Marine Maint Price Increases - A Rant

[Freebird]

This is what I know:

The real problems we have today started within the home and how parents raised thier children. What generation(s) dropped the ball ?

Yeah, this has gone off course, but who cares? We are all Hatteras owning adults aren't we?

I can sum this whole thing up with a simple acronym ACLU. "In God We Trust"? Only on our money. Sort of sums things up pretty well, don't you think?

That and a government who will protect us from anything that hurts us unless it makes a lot of money for big companies with big bucks to buy politicians.

Amen?

 

[kwerges]

Okay, can't leave this one alone. As a current law enforcement officer (17 years), and a devout reader of this site, I can see how some of those who have done well financially might see the drug problem as tying up the system, and want to legalize drugs, etc. for convenience. As someone who has been involved in it directly (not just had a cousin twice removed who once tried it), I have seen the lives it destroys and the deaths it causes. Do you really think that legalizing drugs and making them less expensive and more readily available would make things better? Have you ever seen the violence and rage that can come from someone who is under the influence of speed or cocaine, other than watching it on COPS? I would challenge any one who believes in legalizing drugs to ride with a street cop for a night. Then tell me how much better the system will be. You're partially right...you won't be tying up the system with drug users and dealers, it will be tied up with people committing assaults, murders, and thefts. But not because they needed the money for drugs...those were affordable now. It will be because they were stoned out of their minds and couldn't think for themselves. Just my $.02...

Okay, now back to the price of zincs...

 

[Genesis]

Of course, you can't find those murders, assaults, and robberies by stoned zombies in Amsterdam..... where the drugs, while not "technically" legal, are ignored by law enforcement.

Yes, the junkies are stoned zombies. But - they get stoned, they are zombies, and they don't need to steal, rape or pillage to get their dope. They, for the most part, leave those who are not users alone.

Before you tell me that I've not seen it - you're wrong. I have had a serious drug issue - as bad as it gets - in my family. I still support the legalization (and control; sale through pharmacies, not street vendors) of all substances to consenting adults.

 

[Boss Lady]

None of us are going to solve the problem anytime soon. But this country has struggled with the drug abuse problem forever and we have spent several trillion dollars on law enforcement, courts, and jails and have yet to even put a dent in the problem. I risked my neck in Colombia on many deployments during the eighties and nineties during my Army career. The drug money generated here in the US has created a standing terrorist army there, the M19, the FARC and the Sendero Luminoso just to name a few. While I was there I noticed that Colombia did not have a drug problem, they had a drug lord problem that funded the private armies in exchange for protect from the Colombian government. We spent a small fortune to chase down and kill/capture many of the Cali and Cartahena Cartels. Did that slow down the flow of drugs into the US? We have life in prison sentences here for dealing drugs, has that slowed down the quantity of drugs on the streets? No and none of this will as long as it is so profitable and the lifestyle is attractive. We have to take the profit out of. Young people do not want to do the right thing and get an education when they can drop out and become a gang banger with more cash in a year than they could make in five years working their way up the corporate ladder. I see 20 year olds driving cars that their favorite thug sports star is driving and they don't even have a college education, where do you think they get the money? Selling drugs. I can buy drugs just down the street and stolen guns in about 5 minutes. I don't remember being able to do that 20 years ago. We used to hear about the big city problems, but I live in a town with 140 people. Everyone here knows who the drug dealers are but the cops can't seem to figure it out. I could make a video every night if I wanted of drug deals in the open. The DEA has helicopters in the bahamas, AWACS airplanes, satellites and predator drones flying everyday and they catch very few bad guys. This is just the imported drugs, the home grown stuff is made everywhere, crystal meth labs are rampant. We could triple the number of law enforcement officers on the street and that wouldn't even make a dent. I ran a small security company for a couple of years and I had 14 surveillance officers hiding in the bushes every night, we made an average of 12 felony detentions and 30 misdemeanor detentions per month. You can't bust property crimes while driving down the road at 45 miles an hour. There was one theft ring that had chase cars following the cops so they could call their buddies on their Nextel phones and tell them where the patrol officers were at any given time. You guys just catch the stupid ones. there were over 40 people involved in that crime ring when we stopped investigating them and turned it over to the police. None of them did jail time, due to plea bargains. My customers lost hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to theft and vandelism. I detained one 24 year old that confessed that he spent about 60,000 a year on drugs, and he stole three or four times that in actual property value, he steals your $500 camera and gets $40 bucks for it, you do the math. If law enforcement was the answer we would have won already. The problem has not gotten better since we started the war on drugs, it in fact is 10 times worse than when we started.

 

[Passages]

My last word on drugs. To me, our boat is the familys anti-drug. My son, age 13 would rather be on the boat than just about anywhere else. My daughter, age 11, would rather be riding her horse but enjoys the boat if she has a playmate. These kids are not the least bit disaffected and though pre-teen, still enjoy activities as a family. Contrast this to other teens & pre-teens who often prefer to 'hang' in the mall or just 'out' in unsupervised environments.

