Good morning, Netizens...

In local news, the power is out in and north of the Deer Park area, due to lightning strikes that took place during last night's short-lived thunderstorms that moved through the area. There is a continuing threat of thunderstorms later on today, and as of 6:00 AM PDT, several small cells of activity are noted in the Northern Oregon desert communities where a lot of Spokane's thunderstorm activity originally sometimes forms. The heat, humidity and the threat of thunderstorms will continue at least until Friday, but the preliminary forecast for the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Spokane remains optimistically clear.

In other news, a judge Monday gave the state Department of Social and Health Services 30 days to start keeping promises it made four years ago to settle a class-action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of foster children. He wasn't even playing word games with his ruling, which seems to have happened so many times in the past, as if foster care were a giant game of football where the kids were booted from one end of the field to the other.

According to the Seattle-Times Online Edition this morning, he stated bluntly, “I'm not asking,” he said. “I'm ordering.”

What does the Judge's ruling demand? First, that the state find ways to make monthly visits to foster children, to get them prompt health care and screenings, to see their siblings on a regular basis and to keep the case loads for these children to where all the above is possible. One has only to remember that none of these children asked to be put in foster care; it was done in most cases without their full understanding, knowledge or consent by a so-called benevolent State. There are over 10,000 foster children in the State of Washington's care at any one given time, according to the Department of Social and Health Services.

It is about time someone took DSHS to task for their deplorable record when it comes to foster child care. In my opinion Governor Gregoire is too busy building her personal agenda in time for the upcoming elections to bother keeping her promise to the voters about foster child care. It's about time somebody put a stop to it.

Harumph!

Dave

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