Vacation in Book Five: Working Through the Maze 2018

I’m torn. I’m happy that next week is Christmas because I certainly need some time off; but I already know that my Christmas “time off” will be much like most of my weekends of late. Hustle, driving, busy-ness, and little relaxation.

I’m just… rather getting sick of the world. In all avenues. I see, locally, the worst of it. Child Molesters and worse. This kind of thing pisses me off: We have a woman who was beat to hell by her boyfriend… beaten so badly that the Police noted several times that she was sobbing and shaking and hysterical. But of course a few days by herself is too much to handle. She cooperated with her abuser’s friends to sneak the abuser back into the county under cover of night (because there is a warrant out for him), then called to get the No Contact Order lifted (I said we couldn’t deal with that until he was arrested for the crime itself), then participated in an elaborate scheme in an attempt to hide her abuser from the police. So… he beats you so badly that we use 3 cops and a Traumatic Abuse Counselor… but a few days by yourself is too much to bare?

And then I look to the wider world. And I see that the United States is in an abusive relationship. We have a man in charge who gets to lie, create fake narratives and false realities, acts like he’s the victim no matter what he does, gaslights at every opportunity.... no wonder the Country is divided!
Like an abusive relationship, we’re all taking on the roles.
Anti-Trump Civilians are like the abused victim’s family and friends saying, “Please, see what he’s doing to you. Don’t let this continue.”
Anti-Trump Government Employees are like the abuser’s family and friends saying, “Dude, what you’re doing is NOT cool. I mean, we’re still friends and all, but that is not cool.”
Pro-Trump Government Employees are like the abuser’s enabling family and friends saying, “Dude, don’t let other people tell you how to live your life. They’re just jealous of what you’ve got.”
Pro-Trump Civilians are both enabling friends and the abused themselves (though, the whole country is the true victim of the abuse). They make excuses for him going so far as to say that the people that are trying to help are the bad guys. A familiar thing I hear often in my job. “You won’t drop the No Contact Order and you’re still trying to get him in trouble. You’re a monster!” Yeah, I am the monster. You were strangled to blacking out by this man, but I’m the monster.

Not to mention just… all the racism and gender bullshit out in the world. I want to live in a world where we don’t have half of the world saying “See this problem, this problem sucks.” while the other half of the world says “I see the problem, but refuse to do anything about it.” It’s like… fuck people. Fix problems. Why have we become a world so willing to say “Yeah, I see the hole. Nah, I’m not gonna do anything about it. I mean somebody should but I’m not gonna.” Urghf.

So yeah. That’s where I am at the START of my week. It isn’t exactly helped by the fact that in order to get Alone Time to Decompress, I need to schedule in video game time like a freaking appointment. I get it. There are a million and one things to do around this time of year; plus add on the house; plus add on the fact that Wife isn’t exactly socially inclined so it is her by herself all day then I come home, so she doesn’t want to be alone then. I get it. Not to mention that I really do need to drink less when playing video games. But… with everything in the world and life being as it is… ticking off items on an Achievement List while occupying a world where, if things go wrong you can just reload your save… that is comforting to me.

In related shit, one thing that I am worried about with the Internet Age of opinion is how old things become new excuses to go after someone. Like “We found out that ten years ago you said something that is offensive in this day and age. We must now end your career.” That shit is infuriating. And worrisome.

Friends, a decade ago… I was a conservative. A decade before that (so 1994) I was openly Anti-Gay. The idea that an argument against abortion that I was involved in 13 years ago could become a political weight around my neck dragging me down offends me. People can change. People can take in new information, re-assess their position, and decide that they were once wrong. Besides, my previous points were often nuanced. Gay Marriage? I was opposed. HOWEVER that opposition was not based on anti-gay sentiment, but on a stricter interpretation of Church/State separation that went on to suggest that the Government should not recognize any marriage but require Civil Union in all cases that merit government benefits. Abortion? I was opposed. HOWEVER that opposition was not total and final, I was still in favor in cases of incest, rape, health of child, health of mother. But in today’s Meme/Outrage Culture? All that would be shared as “Anti Gay Anti Abortion Hypocrite Running as Democrat”.

I honestly am worried about stuff like this. For me, true, but for our society. A 40 year old should not be punished for non-criminal actions committed by his 28 year old self. That just seems… foolish and mean-spirited.

Not sure if anyone cares or is interested but the BBC typically does a good job sharing the news without speculation. Often times, I find myself reading a BBC article and thinking “But I wanted to know more” before realizing that the BBC only put in the article things that they could verify. So when they publish “Nineteen Year Old Goes on Shooting Spree” and don’t make wild unverified claims as to why he did it… that is responsible journalism. That is good.

What can get murky is when they have their North American Expert write about things that “are developing.” Which means… this is going on, but it isn’t met with the same strict “No Speculation” requirement that other articles get. One such article, for those interested, is a look at “6 Legal Headaches for the President”.

From a different BBC Article, I just read a quote from Mick Mulvaney (now acting Chief of Staff for the White House) that perfectly summarizes the 2016 election and how a jackass like Trump became President: “I’ve decided that I don’t particularly like Donald Trump as a person. But I am still voting for him. And I am still asking other people to do the same. And there is one simple reason for that: Hillary Clinton.”

