Bogosity To The Second & Third Power

I just got back from a nice trip to North Carolina to attend a family reunion which I will write about soon..........however......no sooner I get home......I am greeted with a bunch of bogosity that I cannot let pass without mentioning it on this blog. Its a shame that some of the great times are immediately followed by such ridiculous bullcrap as these examples of bogosity that I found out about by reading the local newspaper.

I could not help but notice a full page ad on the last page of today's Baltimore Examiner. Generally, you see an ad taking up a full page and nine times out of ten it most likely will be about nothing that you have an interest in. But this time, it's a different story........and one that every person in the State of Maryland ought to be really concerned about. Okay.......maybe I am a bit too optimistic in that regard...........and most likely there are only a few of us citizens that bothered to take notice of the ad. Everyone, at one time or another, has seen furniture store ads in the newspaper......but how often is it that the businesses that sell furniture band together and take up a cause............a cause so big that they coughed up alot of bucks to bring our attention to a serious issue? Well.......they got my attention and I can honestly say that I am a bit pissed about what is about to occur here in Maryland. Each and every Marylander should be extremely ticked off.

While we all are busy living our busy lives, our "elected" politicians are busy too. They are busy conspiring to raise our taxes even higher than they currently are.....and the furniture dealers have made an attempt to try to stop it. Good for them!

The ad states the following:

"The Maryland Legislature is proposing at least a 20% increase in the state sales tax to help reduce the budget shortfall. This regressive tax will put an undue burden on the poor, the working people of Maryland and the retail merchants throughout the state. Please contact the leadership in Annapolis and tell them "NO SALES TAX INCREASE!" "

The ad also says:

"Keep Marylanders buying in Maryland! Say "NO" to the sales tax increase!"

You might ask yourself why the furniture dealers are so upset. Twenty-six furniture businesses are listed as sponsoring the ad. Personally, I have a new-found admiration for each of those furniture dealers. I might even go out and buy a piece of furniture from one of them.

It's a no-brainer, folks! If the politicians go unchecked.....as they usually do.......the men and women who operate these furniture stores are gonna be faced with losing customers. They will lose customers who, instead of taking action against the politicians, will decide to spend their money in another state in search of a better deal. In other words, the State of Maryland is working against these businesses........and more importantly, the State of Maryland is working against its citizens.

This flagrant taxation has got to stop, and it is up to each and every one of us as citizens to stop it in its tracks. The bottom line is.........we need to REMOVE every politician currently in office that votes for any tax increase. These career politicians are living high on the hog and they suffer no circumstances for what they do.....unless, of course, you and I do something about them. I could rant on and on about this, but for today........let's just have this as another appeal for action.

The furniture dealers request, as I do, that we all contact the following career politicians. I will take it a step further...........get everyone you know to make so many calls and so many e-mails to these knuckleheads that they cannot conduct their daily shenanigans. Seriously, we can get their attention and make our dissatisfaction known and demand that they actually act on our behalf for once in their political lives..........and don't say "Oh, it will never work...they won't listen", because I personally know of a certain "Supernurse", who, in a previous career, managed to get hundreds of child-care providers to make life a bit miserable for a particular county councilman until he changed his mind about an issue.

If you are gonna sit on your rump and do nothing, maybe this cartoon will make it a bit more clear as to why you need to step up and take some action..

Senate President and career politician: Mike Miller
1-800-492-7122 ext. 3700
email: thomas.v.mike.miller@senate.state.md.us

Governor and career politician: Martin O'Malley
1-800-811-8336
email: governor@gov.state.md.us

House Speaker and career politician: Mike Busch
1-800-492-7122 ext. 3800
email: michael.busch@house.state.md.us




While I am ticked off, I might as well offer my thoughts regarding Baltimore's Finest.

To add insult to injury, after looking at that full page ad about tax increases, I ran across a report in the Examiner about a dude named John Alexander, 25, from Frederick, MD, who was assaulted by a New York Yankee fan. The assault occurred somewhere between Oriole Park at Camden Yards and Sliders Bar & Grill. The Orioles were playing against the Yankees........uh.......which is always a problem........not in regards to the game itself, but in regards to the Yankee fans who come here in droves for the games.

