I know I've said this before, but this time I'm really pissed off. It has nothing to do with the government or politics. It has to do with a group of people that live here in the city.

I was browsing the local rag newspaper when I saw the headline Neighbors worry about home intended for homeless veterans. It took me a second, I had to re-read the headline. I was sure that I misread that. No, it said exactly what I thought it did. Then I thought to myself, "Maybe, just maybe the Rockford Register Star is putting a spin on the headline to attract attention". So I read the story. Nope, the headline was pretty farooking accurate.

CarpenterÂ’s Place closed Friday on the three-bedroom ranch home at 3426 Ridge Ave. It moved in furniture over the weekend, and on Tuesday, a group of employees and volunteers stood in a circle in the living room, held hands and prayed for the people who will live in the house and the neighbors.

The only thing missing now is the tenants, and thatÂ’s what has neighbors worried.

Located in a quiet northwest neighborhood, the home will be used to house three military veterans who are transitioning back into society.

“It’s got the neighbors in an uproar,” next-door neighbor Betty Percey said Tuesday afternoon. “They’ve been exposed to war. What happens if one night one of them goes off the deep end? All of this looks fine and good now, but is it going to last?”

I know, maybe it was just one of the neighbors, there can't be more right? Wrong

Betty, and her husband, Curlee Percey, sat in their driveway Tuesday afternoon and watched a contingent of CarpenterÂ’s Place workers tour the home. They were joined in their driveway by neighbor Oneal Tennial.

“You see people who have had flashbacks or relapses,” Tenniel said. “A lot of people look normal, but they’re not.”

Barbara Garrison-Harris, also a next-door neighbor to the veteransÂ’ home, expressed her reservations as well.

“First of all, if they don’t have a problem why do they have to be put in a house and watched over? And why didn’t they talk to us before they (bought) the house? And what about the senior citizens here who helped build this neighborhood? Don’t they have any regard for them?”

Holy cow these people actually think that they should be consulted before the sale of a house? Remind me of this the next time one of my neighbors moves out so I can tell them that they have to run all approved sales by me first. Since when do neighbors get a say in who buys a house or lives there? They don't get a say for rental properties either. It's kind of arrogant to think that they should.

Now I know some chuckle head is going to pipe off with "This isn't the same". The heck it isn't!

Located in a quiet northwest neighborhood, the home will be used to house three military veterans who are transitioning back into society...

...Through a special Veterans Affairs program, CarpenterÂ’s Place was able to buy the Ridge Avenue home for $53,437, or half the market price. The only requisite is that the house be used for housing homeless American veterans. Because the home will house only three nonrelated people, no special zoning from the city is required and the sale did not have to go before City Council for approval.

Carpenter's Place, the group that bought the house, is basically using it as a staging point to help homeless veterans get back on their feet. It's no different than habitat for humanity giving houses to the homeless or renting homes for the homeless to live in. The only difference is that the men in this case fought a war for our country.

These are soldiers that at one time put their lives on the line because their country asked them to. They fought and bled for this country. They watched friends and colleagues get injured or even killed. These men did something that a lot of others have never done in this country, including probably the individuals quoted above. Don't they deserve us treating them with some kindness and thanking them for their service? Shouldn't we offer them any assistance that might be needed to help them get back into society? Isn't it our duty to help take care of and look after these heroes?

As for the comment about them being exposed to war... There are more mental issues out there than Post Traumatic Stress Disorder... or what ever the catchphrase for it is now. I know a lot of people that have served and fought in wars for this country. From World War 2 all the way to the current conflict. Most of them have returned to normal life with out any noticeable difference. The one that I have met that hasn't, I couldn't tell he was having issues until he told me about it.

Now if you'll excuse me. I'm going to go cool off.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:26 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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We had a wonderful weekend. After receiving word that my mother was out of emergency surgery for her second heart attack, we headed to camp. Hey, mom told us to go! We were able to get set up in a soft drizzle with out any problems or issues. The new tent was a nice and easy set up for us. I'm really glad we decided to get it.

I did take some a lot of ribbing over the facial hair, not all the comments were as hateful on the ones left on my previous post. Some of you have a mean streak! Actually none of the comments bothered me, I figured that was going to happen. I just rolled with them.

The weather started off kind of crappy. Thursday when we set up it was drizzling a little with the occasional rain. Friday we had on and off rain through out the day. Sometime around 3:00 pm the weather started to get nasty. We had a severe thunderstorm blow through just south of us and the wind really started to pick up. At one point the rain was coming at us vertically. With winds gusting up to 30 mph we had some serious issues. Ktreva, the boys and I were standing under our friend Smokepoles 16 foot fly and the rain was coming so hard that my glasses were covered in rain as I stood at the other end.

Some of the campers that showed up late had to set up in the pouring rain. The wind never really died down all night. It blew hard and heavy all night long, which of course meant a lot of people didn't get much sleep. I have a hard time sleeping in high winds situation because I'm listening for ripping canvas and snapping poles. I know of at least 4 people that lost canvas that night.

Saturday morning a lot of campers just packed up in left, including some of the people that set up in the rain. We lost about 50% Saturday morning before the event even started. There was one well known individual trader going around telling people that the wind was going to get worse and we were going to get snow that night. A lot of people just took him at his word and started packing up. The booshway, event committee and staff kept telling people they were not canceling the event and encouraged people to stay.

Now I have a lot of re-enactors, living historians, etc that read this blog, so I'm not going to mention any individuals specifically, but I will say this. The bug out was really caused by one group of re-enactors that have absolutely nothing to do with the running of this event. I was surprised by the groups that did pull out.

Saturday after the event closed, even more people packed up and left. When we had the camp meeting I had been into my cups so when the topic of how to handle the situation in the future came up, I just started talking. I told them that I felt that anyone that left early with out a legitimate reason should not be invited back next year. I know a couple left because their ridge poles snapped and they couldn't fix it or their canvas was destroyed. Let them come back because they had a legitimate excuse for leaving. Most of the people still there agreed with me. Someone brought up that they needed those camps to demonstrate. I pointed out they weren't there anyways.

Since none of my friends in camp tackled me in the middle of the meeting I just kept shooting off my opinion. I did learn a valuable lesson this weekend. Never go to camp meetings half drunk. Definitely don't drink during the meeting. They are not asking me to be on the committee for this event. Yea, I told them no and that I didn't think it would be a good idea for me to join. I'd just be one more problem they had. Could you imagine my loud, opinionated self in a committee for something that I don't get paid to do? Yea, there's not enough sensitivity classes in the world to keep me from spouting off at every bad idea. I'm not a committee kind of guy.

The kicker to this whole thing is that the weather on Saturday was windy up until about 7:00 PM. Then it was just nice. We had no more high winds, no more rain. Sunday it was sunny and beautiful. All these people that packed up and left early, wasted their time. They missed a beautiful weekend.

