It’s certainly been a while since I’ve posted anything. Business and family issues have kept me very busy. I’ve been fortunate that the current economic climate really hasn’t affected my business, except to increase it.

I figured I’d open up this year with a post on campaign rhetoric. Of course, the biggest piece of absolutely stupid rhetoric was the promise of “change we can believe in.” Well, ok – that sounds nice on the stump but how about in reality world?

Obama campaigned largely on reform of lobbyists. Here is a quote:

We are going to change how politics are done in Washington.

Yeah…right. Seems Barack has forgotten that one quickly. To quote the EFF:

Administration must do more than give speeches in order to fulfill its commitment to transparency.

Keep up the good work Obama. Conservatives believe in actions – not false hope. It’s time for you to put up – or shut up.

Hey Everyone,

For the New Year I’m migrating over to WordPress for the blog. Please be patient as it will take some time to get everything setup, themed, etc.

If you are looking for the Cedric Glover video, then follow this link:

Shreveport Mayor Cedric Glover and Robert Baillio – Your Rights are Suspended

Recently, Senator Jim DeMint stated, “If we’re able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.”

Is that a personal attack as some, such as Shreveport Councilman Calvin Lester, have suggested? Why of course not. If you read any of the history of Napoleon and the Battle of Waterloo, you can immediately see several similarities.

First, if the BO Train were stopped, it would be a decisive defeat for the tactics used – primarily sweeping through legislation in a blitzkrieg manner. Second, it BO is attempting to push this health care “reform” through before the public becomes fully mobilized – much like Napoleon tried to attack before his opposition was mobilized.

“No one wants to tell the speaker (Nancy Pelosi) that she’s moving too fast, and they damn sure don’t want to tell the president,” said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.

Let’s face it – if Charlie Rangel thinks spending legislation is being rushed, then BO has a BIG problem.

I don’t trust the government, especially the Feds, to get anything right except complicating our lives and freedoms and squandering our tax dollars. How can we trust them to get health care right?

By the way, why do people think that health care is a right? I agree that the health insurance system needs some oversight and reform of some sort, but I pay for my health care – and don’t expect anyone else to pay for mine.

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NRA Stickers
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In my previous blog post, I mentioned that I thought Robert Baillio was profiled rather than just pulled over for failure to use his turn signals. Well, let me offer some clarification and some proof.

First, the complete police video does show Robert failing to use his turn signal while changing lanes and making a right-hand turn on Milam Street – so that is not debatable anymore. I would like to mention that most police officers constantly fail to use their turn signals during non-emergency driving too, but that is another discussion. However, if you actually read my article, I said this:

Then the officer marched over Robert’s truck, removed the weapon, unloaded it, and temporarily seized it. This just smacks of both profiling and unreasonable search and seizure.

I did not say that the officer profiled him for the traffic stop. The officer profiled him for the search and seizure. Still don’t believe me?

Baillio: When you said “have i got a handgun?” – you ask everybody that?
Officer: No. Not everybody. Its just, you know, you’ve got some stickers. Especially when you’ve got an NRA sticker. Anybody that has an NRA sticker needs to have a gun. If they don’t have a gun they’d better get one.

Do what? I’m glad that according to Mayor Cedric Glover the officer is a member of the NRA. I’m also glad that he apparently thinks anyone with an NRA sticker should have a gun.

What concerns me (and a lot of other people) is that he illegally searched and temporarily seized the weapon because of the NRA sticker!

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Arizona v. Gant
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Now Shreveport Mayor Cedric Glover can try to continue and spin this anyway that he wants. After all, he is a politician. I don’t care if he thinks this is a mark on the “next great city of the south”. It is a mark and a bad one – that was caused by Cedric Glover’s remarks after the fact. Then you interview Ed Jones, the city attorney, and he cites a legitimate reason for the officer to ask about a weapon in the vehicle. Ok, I agree with that too, but the problem is that the officer searched the vehicle without probably cause, an arrest, or a warrant.

Robert had the legitimate and legal right to refuse a vehicle search, but the officer did not give him the opportunity. That put Robert in the odd predicament of trying to prevent the officer from searching or arguing with the officer. Guess where that would have probably led?

According to KSLA 12’s story, an officer can search a person if he believes a crime has been committed. For an officer’s own protection, they can also frisk the outer clothing if they believe the suspect is armed. This is known as a “Terry Stop”. In the case of Robert Baillio, the traffic stop was for a civil infraction, which is not considered a crime, and thus excludes searching of the vehicle.

