The Blog @ Araujo Arts

I want one of these

2010-03-29T10:32:00.000-07:00

Pics, or it didn't happen

2010-03-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

In contrast to the very public signing of the health care "reform" bill earlier this week, President Obama chose to have his signing of the executive order maintaining the status quo in regards to funding abortion away from the eyes of the press. I, for one, have no faith whatsoever that this will stick, because Obama is a known legalized abortion supporter.

Pro-life Democrats: The "Democrat" comes first

2010-03-22T07:23:00.000-07:00

Just so you know, I had practically no faith that the pro-life Democrats would hold out when the chips were down on the health care "reform" debate. I also have ZERO faith that President Obama will come through with his executive order that is supposed to ensure that existing limits on federal funding will remain in place. Obama promised a lot of other things that he ended up not doing, remember? (We're still in Iraq, right? Gitmo is still open, right? Among other things.)

While I may not necessarily agree with having "baby killer" shouted at Rep. Bart Stupak when he was placing his vote, no doubt if he is a pro-lifer worth any salt, it will have hurt to some extent, and his vote will come back to him when (with a heavy emphasis on "when") he finds out that Obama not only did not come through, he actually expanded funding of abortions - if not outright get rid of any limitations to the funding of abortions.

The pro-life Democrats were the last hope that the Democratic Party would have a revival to get back to their blue-collar working class roots (and anyone who believes that the Dems are still such a party is blind beyond belief), and now that hope is officially dashed. The Democrats have no more heroes, folks - only sellouts. We will have to look for our heroes elsewhere.

Do or die for the Democrats? More like Do AND Die

2010-03-17T06:47:00.000-07:00

There is a saying that the definition of insanity is to repeatedly do the same failed thing and expecting a different result each time. That is what we have currently with the Democrats and their latest scheme to pass their enormously unpopular health care "reform" bill. This time around, they're trying to slip this by as having been "deemed" passed without actually having voted on it. This is to get around having to be on record as voting for the bill in one way or the other. If they go this route, this will demonstrate a staggering level of cowardice the likes of which hasn't been seen - well, for a very long time.

Politicians are not known for bravery - their whole purpose in life is to get re-elected, and they get re-elected by having as little as possible on their record that might trip up their re-election chances. Such motivations encourage cowardice in times like now - but this latest legal maneuver would demonstrate a level of cowardice that is surprising even for them. The Dems keep trying to blame the GOP, but this needs to be repeated: If the Dems really wanted this bill passed, they could have done this themselves a long time ago without any GOP interference. The fact that it hasn't been passed now is because of inter-party interference, not GOP interference.

Some time back, I had expressed my dissatisfaction - no, disgust - with the current Democratic Party. Whatever they had been in the past that was worth supporting has long gone, and the current party leadership has demonstrated an embarrassing level of cluelessness and arrogance; so much so that I had hoped that the party would implode so that it might start over. I had taken that back because I knew that there were still a few Dems fighting the good fight, but in recent months, I have given up that hope. The current Dem leadership, of which I regard Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the worst of the bunch, demonstrates a level of blind, naked greed and ambition that is willing to sacrifice its own party members to get their will done - no matter what the cost to their party or individual party members.

Failure to pass this bill would probably be the second best thing to happen. This would at least allow time for the Dems running for re-election this year to scrub themselves clean of this whole health care "reform" mess before November runs around. If the bill does pass - especially in this current " 'deeming' it passed without actually voting on it" scheme, then the best thing to happen would be for the party to implode and the whole sorry rabble to be voted out of office. Then the Democrats that remain would have the choice to either clean their act up, or to simply dissolve as a party. This whole mess is occurring because of a few blind individuals, and their shameless greed should not be rewarded.

Let me also repeat here that this is NOT to say that I am opposed to health care reform. This is also not to say that I favor the current status quo. I am indeed in favor of changing some things. However, the problem with the current Democratic leadership is that they are insistent that their version of health care "reform" is the ONLY way to get it done. Their repeated insistence on getting it passed with their version to the exclusion of all others is all the more reason to oppose it, because the more nutzo schemes they keep coming up with to pass it, the more suspicious the rest of us should get - especially the rank-and-file party members whose own re-election chances are on the line. How did the Dems get themselves into such a sorry mess in the first place?

Coming to your local airport soon? Shoe scanners

2010-03-04T07:08:00.000-08:00

Possibly coming soon to your local airport are: Shoe scanners! No more taking off of your shoes; now this scanner will check your shoes for you. It seems to me, though, that it should also shine your shoes while it is scanning them. :-P

Should Speedy Gonzalez make a return?

2010-03-01T07:53:00.000-08:00

Just for the sake of disclosure (and in case you didn't know it already), I am Hispanic. With that context in place, I want to say that I would like to see Speedy Gonzalez brought back, even if it's just for a movie.

I understand why some would be offended with some of the representations of Mexico and Mexican culture in the Warner Bros' animated shorts from the past. However, to censor them would be to ignore our past and how we used to think, and no one benefits if we try to change the past. For my part, I enjoyed watching Speedy Gonzalez - and yes, even "Slowpoke Rodriguez". Who from my generation doesn't remember that classic line in which Slowpoke appears, when one of the villains says, "Slowpoke Rodriguez, he packs a gon (gun)".

I agree wholeheartedly with this line from the above linked column: "All I know is that I enjoyed his stories as a kid and viewed Speedy as one of the cooler fictional mice around, better than Mighty Mouse, better even than the iconic Mickey. " Folks, I am here to tell you that Speedy was WAY, WAY cooler than the intensely bland Mickey!

So I say, bring back the mouse from Mexico. And his cousin Slowpoke, too. Just give him some Red Bull and maybe it will speed him up some. Just don't offend him, because he does pack a gon - er, gun - after all.

The Dems are headed down the path of insanity

2010-02-26T15:16:00.000-08:00

So now we know how important the passage of the Democrats' health care bill is to them: It means EVERYTHING. No matter the cost, whether fiscal or political, all that matters is that it passes, even if the Dems have to skip steps and take shortcuts to get there.

What Obama wants to get through is not even the bill that was debated on; it's his own creation, and they seem to be patting themselves on the back for having thought up a means of getting past the fact that they no longer have the 60 votes needed to make it filibuster proof.

This desperation to get it through truly scares me. Their desperation is all the more reason to see it killed. Anyone who knows anything about the signs that you're being conned can smell something wrong from a mile away. The more a con man pushes a certain product, the more suspicious anyone should be, and this has been pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed and pushed despite all the problematic aspects of this bill that keeps being pointed out even by other Democrats.

The Dem leadership has of late been trying to color the GOP as the "party of no", but the GOP until last month did not have the votes to stop the Dems had they all wanted this bill passed, but it did not go through because it was the Dems themselves that held it up. Now with this alleged health care "summit" (which was actually one last chance for the GOP to do things their way) out of the way, we saw the Dems' true colors: It's still their bill in their form that they want passed, and now they're going to go with this option that needs only 50% of the Congress rather than 60%.

It's my sincere hope that, just as Dems held up the bill getting through when they had 60 votes, that they will continue to hold it up even when needing only 50 votes. I'm hoping that enough Democrats will finally find the strength of character and the sense of right and wrong to say "Enough!" So far, it's be a sad and sick display of party loyalty at all costs despite the fact that many Dems have problems with this bill.

Many Americans want health care reform, but not in the form of THIS bill. THIS bill needs to die and the process of reform to start over. But no, THIS bill is all that the Dems will accept, and it's THIS bill that needs to go through no matter what. Someone stands to gain probably both in power and in dollars with the passage of THIS bill, and it's why the Dems are fighting so hard, so determinedly, and so illogically to get it through.

Whoever is pulling their strings must really have something on so many of the Democrats, because the Dems are pursuing this with a madman's sense of priorities. Con games should not be rewarded. Blind and slavish party loyalty should not be rewarded. Madness should not be rewarded. THIS bill needs to die, and die quickly.

Shoveled snow for the first time in my life...

2010-02-12T15:49:00.000-08:00

...and I don't know how you people up north do it. Of course, you probably have equipment for stuff like this, instead of the regular garden shovel that I had. Had I a regular snow shovel, this might have gone faster. But then again, the snow in the shovel was heavy enough, so I probably did good just using the garden shovel.

The snow was pretty to look at until I had to shovel it - then I was ready for it to be gone!

Tim Burton's Cheshire Cat

2010-02-10T08:20:00.000-08:00

This is the Cheshire Cat from the upcoming Tim Burton movie, Alice in Wonderland. Just from the fact that Tim Burton directed it, you know it's not going to be like Disney's other Alice in Wonderland flick.

