Taiwanese family eats deathcap mushrooms, one dies.

Okay, this is a classic case of sheer stupidity.

First of all, I want you, the reader, to understand that I am not trying to be mean, cruel or heartless, but I am using this as an example of how people think and act stupidly with terrible consequences.

A family that is visiting from Taiwan went mushroom hunting in the Oakland Hills and picked some mushrooms that looked a lot like the ones they have back home. Only problem was, it only LOOKED the same. It was the poisonous deathcap mushroom that they picked and one 70-year-old woman died while three other people are in serious condition from eating it.

Their mistake was that they ASSUMED it was the same mushroom from back home in Taiwan when it was nowhere near the same thing. How would they know if the same mushroom from Taiwan would be suitable to grow or survive in the soil and climate here in the San Francisco Bay Area? You see, many people make the assumption that they know what they are doing when they are not even experts in whatever it is they are doing. This is one particular case in point. And now, it cost some people their lives. This could have been avoided.

WHY must people make the assumption, "Oh, hey, it's the same thing! This will be fine!"

Well, as the old adage goes: Never ASSUME because it makes an ASS of U and ME.

They're not experts, they're not even in their own element and they should never have done what they did. I wonder, would they do the same thing if they found the mushroom in, say, Scotland?

The folly of human nature is that we always think we know everything. Well, I'm sorry, but nobody knows everything and there will always be somebody else out there who knows more than you or I do in a particular subject. So, word to the wise: Don't play an expert unless you can really back up that claim. It could cost you your life.

This time it did. DON'T make that same mistake!

Wow, how about this for stupid?

I was driving in to work this afternoon when I spot a woman driving the wrong way down the street I just came down on. This street happens to be a one way street and it is clearly marked, not to mention that all the cars on the street are parked in only one direction.

As I was parking, I honk to alert her to the fact that she's driving the wrong way. No dice. She just looks at me as if I were some rude idiot honking at her for nothing. Well, I'm watching her through my driver's side mirror and I spot her pulling over to the side post haste halfway down the block when she sees the traffic that is coming AT her. Yes, the traffic from the other end of the block is now headed her way and she's probably thinking, "Uh oh, I'm driving the wrong way!"

She's forced to wait until the traffic passes before she can attempt to turn around and go the correct direction.

Now, had she paid attention beforehand, she could have avoided this entirely. But, no, she drove blissfully ignorantly until she saw that she could go no further. I think that had the traffic not come when it did, she would have driven all the way to the other end of the block and this is one very long block that I am on!

To exacerbate matters, she's an Asian driver. I can't say she's Chinese, Japanese or any other nationality because I can't tell just from looking at her face. But, this doesn't help the image for any Asian because they, as a group, have already earned the bad reputation for being bad drivers. I say earned because I have witnessed many of their bad habits firsthand.

A few days ago, I watched as an Asian driver was driving along Great Highway along San Francisco's Ocean Beach. He drove through two stop signs, barely paused at a third and then basically was forced to drive the limit and observe the traffic rules because of cars ahead of him and posted stoplights. What really irked me was that he didn't give a damn about observing traffic laws or the safety of others. This was the evening and it was already dark outside. If a pedestrian were crossing the crosswalk at the second stop sign when he ran it, they would have been seriously injured or possibly killed by the driver's apparent lack of concern.

In other examples of bad driving habits, I've seen them cut across multiple lanes of traffic at the last second just to make an exit with NO turn signal! Excuse the rest of us for not acceding to your desire to kill the rest of us who would dare get in the way! Or, how about this? In the Richmond district's New Chinatown, they drive a S-L-O-W 5 mph with no cars in front of them while cars behind them have to wait because they can't pass them. And, when they make right turns (if you can call it that), they don't use their turn signals and they STILL drive slowly even though there are no pedestrians in the crosswalk or cars in front of them! Even you must admit
that has to be very irritating.

Also, I have seen them double parking where they shouldn't be, blocking traffic in doing so, and flipping you off when you honk at them because they believe they are ENTITLED to do whatever the hell they want regardless of how they are inconveniencing others. This is what irks me the most: People who feel they are entitled to special treatment, don't give a f**k about others and think that rules don't apply to them or that they are above the law.

In my book, I call these people liberals. Why? Because they are the ones who whine, piss and moan the most when they are inconvenienced and want special treatment so that they don't have to deal with the same problems that everybody else has to. And when there's police involved, you can be SURE that they'll complain even louder to try and get their way. It's a pretty sad sight because they look like overgrown children throwing a temper tantrum. And when you hear a Chinese person doing the complaining, it's really hard on the ears. Take my word for it, I've heard it many a time in San Francisco's Chinatown and in New Chinatown and it's not pleasant.

