The Other View

Up late and can't sleep.....??

Try the T V  Land Trivia Page....!!

Click on this link...!!

http://www.tvland.com/games/trivia/index.jhtml?button=
9&trivia_id=9

I did well on the Beverly Hillbillys....!!

I think I can sleep now.....

What show do you do best on.......??

Maybe He Needs Decaf..!!

I havn't been to McDonalds in a while..... Is there anything else going on there I should know about...??

Will fast food survive into the future....??

If it seems too good to be true it probably is....!!

As homes foreclose in U.S. squatters move in !

By Jason Szep

BROCKTON, Massachusetts (Reuters) - They enter through a broken first-floor window each night to sleep on a moldy bed in the abandoned four-family house at 827 Main Street, part of a new generation of squatters emboldened by America's housing foreclosure crisis.

"For squatters, foreclosed homes like this are like a camp-ground with free camping," says real-estate broker Marc Charney, a foreclosure specialist, as he enters the home in Brockton, Massachusetts, and shines a flash-light at a mattress where homeless people have been sleeping each night.

Squatting is on the rise across the United States as foreclosures surge, eviction notices mount and homes go unsold for months, complicating the worst U.S. housing slump in a quarter century and forcing real-estate brokers to enlist the help of law enforcement and courts to sell empty houses.

In some regions, squatting is taking on new twists to include real-estate scams in which thieves "rent out" abandoned homes they don't own. Others involve "professional squatters" who move from one abandoned home to another posing as tenants who seek cash from banks as a condition to leave the premises -- a process known by real-estate brokers as "cash for key."

"There are people who move in and know exactly who to contact and say 'If you want this house, why don't you come out here and offer me cash,'" said Detective Erin Camphouse of the Los Angeles Police Department's Real Estate Fraud Unit.

"It's just cheaper for the banks to do that rather than going into the courts," she said. "The squatters are getting sophisticated and turning it on these banks who own the properties."

She cited another case in which a Los Angeles man recently "leased" three abandoned homes to unsuspecting renters through Craig's List, the online classified advertising company. The renters paid first and last month deposits, moved their belongings in and lived in the homes for several months.

"In one case, there were loose ends of rehab on the house that needed to be done and the crook wasn't coming through or wasn't completing it. So they offered to do it instead of paying rent. They put down tiles and carpet and all that kind of stuff. And it wasn't until the sheriff put the lockout notice on the door that they realized something was wrong."

POSING AS TENANTS

New Jersey real-estate broker Bill Flagg is in a different type of legal tussle with occupants of a foreclosed home who refuse to leave in Plainfield, a city of 47,829 people.

"We know the people are squatters. But we have had the cops there. We had the electricity shut off and the cops wouldn't put the people out. We have to go to court to get them out. They claim to be tenants," Flagg said.

Such cases of squatters posing as tenants are on the rise, said Bill Collins, president of the New Jersey chapter of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers.

"These people claim that they have a lease but they can't find it. And the property owner has been removed from the property or been foreclosed on, so they have no interest in confirming if this person is a valid tenant," he said.

"So now you have squatters who are assuming that they are tenants and have rights to some degree to stay in the property until we can go through the court system to get them out.

"And they have caught wind that what most of these banks are doing is giving cash for keys, so cash for eviction -- anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500. So here you have a squatter who goes into a property, takes up residence, tells you that he is a tenant, goes to court and says that he is a tenant.

"Who can prove otherwise?"

California real-estate broker Steve Smallson said he finds about three squatting cases a month, compared to none last year, in his region of Woodland Hills, a middle-class district of Los Angeles. That includes a case in April involving a foreclosed home worth $1 million where police were called after neighbors reported squatters filming pornography in the house.

The problem is compounded in some states by the weakening economy and its effects on America's homeless, who number about 744,000 each night according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, an advocacy organization in Washington.

"The rise of squatting is a natural consequence of these properties sitting there empty caused by the whole foreclosure crisis," said Steve Berg, a vice president at the alliance.

(Reporting by Jason Szep; Editing by Eddie Evans)

Fires, drugs, crimes, loss of value, and now the con game.. Nothing good can possibly come out of the foreclosure crisis .....  

But they tell us the economy is not that bad.....

The First Was The Best....!!

I miss Sportsman Park.....Not so much the park, but the atmosphere created by the players and the people that attended the games there....... Busch Stadium was ok, but it marked the beginning of  commercializing the game and when new Busch Stadium was born, the game became a full blown business...... At  Sportsman Park I was a little boy that went to the game with his dad and his uncles.....  Got to watch some of the greatest players and usually sat in fantastic seats...... At  Bush Stadium early I was the young man that went with friends and later on I  was the father that watched his son sit there with the glove on his hand hoping for a foul ball and remembering that little boy still lurking somewhere inside me...... The new stadium finds me in my  "( young )" fifties sitting in nosebleed seats...... Due to the now business part of the game the expensive tickets of desire are bought up and resold, or occupied by season ticket holders...... Bleacher spaces have dwindled in lieu of party boxes and the seats are smaller and closer together...... Going to a game for a family of four may cost as much as a weeks wage for some...... Hopefully  the tradition of the game will live on and make more great memories for a lot of little boys..... I wish there was a tee shirt for us old guys that said " Three stadium club member "

I'm sure it would cost at least $30 though......