I just may post the pic below around my house to scare away any mice. That many teeth should put any mouse to flight!

New link to a blog

2010-02-04T09:00:00.000-08:00

If you will notice, I have a new link to a blogger that I know. Meet Chris Manno, airline pilot and blogger, and his blog is called Jethead's Blog.

I first met the guy back when we both were "community columnists" in 2005 for our local city paper, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

He's an excellent writer, and a bit crazy, but I guarantee you'll like his stuff.

If you see him piloting your flight, tell him I said "Hi!"

Sarah Palin and the "Tea Party" movement

2010-02-02T06:08:00.000-08:00

I used both Sarah Palin and the movement referred to as the "Tea Party" movement (TPM) in my subject line, but I'm not necessarily saying that they are related to each other. Mainly, I'm keeping an eye on them because of the responses they get from the Democrats.

The Democratic Party likes to pride itself as the "Party of the little people", so given that Palin and the TPM have largely a populist appeal, they should be getting along like two peas in an iPod. Rather, the opposite seems to be true.

What I especially find troubling is the reactions from the Democrats, sometimes using childish insults like calling the Tea Party members "Tea Baggers" (if you don't get it, "tea-bagging" is a reference to a sexual act involving male body parts. You'll just have to use your imagination. I actually had to look this up!). Given that the Dems consider themselves to be the enlightened and intellectual party, it's a bit odd for them to resort to juvenile insults more suited to junior high than for the "marketplace of ideas".

It's because of this odd reaction that I have been keeping an eye on the TPM, and Sarah Palin for that matter. They are connected in some way, and I think that we are in for a treat in the coming months leading up to November when the mid-term elections occur. Well, it's a treat at least from a "political pundit's" (which is what my brother calls me) point of view.

Consider this: The Dems consider former president George W. Bush as a complete idiot, and yet somehow, this moron managed to keep tricking and fooling them into doing all kinds of things time and time again, in a sort of "Bugs Bunny/Elmer Fudd" kind of way. If a complete dumbass like Bush can keep pulling the wool over the eyes of the Dems, what does that suggest about the Dems' intellectual level?

And now we have Sarah Palin and the TPM seeming to be doing the same thing all over again to the Dems; and very much to their annoyance. The Dems don't seem to be connecting to the people they claim to be the party of, and they don't know why. They don't get it. They're missing something, and they don't know what it is. So they respond in the completely logical and responsible way by using name-calling and insults.

The answer is staring them in the face, and this "political pundit" finds it an endless source of entertainment watching the Dems trip all over themselves denying the obvious. I would point it out, but why should I? I need something to keep blogging about from now until November!

Don't think that I'm excusing the GOP here. A bigger bunch of cowards you'll never find. I'll discuss them more in another blog entry. I'm only starting with the Dems because I used to be such a supporter until they went nutzo on me, and I have been so let down by them ever since.

"Hope and Change"? Not so much, it seems. More same-o, I think.

More to come, folks! Sit tight and enjoy the ride!

Rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated

2010-02-01T13:54:00.001-08:00

Hey. It's been awhile, I know. Basically, I just needed a short break, and before I knew it, months passed.

But now with an election season beginning, it's time to resume my blog and my usual brilliant and insightful commentary. Politicians often say and do dumb stuff, and it's folks like me that like to point it out. Why do we keep re-electing these guys anyway?

Since I'm out of practice, I'll be a bit rusty, but I'll try to keep at it until the old form comes back. Who knows - maybe I'll even do some edtoons as well.

Stay tuned, folks. I'm back!

Independence Day Quiz

2009-09-24T06:04:00.000-07:00

Take this quiz and see how ya do. Independence Day Quiz

I got a 26 out of about 30 questions.

Health care debate again: Democrats gone mad

2009-09-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since I posted. Anyway, let's hit the ground running.

I just cannot figure the Democrats out. Why, why, why do they think that the "government option" is the ONLY solution to helping take care of the health care situation? Why are they so dead set on sticking through this - thick-or-thin, come-what-may, hell-or high-water? Why won't they weigh any other alternative, no matter how logical or reasonable?

What has made them so close-minded and intolerant to discussion and debate on this issue that they won't compromise one letter, despite the potential consequences to Obama's reputation as a leader and to their own re-election chances? Why is the passage of this one bill worth sacrificing their political careers and to the "edge" they hold in the House and Senate, this despite legitimate and credible doubts to the plan as they wish to enact it?

It boggles my mind, and it makes me grateful once again that I long ago decided to embrace my "independent" status after having supported Democratic candidates for so long (and I keep having to say this: Just because I no longer consider myself a Democrat does not mean that I am now a Republican. The GOP drives me nuts as well). Otherwise, I too would have been lost in their foggy-minded insanity.

I can hazard a guess, mainly because like I said, I was once one of them before I came to my senses. I believe that the Dems see the passage of this nutty GovOp (as I've been calling the "government option") as so crucial and primary to everything else is because they are of a mindset that belongs to the past: the left-wing 1960s.

I believe that this current crop of Dems, which is made up of a lot of aging baby boomers who grew up in that era, feel that this is their one last, best chance of finally implementing their dream of a (bracing myself for the potential criticism here, because there is no other way to say this but to call it) Communist-style health care system in which it's all free - paid by the obscenely wealthy overprivileged class that robs from the rest of us poor dumb slobs who wouldn't know thier anus from their belly button if the Dems weren't there to tell us.

In other words, the Dems believe they know better than us on what's best for us. And they decided that this GovOp is the best for us - despite arguments and evidence to the contrary, because this idea came into its full flower in that holiest of holy eras of the 1960s. It's a dogma, in other words - so right and correct that to try to say otherwise is blasphemy. When the rest of us unwashed rabble dare to question the GovOp dogma, we are insulting their god.

Even a mass of 50,000 or 1 million (depending on whose stats you believe, but I think it would be easy to know the difference between a group of 50,000 people and a million of them. Someone's yanking our chain here) marching on D.C. this past weekend was not enough of a sign that perhaps the GovOp is not the only alternative out there.

No, the GovOp is still the way to go for them. They favor this plan that will prove nihilistic to their re-election chances if they pass it anyway - which they are hard at work to insure that it does. Well, bully for them if they get themselves voted out in the process. I had long said that the party needed to implode from within and rebuild if it's ever going to return to its former glory. Perhaps we are finally going to witness that belief of mine coming into action.

Thing is, they are proving so short-sighted that they aren't even thinking that if they succeed in passing it and do indeed get themselves voted out in 2010 and 2012, who's to say that the new members of the House and Senate - who will most likely be a lot of Republicans - won't turn around and dump that plan right off the bat - especially if the GovOp proves to be as disastrous as some have been saying?

So then the Dems will have pushed and pushed and pushed themselves out of D.C., all for a plan that will do much more damage than what it will allegedly solve. In the process, they will have given the Democratic party a black eye that will take a very long time to heal. And a self-inflicted black eye at that. There is no other word for it than "insanity"; dumb, blind, feverish loyalty to an outdated set of values from another era. Hmm. Maybe there is something to that "natural selection" idea after all.

The truth is that there is no comparison to Hitler

2009-09-03T05:38:00.001-07:00

Holy Sauerkraut, Batman! Pat Buchanan sounds like a Hitler apologist! Did Hitler want war?

Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Party, and the rise and fall of both, is a history lesson that will be studied for a long time to come - and it will certainly be used over and over again by political activists of all stripes seeking to persuade discussions to go their way. Basically, the formula is to link your opposition to Hitler in some way or fashion, and the rest, theoretically, takes care of itself.

Much has been made lately of comparing President Obama to Hitler, and there has even been altered pictures circulating that has Obama with Hitler's toothbrush mustache. While left-wingers may cry foul over that, they are far from innocent in using Hitler for political aims. For pretty much all of President Bush's terms of office, left wingers had tried to link Hitler to Bush and the war in Iraq.

The truth is that neither president nowhere near approaches Hitler's lust for power nor his territorial ambitions - and while you may argue over how much loss of human life each has caused, their numbers nowhere nears the staggering loss of life that Hitler brought about. It's just not a valid comparison - and yet that won't stop the comparisons from being made. There is a saying that the definition of insanity is to do the same failed thing every time and expecting a different result each time. Both left and right wingers cling to the Hitler tactic because it is a lazy shorthand way of labeling the opposition instead of actually debating the issues. It's for them that "Godwin's law" was made.

Let me ask this: How many of you had your mind changed after you heard that "X" is just like Hitler? Were any of you a Bush supporter until left-wingers compared him to Hitler, then you switched sides? Did any of you back Obama until you saw those pics of him with a Hitler mustache? The truth is that Hitler and Stalin were monsters the likes of which had never been seen before, and hopefully won't be seen again.

