Decoration of independence..

Chalk one up for the good guys. Government has a nasty habit of pushing in where it doesn't belong. Occasionally someone manages to push back. A feisty bunch of interior designers just pulled of a small coup in Connecticut,with a little help from the Institute for Justice, and managed to get a really bad law overturned.

A few years ago, the American Society of Interior Designers convinced the legislature there to pass a law requiring anyone who called themselves interior designers to apply for a state license. A lot of professions benefit from government licensing laws, and I've heard some worthy, if perhaps misguided, arguments defending the licensing of some of those professions. Sometimes it's just about limiting the competition.

Danny's been my barber for over 35 years. My visits don't require as much time or attention to detail as they used to, but that's another story. I think he does a pretty good job on me, considering what he has to work with.I suppose Danny has a barber's license. I never really checked, and it wouldn't make any difference to me if he doesn't. I'll keep going back as long as he is in business, and as long as my hair holds out.

And if I need the services of an interior designer, or an interior decorator, or any other professional, I'll decide based on their ability and track record, not on whether or not they paid for a government stamp of approval.

May the force be with you... or them...

George Washington hit the nail on the head when he said, "Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." Every once in a while we are reminded just how true that is.

A few years ago, a young man in Cincinnati who made a habit out of driving without a license or seatbelt, also made the mistake of not showing up for court when he should have. Right or wrong, his actions were eventually met with the final option, deadly force.

Anytime we pass a law giving the government control over some portion of our lives, we also give them the power to enforce that law. By force, if necessary. If Timothy Thomas had simply paid his traffic ticket, no force would have been necessary. But when he didn't pay the ticket, a warrant for his arrest was issued. When he decided he didn't want to be arrested, he was shot.

That's probably part of the reason most people just go ahead and pay seatbelt tickets, even if they disagree with seatbelt laws.

It's also a good reason to limit the amount of power the government has over us, so they don't have so many reasons to shoot.

I saw this story today about a man who let his yard grow to tall. Apparently Christopher Rhymes had an aversion to mowing his yard. After it got about a foot and a half tall, the Indianapolis Office of Code Enforcement sent someone in to mow it for him. Reportedly, Mr. Rhymes took offense, pointed a shotgun at the government's appointed lawnkeeper, and the Special Weapons And Tactics team was called in to quell the uprising. Luckily, no one was killed before Mr. Rhymes decided to give up.

It doesn't sound like Mr. Rhymes thought things out to well. Maybe he didn't want to. Maybe he couldn't. Or maybe he was just having a bad day.

Whatever the reason, I'm glad he gave up. If he hadn't, eventually the government would have killed him.

Then they would have went ahead and mowed his yard.

Impersonating the impersonators...

I see where recent lieutenant-governor candidate Dennis Oxley tried to avoid a public intoxication arrest by claiming he was a state representative, and was subsequently charged with impersonating a public servant.

There was also a story this week that Indiana prisons are at 99% capacity. Given the antics of our legislators the past few sessions, I'm afraid that strict enforcement of the "impersonating a public servant" law might push the prison population over the top.

As if they hadn't already given us enough to worry about.

North by Northeast, or there abouts...

Back at Millville Grade School, Summit Taylor’s furnace room also doubled as the teachers’ smoking lounge. Nothing fancy, mind you, but it did have a couple of vinyl covered chairs, and one of those ashtrays on a stand, with a button that you pushed to send the ashes and crushed butts down to the base of the stand. I think Summit dumped it in the coal furnace when it got full and you couldn’t push the button anymore. They probably wouldn’t let him do that nowadays.

Whenever we were out for recess, and Summit was out taking care of his janitorial duties, and the teachers weren’t smoking in the furnace room, my old buddy Stinky Wilmont would occasionally sneak in and swipe a cigarette or two. I don’t know if he really liked to smoke them, or if he just liked the way he looked when he stuck one of them behind his ear. Maybe he just wanted to prove he could get away with it.

Whatever his reasoning, he never seemed to think there was really anything wrong with stealing, or smoking, or sticking cigarettes behind his ear. At least until Principal Baker caught him in the furnace room, with a couple of the principal’s smokes. When the wood and smoke cleared, the tearful Stinky was a changed man, and quite remorseful about his despicable actions.

I guess it’s possible that he had seen the error of his ways, but his revelation would have carried a little more weight if it had occurred after he had swiped only a couple of cigarettes, instead of waiting to appear after he was caught.

