Don’t fall for the streetcar hoax

Sit on this stat for just a second - the $150 million being spent on the streetcar (for starters, mind you) would pay for 100 police officers for ten years (averaging $150,000 per yr). Now I understand the fact that this money is allocated for transit while we deal with rising crime and a gutted police force, but think about the grand celebration of this $150 million carnival ride on Thursday while the cities workforce has been laid off and faced pay cuts, and you begin to get the real picture of what an absolute waste this is. I know it was voted on in 2006, but when you think about what's happened to the economy since then, 2006 is a lifetime ago. Someone somewhere along the way should have said that we need to stop this - or at least put it on the back burner till the economy improves and our core essentials are paid for. But they didn't. And now this is Washington giving an attempted leg up to Raul and Gabby, and our City Council patting themselves on the back for the ability to accept a hand out. The leadership in this town is still a joke and they don't even care.

We now all must watch this project and hold them accountable. The moment one subsidized tax payer dollar is used to lure a business along the "streetcar named disaster" route we need to call it out for the fraud that it is. And your first opportunity will be when the UA is handed the front door keys to the old Walgreens building downtown for a dollar a year in rent.

Recall effort against Tucson mayor, 2 council members called off

So was this is more a matter of the council "adopting" a more pro business attitude, or was it a lack of interest from those at the heart of the recall? Tea Party aside, I believe this was because of lack of interest or enthusiasm from Humberto Lopez and those who started the recall. From the get-go, the effort seemed to lack momentum. I said from the very start that they could probably get the signatures required, but winning the election and actually recalling Walkup, Uhlich, and Romero was going to be a much bigger challenge. Had this effort been just the Tea Party and no one else I would imagine a better effort would have been organized, it would have been better publicized, and it would have at least gotten the amount of signatures required. However it was very clear that those at the heart of this deal didn't know exactly how to get traction and were falling into the same pitfalls of many endeavors. They didn't want to take it to the people and wanted to take a more "mainstream" approach, by which I mean running full page ads in the AZ Star (which nobody reads) and trying to go on shows like AZ Illustrated. What they should have done is take advantage of the Tea Party infrastructure and what they've shown they could do in the past - organizing rallies, reaching out to radio and earning television coverage. But ultimately Lopez never really seemed like his heart was in it. A few choice words from the council and suddenly now the recall accomplished its goal? I haven't seen anything remotely close to actual changes in how the council acts to warrant saying that they have adopted a "pro-business" stance. I'm pretty confident that there were some backdoor dealings going on and the council made Lopez happy. At the end of the day Lopez apparently wasn't all that interested and we can now say the recall was a failure.

Andrews video of the day: Now this is how we really bring people together...

Godless life can be good, local group says on sign

I had some fun with this one on Tuesdays show. But I got to thinking after the show, wondering if I should be offended at all by this? Being a Christian, does it bother me at all that they are putting this billboard up? The answer is, no it doesn't. Now maybe for some it would and I could understand why. If one felt that it was a challenge to their faith or more likely turning people off from God then I could see why it might be troublesome. But for me personally these people can believe or not believe what ever they like.

Truthfully I really don't get what they are trying to accomplish with this billboard. Is it supposed to make them feel better? Is it supposed to justify their lack of belief? Now on the other hand, I do understand more why there are more billboards promoting Christianity. Most Christian fundamentals teach that people are to witness to and to spread God's message. If you don't believe in God perhaps their mission is to convince you otherwise? I have nothing to base that on except that I am trying to find a justification as to why they feel it important to spread their message. I guess I would simply say I think it's a bit silly. If you are a non-believer why would you care if someone was a believer? As far as people thinking that those who don't believe in God aren't "good" people, I have not heard that. Maybe it's an assumption made by most athiests?  I would venture a guess that if you did a poll of people, even my listeners, and asked if non-believers were capable of being good people the majority would say yes. Turn that question around and ask if Christians were capable of being bad and the majority of people would probably say yes as well.

Personally I tend to think that the people who go around trying to promote their non-beliefs are the ones who deep down actually do believe that a "God" does exist. Their denial and desire for acceptance seem to be a way to validate their non-beliefs. Perhaps those true non-believers are the ones that don't bother and you never hear from them...

Andrews random video for the day: Over-dramatic weatherman FAIL...

Jon Justice goes after Granny

So the headline of the blog itself is just a tad misleading. However the "God Blogger" did get most of what I said correctly. Yes, I feel that parents, guardians and grandparents (grannies included) should be held "reasonably" responsible for the actions of the minors who are in their care. What "God Blogger" failed to mention was what I stated several times in that "30 minutes" of going "on and on" - Steve Kozachik, as he stated, simply wants more accountabilty. A second offense without a reasonable attempt to stop the kids behavior would warrent charges against the parent or guardian. Kozachik said that he is attempting to keep it from getting that far by providing parents with information on programs and other avenues to help steer their kids in the right direction.

To answer "God Bloggers" question - I do have two children as well and they are 3 and 7 years old. If my kids start tagging I can almost guarantee that as soon as I find out, it won't happen again. And if it did I would certainly be taking steps to stop the behavior above and beyond Steve K's suggestions. Is it so out of the question to expect those who are in charge of minors to take some responsiblity in their continued and repeated bad behavoir? Or, at the very least, expect them to make a reasonable attempt to stop the problem? Apparently according to "God Blogger" it's entirely too difficult to have, yes even Granny, hold their minors responsible. If my kids become too tough for me to manage in years to come I will be sure to let "God-Blogger" know I was wrong.

Andrews random video of the day: Saw this on the news this morning - real or fake?  You be the judge...

