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Today was the day Bernie Madoff faced a federal judge to learn his fate.  Neither the judge nor fate was kind.  He received a 150-year prison term for what U.S. District Judge Denny Chin referred to as “extraordinarily evil” misdeeds.  Many of his victims, some one-time millionaires in their own right and others just looking for a way to stretch their nest eggs so carefully cultivated over a lifetime, took the opportunity to be sure the 71-year old crook understood exactly how his actions affected not only their lives, but those of their family members as well.

The gallery in the courtroom agreed with the judge’s sentence as applause erupted.  The judge also told Madoff and his lawyers that he’d received over 100 letters and emails, and not a single one was kind or supportive of Madoff.  Judge Chin said, “The absence of such support is telling”.

Nine victims chose to address Madoff in today’s hearing.  Some of the comments included Madoff being labeled a “monster” and an “evil low life”.  One victim said he stole money so he and his wife, Ruth, could live a life of luxury beyond belief. 

Since the federal prison system has offers no parole, Madoff will die in jail.  To date, there are thousands of victims - individuals, charities, celebrities and other businesses - who are out billions of dollars.  Many say this one Ponzi scheme is one of the reasons the American economy is in such dire straits.

Madoff did have a statement and chose to face those he scammed as he said his apologies, noting he knew it didn’t help. 

His wife released her first statement through her own lawyer that said, in part, “I am embarrassed and ashamed.  Like everyone else, I feel betrayed and confused.”  It can be read in its entirety here.  Still, she will spend the rest of her life with a 2 million-plus dollar nest egg while many of those victims are now being forced to move in with family members after having lost everything.

Maybe one of those victims said it best outside court, “He stole my money.  He didn’t steal my life.”

Once again, New Orleans has reclaimed the unwanted title of the nation’s murder capital.  The FBI released its statistics this week and after losing this title for a year, it’s found itself at the top yet again.  With 64 killings per 100,000 people, it comes in well ahead of St. Louis, in second place, with 47 murders per 100,000.

No city wants this title, but New Orleans has had an especially tough time over the past several years.

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Hurricane Katrina’s devastating effects remain, both on a physical and psychological level, unemployment rates have never recovered and are still incredibly high and of course, poverty runs rampant in one of the most beautiful and historical cities this country has to offer.

2008 looked promising for the city.  Murder rates were down nearly 15% at the end of the year with a total of 179.  That was a decrease of 31 murders from 2007.  Hopes were high as the city struggled to move forward, despite its violent reputation.  The fact populations numbers were on the rise, even as the murders were declining only added to that hope.

2008 also brought an increase in the number of police officers on the city’s force and with that, city officials were hoping for a continued trend in the decrease.  Unfortunately, that simply didn’t pan out and now, once again, leaders struggle to not only understand why, but how they can begin to see those numbers decrease.

As time moves forward, so does progress as this southern city works to reestablish its court systems.  New buildings are still being constructed four years after Katrina and new infrastructures are being developed as well.  Hopefully, with federal funding and a continued commitment among the residents and police officials, New Orleans can finally shed its unwanted title and can work to become a favorite vacation or retirement area.  For those who’ve never visited New Orleans, you owe it to yourselves to see the historic cemeteries, churches and other landmarks.  And, too, you’ve not lived until you’ve survived a night on Bourbon Street and witnessed the personalities and charm that makes New Orleans…well, New Orleans.

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Today, the SEC released a statement regarding its move to file fraud charges against Angelo Mozilo, the former CEO of Countrywide.  He’s been accused of “deliberately misleading investors about significant credit risks that were taken in an effort to maintain the company’s market share”.  He’s also been charged with insider trading.

This is the first high level executive to face the consequences of and possibly be forced to take financial responsibility for his role in the current mortgage crisis.  He doesn’t stand alone in these charges, though.  Standing next to him will be the former COO and former Countrywide president, David Sambol and former CFO Eric Sieracki.  Their charges are similar to Mozilo’s.  In part, they’re accused of providing false assurances that Countrywide primarily held prime mortgages and weren’t as much at risk as other lenders that specialized in subprime mortgages.  This is surprising since any mortgage loan officer in this country can attest to Countrywide’s B-C side that specialized in…you guessed it: subprime mortgages.

