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The fucked up state of California, Part 2

The Doghouse is back!! after the show being canned for STUPID reason, they are back in a new radio station. I heart the old Doghouse.. the "new" doghouse has the same peeps .. but their format has changed.. we will see if I still like them after a few weeks.

A guy by the name of Big Willy emailed the Doghouse and basically gloated on the election "victory", in the same breath, he bashed Arnold, and everyone in the government that didn't have the big D in from of their name.

I wrote the following email to the Doghouse in response to his email:


"Hey Doghooooouse!

I am glad you guys are back... Mornings were just so different without you guys. I am guessing Ruthie is no longer with you guys.

This email is in response to Big Willy's email.

I think it is sad that there are people with such hatred for a person that they will vote down an initiative because of that hate.

These are the same people that would vote down a more oxygen for babies initiative if it was introduced by Arnold.

We have a "district" in California that is 200 miles long but only a few hundred yards wide, that’s because incumbent politicians draws their own district lines based on computer assisted analysis. To ensure that they or their own party stay in power.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle: “In November 2004, 153 legislative and congressional seats were on the ballot but not a single one changed party hands.”

This is how entrenched our politicians and the political parties are in California. Both parties spend hundreds of millions on ads to deceive the voters, to ensure this measure did not pass.

Big Willy is right. Our governor couldn't get the legislators to work the redistricting. But did he or those who voted against the measure wonder why? Why would legislators willingly pass a bill that could potentially jeopardize their job security?

I am glad we have different opinions when it comes to various issues. But when an argument because one based on misinformation, lies and hatred, it becomes an exercise in futility.

I often wonder how a state can blame Gray Davis because the legislation were overspending money that weren’t coming in anymore when our economy eroded.

I often wonder how a state can vote for an actor who clearly used his popularity to win, not his stance on various issues.

And now I wonder how a state can vote down the very measures that the actor they voted into the office introduced. Ask yourselves; will having a new governor but restricting him to the same set of rules get a state out of its troubles?

Worst off, I wonder how a state is EVER going to advance and change with the times if status quo is good enough for them. Status quo isn’t necessary bad… but not when there are complains everyday on how F’ed up the State is.

Californians have spoken, and they told a telling tale.

We told the country and the world that we are complainers but we are unwilling to embrace changes

We told the country and the world that we are creatures of emotion and not rationalization.

We told the country and the world that we rather be stagnate and take jabs at a governor we put into office, instead of moving forward and better ourselves.

California deserves to be in the state that we are in because that is how the people decided to vote. Uninformed and vengeful."


I am done with the issue, it's a dead horse.. and I am done talking about it. If worst come to work, I will just move. Colorado is a beautiful state... So are Montana and Washington...

The fucked up State of California

The result from the election yesterday brings me a sense of sorrow, and anger. I am sadden by the fact that I now have tangible proof that politics is won not by moral correctness and common sense, but by deception and money, manipulated with fear and emotions.

I refrained myself from influencing others on how to vote. I wanted them to make the decision for themselves. Instead, I think I should have “educated” some of the people I spoke with…

I am not going to go into each and every proposition… But I would like to talk about Proposition 77 and San Francisco Proposition H.

Proposition 77, is backed by EVERY single major newspaper in the State. The L.A. Times, The San Fran Chronicles, the Sac Bee, the Riverside Press.

But never mind that… What exactly does it do? It takes the authority to draw legislative districts away from self-interested politicians.

In November 2004, 153 legislative and congressional seats were on the ballet… amazingly not a single one changed hands.

In fact, computers are used to draw district lines, based on party registration and “a slew of other data to show voter’s predisposition with stunning precision -- even within city blocks-- have elevated “gerrymandering” from an art to a science.”

The picture below shows a 200-MILES long district that is only 100 yards width at some parts. This same district is cut in half, twice a day, when high tide come rolling in.



The passing of Proposition 77 would force all the districts to be redrawn. Very stringent set of rules has been set up to prevent what Judge Wapner claimed as giving retired judges too much power.

Independent Judicial Council selects a pool of 24 retired judges. Four leaders of the state Senate and Assembly (two Democrats and two Republicans) would each nominate three judges from the pool. A leader cannot select a judge from his or her own party. But they could each veto one nominee and from that pool of eight remainders, three will be selected by random drawing. The three judges would then assemble a staff and oversee the congressional and legislative boundaries, as compact as practicable and follow city and county boundaries as much as possible.

But incumbents (of both parties) and the unions spend hundreds of millions to defeat this measure.

I am unclear why we recalled Gray Davis. For those who voted for the recall and then voted for Arnold, please clarify for me. What’s the point of putting another person in power, if you are just going to keep everything within the state the same? The system is broken. The method is not working. It’s kinda like the 49ers. The playbook isn’t working, the system isn’t work. Just switching quarterbacks aren’t gonna help.

I am really saddened by the fact that people voted, with no long term vision for the betterment of the State. They are so blinded, either by the out right lying ads or their hatred of Arnold that they voted against it.

After all, we are not as liberal of a state as we like to think we are, why rock the boat?

