Will Louisiana Eliminate Inspector General?

From Lou Burnett of Fax Net Update May 22, 2012:

Louisiana was tabbed by Governing Magazine as the most corrupt state in the country over the past decade, and now the Legislature wants to eliminate the position of Inspector General (IG).

The House of Representatives has already voted to eliminate the IG’s office.  It’s up to the Senate to restore it, and the fate of the office is currently in the hands of the Senate Finance Committee.  IG Stephen Street told the committee, “We have no budget so I think I can talk to you about why we ought to have a budget.”

Street, who has been IG since 2008, pointed out that his office operates on $1.7 million a year, but that is the past fiscal year, his office has uncovered $3.2 million in fraud and corruption.

“There will always be those who want to shut down OIG.  Some of those people are in federal prison or may be facing that possibility.  Some of them may have been the subject of IG investigations or have friends that were.  Some just can’s accept we won’t play politics,” Street said.

State Sen. Greg Tarver, D-Shreveport, who is a member of the Finance Committee said, “Well, my personal opinion is we do need the Inspector General Office in Louisiana.”     He and other senators told Street that the House vote doesn’t mean the job is done and that many people support the watchdog office.

The mission of the IG’s office is to help prevent and detect waste, mismanagement, abuse, and corruption in the executive branch of state government without regard to partisan politics, allegiances, status or influence.

It is an independent office within the Office of the Governor. The office is a law enforcement agency with all the investigative powers and privileges appurtenant to law enforcement.

The Check is in the Mail: What's a Christian to do when he is owed money?

I don't know if there   are many people who read these blog posts, but perhaps a few do and may gain some insight on what to do (or not to do) on some of the thoughts that I share.  

Today, I want to talk about financial stress when clients who owe you money.

One of the biggest frustrations I have in owning a small service business is getting paid timely. Most of my clients are large companies who have done pretty well over the years and some have done so by holding out on paying their debts. I may anger some of them who do this, but it's true.

Suppose you could hold off on paying your debts and have the use of that money for a few more months, you could invest that money and grow it?  I find such to be completely unfair because they demand the work be done, but then they complain when you  don't do enough or complain when you do to much.

Let me say this, very many of my clients DO pay timely. They are honorable companies who know  you are trying to do your best for them and that there are times when the work takes more time than expected or may cost more than they anticipated. They know if you are trying to do the right thing that you will not bill dishonestly. If you DO, then you should be fired immediately.

It's not the majority that are the problem, but the minority of those who don't pay timely or regularly second guess if you have done all you should do or think you have done too much, can really make the practice of law frustrating. It's not just law firms who deal with this issue. Anyone in the service industry (doctors, lawyers, plumbers and the list goes on) deal with clients who don't pay timely.

As a Christian, what should you do? Here are a few thoughts that I must keep in mind. I hope these ideas encourage you too.

One of the major themes of the Bible is obedience to the Lord.  Obedience to these principles demonstrate that Christians are trusting God in another area of their lives.

God is Source

The first principle is that God is the source of everything. Philippians 4:19 says, "My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." Proverbs 8:20,21 adds, "I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment: that I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures."

Whenever we need money or possessions, prayer is the answer. Look to the Lord, because He will provide it-according to His will. Clients are simply a conduit of God's provision; they are not the ultimate source of our financial blessings.  Sometimes I get so frustrated when professional and personal debts are owed and clients have owed me money for over ninety days that  I tend to focus on them and what they should be doing. Not to say that we don't contact them and try to work out the payments, but just remember they are NOT the ultimate answer to our needs.

Giving Essential

The second principle is that of giving. Luke 6:38, a key verse, says, "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again

Ouch! This is a tough one, but it's not just about tithing. I strongly believe in tithing, but in addition to that, what am I doing in  the business to do for others who  cannot help themselves.

Have we given God the first of our time? For example, the man who is unwilling to cancel a newspaper subscription, which is keeping him from reading the Word of God, may often be the same man who is having trouble making the payments on the TV set that is keeping him from doing the things that would help him grow closer to the Lord. So it can be a vicious cycle.

Do Lawyers Get Melancholy or Depressed? Does it matter?

Strange thing about me, I have always been a little melancholy. I have some ideas about why, but now at fifty maybe I am thinking about them more often.

I know that as a kid, I would  get blue on Sunday nights knowing that I had to go to school the next day. I suppose every kid is like that. I was good in school so there was no fear about the work, but I didn't like the social scene that much.

