Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Whatever Works

An eight-year-old Little League ball player hits a single. The next batter hits a sharp ground ball that's bobbled by the shortstop, who then picks the ball up and tosses it to the second baseman. The baseman, not yet at second base, swooped his glove, containing the ball, toward the base runner. The base runner reached second base. The umpire signs "Safe!"

The second base runner signals "time" and walks over to the umpire. "Sir, his body was between you and me, but I felt his glove brush my shoulder. I'm out."

An unbelievable story, right? It could never happen?

I've come to the conclusion that this is where our current "getting away with it" attitude starts. Sports coaches teaching youngsters to take an erroneous call in their favor. Teaching them to seize advantage by breaking rules, and trying to hide it from the referee.

In the children's prisons, it becomes ok to sneak a look at the test paper of another, if it can be done unobserved. It no longer is a problem that one's peers are aware of his ethical shortcomings, it's only a problem if he gets caught. Even then, his peers will likely respond with "Dawg! Good try!"

After a number of years and a number of confirmations of this behavior pass, our ethically challenged lad graduates law school and becomes an attorney. The firm at which he's employed--as do most law firms today--advocates and requires him to win the case regardless of truth and regardless of the harm caused to the innocent.

Then come years of success winning huge punitive sums for his clients, many of whom would have no complaint had they exercised diligence to protect themselves in advance, against deep pocket plaintiffs who were merely attempting to provide a service, and who had been problem-free for decades. He decides to go into politics.

After building a warchest and setting up a campaign staff, our anti-hero wins the election by digging up irrelevant dirt on his opponent. He has used, walked over and cast aside friends whose usefulness is at an end, or who become liabilities.

It doesn't matter, his plan for his people is unquestionably good. Should anyone actually try to question it, they are evil and enemies of the people. They are to be discredited, and jailed, if possible.

Meanwhile, the country sinks into a war of each man's hand in the pocket of another and productivity being punished at every turn.

This is the path destined for those who advocate the maxim, "The end justifies the means."

Unless a more livable philosophy can achieve pre-eminence, the world will slide, on the skids of altruism, back into a new Dark Age.

They've killed Freedom! Those bastards!

Warm regards,

Col. Hogan
Stalag California

19 comments:

T. F. Stern said...

Cheer up my friend, it could be worse; California could one day be controlled by Democrats, then you'd have something to worry about.

Okay, that was a sick joke....

Anonymous said...

I'm not quite sure I completely agree with you about the state of the nation's children and their cheating ways, however, I share your disdain for the entire legal community, top to bottom.

The legal system is entirely about tricks and technicalities with no pretense of getting at the truth. And I believe that begins in high school debate class where kids take opposing sides of the question and then switch off and do it again.

There is little consistent justice in the US whether in traffic court, juvenile court, civil court, tax court, or superior court.

It is a bankrupt system and one would do well to avoid getting entangled in it.

Let me give you a tiny example. An ex-client tried to scam a bank into making him a loan based on forged financial statements with my name on them. The bank ultimately declined. He sued when he went broke claiming the bank caused his failure because they did not make the loan they had promised.

As a deposed witness the question on my mind was where is the signed contract executed by the bank's loan officer promising the money?

Of course none existed. That didn't stop a week of depositions and a parade of paper to the tune of $300.00 per hour.

The entire case turned on one simple thing. Did the bank promise to loan the money? Show me the documents. No docs? Case closed. Batta Bing.

Instead, this thing dragged on and on and on. The bank ultimately prevailed, but I'm sure the cost was tens of thousands of dollars in attorney fees.

Col. Hogan said...

TF,

I'm thinking that the Stalag began its slide south in the mid-1970's, during the gubership of Pat Brown, Jr, aka Guber Moonbeam. He may not have started it, but he greatly accelerated the taking of funds from traditional services such as highways, police, courts and less important services such as forests and parks. Those funds were diverted to pet projects, welfare, the arts and other nonsense that doesn't fill the potholes.

He, in turn, was enabled by Guber Reagan, who started state income tax withholding. Prior to Reagan's dumb(?) move, we had to write a check at the end of each year. Afterward, withholding allowed subsequent state legislatures to increase the state income tax in huge increments, and often.

It's been all downhill since--and not all because of Democrats.

Col. Hogan said...

TWC,

I never thought it was the kids. It's the coaches, and the teachers. Sometimes it's the parents. Also, players and staffs of professional sports.

It's the way kids are taught ethics--or rather not taught.

Anonymous said...

