Tornado?

Looks like strong winds, maybe a twister, hit the area near Highway 21 just south of Double D. I couldn't see any structures damaged, but there were a lot of trees down and debris blown all the way into the median.

Alleged beating in front of Wal-Mart

A co-worker told us that one night last week, a person was badly beaten by a man wielding an aluminum baseball bat in front of Wal-Mart. Anyone know anything? Leave a comment.

EpiPen debacle solved

We've been told by the mother of the allergic student that s/he will be allowed to keep the medication at hand during the school day.

Bogalusa City Schools; - attend at your own risk!

The following was sent to us by a close friend whose child attends a public Bogalusa school. While we haven't researched this and therefore can't vouch for its accuracy, similar things have taken place in other school districts. I've added links where appropriate to aid understanding. My son was recently diagnosed with a severe allergy to stings (wasp, hornet, bee) and was told by his pediatrician to carry an EpiPen at all times in case of a future sting. Minutes count. Bogalusa Middle School claims that my child's EpiPen will need to be left with the nurse - who isn't always at the school. They also claim that the medication will be available because someone else has a key, but they didn't elaborate on what their procedure will be. They don't want him to carry it because it's sharp. Gee, so are pencils, pens and scissors, all standard school supplies. I talked to a woman at the Bogalusa School Board also. She claims that she is also allergic to stings and carries an EpiPen. She said as long as my child gets the shot within 15 minutes, everything is fine. Ha! 15 minutes passes pretty quickly if he'll need to leave to find the right teacher, or go to the health center (which isn't always open). What if he's stopped by a teacher on the way? What if the nurse is out and the person with the key can't be located immediately? She had no good answers. I asked her if they could assure me that the EpiPen would be available within 15 minutes. She said they could not. Nice of them to treat his life so cavalierly! I asked her if she was aware that there is a diabetic student who carries all her supplies with her, including syringes with needles. She was not. I don't think my son should go to school without guaranteed quick access to his EpiPen, and that means he ought to be allowed to carry it. Catherine Seipp wrote possibly the definitive article on children who need to carry asthma inhalers and the stupidity of school boards. Excerpt [emphasis ours]: ...Nancy Sander referred to the 1991 death of a New Orleans high school student, Catrina Lewis, who was delayed by security guards before being allowed to get her inhaler from the office. When it didn't help, she asked school staff to call an ambulance; instead they spent a half-hour trying to call her mother first. Catrina's sister, another student, finally called 911 herself, but emergency help arrived too late. In 1996, a New Orleans judge ordered Lawless High School's acting principal, a school counselor, and the school board to pay $1 million in damages to Catrina's family. I wonder about several things: 1. Was the woman at the Bogalusa school board office a doctor? Or was she practicing medicine without a license? 2. Is she aware that the Louisiana State Board of Education's standard forms have a space for the prescribing physician to allow the student to carry their own medication? 3. Are they aware that public schools are required to accommodate a student with a medical condition, or pay tuition if necessary for the student to attend a school that can accommodate them? And that's just for starters. I'm sure they aren't aware of much except the pleasure they get out of playing with children's lives and saying No. Dumbasses.

Virus goin' 'round

Sudden vomiting, uncontrollable diarrhea, chills. It's nasty, but over with quick. Drink plenty of fluids. I know of one young adult who was hospitalized for dehydration.

High school lockdown

We've been told that Bogalusa High School was under lockdown Tuesday, Feb. 12, because a student brought a gun to school. Developing...

Quit driving like idiots!

When I work late and come home on 21, I drive the limit or sometimes - shock! - 5 mph over. Every single night, I'm passed. Which means there are a hell of a lot of speeders out there. Tonight a vehicle went off the road heading north on 21, just south of Sun. Quit driving like you've got crap for brains. Obey the law. Slow down.

Why was Dr. LaRavia fired?

Folks are talking on the Hard Copy board about Dr. Dennis LaRavia's firing from the Bogalusa LSU Rural Residency Program. Wednesday's Daily News had an editorial about the "outrage." We suspect it had something to do with this formal complaint (about one-third of the way down the page): Dennis A. LaRavia, M.D...... L4514........... 6/4/07...... Unprofessional conduct; violation of state or federal law; violation of board rule regarding Physician in Training permits. Please note that these are allegations, not yet proven. The matter is set for hearing by the Texas State Office of Administrative Hearings, Texas Medical Board in April 2008 - PDF file of the docket here. See page 37.

Accident?

Looked like cleanup of a bad accident, possibly involving a cop, at the intersection of West 21st and South Tyler in Covington about 12:30 a.m. Hope nobody was badly hurt.

Iraq is a quagmire - for al Qaida

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, seen at Gulf Coast Pundit: Jihadis, money and weapons were poured into Iraq. All for naught. Al-Qaida has been driven from every neighborhood in Baghdad, Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, the U.S. commander there, said Nov. 7. This follows the expulsion of al-Qaida from two previous “capitals” of its Islamic Republic of Iraq, Ramadi and Baquba.[...] Al-Qaida’s support in the Muslim world has plummeted, partly because of the terror group’s lack of success in Iraq, more because al-Qaida’s attacks have mostly killed Muslim civilians.[...]“The situation has changed so unmistakably and so swiftly that we should be reading proud headlines daily,” said Ralph Peters, a retired Army lieutenant colonel. “Where are they?” Read the whole thing. Then ask yourself if journalists deserve any respect for the lying, twisting, and obfuscation they've done about the war. Recall the themes of nearly all the news about Iraq and our troops, according to most reporters: Our soldiers are savages, Iraqis hate us, the world hates us, 9/11 was our own fault, Iraq is another Vietnam, we'll never win, blah blah blah. Barely a word about the defeat of al Qaida in Bakuba, Ramadi and Baghdad, or the deaths of terrorists over there. Thousands of words about the few atrocities committed by a tiny number of our troops, and deaths of civilians and our soldiers. I spit on you, Mainstream Media.