Foiled in Orlando, Killing Babies in Georgia, The Asshole Factor, Florida Gulf Coast Who, and The Possible Appearance of the Banana People

It was a long and dreary week, punctuated every now and then with spurts of violence that would shock and appall the average human being. However, being American, most of us understand these sorts of things are simply part of the cost of doing business in the United States.

Down in Orlando Mr. James Seevakumaran, a thirty year old University of Central Florida student apparently planned to go all Jimmy Holmes. He had amassed a small arsenal that included one hand gun, what police are calling a tactical weapon, scads of ammunition, a few 100 plus ammo clips, and a couple of explosive devices. He had even written down a list of what he hoped to accomplish that day. Luckily for the student body his plan went awry when his room mate blew the whistle on him and the Orlando police arrived in a timely fashion. At some point as the police closed in and he realized his fantasy wasn't going to play out like he'd hoped he blew his brains out. According to reports he had no history of violence, or psychological problems. He was described as just another quiet guy who kept to himself.

In Brunswick, Georgia police arrested De'Marquis Elkins, age 17, and a 14 year old pal. The two are suspected of murdering a 13 month old child. Sherry West was out walking around, pushing her infant in a stroller when the two allegedly approached her and told her they wanted all her money or they'd kill her baby. When she told them she didn't have any cash the happy go lucky lads shot the kid in the head and wounded Ms. West in the leg and ear, then ran away.

@GunDeaths and Slate say that as of 3-21-13 at least 2,883 Americans have been shot to death since the Newtown, Connecticut murders.

In other news, on March 20th The Atlantic ran an article on line by Ken Stern. In it he reports that the very wealthy, those in the top 20% earnings bracket, on average contribute 1.3% of their income to what could be called charitable enterprises. In contrast those in the bottom 20% give on average 3.2%. This despite the fact the rich routinely itemize their taxes and are able to deduct charitable donations, while the poor normally don't and therefore can't take advantage of that tax break.

In addition Stern found that the wealthy tend to donate their money to institutions of higher education, arts organizations, and museums. In other words they give to places that cater to the rich. On the other hand the poor are more likely to give to religious organizations and social service charities, ie things that feed and clothe people. Stern notes that last year 34 of the 50 single largest charitable contributions went to colleges and universities, 9 went to arts organizations and the rest to medical facilities. None went to a charity that serves the poor or dispossessed.

In his research to explain all this, Ken Stern quotes University of California--Berkeley psychologist, Paul Piff who says the rich are, "more likely to exhibit characteristics that we would stereotypically associate with assholes."

And all this time I thought it was just me.

In sports, the NCAA basketball tournament has turned into a maelstrom of upsets and choke jobs beyond all comprehension. Obviously the Mayans were right. When an outfit called Florida Gulf Coast University takes out Georgetown we have reached the end of times. Casualties were too many to count. The one dim light at the end of the tunnel in this monumental disaster is the knowledge that every one's brackets are fucked. My elite eight and final four teams are still alive, although a couple are on life support so despite the nightmare there is still a thin ray of hope.

Finally, on a personal note, I will be disappearing into the bowels of the Oklahoma County courthouse beginning Monday morning for an undetermined amount of time. Being called to jury duty tends to make one a bit schizo. On one hand I have a terrible urge to show up babbling about how the Banana People are plotting to rip out my heart and serve it to Dick Cheney for lunch thus causing the judge to immediately throw my ass out onto the street. On the other, there is a dark desire to be able to sit in on some God awful felony trial that will provide me with blog material for weeks, if not months. The reality will probably end up being far more drab and utterly useless. The last time I served, "the trial" ended up being a two bit civil suit that was settled out of court after the first hour and a half of testimony.

There you have it on a gray, damp, and raw March Saturday on the southern plains.

Beer awaits.

sic vita est



3-23-13