Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart killed in hit-and-run

I'm just making a distinction between the guy who gets caught with a joint during a traffic stop and the guy who's dealing heroin across the street from a middle school. They shouldn't be treated the same.

 

I don't think the degree of difference is huge. Sure, the crimes and punishments would be different, but either way the person is showing that they are incapable of holding to the concept that part of being a citizen in a society is following the rules. They are showing that they are willing to put their temporary desires above the rules that keep everyone safe.

 

That's the problem with humans.

 

On any other thread, I would vehemently argue that our draconian marijuana possession laws are not remotely applicable as "the rules that keep everyone safe" ... but for the sake of this discussion, I won't get into that here.

 

In the other thread, I'd agree with you on that point, but the point is that's not for everyone to decide as individuals, it's for society to decide. If it's a bad rule, change the rule, don't ignore it.

There are a lot of people who will argue that drunk driving isn't always that big a deal either (".10 is no worse than driving tired!"). Wouldn't be shocked if the person who killed three people in California yesterday was one of them.

 

Did anyone hear Angels announcer Rex Hudler on Chris Myers' radio show Thursday afternoon? Not happy to bring it up, but that was the most god-awful tribute I've ever heard.

It was just painful to listen to, and it went about five minutes.

Too much of Hudler talking about "in my 21 years of baseball," and "when I was in the baseball clubhouse," and then a bunch of repetitive blather about how baseball is one big family, and this hurts baseball as much as it hurts Adenhart's family, and how you never know when you're gonna die, and ... and ... and stuff like that.

Dude, the subject was Nick. Come on the air prepared. Talk about Nick. Tell some Nick stories. Tell everyone what a great guy he was. And tell everyone how much he will be missed.

Apologies for yanking the thread sideways.
But if you heard it, maybe you were aghast like me.

Nothing against Hudler, though. Really.

 

HorseWhipped, that's just Rexy being Rexy. Nothing different than every time he announces an Angels game. He means well, but the man's a foof.

 

Thanks, Buck. That's what I figured.
I know he meant well, but he was bouncing off walls and stumbling all over himself.

He also sounded chipper until the very end, when he dropped his voice and said: " ... but this is VERY, VERRRRRRY BAAADDDDD."

 

He always sounds overly chipper. The man's high on life -- and, possibly, lots and lots of weed.

Can't tell you how annoying it gets when Rex gets excited and Physioc starts screaming ... in the seventh inning of a game in April.

 

Beyond being a wild violation of the Constitution's provision protecting citizens against cruel and unusual punishment, your lock-'em-all-up solution is completely impractical. Our prisons are already so overcrowded that violent prisoners are being released in some states because they don't have the room for everybody any more, and, shock of shocks, a lot of them kill or maim or rape again. So putting everyone away and throwing away the key, as you suggest, really leads to some slammin' results, huh?

Again, and I can't emphasize this enough, the problem is not that we don't have enough prisoners locked away in America. We have, I believe, 25 percent of the world's prisoners and something like 4 percent of its population. The statistics, in fact, might even be even more ridiculous than that. Mother Jones had a story about it a few months ago, but I've since thrown it away.

Every time we lock someone away for a marijuana charge or for stealing a pack of gum, that's theoretically a few more dollars that could have been pumped into education, particularly early-childhood education, which study after study has shown is the No. 1 best way to prevent future crime.

It may give you the instant gratification you crave, but the effect on society has been devastating.

Let me ask you: Do you want less crime? Or do you just want to see people punished?

 

I don't recall saying I wanted to lock everyone up.

I just don't like people shrugging this off as a "minor" crime.

 

Who in the world "shrugged off" the killing of three people by a drunk driver as a "minor" crime?

Weren't you the one who said being caught with marijuana and selling heroin to middle schoolers should be treated the same in the eyes of the law? That's what I was talking about.