Reply to Jason Lundins "worthless solution"

In Jason Lundins "Worthless Solution" I feel that he makes an extremely worthy point against building a wall between Texas and Mexico. I am a very strong supporter against getting rid of the illegals that are raising crime rates, stealing jobs and milking the welfare systems that they don't even contribute to. I support his opinion that the placement would separate land owners from their land. I would be irate if someone put a huge wall in my yard to keep people out that have no right being there in the first place. Secondly with Mexicans being as hard working and dedicated as they are, surely this wall isn't going to get in their way of the American Dream. One point that Jason doesn't make is the fact that, who is going to build this wall? If the labor put into this wall is the same as all the other labor in Texas then a huge percent of the workers will be Mexicans. Do you think they are going to put 100% of their effort into building a wall that will keep there brothers, sisters, sons, neighbors and friends out.

Get out the way!!

Over the last 21 years of my life I have been born, raised, educated and employed in the city of Austin, Texas. One of the things that has always rattled my cage is the number of drivers who don't know what they are doing. Weather they are old, foreign, teenagers, or just plain stupid there must be some changes to keep these people off the streets. Although Austin is a city of 700,000 there is no reason that rush hour should start at 3 o'clock and end at 7. This past week an elder woman crashed through a Best Buy store in north Austin causing employees to dive for cover. It turns out that she mistaken the gas pedal from the break. Now someone that doesn't even know which pedal to push might be the same person driving 70 miles an hour next to you on the highway. I feel that Texas drivers should be forced mandatory vision tests and possibly behind-the-wheel exams to ensure that they are capable of operating a motor vehicle.

Shane's comment on Jesse's Blog

I strongly disagree with Jesse's opinions in his piece "A Kind and Gentle Death in Texas." For starters the sick and twisted animals on death row have often committed many serious offenses. In order to be placed on death row, there little question that there was anything kind and gentle about their gruesome acts. I not only think that Texas and the US both should be applauded for their high ranking in executions, I also feel that the executions should be carried out in more painful harsh manners then the crimes that they committed. Although it cost more tax dollars to execute then it would to imprison for life, the benefits are well worth it. Not only is the world a safer place, but the families and friends of these victims can finally sleep at night knowing that the monster has been put to rest

Needle in a Haystack

With the unfortunate growing rate of drug addiction, there are higher risks to people contracting diseases from the use of unsanitary needles. Although I do not support the use of any drugs, I think we need to make a change to stop this careless spread of diseases, and one way we can do this is by allowing a needle Exchange Program. Yes it may essentially allow drug users to keep using, but at least they are using in a safe and clean way. With a needle exchange program, dirty used needles will be taken from the streets in exchange for a new clean one, which eventually will lead to cleaner streets, and more importantly, a decline in the spread of diseases such as AIDS and HIV. Statistics have shown that over 75% of infection in newborns comes from a parent who has injected with an unsanitary needle. Not only are the users and addicts paying the price for their addiction, so are the babies and children who never had a choice. Users are going to use weather the needle is clean or not, that has been proven, but surely if they can get clean needles they would. This program would benefit so many lives of so many people. Drug addiction in a serious disease I do not think this program will increase the rate of drug users in any way, and it will definitely show a huge decline in the spread of incurable diseases.

Sex offender falls through the cracks

Less then a year had passed since Cynthia Hennigan's daughter had been raped and the convicted rapist was already back at school. If this hadn't been noticed by her stepson he would be cruising the halls scoping out new prey. After the offender (16) was released early from a sex offender treatment facility, they never picked up the phone to contact the school about his circumstances. He enrolled at Grand Prarie High School but eventually was pulled from class only after Mrs. Hennigan told school officials about his offence. I feel that its awful how someone who commited such a torturous act against an 11 year old girl can be back at school walking the halls with out any warning to fellow students. There has to be changes made to keep perverts like this from slipping through the cracks and getting enrolled into a new school where no one knows his history. Mrs. Hennigan is working extremely hard to help protect the innocence of others and doing all she can so that someones childhood doesn't get shattered as her daughters did. She has been writing letters to politicians pleading for them to make stronger ordinances against sex offenders. She has also been scattering the neighborhood warning families about the dangers of sex offenders. Sexual predators are a very tragic breed because in many cases once abused the child often grows into the abuser and its a repeated process that seems to never end. It is very tragic that these innocent people often have their dreams shattered and something has to be done to change this. I hope that soon harsher laws and requirements will be placed against sexual predators.

The Long Wait

This article in the Houston Chronicle is great.  It gives such good insight on realities that might have been, or should have been, (if the authorities had it their way) covered up.  Police officers have no right to storm on to a persons property and then make an arrest with out any reason or warrant. People come to America from all over because we are a free and fair country.  There is nothing free and fair of  the actions of these officers who barged in to the home of two brothers who just took some photos. Where was the crime in that?  I applaud the courageous officers who go out on the streets and risk their lives to protect and fight crime.  These officers, however, just seem like they are on a power trip.  What makes this news article even worse is the fact that these innocent brothers had to wait six years for justice.  Honestly, I'm sure these brothers were no saints but they definitely had done nothing wrong. Hopefully, once the trial is over and justice is served these brothers can go back to their lives.  The actions of these officers were completely out of line. This trial should open the eyes of the law enforcement and people of our nation.  its ridiculous that an innocent person can be held waiting trial, with no options.  New laws must be made to make changes that will better our community and the freedoms of out citizens.

DWT??? Driving While Talking??

Monday a committee of lawmakers reviewed several different bills concerning the use of cell phones while driving. The bills aimed for different variations including, demanding hands free devices while driving, the requirement of age (18) to talk and drive, or prohibiting the use of cell phones while in a school zone. I feel that its very hard to take a cell phone out of the death grip teenagers usually have on their means of communication and they would avoid these new rules if they followed through. Imagine the soccer mom struggling to get her kids to their tournament on time without the help of her husband navigating her through the back roads via cell phone. Cell phones have mad been such a big impact on our daily lives it would be hard not to use them when and where we want. I believe this article is worth reading if you enjoy knowing what your government is up to, especially if you enjoy the use and help you get from your cell phone.

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1994&dept_id=339096&newsid=14053692&PAG=461&rfi=9