Well, enough ranting for now.

Pet peeves about people's poor hygiene.

Picture this: You're in the bathroom, doing your business and the guy next to you is doing his. Then, as he finishes, he leaves the restroom and doesn't bother to wash his hands! In my book, this is totally unacceptable behavior.

As we all know, there are signs posted in all restrooms (especially in restaurants) that employees are SUPPOSED to wash their hands before returning to work. Well, I'm sorry folks, either people can't read, don't give a crap (even after taking one) or come from another galaxy, but it just isn't working. One type of place that I find this occurring more often than not is in Chinese restaurants. Yes, I did say Chinese restaurants. I don't know how they can stand to be so unhygienic in such an establishment as a restaurant, but that is considered verboten!

This issue crosses all ethnic, class and economic boundaries, nobody is exempt from it and lots of people violate this simple rule on a daily basis. I'm not singling out Chinese for this as I am also Chinese. It's what I have observed many times at different restaurants, so it is a qualified statement. I don't know about you, but I would be extremely hesitant to shake their hands upon meeting them if I knew this was their personal habit. Even if I didn't know what the other person's personal hygiene habits are, I would wash my hands later regardless.

Sounds a little too obsessive compulsive? Consider this: Most of our illnesses come from other people's germs. And where do those germs come from? OTHER people! And the cycle continues. The facts have it - simple handwashing will reduce the amount of cross-contamination and the spread of germs. Would you dare go to a restaurant or hospital if you knew the people there didn't wash their hands?

Come on, folks, a simple 20-second handwashing isn't going to kill you, nor will it waste any more time than normal. Why 20-seconds? Because that's the minimum amount of time that phlebotomists and medical personnel will wash and scrub their hands before touching anything else when they know they've come into contact with a source of contamination (i.e. sick patient, taking out the garbage, bodily fluids, sneezing, etc.). They wouldn't want any costly lawsuits, which makes for good preventive medicine (pardon the pun).

The local health department and the law demands it, yet why do so many people flout this simple rule (never mind that it's also your local city ordinance)? Because they feel that they can't be bothered with it. It's "too much trouble" to deal with and - let's face it - they're just too damn lazy!

I've also witnessed fathers who, with their kids in tow, don't bother to wash their hands or even have their children wash their hands after they've taken care of business in the bathroom. What sort of example are they setting for their offspring? Not a good one, to be sure. I would have called them on the carpet for that sort of personal failure, but they walked out before I could even say anything. Needless to say, I didn't touch the door handle with my bare hands. I opened the door with the towel that I used for drying my hands. Can we say, 'Blech!'

Now, you're probably thinking (and I'm only guessing here since I'm not a mind reader), "This guy is way too nosy! He should just mind his own business!" But, when you think about it, YOU'RE going to be TOUCHING that same surface that the other person just touched, and you don't know what they may be carrying! What if they were recreating that scene from 'There's Something About Mary' where Ben Stiller is in the bathroom and looking at those lingerie models in the newspaper ads? Would you STILL want to touch that doorknob or handle? Like Eddie Murphy said in his old comedy skit 'A Little Old Spice,' "Hey, man, I heard that you were found playing with your privates? Naw, that's okay man, you don't need to give me five!"

The next time you see someone committing this heinous act of lack of hygiene, say something! I'm not afraid to let others know how I feel and you shouldn't be afraid to, either! Being honest about these matters is preferrable to enabling them by not saying anything at all. Really, honesty is the best policy in this case; but, I'll save that for another blog entry.

In the meantime: WASH THOSE HANDS!

Another quote for the blog...

This one comes from Woody Allen. A troubled nebbish, but a funny one, nevertheless. I like this one because, sometimes, life mimicks art...

"Time is nature's way of keeping everything from happening at once."

Are taxi cab drivers evil? You be the judge.

First, this event happened several days ago, on Nov. 23rd to be exact. The reason why I waited this long to post this rant is because I had a million other things going through my mind and I wanted to get them out of the way. Now, I've got time to address other things that are less hot-button or do not require as immediate a response as, say, the basketbrawl issue because of timeliness issues.

Okay, so I am driving my wife to work in San Francisco's Financial District and I'm passing through Union Square. This is during commute hours when it's busy and the streets tend to be crowded with pedestrians and cars. For anybody who has ever driven through San Francisco's downtown and around Union Square, you'll know what I am talking about. As I am nearing Market Street, this Yellow Cab Co-op driver stops ahead of me. While that itself is no big deal, what he does do next is.

