Category Archives: My Thoughts

Drug Use Among Young Adults Skyrockets

06 Wednesday Nov 2013

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The shooting at the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, NJ, had everyone buzzing yesterday.  A question about our safety when shopping or even leaving your own home, led to a discussion over gun control.  Now let me make myself clear.  I have no problem with people who choose to own or carry a gun, under the proper laws (permits, training, etc).  That being said, several gun owners came out in defense of their 2nd Amendment rights.  But this wasn’t really about gun control, other than the fact that his brother allegedly owned the gun, so questions were raised as to where it was kept and how the shooter was able to get hold of it.  No, this was about 20 year old Richard Shoop, of Teaneck, NJ,  a young man who couldn’t cope with whatever was happening in his life, eventually taking his own life in a secluded area of the mall.

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We can be grateful that his intention was to harm only himself and no one else.  He fired off shots at the ceiling, escalator, but never directly at anyone.  Nevertheless, he caused a major panic among hundreds of people and he got law enforcement officials and the media to take notice.

This young man had a history of drug use but he also held a job at a local pizza parlor.  Interviews with his boss depict him as a “nice kid”.  What was also brought up during the conversation on my Facebook wall was mental illness.  This has not been mentioned in the media, nor has his family made any statement regarding the matter.  His brother, Kevin, had this to say, “”We’re not sure exactly what caused him to do this, and we’re all devastated. My brother intended to harm nobody else but himself. He just, sadly, decided to make … an act of self-indulgence by taking his own life publicly. And it’s a tragedy to us all,” he said.  Kevin denies the gun belonged to him.  When asked he replied, “no comment” <regarding drugs & the gun>.

Drug use among young adults has skyrocketed.  In the past year, my daughter has lost high school friends to overdoses.  The heroin epidemic is horrific.  In the coming weeks, I’ll be meeting with some of the people who have been directly affected by this.  I know it won’t stop the rampage but at least others will know there really is help out there.  Stay tuned.

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dorindaduclos.com

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How safe are we? Paramus Mall Shooting

05 Tuesday Nov 2013

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Once again we were faced with the madness.  A man, in a helmet with the visor down, dressed in combat clothing, and carrying a rifle, was able to walk into the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, NJ and start shooting.  Witnesses say between two to five shots were fired.  How was this man able to enter the mall?  Where was security?!

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Most police activity took place outside the entrance to Nordstrom. As of midnight, EST, officials are reporting one shell casing found at the scene and the shooter has not been located.

My status on Facebook regarding the shooting had several people commenting.  Richard O’Malley, a New Jersey resident, had this to say, “You aren’t ever safe, anywhere. You are always a potential victim. The question is always, “Is there someone easier than you to attack?”. And in NJ, the law has made us all fair game.”  Laurie Romanelli, another New Jersey native said, “The worlds gone nuts! I had to go to willow brook the other night ( tho I prefer GSPlaza) it’s nothing but kids hanging out getting in trouble!!! My kids were never allowed to do that!!!”

The information surrounding this event is all over the place.  The shooter’s in the mall, the shooter’s long gone, there were two shots fired, there were five shots fired.  Of course in all the chaos there are bound to be conflicting reports.  NBC News is reporting that only one shot was fired.  This shooting comes on the heels of the shooting at LAX airport last week, where a New Jersey man is accused of killing a TSA agent and injuring 4 others.  He also, was able to get by security, before he was wounded and taken into custody.  Are Americans in such dire straights that they feel the only way out is to take others with them?

This brings me back to a discussion several of my friends and I have been having regarding the amount of information that is told to us by the media.  People who have an axe to grind find they can get their ten minutes of fame because the news agencies will give them that moment.

Do you think the media tells too much or do you feel you need to know everything that’s happening during a given event?  So why, then, does the local news make the rounds, for hours at a time, while the White House gets to sit back and tell tales?

Benghazi – Still looking for truth one year later

04 Monday Nov 2013

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Do you wonder, as have I, that all the controversy surrounding the healthcare web site isn’t just more fluff to cover up other happenings in Washington?  On Sunday, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said he would continue to block all of Obama’s nominees for executive branch positions until he gets the answers he’s looking for regarding the September 11, 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, that left US Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others dead.

Many questions remain unanswered.  Interviews with survivors are as harrowing as the actual attacks.  Those who witnessed the events, and made it out alive, remember seeing Stevens lying there, dead.  They remember asking the government for aid, that things were unstable in the area.  And they remember nothing being done.

