Wal-Mart Employee Killed on Black Friday 2008

In a previous post, "Why This Blogger Will Not Be Shopping on Black Friday" I decried the commercialization of the Christmas holiday especially as well as the collective selfishness and idiocy of fellow Americans who seem to almost literally go crazy on Black Friday every year while rushing to bargain hunt at retailers around the country. Well, I could say "I told you so," but that would seem to pat myself on the back--something that this blogger is not averse to doing. Anyway, I told you so.

On Black Friday, a Long Island, New York Wal-Mart store opened it's doors early in the Black Friday retailer tradition. Over 2,000 waiting shoppers outside stormed the door upon it's being opened by employee Jdimytai Damour. Amazingly, it was reported that some shoppers became irate when told that the store was closing following the trampling death of the Wal-Mart employee. Frankly I hope law enforcement scours the surveillance video tapes and succesfully prosecutes these killers. I see no difference between these low-lifes and any other criminal who negligently or purposely takes away innocent life. The Canadian news website, CTV.ca provided more details on the savages who trampled and destroyed the front door and nearly trampled other employees who were struggling to rescue their co-worker.

Police were reviewing video from surveillance cameras in an attempt to identify who trampled to death a Wal-Mart worker after a crowd of post-Thanksgiving shoppers burst through the doors at a suburban store and knocked him down.

Criminal charges were possible, but identifying individual shoppers in Friday's video may prove difficult, said Detective Lt. Michael Fleming, a Nassau County police spokesman.

Other workers were trampled as they tried to rescue the man, and customers stepped over him and became irate when officials said the store was closing because of the death, police and witnesses said.

At least four other people, including a woman who was eight months pregnant, were taken to hospitals for observation or minor injuries. The store in Valley Stream on Long Island closed for several hours before reopening.

Police said about 2,000 people were gathered outside the Wal-Mart doors before its 5 a.m. opening at a mall about 20 miles east of Manhattan. The impatient crowd knocked the employee, identified by police as Jdimytai Damour, to the ground as he opened the doors, leaving a metal portion of the frame crumpled like an accordion.

"This crowd was out of control," Fleming said. He described the scene as "utter chaos," and said the store didn't have enough security.

Dozens of store employees trying to fight their way out to help Damour were also getting trampled by the crowd, Fleming said. Shoppers stepped over the man on the ground and streamed into the store.

Damour, 34, of Queens, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead around 6 a.m., police said. The exact cause of death has not been determined.

There were competing tales of stupidity and foolishness on this day such as the brief of two California men who pulled out guns and killed each other at a Toys-R-Us.

Another Year of Terror in Mumbai, India

A state of panic persists in Mumbai, India's financial capital continue as Israeli and Indian commandos rescue hostages and attempt to take over hotels and buildings around the city where terrorists have taken hundreds of civilians hostage after having targeted multiple locations around the city on Wednesday. High-profile targets included the Jewish center of Chabad Lubavitch, Chhatrapati Shivaji railroad station, and the Oberoi Hotel and Taj Mahal Hotel which are both frequented by foreigners. At 9:20am on Wednesday, gunmen began shooting at the railroad station and their cohorts staged attacks every 15 minutes until after 11:00am at 10 different locales suggesting well-coordinated cooperation and complex training not known to be unique to the Indian underworld. Therefore, Indian intelligence authorities believe the attackers may have been trained outside India, possibly in Pakistan.

This is not the first time that terrorism has hit Mumbai. In 1993, Mumbai, then known as Bombay, experienced 13 bombings which killed 250 persons and injured over 1,400 others. Buildings strategically targeted during those attacks included: Bombay Stock Exchange, Plaza Cinema, Passport Office & Air India Building. Ten years later in 2003, the year was marked by bombings from January through August, with the bombing of Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar which killed 50 persons and injured 150. Finally, the last incidents prior to 2008 were the bombings at 7 train bombings on July 11, 2006 which killed 181 persons and injured 890. Clearly this year's bombings are not the first acts of terror and will definitely not be the last in the history of this city. In comparison to this year's tragedies, 2,700 people were killed by acts of terrorism in 2006 which over 3,000 were killed by such means in 2005. Nonetheless, it is still amazing to me how a reported 10 to 12 militants were able to paralyze an entire city of 18 million people. It is not a stretch to say though that as long as groups like the very media-savvy Al Qaeda and other wayward groups believe they can utilize the media to spread their message, there will continue to be high-profile, strategic terrorist events intended as public relations tools for their perpetrators.