To try to turn the tragic, painful lessons brought about by their murderous actions just to score cheap political points is an insult to all those who suffered and died under their respective regimes. Politics is a dirty, ugly business, and it often is reduced to childish and immature behavior just to gain some edge over their opponent.

Having said all that, this is not to say that there aren't any instances of comparing "Person X" to Hitler, just that the Hitler card has been played so much that whenever it shows up, it's mostly because of that player's intellectual laziness rather than through any valid comparison. The overuse of the Hitler and the Nazi card also has the effect of blurring or diluting the true lessons that can be learned from his actions, and that's something that should NEVER be forgotten.

I'll save that discussion for another time, because I want to be able to deal with this thoroughly.

My high school yearbook picture

2009-08-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

Check it out; my high school yearbook pic. I had hair back then, and a bad attitude. And poor taste in fashion too, it seems. Trust me though, I was hardly alone in that.

Public option for healthcare: A delusional fantasy

2009-08-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

Some time back on Facebook, I had called the public option for health care a delusional fantasy. I was asked by a fellow blogger to explain. I had stated that I would cover this topic on my blog so that I can go into more detail. Well, getting to that took longer than I expected, so I apologize for that. Anyways, here is why I call a public option a delusional fantasy.

It is a fantasy because to have a "free health care for all" plan will fail by the simple fact that there is simply not enough money to support such a program. We will not be able to tax the rich enough to support it, because there aren't enough rich people to tax. And if you tax them too much (which you will have to do in order to get the funds for the public option), then they will either not be rich anymore, or they will take their money and leave the country. In either instance, we will be "SoL", because then who is left to tax for what will become the motherof all money pits? Ya got it, bucko. The rest of us slobs.

Plus, if employers are given the option of paying a private HMO for its employees vs not paying anything and letting them sign up for the gov't plan, what option do you think they will take? What employer would be willing to take on the added expense of paying for a private HMO for its employees when they wouldn't have to? And what private HMO could stay in business if employers drop them in favor of gov't plans? Those private HMOs will then go out of business, thus leaving the public "option" as the sole remaining option.

The argument that the gov't is simply trying to provide "competition" for private HMOs is a false argument, because there is no way a private HMO can compete with the gov't, who doesn't have to worry about making a profit, thus it can set its own prices - including prices that would be ruinous for private HMOs. This is simple economics that even I know. Soon we will be throwing money at an organization (the gov't HMO, that is) that has no incentive or motivation (like profit) to be doing a professional - or even a good - job in providing your health care.

I call the public option "delusional" because that is exactly what it is to expect that a change from a plan run by profit-mongers - that is, private HMOs - to a plan run by power-mongers - that is, a gov't plan that will become a football in the hands of politicians and lobbyists. Why would we expect that a simple exchange of mongers will make things better? At least with the private HMOs, we can hit them where it hurts by shopping around when they start putting profits ahead of service. Not so when the public option eventually becomes the only option.

Having said all this, this does not suggest that I don't think we need health care reform. Far from it. What I DON'T support is the belief that "health care reform" is totally synonymous with "gov't plan". In fact, I would view them as polar opposites. I am fully aware that private HMOs pull a lot of funny business and I would totally support true health care reform that helped to curb their abuses. More on those alternatives in my next or upcoming blog entry.

Promotions that epic failed

2009-08-05T05:29:00.000-07:00

Imagine being the PR exec when something like this occurs:

10 Promotional Stunts that Horribly Backfired

Public vs Private health insurance plans

2009-07-28T06:52:00.000-07:00

A good buddy of mine discussed health care in his blog, and it brought up a question that I keep asking myself. This question is not so much directed at him and those who responded in his comments section that followed (but he is free to respond here, of course!), but rather this is me thinking out loud. That question is this:

Will a federal health insurance plan (FHIP) do any better than the private system that we have now?

First, understand that I tried very hard to keep this question from sounding like I'm some sort of anti-government kook. However, I can't shake the idea that a FHIP will become yet another political football whose coverage will vary depending upon who's in office. I also can't shake the fear that a FHIP will become the tool of political lobbyists for pharmaceutical corporations and various other associations allegedly based on "health services". In other words, I can't shake the belief that certain illnesses will get preferential coverages under a FHIP because a certain PAC happens to have powerful lobbyists working for it rather than coverage being based on actual need.

Granted, there will be a "shake-out" period for any FHIP that happens to get off the ground, but can we afford to wait until such a shake-out is complete? And any medical or pharmaceutical PAC would want the "shake-out" period to last as long as possible so that they can keep taking advantage of the uncertainty to work in as much influence into the final plan as they can. I can't shake the feeling that a FHIP is going to be a gigantic financial boondoggle that will do more to hurt health care than help, because we are depending upon politicians to not resort to type by using a FHIP to help their re-election chances rather than to help the people for whom it was intended: the currently uninsured. Can any of you honestly trust politicians to not think of themselves first before the constituencies that they serve - especially with something that is going to be so personal and primal to our lives as our health and health care?

There are some other things I can add, but now is a good time to stop and get some feedback before I continue. However, I will say that it really would give politicians' word more sway if they made themselves subject to the very same FHIP that they expect us to take up (see my previous blog entry). If it's going to be mandatory for us to take it, then it should be the same for them. As foreign a concept as this might be for them, if they would lead by example, then it would speak volumes more of their faith in a FHIP than exempting themselves from taking up such a plan while requiring us to take it up.

Mr President, sign up for your own health care plan!

2009-07-23T12:12:00.001-07:00

I was sent this article about the Democratic Party not being required to sign up for the health care plan that will be expected of us to sign up for if it passes. As I often see in many Internet chats: WTF?

I say that they should set the example and require that this mandatory sign-up also include themselves. If it's good enough for them, then it should be good enough for the rest of us. Otherwise, they're setting themselves up to look like a bunch of friggin' hypocrites.

Yeah, I know what you're thinking: "Gasp! A politician lied! That's never happened before!" Still, if they want us to swallow this bitter medicine, then it will down easier if they share our pain.

Sotomayor's limits on "empathy" now known

2009-07-15T12:26:00.000-07:00

Only yesterday I had asked about the limits of Judge Sonia Sotomayor's "empathy" - specifically, whether it extended beyond Justice Ruth Ginsburg's level of empathy. Ginsburg apparently believes that there are a class of people out there that "we don't want so many of", which means of course that she believes there are a class of "undesirables".

Does Sotomayor likewise believe in "undesirables"? I held out hope that her talk of "empathy" was more than just talk, but when the chips were down and the opportunity presented itself for her to publicly demonstrate her level of "empathy", she fell flatter than her "wise Latina" quip. She refused to answer directly on her views of the abortion issue.

If she's pro-choice, then why not state so? It's not like the GOP could do anything to stop her ever reaching the Supreme Court. But if she's pro-life - ah, there's a potential hitch, because if there were anything that could derail this "lock" and get the Democrats to vote against her, it's a public admission from Sotomayor that she's actually pro-life.

No, wait. Wait.

If Sotomayor were truly empathetic, then she would be empathetic no matter the political cost to her. That's what being liberal means, right? Supporting the "little guy" - damn the consequences? Ginsburg betrayed this hallowed liberal ideal by her admission that she believes in a class of undesirables, but it's still not too late for Sotomayor. C'mon, Sonia, do it. Do it for the little guy. Damn "The Man", Sonia - Damn "The Man"!

How far does Sotomayor's empathy go?

2009-07-14T05:59:00.001-07:00

Much has been made by the right about Judge Sonia Sotomayor's "empathy" standard when it comes to her judgments. It's not so much that that I'm questioning, but rather, how far does it extend? Will she extend her empathy to the still-unidentified group of people that her possible future colleague Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had stated that we "don't want to have too many of (quote is from last page)"? Who are those undesirables that Ginsburg refers to, anyway? Is it perhaps related to this?

If Sotomayor is willing to extend her empathy to this group of people, then I might actually be able to support her entry into the Supreme Court.

My take on Sarah Palin's resignation

2009-07-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've been asked enough times about my take on Sarah Palin's resignation that I should probably go ahead and give it: I say more power to her.

The left wingers are terrified of her. Why do I say that? Damn, man - the election was so last year, and yet the lefties can't stop checking on her and trashing her when they get the chance. David Letterman's stupid human trick of a Palin joke succeeded in only giving him a temporary ratings boost, but his joke on Palin's 14-year-old daughter was beyond moronic. And yet, he's only the most recent example of the left not being able to turn away from Palin.

