Life In The DPC!

(11/28/07 - AIKEN, SC) - A bank teller had a million reasons to deny this transaction.

After reading two books about the Zodiac and then following that pair up with Helter Skelter I assumed I couldn’t be appalled by either crimes or the logic behind the acts but four people in Mesa took crime to another level. In June 2007 a Mesa, Az women was kidnapped, tortured, had ‘Snitch’ branded into her head.

This wasn’t a highlight of my stay in Arizona but it did seem to show that the Valley can produce a different type of criminal.

I ended up in Phoenix to take a job as a claims adjuster. For the most part I find myself talking to folks after they have a car accident and get an idea of what happened in the crash. Due to my upbringing in California and subsequent exodus to Reno for college I have a very limited exposure to people that aren’t from the west coast. My claims workload is from each state from west of the Mississippi and I find myself dealing with various cultures that I never knew.

It turns out that most of America, at least the states I handle at work, are predominately rural and for the most part have no experience with car accidents and dealing with insurance companies. Also, most car accidents are minor affairs that occur in parking lots or at speeds less than 20 mph and lead to minor injuries. Beyond these casual observations of regions and the nature of car accidents I have also come to the simple conclusion that most victims of car accidents assume that they have won the lottery when their Daewoo is struck at 10 mph while waiting at a stop light.

Since most fairly logical people know that there can be almost no injuries, and hence no cash for pain and suffering, from a low velocity accident a claims adjuster finds him/herself hearing a lot of junk about pain and life destroying injuries that require 12 weeks of chiropractic care and wage loss from an accident that caused $350 of damage to a car’s rear bumper.

*Please Note: Most of my claims are for minimal injuries and accidents that aren’t life threatening but there are very serious ones that come in from time to time. The prior diatribe refers to 75% of my job and the reason I’m employed.

Beyond the notion that people feel they won the lottery when they get in an accident I have also found myself listening to self diagnosis, beyond the normal WebMD style research. For the most part people just claim they are worse shape than the reality of the crash, near death after being rear ended in a parking lot.

After 20 months of doing claims, handling phones and discussing injuries I hit my absolute lowest point when a gentlemen from rural Missouri (I had no idea Missouri was so rural) that was stopped at an intersection and was struck by a Hyundai traveling 10 or 15 mph. The accident dinged up his tow bar. Upon my initial chat he screamed to the heavens of pain, tragedy and the onset of “Whip Flash” and the fact he needed to see his “choir-practor”.

To impose discipline for pending charges also violates clearly established principles of employment and labor law - NFLPA’s letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on behalf of Pacman

The NFLPA has finally stepped up to the plate and is supporting Pacman Jones as he appeals his one year suspension. Since Pacman has been in the searchlight’s of NFL Czar Roger Goodell the player’s union has been surprisingly mute on the issue and for the most part have not been involved.

In a letter authored by the NFLPA on behalf of Pacman’s appeal for leniency the union sites many comparisons and also show the somewhat illegal nature of the initial ruling.

For all of the foregoing reasons, the NFLPA hereby requests that you reconsider the one-year suspension you imposed … as it is excessive and inconsistent with the treatment of other similarly situated players,'’ the letter reads.

Pacman had been kicked to the curb by Gene Upshaw and the bunch. Absolute silence has been the NFLPA’s stance and they are finally doing their assigned duty. They are realistic, like DPC.com, in that they realize any rulings by the NFL are being made without a conviction. Ultimately they’re breaking labor laws and fair employment acts by denying Pacman’s right to play. No one said Pacman was a saint but he deserves a right to a fair trial like everyone else.

“Sambos”, an American restaurant chain from the late 1950’s until 1982, still has its original location open in Santa Barbara, Ca. The current restaurant is owned by the founder’s grandson and advertises itself as as “An American Classic”. 

Little Black Sambo is a late 19th century childrens book about a boy, Sambo, and his tigers. The book was penned by Helen Bannerman, a Scot that lived in India, and is likely derived from her residence but the illustrations, specifically early European editions, are typical blackface.

The diner maintains that it isn’t named after the racist term but they did capitalize on it by decorating their franchises with animated dark skinned children chasing tigers. Any and all denials are noted by the franchise’s website:

its origin seemingly subject to many ideas as to how the restaurant got its name. The fact is - SAM was a real person and BO was a real person. Sam is Sam Battistone and Bo is Newell Bohnett, known affectionately to his friends, family and associates as “Bo”.Despite all the other stories - this is really how SAMBO’S got its name.‘The Story of Little Black Sambo’ by Helen Bannerman was an afterthought. The SAMBO’S RESTAURANT already was established before the children’s story was discovered and used as part of a marketing promotion.
Samborestaurant.com

The Santa Barbara location, and the last Sambo left after a peak of nearly 1,200 before going bankrupt, has been revamped and seems to be more upscale than the original diner, which seems consistent with a Denny’s. Despite inherently bad publicity the owner is still trying to push forward and go national. The official reason for the initial Sambo bankruptcy and subsequent disolving of the chain was noted as too much expansion but protests by the African-American community is the likely reason.

