A Unique Punishment For Wayward Police

Hello Kitty is a rather cute Japanese cartoon character (pictured above). It's popularity has swept across Asia and appears on a variety of merchandise such as jewelry, lunch boxes, t-shirts, guitars, stationary, cameras, etc. It is extremely popular with children and young women.

Now there is a new use for Hello Kitty -- it is to be used as a punishment. The police force in Thailand is going to use the cartoon to punish police officers who break minor rules or commit misdemeanors. In addition to the normal fines or punishments that anyone would face for the violations (such as littering, illegal parking or coming to work late), police officers would have to work in the stationhouse all day wearing an armband with Hello Kitty on it.

Although they would not be wearing the armband in public, it is thought that the embarrassment of wearing it in front of their fellow officers would spur the offenders to clean up their act and become better officers. It is hoped that this effort to crack down on minor offenses will carry over and result in a lessening of major offenses such as abuse of power.

It's anybody's guess as to whether it will work. It might. Shame and humiliation can be powerful persuaders. At least, the Thai police are making an effort to correct their officers and that's always a good thing. Too many police departments seem to have an adversary relationship with the public, and give their officers a free ride on minor offenses.

I doubt if Hello Kitty would work in this country, but the best departments do crack down on minor offenses. The easiest way for a department to lose the trust and respect of citizens is to foster the perception that police officers are above the law.

Citizens must believe that everyone will be treated fairly, and everyone who breaks the law will be punished -- even police officers.

Hammerin' Hank Is Still The King

As I write this, much of the baseball world is eagerly watching to see if Barry Bonds will break Hank Aaron's home run record of 755. Currently, they are tied.

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but even if Bonds hits another 100 home runs I'll still consider Aaron to be the home run king. Why? Because he did it without cheating.

Many sports fans today don't seem to care what their heroes do as long as they win. I can't go along with that. There is no honor in winning if you have to cheat to do it. The same thing goes for setting records.

Taking drugs to enhance performance is cheating -- whether it's uppers or steroids. We just saw several athletes kicked out of the Tour de France for doping, and justifiably so. It was considered to be cheating. The same goes for baseball or any other sport.

Cheer for Bonds when he knocks another home run if you want, but I'll reserve my respect for the man who did it without cheating.

Hammerin' Hank is still the king.

It's Time To Eliminate Capital Gains Tax

Does it ever bother you that the rich don't pay as high a tax rate as you probably do? Are you even aware that this inequity exists? I'm not talking about the high-powered lawyers and many tax breaks the rich take advantage of (although those need to be addressed). I'm talking about the capital gains tax, which covers most of the income of the truly rich in this country.

If you make between $30,650 and $74,200 (which covers most working people in the U.S.), then you pay a tax rate of 25% on your income. If you're doing a little better and make between $74,200 and $154,800, you pay a tax rate of 28%. Guess what the tax rate is for the filthy rich -- 15%.

That's because the really rich folks don't earn most of their money through a salary. They get their income through stocks, bonds and other investments. This kind of income is not taxed at the same rate as your hard labor is -- it is taxed through something called the capital gains tax, and the tax rate for capital gains is 15% (thanks to the Republicans).

So the real effect of this is that not only must the working and middle classes work harder for their money, they must also pay a larger percentage of it in taxes than the rich do. That really sounds fair doesn't it?

The original idea for making the capital gains tax rate lower was that this investment by the rich resulted in more jobs and growth for the American economy. But that is an archaic idea. When was the last time you saw any decent jobs being created in this country? The only jobs I see being created in the U.S. nowdays are minimum wage service jobs. The jobs that might pay a decent wage are being shipped overseas so the corporations can exploit the cheap wages in other countries.

A lot of this money is not even left in a company long enough to create anything. Many people buy and sell on the market and quickly take their profits and move on to do the same with other stocks. It is nothing more than a short-term money game to them, and one of the advantages is the super-low tax rate.

