49ers in Santa Clara

A measure in support of a new stadium for the 49ers in Santa Clara is going on our June ballot. There are groups against this activity. It is always easier for opposition to confuse issues in the minds of people. They are trying to do that here with rather silly points. One argument I've seen used against the stadium is that it would require more police on the day of the 49er games. Umm, of course it will. This is job creation and good for the economy!

Another thing I don't understand is the statement that projects like this shouldn't use public funds. This never made sense to me. This is America, right? Investment is the American way! If we expect to have financial gain, we should be willing to put some cash up as an investment.

The proposed stadium location is within a mile of my house (walking distance). It's near 3 freeways and right next to a mass transit station. It's going to create 2650 game day jobs and bring in an estimated $249 million dollars a year once it is built. Millions of money from taxes will be available for local programs.

If the stadium is truly state of the art, it will likely be chosen by the NFL as the sight for future Super Bowls. Just one Super Bowl in Santa Clara could bring much more money and prestige.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to just getting this dang thang built by the 2014 goal.

Silent Craft Overhead

A friend of my family once told me that he had spotted dark aircraft at night flying down along the Salinas Valley. This was a couple of decades ago. He associated his sitings with military aircraft flying to and from various military bases in California. One story he told me struck me as most memorable. One night, a silent aircraft hovered a couple hundred feet from the ground over his neighborhood. He saw the aircraft beaming down a search light pointed at various places as it quietly moved overhead his location. It couldn't have been a helicopter because he would've heard and even felt it at that distance. He associated this experience with secret U.S. military aircraft. I don't know what he saw, but given my limited knowledge about aircraft, I don't know of any now or then that could hover nearly in place without making some sort of loud noise. He took this experience as evidence that UFO sightings where spotted secret military planes.

Lie There Lame

I know you’re not a bad person,
Though opposite seemed true before.
It may seem there was no reason,
You must now know my soul you tore.

Riving sword strokes my words became.
Your shield didn’t fulfill its mission,
yet you and I both lie there lame,
A self-punishing transgression.

My sorrow is too great to hide
But something is even more true
Libraries would fill if I tried
To write words of my love for you.

Casted Braches (old version)

Night’s pale spirit dashes spiderwebbing upon earth,
Like villians cast onto silver screens,
Lying without breath; but breathing, as wind affects,
To spook our children on All Hallows’ Eve.

Creaks and cackles echo,
While creep jostles our own essence.
This comforts ghosts banned from bliss,
As they hide from Inferno’s joy.

Clamoring so, and wailing,
Lost souls seek new abodes;
Haunting our windows as light upon memories;
Whisking about, agitated, frustrated…
then night wanes.

Apollo rides out to sweep away specters and their weeps,
And cast spiderwebs of His own...
Comfort brought to little ones as they arise,
Oblivious to the crypts under tread.

Toyota "They did not have any respect for our laws."

I've long been suspicious of Toyota as a company. Of course, I don't trust any corporation. However, foreign companies whose lies result in the death of Americans leave a particularly bad taste in my mouth. Recent comments by a former Toyota top attorney, Dimitri Biller, really brings the point home. Biller and Toyota are now suing each other. Why is Toyota suing Biller? Because he decided break his silence, the very same silence that they apparently thought they purchased from him for $3.9 million in 2007.

Biller has stated, "you have to understand that Toyota in Japan does not have any respect for our legal system." He also stated, "they did not have any respect for our laws," and that "[Toyota had] a culture of hypocrisy and deception." If this doesn't scare people, I don't know what will.

In a ridiculous effort to discredit Biller, Toyota claimed that Biller was a disgruntled former employee who is angry he lost his job. Yeah, I'd be pissed if my company paid me $3.9 million too. Toyota also claimed that Biller did not handle acceleration cases while he worked there. Biller disputed that statement, noting that he worked as the managing attorney for Toyota on a sudden acceleration Lexus case in 2005.

Purple Elephants

I had questions enter my mind,
Purple Elephants serve what purpose?
Can they lift a lot of lumber for building?
Do they trumpet loudly, scaring monsters away?

Well, yes they can do all of that,
But so much more too!

They can clear a path through the jungle
For you to romp and play upon.
When you ride on their backs,
You can go to lands far off.

They can hold you in their fuzzy trunks;
And you can hug them and snuggle all day.
That trunk of theirs can shower you when it’s hot,
And warm you when you are chilly.

You can play hide-and-go-seek with them,
And I bet you’ll always win.
They are loyal, faithful and ready to protect.
They can even fly high to lift your spirits,
But you’re not supposed to know. Shhh

But the best thing those Purple Elephants are good for
You can love them a lot, and they will love you more.