Wishing everyone a safe and prosperous New Year! Happy 2013!
Gun control…
Its been over a week now since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. This was a criminal event which claimed the lives of 26 people, including 20 children. While this horrific shooting shook the nation and many questioned why such a senseless act occurred, people started looking for ways to prevent something like this from happening again in the future. This knee-jerk reaction was, as is typical when a shooting massacre occurs, to jump on the bandwagon of ‘gun control’.
The Left leaning media, for the most part, is for gun control. Like most liberals, they have little or no respect for our Constitution. Today, one newspaper (The Journal News) released handgun and pistol permit information on the residents in New York’s Westchester and Rockland counties. They have an interactive map in which users can click dots and see the names and addresses of residents with permits. Below are two snapshots of the maps.
The Journal News, in publishing this map, is violating these law-abiding residents’ privacy. They’ve created a database similar to a sex offender registry. How arrogant and asinine can this newspaper publisher be? Our 2nd Amendment guarantees each citizen the right to own a firearm. The Gun Control Act of 1968, the ‘assault weapon’ ban, and every other law restricting a citizen’s 2nd Amendment right, is an attack on the Constitution. We, the people, are the basis of power in which the State and Federal government draws its ability to govern. If the government wants to restrict firearms, in any manner, it should do so via the amendment process. That’s the only constitutional method accepted to redefine our rights.
LOL! We’re still here!
The people who believed the Mayan calendar signaled the date the world would end, were obviously wrong!
Children’s Pool, La Jolla
Children’s Pool Beach, also known as Casa Beach, is a small sandy beach located at 850 Coast Boulevard, at the end of Jenner Street, in La Jolla, California.
Waves crashing against the sea wall at Children’s Pool
A sea wall built in 1931 protects the beach from crashing waves, making it a favorite spot for divers and swimmers. Before the “wave wall” was built, there was a shallow water area between a large rock and a mainland bluff called “Seal Rock Point.” The sea wall was built on top of several rocks, across the channel.It is topped by a paved walkway protected by railings.
Local philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps paid for the sea wall project in order to create a Children’s Pool, a place where children could play and swim protected from the oncoming waves onshore. Ms. Scripps gave the completed project to the City of San Diego. The gift was confirmed by an act of the Legislature, signed by the Governor in 1931, which says that “said lands shall be devoted exclusively to public park, bathing pool for children, parkway, highway, playground, and recreational purposes”, while specifying that the area should remain available for fishing.
In the more than seventy years since the sea wall was built, roughly three quarters of the pool area within the sea wall has filled up with sand, greatly decreasing the protected area available for recreational swimming.
Situation at the beach
Lifeguards and seal advocates monitor the beach area. Swimming is allowed, but not recommended due to the high Coliform Index.
The City has maintained a rope barrier from December 15 through May 15, so that pregnant seals can rest and give birth on the beach without humans coming too close and frightening them. Pupping season is officially mid-January to mid-April. However, the appellate court ruled in 2007 that the barrier is illegal. In 2008 a federal appeals court judge gave permission for the city to reinstall the rope. The rope barrier is “advisory”, with an opening for the public to pass through, as mandated by the Coastal Commission.
Some seals on the beach are acclimated to people and sometimes play with swimmers and divers. However, the city lifeguard service warns that “Like all wild animals, seals and sea lions are unpredictable and can become aggressive quickly. They have sharp teeth and may bite, particularly if cornered or harassed.” Sea lions in particular are territorial and can be aggressive, and should be given a wide berth.
The San Diego Police Department says that police have responded to “numerous calls for service at Children’s Pool involving alleged incidents of threatened assault and intimidation” between seal advocates, swimmers and divers, and that in some cases citations have been issued or people taken into custody. A La Jolla man was indicted for sending e-mailed death threats to a seal advocate who was videotaping interactions between divers and seals, and to the Animal Protection and Rescue League.