Why are the lefties frightened of Palin to the point that they have adopted obsessive/compulsive habits over her? It's because they know - either consciously or subconsciously - of the potential populist power she has. They know if that if she ever got her act together, she can be a genuine threat to their way of doing things. And on top of that, she's very attractive - a "MILF"("Mother I'd Like to F**k"), according to some of the cruder slang terms out there. The lefties act very much like a 4th grade boy who find himself attracted to a girl in his class, but he doesn't know what to make of his feelings, so he hits her.

So far Palin seems to be her own worst enemy, which the lefties can't help but delight in whenever she seems to stumble in the public arena - but their reactions speak volumes of their not-so-secret fear of her. Their reactions are their worst enemy - it is because of the way they react to their fears that Palin is still in the limelight. How many other losing vice presidential candidates do you know of who still get this much attention more than 6 months after the election? Ain't that ironic that she's still in the limelight because of the left's obsession with her?

But let's not forget the right-wingers here. The right wingers blame her for John McCain's loss to Barack Obama, which is stupid beyond belief. What happened was that they mishandled Palin. They had a game-changer in her and didn't know what to do with her. I say a game-changer because to this day the left is STILL keeping tabs on her. Anyway, rather than blame themselves for their own bungling, they blame her instead.

Palin also represents a contrast to how the GOP wants to do things nowadays. Nowadays they are trying to be more "centrist", while Palin does not. Ultimately, I feel that the GOP is a bunch of cowards because of their constant failure to back up what is alleged to be their beliefs. Does the left worry about whether or not they should back up their beliefs? Hell no. At least the left has the courage to state what they believe in - no matter how stupid and wrongheaded it may be.

That actually leads to a question I always wondered: Which is worse - to be right yet cowardly in defending those views, or to be wrong and yet brave enough to stand up for those views? Well, anyway, Palin at least has the courage of her convictions that many in the GOP do not. So she scares the right as well.

And now we have the instance of Palin on her own now - unmoored to an office and its responsibilities. This makes Palin a rogue element - or perhaps a loose cannon. In either case, both the left and the right are watching her very carefully to see what she does next, which is anyone's guess. Perhaps that's how she wants it - them wondering what she plans to do next.

And you know what? A part of me hopes that she gets her act together. I have to admit that the potential she has stirs the mind of what kind of impact she could have once she has an idea of what she wants to do. I also hope that she runs as an independent in 2012. Oh, would that be most fascinating! A Palin, organized and a potent political force, running as an independent. I can't help but feel that such a scenario could only be endlessly entertaining for people like me.

Palin in 2012!

Final chapter of the Benny Baloney story

2009-07-08T06:28:00.000-07:00

Okay folks - here is the final chapter of the Benny Baloney story, and it's a long one because I wanted to wrap it up during the week. I hope you enjoyed the story

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Only now am I beginning to notice that Red's conk to my noggin not only left a knot, it also broke skin. I feel blood trickling down, and my head is starting to pound like a jackhammer. I've had hangovers that made me feel worse, though. I follow Red up the metal staircase, but I wish it weren't so damned long. I finally reach Red just in time to hear her curse a blue streak.

“Just found out that you went to the observation deck, I see.” I tell Red. “Might as well give it up, toots. There's no other way out.” Red looks one way, then another as her breath gets more shallow. Then she stops and looks straight at me, declaring, “I’m not going back to prison”. Before I can react, she suddenly disappears over the railing just before I pass out from the pain in my head.

"BENNY!" Betty yells in my face. "You awake? C'mon, wake up!" I suddenly jolt up to a sitting position only to feel my head pound like thunder. I fall back to what I discover is Trixie's lap. "Howyadoin' boss?" Trixie inquires from above me and upside down. "I wish I had been doing something fun that was worth having this headache." I reply just as Betty hands me an icebag.

As I apply the icebag to the knot on my head, I tell Betty, “So fill me in, kiddo." "From the looks of it, you chased Red up to this observation deck, and apparently she jumped over the railing to escape. You tried to stop her, but passed out.” “Oh. Oh yeah, that’s right.” I respond as it all starts coming back to me. I then look her way and ask, “Did you find Red?”

Betty's face becomes crestfallen. "No Benny, we did not. The cops are still looking for her. There's only the river below us, and we're high up enough that diving from such a height would have knocked her out. The cops just now sent divers to the river bottom." I get myself to my feet, despite the dizziness and the ache in my head. "There's still some things we can check out, Betty. Follow me."

"But we already searched Red's hideout, Benny." says Betty as we enter the room. "No Betty, you didn't." I scan the room. "What do you mean?" "Because you didn't find anything. There's a reason it's called a hideout." I point to a spot on the floor. "Here" "Just scratches, Benny." "But note the pattern, Betty - back and forth." I shove the desk aside and start feeling the floor.

My fingers finally find a notch and I get enough of a fingerhold to lift the false floor up. "Bingo." "A secret vault!" Betty exclaims. A quick examination of the contents reveals a treasure trove of incriminating evidence. "We got goods here to finger other mob bosses, business leaders, and politicians. Even if Red surfaces again, her empire is dead." We gather up the rest of the vault's contents.

Trixie notices us coming out with armloads of documents "Whatchat got dere, Boss?" "This is how we’re getting’ paid for this case even if we didn't nab Red." When the police lieutenant shows up, we hand him the goods. “Thank you, detectives. You’ve done this city a huge favor.” “All in a day’s work, officer.” I manage to reply, despite the soreness on my forehead. I'm gettin' too old for this.

"Yes, Officer. Thanks for lettin' us know. Goodbye." I haven't even hung up the phone yet before Betty’s asking "What'd he say?" "They ain't found Red yet. They'll keep looking and will let us know if anything turns up." "Drat! It's been 2 days, Benny! Where could she be?" I light up a cig as I say, "All the more reason I shoulda stopped her when I had the chance."

"C'mon, Benny - don't beat yourself up over this. You had a concussion, you know!" "Kid, it was just a conk on the noggin. I coulda shook it off." "Ben, we got all that stuff on her anyway, so we got something done." "Yeah Betts, we did. But not everything I had hoped to do. Ya know I hate unfinished business." "Why'd she do it, Benny? Why'd she leap over that railing? I don't get it."

“Hard to say, kiddo. Before she jumped, she said she wasn’t going back to prison – that’s our only clue. But she had to know that water was below – I don’t see her as the suicidal type.” I take a couple of drags on my cig as I scan the city skyline outside my window. “I have a sneaky suspicion, Betty, that we ain’t seen the last of Rhode Island Red.”

(The End)

I am grateful that Sarah Palin resigned

2009-07-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

I am grateful that Sarah Palin resigned, because the news finally stopped talking about Michael Jackson. Don't get me wrong - I share the sadness of Jackson's early death and I hope for the best for his children. But enough is enough already; report on Jackson when there is something to report! The 24/7 coverage was ridiculous especially since there's other more important things to cover in the meantime.

And yes, I think Palin is setting herself up for 2012.

By the way, Happy 4th of July. :-D

Chucky's little sister?

2009-07-02T05:56:00.000-07:00

Why this doll hasn't been made into a horror movie villain by now, I'll never know.

Chapter 4

2009-06-27T08:02:00.000-07:00

Here is this week's installments of my current Benny Baloney PI story. Next week will be the finale.

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Rule #1 for Goon Psychology 101: When the lights go out, goons get spooked and start firing. Me, Betty and Trixie immediately hit the floor as the gun battle begins. With bullets whizzing over us, we crawl to the one door that has light shining at the bottom of it. We hear one goon fall, then another as Red yells, "QUIT SHOOTING, YOU IDIOTS!' as she swats at them.

We all manage to scamper outside into the alley, just in time to hear the police sirens in the distance. "Sounds like the boys are almost here," I whisper to Trixie and Betty. I hand Betty the gun I nabbed off one of the mooks while crawling past him. "Here. Take this, go meet the cops, and lead them down to Red's hideout. I'm going back in to nab Red." Betty nods her head and darts off, followed by Trixie.

Sneaking back into Red's hideout turned out to be a piece o' cake, 'cause Red is busy yelling at her goons. "We lost our ticket outta here, you morons! Now the cops are about to be crawling all over the place! Upstairs - NOW!" I then hear the scamperings of little goon feet charging up the stairs, so I tiptoe my way back to the room where I was before. Then I see stars, and I ain't talkin' Hollywood.

I manage to keep myself from going completely out despite being pistol-whipped by Red. I still have trouble keeping up as she darts down the alleyway and towards the river. However, she runs into a dead-end, and she knows it,'cause she wheels around to face me and pulls out her gun. "Not another step, detective!"