There’s something that’s called a moral compass. Most people have one, I think. Not everybody’s points in the same direction, for sure, but I do appreciate people with firm convictions, even if our compasses don’t always line up. At least I know which way it’s pointing.

Mark Sanford, the South Carolina Governor who had at least a two year long affair with his mistress from Argentina, had a revelation similar to Stinky’s when he was caught, metaphorically speaking, with his pants down. I understand that we are all subject to temporary lapses in judgment, but Mr. Sanford’s remorseful tone would have been a little more convincing if he had adopted it a year and a half or so ago.

I felt the same way when I heard Bernie Madoff, the con man who bilked investors out of billions of dollars, explain how horrible he felt about what he had done. If he was actually sorry for his actions, and not just about getting caught, I would have thought his conscience would have kicked in a few billion dollars ago.

I realize the world is way too big to expect everyone to agree on what is moral or ethical. But I would submit that if your sense of right or wrong is based on what you think you can get away with, or if it’s based on the fear of punishment from your principal, or your spouse, or your government, or if it changes only after you’re caught, you might want to consider getting your compass recalibrated.

And a good time was had by all...

I haven't been to a Major League baseball game since the strike 15 years ago. Bull-headedness, I guess. I have been to a few Little League games, and a couple of Rooster games when they were in Richmond, and I sense some T-ball approaching in the next couple of years.

I hadn't been to an Indianapolis Indians game for a long time, either. In fact, the last time I went it was in Busch Stadium, just before it closed, I think. The last time I went to Busch Stadium before that, it wasn't even a baseball game. It was 40 years ago, for a concert with Richie Havens and Pure Prairie League. Or maybe Poco. I can't remember for sure. I do remember that we all sat on the ground and had a good time.

Last Saturday, a couple of our children and their spouses, and our grandchildren took us to the Indianapolis Zoo, and then to Victory Field for a ballgame between the Indianapolis Indians and the Toledo Mudhens. Lawn seating, so we sat on the ground and had a good time. A better time than I had 40 years ago, as I remember, except that the ground is a lot lower than it used to be.


Anyway, Susan and I enjoyed it, and the kids enjoyed it, and the grand kids enjoyed it, and since I'm not sure if there are any players still playing that took part in the last strike, I might have to reconsider this Major League thing.

Besides, I heard the Reds have a new stadium.

Sometimes you get the bear...

...and sometimes the bear gets you.

I've made some deals in my life where I thought I came out ahead, and I've made some deals where I thought I came out on the short end of the stick. You don't always know how things are going to turn out.

33 years ago today I married Susan.

I know I got a lot better deal than she got.

I just hope it's several more years before she figures that out. Or maybe she already has.

At any rate, thanks for putting up with me for 33 years. Looking back, the worst times we ever had were still pretty good.

Would you buy a used car from this guy?...

I'm fully aware that I don't have a lot of room to pass judgement on other peoples' personal appearances. It's something I've learned to live with, and since I seldom have to look at myself, except when I'm shaving, I really don't have to think about it all that much.

Still, I do make an attempt to look semi-respectable in my private and professional life, while keeping in mind that the definition of respectable has been modified over the years. 50 years ago, back at Millville Grade School, all of the men teachers wore ties and all of the women teachers wore dresses. That always seemed a bit much to me, and aside from not being to bright, was probably one of the major reasons I never considered a career in education.

If it ever gets to the place that neckties aren't required or expected for any occasion, I'll be a happier man.

Still, when I decided to have my tonsils removed, I appreciated the fact that the doctor looked like a doctor. I'd prefer that my financial advisor drives a nice car and lives in a nice home. It gives me confidence, I guess. And if they want to wear a tie, more power to them.

I feel better if my preacher doesn't wear a "Girls Gone Wild" t-shirt, although it wouldn't seem so bad if my mechanic wore it. I'm not saying that's right. I'm just saying that's the way I feel.

I've never considered getting a tattoo, so I've never thought about what I would want my tattoo artist to look like, if I was considering getting a tattoo. But I did read where a girl went in to get her face tattooed by this guy,


Apparently she wasn't to happy with the result of allowing him to use his best judgement concerning how her face should turn out. I'm not sure what she expected.

But it does cause me to think I'll be a little more selective about who gives me my first tattoo. If I ever consider getting one.