crime news

It’s time for politics

The massacre at the Allen Premium Outlet Mall has produced the usual mantra from politicians and others who want to ignore the issue of “gun regulation.”

They are telling us that “this is no time for politics.” Excuse me? It is past time for politics.

They purport to be speaking for grieving families in shock over the assault on their lives by a lunatic who opened fire with an AR-15 rifle. It was the 199th mass shooting in the country this year … on the 128th day of the year!

At issue is how to control the purchase of firearms and keeping them out of the hands of loons such as the moron who opened fire in Allen. That is purely a political solution.

It starts with enacting legislation that is faithful to the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment. Is there a solution out there? I believe there is. Does a ban on weapons designed to kill people on the battlefield violate the amendment’s guarantee that we can “keep and bear arms”? No, it does nothing of the sort!

What about universal background checks that could flag individuals with histories of mental instability? The Allen mall shooter was discharged from the Army in 2008 because of “mental issues.” Yet he still owned an AR-15. Is it OK to wonder if a background check could have kept the gun out of his hands were he to seek to purchase it? What’s more, how does that violate the rights of anyone with zero such issues? It doesn’t!

I am weary of the refrain in the wake of these tragedies that “this is no time for politics.” These solutions reside in the halls of government, where politicians roam and where they — if they ever grow a spine — could enact laws that make us safer.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

Slaton quits House … good riddance!

Bryan Slaton, who was about to be expelled by his colleagues in the Texas House of Representatives, has decided to spare himself the humiliation of being booted out of office.

He quit the office on his own!

Slaton, a Royse City Republican, had been investigated for having sex with an intern after serving her alcohol. A House committee had recommended he be expelled from the House, which was set to vote Tuesday on whether to throw his sorry backside out of the place. There still might be a vote, even though Slaton’s gone from the body.

Well, the second-term legislator is done embarrassing the House in which he served, the state that must live by the laws he endorses and his constituents who sent him to the House to do their bidding … which did not include boorish behavior.

This self-proclaimed Christian conservative, a married man who said with no appreciation for the irony he expressed about he now gets to “spend time with my young family,” has disgraced himself.

State Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands, said this on social media: “His resignation gave no apology to the young woman he violated, his wife whom he betrayed or his district that he failed. No remorse. No acceptance of responsibility. He’s the victim that rides off into the sunset. That was the resignation of a narcissist.”

Good riddance!

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

crime news

Rep. Self disgraces himself

Keith Self has taken no time at all during his first term in Congress to demonstrate a level of boorishness that astounds many millions of us.

Self, a Republican House member whose congressional district represents Allen, Texas — the scene this past weekend of the latest mass shooting — decided to declare that those who question whether “thoughts and prayers” are insufficient in deterring these acts of madness “don’t believe in an almighty God.”

“Well,” Self said in a now viral video, “those are people that don’t believe in an almighty God who has, who is absolutely in control of our lives. I’m a Christian, I believe that he is. We have people though, with mental health [issues] that we’re not taking care of.”

Rep. Self, I, too, am a Christian. I also believe in God’s infinite power. I also believe that human beings do things that are out of the Almighty’s control.

For this guy to say that everyone who wants legislative action to deter future acts of madness don’t believe as he does is demagoguery at its worst.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

crime news

These issues aren’t mutually exclusive

Let’s try to comprehend what I believe is a simple proposition, which is that fighting mental health issues and seeking to legislate meaningful laws restricting gun ownership are not mutually exclusive.

I touched on that in an earlier blog post in the wake of the shooting rampage in Allen, Texas, this past weekend; eight people were shot to death before an Allen police officer killed the loon who opened fire with an AR-15.

I salute the officer’s swift response. I also want to offer a comment on “competing” solutions being offered by leading politicians.

One of them, Democratic President Biden wants Congress to ban AR-15s outright; he wants Congress to enact universal background checks on those seeking to buy a firearm; and he wants Congress to increase the minimum age to buy a gun from 18 to 21 years.

Is the president dismissing the need to deal forthrightly with mental health concerns? Of course not!

The other is Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott who wants to concentrate on mental health research while shoving gun control proposals to the back burner.

