It’s almost 5:30 so I will take a look outside and see if the newspaper has arrived. Well, one of them was on the driveway; the Sacramento Bee. And here’s my opinion on a few things that I read.
The first article that I noticed was one on the use of new technology to catch more people illegally parked and to allow the police to “boot” more cars for unpaid parking tickets. They have equipped some vehicles with infrared cameras and GPS units and these expensive modifications allow quick searches of the police databases. More tickets and more revenue are the results. Now what if they spent their money on creating more parking spaces instead of policing the few they have? Sounds smart to me! But, hey…I’m just an ordinary citizen, who would listen to me?
An article that caught my attention briefly was another one about arnold, our acting governor. There was no substance to the article; there never is when arnold is the subject. It’s hard to believe that you can fool so many people at the same time, but he has a knack for it. Perhaps it is because we live in a society that values fame instead of integrity.
And the article of greatest concern for me was the one on the fact that the government is going to create a new position, a national intelligence director. Of course there will be a whole new department to go along with this position. Certainly! You can’t expect the man (I’m sure it will be a man) to do his job without some staff to help him out. But wait, what is his job? I think it’s to take the intelligence that flows into the FBI and CIA and other assorted spy agencies and to make certain that it is shared by all the agencies. But can’t the agencies simply share what they know now? Can’t someone (perhaps the president?) simply tell these agencies that they have to share their data? Here's part of an article...
WASHINGTON - President Bush is urging the creation of a national intelligence director, but some lawmakers wonder whether the post he's proposed will have enough power to get the nation's 15 sometimes turf-conscious spy agencies working in concert.
Bush announced his support Monday for a national intelligence chief and a national center to plan counterterror operations in the United States and abroad. On Tuesday, the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee will discuss the counterterrorism center and the House Government Reform Committee will hold hearings on how to reorganize executive branch agencies so they do a better job sharing information.
"All the institutions of our government must be fully prepared for a struggle against terror that will last into the future," Bush said Monday in the Rose Garden. "Our goal is an integrated, unified national intelligence effort."
The two proposals Bush embraced were the key recommendations of a bipartisan commission that investigated the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
"If Congress has the will, I believe we could enact intelligence reform legislation before we recess for the elections so that changes are in place before the year is over," said Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn. "That's an ambitious timetable. But I think it is justified, given that our country is under threat of attack."
Unbelievable! Why doesn’t someone just tell these bozos that they have to do a better job or they will be fired? Instead we will spend the money for a whole new government agency. Just imagine what the cost will be for the stationery alone. And they will need a new building so they can put an address on that stationery. And after all of that, what guarantee do we have that this new agency will work any better than the last 15? Would you like to bet some money on it? I will cover any bet you want to make! Now that I’m retired, I can use the extra cash.
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