Florida Teen Commits Suicide Live on Internet

Just when you thought you'd heard and seen everything, a Florida teen committed suicide via live streaming video via Justin TV , a forum where users can broadcast live video of their activities and interests. Earlier in the day Abraham K. Biggs had posted his promise to take own life on a website, BodyBuilding.com which actually has nothing to do with bodybuilding but is a chat site. This sad story is not just a testament to the frailty of the mind and the scourge of youth suicide, but also demonstrates the power of the Web 2.0 revolution, particularly social networking, blogs, video sharing sites, etc. in enabling ad hoc self-publication with minimum technical knowledge.

Abraham Biggs, 19, from Pembroke Pines, near Miami, killed himself hours after announcing his intention to do so on his blog.

His family have condemned the website viewers and operators for failing to save him. Local police have launched an investigation.

Authorities say Abraham Biggs took an overdose of anti-depressive drugs.

He posted messages online telling people he was going to kill himself and then started streaming live pictures from his home.

Reports say that some of viewers who logged in to watch began to encourage the teenager to commit suicide, others tried to dissuade him.

After several hours, when he had not moved some viewers finally notified the site's moderator, who then called the police.

The boy's sister said: "They got hits, they got viewers, nothing happened for hours."

It is unclear how many people watched the suicide unfold. Some reports suggest that some viewers thought it was a hoax.

The last transmission from the webcam is of a police officer bursting into Abraham Biggs's room, when he discovers his body and then he places his hand over the camera.

The footage has since been taken down and his father is now calling for more regulation of chatrooms.

One can logon Bigg's Myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/forgettingthepastagain. I included a screen capture of his page above and some other pictures from his Myspace albums. You'll notice that he wrote about himself, "Hi there, Mr. Biggs speaking. I'm a good hearted guy, I care a lot about my friends and my family and I would do almost anything for them. I'm the kind of person that is there for my friends regardless of time, I tell all my friends even if it's 3-4AM and they need someone to talk that they can always call and I'll never turn them away. I am very goal oriented, I know what I want to do with my life and I'm working towards it. I'm a nice guy but I'm not a carpet, I don't let people walk on me, so as long as you stay on my good side there won't be any problems. Ok that's all I have to say if you wanna find out more just message me."

There were several other things to note on his page: Biggs apparently was a chain smoker, drove a Scion tC, enjoyed nightlife and especially was a fan of events by a promotional group called Candy Man Ent, LLC. He wrote on their Myspace page that he was looking forward to their next event on December 4th which was to be held at
Passion Nightclub/Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL. He last logged into his Myspace account on November 19, the day of his death, and his last status was, "The girl who loves me is a gold digger, the girl I wanted to marry is a whore, the girl I'm interested in now swears I'm gay...God has a sense of humor."

Having had loved ones who committed or attempted suicide, I can say with compassion for Bigg's family that things are not always what they seem. Although the father admitted that his son had some mental problems, just having mental problems may not necessarily be a precursor to suicide--after all consider the story of Coach Tony Dungy's son, James who hung himself. Looking at Bigg's Myspace page, you can tell he was someone who at least appeared to enjoy being active and being in the company of other youth from different pictures of him with friends. What a sad way for life to end for someone who reportedly had a promising future career as a paramedic.