Is the governor saying “hell no!” to any legislation? I didn’t hear him say that.

Let me state once more: These two approaches can be handled simultaneously. We need not ignore one while working exclusively on the other.

The issue continues, in my mind at least, to be the easy access to guns. The Allen mall shooter reportedly was discharged from the Army because of “mental health issues.” Why, then, was he allowed to reportedly own an AR-15, a high-capacity semi-automatic rifle capable of killing a lot of human beings in a matter of seconds?

If you have seen an AR-15 up close you might need to know that the weapon is eerily similar to an M-16, the rifle we were issued when we reported for duty in Vietnam. They are weapons of war.

Furthermore, there is nothing in President Biden’s priority list that contradicts the Second Amendment’s guarantee for citizens to “keep and bear arms.” He just wants to be sure that those of us who obey the law and who aren’t pre-disposed to harming other human beings don’t have access to these weapons.

What in the name of humanity is wrong with that?

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

NE Texas rep faces expulsion

Bryan Slaton, arguably one of the more incendiary members of the Texas House of Representatives, is facing the seriously real prospect of being kicked out of the House.

You see, Slaton — a Royse City Republican and one of the most ardent social conservatives ever elected to the House — has been recommended for expulsion because he reportedly had sex with an underage staff member after serving her alcohol.

The Texas Tribune reports: A scathing report by the House General Investigating Committee, distributed to House shortly after noon Saturday, found Slaton did not dispute allegations that he had sex with the 19-year-old woman and provided alcohol to her, nor did he express regret or remorse for his conduct. Instead, the report said, Slaton’s lawyer argued the complaints should be dismissed because the behavior occurred in Slaton’s Austin residence, not the workplace.

Texas House committee recommends expulsion of Rep. Bryan Slaton | The Texas Tribune

Here is what makes this matter so, um, astonishing: Slaton is a former youth minister for a Christian church, where he presumably preached the importance and sanctity of family values.

Did I mention that Slaton is married? There. I just did.

A vote by the full House could come as early as Tuesday and Slaton isn’t getting any help from his Republican colleagues in the House of Reps. In Hunt County, the GOP chair has said Slaton needs to go. I keep hearing of Republican legislative colleagues expressing shame and disgust at the party’s stain delivered by Slaton’s conduct.

Yep, it looks to me as if Bryan Slaton is headed for a one-way walk out of the Texas House of Representatives. Does it bother me? Not even a little bit!

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

Don’t misrepresent vote

Memo to Marie Biggs, a Democratic precinct chair in Collin County, Texas: You need to cease misrepresenting the nature of the recent election to the Collin College Board of Regents.

I returned home today after spending a couple of nights way and found a single-sheet flyer in my front door. It speaks to the need for Democrats to get out and vote for three candidates running for the board of regents: Megan Wallace, Scott Coleman and Stacey Donald.

“Turnout has been extremely low,” Biggs wrote in her note. “That means we have a chance t beat the MAGA Republicans on the Collin College board,” she wrote.

Hold on a second, Ms. Biggs! The college board is elected on non-partisan ballots. No one runs as a Democrat or a “MAGA Republican.” A regent or a candidate for the board can adhere to policies that tilt one way or the other.

However, to call on voters to “vote for the following Democrats” constitutes a gross misrepresentation of the election.

It reminds me of a ploy I witnessed in Amarillo in the late 1990s in the race for mayor, another non-partisan office. A candidate seeking to defeat incumbent Mayor Kel Seliger sent out literature asking “all good Republicans” to vote for her. I was editing an opinion page at the local newspaper and we called out Mary Alice Brittain for doing the same thing that Marie Biggs did this weekend. Brittain lost the race for mayor … and then disappeared.

Listen up, Ms. Biggs: Take care in characterizing these campaigns.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

crime news

When is it enough?

When in the name of national sanity is enough going to be enough, that the latest case of mass slaughter at the hands of a madman with an AR-15 will prompt some legislation that could prevent future carnage?

The latest spasm of violence occurred just down the highway from my North Texas home — and even closer to my precious family members who live in Allen. The Allen Outlet Mall was the scene when a lunatic got out of his vehicle and opened fire. He killed eight people, including a 5-year-old before an Allen Police Department officer arrived and shot the gunman dead.