Posted by: Contagion at 02:18 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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I was sirfing around the net and I stumbled across this clip about an "Art Show" and the University of Maine at Farmington's Student Center. Now, I think the clip would have been better with out the music, you might be able to hear what is being said better. I know it's not my usual lighter side to Saturday's, but I wanted to share this.

Besides the intentional disregard of the Flag, the disrespect of a War Vetern and the asinine comments by the professor/administrator about it being just a piece of cloth, the thing that really gets me is the kids standing on the flags with signs on their backs. Unfortunately the film quality isn't the greatest, but I do believe one said, "Future Teacher".

Yep, that explains why the future of America is screwed.

Posted by: Contagion at 08:37 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I had a couple of readers leave comments on my orriginal post about Travis Castle and the break in of Stillman Valley. I left this comment on that post.

Penny: There is a wrong and a right side to the story. Travis and crew were wrong for breaking into the house. I'm sorry, they were. I don't care how anyone tries to sugar coat that fact. He ought to have known that it was illegal. Two wrongs don't make a right, but killing someone to defend life, limb or property is not wrong.

A Friend: I never said Travis pointed a gun at anyone, just that he had a gun. But to be honest gun or not if it had been my house and he was in there, you're damn right I would have shot him. And no, I would not have "aimed to maim". I'm ex-law enforcement and I'm sorry, I know that tactic more often than not doesn't work.

I have a son that is with in months of Travis' age. And you know what, I can keep him away from friends I don't want him hanging out with. I have also instilled in him a serious sense of right and wrong. I may have my issues with him, but to this point the only criminal activity he's been involved in was damage to my property.

Travis wasn't murdered. He was killed while committing a felony in self defense. God gave man a brain and free will. Whether or not Travis and his friends used the first is questionable, but they definitely used the second.

Maybe, just maybe in this society of pass the blame if people would wake up and take responsibility for their own actions our country would straighten things up. But no, we are a victim society. Every time someone does something wrong, or every time something bad happens to someone it's somebody elseÂ’s fault.

Travis made a decision. His decision was bad. As a result of that bad decision HE GOT HIMSELF KILLED. IE Travis killed himself. Don't blame anyone but Travis for the death. It's not being filled with hate, it's not being cold hearted, it's not being an asshole, it's just the way it is.

I thought my response, due to length, really demanded it's own post.

I know the family and friends are grieving. I feel for them and their loss. It is a tragedy, but this is something that Travis brought upon himself.

Also there is an update to the story in the Rockford Register Star.

"Moore drove Castle and the other two teens to what they thought was an unoccupied house in Stillman Valley to steal weapons, Ogle County Sheriff Gregory Beitel said Thursday.

Moore knew that there were firearms in the house; and Moore knew that the homeownder was hospitalized. He did not know that another person was staying overnight in the house, "Beitel said. Beitel said Moore was acquainted witht he family that owned the house. "

AND

"Other items taken from the house were found in Castle's jean pockets."

The article also states that the firearm that Travis was holding came from the house and that none of the individuals involved brought a firearm with them.

Again, to me it doesn't matter. Travis being in the house itself was room for self-defense in my eyes. The fact he was holding a gun just makes it more of a legally viable defense if the state decides to charge the House guest, which at this point doesn't appear they are going to.

Posted by: Contagion at 07:53 AM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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There was a news conference today regarding the Stillman Valley home invasion where Travis Castle was killed. While searching for information on what was said, I found this following video clip:

I know this video was prior to them catching the other boys that were involved, but I wanted to share it anyway. The father is blaming the boys involved and not the yet to officially be identified House Guest. I applaud the father for putting the blame in the right general direction. Travis is still part of the blame, but there appears to be outside influence.

When I get the info on the news conference today, I'll share that with you all as well.

Posted by: Contagion at 03:52 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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When I returned from my trip on Sunday I heard a news story about a 14 year old boy being killed during a home invasion in Stillman Valley. The kid was breaking into the house and a house guest who was house sitting for the owner that was in an accident a couple of days prior shot the kid. (Here are news stories about it from local news sources: Rockford Register Star, WREX, WIFR, WTVO). Tammi of Tammi's World has a post up about her reaction as she lives in the community shattered by this incident.

When I first heard this story, I told Ktreva I thought I knew the home owner from down at Fritz's. It turns out I was right, I had met him a couple of times when I was down there hanging out with T1G.

Today this was the big talk on the radio and news. I don't just mean the talk radio circuit either. The music stations where also discussing it. The big news today was that they announced the name of the 14 year old boy who was shot, Travis Castle.

This brought up a lot of different discussions, but the one that pissed me off was when people would say that the house guest should be arrested and sent to jail for killing the 14 year old boy. You know what, bullocks to that! The house guest, who was in the house legally heard someone breaking in, grabbed a firearm and chose to defend himself and his friends property. When he saw the 14 year old punk holding a weapon he shot him. This is a clear cut case of self defense if I ever heard one.

Now before I go any further I do want to give my condolences to the boy's mother and father. It's tough to lose a child. Yet, he shouldn't have been in the house. I don't know if this is the first time Travis got in trouble or if he had already started down the path to be a career criminal. Either way he chose the wrong day and the wrong house to break into. The kid brought it upon himself.

If anyone deserves to go to jail for Travis' death it's the two partners he had. I don't know if the kids are being protected, but I find it hard to believe that no one knows who Travis was hanging out with that night. If I was Travis' parents I'd be out looking for the two idiots, that along with Travis, decided to break into the house.

The police have not identified the house guest yet, so I'm not sure if I know the individual or not, but I really hope the State's attorney decides that he was acting with in his rights. If they don't I know I'll be donating to his defense fund.

The other thing that pissed me off about this is the number of people blaming the guns. "If guns were illegal, none of this would have happened. They wouldn't have broken into the house and no one would have gotten shot." Okay, were as if we lived in a world there were no firearms, that doesn't mean Travis would have been beaten to death with a baseball bat. The only way this whole thing could have been completely prevented would be if Travis and his friends didn't break into the house. The responsibility for the death lies solely at their feet.

UPDATE: (04/09/0 They caught the others involved.

UPDATE: (04/12/0 I created a new post based on my comment below. Also, here is an update in the RRSTAR on the story about the Three others involved and more details. It appears they specifically went there to steal firearms.

Posted by: Contagion at 05:33 PM | Comments (14) | Add Comment
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1 We had an incident near here where a man pried the vent hood off the roof of a house, climbed into the attic and fell through the ceiling into the house in the middle of the night. The home owner grabbed his gun, went to investigate, found the stranger in his home, and ordered him to leave. Several times. He shouted so loud, the neighbors woke up and heard. The stranger, while unarmed, did not leave. He wandered down the hallway. And when he entered the bedroom of the home owner's daughter, the home owner shot him. In the back. But not dead. So later, the stranger was able to file suit for pain and suffering. Fortunately, the judge laughed him out of court. The only people who disagree with the judge are friends and family of the stranger. Everyone else wishes the home owner had aimed a little better.

