Down The Tubes

It finally happened. No, not a nasty letter from the State Bar. It finally cost me over 50 dollars to fill up my gas tank, $51.00 to be exact. I knew this day was coming, the cost to fill up my tank has been going for in the 30 dollar range, to the low 40’s, then the high 40’s, and now finally it breaks 50.

Scott had two recent posts that got me thinking about this topic more. The first was discussing an New York Times article (I have to stop reading these articles from the Times, I’m going to get kicked out of Texas) by Thomas Friedman.   The second is about our love for trucks and SUVs.

Basically, Friedman states in his column that with the way things are going, he who has the oil is going to make the rules.  While that’s probably an accurate statement of the world today, he states the balance of power is going to keep shifting, and even the mighty United States, with all our advantages, may be reduced to Canada-like status.

The failure of Mr. Bush to fully mobilize the most powerful innovation engine in the world — the U.S. economy — to produce a scalable alternative to oil has helped to fuel the rise of a collection of petro-authoritarian states — from Russia to Venezuela to Iran — that are reshaping global politics in their own image.

If this huge transfer of wealth to the petro-authoritarians continues, power will follow. According to Congressional testimony Wednesday by the energy expert Gal Luft, with oil at $200 a barrel, OPEC could “potentially buy Bank of America in one month worth of production, Apple computers in a week and General Motors in just three days.”

Friedman then wonders how the US its going to pull its collective bacon out of the fire this time.

For too long, argues Zakaria, America has taken its many natural assets — its research universities, free markets and diversity of human talent — and assumed that they will always compensate for our low savings rate or absence of a health care system or any strategic plan to improve our competitiveness.

“That was fine in a world when a lot of other countries were not performing,” argues Zakaria, but now the best of the rest are running fast, working hard, saving well and thinking long term. “They have adopted our lessons and are playing our game,” he said. If we don’t fix our political system and start thinking strategically about how to improve our competitiveness, he added, “the U.S. risks having its unique and advantageous position in the world erode as other countries rise.

Scott’s take on the article is that Friedman is confident the U.S. will figure out something, and everything will turn out fine.  He (Scott) goes on to say he’s not as confident, and what’s going to happen if there is no magic bullet.

This is what Friedman talks about when he remains optimistic about encouraging the United States economy to perform its magic yet again.  He believes in miracles.  He believes that our captains of industry, our engineers, our scientists will come up with something, anything, to save the day if only we push them.

What if they don’t?  There is no guarantee that another internet will come along just in the nick of time to save the day.  Maybe we’ve used up our good fortune.  Maybe the ride is over.  You only get so much good luck before your luck runs dry.

Friedman may be right, that we still have some juice in the economy to pull us out of this jam.  Perhaps “Mr. Fusion” is right around the corner, and the rest of the world will come running to us for their needs.  But even so, can we count on another miracle to come along the next time?  And as long as Americans continue to hide our heads in the sand, there will most assuredly be a next time.

I disagree with Scott that Friedman is optimistic.  Maybe I’m reading the article wrong, or perhaps he’s a regular reader of Friedman, but I don’t take from this article that Friedman is especially optimistic.  However, I agree with Scott that keeping our heads in the sand and just hoping that something will come along to save us isn’t a good way to handle the situation.  I don’t know what the answer is, assuming there is one.  I’m just a simple country lawyer.  But I do know that the current path isn’t the answer.

Will Snitch For Cash

As a Texan, I normally wouldn’t read the New York Times. Heck, I kind of feel like a traitor when I read the Scott’s and Gideon’s blogs. But, since I got this story from The Consumerist, I figure I won’t get kicked out and sent to Oklahoma.

According to The Old Grey Lady, thanks to our shaky economy, and the rising prices for food and fuel, people are turning to ratting out their neighbors for money.

To gas prices, foreclosure rates and the cost of rice, add this rising economic indicator: the number of tips to the police from people hoping to collect reward money

Calls to the Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers hot line in the first quarter of this year were up 30 percent over last year. San Antonio had a 44 percent increase. Cities and towns from Detroit to Omaha to Beaufort County, N.C., all report increases of 25 percent or more in the first quarter, with tipsters telling operators they need the money for rent, light bills or baby formula.

“For this year, everyone that’s called has pretty much been just looking for money,” said Sgt. Lawrence Beller, who answers Crime Stoppers calls at the Sussex County, N.J., sheriff’s office. “That’s as opposed to the last couple of years, where some people were just sick of the crime and wanting to do something about it.”

I admit, I never would have thought this would be a good way to make some money.  When I was in college, we’d do some strange things for money.  Wonder if my school would have paid me for ratting out my friends who were drinking while underage.

The article goes on to say, some people are even making this their job.

Some people have made a cottage industry of calling in tips. Although repeat callers do not give their names, operators recognize their voices.

“We have people out there that, realistically, this could be their job,” said Sgt. Zachary Self, who answers Crime Stoppers calls for the Macon Police Department.

“Two or three arrests per week, you could make $700, $750 per week,” Sergeant Self said. “You could make better than a minimum-wage job.”

At $700 a week in tips, that’s roughly the equivilent of  having a job that pays $17.00 an hour.  That’s pretty good money.  If times are tough, that’s a lot easier than getting a second job or selling plasma.

I have to admit though, it really strikes me as something out of East Germany during The Cold War.  People ready to sell out their neighbors, or family members at a moment’s notice.

In some cases, the quality of the tips is lagging as people grasp for any shred of information that might result in an arrest. A woman in Macon, for example, recently called to report that a family member — who was wanted for burglary and whose name and address were already known to the police — was at home. His home.