Testifying about the attacks, then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is best remembered for her statement “What difference at this point does it make?”.  This is in line with Kathleen Sebelius’s comment of “whatever” when asked if the president was responsible for the healthcare debacle.  Again, America was lied to.

In an interview with Fox News, Senator Graham said, ““I don’t think it’s over the top to find out what happened to four dead Americans, I don’t think it’s over the top to talk to survivors. The State Department interviewed these survivors.”

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Why haven’t we heard this before?  Why is there still such silence regarding these attacks? President Obama & Hillary Clinton stood with their hands over their hearts, next to flag draped coffins, and continued to push the story about a video being the cause of the attacks.  Tweets  from CBS’s  60 Minutes, in fact, point to information leading up to the 9/11/12 attacks, stating, “Prior to the attack, Ambassador Stevens approved a cable to DC that said: “The al Qaeda flag has been spotted…flying over govt bldgs” also stating that a security official warned Ambassador Stevens, ““You are going to get attacked in #Benghazi,” three months prior to the actual event.

In an administration that claimed transparency throughout the Obama campaigns, we simply seem to be facing more lies and more cover ups, rather than the honesty the American people are looking for.  We have to wonder, what else are they not telling us?

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dorindaduclos.com

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Oh SNAP! Can you feed me?

01 Friday Nov 2013

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While Americans continue to battle with a website that promises affordable healthcare for all, millions more are now facing yet another government disappointment.  As of today, many will see a cut in their food stamps due to the expiration of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program (SNAP) recession-era boost.  The plan will cut roughly $36 a month for a family of four.  Those who rely on food stamps will now have to cut back on something else in their household in order to make up for the reduction in benefits.

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Thirty six dollars may not sound like a big deal to some Americans, but people on food stamps rely on the program because their income does not allow for them to take care of their overall family expenses simply from their paycheck.  And of course there’s the other side of the story, too.  Who’s playing the system?  This, among other things, drives the cost of programs, until they sky rocket and have to be cut in order to remain active.  Currently, a family of four must gross $2552 or net (after allowable deductions) $1963 monthly to be eligible for SNAP.

And this brings me to my next question.  Why are we sending billions of dollars in aid to other countries when we can’t even afford to feed our own?  While you’re thinking about this, and I hope you are, grab a few cans of tuna or whatever you have extra of lying around your home, and take it to your local food bank.

Copyright 2013

dorindaduclos.com

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original photo via crazyhorsesghost.hubpages.com

We Do Not Approve – President’s ratings drop amid healthcare debacle

31 Thursday Oct 2013

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United States Secretary of Health and Human Services  Kathleen Sebelius testified on Wednesday about the problems with the Affordable Healthcare Act website, Healthcare.gov.  Or maybe she thought she did.  She really didn’t answer the questions being asked.  She appeared to stammer her way through at times and using “whatever” as a response when asked if President Obama was responsible for the mess.  She claimed the president had no knowledge of the problems prior to the launch, and that everything fell on her.  A sacrificial lamb?  The president is good with that.  Think Hillary and Benghazi.

“You deserve better. I apologize. I’m accountable to you for fixing these problems.”

ImageHer apology might have been believable if she hadn’t read it off a piece of paper.

It comes down to this.  The president is responsible for EVERYTHING the government sets out for the America people.  And yet he continually says he didn’t know, he wasn’t aware.  Is he that far out of the loop with his own staff?  How does one run a country like the United States of America if you’re always in the dark?  Or is he?  I don’t think so.

It’s very convenient to play dumb when it comes to the majority of the country you’re supposed to be leading, believes  you’re not worthy of your position.  In fact, the president’s rating is the lowest it’s ever been.  In a recent poll conducted by NBC/Wall Street Journal shows Obama’s approval rating is at 42%, down 5% from early October.  51% disapprove of the job he’s doing.  In a discussion on Facebook, regarding this information, Paul Pannone of ewednewz.com & www.pauljpannone.com said “Mirrors my poll exactly; 42% combined feel he is– or doing the best he can in a broken system.” President Blames Others For His Shortcomings

I believe at this point in his presidency, he hasn’t proven he can handle the job.  It’s been five years of disappointments.  My question is to the 42% of Americans who think he’s doing his job…What is it that you see that the majority of us do not?