Posted by: Roses at April 08, 2008 07:36 PM (bzwf1)

2 It's unfortunate that this had to happen. The blame lies solely at the feet of the children. At that age the DO know what they are doing but are still dumb enough to ignore the consequences. Of course the parents are NOT going to fess up to their child's wrong doings but will blame everything from the guns to the man staying there. I feel the for the man in the house. It's unimaginable what he will go through the rest of his life.

Posted by: Navy CPO at April 08, 2008 09:02 PM (D6gq/)

3 I feel bad for the kids parents, but I feel worse for the guy that shot him. I can't imagine what he must be going through right now, even though the kid had it coming - breaking and entering? With a weapon? Yeah, sad as it is, he had it coming.

Posted by: Wes at April 08, 2008 09:47 PM (1crE/)

4 "But Castle’s parents expressed doubt about the self-defense argument. “He was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” his mother said." -------------------------------------------------- I just read that in the Rockford Register Star. Doubts about the self-defense argument? Are they STONED!? Your precious little boy pointed a RIFLE AT ANOTHER HUMAN BEING! And got his chest perforated for it! And "he was in the wrong place at the wrong time"?! Who put him in that "wrong place"? HE DID! Willingly and knowingly!! It's not like he was eating in the local diner when a truck crashes through the window and kills him... He was willingly breaking and entering into another's home, and he pointed a gun at the resident! It wasn't an accident, it was a FELONY! If the parents want to blame somebody, they can blame their son (for starters) and they can blame THEMSELVES for letting their son hang out with people they suspected already where bad influences, but no they'll blame the eeevil guns, and the citizen that used one to defend himself. Bastards just piss me off...

Posted by: Wes at April 08, 2008 10:19 PM (1crE/)

5 The Castle Doctrine under Missouri Law defends the homeowner in cases just like this. Under that Doctrine you have the right to protectyour home, property or vehicle. Shame Illinois is still in the dark ages.

Posted by: BloodSpite at April 09, 2008 11:34 AM (dl14p)

6 "The only way this whole thing could have been completely prevented would be if Travis and his friends didn't break into the house. The responsibility for the death lies solely at their feet." So very true. And I feel bad for the guy who shot him - what a thing to have to live with even though he was in the right.

Posted by: Richmond at April 09, 2008 02:35 PM (VbTiz)

7 Nice. Nice how the older boys let the youngest hold their shotgun. I hope there was at least one more friend who decided not to join the rest that night. One kid with a brain.

Posted by: Roses at April 10, 2008 09:37 AM (jCDHV)

8 Amen. Couldn't have said it better myself. It is a shame for the parents; however, they may have been saved a lifetime of misery. It is pretty obvious the kid was headed down a nasty road in life and usually its the parents who bear the brunt of the child's bad choices in life. It may sound bad, but maybe better dead now than stuck in prison or dead in the gutter later?

Posted by: TNT at April 10, 2008 10:12 AM (VSEpa)

9 Hi Gang... I blogged about this: http://chucksplace.wordpress.com/2008/04/08/sorry-dont-have-no-pity-for-nobody-this-stupid/ and Yes, I do feel that way... Punk kid had it coming. -Chuck

Posted by: Chuck in Michigan at April 10, 2008 05:19 PM (BH4he)

10 In Florida this would be open and shut. Easy case... Our Governor is a member of the NRA and today they just passed a law stating we are allowed to have guns in our cars at work, as long as we have a concealed weapons permit, unless of course you work at a school and then you can't. People can say what they want about Florida, but you can protect yourself here and nobody questions. I feel for the guy who shot the kid. He was defending himself, but he will forever remember the day he shot a 14 year old kid, even if the kid was guilty as hell.

Posted by: Bou at April 10, 2008 07:05 PM (mPTKU)

11 the saddest thing of all of this is that all of you self righteous, non God fearing idiots feel there is a right or wrong side to this. that you with out knowning either party want to side with, defend or condemn. your lives are pitiful. i hope sometime in your pointless future you learn to love and cherish life, and rid yourselves of your hatred. those of you who have written the "bad road" Travis would have been on, you are on a worse road because you are the evil that infests this world. There are two broken families here, and there are always two sides, but sorrow should be left to be sorrow, and stupidity should be silenced.

Posted by: penny isham at April 10, 2008 07:57 PM (3tfsp)

12 First of all, the story that was given to this person is incorrect. Travis didn't point a gun at anybody! He may of had a weapon in his hand but he dropped it as soon as he say the homeowner. And did I mention that the lights were on. So, that means the homeowner saw this and stll decided to pull the trigger..in the head and in the chest. So pretty muvh shoot to kill. Now, I agree that he shouldn't have been doing what he was doing but the homeowner didn't have to kill him. I am a very close firend of the cousin of Travis and I had met him once before and he didn't seem like a bad kid at all. And his parents loved him dearly. And how can you say the parents shouldn't have let him hang out with those kids....have you tried telling your kids not to hang out with somebody...but it didn't work to well.Unless your over protective and lock them in the house forever. YOu people have no heart. A 14 year old just basically got murdered and you think he deserved it. OH and by the way the police wont the the family kinow anything about the autopsey or about the police repoets....nice keeping the family in the dark. Havent they been through enough!

Posted by: A friend at April 10, 2008 07:58 PM (cgBwc)

13 Dear, "A Friend", While I'm sorry for the Travis's family for the unbelievable loss that they are experiencing. Let's call a spade a spade. First, "He may of had a weapon in his hand but he dropped it as soon as he say the homeowner.", um were you there? Did you witness firsthand what took place in that house? If so, then you need to be talking to the police and explaining your actions or lack thereof. Second, "Now, I agree that he shouldn't have been doing what he was doing but the homeowner didn't have to kill him." Um, that's where you're wrong. See kids today are coddled WAY too much. There are fewer parents that know by drawing a hard line in the sand and setting expectations and consequences, is the only way you raise a good person. Travis should not have even had the THOUGHT of entering someone else's home for the purpose of seeing what they could get. There was no point to this and this dumb kid brought about his own death as a result. He made the choice to go. He made the choice to break into a home. He made the choice to pick up a weapon. He made the choice to die. The guest of the home owner had no way of knowing what that kid was going to do. Drop the gun and run like hell or start shooting. He took appropriate actions for the situation. Now, when you're done singing kumbaya by the firepit with your other tree-hugging hippie friends, try pulling your head out of your arse and seeing what the world has been turned into because kids today and generation before are being raised to think they have a RIGHT to whatever what they want, without working for it. Again, I feel badly that Travis' parents have lost a son. But their son was doing something ILLEGAL as well as stupid and paid a high price for being an idiot. And the houseguest, who should not face any charges whatsoever, will have to live with the fact that he had to take a persons life. Nobody won in this instance. Hopefully Travis' other stupid friends will learn a lesson from this. Doubtful, but dare to dream.

