K-Mart Manager shot in robbery attempt

A lone gunman entered the Aurora Avenue North K-Mart store (Seattle, WA) on Saturday, February 25, 2012, near closing time, found a place to hide and waited until the store was nearly empty before he went to the office at the back of the store, and after brandishing a handgun, demanded money from the safe. According to the police report, the store manager, assistant manager and a clerk were the only remaining persons in the office. This happened around 9: 07 PM, which was only minutes after the store closed at 9: 00PM. Afterwards, it seems that the store manager and robber wrestled with one another and the manager got shot in the chest. The struggle continued between the two and moved to the front of the store where the manager, though critically wounded, was able to knock the gun out of the robber’s hand. In the meantime, the clerk dialed 911 the assistant manager was able to retrieve the firearm and ran outside, awaiting the arrival of police officers. The store manager was taken to Harborview Medical Center where he underwent surgery to remove his spleen and is scheduled for another surgery, but he is in stable condition as of Sunday morning, according to the police.

This is a relatively positive outcome from what could have been a much worse scenario, but some serious questions need to be asked, namely, what is the corporate policy regarding what is the responsible behavior or guidelines recommended when confronted with someone who robs the store and carries a firearm; is the employee to resist or not? Did the manager give the robber money from the safe as he requested, and then have reason to fear, by way of direct threat, implication or body language that the gunman was going to shoot him and his subordinates anyway? If such was the case then his struggle with the robber might have been justified, if not to protect himself, then at the very least to preoccupy the robber so that the others could perhaps get to safety and call the police.

It is curious that this incident happened within such a short time window (seven minutes) because there are usually customers in most retail stores after closing time as well as hourly workers and department managers who still have work to do. When the store closes managers make a final inspection of their departments and throughout the store and check for any thing out of the ordinary, so the robber must have found a really good hiding place. This is in addition to all the hidden cameras strategically placed in the store which are monitored by Asset Protection (store security), which is usually staffed by more than one person so it would be interesting to know what surveillance footage found; or more importantly, how the person was able to evade a system that costs the store thousands of dollars (including personnel) on a monthly basis; which apparently failed in this case. No doubt there will be an internal investigation, as there should be, and some kind of changes will be made at this store to prevent a future recurrence of this type of unfortunate incident from happening again.


Robert Randle
776 Commerce St. #B-11
Tacoma, WA 98402
February 28, 2012
Robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Bill and Monica: The President and the Intern

The recent PBS documentary on former President Bill Clinton brought back memories of Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Linda Tripp and who can forget a starry-eyed twenty-one year old White House intern named Monica Lewinsky. The ensuing political intrigue, controversy, sex-lies and blue dress [will it be sold on eBay or donated to “The Smithsonian Museum” after being dry-cleaned?], as well as cast of characters is a Hollywood director’s and screenwriters dream-come-true. For First Lady Hillary Rodham-Clinton and Daughter Chelsea it was the painful public humiliation and betrayal of trust. Looking back on that time, it seems everyone came out of it relatively unscathed; that is, except poor “femme fatale” Monica Lewinsky, who had to leave America and take up residency in England. President Clinton has a private global Foundation in his honor which he runs; Hillary Clinton became a Senator from New York, and is currently Secretary of State in the Obama Administration; and Chelsea Clinton practically gets anything she wants.

Loyalty has its rewards except when it comes to former “Valley Girl” Monica Lewinsky, who could have profited financially by writing a tell-all book about her ‘tryst’ with President Bill “Slick Willie” Clinton. However, one should not feel too sorry for Ms. Lewinsky because she was a former spokesperson for "Jenny Craig" and obtained a Masters degree in Social Psychology, and was an entrepreneur for awhile by launching a line of stylish handbags, but interest in them dried up and she went out of business. Nowadays, Monica manages to find available employment and lives in London in various condominiums owned by family friends and doubtless has an active social life. As a final thought, former President Clinton apologized to the country in 1998 after his impeachment hearing and took some degree of responsibility for his inappropriate actions but hopefully he also apologized to Ms. Lewinsky, who, at the time was an impressionable young woman, who noticed a man occupying the world’s most powerful elected office checking her out, and the temptation was just too great to say no to; even if she knew better.


Robert Randle
776 Commerce St. #B-11
Tacoma, WA 98402
February 22, 2012
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Is the anger over expensive gasoline prices somewhat one-sided?

