Bits & Pieces - Midwife to Fish

Midwife to fish

Bits ‘n Pieces

By Bob Robinson

Had a great time at the Cancer Association of Darke County’s annual Monte Carlo Night at the VFW Saturday… I don’t gamble (only because I never win) and I’m a life-long smoker, so I guess you could call it my “contribution to the cause”… I was a Blackjack Dealer.

The problem? As a “dealer” I couldn’t lose. After dropping thousands of “dollars” players would move to greener pastures. Even my wife would have nothing to do with me. After having the only empty Blackjack table in the place (allowing me to go outside to smoke a cigarette or two), I was told I could bribe people to my table… $500 bonus for anyone who could beat me three times in a row!

I had a few takers, but they still kept losing. I had to up the bonus to a grand… my table was full for the rest of the night.

They still lost, but they had more fun doing it.

Hey, remember that slight drop in unemployment I noted last week? No sooner had I sent it out than news broke that of the 400,000 jobs claimed to be created, only about 20,000 were in the private sector. The rest were mostly temporary census takers. Reported by Fox News, confirmed by CBS and Rasmussen Reports.

I heard on Fox this morning that if spending continues the way it has been, we will actually owe more than our economy can produce by 2011. It was likened to the ongoing mortgage crisis… consumers owing more on their property than it is worth.

An unknown backer has told a very vocal critic of our local courthouse addition project that if he would run for Common Pleas judge as an Independent, all of his advertising expenses would be covered. The gentleman is considering it.

I have a copy of Juvenile & Probate Judge Michael McClurg’s letter telling the commissioners he only wanted his present location upgraded; and Municipal Judge Julie Monnin is reportedly only interested in moving her court off the third floor of the courthouse… so that only leaves Common Pleas Judge Jonathan Hein and three commissioners who have not backed off of this unpopular plan.

Hence the offer to back an Independent for Common Pleas judge in November. Of course the candidate in question would be totally unqualified to assume the position if elected, and Independent filings closed on May 3, but it sure would have been fun to watch!

I wonder what the deadline is for a write-in candidate?

The blame game in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill catastrophe – and the expected long-term effects on our environment – is exceeding even the wildest hopes of our environmentalists. They are looking forward to a huge step backward in our “drill baby drill” mentality.

Not so fast… it is these same left wing wackos that won’t let us drill in northern Alaska wastelands or closer to shore where our technology is better at controlling clean, environmentally safe drilling methods. The common sense options are not available, so we have to drill a mile beneath the ocean surface… the wackos, British Petroleum and our federal oversight agencies who, as usual dropped the ball, own this disaster!

I had the privilege of attending two graduation parties this weekend.

My nephew Jeremy Giesseman looks forward to a CPA degree at either Edison or Wright State. Many of his NJROTC buddies (male and female) were there. They had a ball… and I got great pictures!

The other was the graduation party of Kayla Lemar, Teen Advocate Editor for the last two years. She had a book of her published articles in the Advocate going back to 2005. It was over two inches thick! It brought back great memories of when Jordan Pridemore, the TA’s first editor, and I built the program through thick and thin. Kayla has done a tremendous job continuing its growth. She’s still considering her options for the future, but I have no doubt they will include writing and publishing. She’s a talented young lady.

I’m proud of what these kids – and all other Teen Advocates – have done with the program. All they needed was the opportunity.

One final note. This would have been good fodder for a Balderdash article… except it’s true! California has done it again. The eco wackos want to build a “water ladder” for steelhead trout to go under the Pacific Coast highway to their breeding grounds. The cost? A cool million dollars.

California has a $60 billion budget gap; the state is facing bankruptcy; thousands of workers and programs will be slashed… but they’re going to play midwife to a bunch of fish. Only in California.

I can’t top that one, so I guess I’ll close.

Watch for more Bits ‘n Pieces as I hear about them. Good stuff? Bad stuff? You decide.

Bob Robinson is the retired editor of The Daily Advocate, Greenville, Ohio. If you wish to be notified when a blog is posted, send your email address to: opinionsbybob@gmail.com. You may also request his That’s My Opinion and Verities or Balderdash columns by direct email.