Maybe KSLA should have done a little better homework and read up on Arizona v. Gant. In the 2008 SCOTUS made a decision that requires law enforcement officers to demonstrate an actual and continuing threat to their safety posed by an arrestee, or a need to preserve evidence related to the crime of arrest from tampering by the arrestee, in order to justify a warrantless vehicular search incident to arrest conducted after the vehicle’s recent occupants have been arrested and secured.

So let’s look at the common thread between a Terry Stop, Arizona v. Gant, and even Atwater v. City of Lago Vista – you must have an ARRESTEE to search beyond a pat-down. What part of that doesn’t Cedric Glover, the Shreveport Police Department, and their city attorney seem to understand? You must have an arrest to search beyond a pat-down.

More References:
Brendlin v. California

Search Incident to Arrest


United States v. Robinson

From the Mouths of Officers – Think they are on our side as citizens?
Arrest: to deprive someone of their liberty….Short and sweet
An arrest is a state of mind in the eyes of the detainee.

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Open Mouth – Insert 3rd Foot
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Mayor Cedric Glover: …I’m personally comfortable with what I said and how I said it…

Hey Mayor – why don’t you admit the policy mistake and take efforts to correct it? We don’t care about your personal comfort. We care about your understanding of the law, the Louisiana State Constitution, and the US Constitution. How about standing up for the citizens of Shreveport who elected you – and even those that didn’t vote for you?

This continues to roll on, and Glover keeps putting his foot further in his mouth.

Video Link – Click Here

KSLA Channel 12 covered the story (finally after I emailed them), and Glover contends he is “proud” of the statements he made. Now how does that square with his statement to KTBS 3 that he was “taken out of context”? Which is it Cedric Glover – are you proud or out of context?

KSLA also spun it as a “knock on the next great city of south”. Right. This is a knock on Shreveport Mayor Cedric Glover. I bet the reporter got that quote right out of Glover’s mouth. Great job on originality and in-depth reporting.

And one more thing – what is the deal with both KTBS and KSLA claiming they tried to contact Robert, and he didn’t return the calls? I just spoke to Robert and neither station has tried to call him at home, work, or mobile. Come on guys.

Also, it is funny that Glover is trying to spin this as a negative to the Shreveport Police Department. It doesn’t take an attorney or Constitutional scholar to figure out this statement:

To be absolutely clear: This issue is about the SPD Policies and about your erroneous statements, Mayor Cedric Glover.

KSLA got it partially right that you are not allowed to keep a weapon on your person or in close proximity; however, as the video clearly shows, Robert was not in close proximity to the weapon at all. Again, the officer allowed Robert to return to his vehicle and travel on to Nan-King Restaurant. If the officer was interested in his safety, why would he let Robert back in the vehicle where there possibly could have been another weapon? Again – those are red herrings to distract from the bigger picture which Glover made crystal clear.

As a matter of fact, I would argue that it is stupid for an officer to even ask the question. If I’m an armed criminal, I’m not going to be willing to divulge that information. I’m going to keep the gun hidden and out of sight. That’s as dumb as the “Gun Free Zone” stickers on schools. Think armed criminals are going to follow those stickers?

There is a bill making it’s way through the Senate that should alarm everyone who uses technology and the Internet – even if it is just for email.  Thank goodness the EFF is tracking this one too.

Here’s a scenario:

There is a national emergency – say a multiple terrorist strike – and you are attempting to connect to your friends and family through any means necessary. In todays age, that means email, Twitter, and Facebook. You are trying to get the latest in information, and the most efficient route is via the various RSS feeds for news. The only problem – you can’t. The President has shut it down.

Think I’m kidding? Well, the “guardians of civil liberties” (aka Liberals) are trying to push through a bill that would allow that to happen. The President would basically have the authority to pull the plug and seriously invade our civil liberties – all in one fell swoop.

The Secretary of Commerce— shall have access to all relevant data concerning (critical infrastructure) networks without regard to any provision of law, regulation, rule, or policy restricting such access…

Without regard to any law? Give me a break.

Read up and contact your legislators – NOW!

S. 773: 111th Congress
A bill to ensure the continued free flow of commerce within the United States and with its global…
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-773

Yesterday, I did some “family time” by taking Genia and the twins to see “Race to Witch Mountain” at the Regal Boardwalk movie theater. Watching DVD’s is fine, but there is just something about seeing a movie on the big screen that is better. Of course the boys wanted some snacks – specifically some chocolate dots.

They cost me $4.25 each for some ice cream dipped in chocolate. Ouch! But they were good! Here is the funny thing. There were 2 teenagers working the counter – a young white girl and a young black gentleman. The girl commented that the price of the dots had gone up.

The young guy responded, “Yeah, the minimum wage is going up so the cost of snacks is too.”