Also, did you ever wonder why many corporate executives take the lion's share of their income in stock options rather than salary? It's simple. They know that if they can manipulate the company's stock and make it rise (usually on the backs of the workers), then they can buy huge amounts of stock at reduced prices and make millions, which will be taxed as a capital gain and not as income. How's that for a sweet deal?

Frankly, because of the short-term money games being played by the rich and the corporations, the capital gains tax does very little for our country as a whole. All it does is let the rich get away with paying a lower tax rate than other Americans.

That's why I say it is time to eliminate the capital gains tax. ALL income, regardless of it's source should be taxed at the IRS rate for labor income. It's time to take the burden off the working and middle classes, and make the rich pay their fair share.

Is Clinton Selling Out To K Street ?

One of the biggest disappointments of the current Republican regime was how they sold their souls and their votes to the K Street lobbyists (K street is the Washington, DC street where many lobbyists have their offices). Due to their huge campaign contributions and other gifts, many of these lobbyists were even allowed to write some of the bills presented by the White House (especially economic and oil & energy bills).

But these lobbyists are not stupid people. They can sense the way the political winds are blowing. That is why they are now trying to throw money at candidates in the Democratic party. If the Democrats are going to take over in Washington after the 2008 election, these lobbyists want to buy as many Democrats as they can now, so they won't be left out in the cold after the election.

Fortunately many of the Democrats aren't taking their money, but some are. Hillary Clinton is one of the candidates taking money from the lobbyists. During the DailyKos convention attended by many bloggers, she was asked to stop taking money from the lobbyists and refused. She even had the audacity to say she would not be influenced by the lobbyists.

Sadly, it looks like Clinton is starting to think that the people are stupid. How can anyone not be influenced by lobbyists donating millions of dollars to their campaign? At the very least, these lobbyists are buying access that is denied to ordinary citizens. When it comes time for legislation affecting their rich clients, these lobbists will have her ear (and probably her support).

Last week, I detailed on this blog how Clinton now supports the outsourcing of American jobs, and is accepting millions in donations from groups that benefit from that outsourcing. Now we learn that those aren't the only lobbyists she is accepting money from. What other progressive ideas is she willing to give up to be elected president?

Clinton got upset a couple of weeks ago when Obama called her "Bush/Cheney lite". But it is starting to look like he was even more right than he realized. Will she continue the same corporate-oriented politics of the current administration? Her eager acceptance of huge donations from lobbyists makes me think that she will.

Couple her support of outsourcing and her acceptance of lobbyists donations with her views on Iraq, and her campaign becomes very troubling to true progressives. It was bad enough that she voted for the illegal Iraq war, but now she doesn't even support a complete withdrawal from Iraq. She wants to leave some of our soldiers there -- perhaps for many years!

It's beginning to look like Clinton's desire to become president is stronger than her progressive ideals.

Irvin Enters The Hall Of Fame

Yesterday was a huge day for the Dallas Cowboys, as another Cowboy was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This time it was Michael "Playmaker" Irvin, who along with Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith helped Dallas to win three Super Bowls in four years in the decade of the 90's. The three of them will always be known to Cowboy fans as "the Triplets".

But Saturday was Irvin's day to be honored, and he richly deserved it. I have always been a Michael Irvin fan. No one practiced or played harder than Irvin did. No one played with more passion and love for the Cowboys than Irvin did. I have no doubt that if cut, he would bleed Cowboy blue.

Maybe Jerry Jones put it best when he said, "I have such respect for what Michael is, what he has been, what he's meant to his teammates and what he's meant to his friends. A championship team can have a catalyst. It can have a spark, someone who can light a fire in another person's heart...the heartbeat, the heart and soul of those championship teams was Michael Irvin."

While Irvin always gave his best to the Cowboys on the field, he did have some ups and downs in his personal life. I have even heard some say that he was not a good role model for young people. I would have to disagree with that, especially after hearing his emotional acceptance speech yesterday.