I don't know why. I was popular and  very involved in lots of things in school. I was one of twenty out of 500 students chosen to be among the "Who's Who."

I enjoy my family, my church life and the legal  profession is generally rewarding. Recently, I was mad aware of the breadth of lawyers who deal with depression. I was shocked to learn that over thirty percent of all lawyers deal with some form of depression!

I enjoy blogging on many different issues, but I think I will begin blogging on the issue of depression from time to time as well. For no other reason than because it IS an issue that is generally ignored or overlooked.

Men generally don't talk about depression.

Lawyers certainly don't talk about it.

I was pleased to learn of website www.lawyerswithdepression.com. Also, Louisiana, like many other states have a confidential Lawyer Assistance Program that is available to help lawyers with not just addictive behaviors, but also with depression.

Even if you are not an attorney, I would like to know some of your thoughts on dealing with depression. Perhaps someone in your family has dealt with depression or the general sense of the "blues." I hope you will share some of your thoughts.

For now, let me repost some thoughts from Lawyerwithdepression.com, the first website and blog of its kind in the country, to help law students, lawyers and judges cope with and heal from depression. The site and Dan’s work have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The National Law, Trial Magazine and several other national and international publications.

It has been estimated that we have anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000 thoughts a day. If your ideas about life are predominantly downbeat, imagine how many negative thoughts you are generating daily—thousands upon thousands.

Lawyers are particularly prone to this type of pessimistic thinking which helps explain why their rates of depression are about twice that – twenty percent – of the general population.

In recent article in The Wall Street Journal wrote about this very topic:

   

Oh Great! NOW to speak out against bullying is politically charged

So now what? If you are against the  lifestyle of homosexuality, you're  a bully? If you're for gay marriage, you're not? That's a  bunch of garbage!

Now if you speak out against bullying, will you  be associated with supporting the  gay lifestyle? If you speak out against the gay lifestyle, will you be associated with being a bully? What a crock!

Not everyone who has been or is bullied is gay. The gay community doesn't have a corner on speaking out against bullying (but at least they ARE taking a stance against it). Also, some of the folks who are pro-gay lifestyle are some pretty tough bullies themselves.

So as a Christian, how should we respond?

I’m not sure what this says about me, but my first reaction to the news of Obama’s new position on gay marriage was fear this turn of events would end up giving the church just one more black eye as Christians respond in ways that sound like hate to our world.

On the other hand, I wish more conservative Christians had deep relationships with people with same sex attraction. Believe it or not, you probably already do. Many probably won't say anything because of the fear of being ostracized. This is a complicated issue that the church has been either overly hostile, overly receptive of Ungodly behavior or overly ignorant.

Let me say this, I do not believe homosexuality is part of God’s intention for human beings. I believe it is one of the many symptoms of a broken  world caused by human rejection of God’s reign. I do not support the legalization of homosexual marriage.

I believe God created humans in his image and this is reflected in the male-female of our natures and in heterosexual marriage. Having said that, I do not understand why this issue has been made the poster child for Christian morality when it affects so few people (1-2%) compared with other sins so common in society and the church.

Jesus also seemed to have great compassion for people whose experience of brokenness was sexual in nature compared to those who were hateful, condemning, oppressive, exclusive, and hypocritical. Of course, the historic rejection of homosexuality by Israel and the church should be overturned in this age of “enlightenment.”  Yet the church’s obsession with this issue has hurt the gospel more than helped it.

Divorce among Christians has harmed the respect for marriage in our country far more than homosexuality. It seems that many young adults are leaving  the church because of the church’s reaction to homosexuality more than any other issue. We just look mean and Jesus did not call us to be mean.

On the other hand, as man over fifty, I worry about the degree of acceptance for homosexuality I see among young adults, but at least they are motivated by compassion. I recently read some  thoughts by Dan Bouchelle that bear repeating here to conservative Christians, which I am one,  in general and to preachers specifically before they formally respond to the political rhetoric.

Perkins Awarded AV Rating!

Perkins & Associates,LLC Receives Peer Review Rating for Mark A. Perkins from LexisNexis® Martindale-Hubbell®

LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell has recognized Mark A. Perkins with a Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating™. Mark A. Perkins was given an “AV” rating from his peers, which means that he was deemed to have very high professional ethics and preeminentlegal ability. Only lawyers with the highest ethical standards and professional ability receive a Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating.

LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell conducts secure online Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings surveys of lawyers across multiple jurisdictions and geographic locations, in similar areas of practice as the lawyer being rated. Reviewers are instructed to assess their colleagues' general ethical standards and legal ability in a specific area of practice.