Are my kids ever going to experiment with drugs - I don't know, but odds are probably. I just pray I've been a good enough parent to instill values in themselves and their future to where drugs are not a significant means of recreation.

 

[Boatsb]

The war on drugs is lost. My personal battle is to keep my son away from the "fashionable drug lifestyle" shown on TV and videos. His visit to the hospital to see me getting my head stiched up after being attacked by crackheads with a crowbar may have helped but I don't recomend it to anyone else.

If we want to keep our kids safe we need to fight the masses of low life entitlement mentality people out there helping bring our kids down to their level. Boating is a way to do it. Not too many unemployed drug addicts on the dock.

 

[Freebird]

Wow, I can't believe this one is still going. Now somebody tell me again why we don't need a little corner in this forum for stuff like this?

Look guys, I may act up from time to time, but I'm no idiot, and I'm no troublemaker, and I have NEVER inhaled ANYTHING or taken any drugs, legal or otherwise, until about 2 years ago. They have bascially ruined my life, even though they were legal and bascially forced on me. My wife even secured a power of attorney which would have forced them down my throat. I won't go off on that here. I'm not taking them any more, but the damage is done. I will say that they must have worked, because I am now back to better than normal now that all that is behind me. It looks like it will have cost me my marriage and a son who I adore. "In sickness and in health"? Apparently not.

We are no longer one nation under God, we are a nation who is over God. We spend billions to "help" people live in poverty. We have become so politically correct that we have simply lost all sight of right and wrong.

Go back a couple of hundred years. Civilized people did not starve. People helped each other because like us, everybody needs help from time to time. Churches took care of the needy, and people went to church. I'm no poster child for christianity, nor do I try to be. But I know who butters my bread.

I think I have the solution (big surprise) that would end most of this problem and many, many more. Do away with currency. Plain and simple. Who the hell buys anything with actual cash any more? The folks we are talking about, and more prevelantly the king pins. Why not have a government issued magnetic debit card? Think about it. Take a percentage of every transaction for federal tax. When private parties exchange funds, they would have to go to a bank and have it done electronically. I dare say most of us use credit cards or debit cards more than cash or checks. Hell, I don't remember the last time I carried a personal checkbook around. I buy 90% of my stuff with a credit card and pay the balance in full with each statement. It helps me keep track better, and it's more convenient.

IMHO this would accomplish many things. It would take cash transactions out of the picture (where would the drug thing go then?). It would eliminate the Treasury Dept. to the extent there would be no more currency. It would eliminate the IRS. NOBODY could hide money from the IRS, and NOBODY could buy anything off the street. Sure, things would probably go back to the barter system, and the druggies would simply go out and steal things to trade for dope. That's what keeps me in business selling safes.

Now, somebody point out why this won't work.

 

[(Nobody You Know)]

I just pray I've been a good enough parent to instill values in themselves and their future to where drugs are not a significant means of recreation.

"Passages",

when I grow up I want to be just like you!

With respect to Passages "passage", concerned as we all are it's the federal "overhead" burden that we as taxpayers must bear that indirectly makes us less competitive in a global economy. Hence those sacrificial annodes you are sticking under the boat are now "precious metals". In 2003 5/8" three strand nylon rope (line) sold for .48/ft. at Lowes Home Improvement. Last time I checked it was .96. Seems we all kind of get the feeling that things are going up considerably more than they should be (forgot to factor in rising fuel/transportation costs which effects all commodoties).

Hopefull Supply and Demand, which is NOT OPTIONAL in any government system (democracy, oligarcy, dictatorship, etc.) will come through on the "supply" side and sooner than later some prices will subside.

What a thread.

 

[Genesis]

A cashless society would simply allow the government to hide tax increases and the cost of its operation.

Who uses cash? I do. All the time. And losing access to it would be serious, not only here but abroad.

It'll never happen, IMHO, although the government would love it where it to. And it wouldn't stop the dope dealing even if it did. There ARE commodities that are just as good - or better - than cash.

Try guns, for example....

 

[Freebird]

My last word on drugs. To me, our boat is the familys anti-drug. My son, age 13 would rather be on the boat than just about anywhere else. My daughter, age 11, would rather be riding her horse but enjoys the boat if she has a playmate. These kids are not the least bit disaffected and though pre-teen, still enjoy activities as a family. Contrast this to other teens & pre-teens who often prefer to 'hang' in the mall or just 'out' in unsupervised environments.

Are my kids ever going to experiment with drugs - I don't know, but odds are probably. I just pray I've been a good enough parent to instill values in themselves and their future to where drugs are not a significant means of recreation.

AMEN!