“I have a hard time,” Chad Stevens, Sambo Restaurant owner said, “and maybe being white or Anglo-Saxon, maybe I’m not seeing something. Maybe I’m blind to something. I’m sorry about that. Just read the story, and you tell me.”

Indianapolis Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy showed his support for banning gay marriages. Dungy’s remarks came during an acceptance speech at the Indiana Family Institute where he was receiving a Friend of the Family award. The IFI is trying to amend their states constitution to define marriage as being between a man and a woman.

“I appreciate the stance they’re taking, and I embrace that stance,” Dungy said during his speech. 

The normally soft spoken coach of the Super Bowl Champion Colts has created a fire storm. Known more for being a church going family man now Dungy stands to alienate many of his teams’ fans by invoking his own social agenda.

“We’re not trying to downgrade anyone else.” Dungy said. ”But we’re trying to promote the family — family values the Lord’s way.”

Athletes are always free to express themselves. This intrinsic for anyone but Dungy must also keep in mind that for all the support that he stands to gain from his remarks he will also lose the supports of just as many.

“It is unfortunate that coach Dungy has chosen to align himself with the Indiana Family Institute,” Bil Browning of Bilerico.com. “The Colts were supported this season by all of their fans — gay and straight.”

At this point I have nothing but absolute disdain for Dungy. My original misgivings were predicated on the Colts beating the Bears in the Super Bowl but that aside Dungy is using the platform of Christianity to show that he is nothing more than a narrow minded bigot that hides behind a veil of family values to express his true hate.

To all you gay Colts fans out there, bet you wished you’d rooted for the Bears, huh?
- Dylan Vox

Recently hired wide receivers coach Richie Anderson was fired by the Arizona Cardinals after he was arrested for soliciting a prostitute that turned out to be a Phoenix cop.

“I decided to relieve Richie of his duties,” Cardinals Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt said.“In this particular instance I just thought it was in the best interests of the team to do that. Richie is a quality guy and this is an unfortunate incident.”

Anderson was arrested at Pointe South Mountain Resort. His arrest was part of a police run sting operation.  Solicitation of prostitution is a Class 1 misdemeanor and is punishable by up to six months in prison and a $2,500 fine.

I probably have odd views on prostitutions and this might be based upon living in Nevada for four years but I view in a no harm, no foul mentality. I have a few caveats about that though and mainly is that all parties involved are having good, clean fun. Anderson’s arrest seems to be entrapment to me and he lost his job because of the social stigma associated with hookers or whores (oddly enough ‘whore’ is derived from the Old English ‘hora’ which translates to ’desire’) Strangely enough Detroit Lions Assistant Coach Joe Cullen can get arrested for driving naked and stay gainfully employed.

I spent a weekend in Amsterdam a few years back and their Red Light District was actually clean and non threatening, which is a stark contrast to Reno’s scuzzier areas where the ladies work the street (East Fourth). If you inclined to get down you are afforded non stop window shopping in a fairly inviting environment. Amsterdam has taken the stance that prostitution(which apparently is the oldest profession and I assumed farming was) is inevitable and have put it in a fairly safe and welcoming environment. Local plain clothe police are everywhere and the streets are clean.

By acknowledging that sex sells and that the taxes are even better all parties are satisfied and a random area in the Netherlands is the Las Vegas of Europe. At the end of March Amsterdam is unveiling a statue that honors prostitutes all over the world.

“In many countries, prostitutes struggle and people have no respect for them whatsoever,” Mariska Majoor, a former prostitute who commissioned the statue The statue is meant to give all those men and women strength.”

Tennessee Titans defensive back Pacman Jones is facing more criminal charges. This incident dates back to February 2006. Jones and a friend were pulled over by local police at 1:00 a.m. Jones’ companion was pinched for marijuana possesion and in the ensuing skirmish Pacman took of for the house he was parked outside of. Eventually he took a swing at a cop and was wrestled to the ground and handcuffed. Jones is being charge with obstruction of justice and has a court appearance this month in Georgia to face the charges.

“When police approached the vehicle, they got into ‘a verbal altercation, which led to a physical confrontation (when) they ran into a home they were sitting outside of,’ Police Chief Steve Heaton said. “We had to run in and get them, and there was a physical confrontation with Pacman, and he was charged with the felony obstruction.’’

