More Scattershooting / Where Does The Speed Limit Really Cap Off?

Here it is, time to do more scattershooting just for you on Case's Column. I've got stuff flying all over the place that you probably need to duck. Nonetheless, we'll keep each other good company right here. Let me let 'er rip!

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Once upon a few years ago, Texas highway officials raised speed limits on our rural Texas highways (most notably, the interstates) to 70 miles per hour. At the time, it didn't seem to bother me and I was actually fascinated by such an idea, and ever since then, it's made traveling faster for me. There is, in the back of my mind, the question of overall safety. Now, I read in this morning's paper that the speeds will be raised again, this time to 75 MPH on rural Texas interstates. I'm not sure they'll do it on the secondary highways, but it will definitely take place on the interstate-designated highways, including the new, yet-to-be-built stretches of Interstate 69. I'm against the idea, as such would just be too dangerous and too risky. I mean, where can one draw the line on speed limits? 70 is high enough even in the most isolated places in Texas (which are already posted at 75 in South Texas and 80 in West Texas). Highway officials need to really rethink this idea before countless lives will be lost due to the carelessness of other drivers, which could very well happen with the raising of speed limits on our great Texas roads.

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Want to see more of Kim Kardashian on your tube real soon? Here's a link for you.

Kim Kardashian lands recurring role on 'Drop Dead Diva' - MSN TV News

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New Houston Astros owner Jim Crane is entertaining the unthinkable: He's mulling over changing the name of the franchise. Memo to Jim: Don't do it! Yes, I know that the move to the American League is not your fault and that commissioner Bud Selig forced you into it. I understand perfectly. But fans are upset, and the last thing they need is more change. And although Houston doesn't have the benefit of the space program anymore (thanks to a certain occupant of the White House whom I'll talk about shortly), it doesn't need history messed with. The Astros are part of Houston's proud space tradition and history, so why mess with it? Let it stay just like it is, Jim, regardless of what league it goes in.

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Could we all see a new way of shopping? One notable chain says, "Yes, we sure can."

How J.C. Penney Could Transform the Way America Shops - DailyFinance

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Here, now, is a way to combine sausage and bacon into a tasty snack.

Bacon-Wrapped Brown Sugar Lit'l Smokies

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A brief word of thanks to all of you who have encouraged and supported me during a difficult time the last two weeks. I'll not get into specific details, but the words I've received were positive, and it only reinforces the fact that we have great people here on City-Data. Thanks again, good friends. Because you are.

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I need to do a dumb criminal story, as I haven't done one in a while. Exactly what was this young woman thinking?

Police Arrest Convicted Felon Angela Lynn Milhoan After Finding Gun In Her Bra

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2012, as you know, is a presidential election year. It is going to be, without question, the most important election in American history, not to mention my lifetime, and one that will pretty much decide the fate of our great nation. We have a few Republican candidates running for our nation's highest office that are currently squaring away at the issues in which they disagree. What they need to be doing is focus on two things, and they are jobs and how to defeat our current president. At 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, we presently have a guy that thinks he is God's gift to politics and that he is out to conquer the world. What Barack Hussein Obama has really done since 2009 is destroy the very fabric of our great nation by creating a hot mess, piece by piece. He resents the fact that America is a great nation, one that has been free, prosperous, influential, and powerful for many years. That's why he had the balls to go to other countries and apologize to them for the things that made this country great. It saddens me that the left is clearly on a mission to bankrupt us, cripple us, and make us more vulnerable to evil forces. That's what the liberals want, folks. That's why this "president" is cutting defense because he is twisting the wise idea of cutting spending by shoving his agenda in our faces, seeking to make a mockery of Republicans, conservatives, and good old-fashioned American values. [WRITER'S NOTE: I put the word president in quotes because I'm still not convinced that Obama is a legitimate American-born citizen, which is a requirement of occupany in the Oval Office.] He attacks the rich, but it's just another sick excuse for him to raise taxes on everyone, which would only destroy the creation of new jobs and the sustaining of existing ones. Maybe the left just doesn't like having nice things. Unemployment is higher than 11 percent, so please don't buy into this idea that it is 8.5 percent. Please. This is the media pushing their liberal biases on us to protect their precious "Chosen One". Meanwhile, many, many people are still looking for jobs, and some can't get one.

I didn't even bother watching the State of the Union address on television the other night, choosing, instead, to tune in some college basketball. I didn't even care what Obama had to say, because regardless of what the subject matter was, it's just empty rhetoric and lies. That's what he operates with. And I, for one, am sick and tired of it. He has no integrity, no moral fiber, no real compassion for others, and he's just so self-absorbed and power-hungry. Barry Obama is a desperate man who will go at any length to seek destruction of a country he clearly hates, trying to force bills and legislation that must still go through Congress. He's even made a recent appointment of a new government official without Congressional approval, which makes that person and position lack credibility and legality. Mark my words: I will not watch another State of the Union address until we get a decent conservative into the Oval Office to do the work Americans care about, without abusing power, and following the United States Constitution the way in which it was intended.

I'll have more to expand on with related subjects later on and when the time is right, but I'll say it again loud and clear: Barack Obama must be voted out of office. America is a strong nation that must remain strong. It needs a return to the things that made it great: conservatism, patriotism, capitalism, power, freedom, and liberty. Obama doesn't represent any of those things. People need to be put back to work. Our freedoms must remain in check, not taken away. I read the other day someone suggesting that the left represents a majority in America. Wrong. It does not, and it's not even close. Those who represent responsibility, accountability, integrity, and common sense are the American people, and that is still a vast majority, not those who militantly represent the liberal, tax-and-spend, hostile left. Dear people, let us bond together as never before and seek to bring America back!!

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Peyton Manning in a Houston Texan uniform?? Longshot, maybe, but what if......???

Ultimate Texans » When Peyton Manning is single the Texans should try to mingle

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And now, it's time once more for our Word Of The Day. Today's word is walk. I need to spend some time taking a nice, brisk walk along the walking trail at my beautiful apartment complex. When I get to the shopping center later on to get a few things, I'll likely have to walk a good distance from the car to the nearest entry door. And ladies, I'm still eligible, so you can walk right towards me at your earliest convenience! (Wild laughter and applause erupts)

And there you are.