WTF Of The Week: California Hypocrisy

Hey look, another quality California politician and official donkey cave.

Seems as though talk radio was blowing up a little more than usual this morning. I can’t really say I blame them for ranting the way that they have been doing lately. In addition to the national scams and acts of severe dishonesty there are also the local debacles. And I really don’t know which one is worse at this point.

First you have the overblown traffic jam from New Jersey which started as just that, a means to try and blow a traffic jam way out of context in order to make Christie look bad. Honestly, I don’t even know why the other party even started this whole thing. Christie is one of those people that if you just let him talk for long enough he is going to hurt himself. Just like with this ‘scandal, the longer that it has gone on the more crap that Christie gets himself into. Recently he decided to spend over a million taxpayer dollars to hire his personal lawyer to prove his innocence. Let me see if I understand this… you hired someone you know, from a firm you are affiliated, to conduct an unbiased investigation which in the best case demonstrates that you have limited control over your own staff. You have got to be freaking kidding me.

The other situation going on is, unfortunately, in my state as the attorney general is lawyering up and threatening a defamation suit in order to ‘prove’ that she did not sweep a corruption investigation under the commonwealth’s carpet. This is the type of over-reaction that almost proves that you are guilty. What gets me is that this was allowed to just go unchecked for so long and that no one said anything, especially those in higher political offices.

While Kane and the fat man are enough fodder for a blogs worth of rants, there is another story that broke early this morning that easily overshadows all the aforementioned BS and so much more. Here is the first two paragraphs from the Forbes story by Greg McNeal:

California Democratic State Senator and candidate for California Secretary of State, Leland Yee, a gun control advocate, has been charged with conspiring to traffic in firearms and public corruption.  The charges are part of a 26 person criminal complaint and a major FBI sting operation.  The full criminal complaint is a massive 137 pages that tells the story of Yee’s involvement with a broad ranging conspiracy that includes firearms trafficking, murder-for-hire, drug distribution, trafficking in contraband cigarettes, money laundering, and honest services fraud.

Yee is charged with “conspiracy to deal firearms without a license and to illegally import firearms” as well as six counts of honest services fraud.  Each corruption charge is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000, while the gun-trafficking charge is punishable by up to five years and $250,000.

That’s right, the gun control advocate is essentially an arms dealer. If he is so comfortable with dealing firearms, it makes you really wonder about his motivation to ban and control firearms. After all, I am certain that he didn’t restrict himself to selling six shot revolvers. There isn’t much more I can say to highlight the hypocrisy and heinous acts. However, I will say this… why is there such a light sentence for gun trafficking? While I am against the restriction of the legal ownership of firearms of all kinds, I am a firm believer in the harsh punishment of those individuals who so blatantly break the law and deal in illegal firearms. If anything, the penalty should at least be equal to the sentences doled out for the other corruption charges.

Well, with the mid-term campaigns about to warm up along with the weather, put some thought in to who you are really voting for. Don’t let a despicable donkey cave like Lee hold public office and open your eyes to the hypocrisy that might be as blatant. It is all around you and, in fact, you probably voted for some of the ones that pride themselves on this practice. A traffic jam doesn’t seem so important now, does it?

Mil Spec Is Not Always Best!

That title will have some firearms enthusiasts writing long responses about the fact that I must be full of it. All of their words penned before they even read this sentence. But, unbeknownst to those raging individuals, this post has nothing to do with firearms beyond the brief mentions in this paragraph.

Mil Spec in this instance stands for ‘Mother-In-Law Specifications’. Having a MIL as a realtor and looking for an apartment can either be a valuable asset in our search to find a new place to live or it can be a challenge. While I don’t anticipate any problems in the process there is always the possibility but I guess you can say that about any realtor.

My wife and I have our list of what we want in an apartment and it really isn’t complicated. However, it is the gray area that usually determines the final outcome. I guess, for me, it comes down to treating my MIL as a realtor and, in this instance, setting aside the fact that we are part of the same extended family. There is a particular saying about opinions which will not be repeated at this time. Sometimes the opinion of a family member (weighted based on how closely you are related of course) makes a difference but there are other decisions that have to be made differently.

As a realtor, I will take her suggestions but once it goes beyond that and there is an attempt to add extra weight to those opinion, that is when we could run into some problems. It is for this reason that I have stated quite clearly, and I am now repeating, that I have no qualms about changing realtors during this process. I definitely know, and have them saved in my phone, other realtors in the area who would be happy to help.

That may seem cold to some but it allows for the separation of what needs to be done and the relationships I have with family members. I have done this my whole life and, up to this point, it has kept my professional life out of my family life (for the most part). Another thing to keep in mind is that this is more for the protection of my family as I am a different person when it comes to work in comparison to my personal family life. Some may use a certain unpleasant descriptor at times similar to donkey cave.

So, while there is nothing really wrong with Mil Spec, sometimes it is not the best option. You have to find what is right for you and what fits your needs. After all, Mil Spec represents one person, one view, and one way of doing things among a plethora of potential options.