The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings evaluates lawyers in the United States and Canada based on the anonymous opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary, including both those who are rated and those who are not. The first review to establish a lawyer's rating usually occurs three years after his first admission to the Bar.

The confidentiality, objectivity and complete independence of the ratings process are what have made the program a unique and credible evaluation tool for members of the legal profession. The legal community values the accuracy of lawyer peer review ratings because they are determined by their peers – the people who are best suited to assess the legal ability and professional ethics of their colleagues.

“Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings were created in 1887 as an objective tool that would attest to a lawyer ability and professional ethics, based on the confidential opinions of other lawyers and judges who have worked with the lawyers they are evaluating,” said Mike Walsh, President and CEO, U.S. Legal Markets at LexisNexis. “The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings have remained the most prestigious and widely respected lawyer rating system in the world for over a hundred years.”

In this highly competitive environment for legal services, the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating is often one of the only means to differentiate lawyers who are otherwise very comparable in their credentials. This is important on a variety of levels –from the in-house counsel trying to determine which one of his outside law firms should be assigned a new matter to the private practice lawyer seeking to refer a case to another lawyer with the appropriate expertise in a specific area of practice.

Vitriolic Responses to Bullying Blog Post Deleted

No matter the threats and bullying attempts to intimidate speaking out, speak up.

Because of the fairly hateful and personal attacks made in the April blog on bullying, I have deleted that post. I hope that those same people (on BOTH sides of the local issue) will not post the same kind of attacks here.

The bigger issue is that it occurs. Let's address those concerns and not make the personal attacks. I hope I don't get any more calls or e-mails from friends and acquaintances telling me that I should "be careful" for getting involved in this situation. Although I appreciate your concerns, my concern is over the issue of bullying.

If you have never bullied, been bullied or parented a child of either, then you probably are not as passionate on this issue as those of us who have tolerated the problem.

Some of you may have read books by Frank Peretti, the author of "This Present Darkness" and other Christian fiction. However, you may not be aware that Mr. Peretti was the victim of bullying as a child. I would recommend reading his book "The Wounded Spirit," the true story of his experiences in being bullied as a child.

In urging help for the wounded, Mr. Peretti says:

"Speak up. You really don't have to tolerate the abuse any longer.

"So by now you should be ready to do something.

"Yes, it's going to take the right attitude on the part of the boss, the teacher, the parent, the principal or whoever is responsible for the school or work environment. They have to care. They have to be approachable. But you may have to take the first step, at least be ready to respond when you see the opportunity to bring the abuse to the attention of the proper authorities."

According to Peplar and Craig 1997 from Queens University Department of Psychology, “Bullying is the assertion of power through aggression. Its forms change with age: school playground bullying, sexual harassment, gang attacks, date violence, assault, marital violence, child abuse, workplace harassment and elder abuse”

Here are some other facts about bullying:

• For many children bullying is something they live with every day.
• Parents and teachers are often not aware it is happening or don’t recognize it.
• Bullying has serious immediate and long term psychological effects for those being bullied. They are more prone to adjustment disorders.
• Most bully victims will not report it to either parents or teachers for fear of retaliation from their tormentors.
• Children who are bullied are ashamed of it, and fear being ridiculed for not being able to handle it on their own. They concurrently feel that adults can do nothing to help them.
• Victims of repeated bullying report feelings of depression and loss of interest in activities. Suicidal ideation is not uncommon in victims of bullying as well as the bullies themselves. Research done by Kumak, Sourander and Gould, May 2010, published in the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry states “there is a positive correlation between bullying victims and suicide, with girls more strongly affected than boys”
• Victims most often are unable to stop the bullying without seeking help from an outsider.
• According to the National Education Association there are 160,000 children every day who miss school as a result of bullying. That is a 15% absentee rate and studies show both victims and the bullies are at risk for low grades, poor attitudes about school and poor functioning levels.
• In the American school system there are approximately 2.1 million bullies and 2.7 million victims.
• In any given playground bullying happens every 7 minutes and in the classroom every 25 minutes.
• In a study done by Leonard Eron, and Rowell Huesman, University of Michigan psychologists, they found children who bully in school have a 1 in 4 chance of having a criminal record by the time they reach 30 years of age. Olweus’ Bullying Prevention Program at Clemson University found that 60 % of boys in elementary school who bully others had criminal records by the time they were 24 years old.

