"FF the only crimes that are treated as serious anymore are only those viewed as hate crimes" ????? The USA has the highest incarceration rate of any country, including Russia and China. We incarcerate people for more crimes and for longer times than any other developed country. We incarcerate African Americans, especially young males, at a staggering rate. We have a forum friend who posts frequently. Her DS is in jail serving time for what most of us would consider a petty nuisance. IIf you think for a minute that minorities such as African Americans or LBGT peoples enjoy favored status from our judicial system, I suggest you walk a mile in their shoes.

Most of the stuff on Snopes can be figured out by the average person if the average person asks themselves "Does this make sense??". If the answer is "No" then the story is simply not true. Simple. When it comes to details in the true stories, sometimes the Snopes version is different than other legitimate sources and both stories make sense. So it can be a tough call to figure out the truth if one is a stickler for actual facts. For instance, here is the Snopes version of the "Chip Monk" story in this link: http://www.snopes.com/humor/jokes/chipmonk.asp Here is a news story indicating that the real Las Vegas "Chip Monk" of tour guild lore is just a layperson who works at a church and somehow acquired the moniker over the years when frequently cashing in chips at the casinos. It looks like they obviously went through a lot of investigative research and interviews for the story so I tend to believe it is not a hoax. I mean somebody has to cash in all those chips they receive in the collection plates. So it would seem a safe bet that this is the guy who garnered the nickname. Or maybe there are many guys over the year who got tagged with the name. He says in the interview: "Years ago, we used to get a lot more chips. Now, we're getting slot receipts, and they're only good for a limited time." Somehow "The Receipt Monk" just doesn't have the same ring. http://www.viewnews.com/2008/VIEW-Feb-05-Tue-2008/Henderson/19446891.html So you see, the details of the story are slightly different in the Snopes version but is it enough to call a bet on? Here is a link that might be useful: The Chip Monk

Another thing that the anti-health care people keep saying, "Competition will bring down health costs." Wanna bet? Do they really think that one doctor is going to charge less for an open heart operation than another one? Get real!

This is a heart warming gesture, and the display is wonderful. There's no argument there, but the contrarian in me wonders if that effort could have been better spent. I was raised in a culture where every penny had to count. What if the wreath compny gave those wreaths to the school organization that sponsors a class trip to Washington D. C. They could sell the wreaths at $5 each as a fund raiser to support their activity. Let's see, that would be $25,000 if all 5000 wreaths were sold. Now there's a problem: selling that many wreaths. They'd have to organize and sell outside their area. The wreath company could generate the same amoount of good will while saving the cost of transportation. There is an additional cost: Someone has to place these wreaths and then remove those after the holidays. That cost money, too, possibly tax payers money. I know! I know! Its a wondeful display and I'm not bashing it. In addition to the gift by the wreath company, they also provided jobs for those who made the wreaths. I'm just wondering if the costs could have been put to a more productive use. Like I said, my home culture could not afford any amount of waste.