AHHHHHHH!!!! That feels great!!!!

AHHHH!!! Atlantic Beach, NC here we come!

My clan is headed with another family to the Crystal Coast for this week.

Posting will be limited, but will try to update the daily activities. Have a great Fourth everybody.

Hero and Heel emerge in Colonial Heights Fire

The Progress-Index ran a story today about a fatal house fire. The headline, Neighbors unable to rescue construction worker, is a little misleading. As in most stories, there are some heroes and a heel.

Justin Krumpe ran in to a burning house and tried to save his neighbor. First responders were on the scene pretty quickly. Justin is a true hero. He ran in with no protection to try to save someone's life. He was the only neighbor to do so.

Another "neighbor," Chiquita Edmonds was called by someone else in the neighborhood about the fire. What did she do? Run to help? Call 911? Nope. She went outside to film the fire. Pretty nice, huh?

Here's the kicker... Edmonds filmed the whole ordeal, including EMS personnel trying to revive the 44 year old Fred Waitt, but she said she turned the camera off the camera "out of respect before he was loaded in an ambulance."

In Chiquita's defense, she was heard on her tape shouting to fire fighters what Waitt looked like. Talk about going the extra mile!

Who knows the whole story? Maybe Ms. Edmonds couldn't physically help. If that was the case, why film the fire? You gonna sit around the VCR and rewatch it later in the week? Was there the intent to make sure the police and EMS did their job? Maybe, as Chiquita said, "I want to say that all the Colonial Heights departments responded fast, and in a professional manner." Thanks Chiquita, but who made you the first responder monitor for the neighborhood?

This fire happened in the area of Colonial Heights that I live in. This story frustrates me because my area of town is filled with folks that no longer act neighborly. There are a select few that will go out of their way to be nice, but not many. In order for our side of the city to re-emerge into the great neighborhood that it used to be, I believe we all need to lend a hand when needed, not just stand back and view things as distant events through a viewfinder.

Led Zeppelin Possibly Reuniting?

Yes, I know they're old. Yes, I know we've all heard their songs about a bazillion times. BUT, how bad ass would a Led Zeppelin reunion be?

Read the details here.

Revival of the Fairness Doctrine is Stupid, Part II

The revival of the fairness doctrine by the FCC is seeming to gather steam. Here, Sen. Kerry speaks briefly on why he thinks something needs to be done with the state of views expressed in the media today.

The overwhelming opinion in support of the revival of the fairness doctrine seems to be something to the effect of, "More views will be expressed if the FCC monitors and requires both sides of political debate to be discussed."

Here's the problem with that argument, in my opinion. The only way the FCC could enforce that radio and TV stations complied with the new rule is to have some arbitrary fine or consequence in place. What would probably happen is that stations would stop broadcasting many opinions at all in fear that they would violate the rule. The FCC agreed with this line of thinking in '87 when it repealed the fairness rule by stating the rule "had the net effect of reducing, rather than enhancing, the discussion of controversial issues of public importance." ("FCC Ends Enforcement of Fairness Doctrine," Federal Communications Commission News, Report No. MM-263, August 4, 1987.)

The other scary prospect involved is that a government agency would be responsible for monitoring all broadcasts in order to fairly enforce a rule designed to ensure fairness. How in the world would even all major stations be monitored "fairly" with the extreme proliferation of media outlets even since 1987?

I'm Sick and the Revival of the Fairness Doctrine is Stupid

I haven't posted in a few days because of some type of stomach flu like illness that has really given me the business.

There has been some rumblings recently of reviving the Fairness Doctrine in regards to talk radio. Sen. Inhofe(R-OK) supposedy heard Sens. Clinton (D-NY) and Boxer (D-CA)discussing a legislative "fix" to conservative talk radio. It seems now that the conversation in question didn't happen recently and was used by Inhofe to stir the ever bubbling political cauldron.

However, the group Center for American Progress issued a report and that looking as recent as Spring '07, which stated "of the 257 news/talk stations owned by the top five commercial station owners, 91 percent of the total weekday talk radio programming was conservative."

AND? The reason, plain and simple, that most of talk radio programming is conservative is that is what has made money for the commercial radio stations. These stations are in broadcasting to make money. If the majority of folks liked listening to thrash metal then that's what the majority of stations would play.

I'm sure there will be some that read this that will point to the nefarious Right Wing Conspiracy, which is absurd as Liberals plotting to squash all things American.

America still is a place that thrives on capitalism. You have an idea, product, service that people want and it's marketed correctly, people will buy it, or in this case listen to it.

