Weigh in on these Monday matters

The year 2016 has wasted no time colliding with controversy. Consider this trio of trouble and tell us what you think about these Monday matters?

▪ A group of armed men has occupied the grounds of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge managed by the federal government near Burns, Ore., just 200 some miles west of Boise. This latest in a series of actions against federal control of public lands comes with a lot of talk about the Constitution. But isn't that the document that set up the way we elect our representatives, who appoint people to run federal agencies, who manage these lands for the public good? Is showing up with guns at a refuge the best way to affect change?

▪ It goes without saying that the justice system in Texas would probably like to have a Mulligan in the case of the spoiled young man who got off too easily after killing four people while driving drunk. Now that Ethan Couch has fled to Mexico, is the so-called "affluenza" defense making you ill?

▪ Throughout 2015 it seems like following the stock market was enough to give a person whiplash. The Dow Jones took a 175- point dive in the last day of trading in 2015 and started out the day Monday down 400 points before settling at a 276-point loss . What happened to the theory that economic indicators find smooth sailing during a presidential election year?

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 2:52 PM with the headline "Weigh in on these Monday matters."