I can't possibly surmise as to what was going on in his head, though he suffered from bipolar disorder. Obviously he knew that he was going to die. Did he think that since he was going to die, he might as well have an audience? It was reported that an estimated 1,500 people may have watched Biggs in his final hours. Was this final act of attention seeking? Or was he desperately hoping that someone would stop him? Other questions remain like why those he communicated with about his suicide didn't take do anything to stop him. The answer may be because Biggs had on several previous occasions threatened to take his life. It is possible that friends and others may not have taken him seriously due to his past threats. Yet, Texas Christian University professor Keith Whitworth, writes that "technology blurs the lines between reality and that which is not real." Whitworth posits that even for those who thought that he might carry out his threat, the impersonal nature of the Internet may have allowed viewers to be indifferent toward Biggs' fate, whereas had he been in the same room, some would have been much quicker to intervene.

All we know is that Biggs left a suicide note behind: "I have come to believe that my life has all been meaningless. I keep trying and I keep failing. I have thought about and attempted suicide many times in the past. I used to think of my failure as some mystical way of telling me that I was really meant for something meaningful."

China Cries (Foul) Over Dalai Lama Meeting

The Dalai Lama meets Carla Bruni-Sarkozy (R), Rama Yade (L), and Bernard Kouchner at the Lerab Ling temple in August

If the US is called "the Ugly Americans" then certainly China should be called, "the Crybabies." China, one of the world's most despotic tyrannies seems to always be aggrieved over what some other country said or did to China. This time, China has called off upcoming meetings with the EU due to France' planned meeting with the Dalai Lama. Well that does it, that will show 'em! According to Breitbart.com,

The spokesman said the Chinese government and people were extremely unhappy at Sarkozy's plan to meet the exiled Tibetan spiritual after the China-EU summit.

"The Tibet issue is related to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and it touches China's interests at the core. We firmly oppose the Dalai Lama 's separatist activities in foreign countries with any capacity, and firmly oppose the contact between foreign leaders with him in any form," Qin said.

Xinhua quoted Qin as saying that in a bid to maintain good relations with France and the EU, China had told France many times to handle the Tibet issue properly in order to create the necessary conditions for the summit.

But Qin said France, which holds the EU's rotating presidency until the end of the year, had not actively responded to China's efforts to maintain ties with France and the EU, according to Xinhua.

Why This Blogger Will Not Be Shopping on Black Friday

Happy Thanksgiving, and a restful and joyous holiday season to the readers of The Great Blog of Kéto! I do not plan on shopping this Friday after Thanksgiving. I feel that the holidays have become so over-commercialized that the joy has been taken out of the true meaning of America's religious and traditional holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, etc even though according to almanacs and historical records Jesus was not born on December 25. (Being that Palestine is extremely cold in the Winter months, shepherds were NOT caring for sheep in the fields in December (Luke 2:8-12). They only do that from March-October when the weather is bearable.) Last week, my monthly community forum, Wide aWoke Wednesday's hosted a debate, "Holidays, Holy Days & Pagan Days" which discussed the origins and history of major US holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc.

Now there is nothing wrong with shopping on "Black Friday", as it is called, especially as there are quite a few bargains on holiday staples such as clothing, electronics, toys & games, appliances, and more. However, it is the spirit of so many people participating in these shopping experiences that concerns me. I remember several times in the last few years watching news footage of grown adults camping out in front of the major department stores in Philadelphia, Michigan, and other places before dawn and then trampling each other like wild animals once the doors open (See video below).

My wife and I approach holiday shopping differently than many families because we believe that we should show love and appreciation for our loved ones year-around, not just at Christmas time. We also believe in volunteering with homeless feeding programs, food and clothing drives, and more through community organizations and our church to those who cannot give back in return. We believe that as Jesus stated when we do something for the least person who cannot pay us back (Matthew 25:33-40), God honors our giving. Now I'm not saying that YOU shouldn't go shopping and bargain hunting on Black Friday. I'm just saying that we all need to remember the original purpose of Thanksgiving which was to offer thanks to God for our prosperity and of Christmas which was to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ who came to the Earth to give. Everyone talks about "remembering the reason for the season," but few people actually do remember why we celebrate these occasions.

