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Sancho
Sancho's Journal
Sancho's Journal
February 27, 2018
They had called the police several times when Cruz killed animals, threatened to shoot up a school, and acted crazy. That's EXACTLY my experience in Florida. As an educator and foster parent, I've seen this happen over and over.
Emotional teens (or anyone for that matter) can be diagnosed with all sorts of disorders, act in dangerous ways, and threaten others: UNTIL THEY ACTUALLY COMMIT A FELONY, NOTHING WILL HAPPEN HERE! I've seen a psychologist send reports to the court that a teenager was dangerous, and watched the judge let the kid go - and he later committed a rape and murder. I've seen a kid "Baker acted" (held for evaluation) and turned loose "because they can't hold them more than a few days", and later he broke in a house and two people were killed. It happens everyday. Those kids were had insurance and medicaid, but there was no treatment available for them.
I've sat in a meeting with Juvenile Justice, the school administration, Family Services, and guardians - and everyone admits some kid is out of control - but NO ONE OFFERS A TREATMENT OR HAS AUTHORITY TO DO ANYTHING. What do you do in FL? Your options are pretty much sending the kid to community service for a minor offense, once a month psychology sessions, a crowded special education room with a teacher who cannot prescribe medication, or simply putting the kid on the street until he gets in the adult criminal system.
In Florida, there are virtually no accessible treatment programs for severely emotional people. The prisons are the mental health dumps. Police or other authorities can only hold someone a short while for evaluation, and that's if they make a very specific threat. Most of these emotional people learn quickly to avoid saying the "wrong thing". Virtually 100% of the time the person held is back out in a few days no matter what they do or say.
These folks can buy any weapon they want, and they are NOT in any database to check or prevent them from possessing guns! That's why I keep posting my plan - even though I realize it may never happen. We simply have to make it harder for dangerous people to easily obtain guns.
-----------------------------------------
People Control, Not Gun Control
This is my generic response to gun threads where people are shot and killed by the dumb or criminal possession of guns. For the record, I grew up in the South and on military bases. I was taught about firearms as a child, and I grew up hunting, was a member of the NRA, and I still own guns. In the 70’s, I dropped out of the NRA because they become more radical and less interested in safety and training. Some personal experiences where people I know were involved in shootings caused me to realize that anyone could obtain and posses a gun no matter how illogical it was for them to have a gun. Also, easy access to more powerful guns, guns in the hands of children, and guns that weren’t secured are out of control in our society. As such, here’s what I now think ought to be the requirements to possess a gun. I’m not debating the legal language, I just think it’s the reasonable way to stop the shootings. Notice, none of this restricts the type of guns sold. This is aimed at the people who shoot others, because it’s clear that they should never have had a gun.
1.) Anyone in possession of a gun (whether they own it or not) should have a regularly renewed license. If you want to call it a permit, certificate, or something else that's fine.
2.) To get a license, you should have a background check, and be examined by a professional for emotional and mental stability appropriate for gun possession. It might be appropriate to require that examination to be accompanied by references from family, friends, employers, etc. This check is not to subject you to a mental health diagnosis, just check on your superficial and apparent gun-worthyness.
3.) To get the license, you should be required to take a safety course and pass a test appropriate to the type of gun you want to use.
4.) To get a license, you should be over 21. Under 21, you could only use a gun under direct supervision of a licensed person and after obtaining a learner’s license. Your license might be restricted if you have children or criminals or other unsafe people living in your home. (If you want to argue 18 or 25 or some other age, fine. 21 makes sense to me.)
5.) If you possess a gun, you would have to carry a liability insurance policy specifically for gun ownership - and likely you would have to provide proof of appropriate storage, security, and whatever statistical reasons that emerge that would drive the costs and ability to get insurance.
6.) You could not purchase a gun or ammunition without a license, and purchases would have a waiting period.
7.) If you possess a gun without a license, you go to jail, the gun is impounded, and a judge will have to let you go (just like a DUI).
8.) No one should carry an unsecured gun (except in a locked case, unloaded) when outside of home. Guns should be secure when transporting to a shooting event without demonstrating a special need. Their license should indicate training and special carry circumstances beyond recreational shooting (security guard, etc.). If you are carrying your gun while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you lose your gun and license.
9.) If you buy, sell, give away, or inherit a gun, your license information should be recorded.
10.) If you accidentally discharge your gun, commit a crime, get referred by a mental health professional, are served a restraining order, etc., you should lose your license and guns until reinstated by a serious relicensing process.