Mozilo’s lawyer, David Siegel, told The Wall Street Journal that there was no fair basis for any of these charges and reiterated his client’s insistence that all sales were both legal and ethical.  Despite an email that was discovered, written by Mozilo to Sambo and other high level officers, he still claims his actions were ethical:

                … The 100% loan-to-value subprime product is “the most dangerous product in existence and there can be nothing more toxic and therefore requires that no deviation from guidelines be permitted irrespective of the
circumstances.”

Of course, we know those guidelines he speaks of were widely ignored and 100% LTV loans continued, even when potential homeowners had FICO scores in the 400-600 range.  What this boils down to is people were buying homes, with absolutely no money up front aside from the costs of the appraisals and possibly closing costs (which in total, probably amounted to less than $5,000 - if that much).  They could have been considered poor credit risks (any FICO score below 550 is considered poor by most lenders) and still could have purchased a house that they might not could have afforded.

For now, the SEC seems to be content with its big fish.  Whether or not further charges for other head honchos will surface remains to be seen.

Is the fact there is no evidence of a caller’s first hand knowledge of abuse within the Yearning for Zion Ranch in Texas enough for a judge to toss out all of the evidence collected during the now infamous raid in 2008? If the lawyer for the religious sect have their way, it’s more than enough. Despite the evidence that was found that proved the caller’s information correct, it could very well mean there’s no way to protect the kids who were temporarily removed a year ago because the caller lied when she identified herself.

This evidence led to search warrants, which in turn led to even more search warrants. Underage marriages, incredibly young girls who faced motherhood long before they were emotionally or physically ready and a host of other abuse allegations were uncovered during the many searches but may now be deemed illegal due to the mental state of the woman who first reported their living situations. The Colorado woman, who was later discovered to be Rozita Swinton has been charged with false reports of abuse to authorities and will be in court later this month to answer those charges.

As lawyers face off in a courtroom regarding the legality of the searches, there are over four hundred kids who have since been returned to their homes so that they can continue living the only life they’ve ever known. The young girls are still having babies and continue to be forced into so-called marriages. The only bright spot is the criminal case that’s now in jeopardy has little, if anything to do with the child custody issues. Those issues are still being hammered out in Texas courtrooms and will probably continue through the rest of this year.

Should law enforcement be penalized for doing its job, even if the initial reasons were less than truthful? As pure as the motives were, the fact Swinton didn’t disclose her actual identity may be what knocks the strength out of the criminal cases. This would be especially tragic since it will once again tie the hands of law enforcement who now know exactly what takes place behind those gates, but are helpless to halt those activities. A judge is now considering the next step in this case. Her ruling will ultimately determine how much farther this case will be allowed to progress.

Are classrooms across the country so lacking in subject matter that they must now resort to how-to guides for designing and implementing an act of terrorism?  It looks that way for a school in Colorado.  One hundred middle school students were given an assignment that required them to develop an act of terrorism and how each of them would go about implementing it in this country.  They were allowed two minutes to develop it in their minds.  There are countless parents who are not only angry, but are disgusted and sickened by this

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assignment.  The teacher’s credibility is being questioned too, especially since he/she can’t come up with any kind of a response to the many questions being asked.  The teacher does say it was just an exercise meant to illustrate terrorism by a foreign country on American soil.  Most will agree it has been illustrated enough over the past several years.

The school superintendent isn’t helping matters either and insists the students must have misunderstood the assignment.  That’s not likely since there are over 100 kids relaying the same story - anyone who’s ever had teenagers knows how impossible it is to get two teens to agree on anything, much less 100-plus.  He explains the assignment must have been misunderstood because had any student actually illustrated such an act, it would have resulted in immediate expulsion.  This redefines a vicious cycle.

Anything related to this project that was memorialized on paper has been destroyed.  Still, it’s not like the blackboards we remember from school - you can’t erase this.  With the end of the school year nearing, this will most likely go down as a poor choice of assignments and will be forgotten as soon as the kids barrel through their school doors for the last time this year.