The Son of Man will put the sheep (good people) on his right and the goats (bad people) on his left. "Then the king will say to those good people on his right, 'Come. My Father has given you great blessings. Come and get the kingdom God promised you. That kingdom has been prepared for you since the world was made. You can have this kingdom, because I was hungry and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was alone and away from home, and you invited me into your home. I was without clothes, and you gave me something to wear. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you came to visit me.' "Then the good people will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food? When did we see you thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you alone and away from home and invite you into our home? When did we see you without clothes and give you something to wear? When did we see you sick or in prison and care for you?' "Then the king will answer, 'I tell you the truth. Anything you did for any of my people here, you also did for me.' "Then the king will say to those bad people on his left, 'Go away from me. God has already decided that you will be punished. Go into the fire that burns forever. That fire was prepared for the devil and his angels. You must go away, because I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. I was alone and away from home, and you did not invite me into your home. I was without clothes, and you gave me nothing to wear. I was sick and in prison, and you did not care for me.' "Then those people will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty? When did we see you alone and away from home? Or when did we see you without clothes or sick or in prison? When did we see these things and not help you?' "Then the king will answer, 'I tell you the truth. Anything you refused to do for any of my people here, you refused to do for me.'"Then those bad people will go away. They will have punishment forever. But the good people will go and have life forever. (Easy to Read Version)"

Wal-Mart Shoppers in Grand Rapids, Michigan Trampled & Injured on Black Friday

Ted Haggard is Back!

Ahhhh, the wonders of love and forgiveness! Not to be confused with Merle, Ted Haggard, famed Colorado preacher and former leader of the 30 million-member National Association of Evangelicals has made an unexpected return to public life. Haggard became a household name and lost his NAE leadership post as well as pastorship of his 14,000 member church in 2006 after allegations that he was caught using meth and enjoying the company of a male prostitute, Mike Jones--no, not THAT Mike Jones. "Pastor Ted" as he is known to former congregants explained his bad behavior at that time by recounting his molestation by an adult male at the age of 7 and asking for forgiveness. Thereafter, his church placed him under supervisory counseling by several peer pastors and Ted agreed not to make public appearances in the near future, nor resume preaching until his "restoration process" was complete.

Now, I have no doubts that Haggard was sorry. Whether he was sorry that he got caught in immoral behavior unbecoming a pastor or truly repentant that his actions brought shame upon his family, his organization, and his church is something that only God can judge. As a born-again Christian, however, I am ashamed of the bad behavior of our leaders who have fallen in very public scandals including Jimmy Swaggart, Jim Bakker, and most recently Bishop M.B. Jefferson and Paula and Randy White of Without Walls International Church here in Tampa. Unfortunately, these leaders like many others become successful and famous in their own right, and then proceed to destroy their reputations as committed family men and purveyors of moral Christian living which they carefully built on the way to the top of their profession or vocation.

The secular world lumps all of these disgraced leaders with the whole of Christianity, neither caring nor realizing that one or several religious leaders are not representative of the entire body of Christian believers worldwide. After all, if a non-Christian were to beat his wife as did Juanita Bynum's husband, Bishop Thomas W. Weeks III we would not say that ALL non-Christians are wife beaters. Moreover, if a non-Christian was convicted of fraud as as was St. Petersburg, FL Reverend Henry Lyons, former President of the National Baptist Convention, we would not then say that ALL non-Christians are hypocrites, frauds, and criminals. Yet this double standard is often applied to those who claim the Christian faith. Our duty, then as Christians is to live the same lifestyle that we demand of everyone else, so that no one can call our actions or motives into question. Yes, Christian leaders are men and women with faults just like everyone else, but many rationalize their behavior by saying that because they are "just men" that God does not revoke their gifts or calling (Romans 11:29). While this may be true, their natural or God-given talents still do not excuse them from practicing personal responsibility for the things for which they hold others accountable (Matthew 23:1-4; Luke 12:47).

Iraq Dares to Build a Subway (Not the Sandwich)

There are not enough words to express the funny, freaking, fantastic awesomeness of the government of Iraq and the republic for which it stands. The Iraqi's in a gesture of hope and "Hey we've got to spend some of that $70 billion budget surplus" have decided to defy death and good common sense by building a subway system in Baghdad. Well, I admire their capitalistic flair, but dang what could possibly go wrong with this picture?