School Policies Should Address "Bullying"

Individual schools and school districts MUST address how bullying reports are handled. These policies protect the rights of the alleged victims and the alleged "bully", and address potential safety concerns.

Many People Report Being a Bully and Being Bullied

What firestorm of opinions surrounding this topic!

Simply by  re posting what my friend alleged about his son, I have received e-mails, phone calls and replies to my blog post both in support and against my points. Interestingly, I have had many people make comments about "what really happened." How would they know any more than I know that what my friend posted is actually true. I know him and I tend to believe him, but he could have overreacted and misunderstood.

Yet, no one (except me) is staying this may have been  a misunderstanding. They are saying this did NOT happen and they are giving me information that could only come from someone at the school. None of us were there.

For all of the people who have denied that this incident occurred or that this school doesn't tolerate bullying, I have heard as many that bullying HAS occurred at this school. My point is not necessarily to point out that THIS school allowed bullying to occur, but to say that bullying DOES occur and that all to often, it is glossed over.

No one seems to address my points about bullying. Regardless of the facts (or the interpretation of the facts) in this situation, what about all of the other points I have tried to bring out about bullying? Why are those points glossed over, disregarded and discounted by the emphatic denial of the allegations in this situation?

It's a fact that bullying occurs. It's a fact that it is routinely disregarded. It is ALSO a fact that some schools take it seriously and respond appropriately. I would love to hear about those occurrences.

Now moving away from THIS situation involving a local school and private individual, let me address some comments made by others about bullying. These situations DO NOT involve any local schools or anyone in north Louisiana, but these are real situations that have occurred.

From Cindy:

I was both bullied and became a bully.

Bullied - I was in grade school and was bullied by two high school girls separately. Overcoming? - I stood up for myself and in one case fought back and won and it stopped and I never consciously thought about it again in the context of being bullied until you asked.

Bully - It was just one semester in grade 9 with one specific girl. Why? - I think that fighting back gave me a feeling I liked and I felt powerful and gained a reputation but carried it too far because my hormones were out of control. I was a hurting abused kid. I was living in fear at home and terrified to start high school. I thought the girl I bullied had everything I wanted and didn't have in life. How I overcame? I realized one day that I was hurting and making her hurt and I felt bad so I stopped.

Thankfully I have repented of all this after I came to Christ. I do feel really bad still though because someone told me years later that she went home and cried every day after school. I pray God heals any hurts I caused in her life!

Sex Slavery/Trafficking Here?

Like most of you in suburban comfortable homes, I didn't think that sex slavery is that big of a deal. Certainly it's not such a big deal in America. Oh sure, there may be  prostitution and strip clubs, but not sex trafficking, right?

My daughter, Jessica Elston, read the book Sold in one of her graduate classes in Massachusetts. As a result, Jessica prepared a documentary with the help of her husband, David, and a friend Murray Rogers. The quality of the sound is not great in some places, but it's interesting what many people don't know about the industry or what can be done. I hope you will check it out at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UT6nwbXt3c&feature=youtube_gdata_player

So you think that it only happens in big cities? Think again. the following are statistics about the industry in Louisiana.

Local:

• Trafficking Hope’s partner, the Rescue and Restore outreach team, has identified 95 victims since April 2009
• The age of the youngest confirmed victim of sex trafficking in Baton Rouge, LA is 6 years old (Rescue and Restore Coalition of Louisiana)
• The current number of beds available in Louisiana designated for human trafficking victims is 0.
• According to Shared Hope International, Baton Rouge is among the top 10 cities in the U.S. for human trafficking (February 5, 2010. Wafb.com. http://www.kltv.com/Global/story.asp?S=11940245
• There are approximately 200,000 homeless children in Louisiana. Our state has the highest rate of child homelessness of the 50 states (National center for family homelessness)
• 30% of homeless shelter youth and 70% of street youth are victims of commercial sexual exploitation. (Reichard Estes and Neil Weiner, University of Pensylvania)

Still not convinced that it's an issue locally? Cassie Hammet, the director The HUB Ministry in Shreveport, Louisiana reports that Levingston Love is a monthly outreach to the residents of the Levingston Motel. The Levingston is notoriously the center for drug and sex trafficking. They are the closest thing to an unreached people group in our city. The residents in the Levingston are in great need for things that we can provide. We feed, clothe and take care of the residents at this event.

The Hub: urban ministries is a gospel based non-profit organization that exists to bring hope, love and friendship to the poor through providing resources, conversation and care; always pointing to Jesus as the only source of complete healing and wholeness.