No man has lived a perfect and blameless life. But many of our so-called "role models" have been successful at hiding their more shameful moments. Michael Irvin wasn't like that. He lived an open life and allowed us to see both the good and the bad. However, I believe he was a good person. When he stumbled, he always picked himself up and tried to do better.

It can be intimidating trying to model our lives after someone seen as without flaws. We will see ourselves as failures when we fall short. But modeling after someone as open and honest as Irvin can be inspiring, because he shows us we can pick ourselves up and do better. As he said last night, "Lift your head up, get up and never give up!" These are the words and actions of a true role model.

Thank you Michael Irvin. Thank you for the hard work and passion. Thank you for the example of redemption. And thank you for the many wonderful memories you gave Cowboy fans. You truly deserved the honor you received yesterday.

Corporations Don't Care About Your Safety

The chickens are beginning to come home to roost for American corporations. For years, they have been closing down their factories in the U.S. (where workers actually think they should get a livable wage), and moving their production to sweatshops in foreign countries like China. But as the old saying goes, you get what you pay for.

American companies are paying for shoddy merchandise, and that's what they are getting. Now we're beginning to see that the foreign merchandise they're selling us is not only shoddy, it's downright dangerous.

One of the prime countries that's willing to exploit its worker's to provide American corporations with cheap merchandise is China. It's become clear recently that China really doesn't care about the safety of Americans as long as they get their money.

It seems like we find about about more dangerous Chinese products each day. It was bad enough to learn they were selling us poisoned pet food, contaminated toothpaste and defective tires. Now we learn they are even sending us toys that could poison our children.

The Mattel Corporation has just issued a recall for hundreds of thousands of Chinese made toys. It seems that the toys (Big Bird, Dora the Explorer, Elmo, etc.) were painted with lead-based paint. Lead-based paint has not been allowed in the U.S. for years because of the danger it poses to children.

Of course, the children of the age to appreciate the above-named toys are the ones most likely to put those toys in their mouth. It is unbelievable that those toys were painted with a lead-based paint. How many more dangerous products are the Chinese going to send us before we understand that they really don't care about our safety.

But the American corporations must take their share of the blame. In their zeal to abuse foreign workers to enhance their profits, they have allowed this to happen. They have made windfall profits more important than consumer safety, and they should be ashamed.

David Van Os Supporting Rick Noriega

When I checked my mailbox last night, I had received the following letter from from a man I have immense respect for -- David Van Os. It seems that Van Os is also supporting Rick Noriega for Senate. I'm sure that many of you received the same letter, but for those of you who didn't, I am reprinting it below.

Van Os was the most exciting and qualified statewide candidate that Texas Democrats have had in years (and I hope he runs again). He has earned his credibility, and I urge you to read and think about his views on the senate race.

Next March the voters in the Texas Democratic Primary will choose a Democratic nominee to challenge John Cornyn in the General Election for the seat he holds in the U.S. Senate. It will be a contested Primary; opposing candidates are already campaigning hard.

Rachel and I unequivocally support Lt. Col. and State Representative Rick Noriega

Rick is a man of impeccable principle, honor, and courage. He served our country with honor and courage in a tour of military duty in Afghanistan. He served the community with distinction and competence as Houston Mayor Bill White's specially appointed director for the sheltering of Hurricane Katrina refugees. For several terms as a representative to the Texas House of Representatives from a Harris County district he has served his constituents and his state as a reliable voice for level playing fields for working people.

I know Rick Noriega. He will be a U.S. Senator in the great populist traditions of the old Texas, the kind of U.S. Senator we haven't had the pleasure of having represent us in a long time. The office of Senator Noriega will not be a private playground for the moneyed corporate elites as it is with Senators Cornyn and Hutchison. It will be an office for all the people. He will represent the people of Texas with honor, distinction, and integrity.