Now somebody tell me that the social side of boating is not key. Leadership by example is what our kids need. Pay an illiterate moron millions to play sports. Glamorize tobacco and alchohol use on TV and movies. I only hope that I can get my son involved in boating and outdoor activities that will give him a better appreciation of real life. I plan to teach him that if he wants toys, he has to work for them just like Daddy and Mommy did. He loves to ride in "Daddy's big boat" and "Daddy's big truck". He loves people, and I hope that doesn't change.

We recently (yesterday) put Ryan into another day care facility. Unfortunately, the primary factor is that it will be one that his mother can conveniently take him to when I'm out of the picture. He had been less than 1/2 mile from my office. This is a good thing though because the new school is more structured and hands on. The old one had him in front of a TV most of the day watching educational stuff. We all know where that eventually leads. A TV zombee with a library of anti-social video games.

I had actually built a nursery for him in my office and had taken him to work with me every day once Michelle went back to work. That continued until I ran into a brick wall with a health problem. I had intended to be the one who would either be praised or blamed for how he turned out, looks like that will change now at least to an extent. I hope all that time I spent with him has helped. He got used to meeting new people every day, and I think that has done him good.

Okay parents, go give your kid a hug. Take them out on the boat every chance you get. Take them fishing, hunting, whatever it takes to get them out of the house and away from a television or computer. Burn every Rap CD you can get your hands on (don't even get me started on that one). Take them to church and teach them there is more to life than just themselves. Talk to them about drugs, alcohol, and tobacco and start early. Remember the leadership thing. "Do as I say, not as I do" just doesn't get it. Then maybe, just maybe, our generation will be the last of the self-centered "me" generation who has lost their way in so many areas.

I'm done.

 

[Freebird]

A cashless society would simply allow the government to hide tax increases and the cost of its operation.

Who uses cash? I do. All the time. And losing access to it would be serious, not only here but abroad.

It'll never happen, IMHO, although the government would love it where it to. And it wouldn't stop the dope dealing even if it did. There ARE commodities that are just as good - or better - than cash.

Try guns, for example....

Guns? Okay, I thought I was done.

My primary business is gun safes. It may sound self serving, but I think anyone who owns a gun should be legally required to keep them in a safe. This is the only effective means of gun control. Keep them in the hands of law abiding citizens who went through all the government crap to buy them. Guns are the number one trade for dope item in our country. Lock em up, and this takes guns away from criminals as a law certainly won't do that. It keeps guns out of criminal hands, and it protects our children from them as well.

Cash? Come on Karl, get off that anti-government high horse. Think about it, what is cash worth if you are stranded on an island with no food or water? It may come in handy for building a fire, but nothing else.

What is cash worth on the street? It is priceless and can buy anything your little heart desires. The big guys just have to set up fake businesses to launder it. It would have no effect on world trade as I can assure you those guys don't deal in suitcases full of cash.

I just think that the elimination of untraceable finances would take drugs off the street. If I am a drug lord, I'm going to get real tired of guns, TV's, and computers. What the hell am I going to do with all this stuff? Have a yard sale? That won't help me build a billion dollar underground business.

 

[Genesis]

You're dreaming Randy.

First, the United States is not the world. How are you going to eliminate everyone else's money?

You want guns in safes? Not me. I want my home defense weapon accessible if I need it. The law says it must be inaccessible to kids - good. That doesn't mean locked up in a big gun safe. My hunting rifle? Sure. That's not an appropriate weapon to use on a home invader anyway - too much overpenetration to be a rational choice.

Second, if you pass laws requiring you to have guns where you want them only law-abiding citizens will care - and comply. Think you can stop the trade in guns? How come, given that you can't stop the trade in drugs! Its no harder to smuggle some guns.....

Guess what Randy? Its illegal to own a handgun in Chicago. Guess what the firearm is of choice among drug dealers in Chicago? It ain't a shotgun or deer rifle and it ain't a Glock either.

You think criminals want $500+ handguns? Bah. Too expensive. They want cheap and cheaper - after you shoot someone with it that firearm is a huge liability because it can be traced to the bullet AND YOU. Therefore, disposable arms are important to these people - not high-quality, accurate weapons. The drug dealers aren't running around sporting Glocks in their pants and they sure as hell aren't interested in your deer rifle. Try again.

As for kids, get your son into Montessori if you can. That way he's LEARNING instead of being warehoused. Daycare sucks. There are times its NECESSARY, but when its not, it sucks.

If you stay involved and truly care your kids are less likely to abuse drugs. But you can't fix anyone ELSE'S kids - only yours. Boating is a great diversion but if you think its proof against drug abuse you're sadly mistaken.

You can biatch about people using drugs when you give up your beer, wine and liquor, and ban tobacco. Until then you're a hypocrite. Truth is, you just don't like other people's choice of drug - yours, however, is perfectly ok, right?