What's your fondest memory at the ball park....??

How many anglers have snuck in your pond.....??

 Wow I spent the evening downloading Norton 2008 and it went to work almost immediately..... It found 35 tracking cookies plus some other assorted spyware that needed to get out of my pond...... It's funny that when I first heard the word Phishing, I had to look it up to  see what it meant... It makes so much sense when you think about it...    There are several websites where you can go and look up the meanings of computer terms.......  So far I am very happy with the 2008 version..... It has posted a guard to keep any new angler out so my pond might not get phished out....... Had a virus once and don't ever want to go through that again......

Anybody Phishing in your pond.....??

Full Moon Friday

July 18, 2008

Full Buck Moon

Bucks begin to grow new antlers at this time. This full Moon was also known as the Thunder Moon, because thunderstorms are so frequent during this month.

 Anybody going out to party Friday....??

Does  praying in public hamper your image...!!

Tough guys have the hardest time showing their soft side..... I have been guilty of this most of my life..... I  am incapable of crying.....  It doesn't mean that I don't care..... This is much more common in men than women.... 99 percent of the world prays..... Some will pray in public and others will seek their private shrine to make their peace with God..... But the need to pray in private sometimes will be misinterpreted as being cold and uncaring...... I never judge a person by features...... I restrict judgement of a person to  their deeds......  The nicest people I know are some of the scariest looking and some of the most cold blooded people I have ever met were so normal and safe looking....... Everybody has a special place that they make peace with God..... I prefer to be in the woods when I want to think, meditate and pray...... I suppose I view nature as God and feel closer to him when there  ...

Where do you feel closest to God.....??

What goes up must come down.....!!

All the years that planes have traveled the sky it has been basically safe for all of the population that has walked under the sky around the world..... When you look up to the sky it is so beautiful and so harmless looking..... Yesterday's mishap with the plane part falling from the air was just a subtle reminder that there is always a danger lurking from above...... One might be struck by lightning, swallowed up by a tornado, hit by a falling obect from an aircraft or a big rock from all the junk floating in outer space..... I have always been fascinated by  space......  When I look up at the stars my mind  travels millions of light years wondering what exists in all the other galaxys..... Our lives are nothing but a speck in time...... I am thankful to have had the opportunity to see a comet with the naked eye...... When I look at the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper I sense that there is a meaning there that nobody understands.....There is an interesting article about the number of times that we have actually been hit by meteors..... Too long to post on the front page but here is the link for an interesting read........

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200806/asteroids>

If a big rock came today,  could we stop it....??

36 hours without is rough when not expecting it..!!

Wow I lost my A C yesterday morning and just now got it working..... When your not used to having no air without a backup plan, it is rough..... Windows and a couple of fans doesn't keep a house very cool..... Getting a serviceman on a hot day like today is another chore ..... But when I described the problem over the phone the owner of the company told me that he was pretty sure he knew what it was doing and could fix it on the way home this evening..... Well it only took 10 minutes to replace a capacitor and the A C was fired and cold..... Less than 80 dollars including the service call and the Igloo was ready for the Eskimo..... We never had air as a kid but we did have some big fans pulling air through the house.... After a hot sweatty night with little sleep, I am looking forward to tonight.... Tomorrow I will go one forward and clean the squirrel cage, A coils and hose off the evaporator...  A clean A C unit could add as much as 15 degrees to your cooling power......

Have you lost your cool lately.....!!

Ode to the old cowboys....!!

I was saddened to learn of a long time friend passing this morning..... But instead of mourning his death, it would be more proper to celebrate the life of one of the last old cowboys.... Old country music is becoming something you hear about but hardly hear anymore...... This  old cowboy lived the life of a country bumpkin and even spent  time in Nashville.......  If he  picked up a guitar he was sure to play some very old classic stuff..... His lifestyle probably shortened his life, but one must assume that he died living the way he wanted......... So tonight I will stop in at the bar he loved to sing at  and sing an old old country song and drink a beer and toast the old cowboys.....

What's your favorite old country song...??

Are we that hooked on our gadgets...??

How long could you go without your cell phone ?...... It totally amazes me that people would stand in line for days to get a new one..... I own a cell but to me it is just a phone...... I can dial out on it and if it rings I can answer it..... I can also leave it in the car or  forget it at home and not turn around and drive back to get it.......  We  never have to look too far to see someone talking on a cell..... Yesterday at the gym I observed a lady on the treadmill working out and talking on the cell phone....... Then at the pool one in three had their cells near and handy...... I know of a 16 year old girl that takes her phone in the shower with her in fear of missing a call..... How long could you go without yours ?......  If you were told to turn it off for a week would you go through withdrawals ?......  Do you panic if you have a low battery ? ..... If it rang during a movie would you answer it.....??