I want to shake the cop’s hand one day and thank him for his service to the community.

Meanwhile, we hear from President Biden who — once again — ordered flags to fly at half-staff and also called for a ban on AR-15s and asked Congress to approve universal background checks and increase the minimum age of purchasing a firearm from 18 to 21.

And what do we hear from Texas pols? GOP Gov. Greg Abbott said the answer lies in mental health treatment. Yes, governor, it does … but it must not be mutually exclusive to what the president is seeking.

Texas GOP U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, meanwhile, said he and his wife are praying for the families and the community. Thanks, senator, but prayers aren’t working. Then comes newly elected U.S. Rep. Keith Self, another Republican who represents Collin County in the House, with a remark that “God is in charge” of everything. Right, Rep. Self. Explain how God continues to allow this kind of slaughter to recur.

I agree with Gov. Abbott about the need to wage war against mental illness. I also agree with President Biden about banning AR-15s and high-capacity magazines, background checks and raising the age of those who want to buy firearms. These approaches are not mutually exclusive!

I want to remind everyone that most Americans — of all political stripes — favor the approach that Biden seeks. Yet our governing institutions keep ignoring the will of the people.

All the while, lunatics keep slithering into plain view to slaughter innocent victims.

Enough is enough!

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

Far too close for comfort

AMARILLO, Texas — All right, ladies and gents, the latest mass shooting to erupt in these United States has occurred too close to make this blogger at all comfortable.

Reports have it that nine people were killed or injured when a dipsh** opened fire at the Allen Outlet Mall, which is in the city where my son and his family live.

An Allen police officer shot the loon to death. He reportedly was en route to another call when the shots rang out. He engaged the lunatic immediately and, according to Allen PD, he “neutralized the subject.”

I am heaving a gigantic sigh, as is my younger son, who is with me in Amarillo tending to a family matter. Our family is safe from this latest hideous spasm of violence, the 199th such mass shooting in 2023.

I also want to thank publicly the Allen police officer who tended to this emergency in rapid order. This is what public service is all about.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

national news

Must we be afraid?

Republican politicians and those who follow them have become adept at scaring the bejeebers out of folks.

Yes, the GOP is campaigning on fear. They tell us they fear their political foes are up to no good.

Let’s cite an example or two, or maybe three.

The GOP has told us since time began that Democrats and liberals are going to take away our guns. They want to disarm Americans. They do not subscribe to the Second Amendment’s guarantee that all Americans are entitled to “keep and bear arms.” They want voters to fear the worst on that matter.

Republicans want you to fear Democrats pushing a “woke” agenda that does all sorts of frightening things, such as “indoctrinate” our children into changing their gender, or seeking to convert everyone to becoming gay.

The GOP fears our children being taught about our nation’s history of racism. Republicans deny the existence of racist policies. They don’t want the Civil War taught as a lesson in states seeking to preserve slavery and their willingness to go to war with the U.S. government to keep slaves in bondage.

I hope you understand my point. The GOP has become a party of fear merchants. They are afraid of losing their grip on power and they want voters to join them in fearing the worst among their foes.

It’s frightening.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

New era update

AMARILLO, Texas — The elder of my sons is a giant step closer this afternoon to making a move that is likely to cause him more angst than he might realize at this moment.

He has been a grown man for quite some time now, so I am reluctant to share unsolicited advice with him … or his slightly younger brother. I did so privately today en route back from the landfill to his soon-to-be former house. He took it like the grownup he is, so enough said about that.

I also have told him that I am proud of him and that I welcome this change in his life and in mine as well. We’ll be roommates for a time in Princeton, sharing a house I once shared with my beloved bride, Kathy Anne.

It won’t be the same, for obvious reasons, but I welcome this change for reasons I know everyone who reads this blog and who has followed my journey through the darkness understands.

We have worked hard today. My son enlisted the help of a friend to do some of the heavy lifting. Very soon, he can put this chapter in his own life in his proverbial rearview mirror.

Then all of us — and that includes my younger son’s family — can look forward to new challenges and adventures.

For now, though, I am going to take a nap.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

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