Posted by: Lee Ann at April 11, 2008 07:22 AM (In0yv)

14 Penny: There is a wrong and a right side to the story. Travis and crew were wrong for breaking into the house. I'm sorry, they were. I don't care how anyone tries to sugar coat that fact. He ought to have known that it was illegal. Two wrongs don't make a right, but killing someone to defend life, limb or property is not wrong. A Friend: I never said Travis pointed a gun at anyone, just that he had a gun. But to be honest gun or not if it had been my house and he was in there, you're damn right I would have shot him. And no, I would not have "aimed to maim". I'm ex-law enforcement and I'm sorry, I know that tactic more often than not doesn't work. I have a son that is with in months of Travis' age. And you know what, I can keep him away from friends I don't want him hanging out with. I have also instilled in him a serious sense of right and wrong. I may have my issues with him, but to this point the only criminal activity he's been involved in was damage to my property. Travis wasn't murdered. He was killed while committing a felony in self defense. God gave man a brain and free will. Whether or not Travis and his friends used the first is questionable, but they definitely used the second. Maybe, just maybe in this society of pass the blame if people would wake up and take responsibility for their own actions our country would straighten things up. But no, we are a victim society. Every time someone does something wrong, or every time something bad happens to someone it's somebody elseÂ’s fault. Travis made a decision. His decision was bad. As a result of that bad decision HE GOT HIMSELF KILLED. IE Travis killed himself. Don't blame anyone but Travis for the death. It's not being filled with hate, it's not being cold hearted, it's not being an asshole, it's just the way it is.

Posted by: Contagion at April 11, 2008 07:50 AM (Q5WxB)

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CBS is canceling the show Jericho... again. They canceled the show last year, but an overwhelming response by fans brought it back.

I'll admit that I love this show. It's one of my favorites each week. I was upset when they canceled it. When they brought it back I was ecstatic. I just love the show, it appeals to my inner survivalist and contingency planning wackoness. GAH! Why do all the shows I like get canceled.

Posted by: Contagion at 09:59 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Tonight is the “second” Rock River Raptors home game of the season. And to be honest, I’m not sure if I am going to go or not. The management and front office have really angered me to no end. It all started last year when the Raptors made it to the playoffs.

To increase sales the management and front office offered a package deal. If you bought all the playoff tickets and the 2008 season tickets they would knock 25% off of the total package and if the Raptors didnÂ’t make it to the next level of the playoffs they would refund the money for the tickets. It was a huge savings and well worth the money. I jumped on and purchased the tickets.

The Raptors were eliminated in the first round. Meaning that the second round of the playoffs and the championship tickets should be refunded to the ticket holders that purchased them. I kept waiting and calling about the refund only to never get it. The office would give me the run around about whose fault it is or just not return my calls. At one point I called the Raptors because I had heard that some of the season ticket holders that had pre-paid for tickets were not showing as paid.

When I called they told me they did have a record of my payment. I inquired about the refund and they told me they did not have me on the list for the refund. I was about livid. They added my name to the list along with the friends of mine and my father who had all prepaid. I still received a song and dance about when we will get the refund.

My tickets where paid for in June. The last playoff game was toward the end of July. It is now the beginning of March and I still donÂ’t have my money back. They where quick to take the money out of the account, but they sure donÂ’t want to give it back.

To make matters ever worse, they changed the league they play in from the UIF to the CIFL. When they did this they sent out a nice letter saying that they decided not to raise the cost of tickets this year, like they would have received another dime from me or I would have accepted anything short of the refund they owed me. IÂ’m still fighting to get my money when the schedule comes out. They shortened the seasons from 8 home games to 6 home games. In the past they were all on a Saturday night, now some are on a Friday night. Okay, itÂ’s a little annoying as no pre-game partying, but I can live with it.

When I questioned the raise of ticket prices, I was told they didnÂ’t raise them. Yes they did! I paid for 8 home games, I got 6 home games. ThatÂ’s when I was told that I still get two home games, but they are pre-season. Pre-season, thatÂ’s right. To add insult to injury, one of the preseason games wasnÂ’t even held at the MetroCentre (The arena the games are normally played in). The night we were able to pick up tickets we had to go to this indoor sports center in Loves Park, fight with parking to get into a crowded arena to pick up tickets. Where they wanted me to pay an additional $5.00 for Clone (my four year old) to get into the game. Again, they are not getting anymore money from me.

This wasnÂ’t even a pre-season game; it was an exhibition game against some local iron-man football club. You didnÂ’t even get to see them play players of the same caliber. They had an away pre-season game against a rival team from the UIF. Then they scheduled a pre-season game on a Monday night. Monday night?!?!?! Hell, IÂ’ve given up NFL tickets because itÂ’s a Monday night game. IÂ’ll be lucky if I get home before 11:00 PM tonight. Most of the people I know canÂ’t go because they have kids and itÂ’s a school night, they have to work, they have weekday obligations or itÂ’s just not feasible.

As for the regular season games, IÂ’m going to miss half of them because they are scheduled during re-enactments. ThatÂ’s not their fault, but when you only have 6 home games, it decreases the chances of you being able to get to one if you have any other hobbies, kids or plans.

Needless to say IÂ’m a bit annoyed. I do know that IÂ’m not spending one dime more than I have to this year on this team until I get my money back. I also know that I better get a huge apology for the treatment IÂ’ve received. There are a lot of other fans out there just like me, I bet you see their support drop off this year. You donÂ’t treat your fan base like this and expect to keep them.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:45 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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1 Contact a lawyer or at least tell them your contact a lawyer and make up a law office and send them an "offical" letter threatening to sue if you don't get your refund.

Posted by: Quality Weenie at March 04, 2008 07:44 AM (uHRYR)

2 Or show up in person at the main offices. I think if you can find a day (yeah, I know) to go there at 9am and demand to start seeing people and refuse to leave until they see you, you might get some help. It's a pain, but that's the only way to deal with some people. And if you're especially creative, get a lawyer and file a class-action lawsuit for breach of contract...

Posted by: Ogre at March 04, 2008 08:18 AM (oifEm)

3 Second home game? Last I checked the season didn't even start until the 29th?

Posted by: Shadoglare at March 04, 2008 03:18 PM (Volhe)

4 No comment.

Posted by: Bruce at March 04, 2008 07:52 PM (j8iYO)

5 You might want to contact the IL States Attorney's Office for your county. If they're doing this on a wide scale, it may be construed as a fraud. (And you wouldn't be stuck for your own attorney's fees.)