In a related incident, a month later on March 23, 2006, Pacman allegedly reeked of marijuana after exiting his Corvette to be served search warrant papers by a local SWAT team. According to one of the officers involved, Capt. Mike Pruitt, Pacman did not seem to care about the NFL’s mandatory drug testing.

“We know when we’re going to be tested,” Pacman allegedly said to Pruitt. ”We know months in advance when we’re going to be tested. I stop using two months ahead of time.’”

(Editor’s Note: This was previously published on November 6, 2006)

Can any State claim a part of outer space as its own?
No. The Outer Space Treaty states that outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means. The Treaty establishes the exploration and use of outer space as the “province of all mankind”. The Moon Agreement expands on these provisions by stating that neither the surface nor the subsurface of the Moon (or other celestial bodies in the solar system), nor any part thereof or natural resources in place, shall become property of any State, international intergovernmental or non-governmental organization, national organization or non- governmental entity or of any natural person. -United Nations Office for Outer Space Activities

I don’t know what I find more odd; the fact that no one owns the Moon or the fact that the United Nations felt it was neccesary to make unenforceable laws about outer space? The U.N. has no army on Earth and I can assume that they will not develop an interstellar militia in case North Korea decides to take over the Moon and threatens to rain nuclear war heads through the stratosphere. But I guess they saw the writing on the wall during the Mercury astronauts slow accension towards space and felt it was neccesary to lay down some basic rules to make sure a country doesn’t take over a planet or moon and exploit its natural resources.

The man just upped my rent last night cuz Whitey’s on the moon.No hot water, no toilets, no lights but Whitey’s on the moon.
I wonder why he’s uppin me. Cuz Whitey’s on the moon?I was already givin’ him fifty a week but now Whitey’s on the moon. - Gil Scott Heron

Quite frankly this seems like a waste of time and of bureacratic energy to maintain a set of laws that, in all likelyhood, will never be used. Gil- Scott Heron said it best as the world and culture he knew slowly wasted away and yet the American government was dumping mountains of cash into a project to show up the rest of the world. We beat the Soviets to the Moon but we can’t own it and the USSR doesn’t exist. There are whole generations, mine included, that views Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s exploits on the Moon as achievement we can never relate to. America’s ambition, put into motion by John F. Kennedy, seems like a p.r. stunt in hindsight to this man. America was coming out of the economic boom of World War II and needed feel good initiatives and government spending to keep America afloat emotionally and economically. By the time man was on the Moon America was on an economic downturn that would lead to massive inflation in the following decade. Social angst flowed freely towards a government that many could never trust and the average man was worse off then when the lunar project began. From 1963 through 1972 NASA’s annual budget, adjusted for 1996 cash/money, was never less than $11.7 billion and peaked at $26.8 billion in 1966. That’s too much money to show the rest of the world that America is more advanced and maintains the explorer’s spirit.

One must wonder how the nation would have evolved if the money dumped into NASA, or a part of it, could have been funneled into education. Instead we have generations marginalized by the simple fact that they can’t get a fair shot at life because their own government wanted to show off. Manifest Destiny was alive and well and the people back home were exploited.

Tennessee Titans defensive back Pacman Jones was involved in another off field incident. Jones allegedly visited a Las Vegas strip club with his entourage of six associates and threw sizable amounts of cash in the air to make it rain money. When a stripper began taking the money without his permission Jones allegedly assaulted the stripper by banging her head on the stage. Security intervened and tussled with the entourage and Pacman threatened to kill one of the security guards. Eventually order was restored after Pacman and his group left the club. Shortly afterwards a man identified as one of the members of Pacman’s group returned and opened fire in the club. Three people were shot, including the aforementioned who sustained minor injuries. Another patron is now paralyzed from the waist down due to his gun shot woounds. Pacman has denied knowing the shooter.

Pacman has had many criminal encounters, though he was not convicted in each incident. The Titans seem to be growing tired with dealing with Pacman after his numerous brushes with the law.

“There have been numerous incidents,” Titans Head Coach Jeff Fisher said. “But once we’re able to gather the facts on this one, we’ll be able to address his future and those other types of things.”

10/2003: Jones was sentenced to one year in jail following a bar fight while he was a student at West Virginia University, but the sentence was suspended and he was placed on two years probation. His probation was scheduled to end on Thursday.

4/27/05: Adam “Pacman” Jones was at Club Blaze in Conley, Ga., around 3 a.m. ET on April 27 when officers responded to a fight involving two women. Andrea Akins, a supervisor at the club, told police she was punched in the mouth by a woman who was with Jones. But she later told police the woman “had nothing to do with the altercation,” a police report said.