Hmmm, maybe the fact that Iraq is still in the midst of a "just because we can" civil war between the Sunni and Shiite tribes or maybe because Al Qaeda in Mesotopotamia will never really go away, it might just be a good idea to build 11- and 13-mile underground deathtraps where hundreds to thousands of innocent Iraqis can congregate in a single place with no exits where they all might be blown to bits by suicide bombers or train bombs. I say, stick to spending that surplus by building more ferris wheels and other such amusements or better yet by providing every adult Baghdadian with the latest in bullet proof jackets.

Everyone Has a Thing (Suggested Blog Topic)

For the second in my Suggested Blog Topic series, I'm going to briefly highlight some of the idiocyncrasies and pet peaves of alot of folks at the office including myself for the sake of fairness. I have changed names to protect the innocent. I've also not expounded further on each person's taglines, just so you all can read between the lines and come up with your own stories, enhancing your capacity for creativity!

Sean: "I gotta have 3 or 4 monitors b/c there's no way that 2 are enough for a man like me!"










Tim: "If I wasn't in this business I'd be throwing a football"
Eddie: "I'm a Kodiak man, baby!"
Drew: "Sunflower seeds are my passion--along with reading books in the bathroom"
Billy: "I want to see you man!"
Larry: "Dude, how bout them KFC biscuits! You gonna share or what?"
Mary: "Queen of Special K® Strawberry Bars"
Joe: "I can work with 50 IE windows in the background"
KH: "Bro, why are you asking me what I want for lunch? I'll eat anything and blog about it tonight."
Jamie: "I pick up supplies and food for the office, therefore I'm technically your boss."

Link to previous Suggested Blog Topics:
"Jesus Ate Fig Bars So We Should Too"

Jesus Ate Fig Bars So We Should Too (Suggested Blog Topic)

Last week, I was in my IT department's big room of cool things talking with our IT manager, who apparently things this blogger is pretty good. The guys are readers of The Great Blog of Kéto and especially had fun with posts like, "Dear John McCain, The Surge IS Working". So off the cuff, he and our IT developers came up with a few blogging topics which they thought might be hilarious (at least from a technology standpoint)--sort of like things that Dilbert might talk about if he blogged. One of these suggested blog topics was "Jesus Ate Fig Bars So We Should Too". We have a sort of snack cupboard filled with all sorts of tasty snacks for the hard-working adult. Different items and food groups make their way in and out of this place of love and warmth including malta, crackers (the subject of a future post), jerky, Sam's Trail Mix, pop tarts, Fig Newtons (or "fig bars" as I call them), Special K® Strawberry Bars, and more!

Anyhow, Josh remarked that you know what some of our snacks just weren't healthy! (Josh works out all the time). Take for example the Fig Newtons sitting on the shelf. Sure they taste great, but did we know that Fig Newtons are high in calories with over 50 calories per cookie? Well, I responded that since Jesus ate figs according to Mark 11:12-14 of the New Testament, then I would continue eating figs as well in the memory of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. According to the Bible, Jesus was passing by a tree with his disciples, and Jesus cursed the fig tree for not producing figs during it's season as was expected. Boy he must have been pretty mad!

The Longest Word in the English Language

Oh boy, do I have some news for you! My 11-year-old daughter, Lanay (all my children are straight-A students) was reading as she always is and informed me that her book contained the longest word in the English language. Well turns out she is right. The longest word in the English language is a word for the formula C₁₂₈₉H₂₀₅₁N₃₄₃O₃₇₅S₈ and has 1,913 letters. It is is in the Guinness Book of World Records, 18th Ed and is a protein, an enzyme that has 267 amino acids which describes a protein in the amino acid of a strand of DNA. The shortened version is written like so, Methionylglutaminy...serine but you're reading this blog post because you want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so enjoy yourselves:

