Rasta Rants

Original Post America is in trouble. Anyone who does not believe this needs to take a serious look around. This Ferguson Missouri event is very alarming on a number of levels. I'm going to attempt to analyze two of them. First lets review the actual event in Ferguson. No not the shooting of young Mr. Brown but the aftermath. In the US legal system a grand Jury is used as an impartial community body that carefully studies evidence around a crime at the behest of the presiding DA. Their primary responsibility is to decide whether that evidence is sufficient and compelling enough to warrant charges being brought against a suspect. They are not a regular jury and they do their work in complete privacy. So was it appropriate for the Missouri DA to call a grand jury to investigate this event/crime? Some say it was not but I disagree. In light of the fact that our President overreacted to this event and involved the Federal Justice department I think the DA was left with no other

I am confused and sad. All the polls for the last three years have shown the growing frustration and dislike the American people have for Congress. Actually, the approval rating for Congress is at 15% as of June. 9% was the lowest it has been in history and that happened late last year. Since 2012 we have averaged about 13% approval rating. I am one of those angry and frustrated Americans. The Congress has shown complete inability to conduct the business of the country and has bickered non stop since Obama took power. The have shown that their primary interest is their own political careers and not the will of the people. We are a laughing stock worldwide and this gridlock has affected our economy and foreign policy negatively. So here is the hypocrisy. If we hate the job the Congress is doing and we all agree that parties aside they are not performing to standards we the people have set, why don't we fire them? I just don't understand. We are a Democracy (really a republic

What a glorious time it is in automotive history? Of course if we exclude the horrid sounding new F1 cars. Yes, this is a time of new design and propulsion. It is a time of new materials and manufacturing methods. A time of extreme electronics and aerodynamics. It is a grand time at the top of the automotive food chain. Three amazing cars have been launched in limited production. The La Ferrari, the McLaren P1 and the new Porsche 918. All are very expensive and very fast. Some are sexier than others but as I always say taste is in the mouth. Lets take a look at each. Porsche 918 The Porsche 918 is the most "pedestrian" of the three with a price tag of approximately $850,000. I happen to think it is a beautiful car. The design is aggressive but not in a flashy way. It seems stout yet balanced. In a strange way it appears manly and who does not love the mufflers coming out up top of the engine cover - cool! The Porsche is actually called the 918 Spyder. This

I know this is a strange title but I think it is time we chat about this. Men and women have very different feelings about this common tool of life and some of our mores are hilarious. Billions of people use a toilet multiple times a day. We actually have an interesting relationship with toilets. Here are some facts about toilets before we go any further: There is strong debate over who invented the first toilet - the Greeks or the Scots Nearly 2 billion people still don't have normal sanitation (toilets) In 1596 Sir John Harrington invented the water closet - precursor to the modern toilet Some 200 years later Alexander Cummings developed the S shape to keep foul odors out In the 1880's Thomas Crapper installed many toilets in royal palaces - he did not invent the modern toilet - oh Crap - I thought he did! In 1775 Joseph Bramah modified Cummings design and developed the hinged flap and the float valve system which he patented in 1778 In the nineteenth century flush to

There have been a number of big issues that have hit our country in the last 30 days and I feel perhaps we are not using basic logic in reacting to them. Here are my thoughts in no particular order. Supreme Court Rulings The Court has ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby on the issue of delayed contraception being provided by health plans. Specifically the Court in a 5-4 vote said that "closely held private corporations" who object on the basis of religious beliefs can deny paying for these types of contraception. It went on to say that thee religious objections cannot be expanded to affect critical/normal medical care. So here are the facts. Their are 14 types of contraception typically sold on the market and covered by ACA approved plans. Hobby Lobby objects to 4 on religious grounds. Those 4 are primarily "morning after" type drugs that Hobby Lobby equates to as abortion type drugs. Since their belief is that life starts at conception these drugs violate that beli