Posts for category ‘Uncategorized’

Come On And Take A Free Ride
The Informer | July 2, 2009 | 2:07 pm

You’re going to most likely hate me (if you don’t already) after you hear my take on this story in the WaPo.

The headline reads: D.C. Family, Court at Odds Over Woman’s Funeral Costs

Initially, I thought to myself, “Hmmm, Informer, I wonder how D.C. government has screwed someone now.”  Then I read the details of the article and that vein in my neck that pulsates when a story really pisses me off nearly burst.

The source of my anger (for once) is NOT D.C.  It’s a family ingrained with victim mentality on a scale rarely seen.

Here’s the lowdown:

For almost a month, the embalmed body of Toni Brown has lain in a District funeral home.

At issue is the $6,000 the funeral home says it needs to bury Brown. The funeral home has given Brown’s family until tomorrow to come up with the money or consider cremation.

Brown’s relatives say they don’t have the money and insist that the city should pay for the funeral.

Let’s stop there for a minute.  Why would this family think the city should pay for her funeral in the first place?  Because D.C. (which was news to me) has a compensation fund that will pay $6,000 for funeral costs to victims of homicide.

So, let me get this part straight.  The families of people who are murdered by some pathetic punk are entitled to taxpayer money to help bury their loved one because it happened within the confines of the District?

How is this logical?  What the hell part did the average D.C. tax payer play in the person’s murder?  I’ll answer that for you: None!  So, what the eff is the government doling out six grand for? I can answer that too.  Because some assholes think it is the government’s job to feed, clothe, and shelter the people from cradle to grave in exchange for power over them.  That’s an issue for another time though.

So why isn’t this family of leeches getting their six grand?

The D.C. medical examiner told Brown’s family that she had several ailments, including hypertension and high blood pressure. Brown’s family said she was healthy before she was shot two years ago by a former girlfriend. They say her health problems were caused by the shooting.

Because Brown’s death was not ruled a homicide, D.C. authorities say her family is not entitled to receive any money from a compensation fund that aids relatives of homicide victims and is overseen by the D.C. Superior Court.

So let me clarify for you. Brown was shot 2 years ago, but didn’t die until around 30 days ago.  The medical examiner believes her death was the result of her other medical ailments and not the shooting, but the family claims she didn’t have the other ailments until the shooting which would mean indirectly it was the shooting that caused her death.  Whew!  Get all that?

At this point I can see where a rational human being would say, the medical examiner could be:

  1. Wrong in his assessment
  2. Trying to save the tax payers some money so he blames something else for the cause of death to get out of paying

Either of those scenarios are certainly possible in my mind and since other people are getting the money why the hell not just go ahead and try to get your share too.

Here is where I nearly blew a gasket:

After the shooting, the victims’ compensation fund gave Brown and her family $10,000 to cover her lost wages. For the past year and a half, Brown had used the money for items for herself and her mother, Stephany Hill, including a bed, clothes, living room furniture and a 26-inch flat-screen TV for their house in Southeast Washington, Hill said. She used $393, the last of the money, to pay for the blue suit Brown now wears.

Are you f*cking kidding me???? Did I just read that right?  Let me do that again.

After the shooting, the victims’ compensation fund gave Brown and her family $10,000 to cover her lost wages. For the past year and a half, Brown had used the money for items for herself and her mother, Stephany Hill, including a bed, clothes, living room furniture and a 26-inch flat-screen TV for their house in Southeast Washington, Hill said. She used $393, the last of the money, to pay for the blue suit Brown now wears.

Maybe I am just a heartless bastard, but any shread of sympathy I had for this family just went out the window.

Let me attempt to get my head around this.  This family has already received $10,000 ($4,000 more than the $6,000 they feel entitled to receive) and blew that money on the obvious necessities of living such as a bed, clothes, living room furniture and a 26-inch flat-screen TV?

Sometimes the sheer balls people in this city have leaves me speechless.  Per capita, I would bet that D.C. has the most selfish people in the world.  But (yet again) that is an issue for another time.

The ultra liberals who dominate this area at the moment will find me to be a cold-hearted, selfish bastard for being angry at this.  On the other side of the political spectrum, the ultra right-wing conservatives will whole-heartedly agree with me.

Let’s get one thing clear: This isn’t about politics.  It is about people.  It’s about human nature.

This family has lived their entire lives feeling entitled to handout after handout.  Don’t believe me?  Read it and weep:

In April, doctors released Brown from the rehab center and allowed her to return to the government-subsidized home she shared with her mother and siblings. Medicaid paid for the on-call nurse who visited the house.