Good summary of Reagan as Governor here:
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/new200406100853.asp

From what I get, Dems had the majority in the legislature 6 of the 8 years but even when the Republicans had the majority there was a 'special case' in California where you have to have 2/3 majority on fiscal issues at that time (don't know if that still holds), but yeah, he did finally sign the withholding tax, after resisting it for a while.

Kent C

Anonymous said...

On cheating....

I know that in Ohio, it's the teachers and 'the system' that leads the way with cheating and because it is so transparent to the kids, I think it has an effect on them.

We have a '9th grade proficiency' test that Seniors have to pass in order to graduate. (what? you say, a 9th grade test?? Yep.) And they get 4 chances a year starting with the 9th grade to pass it. Actually they take the test in the 8th grade as well but that is only a 'pre-test' and if they don't do well, then they are held in the 8 1/2 grade and are tutored directly on the test until they can pass like 2 parts of the 4 part test.

This is unusual in the 'never fail or hold back a student because of the effect on their self-esteem' leftist agenda. Actual flunking had been outlawed for years. But now, because the school system is graded by the state, this 'pre-test' in the 8th grade is used so that the dummies don't dilute the 9th grade statistics... get it? Well so do the kids - it's cheating or at least 'coverup'.

And my particular local system was the one that came up with this 8 1/2 grade idea and they were given an award for it by the State! Now all systems employ the cheat. Sigh....

Kent C.

Anonymous said...

aka Guber Moonbeam. He may not have started it, but he greatly accelerated the taking of funds from traditional services such as highways, police, courts and less important services such as forests and parks. Those funds were diverted to pet projects, welfare, the arts and other nonsense that doesn't fill the potholes.

Yes he did start it. Moonbeam and Ms Cal Trans. He cancelled every freeway with the intent of forcing Californians into mass transit. [turns and spits]

We continue to reap what he sowed three decades ago. Can't get nowhere? Call that farging ex-mayor of Oakland and speak right up!

Anonymous said...

Then there's this (on students):

"You can’t trust anything a student says, they’re just trying to get over on you. You can never trust their parents—what are you crazy?—they’ll lie to your face to defend the little darlings. Remember: parents are the main reason the kids are the way they are, so of course they’ll lie, too."
William Ayers
(from Ann Coulter's site)

KC

Anonymous said...

Side note: Just read that Joe the Plumber works for the guy that did the plumbing on my house! Wife thinks that Joe, we knew him as Sam and he was bald, may have replaced a sump pump working for another company.... I see, also, that he has back taxes - freepers are taking up a collection ;-) He's getting the full anal exam by the MSM. Checking his plumbing ;-)

Kent C

MathewK said...

It's like a game to them isn't it. Bastards indeed.

MathewK said...

Hi CH. Just replying to your request about my post on socialized medicine, go for it mate, reprint away. And if you wanted more examples of it, on my blog, click on the categories 'Socialized Medicine' and 'Public Health' and help yourself. The list is horrifying, you folks are already partly paying for other's healthcare and it's already failing you, and yet the likes of Obama want to fix it by bringing in even more government intervention via socialism.

MathewK said...

Sorry, too early in the morning, here are the links
Public Health.

Socialized Medicine

Anonymous said...

Re:Socialized Medicine... I'm sure you all have seen the news out of Hawaii:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,439607,00.html

"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. "I don't believe that was the intent of the program."

Uhhh.. yes it was Kenny ;-)

Kent C

Col. Hogan said...

Kent,

Haven't had time to follow your links yet. Reagan had been president of SAG before going into government thuggery. I believe he was more of a liberal then. I suspect he arced to the right during subsequent years, but only became effective as he ran for President of the US. Effective, that is, except for reining in spending.

Col. Hogan said...

Kent,

What they're doing in the Stalag is "teaching to the test." As the time for the test grows near, teachers abandon the curricula and concentrate on drilling on-the-edge kids on the actual test questions.

Col. Hogan said...

TWC,

I think you're right. In the period I lived in OC between '69 snd '74, all of the gas tax was used for street and highway purposes. 'Twas soon after that that we began hearing about parts of those funds were being diverted to pie-in-the-sky projects such as subways through fault zones and artwork on the retaining walls.

Col. Hogan said...

Kent,

On Ayers & Joe the Plumber: Hannity today asked why so many tv trucks were lined up around Joe the Plumber's house, yet none have ever been around Ayers' house.

Col. Hogan said...

MK,

Thanks. I may be a few days before I can put something together, but it's important that these stories get out to Americans, before we end up depending 'pon doctors with bones through their noses, shaking rattles over a bonfire.

Col. Hogan said...

Kent,

If they don't put out that fire, Hawaii's socialized medicine will require yet another federal bailout.