Danny Jones gets a role model

[billvon 3,132]

Once upon a time, there were two parents trying to raise their child to be a good citizen. They'd read the papers, then look out at their 10 year old son playing innocently in the woods.

"What kind of world are we bringing our child up in?" asked Mr. Jones. "Presidential perjury! Blow jobs! Semen on dresses! This is what he's going to emulate? I worry about our little Danny."

"Yes, it's so hard to shield him from such things. He's too young to understand now, thank goodness. I hope someday we have a better role model for him."

The Joneses, trying to change what the future would bring their son, threw their efforts behind the next presidential election. And after a long and bitter election, a man was elected to the White House who promised to restore integrity and honor to the nation's top office. The Joneses breathed a sigh of relief. Finally little Danny would have a role model he could look up to.

Years passed. Danny went to high school and applied for college. His parents tearfully saw him off to the big state college, and anxiously awaited news of how his college days were going.

Finally he came home for winter break.

"Son, it's good to see you," said Mr. Jones, putting down his morning paper. "I'm proud of you for making it this far. But there are a few things we have to talk about."

"Uh, OK, Dad, what's up?" asked Danny.

"Well, we've been hearing some disturbing things about what's been going on up at college."

"Like what?"

"First off, we heard you totaled the car we gave you after going to a bar. That was your mother's car, and we're worried about you drinking and driving."

"No worries, Dad. No one can prove anything. If they say I was drunk, they are filty liars. Besides, here - " Danny grabbed the paper " - here's a story about someone who got drunk, totaled their car, and killed two pedestrians. I am much more responsible than him. Compared to him, I'm clearly the safer driver."

"I don't care about what other people do, I don't want YOU doing that."

"I don't get it, Dad. Like I said, I'm more responsible than this other guy, so I'm better. I don't have to defend my actions, I just have to show that they're not as bad as some other guys."

"OK, look, it's just a car, it can be replaced. I'm just glad you're safe. Now about this phone bill. We gave you a cellphone for emergencies, and we've been paying $400 a month for your calls!"

"Oh, good, you got the bill. I was worried."

"Now, I assume these calls weren't all emergencies. When are you going to pay us back?"

"Pay you back? Why should I do that? If I pay you back, that's money out of my pocket. There's no reason to pay you back. The more debt someone else has, the more money I have, and the better my own personal economy. I can buy more stuff."

"That's irresponsible! You owe us a lot of money."

"Whatever. I don't legally have to pay you back. Maybe someday I'll get married and my wife will, or something. In the meantime, I met this girl, so I think I'm gonna have a lot more emergency calls to make next term. So make sure to pay those bills on time, OK?"

"Look," said Mrs. Jones. "Forget about the phone bill. We heard from Mrs. Smith that you beat up his son Frank and took his money!"

"Yeah, so?"

"Why would you do such a thing?"

"I was worried he would steal my stereo. Remember that guy who broke into our house when we were on vacation and stole our stereo? Well, I didn't want that to happen to me."

"Frank didn't steal our stereo!"

"Can you prove that beyond a shadow of a doubt? I thought not. Besides, you can't prove he WOULDN'T steal my stereo in the future. He was a definite threat. So I attacked him pre-emptively. Let me tell you, he won't try stealing my stuff now from the hospital!"

"But why did you take his money?"

"Well, he punched me in the nose after I jumped him, so I figured the money would pay for any doctor's bills. It's only fitting that he pays part of the costs of what he did."

Mr. Jones stepped in. "Son, that goes against everything we taught you. You don't beat people up. You reason with them. I want you to promise me you won't do that again."

"Reason my ass. Danny Jones Doesn't Run. What, do you want to neuter me, make me defenseless so my stereo gets stolen? No thanks. Peace is for pansy weakling faggots who'd rather talk themselves to death than take decisive action."

Danny's parents didn't know what to say to this. With that, Danny grabbed his father's car keys and headed for the door. "Well, look, I gotta go. But look at it this way - at least I never got a blow job."

"Where are you going with my car?" asked Mr. Jones. "I thought classes didn't start again for a week."

"Yep. Time for a six week vacation!"

[kallend 2,175]

You just made that up! They could never afford to send Danny to college.

Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Republicans in the U.S. Congress advanced plans to trim federal spending and extend tax cuts early today as the House passed $50 billion in budget savings and the Senate agreed to $60 billion worth of tax cuts.

The House plan targets Medicaid, food stamps, student aid and other benefit programs and follows Senate passage earlier this month of $35 billion in budget cuts. Negotiators for the two chambers will combine the measures into final legislation.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[Enrique 0]

Quote

Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Republicans in the U.S. Congress advanced plans to trim federal spending and extend tax cuts early today as the House passed $50 billion in budget savings and the Senate agreed to $60 billion worth of tax cuts.