I have a child-man

The Progress-Index had an article yesterday about Mandy Marchiano being chosen to represent Colonial Heights at the Youth Leadership Forum, a program for disabled teens that helps them build networking skills and hang out with their peers.

I don't know the Marchiano family, eventhough they go to the same church as my family. I do remember the news of the accident that took away so much of Mandy's youth.

The news is filled with stories of childrens' lives being changed in an instant. The young girl that had her feet severed at an amusement park yesterday is a very fresh example.

The point is that families with "special" kids have a child that's a mix between an adult and a kid. What do I mean? C. can't walk without the assistance of braces and a walker. He doesn't fuss. He just plows through. C. has learned the idea of patience when it's absolutely necessary, which is a pretty grown up idea.

Don't get me wrong, C. acts like a 4 year old because he is one. He does have some tendencies that amaze me and make me stop and say, "Wow! He's more mature than me!"

The tough part is trying to make sure that the adult side of C.'s personality never extinguishes the part of him that laughs when he farts in the tub, wrestles the dog, or loves SpongeBob Squarepants.

Positive Results from Recent Petersburg City Council Meeting

Per Petersburg People's News, the City Council of P'burg recently approved ordinances that will provide a rental home inspection program, simplify fee structures, and require vacant structures to be registered.

All of these are great ideas. I'm most excited about the vacant structure registration. This will hold building owners accountable and reduce blight downtown.

The Petersburg People's News says that temporarily vacant structures won't require registration. I'm interested in hearing how long a structure would have to be vacant to be considered temporarily vacant.

I know the firm that owns the buildings that house The Oak Antique Mall, Java Mio, and The Pink Scottie owns several other buildings around town that are vacant. Does anyone know if they have any plans for those buildings? Will they have to register those buildings? Why does a company in Utah own so many buildings in Petersburg? They've done a great job with the buildings that have businesses in them, but I'm concerned about their other buildings and the plans for those buildings.

Tech Shooting Aftermath Points to Liberalism's Faults?

I'm a Hokie. When I say that, I don't mean in the sense of the "We're all Hokies" sentiment that prevailed after the Tech shooting tragedy. I acutally went to VA Tech.

As you also know, I have had experience with community service boards when trying to get C., my son, the therapy services he needed when we first moved to Colonial Heights.

The aftermath of the Tech shooting is getting more and more ugly the further we get away from the horror of that April morning in Blacksburg.

Per a recent Times-Dispatch article, Del. Bell, a Republican from Charlottesville, has pointed out that the local mental health, or community services board, is responsible for outpatient treatment plans for mentally ill individuals.

I understand the law is pretty clear in this regard. Here's the problem. Almost every community service board in every community is understaffed, underpaid, and under-motivated. While the New River Valley mental health board should have been involved with Cho, there is very little doubt that they would have been very ineffective in managing his case as their caseload is probably overwhelming.

This is a case of a good intentioned law that when put in to practice can't be executed correctly. I feel that this is a good example of why the government is one of the most inefficient means of getting most things done, a core problem with liberalism. Obviously, in this instance, the government needs to be involved in enforcing a judgement by the court, but they can't even do that correctly, how can they be relied upon to efficiently administer social programs when they can't get true governance correct?

Summer is cool

Stop for a brief second and really think back. Summer equals what to you? I remember sunny days, going to help dad at the stadium where we owned the concessions for a minor league ball club, going on vacation, not having a plan but always doing something with friends...the list could go on for pages.

Now that my children are getting old enough to be a little more independent, I can see that they are beginning to make memories of their own. Whether it's B. reaching the "pro bowler" level on our Wii, K. playing at the park across the street all day, or C. bugging us that he wants to go outside for the umpteenth time, these memories are what colors their view of the world - past, present, and future.

My family is blessed with friends that have invited us along with them to Atlantic Beach, NC for the week of July 4th. My kids can't stop talking about it, and to be honest, I'm stoked about it. From what I hear, the Crystal Coast isn't saturated with tourist traps, but is a nice place to go with your family to enjoy time together. That's what it's all about. Whether your not going anywhere for vacation or traveling around the world, what your family will remember most is the time you spent together this summer.

My wife sums it up best in a writing assignment she had for a writing group she's in. As you can tell, she had to write an acrostic for the word summer. I think she did an excellent job!

Super
Ultimate
Momentous
Memories
Everyone
Remembers

Bland is Back and Sooner Than Petersburg Expected Him

According to a story today in the Progress-Index, Fenton Bland is getting ready to be released from the Federal pokey.