I'm on O'Farrell Street, which is only TWO LANES wide, and there is a MUNI bus in the right lane. I've got cars behind me because they're making turns from Stockton and some just made the light behind me. Well, s**t-for-brains decides that he's more important than everybody else in the world and just PARKS THERE and proceeds to get out of his cab. I honk at him because: 1) I am trying to get my wife to work on time, 2) There is no other place for me to go or to get around him because of the narrow street, 3) There STILL IS a MUNI bus in the right lane, so I'm blocked in, and 4) There's more cars waiting behind me for the traffic to move.

Okay, so Mr. Important gets out of his cab and flips me off. Wrong thing to do. This makes me very angry and I yell at him to pull his cab over to the curb instead of blocking traffic. You see, this is a block where there is a Macy's store and the curb in front of the store is WIDE OPEN WITH NO CARS PARKED THERE and it's a white zone. He continues to flip me off while walking to the entrance to the store. I assume he is looking for his fare. Regardless, I'm pissed. Who the hell does he think he is? And, what ever happened to using common sense and courtesy?

Mr. Hotshot cab driver continues to give me the finger walking back to his cab. After getting into his cab, he's still sitting there, so I honk again. He flips me off through his driver's side window. Then, he peels off in a hurry, still giving me the finger. As I start moving again (the traffic in the right lane already moved, but I couldn't merge because they wouldn't let me in and I'm now too engrossed with this jerk in front of me), he is STILL holding out his hand, giving me the bird. The last I see of him as he makes a left turn ON A RED LIGHT is of him STILL giving me the bird.

In all, very stupid. Not only did he show a complete and utter lack of regard for anybody else but himself, but he THINKS he's actually in the right and proceeds to show how blissfully WRONG he is. Plus, he pissed off the wrong person. I already noted his cab number and called the cab company and filed a complaint.

Not only did I give them the complete details of the incident, the time and whatnot, I even give them a physical description of the driver. The manager unwittingly mentioned his name, effectively selling him down the river (to me). But, I'm not going to crucify him online as that would serve no purpose. However, from the manager's tone, I could tell that he's in trouble now. I hope they give it to him good when he has to go to the manager's office when he gets off shift.

The whole point of this treatise is that - taxi cab drivers are already notorious for their driving habits, but has anybody ever noted how they comport themselves? This one clearly is antisocial, judging from his behavior - and I don't even know the guy! Also, by putting himself above others, that further shows how little he thinks of others. This sort of self-centered thinking and behavior is what is becoming a pandemic in this nation. It's no wonder there is so much anger nowadays. Bad drivers contribute to bad attitudes and bad feelings all around.

No turn signals, cutting across multiple lanes at the last minute to make that exit, weaving in and out of traffic, tailgating, it's everywhere. Although it may be nothing new, it doesn't mean that we have to accept it. If somebody is clearly in the wrong, we should not be afraid to let them know about it (unless you're dealing with a gang-banger or a crazed person waving their gun out the window, I wouldn't). We should not have to be forced to accept substandard behavior all because "lots of other people do it." If they were to use that lame reason with me, I'd probably ask them, "So, if you're acting stupid and selfish, I should act that way, too?"

Why overpaid athletes are spoiled brats

I know you've already heard ad nauseum about the fallout from the basketbrawl between the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons that has become the proverbial "shot heard 'round the world." Everybody's talked about it. Now, I'm going to add my five cents to this as well...

First of all, the players who got into those fistfights (and any other athlete who does the same) are really not much more than overpaid spoiled brats. You may wonder, 'Where in the hell does he get off on saying that? He must be jealous because they earn so much money!' Well, first of all, consider this: Many of these athletes are in their early to mid-20s, they don't have college degrees, they haven't lived life and they most certainly have NOT matured at all. To make matters worse, they are undisciplined folk who think they are entitled to special treatment because they have lots of money and are now celebrities in their own minds.

But, I'm not singling out the athletes for blame. Oh, no, not by a long shot. I blame the sports franchises, too. After all, they're wooing these children away from their futures with promises of big money when they are not even done with high school yet, they are enabling this sense of entitlement from an early age! The "I want to be like Mike" slogan that was touted about for a while several years ago became a common mantra among young kids on playground basketball courts. I think they should leave those kids alone and let them grow up a little first. THEN, when they've proven themselves on the college basketball court and are INVITED to play with a particular team, THEN they can start talking about contracts.