The House plan targets Medicaid, food stamps, student aid and other benefit programs and follows Senate passage earlier this month of $35 billion in budget cuts. Negotiators for the two chambers will combine the measures into final legislation.

[Gawain 0]

*sigh*

---

Once upon a time, there were two parents trying to raise their child to be a good citizen. They'd read the papers, then look out at their 10 year old son playing innocently in the woods.

"What kind of world are we bringing our child up in?" asked Mr. Jones.

Mrs. Jones replied, "Yes, it's so hard to shield him from such things. We should simply raise him with the values we know, and teach him to do what he feels is right, and know how to accept people for who and what they are."

The Joneses, sticking to their own values, saw similar values in one of the candidates for President during the election. A man was elected to the White House who promised to restore integrity and honor to the nation's top office. The Joneses breathed a sigh of relief, hoping that Danny could learn from what he sees and hears from their new leader.

What the Joneses didn't know was that were people (the Smiths, Davises, and Clarks) across town, who disagreed with the Joneses values or political participation were planning a way to keep them from living their lives the way they wanted. The Smiths Davises and Clarks lived in old houses, warehouses, and were given materiel support by some of their neighbors too, directly and indirectly. It was a bad part of town. Most of the city tried to ignore it, hoping that it would simmer and keep their affairs to themselves, while they managed to keep the city's only power plant running.

One morning, when Danny left for school, the Smiths, Davises, and Clarks (SDC) went for a walk in one of the nicer neighborhoods. They were disgusted with how everyone was living their lives the best they knew how, not paying attention to the SDCs desire to take over local government and impose new laws to make everyone a servant to an extreme ideal, that not even SDC fully understood, only had fleeting thoughts of. All they knew was that the Joneses had to be stopped. They hoped that the Joneses elimination would scare the rest of the city into submission.

One sunny morning, Danny went off to school. Across town, the SDC was on another walk of the nice neighborhood. One this day though, they steal four cars and start racing across town. A short while later, the police pick up on these cars speeding through town and begin to start a pursuit. Unfortunately, the car driven by the Smiths makes a final turn onto the Joneses street, and accelerates quickly. The Joneses are at their kitchen table, getting ready for work, and their day. Out of the corner of Mr. Joneses eye, he sees an object coming down the street, jumping the curb, racing across the lawn and hurling itself into the house. Before Mr. Jones can warn his wife, the car crashes into the house, an electric wire sparks on the cars gas tank, and explodes. The concussion of the explosion also ruptures the compressed gas tank next the house and it explodes, killing Mr. and Mrs. Jones. The explosion of the gas tank creates a force so great that is wipes out two houses in each direction from the Joneses, killing everyone inside all of them.

The Davises are driving their car toward the Peterson's house, just down the street from the Joneses. Mrs. Peterson is Mr. Jones' sister and was raised with the same values as Mr. Jones. Mrs. Peterson was just pouring some coffee into Mr. Peterson's cup, just after she laid out some breakfast for their three kids, all sitting at the table. They didn't see the Davis' stolen car crash through the house, nor did they feel the explosion that tore through the house, igniting the natural gas tank, causing similar damage to their surroundings as at the Jones' house.

The Clarks stole two cars, in an effort to curtail the city's ability to respond to the emergency unfolding within its limits, they drive one car up towards city hall. However the police are on to them and they instead drive towards one of the police stations. The police station suffers terrible damage, fortunately though it remains functional and the police are able to respond. The Clarks' other car is on its way towards the city mayor's house. The citizens though realize what is up and Mr. Gregg, along with Mr. Stamp drive their cars alongside of the Clarks, forcing the Clarks automobile into a cement retaining wall. Mr. Gregg and Stamp also perish in their effort to stop the Clarks.

Danny learns of the events of the day at school, and sees everything he knows gone. Not just his house, the loss of his parents, but his Aunt, Cousins, neighbors, in fact, whole neighborhood gone.

The mayor reports that they know where these attacks stemm from, and they know where they received support from in the neighboring districts. He announces that the law enforcement will embark on a protracted, and difficult campaign to clean these districts up once and for all. The information they have from police CIs indicates that the gangs running through these neighborhoods are well organized and heavily armed.

Years pass. Danny went to high school and applied for college. Despite his grief, he attends school, paying attention to the city's progress in this fight to reclaim the city from these elements that seek its destruction.

Since he's been majoring in business and economics, he knows that the city has been running terrible deficits, but he knows the city populace is unified in its efforts and people are working and participating by keeping themselves involved in their lives, and those of their neighbors.