No doubt about it, this guy is criminal. It's really too bad that now that Petersburg's resurgence has really begun to get some legs underneath it, it's ugly past, in the form of Bland, has to rear its ugly head.

The most interesting/curious point in this article is:

At the time of Bland’s appearance in court, Hudson reminded Bland that most people convicted of federal crimes must serve at least 85 percent of their sentence.

AND...

Based upon his released date, Bland will have served 22½ months, or about 39 percent, of his 57-month sentence.

I can't figure that one out. Justice is blind, right? There's no funny business in the sentencing of politicians, is there?

Somebody help me out here!

Will The Cowboy Have to Check his Gun at the Door?

Looks like it was Jim Webb's gun that got his aide in a bunch of trouble. If I remember correctly, he said that it wasn't his gun. Forget the fact that DC has a strict handgun ban in place, let's examine how quickly Sen. Webb has become the politician that he campaigned so strongly against.

Read the following interview and determine for yourself if he's playing politics:

Q: Will you discuss questions involved in the gun arrest of your aide? You said at the time you didn't want to prejudice the outcome of the case. It is over now.

A: "It was a matter under legal consideration, and I was precluded from saying anything. That was my major point.
"And I hope you'll understand that in matters of self-defense up here, it doesn't do anybody's safety a lot of good by talking about this stuff. We're pretty vulnerable up here.
"When I was secretary of the Navy I had a 24-hour-a-day bodyguard. Harry Reid has a 24-hour-a-day bodyguard. The governor has a security detail."

Q: Was the gun yours?

A: "It's my gun. But what I said in the [March] press conference is true. I did not give it to Phillip, nor did I ask him to do anything with it."

Q: Will you talk about the question of whether you comply with the District's handgun law?

A: "I don't think we need to discuss that any more."

Why doesn't Webb want to discuss complying with the law? Is it too uncomfortable for him?

It's also interesting that Webb didn't bring any attention to the fact that his son did meet with the evil Pres. Bush. Remember how much of big deal everyone made about how rude was Webb was to Bush when he so insensitively asked how was Webb's son?

Looks like the straight shooting cowboy of a Democratic Senator is a much of a politician as the rest of 'em on Capitol Hill.

Off I go To Tackle the Longest Golf Hole in the US

Tomorrow I'm off to play the longest hole in the US, per the Guiness Book of World Records, at Meadows Farms Golf Course.

My dad runs the food service at the course. Before the course bought him out two years ago, he owned the food service out right.

As you know, I just recently started hitting the little white ball around, so this should be great fun tomorrow. It will be an awesome day to spend with pops. This is my wife's father's day gift to me. Thanks Honey!

I'll fill everyone in on how good I hit 'em.

Hello! Jesus isn't just the great teacher of humanity but Christ as He claimed

In a recent post on Brad's Brain, Brad described why he doesn't believe in God. I'm not posting to convert Brad. If he choses not to believe in God, that's his choice. In my short stint in blogdom, Brad and I have disagreed on most everything. I do respect Brad's intelligence and point of view, I just don't agree with him usually.



I know that there are several that refuse to believe in any faith because of the terrible things done in the name of that faith. The fault with that argument typicallys is that those that say that often overlook the good done in the names of those same faiths.



As fair disclosure, I am a sold out believer in Jesus as the Christ.



I write this post as a rebuttal to Brad's argument that Jesus isn't the Christ, but just one of humanity's greatest teachers. C.S. Lewis refutes this argument best in his Mere Christianity:

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (Lewis 1952, pp. 43) .

I'm usually not one to just quote other's words and leave it at that, but Lewis' argument is cut and dry. Jesus was either a liar, deranged, or, as he claimed, the Son of Man. It's your choice. I think the argument is strongest for Jesust being the Christ.

Colonial Heights Loses a Great Teacher

As I've mentioned before, my 4 year old son has special needs. The awesome thing about living in Colonial Heights is that they have a public special education preschool. This is a resource that should be available to all families with special needs preschoolers in Virginia, but that is for another post.

C.'s teacher of 2 1/2 years, Ali Smith, has decided not to return next year. This makes me and my wife B. very sad. Mrs. Smith is a shining example of what a teacher should be. She's patient with a group of kids that can easily try anyone's patience. While there is a whole team of teachers that has helped C., Mrs. Smith has been there every step of the way. She's seen C. go from a non-communicative 2 year old that couldn't get around without crawling to a precocious 4 year old that can cruise with the best of them with his walker.

Best of all, I've seen first hand how personally Ali takes the progress and welfare of all of her students. We feel like we're losing an extended family member.