Most of you know that a license is no big deal. Besides a driver’s license you need a license to fish, operate a boat, or many other activities. I realize these differ by state, but that is not a reason to let anyone without a bit of sense pack a semiautomatic weapon in public, on the roads, and in schools. I think we need to make it much harder for some people to have guns.
For those who want to argue legality, please reference: The Second Amendment: A Biography by Michael Waldman
Did anyone see the CNN interview with Cruz's neighbor this am?
They had called the police several times when Cruz killed animals, threatened to shoot up a school, and acted crazy. That's EXACTLY my experience in Florida. As an educator and foster parent, I've seen this happen over and over.
Emotional teens (or anyone for that matter) can be diagnosed with all sorts of disorders, act in dangerous ways, and threaten others: UNTIL THEY ACTUALLY COMMIT A FELONY, NOTHING WILL HAPPEN HERE! I've seen a psychologist send reports to the court that a teenager was dangerous, and watched the judge let the kid go - and he later committed a rape and murder. I've seen a kid "Baker acted" (held for evaluation) and turned loose "because they can't hold them more than a few days", and later he broke in a house and two people were killed. It happens everyday. Those kids were had insurance and medicaid, but there was no treatment available for them.
I've sat in a meeting with Juvenile Justice, the school administration, Family Services, and guardians - and everyone admits some kid is out of control - but NO ONE OFFERS A TREATMENT OR HAS AUTHORITY TO DO ANYTHING. What do you do in FL? Your options are pretty much sending the kid to community service for a minor offense, once a month psychology sessions, a crowded special education room with a teacher who cannot prescribe medication, or simply putting the kid on the street until he gets in the adult criminal system.
In Florida, there are virtually no accessible treatment programs for severely emotional people. The prisons are the mental health dumps. Police or other authorities can only hold someone a short while for evaluation, and that's if they make a very specific threat. Most of these emotional people learn quickly to avoid saying the "wrong thing". Virtually 100% of the time the person held is back out in a few days no matter what they do or say.
These folks can buy any weapon they want, and they are NOT in any database to check or prevent them from possessing guns! That's why I keep posting my plan - even though I realize it may never happen. We simply have to make it harder for dangerous people to easily obtain guns.
-----------------------------------------
People Control, Not Gun Control
This is my generic response to gun threads where people are shot and killed by the dumb or criminal possession of guns. For the record, I grew up in the South and on military bases. I was taught about firearms as a child, and I grew up hunting, was a member of the NRA, and I still own guns. In the 70’s, I dropped out of the NRA because they become more radical and less interested in safety and training. Some personal experiences where people I know were involved in shootings caused me to realize that anyone could obtain and posses a gun no matter how illogical it was for them to have a gun. Also, easy access to more powerful guns, guns in the hands of children, and guns that weren’t secured are out of control in our society. As such, here’s what I now think ought to be the requirements to possess a gun. I’m not debating the legal language, I just think it’s the reasonable way to stop the shootings. Notice, none of this restricts the type of guns sold. This is aimed at the people who shoot others, because it’s clear that they should never have had a gun.
1.) Anyone in possession of a gun (whether they own it or not) should have a regularly renewed license. If you want to call it a permit, certificate, or something else that's fine.
2.) To get a license, you should have a background check, and be examined by a professional for emotional and mental stability appropriate for gun possession. It might be appropriate to require that examination to be accompanied by references from family, friends, employers, etc. This check is not to subject you to a mental health diagnosis, just check on your superficial and apparent gun-worthyness.
3.) To get the license, you should be required to take a safety course and pass a test appropriate to the type of gun you want to use.
4.) To get a license, you should be over 21. Under 21, you could only use a gun under direct supervision of a licensed person and after obtaining a learner’s license. Your license might be restricted if you have children or criminals or other unsafe people living in your home. (If you want to argue 18 or 25 or some other age, fine. 21 makes sense to me.)
5.) If you possess a gun, you would have to carry a liability insurance policy specifically for gun ownership - and likely you would have to provide proof of appropriate storage, security, and whatever statistical reasons that emerge that would drive the costs and ability to get insurance.
6.) You could not purchase a gun or ammunition without a license, and purchases would have a waiting period.
7.) If you possess a gun without a license, you go to jail, the gun is impounded, and a judge will have to let you go (just like a DUI).
8.) No one should carry an unsecured gun (except in a locked case, unloaded) when outside of home. Guns should be secure when transporting to a shooting event without demonstrating a special need. Their license should indicate training and special carry circumstances beyond recreational shooting (security guard, etc.). If you are carrying your gun while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you lose your gun and license.
9.) If you buy, sell, give away, or inherit a gun, your license information should be recorded.
