Guns and Governors

Patrick and Melissa Hayden filed a lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis against Greensburg Junior High, claiming that the team's haircut policy that got their son kicked off team is unconstitutional.  What constitutional rights were violated when he chose not to comply with the rules of a voluntary extracurricular activity? Five will get you ten that the Hayden’s are Tea Partiers.

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer says she wants a state constitutional amendment to give her more  power and control over budget and funding issues.  She claims the current line item veto is insufficient.  Yeah, giving her more funding power is like making Jack Kevorkian head of the terminally ill ward at a nursing home.

Menu for Obama's State dinner for Chinese President Hu Jintao:  d'anjou pear salad with farmstead goat cheese, poached Maine lobster, orange glazed carrots and black trumpet mushrooms, dry aged rib eye with buttermilk crisp onions, double-stuffed potatoes and creamed spinach. Dessert was to be old-fashioned apple pie with vanilla ice cream. 

I guess my invitation got lost in the mail.  At least they didn’t serve Kung Pao Chicken with Pork Lo Mein.

Have to admit that I have always been rather ambivalent about the 2^nd Amendment and gun control.  But because of the recent Tucson tragedy there has been much to say about why the founding fathers inserted the right to bear arms.  I had always thought it was to be able to form state militias as the militias were integral in defeating the British, and because the Articles of Confederation, the precursor to the Constitution, stated every State shall always keep up a well-regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and accoutered, and shall provide and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a due number of field pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition and camp equipage.  Conversely, there was no mention in the Articles about the right to bear arms, and the National Guard replaced state militias.  But today, the new prevailing opinion is that the 2^nd Amendment is there so that citizens can arm themselves if they feel the government becomes tyrannical and must be overthrown.  So if that is the case, do citizens have the right to buy M1A1 tanks, F-22 Raptors, and Predator Drones?  Because if they don’t, it won’t be much of a battle.

Add recently elected Baptist Deacon turned Alabama Governor Robert Bentley to the list of politicians who are made up of equal parts: bigotry and stupidity and after making the following statement to the congregation of a Baptist Church “Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I’m telling you, you’re not my brother and you’re not my sister, and I want to be your brother.”  The man was sworn in just three days ago possibly setting a new record the shortest time period before sticking one’s foot into one’s mouth for an elected official.  The fact that he thought it and said it shows you where he is coming from and what he believes.  You’re a governor before you’re a deacon.  Funny, I haven’t heard a peep from Newt Gingrich, the man who screams from the lectern about the threats of Islamic law taking over this country.  Sorry Newtser, a fundamentalist is a fundamentalist and in a secular society, we all need to remember the first amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.