 

 

National:

• It is estimated that there are between 100,000 and 300,000 child victims of human trafficking in the U.S. alone (Ernie Allen, President of National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, reported in the LA Times)
• 2.8 million children live on the streets (Shared Hope International)
• Within the first 48 hours of being on the street, 1 in 3 children are lured into commercial sexual exploitation (National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrown-away Children)
• 75% of minors engaged in prostitution have a pimp (Shared Hope International) By law, this makes them victims of human trafficking
• Pimps can earn up to $632,000 per year by selling 4 women or children (Shared Hope International
• In the 2009 fiscal year, the DOJ Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, charged 114 individuals and obtained 43 convictions (21 labor trafficking and 22 sex trafficking, both involving adults). 306 child victims were identified leading to 151 convictions of traffickers at the state and federal levels. (Department of State 10th Annual Trafficking in Persons Report)
• It is estimated that there are only 100 beds available in the U.S. for sex trafficking victims (cite: Shared Hope International)
• The average age of entry into human trafficking for girls and boys ranges from 11-14 years old. (Cite: Ernie Allen, President of National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, July 21, 2009
• 49 states have passed human trafficking legislation- Wyoming being the only one without. (Cite: http://www.wowktv.com/story/17343206/west-virginia-passes-criminal-laws-against-human-trafficking)

General Facts:

• 27 million people in bondage world wide
• 99% of victims are not rescued yet
• Within 48 hours one in three runaways will be approached by a pimp
• 
  

The Continuing Saga of Bullying...

For more details about local allegations of  bullying, please check out the updated and revised previous post on the report and the response in bullying by a local private school.


The allegations of failing  to respond are reported as being "utterly false."

In the meantime, let me continue the discussion of bullying in general. School bullying is a serious epidemic. As of 2010, 45 U.S. states have adopted anti-bullying measures. But bullying at schools continues. Educators and parents must work together to spread the message that bullying hurts everyone. And schools needs to continue to employ measures to educate families, educate staff, set standards and intervene to reduce bullying in schools.

Some schools are instituting programs for intervention and prevention of social bullying. Bullying is defined by the Health Resources and Services Administration as “aggressive behavior that is intentional and that involves an imbalance of power or strength.” This bullying behavior is often repeated over time.

Speak up. You really don't have to tolerate the abuse any longer!

No matter the threats and bullying attempts to intimidate speaking out, speak up.

Some of you may have read books by Frank Peretti, the author of "This Present Darkness" and other Christian fiction. However, you may not be aware that Mr. Peretti was the victim of bullying as a child. I would recommend reading his book "The Wounded Spirit," the true story of his experiences in being bullied as a child.

In urging help for the wounded, Mr. Peretti says:

"Speak up. You really don't have to tolerate the abuse any longer.

"So by now you should be ready to do something.

"Yes, it's going to take the right attitude on the part of the boss, the teacher, the parent, the principal or whoever is responsible for the school or work environment. They have to care. They have to be approachable. But you may have to take the first step, at least be ready to respond when you see the opportunity to bring the abuse to the attention of the proper authorities."

Let me give you personal story of how bullying was "addressed" when I was in junior high. I had a friend who had moved from Texas to Louisiana. He was well-liked by the girls, but he was new the school so there were a lot of guys who didn't like that he was liked by the girls. He would regularly get into fights because of this.

If he continued to get into fights, he would be expelled. One time between classes he ran over to my locker angrily crying and asked me to help him because if he got into another fight, he would be expelled. He stood there with his lip bleeding. NOT ONE teacher approached us and asked what was happening.

I told him I would walk with him to the principal to report what was going on. While we walked down the hallway crowded with students and teachers, a mob of bullies followed us taunting him. NOT ONE teacher interjected. 

As we walked to the end of the hall to take the steep steps down the first floor, one of the bullies pushed my friend and he almost stumbled down the steps. I reacted spontaneously and fiercely by turning around and grabbing by the shirt collar the bully who pushed him. I threw that bully down the steps (I was suddenly terrified that he would hit the wall at the end of the landing). As he was sprawled out on the landing, surprised that anyone would stand up to him, I stood over him and said "Touch him again and I will beat your ass!"

I was not a fighter, but something rose up in me to see justice done. I was angry that these boys would bully my friend and try to get him expelled. I was angry that not a single teacher stood up for him and stopped the jerks from taunting him. I was enraged that these bullies tried to push him down the stairs.

How do you suppose the school's administration handled this?

Did they expel the boys for starting a fight?

Did they call them in for punishment?