The anger and frustration that car owners feel over the price of gas when they fill up at the pump doesn’t really tell the whole story. An internet search reveals some interesting facts about whether or not OPEC (specifically, Saudi Arabia) and the big oil companies have the consumer, “over a barrel” (pardon the pun,). The top fifteen countries that primarily feed nearly half of America’s 18.7 mbbl a day oil addiction (2011) are listed below in the following:

1. CANADA 2,157,000 bbl/daily
2. SAUDI ARABIA 1,180,000 bbl/daily
3. MEXICO 1,113,000 bbl/daily
4. VENEZUELA 893,000 bbl/daily
5. NIGERIA 826,000 bbl/daily
6. IRAQ 473,000 bbl/daily
7. COLOMBIA 364,000 bbl/daily
8. ANGOLA 323,000 bbl/daily
9. RUSSIA 246,000 bbl/daily
10. BRAZIL 225,000 bbl/daily
11. ECUADOR 203,000 bbl/daily
12. KUWAIT 164,000 bbl/daily
13. ALGERIA 204,000 bbl/daily
14. CHAD 54,000 bbl/daily
15. OMAN 39,000 bbl/daily
TOTAL 8,464,000 bbl/daily

Also, add to the fact that a typical 42 gallon barrel of oil only yields approximately 19.4 gallons of oil. The first 4 gallons are from straight-refining and the remainder is from a process called “cracking” which breaks the long hydrocarbon molecular chains into shorter and lighter ones of which the remaining extra 15 gallons can then be extracted. The price for a barrel of oil is set on the international markets by spot traders, commodities brokers and futures contracts who inflate the “real” cost on a barrel of crude oil by roughly fifty percent. Let’s say the cost at the pump is $3.50/gallon X 19.4 gallons=$67.90, and subtracting that amount from $100.00 (est. ppb crude oil) =$32.10; with the remaining 22.6 gallons to be refined into thousands of consumer products and goods, many of which we use every day. The thing that is not known is how much does it cost to refine each barrel of oil into gasoline and other petroleum by-products and how is the price at the pump determined, and by what organization or regulatory agency?

So, while all the outrage is over how much it costs at the gas station but what about the high prices at the grocery, hardware, department and sporting goods stores? Americans consume petroleum products at a rate of three-and-a-half gallons of oil day each and some of the 6,000 products derived from crude oil are: Ballpoint Pens, Soap, Perfumes, Shower Curtains, Telephones, Detergents, Toothbrushes, Crayons, Shampoo, CD's & DVD's, Hand Lotion, Aspirin, Paint, Shoes, Panty Hose, Deodorant, Antihistamines, Clothing, Rubbing Alcohol, Umbrellas, Mops, Food Preservatives, Tool Boxes, Insecticides, Lipstick, Toilet Seats, Trash Bags, Electric Blankets, Shower Curtains, Luggage, Shag Rugs, Motorcycle/Football Helmets, Tennis Racket, Football, Basketball, ad infinitim.

Ironically, domestic oil production in the United States for 2010 was between 5.5 mbbl/daily and 9.688 mbbl/daily (est.), with exports to Mexico, Latin America and an OPEC country (Ecuador) of 1.92 mbbl/daily as of 2009.


Robert Randle
776 Commerce St. #B-11
Tacoma, WA 98402
February 21, 2012
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Response to Dr. Claire Brindis' sugar tax suggestion

Dear Dr. Brindis (UCSF):

I was listening to TALK Radio station KOMO NEWS, 1000AM in Tacoma, WA on Friday, February 3, 2012, and the moderator John Carlson was discussing with you and then later on with other listeners about the merit of taxing sugar. I did not call in to the show but I want to share with you my thoughts on the matter. First of all, the harmful effects [toxicity, addiction, etc.] from refined sugar and artificial sweeteners have been debated for the last twenty or thirty years; maybe longer. I do agree with the scientists and researchers who are alarmed about the over-consumption of sugar by Americans, roughly three times more annually per person than it was a generation ago. I am a sugar-holic who consumes more sugar than I should, and my maternal Aunt died from diabetes while undergoing dialysis treatments. I use sweets for self-medication due to boredom and depression since I am unemployed, and drawing an early pension before I qualify for SSI in a couple of years. I have one of those free blood glucose test kits and used it a few months ago and my results do not indicate I am a diabetic but high enough to be concerned about becoming hypoglycemic. Anyway, I must admit that I am addicted to sweets, especially cookies with HFCS, which causes me to crave them such that I can devour a three roll package in 3 days or less; and don't get me started on anything containing honey because I can give the bees a run for their money (smile).