Posted by: Omnibus Driver at March 06, 2008 02:04 PM (WOXRM)

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I was talking to some of my peers at work today as we waited for a meeting to start. The rebate/stimulus package was brought up and of course someone made the comment, "I could use that money now." I knew they should be getting $1,200.00 back and I made an offer to them. "I'll tell you what. I'll give you $900.00 tomorrow and you can give me the $1,200.00 check when you get it." We all had a chuckle, but then it made me think.

When is someone legitimately going to do something like this?

Think about it. All of the tax places offer an instant rebate or refund anticipation loan. Basically they give you the money for your anticipated refund right there, minus some fees, charges and interest. Plus you have payday advance loans, car title loans, etc. etc. etc. You have large financial companies that advertise that if you have a structured annuity, won the lottery, have payments from a court case coming to you, they will give you one large lump sum today, and keep the rest. If they can do all of that, when is someone going to legitimately say, "Getting a rebate? Need the money now? Come see us at Givenudashaft and we'll give you your money today*" (*in fine print: minus a 20% fee)

The sad thing is that I can actually see people doing this just so that can have their money NOW. What bothers me the most is that I know a lot of people that fall for all of the above. Okay some might justify the refund anticipation loans because it's only $50.00 out of $3,000.00 and they get the money today. Yea... but basically if you were patient and waited for the money you'd have an extra $50.00 or however much you might get. Remember, it's already your money, you just gave away $50.00 to get it back today instead of in three weeks. That's like paying your employer to get your paycheck.

There are people that work for me that use the payday loan places all the time. I could see them forking over 20% of the anticipated rebate just so they could get the money today. It just amazes me how many people can be that financially irresponsible with their money.

I wonder how long before someone does start this scam. Hell it may have started already.

Of course I still think this whole rebate is a really bad idea that we all going to be paying for over the next 25 years. Sure I'm going to take the money, only a fool would not. I'd just rather they not do it in general. I'd rather they save the money, decrease taxes, remove federal regulations and restrictions and let the free market fix itself. If they are that worried about it, start putting more tariffs on foreign products coming to the US so that products actually owned by American based companies have a fighting chance. It keeps the money in America, not in China.

Roughly forty percent of the money we are borrowing to make this rebate happen is coming from China so that the majority of people can go out and buy a big ticket electronic item made in China. Who's economy are we trying to stimulate?

Posted by: Contagion at 05:49 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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...thankfully I drive a tank.

The roads in Rockford,IL are getting worse by the day. The pot holes are starting to get way out of control. I really shouldn't be referring to them as pot holes, they really are more like craters. The prominent intersection of Alpine and Newburg/Broadway (East of Alpine it's Newburg, West of Alpine it's Broadway) is a prime example. It's not one pothole crater, it's close to a hundred of them, and they are huge! It looks like the intersection has been shelled by artillery. I kid you not, one of them is about two feet wide, twenty feet long and six inches deep. It's not just in the intersection it's bad, but in the roads leading up to it.

Traffic is horrible here as everyone has to do 5-10 miles an hour to keep from bottoming out or loosing a tire. It's gotten so bad between the potholes and traffic that I've taken to avoiding the intersection all together. Every time it snows it gets worse and the plows are pulling out more and more chunks of pavement. With all the snow we've gotten recently it's just killing the streets.

Now there are a lot of streets that are bad and maybe worse, but I travel through this intersection every day. Well I used to, now I go around it. I took a different route on my way to work today down 20th street. In the stretch between Broadway and Harrison by the train via duct, there is a pothole crater so big that I actually witnessed it swallow a VW beetle. Fortunately I had my spelunking gear and some tow chains with me or that poor lady would have been stuck down there for a long time. Okay, maybe I exaggerate a little, but I did see her bottom out and send sparks when she hit it.

I guess I could be like a lot of the people in my city and blame the government and their cronyism with Rockford Blacktop (The only contractor that does road work in the city), but it's really not their fault. The weather this winter as been farooking nutz.

It goes from unseasonably warm to really cold in short periods of time. We get snow, rain or sleet every time the temps change any. The roads falling apart is just a combination of natural erosion, wear and tear and plows digging them up. Until the weather gets warmer, they really can't fix them. It's just too damn cold, the patches won't stick and some of the roads, like Riverside, just need to be replaced in general now.

So my good readers, if you have to travel in the city of Rockford, make sure you have a vehicle with good suspension. I'm really glad I have a 3/4 ton Heavy Duty 4X4 pick up with off road package.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:44 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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Boopie had the day off of school today. Not for a holiday, not because he was sick, it was because the Rockford Public Schools decided to close today. Was it because of cold weather? Was it because of the snow? We don't know. When I woke up this morning, it wasn't that cold and the snow had stopped. Hell even the side roads were being plowed. His school doesn't start until 9:30 so it's not like they wouldn't have the main roads plowed.

The only reason I can think that the schools would close is the administrators wanted to make it a five day weekend. That's right, they haven't had school since last Thursday. Friday was an institute day, Monday was Martin Luther King Jr Holiday and today was a snow day.

The local rag newspaper, The Rockford Register star states that:

"The decision to close Rockford schools wasnÂ’t made until 5:45 a.m. today, interim Superintendent Linda Hernandez said.

She first talked with Transportation Director Gregg Wilson at 4:15 a.m. At that time, she said, both thought it might be possible to have a normal day. By 5:45 a.m., it was clear there were too many streets still full of snow to send out the buses, Hernandez said.

“It was a late decision, and I felt bad about that,” she said. “But it was the right decision. There were too many streets that were not cleared.”

Normally, the decision to close schools is made by 4:30 or 5 a.m., she said.
The missed day of school will be made up June 4."

I live on a street that seems to be one of the last ones plowed in the city. Yet we were able to make it out of our driveway and to work with no problems. Hell no one at work even called off for severe weather or being stuck in the snow. Sure, we got 8.7 inches of snow since yesterday afternoon, but it really wasn't that bad. Many of the school districts around us didn't close, even the rural ones.

Honestly, why do I even bother trying to send my kids to the local schools. I really need to move to a better district.

Posted by: Contagion at 05:31 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Spammers. They are really starting to piss me off. First off, I've been under a constant attack of gibberish spam for two weeks now. Checking out Munuviana I see other MuNu blogs are having the same issue. What particularly pisses me off about these is that there is no URL to block, it's all complete and udder gibberish. Sunday after Ogfest I spent 3 hours de-spaming here. Yes, that is annoying and every blogger has that problem.

But I have a new and interesting problem. It appears that some spammer is spoofing my e-mail address and sending out tons of spam under my handle. I started wondering about certain failure to deliver addresses I was getting and an angry e-mail from some guy I didn't know about sending him crap, but it all came together when I received an e-mail from myself regarding getting a new loan.

If I ever knowingly run across a spammer, I'm going to kick them in the groin until I sprain my ankle.

