Texas City

You know I have been trying to digest what happened earlier this week at the Texas City Refinery. I have spent the better part of my life working in refining and to say it leaves me feeling empty is a huge understatement.

I have read the various yahoo groups, where blame is tossed around by the most useless of Monday morning quarterbacks. It would seem the fault ranges from the diversity and inclusion programs to extremist groups. I think that what happened is a tragedy on a grander scale then I have ever seen or been a part of. Years ago I attended the funeral of a contractor that was killed at our site. It has never left me. I know what I felt being there, and can only assume that others there with me, shared those same feelings.

My heart goes out to the families of the 15 employees who died. There is no line in the sand that divides rank and file when it comes to this type of human tragedy.

I feel for the managers and the hourly, the contractor and the client. No one suffers less or more when it comes to this.

The time for assigning blame is time wasted. There will be an honest look at what occurred and in the end it will not be anything other then an accident. A tragic one certainly; but an accident never the less. Perhaps a procedure was skipped or a sequence missed, but the end result is the same, no one woke up that morning deciding to make that error.

In the end the refining biz is a small segment of the working world. Over time we share a common experience and a certain love for what we do. It is a very small family and this week our family was painfully hurt.

No Good Choices..

Judge Won't Order Schiavo Tube Reinserted


Top Stories - AP
By VICKIE CHACHERE, Associated Press Writer
TAMPA, Fla. - A federal judge on Tuesday refused to order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube, denying an emergency request from the brain-damaged woman's parents.

I can’t help but wonder how this will all play out?

There is simply no good ending to this and in the end, I am afraid that Terri Schiavo will be lost in the argument. A person who, it would seem, was long ago damaged physically and now has become the center of so many different agendas. I am never more aware of my own humanity than when I watch the number of people who always wish to play God.

The video of Terri, to say the least, is compelling. It shows a responsive person and goes a long way to shatter my myths of what a persistent vegetative state looks like.
I guess my limited experience leans more toward the ‘Hollyweird’ version, where the person is in a comfy bed and sleeping deeply. I think this makes me feel better than the reality of many who crowd our nursing homes across this country.

I cannot tell you how I feel about this situation; I have long ago given up on clear answers to many of the questions life tosses out. It makes me feel great sadness for all those involved and even some annoyance at those who insist on inserting themselves into this.

What strikes me the most though is the involvement of the political players. We live in a country where the ‘right to life’ seems to outweigh the ‘right to choose the right life you wish to live.’

States that have passed laws for assisted suicide or death with dignity, continually find themselves at odds with the current Administration. When a reasonable adult makes a decision to end years of suffering, I struggle with a Government who feels it is their duty to ‘step in.’

We have no issue when we put our family pets to sleep to end their suffering. We know it is the humane thing to do. Why would we let our beloved pets suffer just to keep them around? We are clearly better people than that.

At the end of all of this, I hope we would treat our fellow man with the same dignity as we treat our pets. I find it odd to think that by merely ‘plugging in’ feeding tubes and other devices to maintain a heart beat…that we somehow, think of this…as life.

The debate on whether or not Terri will suffer as we slowly starve her to death seems well beyond cruel and unusual punishment.

At the end of it all, I want to think that Terri has moved on to be with God a long time ago. We are just arguing over the shell that once housed the soul and spirit of this human being.

You will Love the Exercise Yard

I think the French may have had it right.

Perhaps, you might be thinking in regards to wine, cheese or even the odd little world of ‘High Fashion’. ‘High Fashion’ to me, at one point, was smoking a joint and then wearing a nice shirt while strolling around Green Lake in Seattle.

While all of these things are in some way connected to the French, I am thinking more of Devil’s Island…a nice, little place in the middle of the ocean where we could drop off some of our more infamous criminals, all-round losers, etc. and wish them well.

I believe that perhaps we should use the style of the Reality show, “Survivor,” as the format… well, less the host and interesting challenges for prizes. For example, currently one does something so incredibly stupid that he gets ‘life or death’ through our court systems. Instead of a visit to the ‘big house’, he gets a ‘one way ride’ to Fantasy Island. Here, however, Mr. Rourke is a convicted sex offender who has an attraction for adult males.

And who shall we send? Well, check your local newspapers for a list and work from there…rapists, murderers, and the like are a clear choice. It would not be too difficult to manage.

Scott Peterson could ‘lead’ one tribe perhaps and Charlie Manson could be the other ‘leader’.

We would surely allow members of the victim’s families the opportunity to ‘boot’ the contestants out of a low flying plane to start the sentences.

I think that there are several parents of murdered children who would be happy to be a part of these proceedings.

We might even go as far as to install video cameras on the Island and then have this as a Premium channel you could order on Comcast. It would go a long way to offset any expenses we are currently being burdened by as a country, state or local government to house and feed the likes of these child molesters and other vermin.

A variation of this idea might be for the Ken Lay’s and other CEO’s that have plagued the headlines lately. Perhaps, a modified version of the “Apprentice” on Devil’s Island would be entertaining and good for the ratings.

Here, one could actually leave the Island at some point, but one would need to actually have completed several tasks before being considered for release. There would be such wonderful tasks as downsizing the Island and outsourcing the food supply to India. One could also be sentenced to take some of the family members with them for the length of their stay.

Perfect…but, hey, I could be wrong.