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There's Dog Droppings Growing In My Yard

It's either growing there, or the melting snow is giving me a better look at the stuff I didn't clean up. I'm mulling over the situation. Watch this space for an opinion.

Old Friends:
A couple of weeks ago I went to a chili competition hosted by a couple I hadn't seen in years. Then there was a phone call with another old friend who I have kept in contact with, but don't see often. Followed by a phone call from my daughter Mary Jo. Mary and I keep up with each other frequently, but this call was to inform me of the death of a friend I haven't kept up with at all. And that event necessitated a phone call to her daughter. The last time I had seen the daughter was when I was attending the funeral of her son who had committed suicide. This week I attended a lunch and lecture series at the local University and who is in line with me. Two friends, I haven't seen for years. I hesitate to mention that on CBS Sunday Morning they did a piece on Joan Boaz. I never met Joan personally, but she was a heartthrob for me back in the day.
So what does all of this mean? Nothing I'm sure, but it does get creepy when your life is passing through your mind in slow motion. That's only supposed to happen when you're about to die. I have to be sure to look both ways when crossing.

Parkland
Certainly, there is a twelve step program for treating my addiction to these young people and their courageous, well-presented stand for increased gun control legislation. If I don't go to twitter every morning, I feel like I'm letting them down.
Part of my motivation is simply guilt. I only wish I was as articulate and poised when I was their age. But in my generation's defense, some of my classmates did stand up for the issues of the day. I just wasn't one of them.
I so want these young people to prevail. Not in a kind of half-measure like the Florida bill that recently passed. I hope that significant federal legislation that respects the rights of legitimate gun owners but takes weapons of mass destruction off the street.
I understand the concerns of sports shooters and hunters about the possible infringement of their rights. I'm genuinely sorry that many people in our country feel that they have to own guns to defend themselves. But the need for automatic rifles, high capacity magazines, and bullets whose destructive capacity defies medical repair, is beyond the pale.
I've never heard a reasonable excuse for anyone to own one of these killing machines, except that banning them is the first step to banning all guns. Besides the obvious complement to that argument being, I have a constitutional right to own a shoulder launchable ground to air missile, I think that thinking is seriously flawed.

To all my friends stuck in the hot and humid climates in the South.Your welcome home anytime.
Poppa Jeff in the shade sipping lemonade. (Well planning for it anyway.)




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