Parenting Ignorance

It's been a while since I've posted on this blog...busy year.  However, I did hear this morning that a "mother" placed her 5 year-old child in a tanning bed.  As if that isn't ridiculous enough, she left her in there so long that she had severe burns.  Really.  This is almost too ridiculous to comment about except that I think there are people out there who are probably defending her because it is difficult to know just how long a 5 year- old should be in a tanning bed to get that perfect 5-year-old tan.  Well, morons, a 5 year-old shouldn't be in a tanning bed.  What possible good could come from that?  I think most Americans would never even think of such idiocy, much less actually do it.  They're kids.  If they get a tan from simply playing outside, fine, but why would you try to make sure they have one.  They're children.  Treat them as such.  You have to take some kind of a test to become certain things in this country, a driver's test to become a licensed driver, the bar to become a practicing lawyer, a comprehensive exam to become a teacher.  Too bad there's no test that must be passed to become parents.

Shower Heads

I'm all for being responsible for our environment.  After all, we should be good stewards of everything the good Lord allows us to use.  However, being a good steward does not mean that we don't use the things in the environment that the Lord has provided for us.  I think we should use them in the best way possible.  Which brings me to shower heads.  In an attempt to conserve water, my shower head has some type of ECO friendly filtering system that greatly reduces the water pressure in an attempt to conserve water.  All the water that has ever been on the planet since God created it is still here.  It may be in different forms, but we haven't lost any of it.  Now, I'm not for turning on water and letting it run for no reason, after all, that would run-up a huge water bill.  But when I'm taking a shower, I don't want to have to run around just to get wet.  I want a lot of water pressure because I am bathing and I want it to aid in my cleanliness.  I end up using more water with this ECO friendly shower head than I normally would use because, with such a weak water flow, I have to stay in the shower with water constantly running much longer to wash off all of the soap.  If my water pressure were high, I would be in and out of the shower in no time, thus conserving water. 

Paying Students to Attend School?

I heard something on the news last night about paying students to attend school.  I'll admit I didn't listen to the complete news story even though I heard them say "it works," because the whole thing sounded completely ridiculous.  If they meant something else by what they said, then they should have said it another way, because even making a statement that we should pay kids to attend school is ridiculous.  Oh, I'm sure paying kids to attend school would work in that attendance would increase, at least at first.  But what happens when the "new" wears off and kids start holding out for more money.  Then, if they're not paid more money, using this type of logic, they could decide not to go at all.  It seems pretty simple to me.  Children must attend school, and if they don't, their parents or legal guardians go to jail and the children still have to attend school.  Parents, get involved in your chidlren's lives and make them go to school.  They shouldn't have a choice.   

Prisoners Sue?

I read where inmates are suing a county because of jail conditions.  I'm all for 8th Amendment rights.  We absolutely should not use excessive punishment.  However, the punishment should fit the crime and I think many times criminals are just receiving a "slap on the wrist."  No wonder they continue in their life of crime.  I do think inspections need to be periodically made to ensure our jails are safe and secure.  However, they're not the Hilton.  Jails should be so miserable that no one would ever want to go back.  As for inmates who think jail is not plush enough and want to sue, stop breaking the law and you want have to go.      

Debt

You do not, as an individual or a country, get out of debt by continuing to borrow and spend, borrow and spend.  If you change nothing, nothing will change.

Welcome

Welcome.  If you're wondering what "Americommon" sense is, it is basically one American man's common sense approach to various topics.  Let's face it, although we do indeed live in the greatest country in the world, we have started losing our basic common sense approach to things.  When we care more about saving trees than children, there's a problem.  When a burglar gets hurt breaking into someone's house, then sues that someone, and the lawsuit is even considered, much less won by the burglar, there's a problem.  Let's get back to a common sense approach to things; the kind of approach that helped make this country great.  Anyway, from time to time I plan on weighing in on the issues of our day.  We all need outlets to vent frustrations and this is the one I will use to vent some of mine.