Rick's main opponent for the nomination is a wealthy, exceptionally skilled trial lawyer who has achieved spectacular success on behalf of injured parties in major class action lawsuits against the corporate manufacturers of dangerously defective products. I have nothing but respect for Rick's opponent for his courtroom successes and for the immense good his successes have done for his clients and for consumers.

But I have a problem with his message in the race for the Democratic nomination to challenge Cornyn, which is, "Nominate me because I have millions of dollars to spend against Cornyn." This is a message that says the most important qualification for citizens offering themselves for public service is how much money they can bring to the table. This is a message that reinforces everything that's gone wrong in our political system. It is a message that expresses disdain for all our grassroots efforts and struggles to restore the rule of the people in place of the rule of money.

This is not a matter of choosing between second choices. Rick Noriega would have my support no matter who his Primary opponent was, because Rick is an unequivocal FIRST choice. Rick Noriega has the right qualifications, the right convictions, the right experience, the right courage, and the right heart. He refuses to be deterred by having to overcome big money to rise to the challenge to replace the Bushite puppet John Cornyn with a people's representative.

Rick is not a wealthy man. He is a community servant. Thus the extent of his resources will be determined by what we the people are willing to contribute.
To show that Rick has the people-power behind him, I've joined the drive to sign up 800 donors to his exploratory campaign in four weeks. That equates to 200 donors a week, 29 a day. If you will join this drive, your donation will help change the equation. This Senate race has the potential to change Texas; and as Texas goes, so goes the country.

You can join the first 800 by donating any amount today, $10, $25, $50, $100, or whatever you wish -- at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=scrx6ccab.0.wtbdbdcab.tty6eybab.7411&ts=S0265&p=

http://actblue.com/page/netrootsfornoriega. I've joined the 800 and I would be proud to have you join me.

David Van Os

Less Students Graduating High School

Once again, we see evidence that Bush's "no child left behind" education initiatives are leaving far too many of our young people behind. The Texas Education Agency has just released figures for the number of students completing high school for 2006. The numbers are not good.

In 2005, students graduated high school at a 91.9% rate. In 2006, that rate had fallen to a disturbing 88.9%. In just one year, the rate of students who did not complete high school had risen from 8.1% to 11.1% -- a full 3% jump!

In an era where jobs that provide a livable wage are requiring education beyond the high school level, Texas is failing to provide even a high school education for over 11% of its students. That is an unacceptable level of failure for our educational system.

This means the state is dumping thousands of students into our society each year that simply do not have the skills to get ahead. They face a lifetime of low-skill jobs and poverty wages. Is it any wonder that many choose to escape their dismal future in a life of crime?

Republicans believe they have a magic solution with "school vouchers". But allowing private schools to "cherry pick" the best students from the public system and abandon the rest is not a solution. Injecting religion into our schools will also do nothing to solve the problem.

We must bite the bullet and provide schools with enough money for great teachers, smaller classes (and smaller schools), adequate supplies and modern textbooks. Then we must demand that the money be used properly. It must be used to educate students.

Too often, we find that some schools think a winning football or basketball program is more important than teaching math, science, literature and history. This is backwards. Teaching must come first when the budget is set.

I'll probably make some people mad when I say this, but if a school's coach is paid more than the other teachers, then that school's priorities are screwed up. It is time for schools and communities to put education first. By failing to do so, we are damaging the future for everyone.

Right now we are failing over 11% of our students. Let's fix the problem and create a brighter future for everyone.

Keeping My Promise To Rick Noriega

Yesterday I joined Rick Noriega's "800". Back in July, I climbed down off the fence and declared Rick Noriega was my candidate for the Democratic nomination to be our next senator. On July 15th, I promised to send Mr. Noriega my first donation when I received my next paycheck.

Being a state employee, those paychecks only come once a month. But yesterday was payday, and I kept my promise. I put my check to the Noriega for Senate Campaign in the mail. It wasn't a huge check, but today I pledge to send another check on the first of each month until the primary (and hopefully until the November election).