After the lengthly talks the past few days over Frank Antenori and his Welform Reform bill I figured I would post a handful of the many emails I received.

_______________________
Jon,

 I have a rather simple solution to the welfare situation.  Make it mandatory for anyone receiving welfare to work at public service type jobs.  All the jobs no one wants to do or that the state can’t afford to pay for anymore.  If you work for welfare you can only make minimum wage, never more than that.  If you don’t work, you don’t get paid (like in the real world).  Got kids?? No problem, have some of the “welfare workers” staff child care facilities and do not allow those with children to staff the child care facilities (maybe having to deal with kids all day will encourage welfare recipients to think before having them).  The key is, no work, no pay and if you want to make more than minimum wage, then you have to get off welfare.  I’ll guarantee you that true welfare cheaters will find another state to live in.  You like?

Best Regards,

D. Cathy
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Jon,
I appreciate what you're doing with the show.  Thanks.

 - On the issue of applying more restrictions to welfare recipients:
I have two family members who, unfortunately, rely on both myself and welfare to get along.  I agree with being more tolerant to those who get jobs and work, and less tolerant to those who load up on goodies and cry wolf about being unable to find work.  I also agree with youself, Antenori and Gowen on wanting to make the recipients less "comfortable" about receiving welfare and wanting to live off of the system.  However, the Antenori / Gowen proposal scares me and here's why:

The proposed legislation can (and will) be mis-interpreted in the future by liberals so that if a recipient violates the terms, such as by buying tobacco and alcohol while receiving welfare, that instead of merely being terminated from welfare (which I think is the proposed idea) the liberals will make it a criminal offense, and thereby justify huge amounts of governmental tax money to be spent on enforcing it.  This would make it more communist than socialist - and that scares me.  Additionally, as we all know, the current administration is wrecking the economy such that many more people will be forced to turn towards welfare.  That effectively means that the government is going to dictate more and more of how we live our lives, and criminal consequences if we don't.  This is Stalinist communism in my opinion, cultural genocide, or whatever you want to call it.  How about "VERY BAD".

History has shown that it is futile to legislate morality (e.g. look at Prohibition), so the government should get out of the morality business entirely.  Let the non-profit organizations (e.g. churches) and for-profit private industry (e.g. unemployment insurance) and family members do it - NOT the government.  The government's prime objective should be (and only be) to protect us, facilitate commerce and protect our freedoms.  THATS IT.  Healh, education and welfare can and should be done through private industry.  That is what made America great in the first place.  Lets not lose the principles that are the foundation of our greatness.  Our founding fathers were wise to this, God bless them.

Keep up the good work.  I love to listen.  Thanks.

Scott

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Jon,
 
You seem to forget that some recipients are also taxpayers and who are going to school to get out of this mess. I am not proud to whip out my food card when I go grocery shopping. That is why I go to the store late at night. I do not get steaks, shrimps, ribs or stuff like that. I actually cook our meals at home. I even get flour to make my own bread in the bread maker!
 
My husband works part time and goes to school online for an associates in criminal justice. I have to put my education on hold for an associates in veterinary technology from Pima Community College because I am due to have my baby next month. I am hoping I can go back to school this fall. My husband is working very hard to support us. He is looking for a second job and he is wanting to volunteer for the Sheriff's Department.
 
We do not abuse the system. We do not drink, smoke, or do drugs. We do not have a car. We do not have cable. We don't wear designer clothes. We do not have a cell phone. The only thing that is considered as an extra is the internet but that is needed for my husband's schooling. The last thing we need is to have a bright orange card identifying us that we are struggling when other people do not know what our story is. I agree with the person who wants to make it illegal to purchase smokes and booze while on government aid. Actually, I want recipients to take a drug test to prove that they are clean to be on the system. Like everyone else, I get annoyed when I see someone (I used to work for Circle K) use their food card to buy $80 worth of junk food and then climb into their Escalade and drive off into the sunset.
 
We are trying to get out of welfare through getting our education. It is only temporary, not forever. Thank you for reading!
 
Air Force veteran (2001-2005)

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Jon,

I believe that the welfare program should be reformed to model the way that the church I attend has it setup.  This last summer I was laid off and had to use our system first hand.  They way it is setup is that we have what are called Bishop store houses, these store houses have foods much like if you were to visit a grocery store.  A person comes to your home every 2 weeks and asseses what the needs are of your family, (food wise) and they fill out a form checking the food items they think you need.  This is then taken and approved by our Bishop, once done you take it down to the store house and your order is filled.  This is not done without strings, you must visit the church career center, actively search for a job, and make sure you get yourself back on your feet asap.  The church does and will help with bills, but as a very last resort, you are NEVER given cash assistance, or given any chances to abuse the system. This may seem a little controling, but people have given us no choice in the matter.  Email me back, I can give you much more info on how this is setup.
 
Thanks,

Stephen  P.S. Love your morning show
_______
Hi,
 
Frank Antenori might want to return to Jonathon Swift's "A Modest Proposal" (1729).
 
People on welfare should sell their plump little 1-year-olds to the rich.  The welfare leaches get compensated for their biological resources/efforts and the wealthy get a delicious new food source.  We cut down on future welfare cheats because they are gobbled up before they can learn the lazy, no-account ways of their parents.
 
And, since we have advanced medically so much since the original writing, we could use those poor teenagers for organ harvesting and stick their healthy hearts, kidneys, eyes, livers, etc. into the rich old farts whose own biological systems are failing.
 
Brilliant, I tell you!  Pass it along to Frank, please.
 
Love & peace-
Mary DeCamp