Ten two letter words

This man Gets it!

A line in the sand..

I cannot find a way to address the issue of domestic violence in soft or subtle terms. Perhaps, this is appropriate for the issue as it stands is not one of subtleties or nuances. There exists no delicacy in the act of a man beating his wife, or children. No grace or beauty in the aftermath, filled with tears, pain, and fear. Domestic violence is simply cruel, cowardly behavior, performed by persons of lesser intellect who seek power. Power over others, for they have none over themselves or their surroundings.

No, there is no nice way to write about it, but this should not make us shy away.

The recent charge of Murder placed against Patrick Dapolito in the death of his wife Kelly Winslow of Limington last month, really brought the issue to the fore again. After shooting his wife in the back of the head with a 9mm handgun, Mr. Dapolito then stuffed the victim in a freezer until such time as he was able to dispose of the body in western Maine.

If we as a society truly believe that Domestic violence in all its forms is unacceptable as evidenced by the myriad of articles and books written on the subject, then I ask why in God’s name do we still have families who are living in a state of fear, where life itself, can become the ultimate price paid?

The situation continues because we as a people may pay lip service to the notion of stopping violence in the home, but do little to translate the idea into a reality. Yes there are education programs and outreach facilities, there are social service organizations and law enforcement officers, but overall these programs and avenues, are mere stop gaps. They exist to help save people from suffering at the hands of a supposed love one. Noble yes, but they are not, by their very nature, able to change the general perception and social values of the citizenry which, I believe, is what really needs to happen.

That, my friends, is left to you and me.

If we really want to stop violence then we should make the idea of it so socially unacceptable, that once found out, an abuser cannot help but experience great shame and/or fear. To do this we have to make the abuser understand not why he/she was so abusive, but rather why we will not tolerate this behavior as a people. This is not hard to do, for those who lower themselves by attacking women and children are nothing more than cowards. Being such, they are deserving of none of our attentions, friendships, or business. In other words, we should ostracize them. This can be done without violating anyone’s civil liberties, for nowhere in the Constitution does it state that you must interact with those persons you find distasteful.

I personally have no room in my world for men who are tough with women and children. I have found that these types are generally of an unreliable and unstable personality and that they cannot be trusted. The very nature of their lives makes it so, for they must lie and deceive continually to cover up their crimes. They have no honor, no pride, no strength of character, and lacking such they deserve no respect, friendship or companionship from anyone least of all me. I draw a line in the sand on this issue, a very distinct line, and if friend, family member, or even associate, crosses it they quickly find themselves “Shut out” completely.

I associate not with cowards.

I believe if more people took such a stance, if perhaps the abuser’s friends looked past “What a nice guy he is except for that beating his wife to a bloody pulp every Friday night bit” then we just may find a decrease in the instances of domestic violence here in Maine. If we can all measure our relationships with perpetrators of domestic violence with a moral compass that rejects any and all excuses, that scorns those found guilty, then we can begin to remove this barbaric plague from our society as a whole.

It will be shame that brings such persons to their knees and to heel, not discussions about drug use or their childhood. It will be their neighbors and friends turning away in disgust at the cowardice of the act which will leave no doubt, domestic violence is no longer acceptable or wanted.

Draw your line in the sand!

Sláinte
Allen R Butler

*the photo is of the cowardly and weak Dapolito heading to court*

The Government Can

Oh yeah "mix it up with lies to make it all taste good" !!!

Sláinte
Blighter

Out of Touch.

While I become more and more angered each day with the news from Washington and Augusta I slowly realize that I am not in touch. For if I was, the surprise, the angst, and ire brought on by false promises and rhetoric would not be so strong. Amidst the din and clamor of all the voices screaming, I have for two years tried to raise mine above it all, ever hopeful that somehow a modicum of reason might find its way into the fray. To no avail, for as I said before, I am obviously out of touch with the political realities of this state and nation.

Allow me to elaborate a little.

Last week the Democrat leadership in Augusta proposed a “Jobs Bond” to the tune of ninety nine million dollars. I began to wonder, how this particularly large borrowing package was different from all the other “bonds” Mainers have been approving for the last decade. The truth is it differs not one bit; this proposal is the same damned, re named, bond we keep voting “yes” for every election. As a matter of fact, it is a cookie cutter version of the 71 million Transportation bond passed in November 2009. Oh they threw in the old argument for rail service to Lewiston, and stamped the package with a nice new title but in essence, it is the same old bag of debt.

Thankfully Governor Baldacci, that bastion of fiscal responsibility and foresight, came up with his own version of the proposal which will cost the taxpayers but a measly $79 million dollars. That comes to a $20 million dollar savings at the stroke of a pen!!!!

Let me take a poke at the idea too, how about I save the citizens of Maine for years to come another $79 million with my keyboard here, by proposing the “No Bond, Bond” package which includes an “Enough already” provision, as well as a “stop lying to us all” clause.

As I looked at this latest of schemes, I found myself more confused and angrier than ever over the whole idea, for within its entire makeup lays all the things I find most egregious about politics. Deception, lack of innovation and lastly an honest to goodness, lack of common sense.

If we already have bonds pending approval for the proposed projects, why then are our officials asking to borrow more? Especially in this time of economic ruin? Is not the 71 million bond money enough to cover the projects? If not then where did all the money go? I am inclined to believe that our leaders have become so accustomed to the Maine taxpayer approving each and every borrowing plan put on a ballot that they simply are not even going to try and come up with anything innovative to spur economic growth. You know like maybe tax incentives for business, or tax breaks for the individual. Something radical along those lines may be too forward thinking and have real consequences and results. So they “Stay the course” and borrow more money for the fancy of the day and when they get the monies be sure to make them available in the general fund. This way when the legislature cannot balance the budget or an unfunded liability (Dirigo) needs revenue it can be shifted easily.

I think my inability to comprehend the concept of spending oneself out of debt is the cause for my ire. As I see it, in my own simple world, if you already have too much debt to pay off reasonably with the resources at hand then to go borrow more is foolhardy at best. For at some point, the creditor will be calling, and the debt incurred will have to be paid back. You and I cannot go and tax somebody for more revenues or rely on “Creative accounting” to balance our family budgets, if we did, more than likely we would be spending time in a nice prison cell somewhere. Or at the very least become impoverished and homeless, this is how it works for us mere mortals in the rest of the world; I suppose the same facts and laws apply not to governments. Maybe this is why Washington leads the charge for borrowing and spending money that just simply does not exist. The reality is obviously quite different for the leaders, and the led, and I suppose I should try to understand their reality better.

Perhaps, if I go buy an old “Freedom Rock” album set and sit around listening to it, and do nothing for a few months I may come to a better understanding of how these people think.

So, I am “Out of touch”, completely bewildered, and I suppose it is time for me to go sit down and shut up for a change, which is what I’ve been told to do more than once.

Cheers
Allen Butler