Posted by: Contagion at 05:20 AM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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Shadoglare wants to get my blood boiling early this week. He sent me a link to a local story about a rash of shootings at a local housing project, including the first homicide in Rockford for the year. The Chief of Police Chet Epperson is quoted in the article saying:

Epperson believes the latest rash of violence can be attributed, in part, to the ease with which ex-felons can get their hands on guns. Two Blackhawk Courts shooting victims had been released from prison as recently as last month.

“This is unacceptable,” Epperson said of the string of shootings. “Handguns are really the culprit of the degradation of this community.”

What????? Ease in which ex-felons can get their hands on guns? The last time I bought a firearm in Illinois I had to jump through hoops and wait three days. In that time they did a back ground check and everything to make sure I wasn’t a felon. Wait, I bought my firearm legally, that’s right. The way Chet here is talking about must be illegal. That means that if Chet and his boys were doing their jobs then the felons would have a hard time getting firearms. So if there is an easy way to get them, it’s obviously his fault since he’s the “top cop”.

As for handguns being the culprit of the degradation of this community, I’m curious to how he jumped to that conclusion. If all three cases involved baseball bats, golf clubs or kitchen knives would he blame those? Probably not, but because he can’t stem the flow of illegal firearms, then he has to blame the firearm not the individuals using them. Sure it’s easy to blame an inanimate object, it won’t argue back. But lets put the blame were it really belongs: The individuals that pulled the trigger. I don’t know what their up bringing was, and I really don’t want to stereotype anyone, so I’m not going to. But both my mother and father who were involved in my life and taught me right from wrong raised me. I’ve never shot anyone with malice. I’ve never used a firearm to solve a dispute between me and another person. And as much as I joke about, “I’m going to shoot…”, I don’t follow through with it by actually shooting anyone.

ItÂ’s the type of ignorance that Chet here uses that causes so much fear and mistrust of legal firearms and their owners.

Posted by: Contagion at 04:57 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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On my ride home from work I heard a local news story that kind of grabbed my attention, Forreston Students Protest Suspension over Confederate Clothing. I obviously cannot link to the radio show, so I’ll link to the article they where discussing. During the show they personalities and callers were going back and forth over the entire issue. Everything from freedom of speech (IE expression) to Hate Crimes (Displaying the Naval Jack/Rebel Flag the Confederacy is a “hate crime”).

I rolled my eyes so dramatically at one point I almost drove off the road. Not over the freedom of speech issue, mainly because I honestly believe that most Americans only believe in Freedom of Speech if the topic isn’t controversial OR they happen to support the controversial topic. Yea, deny it. But I’ve seen enough hypocrisy over it in the last two years that you won’t change my mind. What made me roll my eyes was when one of the radio personalities made a comment along the lines of “It’s a flag of hate. It’s anti-American and it can’t legally be flown on federal property. They flag symbolizes, hate, bigotry and racism.”

First, anyone that knows anything about history and the Confederate Flag knows that what people call the Confederate flag isnÂ’t the Confederate Flag. What every one is most familiar with is the Naval Jack AKA Rebel Flag, AKA The Southern Cross. This is a battle flag, well one of them. The actual battle flags were perfectly square.

Rebel Flag

Battle Flag

Yes, this is a matter of semantics, but it’s important. There where three Confederate National Flags. The first being what was commonly called “The Stars and Bars.” Yes, again some people refer to the Naval Jack as that, but they would be incorrect. The original flag had nothing on it that even had the Confederate Union on it. Other then the colors, they really where completely different. It was changed because it looked too much like the American Flag. The Second National Flag, The Stainless Banner was a white field with the Battle Flag as the Union. This flag was replaced because when there was no wind it looked like a surrender flag. The Third National Flag, the bloodstained banner had a red vertical stripe on the end. This flag was adopted shortly before the end of the war and was the last national flag of the Confederacy.

The Stars and Bars

The Stainless Banner

The Bloodstained Banner

So about now you are all probably wondering why I am boring you with a history lesson? Because it pisses me off when people say historically it represents hate, bigotry and racism. WRONG! ItÂ’s a battle flag. ItÂ’s a flag that armies rallied to during a bloody war. ItÂ’s a flag that Americans fought and died under for something they believe. They rose up against a government they felt did not represent them, their interests and their rights. This flag wasnÂ’t even around at the beginning of the war. ItÂ’s not like this flag was around for years flown over houses telling anyone that passed by that this plantation had slaves. It didnÂ’t. Maybe if they said that about one of the Confederate National flags I could understand it more, but they don't.

Sure someone will say that thatÂ’s what people associate it with. You are correct, the ignorant, the un-educated and the stupid have over the years used the rebel flag as part of their idiocy. Okay, so since they use a flaming cross, crosses should be evil too. Oh, and since millions of people have been killed in the name of god, then god should be seen as evil. Yea, I know. IÂ’m going to extremes, but it just annoys me.

There is a historical and legitimate reason for the rebel flag. Some say to remember history; some to show southern pride, others because they do think it stands for hate. I have no problem with the debate over this flag. I just hate seeing it pigeon holed as something itÂ’s not.

Oh and as for it not being allowed to be flown on Federal property. IÂ’ve been to many Federal monuments and cemeteries, including Shiloh this past year. IÂ’ve seen this flag at many of these Civil War sites and IÂ’m willing to bet I will continue to, including memorials.

I really wish the media would fact check before spewing forth BS.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:58 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Do you know what sucks? A flat tire on your way to work sucks. ItÂ’s worse when you have your wife and two kids with you when it goes flat. Fortunately we were only 6 blocks from home when the tire blew, so we were able to limp home and switch vehicles. No time to change the tire, I had to get to work. It would have to wait until I got home.

ThatÂ’s what happened to me yesterday. Last night when I got home I changed into some rugged cold weather gear and headed out to change the tire on the van. People let me tell you something, changing a tire sucks, changing a tire when itÂ’s 15 degrees with a wind chill that makes it feel like 5 degrees sucks even more. The metal of the jack, the irons and the tire is almost excruciatingly cold through the heavily insulated gloves. Want to make it even worse? It had snowed the night before, it was only a couple of inches, but that meant that I had to work in the snow. We have a narrow driveway and I ended up having to shovel and dig out a section so I could get the damn jack under the farking van. Then I had the pleasure of lying in the snow to crank the beast up.

When itÂ’s that cold do you know what happens to your tires after they are flat? They freeze. It was frozen to the driveway. As I was jacking up the farking van the tire was slowing peeling off of the driveway. It only took me about 30 minutes to make the change. 15 minutes of that was trying to get he damn spare loose from the van. ItÂ’s stored under the vehicle, and hadnÂ’t been used in 3.5 years. The damn spare rusted to the farking bracket that was holding it to the van. So the farking gobshite that decided that storing the spare under the vehicle has a kick to the dinglies coming from me if I ever meet him.

After getting the wheels changed, I was able to go sink a couple of hundred dollars into getting two replacement tires. You can’t just buy one new tire, the vehicle won’t ride right. Well I guess it could be worse. It could have happened today, when it’s 7 degrees with a –7 wind chill.