I bet that’s going to be an awkward Thanksgiving.

Money Well Spent

7.5 million dollars.

According to the Austin American Statesman, that’s how much money it cost the state of Texas for the first 19 days of the raid of the YFZ Ranch in Eldorado and ensuing boondoggle aftermath. I had a few other words to describe this situation, but this is a family friendly site.

And that’s just the first 19 days. It’s been roughly five weeks since the raid out in West Texas. Who knows what the costs are up to now.

To make matters worse, the local government’s are a little leery about how whether or not Austin is going to foot the bill.

State Comptroller Susan Combs told Dewhurst, Craddick and Perry in a letter that she plans to work to “utilize funding allocated in the current state budget to cover the allowable emergency costs.”

But some government officials aren’t sure what “allowable emergency costs” include, and that’s making them nervous.

Tom Green County Treasurer Dianna Spieker said: “We’re operating under faith” that the county will be reimbursed. She said last week her county had spent $70,000 on everything from overtime for law enforcement to paying the road and bridge department to set up barricades.

State Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, a member of the finance panel, said the operation is largely a state responsibility.

“We should reimburse local agencies as soon as possible for any action they have taken that is state responsibility,” she said.

Technically, many of the court costs are the responsibility of the counties, but state leaders say they plan to use state money.

“We can’t wash our hands from it — we’re the ones who did it,” said state Sen. Bob Deuell, R-Greenville, a member of the Finance Committee. “I hope it turns out it was the right thing to do.

Same with some of the many attorneys who have graciously volunteered their time to help out.

Some lawyers who volunteered to represent the children are now wondering what they’ve gotten into financially. Susan Hays of Dallas, an attorney for a young girl, said she’s spent nearly $1,000, mostly on gas to visit her client in East Texas and the client’s mother in San Antonio.

“We were all told it was a one-day hearing,” she said. “My case is now spread out all over the state. The Legislature is going to have to do something.”

Did the state of Texas have any plan as to what they were going to do with all these kids, all of which would be needing legal representation? While its great to see so many in the legal community volunteer their time, surely the State had some other plan. I would hope so, especially for a county of just over 100,000 people out in west Texas

To top it off, according to Grit’s latest post on the subject (which by the way, his coverage has been excellent), there was ample evidence that the call sparking the whole mess didn’t come from Texas and didn’t come from anyone credible, and the authorities just ignored it.

Authorities knew before the raid that Dale Barlow was in Arizona, had spoken to him, but made no effort to have him arrested or detained by his probation officer.

The caller mispronounced the name of the town (there’s a long “a” in Eldor-A-do), used terminology that did not match FLDS religious lingo, and only gave details about the group and the ranch that could be easily gleaned online.

Authorities knew the calls to the shelter didn’t come from Texas, and with minimalist investigation would have identified the caller as a routine hoaxer.

So what have the citizens of Texas gotten for our 7.5+ million dollars?  A whole lot of nothing.

Hide and Seek

My practice takes me to three different counties on a fairly regular basis, giving me six different offices to deal with.  Three County Attorneys and three District Attorneys.  And each one has a different interpretation on just how much information they have to give me.  One of the offices will basically let me come in, grab the file I need from the filing cabinet and make copies of whatever I need.  On the other hand, I’ll ask another office if I can see a file, not even make copies - just read it for myself, and instead they’ll just give me an executive summary.  Great, I’m getting a biased summary of an already biased police report.  Sadly, most of the offices are more like the latter.

This refusal to share frustrates me to no end for a couple reasons.  First, I came to Texas from a state with a much more liberal interpretation of Brady, where the DA’s were basically forced to hand over everything at the start of a case.  Oh no, not Texas.  It was a bit of a shock for me when I got down here.

Second, to me it seems like an incredibly inefficient way to operate.  One office will let me look at the file, but instead of making copies, I’m only allowed to take notes.  So rather than having a complete picture of the case that I can read at my convienence, I have to spend my time trying to decide what’s important enough to write down, and then having to read my own writing a week later when I look at the file.  And if I decide I might want more information, I have to go back to the DA’s office (at a time that’s convenient for them) and make more notes.  Wouldn’t it be a better use of everyone’s time to just let me make a copy of what I need?

So why do the prosecutors make getting information as tough as they can?  I really can’t think of any better reason for them besides, under the law, they can.  Which is a pretty crappy reason.

Because I Got High

People who skip out on jury duty make me mad. First off, it’s your civic duty. Suck it up and miss work for a couple days. Second, I really want to be on a jury and will probably never get to. And while the Homer Simpson method for getting out of jury duty is my favorite, “the trick is to say you’re prejudice against all races,” a lady in Houston had a pretty good way to avoid it.

Judge Sherman Ross tried to assemble a jury of peers for a woman accused of possession of a marijuana on trial Tuesday.

But authorities say prospective juror Cornelia Mayo might have taken that concept a bit too far after she was caught smoking a joint outside the courthouse during a break.

The 49-year-old Houston woman was one of 20 people in a jury pool in Criminal Court at Law No. 10.

Ross said he realized something was wrong when juror No. 2, Mayo, didn’t return from a 45-minute break. Before the judge could file a bench warrant for the missing juror, his bailiff got a call from police notifying him that Mayo was being booked on a charge of smoking marijuana outside the criminal courthouse.

“I’ve had prospective jurors get lost before, but it never occurred to me that they might be getting ready for a marijuana trial by, allegedly, smoking marijuana,” Ross said.

I just want to know what her thought process was, what could have possibly lead her to think firing up a doobie outside the courthouse was a good idea.