"You have no bullets, Red. Otherwise you would have shot me back there when you had the chance." Red grunts "Ngh! You and your deductive reasoning!" She then hurls her gun at me, which I easily sidestep, but it was meant to be a distraction anyway for her to slip away to a set of stairs that I didn't see from my angle. Given that she is wearing high heels, she makes good time as she clanks up the metal steps.

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Chapter 3 of Benny Baloney

2009-06-19T06:07:00.000-07:00

Below is this week's postings of my current Benny Baloney story that is currently going on in my Facebook page. Big finish is coming up!

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I shake down every informant I know that might know anything about where Rhode Island Red hides out, but it ain't until I get to Sammy the Snitch that I finally get someone who knows something. "I want something in return for this information, Benny." I yank Sammy up by his lapels and growl, "Okay, you'll keep all your teeth." Sammy audibly gulps and says, "Good deal. Okay, here's what I found out..."

Me and Trixie are staking out the riverside dive known as the Gingerbread House. This is where Sammy the Snitch said that Red runs her operation. Normally I don't bring Trixie, but I need her in case Betty needs help while I concentrate on nabbing Red. Plus, Trixie has her famous "Joisey Rules Uppercut" - of which I have felt personally, so I know that she can take care of herself. And protect Betty, if need be.

"Remember the rules, Trixie: no swingin' until I say so" I whisper as we enter The Gingerbread House. "Got it." she whispers back. We stroll in and I case the joint as she follows close behind. It's the usual crowd of thugs, goons, bonebreakers and other mooks. A normal night, in other words. I start towards the bar when I feel a gun barrel in my back. I then hear Trixie mutter, "Aw nerts."

With guns in our backs, Trixie and I are led to a floor below the Gingerbread House, and into a large room that has Red standing next to Betty, who is seated on a chair. "Benny!" exclaims Betty. "Hey, I was just having a chat with Red! We've been talking it over and..." Suddenly one of Red's goons interrupts by cocking a gun aimed at Betty's head. "...and, uh - I guess we're done talking now..."

Betty turns to Red and exclaims, "So all that girl talk was just for show eh? This whole time, you were just setting me up to be a bargaining chip!" "You're far too trusting, my dear" Red replied with a smirk. "Well, at least allow me to finish this excellent tea". Betty takes several sips, savoring each sip. Suddenly she hurls the saucer upward, hitting the light fixtures. Everything goes pitch black...

Next chapter of Benny Baloney

2009-06-12T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hey, folks. This week I've been working on the next chapter of my latest Benny Baloney PI story. Below is this week's installment:

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"Okay, Benny - so what do we do next about Red?" asked my private eye business partner (and kid sister) Betty. I scratch my 3-day beard on this poser. "Well kid, she got the drop on me, and it's only 'cause she wanted me to owe her a favor that I'm still here now." I then snap my finger. "But YOU don't owe her no favors - so bend an ear kiddo, 'cause here's what we're gonna do..."

My secretary Trixie is able to open envelopes using only her fingernail. She claims she learned it in secretary school. I'm watching her rip through today's mail as I'm pacing back and forth waiting for word from Betty. "Any calls yet, Trixie?" "Have ya hoid da phone ring, boss? No! Now siddown, shaddap, and take it easy! Ol' Betts is a smart kid! She'll figger dis out!" Trixie says in her Jersey accent.

All this sitting and pacing waiting for Betty to call ain't doin' me a hill o' beans. Trixie's watching me and shaking her head. "Boss, why dontcha go woik on uddah cases? Yer drivin' me nertz wid all yer walkin' around!" She plops down a stack of folders of still active cases and orders, "Here. Look t'ru dese and find a case you can woik on in da meantime!" She's right, of course, so I start sorting.

I find a case to work on, a mobster by the name of Tweets Flappywings, when the phone rings. I grab the phone and yell "Betty!" "Guess again" a female voice coos on the other side. I sneer out "Red". "Yes! And nice try, sending in your sister like that. She's my guest now." "If you do anything...!" "No, Benny - I hold the cards here. I'll be in touch." She then hangs up, and I slam the phone down.

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Need I say? To be continued...!

See you next week

2009-06-05T08:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts in recent day, folks, but I've have had some medical issues to deal with lately. Details of such may be forthcoming - I'll think about it. It's not so much that it's anything shocking, but that I tend to be a private person about such matters - that is, I am not comfortable posting publicly what I regard as a personal matter. I hope you understand.

Anyway, I'll try to resume my regular blogging schedule next week.

In the meantime, your good thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated.

My take on Sonia Sotomayor

2009-05-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

Well, it didn't take long for others to ask my take on President Obama's pick for the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor. The quick answer: I'm still working on that.

However, I will say that it kind of bugs me that she wasn't picked so much on her judicial abilities as she was picked based on her race and gender. Would a white male of the very same ideological qualities and personality type been nominated? So what does that make Sotomayor - a token Hispanic and woman? Is that something to be proud of?

I've always said all along that if I am ever fortunate to be famous for my opinion writing or my editorial cartoons (or both), then I want to be known for those skills alone, and not that I happen to be Hispanic while exercising those skills. Don't get me wrong - I am proud to be Hispanic, and I most certainly want Hispanics to succeed in life, and I certainly support Hispanics that have "made it" to try to be role models for other Hispanics to follow in their footsteps.

But...

...if I'm ever given the privilege of being a role model for other opinion writers or editorial cartoonists (regardless of their race or gender), then I want it to be because I have proven to be that good at those skills. You know what I'm saying? In other words, I want to be known as an opinion writer and edtoonist who is Hispanic - I DON'T want to be known as a Hispanic opinion writer and edtoonist, because being Hispanic is NOT why I write and draw.

I am Hispanic - I had no control over that, it simply is what I was born into. Again, while I'm proud to be Hispanic, I am not Hispanic because I worked at it and became one; I can't take an achievement pride over being Hispanic, because I did nothing to become one.

However, I am also proud of being an opinion writer and an edtoonist. That IS something that I worked at. And that I happen to be a Hispanic who is from the "wrong side of the tracks" and still became a writer and artist is gravy.

Some of you might be thinking that I want to hide my Hispanicness. Far from it. However, being a "Hispanic writer and artist" is too limiting, because this implies that I will limit myself to "Hispanic" themes and topics (however that is defined). No, I demand the freedom that comes with being a writer and artist PERIOD. No cultural definer attached.

Thus, I have to wait and see how things turn out with Sotomayor and how she is presented, and how she is received. If she's qualified to be a Supreme Court judge because she is Hispanic, then you might as well nominate me too, because I likewise satisfy that qualification.

If she's going to be the token Hispanic on the bench, then I can't support that, because she did nothing more to become Hispanic than I did. Am I supposed to feel some sort of justice done or vindication for the country's past and present racist sins against Hispanics just because a sitting president uses tokenism to pick his candidate? Isn't that instead, something of an insult - that Sotomayor would not have otherwise been nominated had she not been something that she had no control over being?

To be nominated just for being Hispanic, I think, is about as bad as being denied nomination just for being Hispanic. In either instance, it's the cover, not the book's contents, that are being judged. So was Sotomayor a token nomination? Time will tell.

Texas Dems stall legislative activity in Austin

2009-05-24T09:58:00.000-07:00

So. Who's going to win in the short term and the long term from this?

It seems to me that the Dems are going to look the worse for having blocked the passage of this bill, and it could end up jeopardizing the passage of other bills. My question is, is the Voter ID bill worth the bad PR that the Dems might get if the other bills go down as a result?

I don't see any good coming from this. All the GOP has to do is stand pat and let the Dems hold things up, and they'll end up looking like the bad guys. I'm going to keep this blog entry short, because I want to see how this plays out. To be continued....

Benny Baloney, P.I.

2009-05-22T16:31:00.000-07:00

Benny Baloney is a 1940's private eye character in the tradition of Sam Spade and others like him. Thing is, I created him on a lark, but my readers have enjoyed him so much that I've pretty much created a little universe of him and the surrounding characters. It's been awhile since I've written a BB story, but yet again on a lark, I started a BB story on my Facebook page. Having gotten something of a rhythm going, I'll post to there maybe about 3-5 times a week, and each Friday I'll post the whole week's worth of work here as a way of archiving it. Here is what I had this week:

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Benny Baloney and the case of Rhode Island Red

She was a hot lookin' dame, with hair so red it set off smoke alarms and legs so long giraffes were jealous. But I've been in this business long enough to know that hot dames often pack trouble in their purses, and hers was named Smith & Wesson. I should have seen this coming, but I could never resist a pretty face. Just another day in my line of work.