Both women were handcuffed, but were released without any arrests.

7/13/05: The Tennessee Titans’ top draft pick, Adam “Pacman” Jones, was arrested Wednesday on charges of assault and felony vandalism stemming from a nightclub altercation. Jones surrendered to Nashville police at Titans headquarters Wednesday morning. Jones was in handcuffs, a white T-shirt and light blue exercise pants when he appeared smiling before a night court commissioner, who set bond at $7,000. The charges included one felony vandalism charge and two misdemeanor counts of assault.

9/5/05: The annual Nashville Sports Council Kickoff Luncheon was held at the Renaissance Hotel. Among the 800 guest was none other than Pacman Jones … later that evening Jones was counseled for a loud verbal tantrum when he was told to wait in line for his vehicle. He also refused to pay for any valet services used that evening.

10/25/05: In a petition filed by the state, it was alleged that Jones has not made regular and sufficient contact with his probation officer and that he did not report his July arrest in Nashville in a timely fashion.

Judge Robert Stone in Morgantown granted the probation extension of 90 days, though the state requested for it to be extended up to a year.

4/11/06: Nine people were arrested on suspicion of having roles in two major drug rings that trafficked cocaine and marijuana in Sumner and Davidson counties, including a Nashville man with possible ties to Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones, authorities said yesterday.

Officers from Davidson and Sumner counties seized 1,653 pounds of marijuana, 128 pounds of cocaine, more than 20 vehicles and $608,000, police said.

4/18/06: Police say Pacman was one of 12 or more people that gathered at a gas station in Nashville when a fight broke out and gunshots were fired.

A surveillance camera shows that Pacman was identified as being in the crowd and he confirmed that fact to police.

8/23/06: Jones was also accused of simple assault by Toya Garth, who said Jones spit in her face. Garth said Jones “got very close to her and spit in her face, and which point she stated she spit back in his face,'’ according to statement taken by police.

After Jones was asked to leave, police said he began yelling profanities and was arrested by Officer Matt Baldwin.

“Mr. Jones was given several opportunities to leave, he just wouldn’t do it,'’ Lt. Alvin Baird said. “As he was leaving he hung out the passenger side of the vehicle and began yelling profanities at the security at Sweetwater Saloon, and he put us in a place where we had to do something. Jones was also said to have bloodshot eyes and a strong odor of alcohol.
He was placed under arrest for disorderly conduct and public drunkenness. - http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1690889/posts

A race of people is like an individual man; until it uses its own talent, takes pride in its own history, expresses its own culture, affirms its own selfhood, it can never fulfill itself.” - Malcolm X.

At this point in his life Pacman has fulfilled nearly every stereotype associated with young black Americans. He seems to have blatant disregard for his own well being and rights of those he encounters. The excess, the indulgence and unjustifiable actions are just more fuel for the outsider to maintain notions of a race and perpetuate a stereotype developed by media. I am not implying that Pacman needs to be a saint but he needs to be acutely aware of his role as a celebrity and as a minority in a social structure that is not to fond of him to begin with.

Hopefully my message will get across to young black kids to stop putting themselves in really awkward situations as far as killing themselves — black on black crime – and hopefully, it will inspire them. Jesse Jackson talks in the book about how we’ve dropped the ball as far as Dr. King’s dream, and there were a lot of people who did a lot of ‘heavy lifting’ as far as giving me and a lot of other people the opportunity to be successful. Kids have to realize that they can’t screw up this opportunity. - Charles Barkley

At this point there a few role models for black kids in America and by default athletes seem to fill that void. Barkley had a Nike ad about ten years ago where he maintained that he is not a role model and shouldn’t be raising other people’s kids. He is absolutely right but at this point the only black people on TV are athletes and entertainers. So where are young kids supposed to look for heroes if there are no other minorities on TV besides singers and shooting guards?

I am not implying that Pacman’s behavior is a bi product of of idolizing Dwight Gooden, Mike Tyson or Dolemite but we must keep in mind that there are probably young dudes out there that see Pacman and his hijinks and accept it as decent behavior. Quite frankly Pacman has not been admonished for his behavior (but Ricky Williams smokes herb a lot and is suspended for a season. Cliff pointed this out recently and he is spot on about the askewed priorities of the NFL) and in all likelihood he well get a slap on the wrist when the dust settles. I’d like to say that Pacman needs to clean up his act and start strolling on the gilded path but he is entitled to do what he wishes and accordingly will face the repurcussions. He shouldn’t feel the need to be a role model. At this point he needs to worry about being a shutdown cornerback, return man and finding a top notch lawyer.