Michigan locals raise funds for ‘hot dog guy’ after union protesters destroy his supplies
Clinton Tarver has been serving hot dogs to hungry locals in downtown Lansing, Mich., for the last five years, but a brush this week with a pro-union protest literally upended his small business in a matter of minutes.
During a protest against right-to-work legislation in Michigan’s capital, Tarver’s catering supplies were destroyed when demonstrators tore down the tent where he was serving and trampled his gear.
The tent had been set up by the conservative Americans for Prosperity, which supports the legislation Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law Tuesday that allows unionized workers to opt out of paying union dues.
Tarver, who has been a small business owner for the last 16 years, was there to give hot dogs to supporters in the tent on the Capitol lawn. He said he was just checking tickets, not sizing up customers.
“Everyone that had a ticket I had given a hot dog to,” the 63-year-old owner of Clint’s Hot Dog Cart and Casual Catering told FoxNews.com. “So when two guys, one with a mask, came to get their hot dogs, I didn’t think anything of it because they had tickets and I was just there for a job.”
He described the action that ensued as “violent.” Only minutes after he’d handed the two men their hot dogs, the pair tore down the tent, turned over his serving tables, smashed his hot dogs, tossed a cooler filled with sodas and spilled his chili.
“I kept explaining that I was just here to do a job, that I wasn’t on anybody’s side, but when people started calling me racial slurs, my friend who works at the Capitol told me I had to get out of there, so I crawled out,” said Tarver, who is black.
Until Tuesday, he thought he was relatively unknown. But word spread about the incident, and local residents on both sides of the issue began rallying to help Tarver out.
Lorilea Zabadal, a staff member for Republican state Rep. Al Pscholka, set up an online fundraiser at gofundme.com. The goal was to reach $5,000. As of Wednesday afternoon, over $14,000 in donations had been raised.
“I supported Clint. He’s a great guy and a great small business,”Lt Governor Brian Calley. He also thanked citizens who had supported Tarver financially.
Tarver said that state Sen. Joe Humes and his wife reached out to Tarver on Tuesday night promising to reimburse him for his equipment.
And a spokesperson for Americans for Prosperity said they plan to reimburse Tarver as well.
Michigan State Police have contacted Tarver about the incident, but a request for comment by Lansing police was not immediately returned to FoxNews.com.
Tarver said he’s overwhelmed by the support and that he didn’t know he had touched so many people.
“I never knew people cared so much about the hot dog guy — I feel overwhelmed,” Tarver said. “I’m just here to serve.”
Fox News contributor punched in face at pro-union protests in Michigan
A Fox News contributor was punched in the face during a pro-union protest Tuesday in Michigan, one of a series of confrontations between union demonstrators and opponents on the day the state Legislature approved so-called “right to work” legislation that unions oppose.
Steven Crowder, a conservative comedian and Fox News contributor, had spent the day questioning demonstrators, and video he posted on YouTube showed some of them becoming verbally aggressive, with one telling him, “get the f— out of my face!”
Another protester can be seen later in the video punching Crowder in the face before being restrained by another man.
Crowder later posted photos on his Twitter account showing a chipped tooth and “minor cut to the forehead.” He told the website TheBlaze.com that the scuffle started when protesters tried to tear down a tent set up by conservative organization Americans for Prosperity.
“They were trying to tear down the tent and people were trying to pull them off. … And as they did that, a few people tripped,” he told the website. “This guy tripped over a tent peg and then got up and hit me.”
The Lansing Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but a spokesperson said police would have further information on the incident some time Tuesday night.
Gov. Rick Snyder signed the legislation Tuesday evening after the state House gave final approval of the bills, which bar unions from collecting mandatory fees from workers they represent under collective bargaining agreements.
Earlier Tuesday, two people were arrested after trying to get into a Michigan state building where Snyder has an office.
By evening,dozens of state troopers in riot gear swept protesters away from the building. State police accompanied by sheriff’s deputies on horses moved shoulder-to-shoulder to clear the area across the street from the Capitol. Some people who refused to move were physically picked up.
