Hello again , readers . Sorry for my extended absence , it's been a full agenda for the past couple weeks . I don't see that changing anytime soon , as my dance card has appointments every week for the next two months . It's not always easy being crazy, fat , sickly , lazy , toothless , and broke . Add in my wife's appointments and it doesn't leave a lot of time on the schedule . Every time one of us sees a Dr , it involves a half , or more likely a full day due to travel time and necessary breaks . So , I will be back here intermittently , as time and energy allow . For now , be kind and empathetic and prayerful , and may God bless you all .

     So , now things in Ferguson have calmed down a bit , except for the blame-laying from all sides . I find it a little bit amusing , in a sick sort of way , that the proper distance for shooting an attacking knife-wielder is 21 feet . This is sensible , the Mythbusters showed that from less than 20 feet , an attacker can be on you before you can draw and fire . 21 is a number commonly used in police training manuals and other sources . This begs the question , do you double that if you don't have backup ? No one has published the incident scene measurements , if any were even taken , but the stills and video I have seen appear to show 50 feet or more between Michael Brown's body and the SUV Officer Wilson was driving . If measurements were taken , will they be released if they contradict Ofcr. Wilson's account of the shooting ? As you and I weren't there during this encounter , we have to take into consideration all the hard facts we can learn , all the eye witness stories , and crime scene images . I think in the end , it will be hard to separate the fly shit from the pepper , in a manner of speaking . I do know that all the fictitious stories of the officer's injuries and other various lies will always fool the ignorant , but folks who can think should know better . All the support for the officer , because of the "broken face" falsehoods , is only going to make it harder to reach an informed , objective decision on the subject . This is a case where everyone directly involved made bad decisions , then compounded them . Let's just pray for EVERYONE affected by this ongoing conflict , and hope our Just and Loving God chooses to lay bare all the truth .
   As for myself and my house , besides serving the Lord , we have been very busy this week , with no end in sight . I have , in the past week alone , driven to Carbondale 3 times , Marion once , and Lebanon , IL once all for medical reasons . In the coming month , I have at least 1 Dr.'s appt. every week , not counting what my wife has for her COPD and gastro problems . Now I come to the part of the post where I say , good night , and may God bless you richly .

   Due to other obligations , breaking news , and minor chest pan , my post tonight will consist of wishing you good day and God bless . By the bye , this bit is my 300th post on this blog .

   Well , my friends , it's another day our gracious Lord has bestowed on us . The sun is shining , it's hot , and most of the U.S. is peaceful and generally quiet . Not so in Ferguson , Mo. , even though it might appear to be . There , the thugs and the angry young men of color are planning tonight's confrontations , and a new player is taking the field . The Missouri National Guard has been called in to try to control the tense situation there . What does this mean for the citizens of Ferguson ? Basically , it means the rioters are winning , and most others are inconvenienced , at the very least . And when I say rioters , I mean the masked bandits , the outside agitators , and the few locals with no ambitions and no regard for the property and lives of their neighbors . St. Louis , and it's large metropolitan area , has a long , long history of racial segregation . In 1990 , Ferguson was two thirds white , and one third black . By 2010 , those numbers had flipped as blacks moved in and whites moved out , to two thirds black and one third white . Despite this , today Ferguson's Mayor is a young , white Republican , 5 of 6 Councilpersons are white , and 50 of the police force of 53 are white . The reasons for this are a bit difficult to understand , but have a LOT to do with off-year elections and voter turnout . I have been studying the racial and political trends and stats for a few days now , and I don't have any real answers yet for a solution to this rip in the fabric of St. Louis and suburbs . Anyway , I have a very busy few days ahead dealing with health issues , massive fatigue has set in tonight , and I'm tired of staring at my PC screen . So for the present , I wish you all a good night , good health , and God's blessings . I will return to this as time permits , and thank you all for your interest in my ramblings .

   So , I've enjoyed being lazy with regard to this blog , but this morning , yes , 6 AM on a Saturday , unable to sleep , I've decided to share some of my thoughts . As I'm sure you all know , Ferguson , MO , has been a war zone for a week now .
 After a 2 hour delay caused by lack of electricity , I have gotten Things powered back up and ready to run , if I can still find the ambition to write . And now , at 11 PM , after more delays and disturbances , I'm saving this to try again tomorrow . God bless .
   And , suddenly  , it is nearly 8 PM on Sunday , and I am tired as always , but it's been a pretty smooth day overall . Now , back to our main topic , the protests and rioting in Ferguson , Missouri . You and I don't , and may never , know what transpired between Officer Wilson and Mike Brown , except that Brown was shot to death by Wilson . More than that , it is not our job to judge either of them , God will take care of that . What I really want to talk about here is the aftermath of that tragic encounter . If this young man was your child , your kin , or your friend , your anger and grief are understandable . Sometimes folks act "inappropriately" when they are overcome by emotion . Except for public comments and peaceful protest , Mike Brown's family did not lash out in anger at the community , or engage in criminal behavior , to the best of my knowledge . Certain other elements in the city , however , did . They looted and set fires , threw firebombs and other objects at police , brandished and fired guns , and generally acted as fools . Here's my main point , and the ones that really matter . If you desire something so ferociously that you must steal it , and do , you are a thief , not a hero or role model . If you set property afire , for whatever reason , like destruction of evidence , you are an arsonist . If you try to intimidate others to express your point of view , you are a bully and a thug . If you are ok with this misbehavior ( doesn't that sound fairly harmless , "misbehavior" ? ) , you are no better than those actually performing the acts . There is no "gray area" in rioting and looting , this is the United States of America , and 99.99% of us are better than that . You don't get "caught up" in this type of civil disobedience and "carried away" with criminal behavior . You make a conscious decision to participate , or you walk away . I do understand some of the psychology of mob mentality , and I believe if you are at all intelligent and mature , you do not lose the capacity for free will , or choice of action . To become part of a mob , defeats the purpose of your protest , especially in the eyes of the public at large . As most people realize , you are responsible for your own actions , be they good or bad .
   And then we have the opposition to those rioters and protesters , law enforcement . When your lack of competent training allows you to ignore the first sparks of disorder , then swoop in like an impotent army , you need to re-think the purpose of your profession . When you bring military equipment to bear on mostly unarmed innocent citizens , blast away with tear gas , rubber and wooden projectiles shot from firearms , and sonic disruption devices , you are the same type of arrogant thug as those you seek to subdue . When you position yourself atop an armored personnel carrier with a military-spec rifle , aimed at the crowd , fully exposed because you feel invincible , you are just another power-mad asshole . One or two half-decent snipers could easily take out dozens of police before the officers retreat to their armored vehicles . Just pray your nutless supervisor doesn't lock you out . And MRAPs , what is the point of that ? Bragging rights ? How many IEDs and anti-personnel devices do you encounter in St. Louis ? So , when will this nonsense come to a conclusion ? Tune in tomorrow for more on this and a few other subjects . In the meantime , treat each other well , pray for peace for all , and may God's blessings be abundant according to your needs .