10.) If you accidentally discharge your gun, commit a crime, get referred by a mental health professional, are served a restraining order, etc., you should lose your license and guns until reinstated by a serious relicensing process.
Most of you know that a license is no big deal. Besides a driver’s license you need a license to fish, operate a boat, or many other activities. I realize these differ by state, but that is not a reason to let anyone without a bit of sense pack a semiautomatic weapon in public, on the roads, and in schools. I think we need to make it much harder for some people to have guns.
For those who want to argue legality, please reference: The Second Amendment: A Biography by Michael Waldman
February 20, 2018
More at link...
I study liars. I've never seen one like Donald Trump.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-donald-trump-liar-20171208-story.htmlI spent the first two decades of my career as a social scientist studying liars and their lies. I thought I had developed a sense of what to expect from them. Then along came President Donald Trump. His lies are both more frequent and more malicious than ordinary people's.
In research beginning in the mid-1990s, when I was a professor at the University of Virginia, my colleagues and I asked 77 college students and 70 people from the nearby community to keep diaries of all the lies they told every day for a week. They handed them in to us with no names attached. We calculated participants' rates of lying and categorized each lie as either self-serving (told to advantage the liar or protect the liar from embarrassment, blame or other undesired outcomes) or kind (told to advantage, flatter or protect someone else).
In Trump's first 298 days in office, however, he made 1,628 false or misleading claims or flip-flops, by The Post's tally. That's about six per day, far higher than the average rate in our studies. And of course, reporters have access to only a subset of Trump's false statements — the ones he makes publicly — so unless he never stretches the truth in private, his actual rate of lying is almost certainly higher.
The most stunning way Trump's lies differed from our participants', though, was in their cruelty. An astonishing 50 percent of Trump's lies were hurtful or disparaging. For example, he proclaimed that John Brennan, James Clapper and James Comey, all career intelligence or law enforcement officials, were "political hacks." He said that "the Sloppy Michael Moore Show on Broadway was a TOTAL BOMB and was forced to close." He insisted that other "countries, they don't put their finest in the lottery system. They put people probably in many cases that they don't want." And he claimed that "Ralph Northam, who is running for Governor of Virginia, is fighting for the violent MS-13 killer gangs & sanctuary cities."
In research beginning in the mid-1990s, when I was a professor at the University of Virginia, my colleagues and I asked 77 college students and 70 people from the nearby community to keep diaries of all the lies they told every day for a week. They handed them in to us with no names attached. We calculated participants' rates of lying and categorized each lie as either self-serving (told to advantage the liar or protect the liar from embarrassment, blame or other undesired outcomes) or kind (told to advantage, flatter or protect someone else).
In Trump's first 298 days in office, however, he made 1,628 false or misleading claims or flip-flops, by The Post's tally. That's about six per day, far higher than the average rate in our studies. And of course, reporters have access to only a subset of Trump's false statements — the ones he makes publicly — so unless he never stretches the truth in private, his actual rate of lying is almost certainly higher.
The most stunning way Trump's lies differed from our participants', though, was in their cruelty. An astonishing 50 percent of Trump's lies were hurtful or disparaging. For example, he proclaimed that John Brennan, James Clapper and James Comey, all career intelligence or law enforcement officials, were "political hacks." He said that "the Sloppy Michael Moore Show on Broadway was a TOTAL BOMB and was forced to close." He insisted that other "countries, they don't put their finest in the lottery system. They put people probably in many cases that they don't want." And he claimed that "Ralph Northam, who is running for Governor of Virginia, is fighting for the violent MS-13 killer gangs & sanctuary cities."
More at link...
February 19, 2018
This is a common problem in Florida...
...there is little or no mental health service for severe cases
...schools, family services, and juvenile justice pass kids off with superficial counseling
...dangerous kids drop out or get expelled
...nothing happens until they commit a felony and go to jail
That's the reason that possession of a gun should not depend on adjudicated mental illness or a POS background check.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/Teachers-say-Florida-shooter-s-problems-started-in-middle-school-and-the-system-tried-to-help-him_165636616
Some teachers banned Nikolas Cruz from their classrooms at Westglades Middle School because of his erratic behavior. One teacher said he was barred from bringing a backpack to the school and security had to search him to ensure he didn’t have weapons. Teachers were very concerned about him and were working to get him help.
Several teachers who knew Cruz in middle school said in interviews that he was an increasing behavioral challenge for the school system and appeared to be on a troublesome path. In the years before he would allegedly carry out one of the worst mass shootings at a school in U.S. history, Cruz faced a long string of escalating disciplinary measures throughout his academic career for insubordination, profanity, disruption, fighting and assault.