Good luck Mrs. Smith. You will be missed.

Petersburg's Woeful Teacher Situation

In an article in the Progress-Index today, the simple reason for the woeful performance of the Petersburg Public School system is wrapped up in the following paragraphs:

There is little doubt teacher salaries are lagging in Petersburg. The average teacher salary in Virginia last year was $47,248, compared to $38,252 in Petersburg, according to state figures. And Petersburg lags behind other nearby school districts with Colonial Heights being in the top at $48,999 for the average teacher salary. The closest average salary to Petersburg is Hopewell at $42,351 and Dinwiddie County at $42,866, according to the state.The school system did try to get more for salaries this year. The school board’s proposed budget of $11.63 million was $1.9 million more than the level funding provided by the city of $9.73 million on May 15. The requested increase was earmarked for increases in teacher salaries.But the City Council on May 15 rejected the school board’s request for more money, meaning the school board had to go back to its budget looking for money to raise teacher salaries.

I know there are a few out there that will say that the free market has failed the children of Petersburg and some liberal minded plan should be insituted to turn things around.

How 'bout this? Instead of making our first concern school uniforms, let's have the City Council approve the school board's request for more money so they can pay the teachers in Petersburg a competitive wage.

Would you go work for a company that was going to pay you almost $10,000 less than the neighboring company but ask you to work harder in a worse working environment? Say it with me now..."HECK NO!" That's what is happening when teachers weigh whether they'd rather apply to Col. Heights or Petersburg.

Come on guys, pony up the dough.

You're Right Libs, The Islamic World Isn't A Threat

This headline screamed at me this morning, Iran confirms detention of 4th American! Where did this story appear? The evil Drudge Report? The nefarious Fox News site? No. The front page of Yahoo!

The news of how dangerous a time we live in is being drowned out. I'm surprised Yahoo! picked this story up. Our generation doesn't have to really sacrifice for the war as other generations did in WWI and WWII. We listen to news about how Paris has to serve her jail term first as opposed to how many of our troops were injured or killed. Take that one step further and we NEVER hear news about how much progress we've made in Iraq.

The world is in a dangerous spot. The Islamo-Fascists, to borrow a term, hate America, plain an simple. We are on the brink of another World War, which, belive it or not, is not G.W's fault. While many mistakes have been made in the Middle East, this administration had the fortitude to stare a lion in the eye that wants nothing else but to swallow us whole.

The situation in the Middle East is not as simple as either the Liberals or Conservatives make it in their talking points. However, I am positive that the Islamic bullies want nothing more than for us to cut and run as so many Democratic leaders are suggesting.

Petersburg's Rebirth...Go to Friday for the Arts

If you didn't know, Petersburg is on its way back. It's been a long and arduous road, but Old Towne is making a go of trying to rise from the rubble.

Granted, they've got a LONG way to go. The city has many critics. One of the most vocal critics is a former co worker of mine. Anything the city does is corrupt according to him. Nothing seems to be good enough for him. With any city's rebirth, there are plenty that see the glass half empty.

Let's focus on the positive of The Cockade City's positive traction. One extremely positive thing about Petersburg is Friday for the Arts which is always on the second Friday of every month. It's free. You get to look at cool local art and hear cool local music. What's better than that?

Also a great local blog about Petersburg is Petersburg People's News. Check this regularly for updates on the goings ons.

See y'all down in P'burg tonight for some free art.

Bye Bob Barker. Our pets will miss you!

Bob Barker filmed his last Price is Right show today. Not much more to say about ol' Bob. He was, hands down, the best game show host. Wink Martindale comes in a close second.

The coolest memory I have about Bob is visiting my Mema and Papa in the country (Dinwiddie County) and watching the Price is Right. Out in the country, you didn't watch tv. You were expected to spend your day outside and play. However, Mema always would pause and let us watch Bob and the Price is Right.

Does anyone else also remember when Bob let his hair go gray? Through the magic of TV he goes from jet black to gray in one day it seems.

See ya Bob! And don't forget Rivah City, "Help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered."

Another Richmond Rising 25 Gets Gobbled Up

Richmond based Interactive Financial Marketing Group (IFMG) was bought by Norfolk based Dominion Enterprises. This makes the second Richmond Rising 25 winner to be acquired shortly after winning the award for being the quickest-growing small company in the Richmond metro area.

Looks like Richmond really knows how to grow businesses. That's a great sign for the overall health of the Richmond business community

I worked for IFMG for almost 3 years. I left in January. Overall, they are a great company and I'm very happy for them.