I mean, why rob them of their futures? Once they've reached their mid-30s, their athletic life is over. They're considered too old by then. Look at what happened with Steve Young, Joe Montana, Roger Craig, Ronnie Lott, Wayne Gretzky, Larry Byrd and a whole host of other athletes! And what will they do with themselves after that? Can they be productive citizens without running afoul of the law every other week?

I think the brawl highlighted this fact in a glaring way - they can't handle themselves. But, like I said earlier, I'm not singling out just the players. There's plenty of blame to pass around. Let's take a look at the fans: They really ought to get a check up from the neck up. If they don't like what they see, then they should not pay for overpriced tickets to feed this vicious cycle. Vote with your wallet! Nothing speaks louder than money..as the old adage goes, "Money talks, bull***t walks." They should prosecute those who would throw objects onto the field, court or whatever playing field/arena they are attending. That's just adding fuel to the fire.

Now, let's look at the athlete's families. Yes, I'm taking aim at them, too. They're just as culpable as the rest of this cadre I've drawn up. I feel that they are pressuring their children to become successful athletes because that is their meal ticket out of whatever situation they may be in. They pin their hopes on their kids, hoping they'll make it big in the world of sports, earn those millions and then have an easy ride through retirement. While I'm not opposed to taking care of one's own parents in their advanced years, I think that the mindset and motive behind achieving that goal is disingenuous.

Pressuring the kids to become someone big and successful, sacrificing their education in the process and allowing them to enter this big world as immature adults is a surefire recipe for disaster. Of course, Ron Artest is the current poster boy for that. Then we have others like Latrell Sprewell (for choking his coach in 1997), Kobe Bryant (who can't keep his pants on both off and on the court), and that's just in basketball. How about football? We've got plenty there, too. Look at Kenny Mixon of the Vikings? And Darrell Russel of the NFL (he's been tossed around too much to list the teams he's been on). Oh, and how about the biggie of them all - Mike Tyson (former boxer, for drunkenness, brawling, wife-beating, and other acts)? Are we getting the picture yet?

You're probably thinking, "This guy must be racist, just about all of his examples are African Americans! Well, they have good examples, too. Let's see, there's Jerry Rice, Roger Craig, Julius Irving (but he's in basketball), Ronnie Lott. And, there are other bad boys from other sports, too, like Jose Canseco (baseball), Mike Dalton (hockey), Bill Romanowski (football).

I couldn't help but watch in bewilderment at how large these sports contracts grew with passing years and the players who were wooed with those millions hadn't even proven themselves on the playing field. What also struck me was that they started getting recruited younger - a few hadn't graduated high school (because they were considered 'must have' commodities) and most never graduate from college.

It's no wonder that matters have gotten so bad in sports these days. I believe that if things are to improve, all sports needs to institute punishment instead of turning a blind eye or giving a mere slap on the wrist. And think of this: What sort of role model are these athletes providing kids? Not much of one if you ask me.

I wouldn't want my kid to grow up wanting to be like a big spoiled brat like many of the athletes in sports today.

California's Proposed Mileage Tax

Geez, now it's not only in San Francisco, but in the whole friggin' state, too! The folks at the Department of Motor Vehicles want to get rid of the fuel tax and replace it with a mileage tax. Yes, they want to tax you for every mile you drive! How's that for a kicker?
Sure, when we do drive our cars (or those gas-guzzling SUVs), we add wear and tear to the roads. There's no denying that. But, this goes beyond recuperating costs associated with the maintenance of said roads - this is hitting people in their wallets in the worst way. I mean, if you really want to drive people out of the state (literally), then just tax away!

This is where Democrats and Republicans are very different. Republicans try to put more of the money back in the control of the taxpayer. You earned your wages, you've paid lots in taxes already, now we're trying to give some of that back to you. Who knows how to better spend YOUR money than you? Whereas Democrats are constantly raising taxes or increasing the tax rates on whatever it is that we are already being taxed on. What ever happened to fiscal responsibility? Where did the money from the previous tax hike or newly created tax go? To their friends and special interests.

Willie Brown, former San Francisco mayor and Speaker of the Assembly for the State of California was well-known for that. During his mayorship, there were more special assistants on the city payroll than at any other time in the city's history. How's that for paying back your political friends? And at the expense of the local taxypayers no less? No wonder he was under investigation by the FBI at one point. He's as corrupt as any politician and also very slick at it, too. No wonder they gave him the monniker 'Slick Willie.' He knows how to play the game and how to cover his ass.