My jaw almost hit the floor! I congratulated him for knowing the basics of economics: when the cost of goods sold is increased, the selling price will typically be increased to close the gap on margins.

The young man responded again, “Yeah, I know. It just drives costs up for everyone so we don’t really get a raise.”

Now, if a young black teenage guy gets it (who is not the typical demographic to respond negatively to minimum wage increases), then why can’t everyone else?

Note: I only mention race because it is relevant to demographics, voting preferences, etc.

Recently, Obama removed a bust of Winston Churchill (on loan from Tony Blair) from the Oval Office and shipped it back to England. He replaced it with a bust of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr.

While I’m a pretty good fan of Lincoln and certainly have respect for Martin Luther King, Jr., I think this speaks a little deeper into Obama’s thinking. The Churchill bust was loaned to us after 9/11, and represented a reminder of the solidarity between England and the United States in times of great need. Churchill was strong and resolute in his determination to defeat the Germans during WWII. In turn, the U.S. President needs to be strong and resolute during the war against Islamic extremism. Yes, I said the word “war” and yes I said “Islamic extremism”.

Now, Obama has replaced that resolute figure with those of appeasement. I know Lincoln was a war-time President, and he did remain firm in trying to keep the Union together. However, if you study his actions, he was very much the appeaser. Martin Luther King, Jr., represents the epitome of non-violent action. That is to his credit during the civil rights years, and he deserves all the respect and credit for his actions and leadership.

However, the Civil War has been over for quite some time. The Civil Rights era has been over for quite some time. Period.

I want a President who is firm and resolute and does not give indications of wavering right now – on the battlefront or on the home-front (economy).

Waverings:

• Guantanamo Bay
• Iran Issue
• Gun Rights
• Economy
• Etc, Etc, Etc

Is it any wonder to anyone now just how bad it is that Obama was elected? I’m not to follow the talking points and continue yammering about the economy. What I want to do is take a deeper look at Obama’s thinking process.

The link below is an audio/video clip of Barack Obama’s 2001 radio interview concerning “change” of economics through the courts. This is a fundamentally flawed logic on many respects. As a business owner and capitalist, he view goes against everything that the core American system stands for.

Anyone who voted for Obama has a fundamental misunderstanding of how our country’s economic and political system should function. Listen closely to the audio. Enough of the Obama-mania. It’s time to look at the real issues he presents to us – and they are overwhelmingly bad.

Even more interesting is to read through the blog comments from WBEZ’s original post. Some of these comments are just stupid. There is no other way to describe them.

So what do we do now? Continue to flood your elected representatives with mail and email – voice your concerns.

References:

Barack Obama wearing his professorial hat
http://apps.wbez.org/blog/?p=372

Obama Bombshell Redistribution of Wealth Audio Uncovered
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iivL4c_3pck

Full List of Audio from WBEZ
http://apps.wbez.org/blog/

Well it’s been a while since I posted anything political, but I figured this issue was definitely worth it!

Recently, a friend of mine – Kaylon Johnson – was brutually attacked at a Citgo Gas Station. Apparently, 3 white guys jumped him as he walked out of the store after paying for his gas. Kaylon is an ardent supporter of Obama and even helped run the IT for Obama’s headquarters in Shreveport.

You can read the KSLA article here:
http://www.ksla.com/Global/story.asp?S=9479629&nav=0RY4Qi7R

 Look, there is no doubt that I would gladly debate anyone on the politics of Obama. What I don’t understand is why anyone would jump Kaylon (or anybody else for that matter).

Message to the guys who did it: If you can’t debate the issues and facts, then you are 3 white pansies. 3 on 1 – come on. Wish I would have been there to help out Kaylon.

I first met him at an Economic Forum this spring sponsored by Southern University. I did a break-out session on technology and new media. Of course, I had my own laptop for my presentation and sure enough one of Southern’s laptops died right before the next presentation. Kaylon asked if he could borrow mine for the rest of the presenters. He was very cordial, and I was happy to oblige.

Kaylon is obvisiously in a lot of pain and suffering right now. It’s time for all of us to step across racial and party lines and do anything you can to help him even if it’s just a supportive email.

Kaylon’s Email: obamashreveport@gmail.com

The FBI is now investigating this as a possible hate crime. If you know anything about it:

Shreveport Police Department
Detective Craig Ivey
318-673-6992

The owners name and address of the gas station is:
J & S Fuel Services, Inc – CITGO
Owner: JAYAN T. MATHEWS
6901 WEST BERT KOUNS INDUSTRIAL LOOP
SHREVEPORT, LA 71129
Phone: 318-688-0654

Kudos to Davey D’s blog for the contact information:
http://blog.myspace.com/mrdaveyd