I truly believe that Rick Noriega is the best candidate to be Texas' next U.S. Senator. I hope you do also. If you haven't donated yet, I urge you to do so. It doesn't have to be a lot. Donations of all sizes will be deeply appreciated. If you would like to donate online, then click on ricknoriega.com. If you're old-fashioned like me, and would prefer to send a check or money order by mail, then send it to this address:

Rick Noriega Campaign

P.O. Box 231163

Houston, Texas

77223-1163

Send a donation soon, and help rid Texas of "Box Turtle" John. You'll be glad you did.

Is The Turnaround By American Automakers Real?

Much has been made on the news the last few days about how Ford and General Motors actually turned a decent profit in the last quarter. Of course, officials at the two companies would like for us to believe they have solved their problems, and are on the road back to dominance.

But the truth is that these profits were made on the backs of the workers. The executives have not turned the companies around. They are not now making better and more dependable cars that people want more than foreign imports. They have simply fired tens of thousands of American workers, and that will not sustain their profits in the future.

The truth is that these companies are losing more market-share every day. A couple of months ago, Toyota passed GM and became the leader in car sales worldwide (and they didn't have to fire thousands of workers to do it).

Even worse, for the first time in the history of the auto industry, the market-share of U.S. automakers has fallen below 50% IN THE UNITED STATES! Foreign cars now have a larger share of the market than American cars in our own country. Instead of driving forward, U.S. automakers are still pedaling backwards.

In July, GM, Ford and Chrysler (which will soon be American-owned again) only had a 49.5% share of the U.S. market. This figure includes U.S. owned foreign brands such as Saab, Volvo, Land Rover and Jaguar. If you exclude these cars, the market-share falls to 48.1%.

Don't let them fool you. American automakers are still in a lot of trouble. They need to start producing cars that excite the public -- cars that are dependable, fuel-efficient and attractive, or they'll be driven out of the business. It may already be too late to turn things around and regain the trust of the consumer.

The next few years will tell the story. They must innovate or perish.

Cities Rush To Install Red Light Cameras

Several Texas cities are rushing to approve the installation of red light cameras. If they get a contract in place before September 1st, they can avoid a new state law that goes into effect on that date. The new law would make cities share the money with the state 50-50.

On Tuesday, Amarillo approved installing the red light cameras. City Attorney Marcus Norris was honest about why the city is doing it now rather than waiting. He said, "It's keeping money at home instead of sending it to the state."

But the city commission was quick to point out that this was not being installed to create a revenue stream for the city. To counter that impression, they have promised that any money made above what it costs to run the red light camera system would be funneled back into transportaion safety in the city.

If their purpose is really to make driving in the city safer, then I am for the cameras. People who run red lights pose a serious driving hazard in most large cities. These people seem to think cutting a minute or two off their driving time is more important than the lives and property of their fellow citizens.

The cameras will be placed at the most dangerous intersections. No city could afford to keep a policeman at these intersections all the time. But that camera will be there 24 hours-a-day, watching for offenders. I think that's a good thing.

Fort Worth has also decided to join other cities in installing the red light cameras. They have not yet decided on which company to use, but they plan to have a contract in place before the September 1st deadline. Fort Worth will be the fifth Tarrant county city to install the cameras. Bedford recently approved a contract, and Arlington, Richland Hills and North Richland Hills already have cameras installed.

I expect even more cities will jump on board the bandwagon before September. Very soon, if you want to run a red light in Texas, you'd better have a fat wallet.

Repubs Try To Divide Electoral Votes In California

I think most people would agree that there's almost no chance that a Republican candidate would carry the popular vote of California in the 2008 general election for president. This is important for Democrats, because the winner of the statewide popular vote there gets all of the state's 55 electoral votes.

