Snow in New York & Bees - Monday, February 12, 2007

Monday, February 12, 2007
9:49 a.m.

The snow is strong here, stronger than it seemed early this morning, but dare I complain? There's 12 feet in New York state.

With headlines like Snow just won't stop in upstate N.Y., I wound up feeling a little less chilly and wet this morning getting to my corner.

They are a tough bunch, those NYers, and I do not mean the city dwellers. City dwellers are never tough when compared to those who need to carve out life a little closer to the bone of nature. Small towns get cut off, and need to be self-relient. Resilient, they are.

Hot News on Yahoo

• Texas DA arrested for blocking police AP - 1 hour, 3 minutes ago
• Suspect hospitalized in Pa. runaway case AP - 4 minutes ago
• Snow just won't stop in upstate N.Y. AP - 1 hour, 57 minutes ago
• Alaskan fight brewing over river bears AP - Mon Feb 12, 4:18 AM ET

Regarding the Texas DA story, I have no opinion on his guilt in the major charges. The less serious (but still serious) charge of blocking police should warrant a firm punishment. As he knows the official laws, and deals with them, he should be held to a higher standard. That alone makes him a bum. Throw the bum out. If he is guilty of the financial questions, then, again, hit him hard.

Are there more severe punishments when a person whose duty it is to serve and protect serve and protect themselves? Lawyers too. The old adage, "They should know better" applies.

• ABA may adopt conduct rules for judges AP - Sun Feb 11, 4:21 PM ET
  MIAMI - A model code of conduct for state and local judges spells out, for the first time, that they are to avoid "sexual advances, requests for sexual favors" and other such unwelcome behavior.

That's the American Bar Association. They too should know better. At least the ABA is taking them corporately to task.

As one among those who fears bees on a level that probably seems childish at my age, I saw this with pleasant thoughts:

• Mystery ailment strikes honeybees AP - Sun Feb 11, 6:10 PM ET
  STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - A mysterious illness is killing tens of thousands of honeybee colonies across the country, threatening honey production, the livelihood of beekeepers and possibly crops that need bees for pollination.

Whether or not those scary killer bees will be impacted is not a question, not in PA. Those bees are still down south. Living in Chicago, I know I have a few years before the story reads, "Death by Bees, Newspaper Hawk Killed By Swarm."