He notices that the city is losing policemen too. But it is worth it to make everyone safer. The police know this too, as it is what they trained for.

One of the city councilmen though, one of the five that backed the mayor is questioning the policy. "This should have been over in a month," he claims. "You told us that we would find a intricate network of weapons, and terrible atrocities, not previously known." The mayor responds, "We did."

"No we didn't," retorts the councilman, "you never found anything near what you claimed was there. You made it up didn't you? The power plant is at risk too! Lied to get the city on your side to clean things up for a change!"

"And clean things up we did. Now, we have to stay there while the people that live in these districts learn how to support themselves, and make sure thugs never run rampant in their lives again," the mayor responds. "The power plant is being protected, but the gang members sometimes sneak up and shoot at it. The police are tracking them down."

Danny feels terrible about the loss of his family, and questions the method that the mayor is using. However, he knows that no one else in the city has had to endure the loss that he and so many others experienced on that dreadful day. He decides not to abandon the mayor while one councilman screams that the city is failing. He knows that life won't be the same again. He also knows that cities across the country are taking notice at the struggles his own city has gone through and learning from the experience as they clean up their own neighborhoods.

Meanwhile, he concedes, the city will be able to clean up its own economy as it adjusts to this new reality, even with questions about what it's really like in that bad neighborhood, a place where only a few have gone, and seen what is really happening.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[Enrique 0]

Q. What or who are you fighting for?
Answer: Freedom for my Country

Q. Is it worth it?
Answer: Of course, dummy!

Q. Freedom from what?
Answer: ... terrorism? Those fuckers killed many of our people in our own Country so we are giving them a taste of their own medicine!

Q. Really!? You are pissed off because they killed many Americans during their terrorist attacks? And just how many have they killed during the "swift" operation that started a few years ago?
Answer: A couple thousand...

Q. How many more are you willing to sacrifice to obtain your freedom from terrorism?

Q. Isn't that a little bit absurd or contradictory?

Or is the U.S.'s presence in Iraq due to the "fact" that they had WMD? Or because they supported Osama? .... it's all very confusing to me.

My point: you don't teach people not to kill by killing them or by getting more of your own people killed.

[Gawain 0]

I'll just give props for apparently being the only person to read my "story"...

Seriously, you touch on part of my perspective, but the you kind of fade into this weird part of the universe.

Q: What or who are you fighting for?
A: My country, freedom, and to lance a festering boil on the face of this world.

Q: Is it worth it?
A: Yes, it will benefit the whole world, even if that is not realized now.

Q: Freedom from what?
A: Not "from" anything. Achieving individual liberty, self-determination and ridding the world of terrorists that have the whole of civilization on their hit-list.

Q: How many more are you willing to sacrifice to obtain your freedom from terrorism?
A: I can't speak for everyone on that. There are some that side with the idea of as many as it takes. Others want it to stop right now and give up no more lives. I tend to side with the former.

Q: Isn't that a little bit absurd or contradictory?
A: No.

Q: Or is the U.S.'s presence in Iraq due to the "fact" that they had WMD? Or because they supported Osama? .... it's all very confusing to me.
A: Yes to all of those questions.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[Enrique 0]

Quote

I'll just give props for apparently

Quote

being the only person to read my "story"...

Hey, you put a lot of effort into that story, the least I could do is create some controversy, right?

Have a nice weekend, Gawain. And be safe if you're jumping...

• Quote

[kallend 2,175]

Quote

Quote

I'll just give props for apparently

Quote

being the only person to read my "story"...

Hey, you put a lot of effort into that story, the least I could do is create some controversy, right?

Have a nice weekend, Gawain. And be safe if you're jumping...

Bill's story was better, unless you are seriously into fantasy fiction.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

• Quote

[Gawain 0]

Quote

Quote

I'll just give props for apparently

Quote

being the only person to read my "story"...

Hey, you put a lot of effort into that story, the least I could do is create some controversy, right?

Have a nice weekend, Gawain. And be safe if you're jumping...

Bill's story was better, unless you are seriously into fantasy fiction.

Oh now that hurts. Mine had "bestseller" written all over it.

So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh
Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright
'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life
Make light!

[kallend 2,175]

Quote

Quote

Quote

I'll just give props for apparently

Quote

being the only person to read my "story"...

Hey, you put a lot of effort into that story, the least I could do is create some controversy, right?

Have a nice weekend, Gawain. And be safe if you're jumping...

Bill's story was better, unless you are seriously into fantasy fiction.

Oh now that hurts. Mine had "bestseller" written all over it.

Not enough sex for a bestseller.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.