself with young neophytes in the Governor's office. It's cursed many a Governor and is hard to recover from. The Governor-elect would be wise to hire just a few pragmatic and experienced Oklahomans rather than a bevy of fresh recruits from the Young Democrats. Hopefully he won't make the mistake of hiring out-of-state political hacks for chief-of-staff (like Lt Gov Mary Fallin has). If the Lt Governor wants to ever become Governor she needs to stop hiring chiefs-of-staff who insult and irritate her allies and constituents.
Governor-Elect Henry announced his transition team on Friday and everyone is scratching their heads to understand why there are so many academics on the lightweight, but bi-partisan team. Not that there's anything wrong with university professors and administrators but where are his cronies? There's a lot of term-limited State Senators fresh out of jobs and wanting to know where their cushy jobs are. The most likely scenario is that the real powers are behind the scene and the transition team will not be selecting a cabinet for the Governor-elect. None of the expected cabinet members are on the transition team. Senators Dave Herbert, Kelly Haney, Brooks Douglas, etc are not on the transition team. Dave Herbert and Kelly Haney would be good choices but lets hope Brad Henry does not load his agencies with friends and cronies from the State Senate. That would be an early kiss of death for his administration.
Another kiss of death to success is a Governor that surrounds himself with young neophytes in the Governor's office. It's cursed many a Governor and is hard to recover from. The Governor-elect would be wise to hire just a few pragmatic and experienced Oklahomans rather than a bevy of fresh recruits from the Young Democrats. Hopefully he won't make the mistake of hiring out-of-state political hacks for chief-of-staff (like Lt Gov Mary Fallin has). If the Lt Governor wants to ever become Governor she needs to stop hiring chiefs-of-staff who insult and irritate her allies and constituents.