I have three blog ideas that I have been working on. I wanted to write a little bit on how people in political positions hire third parties, spokespeople, and create committees to do their dirty work. This seemed prescient with regard to Jay Carney hitting the bricks this week. Not only did Carney lie and obstruct the truth daily- but he really sucked at it. Perhaps working for Obama does that to you. So I am gonna tab that for the future. The other blog I am working on is a double homicide we solved years ago. It is a pretty interesting story and I think it is worth retelling. So I think I will do that next. This week, I landed on health care after an experience I had on Wednesday. I also think I can expand this particular piece a bit and use it as an explanation for why I think it's time to abandon the whole government theme and move on. So without further adieu... I am one of the victims of the health care fiasco. Today I am going to offer an interesting premise. Why don...

I love the phrase "jumping the shark" and I wish I could give credit where credit is due. Forgive me if I bounce around a bit today. I have a gaping hole where a busted molar used to be- and the vicodin is certainly working it's charms on me. In the last days of the hit television series 'Happy Days" the writers were clearly running out of ideas. The characters were growing too old for their high school roles and Nielsen ratings were declining. In a two part series, the writers of Happy Days had the show's hero, the Fonz, water skiing over a ramp and jumping a shark enclosure which they tried to make as dramatic as possible. It was a ridiculous premise of course- a last gasp effort wherein the writers tried to lure back viewers. It didn't work obviously and the series was cancelled. However odd and bizarre that ending was, it did serve a useful purpose. Jumping the shark has become synonymous with prolonging something that has already outlived it'...

For six years, I've been writing about government schtick, economic manipulations, and the worst presidential administration of my lifetime. Even Nixon, at least, was good with foreign policy. So here's the deal. I am sick of writing about all of that shit. It's not like any of that is going to change any time soon. I'm not making people "aware" here because most of you know what's going on in the world. You are the people who pay attention. Frankly, I like to write. But I want to write about things that matter. Observations perhaps about real people down here on the ground. I like to write funny stuff- but quality funny stuff is very time consuming. That's been my experience anyway. So I am asking you folks for suggestions. I've never begged a dime from anyone here- instead I'd like a moment of your time to hear about what interests you. I'd like your input.  If you have any brilliant ideas about a new title, I'd like to hear tha...

Today is Memorial day. The day we honor those who committed some part or all of their lives so that we could be free or remain free. So who takes your freedom away? Can you imagine being hired for a position or a job where there is no job description or policy manual? How would you perform your job in the absence of a direct supervisor without a job description or policy guidelines? Sooner or later, you are going to fail in an environment like that. In fact, many of the people who I see getting terminated in Idaho are employees who lack training and policy.  That is the sort of thing that makes human resource people cringe while at the same time making civil litigation attorneys smile...they make lots of money over wrongful termination. So if you are a legislator, what exactly is your job description? Who gives it to you and who is working in human resources on your behalf? What exactly are you supposed to be doing? The point I am trying to make is this. Civil servants ...

The other night I was eating at a restaurant when I struck up a conversation with the waiter. After managing a few restaurants, working 60 and 70 hour weeks, my waiter informed me that he had had enough of the restaurant business. He was going into law enforcement. I don't think I was every really prepared for law enforcement. I started in 1983 and I landed in one of the richest, if not the richest, valleys in the west. Sun Valley is filled with old money, blue bloods, billionaires, liberals like John Kerry, and more Ivy league graduates than I care to remember. The place was suffocatingly liberal and when I say that- I need to be specific. These people don't think they are better than you- they know they are. They have more success than you, more money than you, a better education than you, bigger houses and jets, and they aren't afraid to make that known under the right circumstances. They are better than you. That was a consistent message.Think Leona Helmsley. I wa...