In 2004, President Bush lost the popular vote in California by double digits. That doesn't bode well for the Republicans since they are even less popular this year than in 2004. In fact, Democrats have won California's electoral vote in the last four elections.

Knowing they have little chance to get all of California's electoral votes, some Republicans have come up with a plan that could let them steal nearly half of those votes. They are trying to get a proposal on the ballot that would award only two electoral votes to the statewide winner -- the other 53 votes would be given to the winner in each of the 53 congressional districts.

This is not as crazy as it initially sounds. There are two other states that award their electoral votes in this manner -- Maine and Nebraska. Even worse for Democrats, 19 of these districts are represented by Republicans and in 2004 Bush won in 22 of these districts.

If they could get the proposal approved, they could walk away with around 20 of California's electoral votes. That could be disastrous for Democrats in a close election. The Democrats need all of California's votes to offset the Deep South, which will probably remain true to the Republicans.

The proposition probably wouldn't pass, but who can tell? After all, this is the state that voted for the "Terminator". At the very least, if they are able to get it on the ballot, the Democrats would have to divert a lot of campaign money to fight it.

This throws a new wrinkle in what already promised to be a very interesting presidential race next year.

Army Major Arrested For Taking Bribes

This story is just plain sickening. While many of our brave soldiers are being killed and wounded in Iraq's never-ending conflict, it seems like some are using the war as an opportunity to get rich by taking bribes.

Army Major John Cockerham and his wife Melissa have been arrested for taking around $11.7 million in bribes from companies seeking military contracts. Cockerham worked as a contracting officer for the military in Kuwait in 2004 and 2005. If the bribes amounted to $11.7 million, imagine the total value of the illegally-awarded contracts.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Pamela Mathy ordered the couple held without bond because of the flight risk they posed. As far as I'm concerned they can throw away the key on this couple

Whatever happened to bidding on contracts, or even better, purchasing the best equipment and services available for our soldiers? This major didn't just sell out his country, he sold out his own Army comrades. Despicable!

And yet I wonder, is this very different from the no-bid contracts worth billions that were awarded by Bush and Cheney to Halliburton (the very company Cheney headed before becoming vice-president)? When will we find out how much was given or promised to get those contracts?

Let's get our soldiers out of this mess. They shouldn't have to give their lives so the corrupt and the rich can reap windfall profits.

Bibles May Be Delivered With Newspapers

Sometimes some christians can come up with some pretty weird ideas on how to push their religion onto others. It's not unusual to see them try to invade our schools and public places to spread their myths. Some will even come to your home uninvited to disturb your privacy.

But I have to admit that the Colorado-based International Bible Society has come up with a novel idea -- they want to deliver a bible with your morning newspaper. They would put each Bible (actually only a New Testament) in a plastic bag and attach it to the newspaper to be delivered.

The group approached the Fort Worth Star-Telegram earlier this year with the proposal. When the Star-Telegram notified their readers the Bibles would be delivered the last week in December, there was a public outcry, much of it coming from christians.

Some thought it was inappropriate and others were worried about the Bibles being desecrated or tossed in the trash (which is where it would go if delivered to my home). Finally, the paper told subscribers they could opt out of the delivery if they wished.

The group wants to deliver the Bibles with newspapers in 11 different cities. However, it now looks like the deliveries may now be delayed or not done at all. The group is having a hard time coming up with the funds. In Fort Worth, the deadline for raising $438,000 is October 31st. So far, they have raised $13,000. They are having trouble getting the money in other cities as well.

It seems strange to me that in a country whose original settlers were largely looking for religious freedom, that we now have so many christians who would go to any length to force their religion on others. Why can't they just leave their fellow citizens alone?

I believe that all Americans should be free to believe in any religion they want, and to worship in any way they want, as long as no one gets hurt. But religious freedom is a two-way street. You have the right to believe, but you must grant your fellow citizens the right not to believe as you do without being harassed.

To try to force your religion on others is simply un-American.