Al Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize

He is now considered the front runner for this years Heisman Trophy.

The Weekend

That was about as bad as it gets.

Presumption Of Innocence

I learned a huge lesson the other day about the importance of giving people the presumption of innocents, or more specifically, what can happen to you when you are not given the presumption of innocence.

I was part of a conversation that got a bit heated and things were said that two minutes later I regretted. Some of those comments were passed on to others by the other party in the conversation but paraphrased to mean something that was not intended and certainly was never said. That was then spun again and 10 days later I was accused of being "emotionally abusive" in a letter and the letter also questioned what other forms of abuse might I have committed against that same person. I was never asked my side of what happened, I was never given the opportunity to explain exactly the words that were used or the context. Just got a note from someone that had heard about the conversation the same day it happened, someone that I had seen and spoken to every single day from the day of the original conversation to when I got the note 10 days later.

The irony of this is the person who mad the emotional abuse claim is a Seattle area public school teacher, not a Seattle Public School teacher. I am going to venture a guess that if a student made an accusation against this same person and was reprimanded or disciplined in any way without the teacher having a chance to tell their side of the story, they may not see that as a fair situation.

And the issue that started the heated conversation, the one that had been dragging on for a week solid which was going to lead to serious issues for all involved. It appears to no longer be an issue. Would I resolve this the same way again, not a chance.

Presumption of innocence. Its a nice thing if you can get it.

The Goat Justice League Saves The Day

Kind of old but can not pass this up as exhibit 1 in the bizzaro world that is Seattle politics.

Thanks to the work of the Goat Justice League, ruminants now have the right to life and limited liberty in Seattle.

On Monday, the City Council acknowledged the miniature goat's attributes as human companion, weed whacker and milk maker, and unanimously voted that the goats could be kept as pets.

"One small step for man, one giant step for goatkind," said Councilmember Richard Conlin, who sponsored the legislation.

As of late, goats have gained the environmental status of hybrid cars and bovine-growth-hormone-free milk, prized for their ability to mow lawns without using fossil fuels. University of Washington and Seattle City Light recently hired herds to clear slopes of blackberry brambles.

You read that correctly, THE GOAT JUSTICE LEAGUE.

Jennie Grant, a Madrona resident and outlaw goat owner, asked Conlin's office to consider changing the old law after a neighbor alerted the city to Grant's goats and complained about potential public-health risks. Grant is president of the Goat Justice League, which she says has 100 members.

After researching the health risks and finding they were low, Conlin said, he proposed the new law because the goats can provide local milk and serve as "another link to the reality of where food comes from."

Animal lovers, advocates of urban sustainability and children testified in favor of legalizing the goats at the hearing Thursday. One person criticized the change, saying goats can escape any enclosure and they prefer to eat roses.

It is all about reducing fossil fuel use and increasing sustainability, plus the children are for it so it has to be good. Any chance we might be able to get some crime fighting after they are finished eating the blackberries?

The Cost of Government Regulations

I was in a meeting with a local government group. A very small group of a very small part of a local government body. The purpose of the meeting was to look at a way to automate a process that attempts to track and enforce federal regulations. What they are looking to do makes sense. They could do more and spend less by going ahead with the project. That being said, I walked out of the meeting shaking my head at the overall cost of of government regulations. This government body is spending many hundreds of thousands of dollars to basically spot check. You can argue if the cost is worth the benefit, I am not saying it is or is not. I am just saying the general public has no idea how much regulations cost.

Just had to finally get that off of my anti tax chest.