Monday, May 23, 2005
I had my first summons for jury duty. I went to the courthouse this morning and was selected as the final 60 for a criminal felony case.
The woman charged was probably in her late twenties, early thirties and appeared to be of a lower income. As they read her indictment she began to cry. I would cry, too if I had been caught with a pound of methamphetamine. Obviously she was going to sell it.
Luckily, I was juror number 52 out of 58, so I was probably not going to get picked (I wasn't.) After they sat the final 12 and 1 alternate, the rest of us were allowed to go.
Anyway, the point of my entry is the make up of the jury. It was 9 to 11, middle-aged, middle-class, white, men and women. There was one or two young African American men.
I thought, "Is this a jury of her peers?" I don't think so.
The woman charged was probably in her late twenties, early thirties and appeared to be of a lower income. As they read her indictment she began to cry. I would cry, too if I had been caught with a pound of methamphetamine. Obviously she was going to sell it.
Luckily, I was juror number 52 out of 58, so I was probably not going to get picked (I wasn't.) After they sat the final 12 and 1 alternate, the rest of us were allowed to go.
Anyway, the point of my entry is the make up of the jury. It was 9 to 11, middle-aged, middle-class, white, men and women. There was one or two young African American men.
I thought, "Is this a jury of her peers?" I don't think so.
Friday, May 20, 2005
I found this funny.
It comes from THE TICKET 1310AM radio station in Dallas/Fort Worth.
The country club where THE MASTERS PGA Tournament is held has a long history of discrimination, i.e. not allowing minorities and Jews to join.
They still do not allow women to join by the way.
Referring to Tiger Woods winning, a sports talk show host said,
"Irony alert... Black man dominates MASTERS."
HAHA! Well, I guess you had to be there.
It comes from THE TICKET 1310AM radio station in Dallas/Fort Worth.
The country club where THE MASTERS PGA Tournament is held has a long history of discrimination, i.e. not allowing minorities and Jews to join.
They still do not allow women to join by the way.
Referring to Tiger Woods winning, a sports talk show host said,
"Irony alert... Black man dominates MASTERS."
HAHA! Well, I guess you had to be there.
Friday, May 06, 2005
I have some complaining to do... Bare with me its therapeutic.
The company I work for is in the midst of negotiations for medical insurance for the employees. The business is growing and it is a necessity to acquire any people of professional ability. I am in management and young and I have helped this process begin (I think.)
My wife is currently having a difficult pregnancy with our second child. She is in the hospital full time on bed rest until our son arrives. She is due in August. The hospital bill is running about $10,000 every week. Not including the OB/GYN or the cost accrued after he is born. He probably will be premature and the incubator and NICU is around $5,000 a day.
Here is my gripe. Maybe I am just stressed. I make decent money and my wife is a full-time homemaker. It appears the system is set-up in such a way that it punishes young, mildly successful people living in a moderately sized town. The town is growing and professionals are moving in contributing to the economy and raising property value. But the businesses are not up to par with large urban areas offering comparable benefits.
I make too much money to get any sort of financial help, but too little to be able to pay in a timely manner. I contribute to society, I pay my bills, I care about my credit, I want to take care of my family, and I want to buy a home for them in the near future. So, I'm screwed.
The company I work for is in the midst of negotiations for medical insurance for the employees. The business is growing and it is a necessity to acquire any people of professional ability. I am in management and young and I have helped this process begin (I think.)
My wife is currently having a difficult pregnancy with our second child. She is in the hospital full time on bed rest until our son arrives. She is due in August. The hospital bill is running about $10,000 every week. Not including the OB/GYN or the cost accrued after he is born. He probably will be premature and the incubator and NICU is around $5,000 a day.
Here is my gripe. Maybe I am just stressed. I make decent money and my wife is a full-time homemaker. It appears the system is set-up in such a way that it punishes young, mildly successful people living in a moderately sized town. The town is growing and professionals are moving in contributing to the economy and raising property value. But the businesses are not up to par with large urban areas offering comparable benefits.
I make too much money to get any sort of financial help, but too little to be able to pay in a timely manner. I contribute to society, I pay my bills, I care about my credit, I want to take care of my family, and I want to buy a home for them in the near future. So, I'm screwed.
