Firefighter Blog

Labels: Off Topic

It finally happened, I paid a Bill, a C note, a hundred bucks to fill my car tonight. I passed on the line at Costco where they were charging $4.51 and opted for a Valero station that was charging $4.55 and 9/10ths, (can we dispense with that little marketing gimmick now).

Hardly anyone at the pumps at first but one businessman type pulled up in a late model sedan and left after putting in $40. He was either topping off or just going for the half tank option, one chosen more often now according to the attendant that came out to check a pump.

I asked him if he was seeing more people opt for the partial fill and he said yes. Same traffic but less gas per vehicle. A girl in a brand new V.W. Bug pulled up and I asked her if she was going for the full fill and she nodded yes. How much to fill that I asked, "$60 where it used to be $30, and I drive less now".

The Hispanic guy that pulled in front of her was on his cell phone as he began pumping. He's a laborer judging by the appearance. I don't know how much he makes but he ran it over $71. without a wimper. I'm guessing that was a days pay after taxes.

As we drove away my smarter half informed me of the positive side of the high gas price outrage. I was informed by her that this will lead to an exodus of illegal immigrants. Wait, I said out loud and the genius of that thought hit me.

We concluded the busboys will go first followed by the lawn maintenance helpers. Maids and domestic help go down too. Those jobs and those in dozens of other categories will suffer when budgets are reconfigured. The construction industry is in a prolonged slump but no one noticed (or reported) if the scores of undocumented once employed by home builders left or stayed.

Farm workers are soon to feel the brunt of the drought in California. Farmers on the West side of the San Joaquin Valley are chosing which crops to ignore as water rationing begins. Bye bye.

Once the undocumented make their way home it's doubtful they will return, at least until things turn around. The teal leaves say it may be awhile.

So is this a good thing really? I think so. Local and State social services will catch some relief and any slack will likely be taken up by U.S. citizens who lost their jobs and need food stamps and a few bucks to get by.

The down side of course is the human element. Some very decent people will have to turn tail. The hard work of cleaning our gardens and clothes or mopping our dirty floors is below many Americans but the poor from Guatemala, Mexico or San Salvador do it without complaint.

When they leave and return to their village and families the money flow stops. We don't know that kind of hardship.

Our family is cutting back. Less dining out, more cooking at home and fewer trips outside of town. One thing we decided to do as a family is support one particular Mexican restaurant when we do dine out. It's a second generation family owned establishment that puts out a great product for a reasonable price. It would be a shame if they went down.

We'll give a little more when the church seeks special donations for affected families.

Finally, back to the price of gas. Does anyone remember the Southwest Airlines runway overshot in Burbank California four years ago?
Does this surprise you?

.

Labels: Off Topic

Labels: Off Topic

Labels: Food Hoarding, Off Topic

Fresno California

Arthur Mkoyan, a recent Bullard High School graduate and class Valedictorian is to be deported to Armenia, a place he was moved from when he was two years old. His family is scheduled to be put on a plane by the end of June.
The local Congressman, who coincidently I voted for just hours ago, has shown little interest in helping Arthur so far.
Senator Feinstien has shown some interest but it's not looking too good for the young man at the moment.
Young Mykoyan needs someone to step up in a hurry.

I had a car stolen from the neighborhood of the University of Southern California back in my college days by an illegal immigrant from South of the border. I lost everything I owned. I was in the midst of moving and the car was loaded. They deported the guy. Little justice.
On a larger issue the weight of illegal immigration has taxed our social services. The benefits of a larger labor pool is outweighed by the burdens imposed on our city, county and state governments.

I cannot emigrate to Mexico and enjoy all the benefits of citizenship there. If I'm undocumented I get the boot after my visitor visa expires. That's their law and I respect it.

Let's be fair

Fairness dictates special cases like that of Arthur Mkoyan and other kids like him be given special consideration.

Lalo

Lalo was 13 when he helped his dad and older brother take a cedar stump out of the backyard of my new home. Lalo like most 13 year olds wore out sooner than dad and brother. He went to the truck. On occassion over the years the gardner's son would accompany him as he worked on my property. In time Lalo graduated from Bullard High School. He joined his father's gardening business full time, manning the mower.
His intent is to join the Army and serve in Iraq. In the meantime he started a part time business selling IT hardware. Soon he would get out from behind the lawnmower.

Not to be

Lalo was born in Mexico and the family moved to California when he was two. His parents are illegal/undocumented aliens.
Lalo is in a no-man's-land at the moment. He has lived here since age two and has never visited Mexico. He considers himself an American and is willing to fight and die for his country.

I parted company with his father once I learned of his status but before I did I had a chance to question Lalo about his status and what he can do.
As it turns out if Lalo is "caught" by immigration officials he could end up on the streets of Tijuana Mexico. Does that strike anyone as wrong?

I advised him if stopped to declare he is from Canada or even Sweden. Makes as much sense to drop him off in Vancouver or Stockholm as it does Tijuana. Why should he suffer for foolish mistakes his parents made? Same with Arthur.

Lalo can't join the Army because he has no social security number. He has a high school diploma, speaks two languages and has a drivers license but doesn't have a social security card. What do you say to Lalo? Neither he or Arthur are anchor babies because they were not born here. These are boys that were victims of circumstance and the sins of their parents should not be visited on them.

Comments?

Labels: Off Topic

The most fun from blogging is checking the visitor logs and seeing where readers come from. Quite a few visitors have surfed in from a Google search for "World's Tallest Tree". Firefighter Blog is the #1 web result behind Google's own Youtube and image results.

I saved the screen and posted it here as proof because I expect big "G" to adjust the results and kick me down to remote pages where the post belongs.



My post yesterday about food hoarding was picked up by New York Sun as a blogger perspective for the search term "India". They have a food hoarding problem in India and their algorithm ripped through my text and thought it had something to add.
It didn't.
Part of the fun of blogging is being a part of the emerging web. We are in the primitive stages of web development, search and information delivery. My kids may look back someday at this archive (maybe on a bet) and it will be like looking back in those old timer stereo vision viewers that were hot in the late 1800's.

Labels: Hyperion, Off Topic, Vanity

I heard the reference to "Food Hoarding" three times while surfing through the cable news channels this morning. The topic is a major concern in India where distribution of foodstores to rural provinces is not always on a predictable time table.

Here we have no problem with distribution, yet. I confess our pantry is pretty well stocked and I intend to add to the canned goods supply. Why?

My concern is truckers are about fed up with the price of diesel and there is about to be a revolt. Our local grocery stores are nothing without daily deliveries and it's trucks that deliver the goods.

Have you ever seen your local supermarket sporting an empty bread section. I have once on a Sunday night and frankly it stopped me cold. Not because I missed my bread but it showed me how fragile the distribution chain is.

When I was a teenager I recall the oil embargo and waiting over an hour to fill my Mustang. It left an impression that at any time those holding us hostage to commodities hold the key to our comfort.

So what happens when the truckers say enough? You be the judge how your neighborhood will react if the store shelves start looking like those in a typical middle class Russian city.

Should first responders fill the pantry? It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to load up on canned and bulk goods at the station.

Labels: Food Hoarding, Off Topic

Labels: Off Topic

Labels: Off Topic