Her name was Rhode Island Red, and she had been running the mob on the south side of town for the past 6 months. "Sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, detective?", she said as she waved her pistol in my face. "Red, you know that sticking my nose where it don't belong comes with the job." She answered by conking my noggin with her gun, dropping me to my knees. As I shook that off, I heard the gun click.

I ain't chattin' with St. Pete yet, so I raise my head to see what Red's up to. Gun still pointed at me, I can see the gears turning in her head. "No" she says, as an evil but sexy grin spreads on her trademark red lips. "No, not this time. This time, I want the great detective to owe me one." She steps back and says, "But I will leave a parting gift." Without looking away she says "Boys, it's playtime".

I wake up face down sucking sidewalk with my head ringing like the xylophone section of the Philharmonic Orchestra. I then remember that Red's goons had roughed me up with their watermelon-sized mitts. As I get to my feet shaking the cobwebs, I notice a notecard in my trenchcoat pocket. I spot the red lipstick print right away. "Until next time, Mr. Baloney." Underneath the lipstick print is "SWAK".

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Rhode Island Red is a totally new character, who has a red-themed schtick going with her name, appearance, and so forth. What's up with the red theme? I don't know yet. It could be that it's her favorite color, or that she's trying to draw attention to herself, or some other reason. All I know is that I will know her reasons before you will. :-)

Anyway, I'll try to make this a weekly thing, and feel free to offer your suggestions and criticisms. It's still my hope to make a website of my previous BB stories, and with some time off coming up, I might finally get around to doing that. And of course, I'll include the RIR story in there, as well.

Dang! Another week went by just like that!

2009-05-16T07:09:00.000-07:00

Sorry, folks. Just been busy lately. However, if you are on facebook, at least I've been more consistent in posting there. :-D

Still, this is for more detailed responses instead of the mundane stuff that is usually posted on facebook or Twitter. Must ... get ... back ... to blogging...

Poor Dumb Dirk

2009-05-08T05:59:00.000-07:00

All that money and all that contact with who knows how many women, and Dallas Maverick's star Dirk Nowitzki chooses this woman. I'm disappointed in ya, Bud! It sounds like Dirk has the "lost puppy dog" syndrome, in which he falls for sob stories. Being tender-hearted ain't necessarily a bad thing, but you can't let it make you stupid - especially if you're a multi-millionaire star player for an NBA team with championship aspirations.

Surely he and other athletes were warned of such women. They're out there, and people like Dirk are like honey to these bees. The Dirks of the world simply can't afford - financially and metaphorically - to be stupid in times like this. I would imagine the temptation is enormous when women are throwing themselves at your feet. Heck, I'll be honest in saying that I don't know what I'd do in that situation; I've never had lots of beautiful women throw themselves at my feet - editorial cartoonists just don't get stuff like that happening to them.

But I'd like to think that I'd have enough willpower to realize that these women don't love me for me, they want me for my money. I can imagine that Dirk is also lonely. Still, you can't let loneliness make you stupid. I'm not sure what I'd advise Dirk to do if he ever asked me, but he was told by friends and family about this woman, and it looks like he should have listened. I suppose that's what he needs to do: let friends and family meet whomever he has an interest in and let them tell him what they think. Being in love, it is said, can make you blind - and it's in such times that you need your family and friends to help you see straight.

But relying on them telling you such things is one thing - listening to them when they tell you is another. Hopefully now Dirk will be more willing to listen next time - but then again the "lost puppy dog" syndrome can be hard to shake. In a very real sense, this whole embarrassing episode could turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to him - provided that he learns the lessons from it. Time will tell.

There's piranhas, and then there's....

2009-05-05T05:49:00.001-07:00

The pics below came from an e-mail that was forwarded by a friend of mine. I didn't know piranhas got that big!

Funny thing is, I had jokingly told someone that that piranha is now what's for dinner. He asked if piranhas are edible by humans. I told him that I honestly had no idea. A quick Google search shows that it is. How do you catch piranha, though? Perhaps roll up your sleeve and stick your arm in the Amazon river until some of the piranhas bite, then take your arm out of the water? That's when someone would walk up and say, "You know, you could use this..." and show me a fishing rod. Yeah, I could go the wimpy route...

So should Miss California just lie so that she can win?

2009-05-01T05:24:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how I feel about this whole story of Miss California stating her true beliefs on the issue of gay marriage.

So would it have been better if she just lied? I mean, it wasn't a political office or an ambassadorship she was running for, after all. Perhaps it would have been better to not have asked politically loaded questions in the first place, but that's probably going to be coming even more and more now. Perhaps beauty queens and others who vie for such public positions should just prepare their responses in advance so that they say what the judges want to hear.

She was asked for her opinion, she gave it, and no doubt the judges told themselves "Hell, do we want the PR firestorm that will come if she's made Miss USA? Let's just give the crown to somebody safe so that we won't have to deal with this messy situation." So I ask again - would it have been better if Miss California had lied instead?

Despite rumors to the contrary...

2009-04-27T06:24:00.001-07:00

...today is not my unbirthday.

And let me proactively thank all the well-wishers out there.

Sorry, folks!

2009-04-25T07:17:00.000-07:00

Sorry for not posting this week! It's been a bit crazy lately!

However, I will strive to get back to at least a twice-a-week schedule.

Obama's "Bare Breast of Justice" moment

2009-04-16T15:36:00.001-07:00

Got your attention, did I? ;-)

And no, I am not referring to the "Obama girl", in case you're wondering.

Instead, I refer to his recent visit to Georgetown University, in which he asked that a symbol representing the name of Jesus be covered up for the duration of the speech. Despite this story that states that it wasn't just the name of Jesus being covered up, to even ask a Catholic university to cover up its religious symbols - particularly those related to its founder - is offensive. As much as I hate to use that word because it is overused, I still can't think of a more approriate word in this instance. Imagine Obama asking a synagogue to cover up its Stars of David or its menorahs or to ask a Muslim group to cover up its symbols while he gave a speech and see if those groups don't likewise rise up in protest.

The reason I titled this blog entry "Obama's 'Bare Breast of Justice' moment" is because it reminds me very much of the John Ashcroft story from 2002, in which he had the bare breasted statue of justice hidden behind a curtain. Most stories state that he was simply tired of photographers making concentrated efforts to have that statue in the background whenever they photographed him. Even so, why not simply move to another location whenever he had press conferences so that the problematic breast wouldn't be in the background?

And the same with Obama in Georgetown: Why not have the press conference in another location where those antagonizing symbols won't hover in the background teasing him as he spoke? Being that Ashcroft and Obama are very visible public figures, having the bare breasts of statues of justice or to have a religions' symbols covered up can only be taken in the wrong way, and given their level of education along with their length of experience in the public eye, it's amazing that this didn't occur to them. However, if they knew it would be problematic and did it anyway, then this would be worse, because it would then suggest an arrogance that a public official shouldn't have if they are to represent the people. So - this means that Ashcroft and Obama are either appalingly clueless or stupidly arrogant, and I don't know which would be worse.

As bad as it was for Obama to ask Georgetown to cover up its symbols, it was even worse for them to comply! The university should have offered to move the press conference to another location - because a sitting American president has no right to ask a religious faith to cover up its symbols while he's present. This could easily be made into an argument of the State interfering with the matters of the Church, and if it's wrong to breach that wall of separation in one way, then it's wrong going the other way as well. This was poorly handled by all parties involved.

I wish I could believe that this won't happen again, but I'm pretty sure that it will.

Oh, Noes! Caroline Kennedy rejected as ambassador to the Vatican!

2009-04-15T05:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, that's it. Whoever is doing the vetting for President Obama needs to be fired. What kind of dumbass picks three prochoice Catholics to be the ambassador to the Vatican? I mean, freakin' Caroline Kennedy??? What the hell, man? And why is it that Obama can bow to a sheik, but not have the decency to find a prolifer to be an ambassador to the Vatican? Geez!

Before you start bashing on the Vatican about turning down Kennedy for the ambassadorship, consider that she's only available for the position because her state turned her down for the senate seat. So she's been dissed twice now (she's probably saying to herself right now, "Where's the love, man?"). And before you start saying that the Vatican turned down Kennedy because she's a woman, I say pfft! The previous ambassador the the Vatican was a woman!

The Vatican is entirely within its rights to accept only those candidates whose views are consistent with its teachings. Rather than cite the Vatican for its supposed "intolerance", criticism instead rightly belongs to the Obama administration for its lack of respect to nominate candidates that will not offend the Vatican. This is not rocket science, after all.