All illegal drugs combined kill about 5,000 people in the US annually. Alcohol and tobacco kill 100 times as many, each and every year.

Legalize and regulate it and the criminal element's money supply is cut off. You can't stop someone who wants to get stoned from doing so - there's 5,000 years of recorded history that says all such attempts are doomed to fail - but you can get rid of the societal harm caused by our current polciies.

Anti-government? Ever read "The Federalist"? No? You shouldn't be able to graduate High School without doing so. The Second Amendment exists precisely because the founders were very afraid of the government. That part of our Constitution does not exist to protect your right to shoot deer or pheasant for dinner, nor does it exist so you can shoot a drug-crazed home invader.

 

[Freebird]

Okey dokey, now I'm done.

 

[thoward]

The reason for the Second Amendment is to protect States Rights by way of a militia......It is not intended to be aimed at the individual.

I choose to keep my guns in a safe at home. I think keeping the guns away from kids is outweighs the security of them being out. Now on the boat it is a different story, they are locked, loaded and at hand.

All drugs including alcohol are bad news if you get hooked. I sit on the fence when it comes to legalization of any drugs/alcohol. We know prohibition did not work and neither does the war on drugs. If you smoke a little dope you are not going to rise up and go on a rampage but PCP is another story... If drugs were legalized I do not think we would become a country of addicts but I also do not think it will stop theft and many other crimes.

 

[Genesis]

The reason for the Second Amendment is to protect States Rights by way of a militia......It is not intended to be aimed at the individual.

You need to read that Second Amendment again.

It clearly protects an individual - not a collective - right.

"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. "

Note that it does not say "The right of the states" or "the right of the state militias".

If you read The Federalist (which is why I referenced it earlier!) you'd find that the words "well regulated" means "able to direct fire accurately" (and not "under the command of a general") You would also find that "militia" refers to two different but overlapping bodies of armed men - one being recognized as "organized" (e.g. state organized military units) and the latter being defined as all able-bodied men!

Do the research guys and gals.... its out there.

As for firearms and boats, we've gone over that one here before. Before you think you can repel boarders at sea with whatever you have on hand I strongly suggest you engage in some target practice under realistic conditions on board and consider carefully the legal implications. In US waters it is perfectly acceptable to carry, but this is not true in many non-US jurisdictions, and there are even some US ones where its potentially SERIOUS trouble (e.g. on and around Chicago), especially if your armament includes pistols.

 

[Freebird]

I firmly believe in the Right To Arm and Keep Bears!
Well once again, I thought I was done. Hope nobody holds that against me as a character flaw.

Hey, I'm a certified gun nut. "If Guns Are Outlawed, Only Outlaws Would Have Them"? I used to see this as anti-gun as I felt they were calling me an outlaw because I like guns. Now I see it as pro-gun, do you really only want the outlaws to have guns?

Kinda like a lot of things on the forum, a simple statement can be looked at in two distincly different ways, and neither will be wrong.

"Guns Don't Kill People, People Kill People" No mistaking that one, and it is my favorite. Used that one in college on a public speaking class project. You're preaching to the choir when you tell me gun laws won't work, period. At the risk of a sermon, making it a law to lock them up would. The guys who break that law would just be at risk of having their guns stolen by other criminals. I trust the trees aren't blocking the view of the forest with that one.

To that end, see the prayer below.

 

[Passages]

OK, we're not talking drugs, so I can jump back in.

Below is one of my all time favorite threads on the forum. I took Genesis head on regarding the issue of gun control. I think I lost the debate but I loved the exchange.

Sit back & enjoy this one:

http://www.samsmarine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2471

 

[Freebird]

WOW! Thanks for the link. So off-topic threads really did exist pre-Freebird!

Okay, once again my silence shall be broken. Okay guys, me vs the bad guy, bad guy loses aka whoever shoots last wins.

I have never advocated locking every gun up. I am a firm believer in keeping a loaded gun handy both in the house and on the boat for defensive purposes. The only thing I would say is that you damn well better know how to use it, and you better have the guts to use it, or the bad guy make take it away from you and use it himself. Not a scenario that I wish to happen to me or to anyone else. I am no bad ass, but I think I would have little trouble pulling the trigger on a threat to me or my family. I pray I never have to find out.

There are several quick access security boxes on the market to protect unauthorized use. I have one of these on the boat now as I am not living at home these days. I have a 3 year old, and I am certainly going to do everything to protect him.

 

[hunshatt]

what about to defend the future x Mrs freebird?????????

Thuddddddddd

 

[Freebird]

LOL I have provided a Polish target pistol to help her in my absence. I wish I could draw if for you on here, but it is a six shot revolver where the barrel points backwards. Used to be a good joke poster in the gun business.

Thanks for asking. Does anybody up in your area have Tony Soprano's cell number? I seem to have lost it.