Why is it that the “weatherman” (okay you PC police, weather-non-gender-specific-person) often times can’t predict the weather for the next day, and people just laugh and say “you know they are quite often wrong“.  However when they predict flooding, polar bears starving, mass extinction, island countries disappearing underwater, millions of people dying, droughts, floods, and cats sleeping with dogs 100 YEARS IN THE FUTURE, many if not most people declare that as an UNDENIABLY ACCURATE FACT?

How about we try what Dr. Michael Crichton suggested and have the “climate experts” commit to a 10-year prediction and let’s see how good the computer models are before we continue on the path of economic self flagellation.

Wealth Has Its Privileges…

Okay, before I write more, you can go ahead and call me a hypocrite as I’ve taken advantage of what I’m about to write about.

There is are a couple of things that bug me when I take an airline trip.  Well, more than a couple, but I’ll limit it to just these two for now…

One of the issues that I have is with the TSA security procedures, specifically the TWO lines to get through the screening process. One line is for FIRST CLASS and PLATINUM LEVEL travelers. The other line is for the rest up us great unwashed. Ever wondered why there are the two lines?

When I had a FIRST CLASS ticket one time, I asked the TSA officer why they allowed me to cut to the head of the line. He explained to me that part of the cost of my FIRST CLASS ticket was a fee (bribe/graft) paid to the TSA to “pay for the staff” to allow me to jump ahead of the people waiting in line.  Now that’s a crock o’ smelly stuff because I have never seen extra staff processing FIRST CLASS passengers.  They just allow the UPPER CLASS to step in front of the LOWER CLASS in the queue.

Whoa there!!! TSA screenings are a GOVERNMENT MANDATED process that applies to EVERYONE.  According to TSA policies, people of wealth and means are allowed privilege in the screening process.  Is this not PAY to PLAY?  If you have the MEANS to buy a FIRST CLASS ticket, you can step right in front of the LOWER CLASS.  Shouldn’t everyone be mandated to follow the same procedures?  Shouldn’t there be equal treatment under the law?

The other place where I benefited from PAY to PLAY with government services was with Hillybob’s old agency, the United States Department of State.  I needed to make an overseas trip for the company I was working for and I didn’t have a passport.  Well it turns out that a “fee” can be paid to the passport agency of the Department of State in order to expedite the passport process.  My company paid the fee and I had a passport within just a few days, rather than the several weeks it would have taken  if I had used normal processing.  Once again, if you have MEANS you can jump ahead of the crowd when it comes to government services.

George Orwell was correct in his book “Animal Farm”.

“All animals are created equal but some animals are more equal than others.”

Nuff said, for now.