Also consider that if Obama had gone through as much trouble finding a suitable candidate to represent the U.S. to the Vatican as he went through finding a "First Dog", then this issue would have been settled a long time ago with no controversy. Still, that dog better watch out for himself. For all he knows, he's going to be the Obama administration's nominee as ambassador to the cat kingdom.

Why I can't call myself a liberal or conservative

2009-04-13T06:17:00.000-07:00

Funny thing. When me and the family were watching the details of that sea captain being rescued from those pirates yesterday, it didn't take long for one of us to say "How long do you think before some left-winger comes roaring in to the pirates' defense?" Another of us said: "Don't call them 'pirates'! They are 'independently operating seafarers'!" The left-wingers among us wondered aloud if more criticizing of Obama was about to ensue. Our family runs the gamut in regards to political views, so family gatherings are always fun - and I mean that sincerely. We may have discussions, but we are always civil.

Anyway, usually after such discussions, I've been asked why I don't just call myself liberal or conservative instead of trying to straddle a line in between the two. I've tried to do that before, but I just can't seem to come up with a good enough explanation that will satisfy everyone, but I'll try again anyway. For one, I am not straddling any line, sitting on any fence, nor seeking any "middle path" - far from it. My views are my views, and they happen to fall on both sides of the political spectrum. Being against abortion is considered a conservative view and being against the death penalty is considered a liberal view - how could I possibly have a middle ground between those views when they cover different issues? It's like saying there's a middle ground between gun control and "baggy pants" laws; in other words, it's apples and oranges. I can't explain it any better than that.

Next, I can't call myself liberal until being liberal means being 100% prolife (and that means being opposed to legalized euthanasia and the death penalty as well as legalized abortion). If liberals can't come to the defense of the ultimate in defenselessness among us, then it puts the lie to the usual belief that being liberal means coming to the defense of the little guy. Simple as that. Truely, I can't understand why this is so hard to understand. Belief in the sacredness of all life should, in the eyes of what I think all liberals should believe, be above all political ideologies, social experimentations, economic theories, Frankensteinian scientific experiments, medical flights of fancy, or any other groups or philosophies that have utilitarian views towards human life and its value.

All of the inhumane atrocities of human history have been because the leaders or certain groups of people didn't take the full humanity of other groups of people into account. I shouldn't have to provide some historical examples of what I am referring, but I think I do: the Holocaust and slavery. Any time one person or group in a position of influence decides that they are above the rest of us or that a group of people are beneath them, then they are headed down the path that has no good end in sight. So with that, why do we think that, in our day and age, we are exempt from committing inhumane atrocities ourselves? A saying about pride and falling comes to mind.

I categorize legalized abortion as an atrocity. An unborn human dies every time in an abortion. Period. Anyone that denies this denies logic, reason, and scientific fact, so I honestly don't get the "yes, but..." that usually follows when I make that statement. And it pains me to think that liberal Democrats are legalized abortions' most ardent supporters, and I wonder what the hell for. How do they manage to leave out a whole group of people whenever they rush to the defense of those that the rest of us would shun? In other words, if you're going to be "bleeding heart", then it needs to bleed for everyone.

In case you think that I don't have my gripes about conservatives, then just sit tight a second - I'm about to get to that.

My main gripes about conservatives is that they seem to believe that the free market will solve all. Before I continue, let me state here that I am no Communist. I do NOT support a Statist point of view in which the State controls all. Far, far from it. However, many free-market conservatives seem to believe that there are no scam artists out there to make a quick buck no matter what despicable thing they do to get it. Not all of them are as easy to spot as an e-mail from a Nigerian banker's widow or a phone call telling you that your car's warranty is about to expire. Sometimes they come disguised with initials such as AIG. Just ask the many millions of Americans whose retirement plans have been wiped out because of the chicanery of people in suits who were supposed to be managing our finances.

Another avenue rife with potential abuse are insurances. You can go years faithfully paying your insurance, but it won't be until you actually need it to find out what it actually will cover. Then you find out that it won't cover X because Y happened, and it was spelled out in the fine print that stated "certain (unspecified) fees apply". The most recent of this cycle of economic chicanery has been the medical industry and health insurance. I swear, it's a MUPM (Mutually Assured Profit Margin) when doctors, hospitals, and health insurances work on the final bill that you will pay so that you pay for more of it.

And how, I ask, will socialized medicine help? The only people I see benefiting from a national health care program are the politicians. In essence, they won't wipe out the MUPM vicious circle, they'll only get themselves included in that circle so that they too, benefit. And then we'll really be SoL (S**t outta Luck). No, as chaotic as our present system is, at least it makes it harder for these various groups to pool together to make things even worse for us. The solution will not come from the government in the form of socialized medicine.

What we need from the government is to speak for us like it's supposed to. THAT'S its role - to speak for us against the financial barons of the various industries that put profit above all else. In order for the free market to be a fair market, a strong government is necessary to keep them on the straight and narrow. Otherwise, the free market will go down the path of putting profit above all else, thus justifying various economic absurdities such as the American sales of 90% of the weaponry that the Mexican drug cartels use. Without our representatives, we are voiceless. When our representatives sell out on us to these financial barons, then we lose the only defense we have against these people. No, for the government to put themselves in the free market only makes them a player in it where they are more tempted to put their own profits above serving our needs; and when that happens, then we're REALLY SoL.

Conservatives want smaller government, and yet too small a government is useless. We need its voice and our representatives to speak for us. I can't call myself a conservative until conservatives understand the limits of a free market and the potentials of abuse. I also want to see how they plan to curb such abuses if "self-policing" doesn't work. People who work hard all their lives to settle comfortably into retirement shouldn't have to worry about the economic greed and stupidity of CEOs who can't control themselves around other peoples' money.

Nope, I am neither liberal or conservative. I am comfortable right where I am at.

Thrilling NCAA Tournament disgusts BCS officials

2009-04-03T07:38:00.001-07:00

Found this through a fellow blogger, and am I glad!

I think this....

....should be a t-shirt. I would buy it.

Election 2008's still going on in Minnesota

2009-04-02T06:22:00.000-07:00

Wow. Check this out.

Apparently, Minnesota's 2008 election is still going on. I really don't know why they just don't have a runoff election like every other state in the union has whenever the final results are too close to call. I think it was the late George Carlin who once said that a judge is nothing but a lawyer in a robe, and that should scare anybody. All the more reason to take this out of the courts' hands and back into the hands of the people that the eventual winner will be representing. In that light, since the representative is going to be making decisions that's going to affect the lives of his constituents, shouldn't they have a say in who represents them? Maybe it's just me.

UCSD sends admission e-mails to wrong applicants

2009-04-01T10:32:00.000-07:00

You have no doubt heard those "Reply to All" horror stories. Well, check this out: Oops! UCSD Sends Acceptance E-mail to Wrong List

You know - I have a "rubbernecker" fascination of how this is all going to be handled, and I will update you as more information comes out.

It's Hunger Week at TCU

2009-04-01T08:25:00.001-07:00

Let's test the reach of both my blog and the Internet, and at the same time give to a good cause.

This link takes you to the website for Texas Christian University's Heal Hunger Campaign.

This link takes you to their auction items. Make some bids on items you are interested and let's see just how great the reach that both the Internet and your generosity have.

AIG Exec: I quit!

2009-03-26T06:48:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how to think of this whole AIG bail-out followed by the bonuses fiasco, especially after this Letter to the Editor.

I am, however, having less and less respect for politicians in general and the Democrats in particular (including President Obama) because of the sheer cluelessness and stupidity that we have witnessed and been subjected to so far this year. It's been so bad that I don't know where to start in regards to writing about it. If the GOP was so stupid in what they have done in the past 8 years, then why didn't the Democrats learn a damned thing from the mistakes they made?

I think it's like what my uncle once told me: Democrat or Republican, they're all politicians who are wealthy, and they are all equally separated from how things really are for the rest of us. That is, their social and political culture - especially in D.C. - is so insular that they really can't relate to us anymore. Our fault is that we keep electing these people back into office who should have been voted out a long time ago.

I'll think about this some more so I can write more coherently instead of out the frustration that I'm feeling right now over how our "leaders" have been conducting themselves in recent weeks and months.

Comics in the modern age

2009-03-22T12:53:00.000-07:00

Check this out. It's reading comics in the new computer age. It's pretty cool. :-)

about DIGITAL COMICS by ~Balak01 on deviant ART

Note: Be sure to click on the arrows to the side of the frame to advance to the next image. It's a Flash program.

This is Post # 600

2009-03-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Milestone post: # 600.

Wow.

More to come, folks. Catch ya later.

Rush vs. Obama?

2009-03-06T05:36:00.000-08:00

Rush Limbaugh, the controversial radio commentator, has publicly announced that he wants to debate President Barack Obama.