The new laws deliver a blow to the labor movement in the heart of the U.S. auto industry. One bill dealt with public sector workers, the other with government employees. Both measures cleared the Senate last week.
“There will be blood, there will be repercussions,” state Democratic Rep. Douglas Geiss, speaking on the House floor on Tuesday, warned ahead of the votes.
Earlier in the day, two state school districts closed after hundreds of teachers called out, presumably to join the protests.
FoxNews.com confirmed that the Warren school district had to close Tuesday after so many teachers called out absent; WDIV in Detroit reported that the Taylor school district had to do the same. A statement from the Warren system said that by 8 a.m. local time, 750 staff members had called out.
Fox News’ Mike Tobin and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
The abortion issue…
Yeah, I know a lot of folks have opinions on this topic. Women will say “Its my body and I can do anything I want with it.” Some people will invoke religion or religious points of view to sway opinions. Whatever your viewpoint is, consider this… Over a 1.175 million abortions are carried out in the United States each year. Since Roe v. Wade (1973), over 55.7 million unborn children have been killed via abortions. That’s 9 times more deaths than the Jewish people suffered during the Holocaust, yet no one really shows any concern over it. Have we reached a point where human life is so cheap that its gets no more attention than a passing comment or half a thought? Check this ABORTION COUNTER out. It shows the accumulative abortions performed since Roe v Wade in 1973.
The Liberals will bitch and moan about the ‘children’, the ‘poor’, the death penalty, etc… and try to draw comparisons that conservatives are heartless people because many believe in capital punishment but not abortion ‘rights’. They say conservatives cannot be pro-life and believe in the death penalty at the same time. Really? What crimes have the unborn committed to justify their termination? How does the life of an unborn child compare to one sentenced for a capital crime?
Let’s break this down to the basics. Here in the United States, abortions occur as a reaction to an unwanted pregnancy, not as a way to prevent the ‘death of the mother’, ‘rape’, ‘incest’, etc., as often argued by those who promote access to abortions. This year alone, 11, 400 abortions were attributed to rape or incest. This number is astounding. That means only 31.23 out of 2,160 abortions are carried out each day because of incest or rape. Can one really argue that the rest of the abortions were to ‘save the life of the mother’? Highly doubtful! So, I think it can safely be concluded, that abortions are really just another form of birth control. Nothing more, nothing less.
Welfare, corporate vs social.
We’ve all heard the term ‘corporate welfare’. What exactly is corporate welfare? Why is it used? What is social welfare? What is the difference between corporate welfare and social welfare?
Corporate welfare: Corporate welfare is a sociological concept that tries to compare corporate subsidies to societal welfare. The term is often used derogatorily to describe a government’s use of grants, tax breaks, or other favorable treatment towards corporations. It also implies that corporations are much less needy of such treatment than the poor.
Why is corporate welfare used?: There are a number of reasons why tax breaks and other incentives are given to corporations. They include trying to revitalize a section of a city with new job opportunities by bring in new businesses or keeping established businesses from leaving. Or, to perform a service the government is woefully inadequate or lack the expertise to perform… and may also help train the local workforce with skills that could be used to gain employment elsewhere.
Social welfare: Social welfare is basically society paying the way for the poor with little or no expectations of the poor to become self sufficient.
What is the difference between the two?: Its obvious, if one were to compare the two side by side… corporate welfare provides jobs and indirectly, taxes, via a sustained or increasing workforce. Social welfare provides nothing but a free handout to people in the name of ‘compassion’.
My conclusion: More than a trillion dollars have been spent since Lyndon Johnson’s ‘Great Society’ and what do we have to show for it? More people now are on welfare than ever before. The truth is this… there will always be segment of the population on the bottom rungs of the socio-economic ladder. That’s just a fact of life. The great experiment, known as the United States, does not promise equal opportunities or equal outcomes. It holds out the chance to make something of yourselves and achieving your dreams on your terms. It holds that same opportunity out to each subsequent generation. In my opinion, societal welfare, over time, robs people of their dignity, their character, and in the end… their dreams. It does this because there is no expectation of them to perform or to better themselves. Its much easier to let someone else take care of their basic needs than to earn their own way in life… to be responsible for their actions and accept the consequences of their choices. To me, this is sinful.
Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S… Why they tend to fail.
What is Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S? More importantly, why do these programs tend to fail?
Basically, all of these terms refer to a philosophy of continuous improvement and working practices, set in place to remove clutter, improve quality, and to streamline work processes. It is the purpose of these ‘quality programs’ to reduce over production, cut waste, and deliver products ‘just-in-time’ to customers.
In theory, these programs are beneficial for the companies implementing them. To a lesser degree, it can also be a positive influence to those who use the same techniques in their own personal lives.
What I’m interested in is why these quality programs tend to fail. I’ve been involved in Six Sigma and 5S programs when employed at various companies in the past. These programs, in my opinion, started with good intentions but were either misunderstood, mismanaged, or ‘gamed’.
Misunderstood: Often, people’s concept of Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S, is limited to the replication of other companies’ implementation of these programs. It is said that copying is the sincerest form of flattery. While that may be true, copying a wrong result will only end in another wrong result. Looking to other companies as an example, is a great start. But you should start by asking ‘Why?’ ‘Why’ does a company using Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S… do so in the way that they do? Does it make sense to use the exact way one company uses it in your own company? Or, do you need to tweak the way you use the program to better fit your own company/work environment? You need to have a vision of what it is you want to achieve and not go about blindly making unnecessary changes. This will only confuse employees who are charged with maintaining the program and create a pessimistic response from them too.
Mismanaged: This is probably the biggest part of failure relating to Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S. Like ‘misunderstood’ mentioned above, it goes one step further by oversimplifying, overdoing, and becoming entangled in the nuances of the quality program instead of addressing the aim of the quality program. An example of this is labeling and marking. You can tell when this is concurring by looking at the workspace in question. Is the area marked off in excess? Staplers lined off on desks… file cabinets lined off AND labeled ‘File Cabinet’… etc. Are things labeled for the sake of labeling? Don’t get me wrong, but when you label a label maker, you’ve exceeded your usefulness and entered the realm of the absurd.
Gamed: Gamed in terms of manipulation of the data to achieve better ‘results’. Results that falsely show the quality program’s results that are not accurate. Managers often try to manipulate charts and data to reflect a positive momentum towards a perceived end goal result. The purpose of Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S is not to achieve perfection but to address inefficiency and wasted movement in the workplace. Implementation of Kaizen, Six Sigma and 5S are costly. When the programs get ‘gamed’ in this way, then the integrity and effectiveness of the programs must be called into question.
A few observations… (24 Jan 2013)
I’m currently sitting back and watching a 5S program at a local defense contractor come together. I won’t publicly state the company’s name because it really isn’t important. What I have found interesting is the manner in which the 5S concept is approached and implemented. I’ve seen first hand trivial items being over analyzed while significant concerns are simply overlooked. It may well be that they’re just not fully communicating what is being addressed in a timely manner, but I have my reservations. 5S is suppose to streamline processes and optimize capacity. Instead, it seems that for every streamlined process, there’s some sort of added paperwork or other such obstacle to clog up the system once again. Its as if the appearance of tidiness and order, trumps actual utilization of resources and production time savings. It bears a striking similarity to how the Democratic Party operates… ‘symbolism over substance’!
It has been 6 years since my last update… (27 Jan 2019)
So, what’s been happening in the time since my last update? To be honest, the company used as an example in the above post, stepped away from their quality improvement programs a few years ago. The quality program infrastructure is still in place (status boards, etc.), but hasn’t been maintained for 2+ years. I knew the program was on the ropes when I saw outdated charts, which were usually changed monthly, stay on the boards for more than six months. No longer were weekly walk-throughs being conducted. Slowly, all signs of their quality program just disappeared. If it weren’t for the empty status boards still hanging on the walls, what remained of taped out floors, and the occasional mention of 5S… one would never know that such a program existed within the company.