Methionylglutaminylarginyltyrosylglutamylserylleucylphenyl-
alanylalanylglutaminylleucyllysylglutamylarginyllysyglutamyl-
gycylalanylphenylalanylvalylprolylphenylalanylvalylthreonyl-
leucylglycylaspartylprolylglycyllisoleucylglutamylglutaminyl-
serylleucyllysylisoleucylaspartylthreonylleucylisoleucyl-
glutamylalanylglycylalanylaspartylalanylleucylglutamylleucyl-
glycylisoleucylprolylphenylalanylserylaspartylprolylleucyl-
alanylaspartylglycylprolylthreonylisoleucylglutaminylasparaginyl-
alanylthreonylleucylarginylalanylphenylalanylalanylalanyl-
glycylvalylthreonylprolylalanylglutaminylcysteinylphenylalanyl-
glutamylmethionylleucylalanylleucylisoleucylarginylglutaminyl-
lysylhistidylprolylthreonylisoleucylprolylisoleucylglycylleucyl-
leucylmethionyltyrosylalanylasparaginylleucylvalylphenylalanyl-
asparaginyllysylglycylisoleucylaspartylglutamylphenylalanyl-
tyrosylalanylglutaminylcysteinylglutamyllysylvalylglycylvalyl-
aspartylsrylvalylleucylvalylalanylaspartylvalylprolylvalyl-
glutaminylglutamylserylalanylprolylphenylalanylarginylglutaminyl-
alanylalanylleucylarginylhistidylasparaginylvalylalanyl-
prolylisoleucylphenylalanylisoleucylcysteinylprolylprolylaspartyl-
alanylaspartylaspartylaspartylleucylleucylarginylglutaminyl-
isoleucylalanylseryltyrosylglycylarginylglycyltyrosylthreonyl-
tyrosylleucylleucylserylarginylalanylglycylvalylthreonylglycyl-
alanylglutamylasparaginylarginylalanylalanylleucylleucyllysyl-
glutamyltyrosylasparaginylalanylalanylprolylprolylleucylglutaminyl-
glycylphenylalanylglysylisoleucylserylalanylprolylaspartylglutaminyl-
valyllysylalanylalanylisoleucylaspartylalanylglycylalanylalanyl-
glycylalanylisoleucylserylglycylserylalanylisoleucylvalyllysylisoleucyl-
isoleucylglutamylglutaminylhistidylasparaginylisoleucylglutamyl-
prolylglutamyllysylmethionylleucylalanylalanylleucyllysylvalylphenyl-
alanylvalylglutaminylprolylmethionyllysylalanylalanylthreonylarginy-
lserine.

Now put that in your supercalifragilisticexpialidocious pipe and smoke it.

Picture of the Day, 11-19-08

Ah, how timely is this cartoon which I snagged from the guvment today! Enjoy yourselves!

Hulk Unable to Save Ted Stevens from Impending Senate Loss

Hear ye, hear ye, the most famous Senator in Alaska's history and the Senior Republican Senator, Ted Stevens has lost his bid to continue his 40 year reign as Senator from Alaska. Stevens has been a Senator almost since Alaska became the 50th state, and is one of the best known Senators for a) referring to himself as the Incredible Hulk and wearing such a tie b) bringing home so much pork for a state of 500,000 that his 2006 total government welfare added up to $9 billion, and c) most recently being convicted of 7 felony counts of fraud for not reporting over $250,000 in gifts from VECO, a business constituent which benefitted from his legislation.

As of Wednesday evening, with 100% of Alaskan precints reporting, challenger and Anchorage Mayor, Mark Begich led Stevens by 3,247 votes. The only votes left to count are 2,500 overseas ballots which will be counted November 25. This is obviously great news for the Democratic Senate which now holds 58 seats and is looking to ad to the election total in Minnesota where Al Franken trails incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman by 206 votes and Georgia where Jim Martin faces a runoff election with incumbent Sen. Saxby Chambliss. A 60-vote majority in the Senate would guarantee a filibuster-proof margin for the Democrats.

