Just got off the phone with my nephew stationed in Iraq. He is doing well, most of what he has done so far is fight with camel spiders. I don't know if you have seen pictures of those things but they are huge, long as your leg and big around as your belly. But he seems to be doing well. I pray that he stays safe.

I had the day off and I went wandering through some of the local pawn shops. I have found that if you are not careful the pawn shops owners will let you pay over and above new prices for used and sometimes worn out merchandise. But what I wonder about is the whole industry of pawn shops is built on people down on there luck, or broken dreams. I was looking at wedding ring sets and wonder how much pain is behind them ending up is a glass display case. I was talking to the pawn shop owners when this women walked in with (I assume) her daughter, pulled off her rings and asked if she could pawn them for $25. The owner let her have $20. I watch them walk down the road after, it was sad.

Capital punishment

How much crime is the direct result of drugs? If we are honest drugs are the largest contributor in crime, it seems to me that if we made drug distribution a capital offense (I am talking even the guys on the corner selling dime bags) we would put a large dent in crime. If each of us would write our state and federal representatives and demand action maybe we could do something.