I still have some good friends over there and I wish them all the best. Good luck guys!

The Fruity Pebbles Civil War

For those that don't have kids, let me tell you that two of the most trying times during the day are getting your kids out of bed and getting them to go to sleep.

My two oldest, both girls, are 8 and 6. This morning, after having a tough time going to sleep, both girls got up without the normal amount of prodding. That should have been a warning. K., the 6 year old, came downstairs and was unusually chipper. B. came downstairs a little bit later. B. is not a morning person at all.

I was upstairs going about getting ready for work as my wife, Belinda, and I carpool together. I could hear the first volley of what would be an especially nasty battle as soon as I was coming downstairs.

You see, for breakfast my kids typically have 3-4 different cereals to choose from. Getting them to choose usually evolves into me or mom threatening to restrict any type of fun for ther rest of my girls natural lives before a choice is made.

This morning K. chose right away, which should have been a clue to sometimes slow witted dad, and that's when it was on. We only had enough Fruity Pebbles for one bowl. B. didn't like this, to say the least. After much hollering and tounge-sticking-outing, the issue was decided. K. came downstairs first, so she gets first pick. Label it a tween's lesson in "Early bird gets the worm."

Everything was decided, or so I thought. Next thing I hear is some rustling, slapping of hands, and then the highest pitch wail known to have been heard on the southern side of Colonial Heights in recent history. B. had "accidentally" pushed K.'s hand and made her drop her Fruity Pebbles.

ARRRGGHHH!! Parenting can be so fun. Both sides were eventually calmed down. As my wife and I were leaving, I could hear the next fight start over who would get the last of the milk for chocolate millk!

Two lessons out of this one:
1)Kids are so cute
2)I better be heading to the store after work.

Now what Colonial Heights?

In 2005 the city of Colonial Heights, where I've lived for almost 5 years now, made the wise financial decision to buy the Colonial Baptist Church property. You see, the church is relocating to the northern end of the city. Good for them. The new place looks like it will be a beautiful sanctuary.

My question is, why did the city spend almost $3.5 million dollars for a property without having any plans whatsoever about what to do with a huge, empty church building. According to a newsletter put out by the city in 2005, the congregation has a 30 month lease on the current property, so no planning for the future of the current building has even begun. In that same newsletter, the city states that, "City Council considers this five-acre parcel to be very important to the economic viability of the southern end of the City."

Almost $4 million spent on a 5 acre plot that is important to the economic viability of the southern end of the City? How does this make sense? If the city decides to knock the old church down, what are they going to put there? A car wash? Strip mall? Oh I know, a chain restaurant? These are all things that Colonial Heights has an over abundance of.

I think the city has really dropped the ball here. I live in the southern end of Colonial Heights. I'm pretty sure that $3.5 million could have been used to fix the roads that have been long neglected. Maybe funnel that money to the special education program that recently had to cut some funding. Worse case scenario, keep that money in the bank for a time when you actually have a plan for what you're going to spend it on.

I just pray that this isn't the start of our small city looking towards the example of fine stewardship that Richmond has been following for decades.

Why are we so negative?

In the short time I've been blogging, I've noticed that the majority of blogs I've visited have a very negative slant. It seems that a lot of people think that being sarcastic or mean is the only way to drum up any interest in what they're saying.

What's funny is that I try to avoid that on my posts but have a hard time doing so in "real life." For me, it's easier to reach out to strangers with open arms without trying to joke on them, while almost all of my responses to my family and coworkers.

I really need Christ to help me with this. He is the only one that can truly change a person's heart permanently, but I've had a really hard time recently letting him be in control.

My wife and kids deserve better. In the blogging world, the public discourse deserves better. I'm tired of the talking heads constantly being in attack dog mode. It's absurd.

I'll leave everyone with this:
Proverbs 24:17-18 "Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice, or the LORD will see and disaprove and turn his wrath away from him."

Prairie Bread Co. in Midlothian

My wife B., who recently joined the blogging universe, and I discovered an awesome place to eat in Midlothian. Prairie Grain Bread Co., at the shopping center at the intersection on N. Woolridge and Midlo. Tpke., grinds their own wheat and makes their own bread daily. The smells when you walk into this place will immediately feel like you're walking into a place that you've known forever and never want to leave.

Lunch combos are huge and very affordable. The staff is also extremely helpful and friendly.

They also have daily bread specials, which rock! I bought a loaf of their banana bread which is very good.

Finding good local restaurants/establishments is always cool. It's like finding an unexpected $20 in your favorite pair of jeans.

Have a great weekend everyone!