There are questions that still linger, however.  This couldn’t have been part of curriculum and if it was, a major revamping effort is overdue.  There’s very little, if any, educational benefit from assigning this project and certainly not within the 120 seconds each student was allotted.

I’m sure most of these parents believe there was a better way to close out the school year than this.  It was in poor taste with no obvious benefits.

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Poverty is best defined as those who experience a shortage of food, shelter, access to medical attention and even clothing.  Unfortunately, too many people in America live in poverty.  Even worse is the number of programs currently available that fall short, despite monumental efforts made by selfless people who volunteer their time on a daily basis to offset the increasing numbers of Americans who fall into the federal government’s guidelines of poverty.

Even in the current economic times, we are living in one of the wealthiest countries in the world.  Our resources are unlimited, our technological advances are mind-boggling and the numbers of us who contribute portions of our salaries in an attempt to do our part continue to rise; yet even with the countless numbers of shelters, food banks and clothing banks, still the numbers continue to rise.

It’s estimated nearly 37 million Americans are living in poverty this very minute.  The latest census statistics show a population of just over 306 million.  That’s over 10% of Americans who don’t have enough to ensure their children are eating nutritious meals, who can’t provide adequate homes for their families and who may be living with medical conditions that if go unchecked, could result in dire health consequences.

Job losses, foreclosures, lower wages and a multitude of other social problems are all contributing to this crisis.  The fact is, people are trying.  Once the vicious cycle sets up and a series of unthinkable events begin to happen, it’s almost as though a domino effect happens.  Now, there are more dominos that are falling.  Food and clothing banks as well as homeless shelters are all feeling the pain of the recession too.  This means precious few resources available to help those who are attempting to pick up the pieces of their lives.

Maybe the solutions lie within each of us, not so much as in a collective sense, but maybe what each of us can do in our own way and in our own day to day lives.  Some of the most successful stories we hear   are a result of those who make a phone call to their local electric company and ask to make a payment to a family that seems to find itself on the cut-off list each month.  There are stories of anonymous phone calls that have served as the gateway for a small business owner who needs a trustworthy carpenter and an out of work carpenter who has a family to support.  These two people might never have known of the other had a single phone call not been made.  We hear of food baskets being delivered to doorsteps with nothing more than a knock on the door to announce its arrival during the holidays; but when did it become acceptable for this to be a holiday-only tradition?  Hunger doesn’t make the distinction in holidays versus the remaining days of the year.  Stories of mortgage payments miraculously being made that keep a single mother and her children in their home aren’t uncommon either.  Is it really this simple?  Will small efforts such as these be what ultimately turn this country around? One thing’s for sure; we won’t know until we try.  Foreclosures don’t occur if payments are made, electricity isn’t disconnected if the arrears are brought current and poverty can’t exist if there’s enough food available where it’s needed.

NASCAR fans are a loyal bunch who thrive as much on the adrenaline of a fast paced, leader-changing race as much as the drivers of these near-million dollar cars are.  It’s the most recent near-tragedy that’s brought a controversy back into the spotlight and has the drivers, fans and NASCAR executives debating once again.  Restrictor plates, which basically ensure each driver isn’t driving too fast, has long since been a thorn in the collective side of NASCAR drivers.  They insist, and many agree, that it forces them to drive too close

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together since no one can get an upper edge in terms of speed.  Very few drivers believe it serves any purpose other than to provide too much danger due to the increased risk of crashes.  This is exactly what happened in Talladega, AL yesterday.

The world famous track has long since been at least partially blamed for the mandatory restrictor plates, especially after a particularly spectacular crash in the late eighties involving Bobby Allison.  He was running at 200+ mph, his crash sent him airborne and nearly resulted in his death.  He crashed into the fence and sent pieces of his car into the crowd.  NASCAR’s response was the development of the restrictor plates.  They insisted the insanely fast speeds had a lot to do with both Allison’s injuries as well as the spectators who were injured.

