Saggy Pants on Yonge

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I saw a guy walking down Yonge Street the other day with some version of shorts half-way down his thighs. I mean, he was a walking, talking wonder of gravity-defiance. I figure the only thing keeping his pants up was his wide-stance way of walking -- he walked with his legs at least a foot or more apart.  Which perhaps explains this: "This week, a San Francisco high school teacher in the Sunset District called police to intervene in a dispute with a student, who "became belligerent and took a fighting stance" after he was told to pull up his pants."

He may have taken the fighting stance in order to keep his pants up.

At any rate, the guy on Yonge Street undoubtedly thinks he looks cool, but the word that came to mind as I looked at him from behind was "retarded". It was like he had a sign on his back saying, "I'm unemployable; nobody's gonna hire me, you might as well get used to the idea of cutting me welfare checks for the indefinite future".

Could someone please remind me why you and I are deemed responsible for keeping this guy via the social system rather than this guy taking some kind of responsibility for his own life? Leftists/liberals say "take care of the guy". Conservatives say, "pull up your pants and go out and find a job".

What do you say?

Conservatives: Tough On Crime

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Singapore is noted as a tough-on-crime country.  I've been there about 30 times. Did it cramp my style? No. How did this tough-on-crime jurisdiction strike me? Clean, orderly, and safe.

Which brings us to the Canadian Conservatives' crime omnibus bill. The media are endlessly concerned about any and all Conservative crime measures. Expect to see the words draconian, regressive, neanderthal, and punishment-focused in the days ahead.

But what about the draconian, regressive, punishment-focused actions the neanderthal Conservatives have already taken? The National Post has a list.

* Toughened sentencing and bail for serious gun crimes
* Imposed mandatory jail time for drive-by and reckless shootings
* Ended so-called “sentence discounts” for multiple murder
* Ended early parole for murderers
* Cracked down on street racing and drug-impaired driving
* Raised the age of sexual consent to 16 years from 14 years
* Stopped two-for-one credit for time served in pre-trial custody
* Ended early parole for white-collar criminals
* Made it mandatory for sex offenders to be included in the National Sex Offender Registry
* Imposed tougher sentencing for child traffickers
* Made it mandatory for Internet providers to report information they receive about child pornography on the web
* Hired 1,000 new RCMP personnel
* Imposed longer wait periods for certain offenders seeking a pardon

How did these actions adversely affect you?

Thought so.

Singapore has a disembarkation card. At the bottom it states, "Death for drug smugglers". Unless you plan to smuggle drugs, you have nothing to worry about.

And that's the way the Ball bounces.

Quote of the Day: "Conservative Albertans Are Not Conservative Because..."

"Conservative Albertans are not Conservative because we are prosperous — we are prosperous because we are Conservative". -- Letters section, National Post.

The simple, stubborn truth is this: the facts of life are conservative.

Tragic Understatement of the Week: It has some pretty permanent consequences"

Two young North Carolina guys, trying to get high, overdose on "plant food", and die. Autopsy results aren't back yet, but the evidence points to Mephedrone, responsible for about 50 deaths in the UK and now coming to a US town or city near you.

Here's what the Teen Challenge website says about it.

Mephedrone is a stimulant that gives users a euphoric rush that removes inhibition. The effects can last 2 to 4 hours, and depending on method of ingestion, can begin to take effect within 2 to 15 minutes. Side effects of mephedrone, as reported anecdotally by users, are nose bleeds, nose burns, hallucinations, nausea, vomiting, paranoia, increased heart rate, anxiety, sweating, cold or blue fingers, and dilated pupils. Aggression has been reported by police.

It took me one minute to dig up the the Teen Challenge information.

Here's the parents' response:

... the guys were just two friends who were hanging out and made a mistake.

Why is it when someone does something wrong -- commits adultery, steals millions from their firm, kills someone in a drag race, it's always just "a mistake"? Ingesting plant food in an effort to get a cheap high is not a mistake. It's an intentional behaviour that is intrinsically risky.  Buying a cartridge that doesn't work on your printer -- that's a mistake.  And why is it that parents are too often unwilling to admit that their children have engaged in either foolish or immoral behaviors?

"It could happen to anybody..." Ausbon's mother Sherri Ausbon said.

No. In order for this to happen to you, you have to be seeking to get high, have to ingest a substance not intended for human consumption, and you have to have made some effort to get it. So it's not going to happen to just anybody. And not everybody's kids are are going to do this.

"You can get it over the internet and you think it's okay, but it's not. It has, obviously, some pretty permanent consequences."

"He wouldn't have done it" Doug Ausbon added. 

But he did. And now, he's dead.  Such a sad, tragic, avoidable waste of a life.

Parents need to raise their kids well, teach them responsibility, teach them about dangers, and refuse to engage in permissive parenting that condones or excuses foolish and risky behaviours.

In other words, parents need to act like conservatives and instil conservative values in their children.

Teach your children well.

My condolences to the parents and loved ones of these two young men. Maybe we can all learn something from this.

Related articles

• NC State student and teen found dead (charlotte.news14.com)
• Study focuses on mephedrone use in Northern Ireland post-ban (eurekalert.org)