On the other hand, a measure was passed in San Francisco that violates our Second Amendment Rights to bear arms. Proposition H will make it illegal to own a firearm in the City and County of San Francisco. It wipes out any and all Ex Post Facto factor. All handguns are to be turned in within 6 months.

The two other city that has a gun ban is Chicago and Washington D.C.. Washington D.C. has one of the HIGHEST crime rates in the country. The state of Texas, which allows its denizens to bear arms, has some of the LOWEST crime rates in the country.

After all, isn’t it true that if guns were outlawed, the only the outlawed would have guns?

Mediocrity

A couple of months ago, I got a “promotion” in my BCJ. “Promotion” in this case is a relative term, because the pay is the same (all part time employees are paid on the same paid scale, based on seniority. The same holds true for the full timers and the drivers…). I guess the term “reassignment” is a better term.

So I was reassigned to this new department, a much coveted department where the average seniority of the workers are 10 or so years (I have been working there for a year and a half). It is arguably some of the easiest position in the night shift, in that hub.

I was transferred to the department because I get along pretty well with most of the managers. Most of the managers like me because I have a low missort frequency.

Missort is when a package get loaded into a trailer that is not going to the right destination, causing delayed service (an example would be loading a package destined for Sacramento into a trailer headed to San Jose). BCJ has a standing policy that if a package misses its service date; you get the shipment fee refunded, if you request it. It is not difficult to see what a high number of missorts can do to the bottom line.

The “allowable” frequency for missort is 1 in 2500 packages, that about 1 in every 2 – 4 days of work per person (depending how hard and how far you work… more of this later). Our shift get around 25 missorts a night. We handle somewhere in the vicinity of 60 – 80 thousand packages a night. Although we are within out tolerable specs, management still tries to keep a close eye on it.

My missort rate before I was transfer was 1 in 30000 packages. I was the top loader for two months in a row before transfer to being a package sorter for the belt.

But enough with the statistic and patting myself on the back… why am I blogging about all of this?

Because I wondering why I try so hard, why I even brother.... One of the guy I used work with, Kong, gets a misload or two every night.

Instead of carefully sorting packages down the belt, the guy the replaced me as a sorter throw packages down wrong slides by the hundreds, at the end of each shift is 30 minutes of gathering boxes and distributing it back to the right trailers.

My current department is even worst; one of the guys got 30 missorts in 2 weeks, that roughly getting 1 in every 35 packages…

They are still working there… they all get more paid than I do… so why do I even brother?

They get missorts, they get a little pep talk, look at the zip codes before you load the packages. They end up doing the same thing a few days later…

I hate seeing my name on the list of missorts, and a wave of relief comes over me every night when it isn’t… But why do I brother?

It’s not for the money, and it’s not for the fame… Instead of being exceptional and going above and beyond, why not just be mediocre?

Could it be true that Unions promotes mediocrity? Am I the living proof? Only time will tell…

California Special Election 2005

There is going to be a special election in California tomorrow.

For those who live in California, GO VOTE.

For those who do not live in California, keep an eye out on Proposition 77. This initiative would amend state Constitution’s process for redistricting California’s Senate, Assembly, Congressional and Board of Equalization districts. If it passes, it is my belief that many states will follow suit.

I have seen too many blogs and too many blog entries bashing Bush or Clinton, belittling Davis or Arnold, criticizing the left, the right and everything opposite of them…

I don’t intend for this entry to be that. I just urge people to go out and vote. People in Iraq brave death to stand in line to vote. People in the military die for our rights to vote, so be appreciative and go VOTE.

With that said however, I would like to also say this… Be educated when you vote…

If you vote AGAINST someone because of his race, is it not racism?

If you vote FOR someone because of his race, is it not racism?

If you vote AGAINST someone because of her sex, is it not sexism?

If you vote FOR someone because of her sex, is it not sexism?

What do you call if you vote for or against someone because you like them or hate them? Popularity contest?

I knew more people than I care for, who vote for Kerry because they didn’t like Bush, they didn’t necessarily think that Kerry was a better candidate… just because they didn’t like Bush… I guess that is a valid enough reason for them to vote the way they did…

I saw a sign on a window on my way to work last week. It had a crossed out picture of Arnold Schwarznenegger and on the bottom said NO on 74 – 77. (All the initiative that was introduced by Arnold)

Voting against every initiative introduced by someone, because you don’t like them, never mind what the initiatives are… a bit childish, don’t you think?

What that tells me is this person is so happy with California at its current bankrupted state that status quo is ok…

Now I am not saying that there are not people out there who have read and (hopefully) understand the initiative, who are against all the initiatives. But the sign, with the crossed out picture delivered a different message. NO on Arnold, No on his initiatives…

Just go out there tomorrow and vote with your mind and intellects, not your heart and emotions.

(and yes, Vote Yes on all the initiatives because of the governator is just as bad)

Some more updates:

Alicia has part 11 and part 12 out… No new photos though…

Remember the Superballs? Well, the commercial can now be viewed here.

Sick

I been sick.. not flu like sick.. but headache and dizziness sick.. I am better now and back to work.. some might say that lack of sleep is catching up to me.. I say it my old age...

Stay tune for blog entries...