Several teachers who knew Cruz in middle school said in interviews that he was an increasing behavioral challenge for the school system and appeared to be on a troublesome path. In the years before he would allegedly carry out one of the worst mass shootings at a school in U.S. history, Cruz faced a long string of escalating disciplinary measures throughout his academic career for insubordination, profanity, disruption, fighting and assault.
People Control, Not Gun Control
This is my generic response to gun threads where people are shot and killed by the dumb or criminal possession of guns. For the record, I grew up in the South and on military bases. I was taught about firearms as a child, and I grew up hunting, was a member of the NRA, and I still own guns. In the 70’s, I dropped out of the NRA because they become more radical and less interested in safety and training. Some personal experiences where people I know were involved in shootings caused me to realize that anyone could obtain and posses a gun no matter how illogical it was for them to have a gun. Also, easy access to more powerful guns, guns in the hands of children, and guns that weren’t secured are out of control in our society. As such, here’s what I now think ought to be the requirements to possess a gun. I’m not debating the legal language, I just think it’s the reasonable way to stop the shootings. Notice, none of this restricts the type of guns sold. This is aimed at the people who shoot others, because it’s clear that they should never have had a gun.
1.) Anyone in possession of a gun (whether they own it or not) should have a regularly renewed license. If you want to call it a permit, certificate, or something else that's fine.
2.) To get a license, you should have a background check, and be examined by a professional for emotional and mental stability appropriate for gun possession. It might be appropriate to require that examination to be accompanied by references from family, friends, employers, etc. This check is not to subject you to a mental health diagnosis, just check on your superficial and apparent gun-worthyness.
3.) To get the license, you should be required to take a safety course and pass a test appropriate to the type of gun you want to use.
4.) To get a license, you should be over 21. Under 21, you could only use a gun under direct supervision of a licensed person and after obtaining a learner’s license. Your license might be restricted if you have children or criminals or other unsafe people living in your home. (If you want to argue 18 or 25 or some other age, fine. 21 makes sense to me.)
5.) If you possess a gun, you would have to carry a liability insurance policy specifically for gun ownership - and likely you would have to provide proof of appropriate storage, security, and whatever statistical reasons that emerge that would drive the costs and ability to get insurance.
6.) You could not purchase a gun or ammunition without a license, and purchases would have a waiting period.
7.) If you possess a gun without a license, you go to jail, the gun is impounded, and a judge will have to let you go (just like a DUI).
8.) No one should carry an unsecured gun (except in a locked case, unloaded) when outside of home. Guns should be secure when transporting to a shooting event without demonstrating a special need. Their license should indicate training and special carry circumstances beyond recreational shooting (security guard, etc.). If you are carrying your gun while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you lose your gun and license.
9.) If you buy, sell, give away, or inherit a gun, your license information should be recorded.
10.) If you accidentally discharge your gun, commit a crime, get referred by a mental health professional, are served a restraining order, etc., you should lose your license and guns until reinstated by a serious relicensing process.
Most of you know that a license is no big deal. Besides a driver’s license you need a license to fish, operate a boat, or many other activities. I realize these differ by state, but that is not a reason to let anyone without a bit of sense pack a semiautomatic weapon in public, on the roads, and in schools. I think we need to make it much harder for some people to have guns.
For those who want to argue legality, please reference: The Second Amendment: A Biography by Michael Waldman
This is my generic response to gun threads where people are shot and killed by the dumb or criminal possession of guns. For the record, I grew up in the South and on military bases. I was taught about firearms as a child, and I grew up hunting, was a member of the NRA, and I still own guns. In the 70’s, I dropped out of the NRA because they become more radical and less interested in safety and training. Some personal experiences where people I know were involved in shootings caused me to realize that anyone could obtain and posses a gun no matter how illogical it was for them to have a gun. Also, easy access to more powerful guns, guns in the hands of children, and guns that weren’t secured are out of control in our society. As such, here’s what I now think ought to be the requirements to possess a gun. I’m not debating the legal language, I just think it’s the reasonable way to stop the shootings. Notice, none of this restricts the type of guns sold. This is aimed at the people who shoot others, because it’s clear that they should never have had a gun.
1.) Anyone in possession of a gun (whether they own it or not) should have a regularly renewed license. If you want to call it a permit, certificate, or something else that's fine.
2.) To get a license, you should have a background check, and be examined by a professional for emotional and mental stability appropriate for gun possession. It might be appropriate to require that examination to be accompanied by references from family, friends, employers, etc. This check is not to subject you to a mental health diagnosis, just check on your superficial and apparent gun-worthyness.
