SandyMiller's Blog

With Halloween right around the corner, I was wondering what  everyone thinks of the law forbidding convicted sex offenders of participating in  Halloween activities?? They must stay indoors, with lights off and apparently post warning signs? Good idea or not? Are we protecting our children or violating the rights of the offenders? 

"The idea of girls administering a vicious beating so they can post the video online may seem shocking, but it's becoming an increasingly common scenario, according to experts and news reports".  (This statement from a Google News article.)

Are you kidding me?? What is this world coming to?  Let's talk about it.  Is it not enough discipline when these kids are young?   Not enough parental involvement ? (do you know what the text messges say on your kid's phones, do you have their password to check myspace accounts, do you know who they hang out with).  Maybe we should allow more discipline in schools  ( I remember getting a swat for talking in class... that's right talking! (Not doing drugs or  fighting in school)  Did things go hill when moms went to work and didn't stay home with the kids?  Somewhere, somehow...  SOME  kids are not learning the difference between right and wrong!  They're not afraid of getting in trouble.  They're not afraid of the wrath of parents, the law or God.  

 

It's day 3 of the teacher's strike in Cahokia... forcing the school football team to forfeit Friday's game against Carbondale.  The team is undefeated at 4-0... this will put them at 4-1 (which is a huge deal for these guys).   I don't know the rules...  but it seems to me the game could  be rescheduled for a later date so they don't have to take the loss.   Don't get me wrong... I admire teachers and believe they're  not paid nearly enough for what they do, each and every day,  for our kids... our future!  I also know how hard the boys work and wish there was a way they didn't have to "take a hit".

The Fox 2 News Edge debuts this Sunday at 10 p.m. It will follow Fox 2 News at 9.  I'm excited about being part of the team bringing this new format to St. Louis viewers. It's another option at 10 p.m.  and the look and feel is very different. Check it out and let me know what you think!

A question for you... how do you feel about  a "suicide watch" for people in jail charged with murder?

Christopher Vaughn, the man orignally from St. Charles, charged with killing his wife and three children was just extradited back to Illinois where the crime took place.  His attorney says he will plead "not guilty". Prosecutors say he did it. He's been put on suicide watch so he doesn't take his own life while imprisoned.  I've heard people say that's a good thing and others say, "let him do it, it'll save the taxpayers a lot of money if his case doesn't go to trial."   Thoughts anyone?

Another fight  this week at the Galleria. This time it was  between some women who reportedly continued a fight from their neighborhood.  But, other incidents I'm aware of have been  between teenagers.  Malls are for shopping!!   My kids  have friends who use the mall as a social hangout place.  Sorry, but that drives me crazy.  Should there be more security? Should there be rules against people under 18 who are just "hanging out"?  

Tonight, on the 6pm news we're reporting that Mitchell Hults, the boy who helped crack the Shawn Hornbeck /Ben Ownby case,  wants to go to Hollywood! The 15-year-old is marketing his story to T-V and movie producers.  His parents apparently have retained an agent to shop their son's story around.  Hmmm, not sure what I think about this.  Is this like when someone actually accepts a reward for a missing pet, instead of just helping out of the goodness of their heart?  Or is this the kind of "feel good" story that we need to see more of out of Hollywood? What do you think?

I just wanted to thank the people who donated to the Salvation Army Kettle tonight at the Schnucks in Richmond Heights. Chris Higgins and I collected $269 from 4-5p.m. I especially want to thank the people who went online and donated to my virtual kettle and helped me reach my goal!! St. Louis has a reputation of being a generous city and once again you've shown why! Oh, yea... and you guys from the sales department that were on my team... way to go, you're the BEST!!

We aired a story yesterday about Christmas shopping. Experts say there won't be as many shoppers at retail stores this coming Friday, because more people will be shopping on-line.
Well, I say... hallelujah! More room for me!! I absolutely love the Christmas season!! Even the grinches out there... get a little less grinchy, which makes the world a nicer place for the rest of us. My mom and sister-in-law are coming in from out of town for Thanksgiving, and we always shop on Friday morning. (Early, since I have to come in to work). We bond, shop, eat, shop, laugh and shop some more. So, if you're shopping on-line from the comfort of your home... enjoy! If you're out there shopping on the "traditional busiest" shopping day of the year... be sure to say HI! By the way, where are the GREAT SALES??? And, remember those experts? They say the busiest day will now be the Friday before Christmas.

Okay, no more trick-or-treating fun for me... my kids are too old. (According to them). But, I noticed through our news coverage of this holiday that many schools have alternative celebrations for Halloween or none at all. When I was in elementary school (yes, back in the old days when you had to walk to school up hill both ways) we had a costume parade and a party that evening at the school. What do you think? Should there be a Halloween party, alternative celebration or nothing at all in our schools??

You have to check out Panda Cam! The Atlanta Zoo has a "live" web cam on the Mama Panda and her newborn. The baby is too adorable for words... I'm hooked on Panda Cam. Check it out on myfoxstl.com... we have a link under "as seen on tv".

Do Mom's go crazy when they hear stories like the one about baby Abby? I tell you, I went straight from news anchor to mom last night when I heard the cousin scream, "we've got a baby, buddy" to Dan Gray. I actually had tears running down my face. It's the kind of story that pulls at everyone's heart strings, but especially moms!

The Francis Howell School District will begin random drug testing this week for all students involved in sports and extracurricular activities. Later this week, Barry Bonds and the Giants visit Busch stadium. The timing may be coincidental, but the connection is not.
Many professional athletes say they are NOT role models. In some cases I wish that were true. It may not say so in the fine print of their multi-million dollar contracts, but they ARE the people our children emulate. It would be better if our kids looked up to doctors, teachers, policemen and scientists, but they're not the ones we see on TV, selling us shoes and driving Hummers.
Kids try to be like their heroes. Unfortunately, some of their heroes take drugs.
It doesn't matter if we're talking about performance enhancing drugs or recreational drugs. (And while we're at it, I don't like the adjective "recreational". I think it gives the whole idea of recreation a bad name.) Civil libertarians will say that drug testing in schools is an invasion of privacy. But, who plays football in private? I don't think cheerleading, speech and debate, student government or any other extracurricular activity is done in private. I think it happens on school property with other students. I don't want my kids to take drugs, and I don't want their teammates to either.
Some say you can't legislate morality. It's a civics debate that's been going on since before we were here, and will probably still be going on long after we're gone. All I know is that illegal drugs hurt people. I'm a mom, and kids are some of my favorite people. If it takes random testing to deter kids from taking drugs, or if it identifies and helps the ones who are, I'm all for it! And if Barry Bonds goes out for the Francis Howell baseball team... I think he's out of luck.

9/11/06... the fifth anniversary of one of the worst days in American History. What a day to start a blog! I'll never forget that morning. When I heard it, what I thought and how I felt. I was on the way to a video shoot at a local production company and was listening to the radio. At first, I, as probably most of you, thought it was just a horrible accident. Then there were reports of a plane hitting the second tower and I knew it was something more. It was numbing and I was in a daze the rest of the day... but glued to television sets, radios, the computer, anywhere I could get more information. I cried by myself, with my family and with the rest of the nation. What about today?? Though I hate to admit it, I'm not as eager to fly and I'm afraid to let my kids travel . My oldest is in highschool and he's been invited to study abroad. Do I let him go?? Is it safe?? I guess we need to live our lives as we did before or else the terrorists have gained some small victory!