How bad are we hooked on our gadgets....??

Have you ever had your teeth powerwashed.....??

Being three months overdue I finally made it in for an appointment with the hygenist and a check up with  my dentist today..... Having a cavity and needing a new crown was no suprise and actually was  less than expected....... The cleaning was routine with the poking with the pitchfork and digging out a little plaque and buildup...... But when it came to the polishing she used a tool that resembled a minature power washer..... Beside feeling a little hot and splashing water on my face it was quite bearable and the cleanliness felt in the gums afterwards was incredible....... Keeping ones teeth healthy is one tough chore..... But  prevention is so much easier than the cure......

Have you been to the dentist lately....??

For a day I'm happy with Blunt....!!

New Missouri Law Goes After Illegal Immigrants Last Edited: Monday, 07 Jul 2008, 6:14 PM CDT Created: Monday, 07 Jul 2008, 2:16 PM CDT

Gov. Matt Blunt was signing legislation Monday that creates new restrictions on illegal immigrants and new requirements for businesses that employ them.
  
The governor was scheduled to make stops in Joplin and Kansas City to publicize the legislation. Lawmakers passed the bill on the final day of their annual session under a threat from Blunt that he would call a special session if no bill were passed.
  
Under the immigration legislation, applicants for food stamps, housing and other public benefits will need to prove they are U.S. citizens or are legally in the country; the Highway Patrol will need to seek special federal immigration training; commercial driver's license tests will be given in English with no translation assistance; and cities would risk some state aid and grants if community leaders adopt policies to not cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

The Washington-based Pew Hispanic Center estimates from U.S. census data that 35,000 to 65,000 illegal immigrants live in Missouri -- roughly the equivalent of the populations of Cape Girardeau or St. Charles. Missouri is projected to have less than 1 percent of the 12 million people estimated to be in the United States illegally.

The immigration bill passed the Legislature with wide majorities. Only Democrats living in and around Kansas City and St. Louis voted against the bill.

But the thorniest provision left Republican lawmakers and Missouri's business community arguing over how to address what bill supporters called "the magnet" attracting illegal immigrants to Missouri -- the prospect of a job from an employer who does not care whether the applicant is legally in the country.

Under the legislation, all public employers, including state and local governments, will need to use a federal database that searches records from the Social Security Administration and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to determine whether someone is authorized to work in the country.

So will businesses that have a government contract worth more than $5,000 or that receive state loans or tax breaks. But private employers won't have to use the E-Verify system unless they are caught hiring an illegal immigrant.

Lawmakers initially sought to require everyone to use E-Verify, but business leaders balked, pointing to database errors and uncertainty about the system's future. They accused lawmakers of trying to turn the state's employers into immigration agents.
  
About a dozen states require that some employers use E-Verify, with Arizona and Mississippi going the furthest in mandating it for all. Illinois has gone the opposite direction, limiting how E-Verify can be used until database errors can be corrected.
  
The E-Verify system was created in 1996 to give employers an electronic way to determine whether employees can work in the United States. But misspelled names, last names entered as middle names and outdated information have led to mistakes.

The Government Accountability Office reported to Congress last month that about 92 percent of all E-Verify checks are confirmed within seconds. About 7 percent cannot be immediately confirmed by the Social Security databases and about 1 percent can't be confirmed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

As of April 2008, 61,000 employers nationwide were registered for E-Verify, with the roughly 28,000 active users making more than 2 million queries from October 2007 to April 2008. The GAO reported it would cost more than $1 billion to update the system for the estimated 63 million annual queries that would come from making E-Verify mandatory nationwide.
  
Besides deciding whether to require employers to use the federal database, Missouri lawmakers also battled over whether to punish employers who misclassify their workers as contractors. For contractors, employers don't have to pay withholding taxes, provide other benefits or take responsibility if the worker is an illegal immigrant.
  
The immigration bill allows fines of up to $50,000, for businesses that misclassify workers and have at least five employees performing public works.

Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Now if we'd just start putting a tariff on imports..!!

Her Video is what sports is about.....!!!

Besides she looks good in a catchers outfit....!!

For more details click on this site.....!!

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/notebook?page=bbtn/takem
eout

Have you been to a little league game lately....??

Why don't we believe it....??

Have you ever been told something or seen something,  but you still had to see for yourself ?...... Well I was presented the opportunity to observe this weakness in man last night...... Playing music for an outdoor wedding on a farm placed my tent right next to a beautiful garden with an electric fence around to keep the deer from eating all the vegtables...... Although it was quite obvious what it was it seems that a lot of the guests had to put their hand on the wire to see for themself...... This is a lesson I learned long ago.... But it is human nature for us to see for ourself....... Have you ever seen a wet paint sign.....??

Have you ever learned the hard way......??