3.) To get the license, you should be required to take a safety course and pass a test appropriate to the type of gun you want to use.
4.) To get a license, you should be over 21. Under 21, you could only use a gun under direct supervision of a licensed person and after obtaining a learner’s license. Your license might be restricted if you have children or criminals or other unsafe people living in your home. (If you want to argue 18 or 25 or some other age, fine. 21 makes sense to me.)
5.) If you possess a gun, you would have to carry a liability insurance policy specifically for gun ownership - and likely you would have to provide proof of appropriate storage, security, and whatever statistical reasons that emerge that would drive the costs and ability to get insurance.
6.) You could not purchase a gun or ammunition without a license, and purchases would have a waiting period.
7.) If you possess a gun without a license, you go to jail, the gun is impounded, and a judge will have to let you go (just like a DUI).
8.) No one should carry an unsecured gun (except in a locked case, unloaded) when outside of home. Guns should be secure when transporting to a shooting event without demonstrating a special need. Their license should indicate training and special carry circumstances beyond recreational shooting (security guard, etc.). If you are carrying your gun while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you lose your gun and license.
9.) If you buy, sell, give away, or inherit a gun, your license information should be recorded.
10.) If you accidentally discharge your gun, commit a crime, get referred by a mental health professional, are served a restraining order, etc., you should lose your license and guns until reinstated by a serious relicensing process.
Most of you know that a license is no big deal. Besides a driver’s license you need a license to fish, operate a boat, or many other activities. I realize these differ by state, but that is not a reason to let anyone without a bit of sense pack a semiautomatic weapon in public, on the roads, and in schools. I think we need to make it much harder for some people to have guns.
For those who want to argue legality, please reference: The Second Amendment: A Biography by Michael Waldman
February 16, 2018
It was tRump's fault!!!
http://wfla.com/2018/02/15/sinkholes-threaten-homes-in-the-villages/THE VILLAGES, Fla. (WESH) —Two homes are being threatened after several sinkholes opened in The Villages, deputies said.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said the holes opened in the area of McLawren Terrace.
The largest of the three holes is about 35-feet-deep by 18 feet across.
Officials said utilities to four homes have been disconnected.
The sinkholes appear to be threatening just two homes, with one of the sinkholes reaching far underneath a home.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said the holes opened in the area of McLawren Terrace.
The largest of the three holes is about 35-feet-deep by 18 feet across.
Officials said utilities to four homes have been disconnected.
The sinkholes appear to be threatening just two homes, with one of the sinkholes reaching far underneath a home.
February 13, 2018
The van has Florida license plate NIS5N.
If you’ve seen it, make sure to call police!
You can't make this stuff up...FL...
http://www.wtsp.com/article/news/van-stolen-in-florida-with-dead-body-in-the-back/517966302Van stolen in Florida with dead body in the back
The keys were in the running van when it was taken.
Author: 10News Staff
Published: 6:59 PM EST February 12, 2018
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Florida deputies hope you can help them track down a van that was stolen with a dead body in the back of it!
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the driver of a 2006 silver Honda Odyssey van left it running with the keys inside when it was taken.
In the back was a dead body being transported “for work purposes.”
The keys were in the running van when it was taken.
Author: 10News Staff
Published: 6:59 PM EST February 12, 2018
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Florida deputies hope you can help them track down a van that was stolen with a dead body in the back of it!
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the driver of a 2006 silver Honda Odyssey van left it running with the keys inside when it was taken.
In the back was a dead body being transported “for work purposes.”
The van has Florida license plate NIS5N.
If you’ve seen it, make sure to call police!
February 8, 2018
When do you take the keys away?
...looking forward to my first self-driving car, but meanwhile here in the Sunshine State, we see this all to often.
https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/state/98-year-old-wrong-way-driver-kills-2-teens-injures-2-others-in-florida
According to a news release, 98-year-old Walter Roney of Michigan was traveling the wrong way going inside the eastbound lane of State Road 70, Okeechobee Road, when his 1986 RV Mirage collided with a 2013 Chevy Silverado traveling eastbound on State Road 70.
The driver of the Chevy, 17-year-old Santia Myriah Feketa of Fort Pierce, and a passenger, 16-year-old Britney Lee Poindexter of Port St. Lucie, were killed in the crash.
The driver of the Chevy, 17-year-old Santia Myriah Feketa of Fort Pierce, and a passenger, 16-year-old Britney Lee Poindexter of Port St. Lucie, were killed in the crash.
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