Posted by: Contagion at 07:29 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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Oh Glorious Day! The local news channels started declaring Gloom and Doom yesterday and by this morning it was full blown, “worst storm in the last 12 months.” Sadly enough people actually believe it. After living in Northern Illinois for 30 plus years, I know that whenever the local weather service calls for severe weather there is only about a 25% chance that it’s going to be close to what they call for. IE, originally it was supposed to hit at noon today, as of right now it’s not going to hit until after midnight. They are calling for 3-12 inches of snow. More like 2-3 with their record.

I already had employees ask me if they are going to close the office tomorrow. My standard answer was a resounding no. I even told my people that if they call and say they canÂ’t make it in, IÂ’d drive over and pick them up in the morning. However, I will charge them for gas. I have never missed a day of work in my life due to bad weather. Even when we did get a couple of feet of snow in one storm and I had a 45-mile commute, I didnÂ’t miss work. There has not been a situation that good safe driving canÂ’t get you where you are going.

Of course all the people are at the store buying bread and milk. I canÂ’t remember which blogger did a post on it, but every time they call for bad weather everyone runs to the store to buy bread and milk. IÂ’m not sure why, but they do. This means the roads are packed with panicked drivers trying to race and beat one another to the store. Right now the real threat isnÂ’t the possible snow covered roads, itÂ’s the idiots out rushing around. I saw three accidents on my ride home tonight. The snow hasnÂ’t even started yet!

Personally, I would like to see 2-3 feet, yes feet, of snow. We havenÂ’t had a good snowy winter in years. It could drop a foot of snow a week between now and New Years and IÂ’d be a happy man.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:52 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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Dark times have graced the political front in my little city. According to local news sources the City of Rockford and Winnebago County have decided to get into the professional sports business by purchasing a minor league hockey team.

The public agency that owns the MetroCentre wants to buy the Rockford IceHogs and reinvent the popular hockey team as a minor league franchise for the Chicago Blackhawks. The transformation would be part of a long-discussed $20 million renovation of the aging “big orange box” in downtown Rockford.

~Rockford Register Star

The “big orange box” they are referring to is the Rockford MetroCentre. It’s an arena that was opened in 1981. It’s currently where the Rockford IceHogs and the Rock River Raptors play. Unfortunately in the last couple of years it has started falling into a state of disrepair and really does need a renovation. The seats need repair, and the plumbing in some of the bathrooms doesn’t work. The last time I was there, the restrooms by the main entrance had no working sinks. It would be nice to see them actually fix up and redesign it. It’s pretty ugly right now, and is pretty much an eyesore.

Personally I would have rather they closed it down and built a new one closer to the interstate. The MetroCentre is currently located in downtown Rockford and is hard to get to. The traffic is pretty thick going to and leaving any event. According to a local radio station 1330 AM WNTA (Yes, I was listening to talk radio) it would cost substantially more money. I canÂ’t remember exactly the figure they gave; I believe it was in the 9-figure range. Since they would probably end up having to increase taxes to pay for that, IÂ’ll take the renovations. According to the press conference the money that the City of Rockford and the County are investing into the new MetroCentre is not going to raise local taxes any, I like it even more. Then again in March they may try to raise the taxes saying that in order to cover the costs, they need extra money. I did hear they are going to try to get a referendum passed to do an overhaul on one of the main roads that leads to the MetroCentre. So I guess I will end up having my taxes raised either way. Yea, the voters might say no, but they wonÂ’t. There isnÂ’t a tax this city doesnÂ’t like.

So what does this have to do with politics in the city? It seems the Mayor, the MetroCentre Authority, the city council and county board are adopting Chicago style politics to get this done. First they spent a year working out the details with the Chicago Blackhawks behind closed doors. The only reason we know about it now is because the local media caught wind of the story and broke it to the public. That in itself is not so bad.

HereÂ’s the problem. Currently two local businessmen that bought and brought them to Rockford own the Ice Hogs. They have been playing at the MetroCentre for 8 years and have a decent sized fan base. The problem is that they are part of the United Hockey League. The MetroCentre wants an American Hockey League Franchise and Chicago Blackhawks affiliate. If they finalize a deal with the Blackhawks, they are going to kick out the Ice Hogs and bring in this new team that they will own.

Wait, didn’t the article say they want to buy the Ice Hogs? The way that is worded is kind of misleading. They want to buy the name and logo from Dr Kris Tumilowicz “Dr. T” and Craig Drecktrah, the current owners of the Ice Hogs. They don’t want the team

Centre Events officials said more than $500,000 a year would be saved by combining hockey and MetroCentre operations. The front office staff of the IceHogs would be retained, but players and coaches would not.

Basically the local government is squeezing these businessmen out of their own team. If they donÂ’t sell, what are they going to do? They have been leasing the MetroCentre each year for their games. If the MetroCentre kicks them out, they will have no place to play that can hold an average audience of 4,400. If they sell, they are only being offered $540,000.00. Which according to the UHL and owners is far less then what the team is worth. Plus, he will no longer have anything to do with the team. HeÂ’d go from owner to spectator. Those are some pretty strong arm tactics. IÂ’m afraid this may just be the beginning this kind of politics in Rockford.

IÂ’m just glad Rockford doesnÂ’t have Home Rule. IÂ’d hate to see what these local politicians would do with that kind of power.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:51 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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As you all know political blogging is not something I generally do. Yet there is something about the up coming elections that really has me irritated. ItÂ’s nothing new, you see it every election, but as I pay more and more attention to the candidates the more annoyed I become. Mud Slinging. To me this is the absolute worse form of campaigning a candidate can do.

Instead of trying to sell me on why a candidate is the best person for the job, they are trying to convince me that their opponent isnÂ’t worthy of the position. Mud slinging gives me the impression that the candidate has no good qualities and must hide their inadequacies by making their opponent look worse. Lets take the Gubernatorial race in Illinois. The two leading candidates are the incumbent Rod Blagojevich and the challenger Judy Baar Topinka. I have yet to see an add to tell me what each candidate offers or stands for, all IÂ’ve seen is how the opponent is corrupt or incompetent. Now to be honest, the Governor race is looking like IÂ’m going to write myself in. Neither of the candidates appears to be anything worth voting for. I donÂ’t trust either one to run the state any better then Clone could.

