Name one issue — guns, roads, wolves, pipelines, fracking, the Jamrat and her Coarser friend — our Michigan legislature hasn’t made a hash of over the past eight to ten years.

They’ve modified the concealed carry law just about every year since it was introduced. Now they’ve got it where they want it, (they think) in the hands of the Michigan State Police. Well, there’s little doubt it’s in safer hands now than in the hands off county boards, sheriffs, and local police, but wouldn’t a saner, broader approach be simpler, more effective, and avoid making those who want to carry subject to fees (payable to the state) for a right granted the public in our (grossly shopworn) national Constitution?

It seems to me somewhat a mind-bender to grant the individual states power over an article of the national constitution, and to charge fees for a national constitutional “right.” It’s caused confusion among the states as to what they’ll allow, thereby encouraging this
feeding frenzy over assault rifles, handguns (open or concealed), and ammunition. (Try to buy over 100 rounds of .22 ammo for plinking/target shooting.)

Our legislature seems to be more confused than most on the issue.

So, with 480,000 carriers at $50 per = $24 million in state fees, plus millions more
into the pockets of sheriffs, cops, “others” (NRA instructors) who teach the
necessary “safety” and “instruction” courses for the program at $100 each per day
of teaching.

Guys like Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf, and his “bad novel” — writing instructional assistant, what’s Ms name? You know who I mean, “good guy with guns, who’s been hoarding ammo for 25-30 years, saves his rural entity from invading Muslim hordes by killing them all like flies, and teaching his formerly anti-gun neighbors to do the same.” And they learn to love it, while preaching gun love as the way to rehab, and much improve, the nation state and the state of the nation.

On roads, we’ve followed the legislative trek first hand, watching while they’ve let our roads and highways reach the absolute nadir — the worst roads in America — while they talked the talk of repair and rebuilding, but have yet to walk the walk.

Most of the money for the road projects will not begin rolling into state coffers for another six years. By which time most of the current legislators will be term-limited out of office, and having gerrymandered legislative districts to cut competition, will hand select their GOP replacements, all but guaranteeing another 8-10 years of bluster, bother and GOP blowhardism, before any progress is likely (or even possible).

I see this weekend where OK (Okeyhoma, that is) is scratching the state’s collective heads over some 4,000-plus earthquakes since last Jan. 1. If it was California, I wouldn’t worry, they have thousands every year. But Okeyhoma typically has very few earthquakes, and these are all being blamed on fracking.

You say you haven’t heard anything about it? Well, blame it on your choice of home news delivery service. If you’re looking for it on CBS, NBC, ABC, or especially FOX, don’t bother. Same is true for the kind of “regional newspapering” we get in these parts. Check out weekend reports posted on Public TV and radio.

Unsafe roads, and unsafe terra firma. Where’s a po’ Okie supposed to walk?

Hard to believe that with the whole world in turmoil, at war, fleeing war, fearing war, experiencing war, only one organization, Public Broadcasting, delivers more than 20 minutes of world news per day. There’s hardly a decent newspaper left in America outside NYC, DC and LA. These MLive papers suck, they all print the same stories, every day of publication (three per week). Same cartoons, comic strips, editorials, commentary, puzzles, thinned-out news. What a waste of perfectly good newsprint.

None of the networks, few of the newspapers deliver complete coverage of the stuff that’s killin’ us (and many others).

Spooks in D.C., and other intel operations around the nation must be bored today. Now they can no longer spy on our personal communications without a court order. In truth, it’s no big hindrance to their efforts to keep us safe(ly under their thumbs) — those judges go out of their way to keep the spooks in business. Their goal? To be able to say, unequivocally, and collectively, “we did nothing to endanger the homeland,” when, in truth, they’ve already destroyed confidence in the constitution far too many of us still place all our trust in.

I wonder how Ed Snowden feels today, convicted (of revealing truth) in absentia as he’s been, and in the ‘Star Chamber’ court of recent times in America.

And isn’t it nice to learn today (via State GOP Senate Majority Leader Meekhoff (weak house) the GOP will defer looking into future energy plans until next year rather than getting after the question involved before taking their winter break. They seem to always need a recess before acting. That’s because they always try to get their questions and answers right before they vote. Of course, their questions and ours are completely different.

It doesn’t matter to them that nobody but the NRA wants half-a-million or more gun nuts running around the countryside, through schools, churches, taverns, grade school band concerts, art museums, and symphony orchestra performances, with .45s, .44s, 38s wrapped around ankles, down waistbands, in shoulder rigs, or in small of the back holsters. It’s a bloody miracle, what with all the ignorant asses carrying big pistols and revolvers today, we haven’t had more confrontations here.

I look for it to happen at a big NFL rivalry game (where there are always many fights and brawls). Or maybe at a friendly high school football match. It would be interesting to know how many licensed concealed carriers have committed crimes using guns on a year-to-year basis. My guess is, if you asked the Governor, he’d tell you they don’t collect data on the matter, or some other weak, lying, answer. I’d bet it’s a number the NRA people would hesitate to release, today, tomorrow, ever.

Actually, these people, and their need to carry (tough guys – when armed), make me more than a little ashamed to enjoy shooting for pleasure.