Teen, Landon Doty, was found guilty on all counts of raping a boy on a Jennings County, Indiana, school bus. Landon was 15 years old at the time he was accused of 11 felonies, including four counts of rape. His victim was a 7-year-old non-verbal autistic boy he sat next to on a special needs school bus.
Having driven a bus for 100 years or so, I can’t even imagine how awful the entire situation is for everyone involved.
This bus had a monitor.
WTHR’s article states that the bus driver first noticed the younger boy sitting on Landon’s lap and alerted the bus monitor. In C’ville, we didn’t have bus monitors… but it seems to me the bus driver shouldn’t have to alert the monitor of anything going on. The monitor should be… ummmm… monitoring.
This case involved incidents from February through mid-April, 2025… all under the watchful eye of the monitor.
Yes, I cut the driver some slack… they’re DRIVING, after all. The Jennings County School Corporation fired both the bus driver and the bus aide shortly after the incidents came to light, but are they they only ones at fault?
It seems like there were so many preventable failures.
Who is responsible for thinking it was a great idea for a non-verbal 7 year-old to be transported with a 15 year-old child with past behavior problems? It wasn’t the bus driver or aide, I can promise you that. A civil lawsuit by the victim’s family alleges negligence by the Jennings County School Corporation.
Now you know: School buses make up the largest mass transit system in the U.S., transporting 26 million students daily. Specifically painted “National School Bus Glossy Yellow” for visibility since 1939, these buses are designed to be 70 times safer than passenger cars. They use “compartmentalization” (padded, high-back seats) rather than seat belts for safety.
I know, no one is actually listening to me, but I can’t help repeating over and over again how major media outlets continue to frame headlines and reporting to influence readers to believe their narrative. Good grief, I’m so very sick of it!!
Social media is different, you guys. You have a bajillion people spouting their opinions and exercising their 1st amendment rights. Normal people already understand the commentary is skewed per individual.
Major media outlets SHOULD BE HELD TO A HIGHER STANDARD!
A few examples from major media and social media…
The screenshots from The New York Times are self-explanatory.
The Thomas Massie screenshot is obvious too if you remember that we are not actually engaged in “war” with Iran. We’re in a major undeclared armed conflict with Iran, yes — but Massie’s wording was intended to manipulate the poll to his advantage. After I captured the screenshot above, the “No, trust the President” percentage of votes surpassed the “ending the war” percentage of votes so he closed the poll and removed the post.
The Internet is forever, don’t forget.
The Ilhan Omar screenshot is circulating as fact that she warned Iran before the attack. Many say that’s an act of treason. Common sense says she’d find a different way to pass along intelligence besides her certified X account.
It’s too hard in today’s times to get unbiased information.
Hugo tried to sniff out some unbiased reporting, but he couldn’t find a single major media outlet that didn’t smell like manipulation.
I’ve had decades of experience reading our local paper where news is reported, and opinions fall under a heading that indicates exactly what is to follow. I guess it’s too much to expect the same from major news outlets. 😞
Now you know: The original iPhone that Steve Jobs famously showed on stage in 2007 barely worked and could only just get through the keynote. A stable, final version of the iPhone was not developed until just weeks before global release.
There was a time when it was normal for people to tune in to their favorite TV station for news at 6:00 PM and 11:00 PM. Often times, experts in the field of whatever was being discussed (talking heads) would be on the panel. News anchors would ask questions and these experts would share their knowledge and experiences.
The sun has set on those days…
Talking heads have their own platforms now.
The days when you could watch your favorite TV news anchors for free is no longer enough. So you pay for Internet and most likely a streaming service to go with it. (Either that, or you pay for cable Internet/TV.) You still get commercials when you pay… just like when it was free. And talking heads get little traction because they’re out there giving those same thoughts away for free on social media platforms.
Retired FBI agents, non-practicing criminal defense attorneys, retired law enforcement… the list goes on and on. You can simply follow them on X (formerly Twitter) and get their opinion long before it airs on news channels. You can subscribe to their content and hop on their daily chats — and ask them questions yourself.