Yesterday’s crash that sent Carl Edwards airborne also sent debris flying into the spectator area, just as it did with Allison over twenty years ago.  This, of course, has many opponents arguing that the restrictor plates aren’t doing everything they’re designed for after all.  Yesterday’s fright only seems to back up these arguments.   Amazingly, Edwards walked away from the crash and actually crossed the finish line (the crash happened in the last lap) on foot.  He was battling for first place with Brad Keselowski, who ended up winning the race.  Although Edwards was uninjured, several fans weren’t so lucky.  Flying debris isn’t uncommon at these races and die-hard fans know it’s a risk they take.  Rarely are there lawsuits that result.  This time, there’s one fan who’s still in the hospital with a broken jaw.

Even Dale Earnhardt, Jr., whose father was killed in 2001, says the restrictor plates are celebrated, both by the media and networks, because it increases the chances of “the big one”, referring to a major crash that would most likely end the career of a beloved driver.  It’s not unheard of; some of the best have lost their lives on the tracks and every famous NASCAR family, including the Allison family, the Earnhardt family and the Petty family, just to name a few, has its own heartbreak over losing a family member.

Perhaps it was best said by Edwards himself after the race, “I don’t know if I could live with myself if I ended up in the grandstands.  We’ll race like this until we kill somebody, then NASCAR will change it.”

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Everyone has his own taste in music.  Personally, if it ain’t got a twang, it ain’t got a thang.  My Napster music list is 80% country music (and if you’re interested, the rest is 80’s classics).  Anyone who’s into country music knows all too well the influence John Rich has.  He’s a heavy hitter, for sure.  His latest slam into Wall Street only solidifies this.  It’s the video, though, that has people talking.  The song, “They’re Shuttin’ Detroit Down”, tells a powerful and painfully honest story about the current state of affairs, both on Wall Street (that seemingly has no concern about the jobs being lost, specifically within the automobile industry) and on every manufacturing line in this country.

This is the first video I’ve recorded on my brand new DVR.  If you haven’t seen it, you’re doing yourself a huge disservice and you should take five minutes to see it here.  Trust me, it’s time well spent.  Kris Kristofferson and Mickey Rourke star in the video and play two blue collar workers who aren’t biting their tongues when Kristofferson’s character is laid off after thirty-plus years.  The video progresses to its end when a phone call is received and they rush to his home to find law enforcement evicting him due to foreclosure.  There are clips of the recent

John Rich

hearings in Washington when the big three’s head honchos admitted, albeit hesitantly, to traveling via their private jets to the hearings.  This only adds to Rich’s message.

Rourke, in his usual aggressive ways, invites the boss to “come down those stairs” (the boss wisely doesn’t) to discuss the decision his employer’s made when he learns of Kristofferson’s character’s pink slip.  One thing’s for sure, whether you’re Republican or Democrat, blue collar or white collar, or even a lawyer, there’s simply no arguing this song’s message and the video’s power.

Watch the video and decide for yourself.  My guess is if you’re not already, you’re about to become a fan of country music, or at least, a fan of John Rich.

You gotta love a southern gal who refuses to bite her tongue.  Angie Harmon found herself defending her displeasure once again with the way the country’s being run by President Obama.  The fact anyone would have to defend his or her stand on the state of this country flies in the face of what this same country is built on.  She’s been accused of being racist because she voiced her displeasure with some of the decisions made by the Obama administration.  Harmon’s always been outspoken in all things political, and even when I find myself biting my tongue to keep from stirring the hornet’s nest, I quietly sit back and think, “You go, girl”.  When asked for a comment by Fox News, she clearly had a bellyful and unleased what she’s obviously  been holding back, “Here’s my problem with this, I’m just going to come out and say it.  If I have anything to say against Obama, it’s not because I’m a racist, it’s because I don’t like what he’s doing as President and anybody should be able to feel that way, but what I find now is that if you say anything against him, you’re called a racist.  But it has nothing to do with it, I don’t care what color he is.  I’m just not

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crazy about what he’s doing and I heard all about this, and he’s gonna do that and change and change…so okay….I’m still dressing for a recession over here buddy and we’ve got unemployment at an all time high and that was his number one thing and that’s the thing I really don’t appreciate.  If I’m going to disagree with my President, that doesn’t make me racist.  If I was to disagree with W, that doesn’t make me racist.  It has nothing to do with it, it’s is ridiculous.”

