The Truth Always Comes Out...

The truth always comes out no matter what. Today the truth came out about that horrible accident that I spoke about on July 26. I'd like to apologize for thinking it might have been a signage problem since two people were on the wrong side of the road that day. Today they announced that the 36 year old woman who was on the Taconic Parkway in Hawthorne, NY was drunk on Vodka and high on marijuana while driving the wrong way on the parkway. I don't think, well I'm sure, we'll never know what possessed this woman to get behind the wheel in that condition and let alone with kids in the car. Not only did she kill herself, but she killed her daughter, her three nieces that were all sisters and three other people in another vehicle that day.
Her son who is only 5 years old is the only survivor. She brought sorrow to her family and the family of her nieces who lost their three daughters all in one shot. Not to mention the other family who were a father and son and family friend. Although her son is in stable condition, this kid will suffer survivors guilt plus when he is old enough to understand what happened, how will he deal with what his mother did to these families and to himself?
So much loss and for no reason. She even had called her brother to say she had trouble seeing and was feeling disoriented. REALLY??? No kidding lady, why do you think you were feeling this way? Her brother told her to pull to the side of the road and that he would come to get them. Did she even listen to that? NO!
This was all so unnecessary and I cannot begin to tell you how much this pisses me off. Everyone is feeling the same way because no one can understand why she was driving in that condition and with kids! No child should ever die before their parents, it's just not the natural order of life. Seriously, what was she thinking?
I feel for the families that were affected by this irresponsible act of another human being. I can't imagine what they were feeling when they were told this news. So many mixed emotions at once. I just hope they will all be there for the 5 year old boy who may come out of this physically ok but his mental and emotional condition will have a much longer road to recovery.
Hopefully people are watching out on the roads for what other cars are doing. If you see someone swaying or not driving the way they should, steer clear of them. I've been in that situation before where I just let the car stay ahead of me and I stay way back until they get off the road at an exit.
On the flip side, if you are the driver and are going out, don't drink or do anything that will impair your judgement. Always designate a driver because your life and the lives of others on the road are too precious.
Flipping from bad news to good news, Euna Lee and Laura Ling are home at last from their ridiculous captivity in North Korea. They arrived on a jet at Burbank's Bob Hope Airport along with former President Bill Clinton. Clinton had met with Kim Jong II, the communist leader of North Korea in hopes of bringing the girls back home. They had been held captive for 5 months and thought for sure they would be headed to a hard labor camp when in fact they were to leave with Clinton to come home to America. Yes, America, where so many people were praying for their release. America, where so many people have gained more courage to stand up for fellow Americans especially since the 9/11 incident. America, where we are more apt these days to care for our fellow man.
These two reporters were on assignment regarding the Tumen River, which is a river that divides China and North Korea. They were on assignment for Current TV, a San Francisco based company. The two reporters were arrested for espionage and their punishment would've gotten them ten years in a prison camp in North Korea.
What really happened here though? North Korea says the girls crossed the border illegally. Another source says that guards from North Korea crossed the border and actually went on China's side, held the girls at gunpoint and forced them to the North Korea side. Another theory suggests that due to the river drying up because of a drought, the reporters may have crossed the border not realizing that they did. If the North Koreans did cross the river and kidnap the reporters, this would fall into the category of international terrorism and past history would dictate this would not be the first time for this type of kidnapping against a U.S. Citizen.
No matter what theory is to blame, the fact is these two reporters were held in North Korea and the United States had to do something about it. As it turns out, Laura Ling is sister to Lisa Ling who you might know from "The View" and "Oprah" and who also went undercover herself in a National Geographic documentary called "Inside North Korea".
During the last five months so many rumors circulated, some were that there were talks about nuclear issues and also that maybe these reporters along with other people that are being held as bargaining chips. No one knows for sure and of course we are not privy to this information. But we can all be thankful that Clinton took this trip in hopes of some sort of talks to get the reporters home. Now that they are home and with their families, I think that any reporters that go out on assignment should be very careful especially when traveling to foreign countries. You never know what to expect and you never know what will happen. Reporters go all over the world to report the news. It's easy to know the rules of America since we live here but when traveling to other countries, be prepared on how they operate, what their laws are and what your risks are when going there.
I remember seeing Lisa Ling on tv pleading for her sister and the other reporter and I can't imagine the despair she must have been feeling knowing that her sister was over there and not being able to go there herself and pull her out.
The news that is reported daily is always full of good news and bad news. We have to be careful every day that we are not one of the people that ends up there, at least not on the bad news end of it.
Stay safe and be thankful that we live in a country where we have our freedom and we should always remember to never take that for granted. We are "one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all" and we should be proud Americans, not just in times when something bad happens but every day of our lives.