I could go on and on but I digress from the main point, namely, that taxing sugar products is not the answer. Such legislation would not benefit consumers [addicts, yes addicts] like me because we would still buy these items at the higher price. I wonder if you and your colleagues have considered the extent to what products contain refined sugar or artificial sweetener. It all starts in infancy when our mothers put us on a diet of sugar-containing [artificial sweetener] baby products from decades ago, like SIMILAC, ENFAMIL, Gerber, Heinz, etc. Just think of all the breakfast cereal, desserts, fruit drinks, liquid medicines, confectioneries, breads, crackers, vegetables, meats, condiments [ketchup, salad dressing, etc.] and other items found on grocery shelves that contain some kind of artificial sweetener, including high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which has been suspected as affecting the adrenal glands just like sugar. So, "what is the answer, you may ask?" Well, perhaps the best place to start is requiring those companies who have products which contain sugar or artificial sweetener to lower the concentration or amount they put in, or eliminate the use altogether. Not everything has to contain sugar to taste good. Also, as it is with some breakfast cereals, why does a manufactures include sugar, brown sugar, honey, high fructose corn syrup, raisin paste, maple syrup, and molasses at the same time? Those companies, who offer alternative, natural sweeteners like fruit juice or evaporated cane juice (??), prune juice or raisin paste should receive some form of tax credit from the federal government.

Anyway, I thought I would contact you and encourage you and your colleagues to be the voice for those of us who are struggling with this problem, and things have gotten to the point now where the slightest morsel which contains sugar gives me a pretty significant headache. I wish you success in persuading members of the various State Legislatures and Congress to ignore the lobbyists and funding from the powerful sugar refiners, manufacturers and their PAC's for favorable subsidies and price controls, and instead, pass into Law a Bill that would help us overcome being victims of a lifestyle obsessed with consuming empty calories, which invariably lead to obesity, cancer or diabetes.


Robert Randle
776 Commerce St. #B-11
Tacoma, WA 98402
February 3, 2012
robertrandle51@yahoo.com

Does Mitt Romney really love America?

You heard it straight from the horse’s mouth. At a time when America is struggling with allegations about class warfare, a candidate for president from a major political party has the audacity to say, “I'm in this race because I care about Americans. I'm not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there [for them]. You can focus on the very poor, that's not my focus.” Talk about confusing and contradictory. On the one hand Mitt Romney talks about having such love for this country and on the other hand he seems to want to ignore the very people who need the most help and attention; those American citizens living in the deepest grip of poverty. What safety net does the poor have except that which the federal government provides, because almost all state budgets have significant revenue shortfalls and a few are facing possible defaults. Romney wants to shrink the size of the federal government but this would impact the most vulnerable citizens, namely the poor, who depend on programs funded by the government for their survival. Romney is really out of touch with what is going on in the country because he still believes there is a “middle class” in America, which there isn’t anymore. There are the super-rich, multi-millionaires, upper class [some professional occupations and small business owners], blue collar [includes some working poor], the working poor [includes those whose income and family size meet the federal guidelines for poverty].

Newt Gingrich was criticized during the recent Florida debate about putting a colony on the moon but it seems that Mitt Romney is the ‘real’ space cadet because he is so out of touch with what the average person is struggling with, as some of his past statements demonstrate, in the following:
-- "There were a couple of times I wondered if I was going to get a pink slip" (during remarks in New Hampshire)
-- saying that questions about economic inequality are "about envy" (on "TODAY" back in January)
-- and the ultimate release of his 2010 tax returns, which showed him paying an effective tax rate of less than 15%.
–Also, Romney claims to not having received that much in speaking fees for 2011, only $370,000.

Perhaps Mitt Romney feels about the poor like the French Queen Marie Antoinette of the 1760’s, who, when told “the peasants have no bread” is reputedly to have said, “Then let them eat cake instead;” which was a mixture or paste made from oil and flour scraped from bakery pans called, “the poor man’s bread.” As a final point, when Mitt Ronmey later tried to do damage control over his remarks about the poor, this Bible-believing Mormon must have forgotten the words of Jesus, "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." Matthew 12: 34b


Robert Randle
776 Commerce St. #B-11
Tacoma, WA 98402
February 2, 2012
robertrandle51@yahoo.com