Really, when was the last time you ever got any money back under a Democrat's watch? Never! But, when we have a Republican in charge, they try to make sure that matters are fiscally sound. Also, I received a tax refund check in the mail. Let's see if a Democrat can claim that!
'Nuff said!

Just a quote for tonight

I wanted to leave you with this quote from a very notable historical figure, Dr. Sun Yat Sen.

"Trust is earned by many deeds,
and lost by only one."

Would you like paper, plastic or neither?

Okay, in today's San Francisco Examiner (as well as local television news stations), the vote to TAX San Franciscans 17-cents per bag by the San Francisco Commission on the Environment was postponed until Jan. 2005. If this resolution passes, they say they will try to put it before the Board of Stupidvisors to get it passed.

The grocery stores and some small business owners came out against this idea because, ultimately, it's going to be passed on down to the consumer, which is going to hurt everyone. The idea behind this tax is that plastic bags create a lot of litter and are a public nuisance as well as a health hazard (for babies). So, they want to charge the consumer the "privilege" of using a "luxury item" such as the grocery bag. Mind you, this will apply to both plastic and paper bags. Granted, there is a lot of litter consisting of plastic items; however, shopping bags are not the biggest culprit, in my opinion.

Depending upon which part of the city you look at in The City, you may see that a lot of it is paper waste (i.e. newspapers, napkins, fliers, etc.), aluminum cans, glass bottles and well-worn plastic bags. So, why not tax all of those other recyclable items, too? Hell, since our local liberal government is so gung-ho about taxing us for everything (we even have a payroll tax), why not tax us for recycling? Sheesh!

Getting back to the issue about the tax on grocery bags. I think it's a stupid idea. Most people I know tend to use them as garbage bags in wastebaskets, pick up doggie biscuits (for those of us who are dog-owners), carry our lunches to work and other sundry tasks instead of tossing it by the wayside. A lot of it does come from the homeless (when it comes loose from their shopping carts and their makeshift camps) and the casual person who doesn't give a crap about being responsible. I've seen plenty of those here in the city, and it irks me to no end that they can just feel that they can cavalierly litter anywhere, anytime they please.

Also, if the board, in its infinite lack of wisdom, does decide to pass this tax on grocery bags, I hope they don't have a conniption in the check out line when they get hit with that tax. After all, they live in this city, too, and they have to eat sooner or later. That will probably mean trips to the local supermarket. So, in short, if they balk at the register, I hope they think twice about passing a tax on the populace. Remember, NO ENTITLEMENTS TO SPECIAL TREATMENT!

Welcome to my blog!

First, welcome to my blog. This is my first-ever web blog, so I guess I have now arrived in the midst of the 21st century along with everyone else!

I'm going to lay a few things out from the get-go:
First, I am a Republican. Yes, you read that correctly, I am a Republican. By most accounts, I am a moderate, but most liberals won't bother to make any distinction that people can and do come in different shapes, sizes and flavors. No, they like to paint with such a broad brush that they obscure everything else. Which leads me to my second item...

I am a San Francisco Bay Area native. I've lived here all my life and I will most likely be laid to rest here. There are some good things to be said about the Bay Area (great climate, varied culture, yadda yadda yadda) but there are just as many poor things to be said about it (too liberal for its own good, horrible traffic, parking hostile in The City, and the housing prices are outrageous!). I usually rant about how I live in the Communist State of San Francisco (our board of stupidvisors and district attorney are far too liberal for their own good). It's a constant battle trying to maintain my sanity in the midst of such stupidity and their overly taxing habits that it makes me want to scream (they want to tax just about everything, now they want to tax people on the use of plastic and paper shopping bags! But, I'm saving that for one of my other postings)! Most of the city's denizens don't fare much better, either. (To borrow from Disney's 'The Lion King,': "I'm surrounded by idiots...")

I will post other little tidbits about myself as well as my ruminations over the goings-on in this hotbed of liberalism (by the way, did I mention that I don't like liberals?).

And, although I dislike liberals (please note, dislike and HATE are two different concepts, do not confuse the two), I will still listen and I will try to be fair. If it's one thing I cannot be accused of is being unfair. I know, how can I possibly say and mean that when I say that I dislike liberals? Again, I may not or do not agree with them on many issues, but that doesn't mean that they can't have their opinions. That's the beauty of our country: You can have your own thoughts and opinions and you don't have to listen to them or agree with them.

Anyway, welcome to my blog.