Also from the BBC: A report is being published this week about Russian Interference into the election via Social Media. A problem that almost every intelligence office says is REAL but which our President says is FAKE. The report was put together by University of Oxford’s Computational Propaganda Project and the social network analysis firm Graphika. The research details a vast campaign spearheaded by the Internet Research Agency - a Russian company that has been described by the United States Intelligence Community as a troll farm with ties to the Russian government. The report says Russia had a particular focus on targeting conservatives with posts on immigration, race and gun rights. There were also efforts to undermine the voting power of left-leaning African-American citizens, by spreading misinformation about the electoral process.
It will be… interesting… to see how the American Government responds to that report. If they reject the report? It will mean we’re seeing Trump’s “Any means necessary” approach affect the entire Government Infrastructure. If they release it without comment, that may mean we’re seeing people within the government deciding whether they want to be in Trump’s corner or not.

In other “The Head of the Executive Branch doesn’t understand the law” news:
“A REAL scandal is the one sided coverage, hour by hour, of networks like NBC & Democrat spin machines like Saturday Night Live. It is all nothing less than unfair news coverage and Dem commercials. Should be tested in courts, can’t be legal? Only defame & belittle! Collusion?” the President tweeted. The “fairness in reporting” act was originally defeated to allow Conservative Radio Shows to continue being one-sided. During the W. Bush administration, Fox News continually called for voters to reject any bill that required “equal coverage” to both sides of an issue. Meanwhile, the Reality TV President is pissed that he remains the topic of the news? Friend… all of your colleagues are getting fired or indicted. You’re the President of the United States of America and constantly act like a spoiled toddler. Of course you’re going to be reported on. However, smarter men than I have pointed to the President’s Twitter Feed as something far more meaningful. The President can sense that his support is waning. People don’t want to be his Chief of Staff. The Democrats will request his Tax Returns. Bob Mueller continues to indict and convict Trump Associates. Trump is tweeting like a crazy person because he’s freaking out.
As to the actual “request” the President of the United States is making? It is illegal as fuck. Public Person exceptions meet First Amendment Parody exceptions in this case so obviously that a concussed parrot in a Pre-Law Classroom would tell you it’s a stupid thing to say.
“Despite their sometimes caustic nature, from the early cartoon portraying George Washington as an ass down to the present day, graphic depictions and satirical cartoons have played a prominent role in public and political debate,” chief justice William Rehnquist.

And just a slight share. The Atlantic tries to tackle the question “Where are all the Adults in Congress as Trump acts like the toddler demanding the world stop to placate his desires.”

Hrm. I almost forgot! It would have been the first time in almost twenty years! WOW time moves fast!!

Between 9:00 and 10:30 a.m. on December 17, 1999… I asked a girl out and for the first time she said yes. While I had girlfriends and girl problems prior to 1999… 12/17/99 is the date where everything went “the way it is supposed to go.” I asked a girl to be my girlfriend, she said yes, we became a dating couple and a few weeks later, she gave me my first romantic kiss. How different every element of life would be if I knew then what I know now! 19 years makes for quite a difference!

Court Calendar for next year came out. Thanks to increased budget cuts from our Conservative Legislature, there are 9 court dates for District Court. District Court, in Iowa, is the court that deals with Felony cases. SO… any felonies that weren’t dealt with in 2018 will be competing with all of the felonies committed in 2019 for those spots. Do you think that 9 days is sufficient for an entire year of felony cases?
This is
(a) why Private Practice has a lot more “trial” to it. Instead of 9 days for District, 12 days for District Associate, and 12 days for Magistrate.... a Private Practice Attorney may have trials every day in a week because they do so many different counties and do both Criminal and Civil cases.
(b) why Government Attorneys are paid the way we are. Some would look at our paychecks and object, saying “If there are only 33 trial days a year, why are you paid so well?!” But there are layered answers there. First, if you didn’t entice lawyers with decent pay, they’d never take the job. Most attorneys are thinking “Private Practice: 80k to 120k, then I make partner and make 150k-220k”. Government employees are more: “50k to 80k, then if I go after an elected position, there’s a chance I could make over 100k.” Second, the pay we get is to off-set the horrors of the compromises we have to deal with when we’re staring at a grand total of 33 trial dates. 9 Felony Dates means we have to make choices like “Do we try the Pedophile, the Drug Dealer, or the Murderer? Because whoever we don’t try, needs to get offered a plea deal good enough that he’ll take it.” So imagine that. Lets say the Murderer demands his day in court; says that the killing was self-defense and thinks the jury will buy that excuse. Okay, so now I have to explain to the Victim Child’s Parents why the man charged with sexually assaulting a 9 year old was only convicted of Assault Intending Sexual Contact. “Why is he on probation?! He should be in jail!!!” Even if I agree, I had to offer him something he would take because we literally are unable to get him into court to try this case. The alternative to a plea offer is that we try to get the case scheduled for 1 year and, if unable to at that point, the case is dismissed entirely for Failure to Prosecute.

So that is what I get to look forward to. The hard choices and hard conversations stemming from fucking budget cuts. But “no, no… we don’t believe the government should have programs or budgets because the people will use their money better than a government institution.” Fine. Where’s that responsible money use for Homeless Kids, Abuse Victims, Homeless Veterans, Law Enforcement?

I suppose I’ll end here with this:

Over the weekend I had a nightmare. It was… mixing some of the worst elements of some of my past jobs.
It was a lawfirm that operated identically to the Call Center I once worked when I was a telemarketer. The people in CHARGE of that firm were my bosses from Private Firm. It was… rough, to say the least!

Last updated December 17, 2018