Anyone who’s ever seen her in an interview knows she probably didn’t stop to catch her breath - in true Harmon form, if it’s on her mind, it’s on her tongue. 

With such across the board statements we heard after the election that the new President’s arrival in the Oval Office would eradicate racism simply hasn’t panned out (And why would anyone think it would?).  Maybe it’s because racism goes far deeper than one man who happens to hold the highest office in the country.  Is racism alive and kicking?  Unfortunately, it is.  But to disagree - keep in mind, there’s a big difference in ‘disagree’ and ‘disrespect’ - with any decisions or policies any president makes should simply indicate the fact we live in a country that makes it absolutely acceptable.  It’s not indicative of racism.  Period. 

There are many who would disagree with President Obama regardless of what he was doing in office - but it has nothing to do with race and has everything to do with loyalty, albeit displaced at times, to the political party.  Just as President Bush had those who vehemently disagreed with all of his policies, there were some who admittedly did so simply because he is Republican.  How many times have we said, “Aw, c’mon…you know if the Republicans had control, that never would’ve come to pass” or “A Democrat would never have allowed that.” 

I’m wondering why Harmon’s vocal approval and insistence that Sarah Palin would have made an excellent vice president doesn’t have folks pointing and yelling, “Feminist!  Feminist!”

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Growing up on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, you become accustomed to the salt air and the knowledge you’re never far away from a beach.  The funny thing is you don’t miss that salt air until you’re away for awhile.  Unfortunately, the body of water responsible for that salt air has its secrets and two of those secrets are splashed across the headlines this week.

Three men, at least two of whom were members of the NFL, fell victim to the unpredictable temperament of the Gulf of Mexico in February.  One survivor managed to stove off hypothermia, which can cause confusion, visual and auditory hallucinations and can convince those suffering with it they’re near land, when in fact,

Dauphin Island Bridge

they’re not.  Nick Schuyler, a former South Florida ball player and the only survivor of a fishing trip for amberjack, said once hypothermia set in with his friends and boat mates, the confusion took over and the three took their life vests off, which resulted in their deaths.  The waters are said to have been near 60 degrees.

This is especially tragic since these men appear to have taken every safety precaution to protect themselves, yet once the fear set in, so did the panic and confusion.  Schuyler said one by one, they began to “freak out” and then removed their vests.

There’s an investigation, but it was clearly an accident and most likely due to a stuck anchor within the dense coral found along the western Florida coast.

In January 2008, a man tossed his four children off the Dauphin Island Bridge in Alabama.  Lam Luong has since been charged with murder and is not only facing Alabama’s death penalty, but is asking for it.  His trial’s underway now in Mobile, AL.  His wife testified today and said that he kept laughing as he told her their children would “never be found”.  They were, though and with the exception of the youngest, each of these little ones suffered head and/or neck injuries along with their causes of death being asphyxia.

Lam Luong

Luong is a 38 year old refugee who worked part-time on a shrimp boat in Bayou La Batre.  His 23 year old wife learned of her husband’s actions when he asked police to bring her to his cell.  He laughed and told her, “They’re all dead.”

He then went on to tell searchers, who’d already begun a search along the coastal waters from Florida to Louisiana, that he threw them off the bridge.  Each was found shortly thereafter.  The children’s ages ranged from three years to four months.  The only reason police have been able to discern is an argument with his wife.

His lawyers are attempting to shield him from his worst enemy: himself.  They’re hoping to avoid the death penalty, despite his pleas for it, by arguing he’s mentally incompetent.  They’re going to be hard-pressed to prove mental incompetence since he tested positive for crack cocaine.

There’s not a teenager who was raised on the coast that hasn’t left a secret or two on these beaches, it’s the tragedy of the Gulf’s secrets that leave us questioning the reasons why.