Why We Can't Throw Out the Auto Industry with the Bath Water

The US government is about to get bigger. Economic and political experts as well as Congress are split on whether the federal government should bail out the auto industry, GM in particular, just as the fed bailed out Wall Street. The problem is that the U.S. is supposed to run on free market or laissez-faire principles of capitalism. Government should not have to intervene to save reckless business from itself. Therefore, any company that cannot manage it's business is doomed to suffer the consequences by disappearing from the market, e.g., going out of business as did companies like Washington Mutual. However, just as with the Wall Street bailout, it is not that simple to just let a major U.S. manufacturer die a death which it's leadership has inflicted on itself.

If the economy were doing well as it was in the 1990's, that would be just fine. However, with record unemployment just in this year alone combined with the recent Wall Street meltdown millions of people who rely on the auto industry for living, pensions, benefits, and more would immediately be thrown out of the workforce with no immediate opportunity for re-training or re-education to get back on their feet. You can imagine that many of these factory workers and union workers have already seen their investments plummet since September to the point that some may have to postpone retirement. Such is the big picture for our economy. US News explains how the US Congress has been aiding the auto industry since September 2008:

The airwaves and the Internet are blanketed with debate over a proposed federal bailout for Detroit's Big Three -- but didn't we already send them a check a few months back? The numbers are so staggering, and the facts on the ground are changing so quickly, that it can be hard to keep track of which auto industry bailout is being discussed. We'll attempt to clear up the confusion with a summary of the last month's auto industry news.

Auto Bailout, Round I: In September, Congress approved $25 billion in aid to the struggling U.S. auto industry. The money will come in the form of loans. That money would be dispensed beginning in 2009, used to retool factories and take other steps to enable U.S. automakers to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles.

The loans were not strictly limited to American-owned automakers. AFP explained at the time, "Under provisions of the new legislation, not only US carmakers are eligible for the guarantees but also suppliers and foreign automakers with plants in the United States that are more than 20 years old -- Nissan and Honda's US operations qualify." Other foreign automakers, however, were not pleased with Congress's decision to help out the Big Three. At the time, the Big Three insisted the move should not be called a bailout. ABC News reported, "'Bailout' isn't the word automakers are using. A greener Big Three, the automakers argue, will reduce the country's dependence on foreign oil. Chrysler Vice Chairman Jim Press told ABC, "It's not a bailout. It's a good investment between industry and government." Critics of the plan disagree. Economics Professor Peter Morici of the University of Maryland said "Oh, I'd call it a bailout. They are having increasing difficulty borrowing money in the private credit markets because there's a high risk of default. In that environment, giving them a government loan is a bailout."

Auto Bailout, Round II: But a lot has changed since September. It has become increasingly clear that the loans set aside by the September vote won't come in time to save the ailing U.S. auto industry, and the largest U.S. automaker now says its expects to run out of cash before the end of 2008. Such a failure could have untold consequences. By some estimates, one in 12 American jobs is dependent on the auto industry.

How to Get Tickets for the January 2009 Inauguration

In regards to the January 20, 2009 Presidential Inauguration (flight tickets are inexpensive if you book now via Southwest Airlines). Regardless of what you may have heard, tickets are FREE to the public! All you have to do is contact your Congressional representative to put your name on the list to receive tickets. Several companies and websites claim to have tickets for sale, and several have sold tickets for hundreds to thousands of dollars, please DON'T purchase any tickets!! Tickets are distributed only 1 week in advance of the inauguration and must be picked up in person in Washington D.C. 240,000 tickets are available for distribution by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Refer to this following Chicago Tribune news article for more information, "Calls for inauguration tickets through the roof". This blogger believes that there will be over 1 million attendees at the inauguration, and this will be an event not dissimilar in its significance to the Million Man March of 1995 which saw over 1 million African-American men descend upon Washington, DC for a historic occasion. This time though, the attendance will be highly diverse with all races and nationalities represented.