Now today in the mail I receive a flyer for a challenger in the State representative race. It tells me how the incumbent is a bad man because he wanted to allow concealed carry. Meanwhile, all the ads and literature IÂ’ve seen for the incumbent tell me what heÂ’s done for the state and what he wants to do. Since IÂ’m obviously pro-gun and anti-mudslinging, this little ad backfired for the challenger. IÂ’m going to be voting for the incumbent. Which up until this point I was still up in the air about.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:07 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Since Ktreva and I are huge history buffs as well as re-enactors, we enjoy a reality series done by PBS. They take people from various aspects of life, assign different roles and place them in a historical setting. The people are supposed to work together in their historically based roles to meet a pre-assigned objective. Frontier House was set in 1883 Montana Territory, the families in this episode where supposed to make a functioning community that would survive the winter. Colonial House was set in 1628 New England. The participants where supposed to make a colony that would not only survive the winter, but also be profitable to the company that funded the expedition. Texas Ranch House was set in 1867, post civil war, Texas (duh!). They where supposed to make a profitable functioning Texas ranch.

People were assigned roles based on this historical norm in their time period. They were supposed to live life and work as they would in the year they were portraying. This includes laws, social norms and tasks. As a re-enactor I would love to take the 2-3 months off of work to do something like this. Ktreva and I have both talked about it; unfortunately we have a family and just don’t see us giving up good jobs to go re-enact for 3 months straight. That and I honestly don’t think they would pick us. We have way too much experience in “primitive living.” The shows are great as you get to see people’s reaction to life in the past. We both have one problem with these shows.

The participants donÂ’t seem to get the concept, especially the women. (No offense ladies, but they donÂ’t.)

People have a hard time setting aside their 21st century beliefs to accurately portray their roles. Work doesnÂ’t get done or projects are handled with a modern twist. This doesnÂ’t bother me, but I feel they are missing out on the actual experience. What bothers me is when people want to shun the entire project. IE, you have people in 1628 refusing to go to church and admitting they are atheists, people admitting they are gay or women refusing to wear hats. ItÂ’s 1628; you would have been outcasts, severely punished and more likely executed for these transgressions. In all three you have women walking around in what would be their underwear doing daily tasks. You had men that would be disrespectful to people of higher station. They would take the women and children into what would be considered hostile situations, like negotiating with the natives.

What really bothers me are the women. In every episode it is the women that start the breakdown of the project. Why? Because they donÂ’t like the traditional roles they had to portray. They get upset because the men get to ride horses, go hunting, wrangle cattle, and do all the other romanticized historical tasks. The women want to do these same things and feel it is unfair. They donÂ’t want to do the cooking, cleaning, sewing, gardening, etc that was a common and necessary part of life back then. They complain that life isnÂ’t fair and that the guys are being chauvinistic. They tend to try to take on more authoritarian roles in the communities and resent when they arenÂ’t being listened to.

Well, I hate to break it to you ladies; life back then wasnÂ’t fair. The point of these projects isnÂ’t to give a woman a chance to experience life as a cowboy, explorer, soldier or hunter. ItÂ’s an exercise on seeing how life was like back then. Women at these time periods where chattel. Even in 1883 there was no equal rights for women. Now, before I have some of my female readers go off on me, IÂ’m not saying this is right. ItÂ’s just how life was back then. Just like youÂ’re not going to have a Black military officer in 1867 Texas, you are not going to have a female cowboy.

About now the militant panty brigade is going to say, “Well there where female cowboys, hunters, explorers etc…” To which I will respond, there are very limited examples of this. For every female you find in a non-traditional role, I’ll find a couple million examples of them being in a traditional role. These females are the extremely rare anomaly, not the norm. Triplets are more common then they were.

What I find most amusing is that I run into this problem when we re-enact. WeÂ’ve run across female warriors, soldiers, trappers, traders and craftsman (These examples do not include merchants that are selling actual wares to re-enactors and public, IÂ’m referring to people that are trying to portray a historical character.) I was at a battle a couple years ago where there were at least 10 females on the battlefield (Not even plausibly disguised) fighting. They werenÂ’t needed, they just wanted to get out there and every single one of them gave the same example of a documented case of a woman who disguised herself as a man to fight. What they left out was that she was hung shortly after being discovered because she falsely represented herself.

History isnÂ’t pretty. In fact can be down right ugly, and IÂ’m not even talking about Grau and I wearing kilts in a high wind. If youÂ’re going to do something like these shows or re-enact, at least try to do it right. If you donÂ’t like the historical role, too bad, you volunteered.

Posted by: Contagion at 08:12 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Allegedly there is a union that is trying to set up shop in our office. The kicker is that they arenÂ’t targeting just any employee. No, they are trying to recruit the white-collar employees in our office. ThatÂ’s right, they want management.

Now I know I have some readers that are pro-union. I, however, am not. In my life I have been raped belonged to three different unions. The only thing any of them actually did for me was take a chunk of my paycheck, sell me out, have my work load increased, use my position as a bargaining chip in negations, take a chunk of my paycheck, and prevent me from getting a promotion.

There was a time in this country that unions were needed, under todayÂ’s labor laws I just donÂ’t see a need. IÂ’ve gotten further, made more money, and have better benefits with companies that donÂ’t have unions then I ever did when I was in one. Why would I want to bring in an organization that is going to take money away from me, and (based on my experience) probably screw me in the long run?

I also love the strong-arm tactics unions use. If you work in a union office and donÂ’t want to belong to the union, you donÂ’t have to. Yet, you still have to pay dues and they pretty much make sure you get squat for jobs. Oh, and picketing, I love the picketing. Every time I see union employees picketing a business, it just makes me want to buy from that company. Especially when the idiots they get to do it start vandalizing the property or vehicles. Yea, terror tactics to scare people into either joining or using their services really convinces me they are a good organization. Now, not all unions do this, but IÂ’ve seen/experienced enough to know it happens. And if I could have identified which one of those union pricks put a nail in my tire, IÂ’d have pressed charges.

I really hope this is just a rumor, and there is no truth to it. If it is true, I pray that the people in my office have enough common sense to turn them on their heels. If they donÂ’t, IÂ’ll probably end up looking for a new job. ThereÂ’s no way I want to work in another union office.

Posted by: Contagion at 05:18 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 Indeed, you don't need any help with your thuggery tactics.

Posted by: Ogre at April 13, 2006 05:49 AM (/k+l4)

2 The white colar jobs in the auto industry are a big time target for unions right now as it is their jobs and benefits that are getting attacked by the auto companies. White colar jobs are getting screwed big time, w/o vaseline, in their benefits.

I know people who have gone 5 years w/o a raise because they are taking that away from white colar people as a cost save.

Posted by: Quality Weenie at April 13, 2006 07:20 AM (XG7jZ)

3 Amen brother. All they do is keep the promotable from being promoted and the incompetant employed. Not to mention unions using paying member's dues for dubious political and recreational reasons, and damn you if you try to call them on it. (I know, I have).

Posted by: Wes at April 13, 2006 03:43 PM (XKQLY)

4 Engineers in aero=space are targets for union too. They tried to unionize us out at CompanyX. It was voted down without question.

(I wish people would quit messing around with MT black list if they don't know wtf they're doing. There's an equal sign in that word because Blacklist doesn't like it.)

Posted by: Bou at April 13, 2006 08:50 PM (iHxT3)

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