Sounding off about the headlines...

Hello all!

It has been a while since my last post, there is much going on around here keeping me quite busy. We are all well and enjoyed some Fourth of July Festivities despite the midget being sick the latter part of last week. Her fever has gone so she could celebrate, now if only we could get her to eat something without fear of regurgitation.
We enjoyed the fireworks in Memorial Park and a family gathering at my in laws yesterday, a good time was had by all.

This morning over a cup of coffee- caffeinted coffee mind you; Hubby made this mornings pot. (I have cut caffeine out of my diet almost all together. That said- at present I am racing and my mind is going a mile a minute!) I digress- This morning over a cup of caffeinated coffee I decided to read the headlines at one of my favorite little websites Phillyburbs.com Here I can read the most important parts of the newspaper without having to get the actual paper delivered and kill so many trees. Anything I need to read I will read in my Mother in laws paper :)
Digressing again- What was my point?

I am feeling particularly opinionated this morning, and when I wear my opinionated shoes you benefit from what I think is a good read.
What do you think of my take on the following? I would like to know if it is just me, or are these stories laden with ridiculousness? (is that even a word?)

(clicking on the title will take you to the full story- I will paraphrase for convenience)

NJ party town relaxes rules on kegs, rude gestures

I found several things to be of interest with the above link.
1) a confirmed "party town" relaxing rules on kegs and rude gestures just seems idiotic to me. hence my reading such a headline which in my opinion is going to cause nothing but trouble from kids who think that the town is now "lax" when it comes to drinking and rules.

" BELMAR, N.J. - After battling rowdy renters and out-of-control keggers for decades, this Jersey shore party town has finally decided to lighten up a little.
Belmar, sometimes called "Fort Lauderdale North" for its reputation as a raucous party enclave, has scrapped laws against giving the finger and requiring beer kegs to be registered. The town's mayor said the rules were difficult to enforce."

First- "Fort Lauderdale North" I've never heard that expression, have you?

What defines obscene? What one person may find obscene the next may find perfectly acceptable. That said- I am for scrapping such a generalized and "overly subjective" law. How many times in your life have you told someone they were "number one"?

" "I'm giving people the finger if it's legal, absolutely," laughed Carlos Padilla, a 23-year-old from Dumont wearing a sleeveless white T-shirt and gold chain. He's renting a house for the season with a bunch of pals , all of whom were drinking beer from red plastic cups and listening to rap music on the front porch one night this week."

While I can not say I agree with Carlos Padilla's taste in attire, music or beverage- the above excerpt tells me more about this individual than I needed to know purely for the purpose of painting a picture of a "hoodlum" a rule breaker and a less than wholesome individual for the sake of writing and sensationalising an otherwise meaningless story. I see a young kid, at the beach to have a good time with his friend. Notice- he said "If it's legal", for all we know he is a perfect law abiding citizen. He even goes on to say that he and his friends would "tone it down" this season because "there are little kids next door"

He and his "pals"- like thousands of others pay to rent a house and have a good time. While some get out of hand it certainly does not mean everyone does.
In reading the way this story was written it looks to me like the author is one whom does not like the young crowd and feels that the laws should have been maintained not abolished.

Sure- there are plenty of odd laws and ordinances out there, does this mean that every time a town decides to change a law its newsworthy? And to that note- do journalists have the right to generalize and paint pictures such as the one above? Do they have the right to insert opinion like the writer of the above story?


Spitzer call girl drops Girls Gone Wild lawsuit

This one made me laugh out loud. A girl who knowingly participated in a less than wholesome "career" at the center of a scandal involving New York's former Governor ultimately leading to his resignation files a 10 MILLION dollar lawsuit against the founder of the ever popular "Girls Gone Wild" series Joe Francis.

She claimed he exploited her image and name on the Internet. "She said she was only 17 when she signed a binding contract giving permission to appear in the "Girls Gone Wild" video."
Funny how she gets a pang of morality after she is caught on tape with a governor under fictitious name as a call girl.

Funnier still- while "17" she had a fake id which gives her name as Amber Arpaio. An unseen questioner asks if she is 18 and if the footage can be used on "Girls Gone Wild." She says yes to both questions.

She lied. She got caught. and in a moment of desperation wanted to get rich and try to save what was left of her shattering image.


Officials concerned about swimmers' safety
The above link entails those inflatable ready set pools we find in so many yards these days. As a parent of a young child I myself have wondered why a fenced in yard is not required for such pools. After reading this however and finding that a township can be liable if there is a drowning because someone did not pay attention to an ordinance I get a little bent. Why should our taxes go up any more than they already are because my neighbor can't read the warning label on the box that says they should check with their township concerning codes for erecting such structure? Having to hire staff to enforce such law costs residents more money, more taxes more headaches.

And finally- a public service announcement:

Positive West Nile test in Bucks

Protect yourself. The virus is here, it is potentially deadly. Last year Bucks had more positive mosquito samples than any other county in the state, accounting for roughly 20 percent of the 223 positive bug samples statewide.


Wear bug repellent and stay indoors when mosquito's are most active at Dawn and Dusk.
West Nile virus can cause encephalitis, a brain inflammation. Infected mosquitoes pass the virus to birds, animals and people. It was first detected in North America in 1999 in New York and in Pennsylvania in 2000. Before that, it had been found in only Africa, Eastern Europe and West Asia.

Until next time...