Their entire lives have been built on freebies from the government.  Does that make them bad people?  Not necessarily.  But it does encourage their behavior to sit back on their asses and expect a check.  It has always come before.  Why wouldn’t it now?

It also explains their behavior of blowing through $10,000 on bullshit instead of food, shelter, and bills.  That was extra money to them.  The other subsidies already took care of the necessities so they figured why not buy some bling?

Here’s the point I am trying to make: Giving handouts doesn’t ever solve the problem because people are going to be people.  If they can get it for free most people will until the well runs dry.

Entire generations in this city have grown up expecting handouts cleverly described as “assistance” and cases like this one are the result.

Quick Hits: The ‘Edition’ Edition
The Informer | July 1, 2009 | 11:28 am

In my feed reader this morning:

edition

Maybe it’s time to drop this whole “edition” thing, guys.  I am just as guilty as you are because even I have gone to that well a time or two.  It’s clever and all, but nobody ever got hurt trying to be a little more original.

Don’t Hold Your Breath

WTOP reports that Tim Kaine will talk to President Obama about D.C. voting rights…sort of…maybe.

“I would be very willing to talk to the president about the issue of District voting rights, which I support and I think the president does, too,” Kaine said on WTOP’s Ask the Governor Program.

Kaine says he has not brought the subject up with Obama since the election.

“I have not talked to him directly about it, but I’ve heard his statements about this issue.”

“I don’t get infinite time with the president, so I’ve got to pick my moments and pick my issues. I would rather talk to him about the status of voting rights in the District than the license plate. That is more important than the license plate and I’m glad to talk to him about that.”

Kaine was asked if he would ask the president to change the license plate as a symbolic gesture of support.

“I haven’t and I probably won’t,” Kaine said.

So let’s see,  Kaine is “willing” to talk to Obama about it, but then offers the excuse he doesn’t “get infinite time with the president”

By God, I think that might be the perfect political answer non-answer I have seen in a long time.

Like I said, don’t hold your breath.

Say Gee Whiz

Michael Neibauer of the Examiner reports that D.C. gas stations are one step closer to a requirement to have video cameras monitoring the pumps.

The council on Tuesday gave preliminary unanimous approval to a bill requiring that retail service station operators install video surveillance within six months to monitor all pumps.

The measure also mandates the posting of signs at each pump reminding customers that the premises are under surveillance, and warning them to remove their keys from the vehicle and to lock their doors. And it requires the Metropolitan Police Department to produce a public service announcement “warning consumers of the potential dangers at retail service stations,” to be run on Channel 16.

Alexander, of Ward 7, first introduced the legislation in October 2007, about three months after her purse was stolen from her Range Rover while it was parked at a Southeast gas station. At the time, she described gas station crime as a “great threat” to public safety.

You know if I am ever the victim of a serious crime (again!), I sure hope someone has a camera or two nearby to protect me.  I mean come on, everybody knows stores with security cameras are never robbed or shot up.

Here’s a thought, Yvette: JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE A DUMBASS DOESN’T MEAN THE REST OF US ARE!

I’m thinking of walking down K Street with my laptop and just leaving it on the sidewalk while I grab some coffee and a muffin for about 45 minutes and IT BETTER STILL BE THERE WHEN I GET BACK !  Jesus.

Oh Really?

Headline from ABC 7 Reads: Confidence Restored for Metro Riders One Week After Crash

When you actually read the story, these 2 sentences about sum it up:

With the sensors that have been tested working and most of the old Metro cars moved off the ends of the trains, some are still questioning if that is enough.

In the middle of Tuesday night’s rush hour on the red line, at least one person who was directly involved in last week’s crash says he’s confident in the system.

“Some” are still questioning the safety, but we found one dude who is cool with it so the headline is: Confidence Restored for Metro Riders One Week After Crash.

How about: Confidence Restored for One Metro Rider After Crash

You Know What We Need? More Tourists

The Washington Business Journal tells of the council approving even more money for 1,167 room Marriott Marquis across from the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

The council voted unanimously to commit $272 million in public money to the project, an increase of $85 million over a subsidy package the city previously passed.

That’s quite a bit of coin.  Why do we need to put up so much money for this again?

Tourism officials say the long-stalled $537 million hotel is critical to the city’s ability to attract major conventions.

Well, you have a point there.  I mean who the hell wants to have their convention in the EFFING NATION’S CAPITAL!

But that’s not all. Neibauer from the Examiner points out in his take:

Mayor Adrian Fenty briefly floated the idea of full public financing, citing the bad economy and the developers’ inability to attract private money. But the sides ultimately found investors willing to back the project.

So when nobody else wants to pony up the money for the deal, our veiny-headed mayor wants to go balls deep in it with taxpayer cash.

Nice.  Very nice.