If that’s not enough, you can also follow the reporters as they’re in the field — they tell you what’s going on before it’s ever reported in the “news.”
So what will the future look like?
I certainly have no clue, but changes — and chaos — seem to be ramping up in real time.
The only thing I know for sure is almost all the snow here at the barndo has melted. There are only a few spots in the shade that have a bit of white hanging around.
Now you know: In 2013, a Burger King cook (who’d worked there for 24 years) was fired for taking home a sandwich, fries & a drink after her manager claimed she had only asked permission for a sandwich & accused her of stealing. However, a judge ruled that the cook did not intend to steal the food & awarded her $46,000.
You pretty much know the world has taken a wrong turn and has gone totally bat shit crazy when you see the following as a news headline:
I know babies/toddlers potty train at different age levels, and I know Ben was into that phase earlier than other friends that had babies about the same time. He graduated to padded cloth briefs and would NEVER pee in them… but he sure did love pooping in his ‘big boy’ underwear. If I had to ask for permission to change him, he would’ve worn shit for days.
What’s wrong with people?
This type of craziness isn’t just in parenting, you guys. It’s across the board. I know I talk a whole lot about common sense and here I go again… It might also be a good time to stop listening to politicians. I put in my earbuds, cranked up my sweeper, and listened to the speakers prior to voting on releasing the Epstein files. 90% of those speaking got all dressed up to act like a heathen. Yelling and spouting disrespectful commentary picking at each other — it’s disgraceful.
Like Dharma, I understand I’m on the outside looking in… (For the record, she may look pitiful but she LOVES being outside in the rain.)
As I listened to many of the Democrat speakers saying, “Trump could release those files today! Why won’t he?” <—same thing over and over using slightly different wording, I’m wondering why the heck Trump won’t just release all the darned files. After the vote, I looked it up, “Can Trump release the Epstein files today — and if so, why won’t he?” Here’s what I found:
Trump could direct DOJ to release more documents, declassify materials, or otherwise push for transparency — and in fact, his administration has released Epstein-related documents — but he can’t unilaterally force the release when there are legal constraints. (Could this be why he instructed the DOJ to investigate the people he named… to delay release?) Matter of fact, there are three federal judges who have rejected Justice Department / Trump-administration requests to unseal Epstein-related grand jury materials. And they are all Democrats! (1 appointed by Clinton and 2 appointed by Obama.)
My main takeaway? Either those elected to branches of government speak to one another with respect and at a normal modulated tone, or they should be required to dress the way they act so we can spot the barbarians before they open their mouth.
In a land far away from the Internet there is normalcy.
Go out and get ya some of that (even if the weather is ugly) before you cross over to the land of some sort of alternate reality — an insane place where “normal” means women are men and men can have babies and you need consent to change a dirty diaper. It’s like the Twilight Zone on steroids out there — guard your common sense because everyone is trying to take it away from you.
Now you know: In 2016, a monkey fell onto an electrical transformer, shorting it and causing the entire country of Kenya to have no electricity for 4 hours. The monkey survived.
Staying informed about current events is important, but it’s equally crucial to manage your well-being and mental health. That’s not so easy when there’s so much noise. It seems everything in the news is overwhelming to the point it’s depressing.
I asked ChatGPT for help!
To summarize… limiting your news consumption, choosing reliable sources, and maintaining diversity of sources is important — but taking breaks to find balance is paramount. Focus on activities that are calming or relaxing.
Makes sense… right?
I even watched some lazy cows just for good measure…
Next, I asked ChatGPT what to do when you’re having a really bad hair day…
Here’s the advice:
Own It: Sometimes, embracing the imperfections and confidently owning your bad hair day can be the best strategy. Confidence is attractive, and people might not even notice what you perceive as a flaw.
ChatGPT
Oh! I own it… but people would definitely notice. 😏
Even ChatGPT gets it wrong sometimes. Don’t believe everything you read/watch/hear.
Now you know: Any person who successfully parachutes out of a failing aircraft is eligible to join the caterpillar club. You get a certificate as well as a caterpillar shaped pin and get to join their annual gatherings. People who escaped a failing aircraft with no parachute are denied entry
