Archive for the ‘National issues’ Category

10 – 1 ) The nation reels from the deadly school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. For more on that, go to this post.

Having had the weekend to process what happened Friday at Sandy Hook Elementary School, I’ve collected several related thoughts and presented them below. I’m not inclined to dwell on any one topic at this point, but I expect I will respond to any comments.

* When the initial shock fades and the business of honoring the dead is finished, the county needs to have two critical discussions, the first of which is the state of mental health care in this country. There are still way too many cracks to slip through and too much stigma to overcome…although incidents such as this contribute to that stigma and too easily undo any progress our society has made.

* Conversation number two, like it or not, is about our nation’s gun laws. The conversation cannot be about a universal ban on citizens uninvolved with the military or law enforcement communities possessing firearms, nor can it be about relaxing gun laws so much that everyone can have them and carry them unrestricted. Both perspectives are grossly unrealistic. That said, pro-Second Amendment folks need to accept the fact that firm, common-sense gun laws are NOT a step toward “taking away our guns” but a step toward the goal they claim to support: keeping guns available to law-abiding citizens who will not abuse them.

* The nation’s allegedly declining mortality is not a necessary conversation, because this had nothing to do with the gunman’s — or anyone’s — morality. It has to do with one sick individual acting out in a way that made some twisted form of sense in his mind. Using this incident as a lever to push a simplistic agenda for putting society on a proper moral path is both futile and ignorant of the complexity of the many, many topics that play into this tragedy.

* This is one of those times when I am ashamed of my profession. Sticking camera and microphones in the faces of traumatized children to get their feedback on what happened? Disgusting. I would have paid good money for one of those kids to kick a reporter in the shins…or higher, if he could have reached.

* Anyone who honestly believes that this horror was the direct result of the absence of religion in schools needs to re-examine just who they believe God is. What Mike Huckabee and his fundamentalist ilk are saying is, basically, God is such a petty, needy, spiteful, vindictive, callous, heartless being that He would allow the slaughter of innocent children — including those who were and came from people of faith — to prove a point and terrify people into worshiping Him. This is the sort of bile that drives people away from religion and helps paint those of faith who are putting their belief to good use, e.g., comforting those affected by the tragedy, in an undeserved unflattering light.

* Speaking of religious idiots, of course the opportunistic jackasses of the Westboro Baptist Church are planning to picket the memorial services and funerals…and the Ku Klux Klan — yes, THAT Ku Klux Klan — is planning to counter-protest the church. What does it say about the WBC when a hate group like the KKK says you’re going too far?

* Finally, just as in the wake of Columbine, school officials and parents are looking at school security and wondering what they can do to keep their kids safer. Short answer: you can’t do anything, not unless you turn schools into prisons.

After Columbine, schools began implementing security measures that ranged from reasonable and common-sense (locking all access points to the school during the day and driving visitors to a single secure entrance) to a little outrageous (making kids and visitors go through metal detectors). None of that made a difference to the shooter, who forced his way past the school’s safeguards.

What else do people want to do? High concrete walls topped with razor wire? Snipers in high guard towers? Dogs patrolling the school grounds? It won’t matter; if someone wants to get in badly enough, he’ll find a way in, and quite possibly in a manner no one every saw coming because, as has been said, you cannot predict crazy and you can’t prepare for everything. Seal off the schools and someone might go for the buses. Secure the buses they might go for kids at bus stops. Protect kids at the stops and maybe someone will just forget the school entirely and for the after-school youth club or the local mall or the prom.

The truth no one ever wants to accept is this: no one is 100 percent safe 100 percent of the time, and anything adults do in response to Sandy Hook is going to be more for their own peace of mind than for their kids’ safety.

Adults should take some comfort in the fact that such shootings are, really, very rare. I hasten to add that if it happens even once a century, it’s one time too many, but look at the numbers: there are approximately 99,000 public schools in the U.S. (National Center for Education Statistics) and school is open for 180 days a year (U.S. Department of Education). In 2012 there have been four incidents of gun violence in a public school (Information Please database). That’s four days of fatal gun violence out of 17.82 million school days per year.

The secret to reducing, if not eliminating those four days is not to place children in lockdown 24 – seven. All that does is teach them to be afraid all the time. All it does is rob them of something they need to be successful adults: a chance to experience life, good and bad, and learn how to deal with the trials and traumas that will inevitably come their way.

Friday marks a major day: it is the 14th annual observation of Thank God I Don’t Work in Retail Anymore Day, marked by me in a quiet, tasteful ceremony that involves feeling sorry for the poor SOBs who have yet to escape Retail Hell. I hold this ceremony from the cozy confines of my bed.