My own personal experience has been that whenever I happen to attend one of these Orioles vs. Yankees games, there are always a bunch of morons that just so happen to be Yankee fans, that find some way to disrupt your pleasure at the games. Each time I have gone to one of these games, there has always been a fight that ensues......not just fan blabber like "the Orioles suck!", but more personal stuff where fists start to fly. It is no big secret, yet the media never seems to mention this stuff happening at our wonderful ball park. I have noticed that the Oriole management makes a point to make an announcement about Baltimore fan behavior prior to each and every game. It's about time they add to that announcement and specifically ask visiting team fans to keep their bad conduct at home. There is nothing worse than spending a small fortune to take your grandchildren to a baseball game only to be subjected to morons that ought to be poster children for Planned Parenthood.

The Examiner article reports that Alexander was hit by a sharp object....."sucker punched", of course, ouside the ballpark. Naturally, when you are cut and bleeding, it makes sense to seek some help.....and that is exactly what Alexander tried to do. He sought help from a man with a badge, one of Baltimore's Finest! So how helpful was this police officer? Zero, zilch, nada, zippo, no help at all. It is reported that several witnesses saw the officer turn Alexander away. Alexander's sister said, according to the report, that the police officer "inside the gate at Camden Yards....told us he couldn't do anything because he was paid by the Orioles and it happened outside the stadium". Folks.........after reading this, you now have some idea as to why crime is a major problem in Batimore City. It was reported that a police spokesman Sterling Clifford said "I can't confirm that it even occurred" !!!!!!! Imagine that! Now there's a fine and thorough instrument of policedom! This same knucklehead reportedly said that generally speaking, police officers are supposed to handle crimes they see occurring outside the stadium, even though the Orioles reimburse police overtime pay for working at the games. Huh?

An Orioles spokesman Greg Bader, reportedly confirmed that the team knew of the altercation but that Alexander DID NOT APPEAR TO POLICE OR FIRST AID WORKERS TO BE "EXTREMELY INJURED"!!!!!!!!! Imagine that!...........now I have an entirely different feeling about attending Orioles' home games. I now know that there is some secret guidelines as to how severe an injury must be before authorities will act. This is bogosity to the third degree, folks.

Bader also passed the buck by suggesting to the reporter that he "call Sliders about their security".........WHAT?????..........private security as opposed to Baltimore's Finest?!!

Alexander, unable to get help from the "authorities" at Camden Yards, had to walk to the University Of Maryland Medical Center, where he recieved nine stitches for his head injury.

Let's get this all straight..........a baseball player gets beaned by a pitcher and he gets immediate medical attention.....but an Orioles fan gets cut up by a visiting team fan and he has to walk several blocks to a hospital??????

The Alexander family tried to complain to the Orioles but couldn't figure out "how to navigate the BUREAUCRACY of the Baltimore Police Department to file a formal police complaint." No kidding......I seriously believe that statement. Baltimore..........once a great city.....now reduced to useless police, indifferent Orioles management, and its citizens on their own to defend themselves.

My opinion...........fire each and every moron involved. Make an example of them. I doubt that will happen though.........but when you read how the attendance at Camden Yards ain't like it used to be.......you will know that it is not just because the Orioles have sucked for the last ten or so years.

About the police officer..........I was once told that a police officer is a police officer 24-7. There is allegedly no point in his life where he is not sworn to protect and serve his fellow citizens. I cannot blame a man for looking for some overtime pay, but since when is an officer allowed to wear his patrol uniform while on the job for a private enterprise if he is not going to be representing and protecting the citizens of this city? Stuff needs to change in this city, and it needs changing real soon. Is it any wonder why people tend to have more disrespect today for police than ever before. What was once an honorable career choice is now being reduced to the equivalent of a mall patrol. Police officers are paid by the citizens. You want a raise?....then start doing your jobs!

Its a good thing that Alexander wasn't in his car. That officer would have locked him up on the spot for being drunk and behind the wheel without a seatbelt.......jurisdiction or not.

Therefore, I have to dole out yet another bogosity award......and the choices I have are the Baltimore Police Officer, Orioles management, moronic Yankees fans, and the career politicians that intend to raise our taxes.

You gotta know that each and every one of the above will share this award today.