For those living in Hillsborough County, FL - your Congress person is Kathy Castor, her phone number is 202-225-3376. You may also sign up at the JCIC's website for e-mail updates and inaugural events at http://inaugural.senate.gov/. The theme will be “A New Birth of Freedom” and refers to President Abraham' Lincoln's historic Presidency. Already at least one inaugural Ball, the Hawaii State Society Inaugural Ball at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel ($200-per-person tickets) is sold out, but of course there are multiple balls during this festive week. Also those who want to be involved in the parade, whether singers, artists, marching bands, etc. have to submit a request to the Armed Forces Inaugural Committee (AFIC) at http://www.afic.northcom.mil.

Gas Price Update

Sunday evening, October 26, 2008, I bought gas for the cheapest price since last September 2007 when my wife, Shirre and I began dating. I saw a CNN article on Twitter recently that reminded me of the good old day of yesteryear, when gas was less expensive.

A pictorial timeline:

UPDATES:
Sunday, 11/23/08: $1.85
Sunday, 11/16/08: $1.99
Sunday, 11/13/08: $2.13
Tuesday, 11/11/08: $2.22, 7 Eleven
Saturday, 11/1/08: $2.31, Race Trac
Sunday, 10/26/08: $2.45, Murphy Gas
Sunday, 10/8/08: $3.39, Coastal
Sunday, 7/20/08: $3.89, Coastal

Read CNN's "Gas sinks to 3-year low" article for more analysis of how far gas prices have dropped since September 17 of this year. Prices haven't been this low since September 2005. Though it does seem curious that besides Hurricanes Gustav & Ike affecting oil production and the recent Wall Street volatility which of course has depressed gas prices, gas prices have been reduced to this level just before an election.

Pictures from Obama Party at Gaspar's Grotto, 11-7-08

In my "Obama Campaign Workers Celebrate in Ybor City " post, I shared my experiences from last Friday's Florida Campaign for Change staff going-away party in Ybor City. The pictures are finally posted on the DemocracyPhoto.com site on the page, Obama 2008 Staff Party - Tampa, FL 11/07/2008. There are over 500 pics up, so I've just posted a couple including some of friends that I made that evening.


The photog told me to rep my O shirt, so I did.


Talking to Erica, Obama Field Organizer & government attorney from South Florida.



Word on the street is...there's been a Change in Address in DC


The 3 amigos...where these guys came from I'll never know. The mustachios are horrible tho.


Tallahassee Obama crew, my man said he bought the fly Obama hat for $5. I told him to get me one.



It's true, Rasta's for Obama


One of the big guys thanking us for our hard work. It was the only speech of the night.



Toby O, Regional Field Director of Tampa for Barack Obama's Campaign for Change from Downtown Tampa Field HQ

Crowd pic w/Toby


Brian, an organizer psyched b/c we won South Florida!

The Obama Family in September '08 Essence

One of my favorite cover stories of the Obama family this year was the September 2008 Essence magazine story on the family. The pictures they took were vibrant and colorful, and sometimes it's just good to see positive stories profiled when so much of the news we hear these days is negative or mindless gossip. It's hard to fake being a real close-knit family with good family values, so it seems to me that the Obama's are the real deal when it comes to raising their family. Picture credits to blackcelebkids.com. Here is the word from Essence explaining how they finally got the entire Obama family as the September cover story.

The September issue of Essence magazine features an interview with Sen. Barack Obama and his family inside their Chicago home.

Essence editor-in-chief Angela Burt-Murray said it took a year for the magazine to gain access to the Obama's Illinois home for an intimate interview with the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, his wife, Michelle, and their daughters, Sasha and Malia.

Burt-Murray talked Thursday with CNN "American Morning" anchor Kiran Chetry about the interview and the Obama family.

Chetry: You are the first African-American media outlet to get this inside look. Did your team get a chance to see the real Obamas?

Burt-Murray: I think we did. We went to their home on the South Side of Chicago and it was wonderful to see them as a family interacting with each other, and see the girls skipping around the house, just acting like it's a normal, everyday occurrence to have a camera crew in their home and Secret Service at different points throughout the house and around the yard. But it didn't really seem to impact the girls in any way.

Link to Michelle Obama Magazine Covers
Link to Obama Endorsed by Esquire Magazine & More Obama Covers