This year I’m expecting Black Friday to be a bit of an ugly affair since many national retail companies are planning to open earlier than ever before — midnight or even Thanksgiving evening — which means workers get to sacrifice even more of their holiday catering to the whims of corporate heads who get to sleep in. Across the country Walmart and Target employees in particular are staging strikes and walkouts to protest these ridiculous early openings.

If you agree that Black Friday (which is slowing morphing into Black Thursday) is getting out of control — well, don’t forget to first look in the mirror, because you may have played a role in this; the shopping public is as much responsible for these increasingly early openings by doing exactly what the retail giants want you to do: turn out by the thousands at the crack of dawn or earlier to spend spend spend.

“But the bargains,” you might say, “the bargains!”

Which is important why, exactly? Are you really saving money? Or is this a case of fuzzy consumer math wherein you drop $500 on a lot of junk — more than you planned on spending on Christmas gifts — but instead focus like a laser on the $50 you didn’t spend because everything was on sale and think you’ve somehow come out ahead? And do you really think that giving someone a less expensive, elaborate gift somehow diminishes the emotions behind the act of gift-giving?

Besides which, A) a lot of the best bargains are going to be scooped up before you even get in the door, and you know it, and B) there are going to be a LOT more sales in the coming four weeks that are just as good, so why not spare yourself the headache of standing outside a store in the freezing cold for several hours?

Now, a few friends have made the argument to me that with the economy still on shaky legs, the public kind of needs to go crazy on spending. Christmas shopping equals economic stimulus, they say, and a lot of retailers are adding seasonal jobs to handle the mad rush (700,000 temp retail jobs according to Forbes).

Okay, valid point, but that argument only goes so far. First of all, yes, any work is better than no work for those who need it, but there is only so much salvation to be found in a part-time minimum wage gig with no benefits that will maybe last until January.

Also, remember that these are national retailers we’re talking about, and a lot of that revenue is going to funnel up to the upper echelons of corporate leadership before it turns into job creation at the rank-and-file level.

You want to have a real impact on the economy? Shop locally.

Yes, I’m one of those.

As I’ve stated here before, small businesses, not large corporations, are the true backbone of the American economy. The US Small Business Administration found that of the approximately 27 million businesses operating in the U.S., 78 percent of them have fewer than 10 employees, and 61 percent have fewer than five — and, collectively, community-based small businesses have generated 64 percent of all new jobs created within the past 15 years.

Add to that the fact that, according to various studies, much more money remains in the local economy if it is spent at a local business than if it goes to a national chain. One sponsored by Local First, “Local Works! Examining the Impact of Local Business on the West Michigan Economy” (2008), stated that $68 out of every $100 spent at a local business remains in the community versus $43 out of every $100 spent at a business that is not locally owned.

Added bonus of shopping at a small business: the owners are going to sleep in on Friday, so you can too.

American Express a few years ago launched the Small Business Saturday initiative to spotlight the value and importance of shopping locally, and in that spirit I’m going to plug a few small businesses I think readers should check out:

Coffee Obsession (Falmouth): While I am a dedicated Starbucks junkie, Coffee O deserves your love. Grab a gift card or a pound of ground coffee or one of the many funky coffee makers they have on sale.

Cupcake Charlie’s (Mashpee and Plymouth): My tongue is sad that I don’t get to Cupcake Charlie’s as often as I do, but my waistline is grateful it’s a rare treat — but it is absolutely a treat. I dig the Peanut Butter Pleasure, but if you ever have a chance to snag the Ginger Snap cupcake, DO IT. Get a gift card or buy some cupcakes for your holiday party.

Peking Palace and Paul’s Pizza (Falmouth): Respectively the best Chinese food and pizza in town. Gift certificates for everyone!

Geeky and Cheeky: My friend Jess runs this business, which makes fun handmade dolls and puppets for all ages, including the nerdy adults in your life. She does custom work as well!

Richard Maclone Photography (Falmouth): You might know him as the Enterprise’s sports editor, but my buddy Rich is also a crack portrait and wedding photographer (he did a fantastic job at my wedding).

And now, the self-serving portion of the post…

Enterprise Newspapers (Barnstable, Bourne, Falmouth, Mashpee, Sandwich): Buy a gift subscription for a family member or a friend. Keep them well-informed of what’s going on in their town and keep me in coffee and cupcakes.

Storied Threads: My wife’s endeavor, which caters heavily to the geek crowd in the form of embroidered patches, bags, scarves, and period clothing and accessories.

Do you have a favorite locally owned small business you want to highlight? Go ahead and post a link!