I say he should do it.

It was a mistake for Obama to acknowledge Limbaugh in the first place, but now that that's done, I think the only way for Obama to get him out of the picture is to take him on, mano a mano. Otherwise, Limbaugh is going to be hovering nearby taking advantage of every little slip-up, and he'll be doing that for all of Obama's time in office. Does Obama need that distraction? I think not. So I say: Take him on, Mr. President - or get used to having that wolf baying at the door for the next 4 years.

There's fighting for human rights, and then there's...

2009-03-04T13:01:00.000-08:00

Wow. Check out this article. As one friend of mine would say, "This is nucking futs".

This is from Canada, by the way, where the only thing we get that is Canadian is cold fronts and bacon.

Brian Duffy vs. the Des Moines Register

2009-02-27T06:46:00.000-08:00

As someone who once hoped to be a professional editorial cartoonist, I feel that it is my duty to bring up this blog entry about the Des Moines Register refusing to give its former editorial cartoonist his edtoons back. We edtoonists put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into our edtoons, so I certainly feel Duffy's pain.

FREE THE EDTOONS!

Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fat Domino...

2009-02-20T18:53:00.000-08:00

Heck, there's nothing I can say about this. Just enjoy, man!

Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis
Uploaded by Hanvak

The economic downturn affects the plant kingdom

2009-02-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

I knew things were not good for the economy, but dang - I got a sign yesterday on just how bad it is. Yesterday afternoon at work, a lot of the plants and other greenery were taken out and replaced with newer and fewer plants.

Know what that says? It says that not even plants are safe from these hard times. Damn, it's a bad sign when plants get fired. No one is safe anymore. /:-(

A-Fraud Day with the Fort Worth Cats

2009-02-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

A local semi-pro baseball team, the Fort Worth Cats, will be hosting its annual Cats Fest as a way to promote the start of the selling of tickets to its summer games. Among the promotions is "A-Fraud Redemption Day" in which former fans of the former Texas Rangers baseball player, Alex Rodriguez (aka "A-Rod" in case you didn't already know that) can redeem their A-Rod merchandise for free tickets to one of their games. Here's the blurb about it:

Cats Fest to feature A-Fraud Redemption Day The Cats will host Cats Fest on March 14 from 10 a.m. -1 p.m. at LaGrave Field in Fort Worth. The event marks the beginning of individual ticket sales for the upcoming season.

Also as part of the event, the Cats will be holding A-Fraud Redemption Day, allowing all fans who were a victim of A-Fraud between 2001-2003 to bring in A-Rod related merchandise or collectibles and receive four general admission tickets, good for a 2009 Cats’ game at LaGrave Field.

Fans can run the bases, play catch on the field, take tours of the ballpark and enjoy complimentary hot dogs and sodas while gearing up for the 2009 season. There will also be bounce houses and other activities for kids. Fans can get autographs from current and former Cats’ players as well as Dodger and legendary first base coach Wayne Terwilliger.

The Cats 2009 season begins on May 14 with a 7:05 p.m. game at LaGrave Field. Spring training begins on May 1.

As for the issue of A-Rod himself, I 'm not quite sure what to say about the dude. How he can not know that he was taking steroids? Having something foreign injected into your butt should be a clue! If he's an athlete and he doesn't have a cold, then was else could this substance being injected into his butt be? Apparently, whatever it was, it didn't boost his intelligence. Nope, I don't buy his alibi - I believe that he knew what he was doing, and I think he should suffer the consequences for his actions.

I'm going to switch to a sport that I know doesn't have cheating scandals: Boxing. :-P

25 Random Things

2009-02-10T13:49:00.000-08:00

I got this idea from a Facebook phenomenon that's been going on, so here's my take. I may make each one of the entries below into its own blog post.

---------------------------------

25 Random Things About Me

1.) If I could go to only one place in Europe, it would be Vatican City. It’s a Catholic thing.

2.) I am the son of a former teenage single mother who lived in what would be called poverty, and yet I managed to not only get my Bachelor’s, but also my Master’s. So don’t believe those stories that children born in the circumstances that I was are doomed to failure.

3.) As a boy, I wanted to be an astronaut or a scientist.

4.) I’ve only had one pet in my whole life, and he died as a pup from distemper. I never owned a pet after that. His name was Scout, and he was (I think) a toy Manchester terrier.

5.) Back in high school, I had the biggest crush on a cheerleader named Susan. I still see her once in a while, and she is still good looking.

6.) I recently came across the notebook I used in high school. Man, I had crappy handwriting. I could have been a doctor!

7.) I’m not Irish, and yet I find women with red hair and green eyes very attractive.

8.) And while we are on the topic of the physical attractiveness of women, it’s not big boobs or long legs that will get my attention as it is beautiful eyes.

9.) For some reason, I think taking up archery would be cool.

10.) I honestly don’t know why the entire human population isn’t pro-life. What’s wrong with believing that all unborn babies have a right to live?

11.) The Dark Knight is currently my favorite recent movie.

12.) I believe that a laptop computer with wireless Internet access is the closest thing to Star Trek technology that we have right now.

13.) I was once mere inches away from shaking hands with Charles Barkley. The dude in charge of the event he was at turned him away at the last second.

14.) Injuries suffered while playing pick-up games of football and basketball over the years: twisted ankles, sprained fingers and thumbs, stubbed toes, bruised ribs, countless cuts, scratches and bruises all over, hit in the nose, eyes, and mouth as well as numerous times of pulling my hamstrings. In a freak occurrence while trying to tackle my cousin, I also once got a heelprint on my forehead. And yet, I recall those times fondly. Must be from too many shots to the head.

15.) I still laugh at the Three Stooges (maybe this is related to #14?). My ringtone is the classic “Calling Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard…”

16.) If I had a super power, I’d like Green Lantern’s ring.

17.) For most of my childhood and well into my young adulthood, I believed that I was going to be a cartoonist for a living, but once I discovered how much I like writing, I decided that I’d much rather do that for a living. Funny how life can throw curves at you like that.

18.) Because of some of the views I hold, liberals think I’m conservative, and conservatives think I’m liberal. All this time, I’m just being me. Funny how the opinion of a person is so easily judged by their stands on certain political issues.

19.) In my whole life, there are two women who come immediately to mind that I would have been willing to marry had they not been seeing someone else at the time. My timing stinks.

20.) I still get goosebumps whenever I see one of my columns published and my name in the byline.

21.) I have never skied, nor have I ever been on a boat bigger than the ones in San Antonio’s Riverwalk. Why I felt the need to tell you that? Because I’m trying to get to #25!

22.) There were two editors whom I felt were the best when I worked for my college newspaper. One was conservative and the other was liberal, but both shared the commonality that they both respected the views of others even if they disagreed with it. The worst one I had canned a lot of columns because she disagreed with their statements. It is people like her that the newspaper business is tanking, and it will be people like those two editors that will save the newspaper business.

23.) I believe that it will take a change of heart to save our country from ourselves rather than change that is brought about from yet another government program. President Obama has the right idea, but the wrong implementation of that idea.

24.) Ultimately, I am a hopeful and optimistic person. I try to temper it with reality so that I am not delusional, but I also try not to be so grounded that I can’t dream. For this reason, I pray the Serenity Prayer every day: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage the change the things I can change, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

25.) I will leave this last one open-ended, because I know that later I will think of more than just one.

Jessica Simpson fat!

2009-01-28T12:39:00.000-08:00

Okay, I had largely tried to avoid discussing celebrities and their foibles in my blog, but I gotta say something here about the pics of Jessica Simpson below:

Granted, the woman has put on few pounds, but she's hardly fat! I bet thousands of women wish they were that "fat"! That's the problem with being a celebrity: Everything about you is scrutinized. Maybe it's because I prefer curves on a woman, but she honestly does not look fat to me.

Alright, got that out of my system. Next time I'll be discussing real stuff! :-D

Lotto drama

2009-01-24T07:59:00.000-08:00

Hey, folks. Trying to make my comeback here. Check out this story:

Woman accused of taking scratch-off ticket gives up claim to prize money

Sad that a friendship broke up over money, but I think that this didn't need to happen. The woman who had lent her friend the scratch-off ticket to her friend to check out should have just held on to it and done it later. Of course, this is all hindsight, but still - a little logic should tell you that money makes people do funny things, and it especially applies if it's a lot of money.

So what do you folks think of this story?

Creative juices have run dry

2008-12-12T13:33:00.000-08:00

Man, I have never had a dry spell like that. I don't know if the election burned out my creative juices or what, but in the past couple of weeks, I just couldn't get the ol' creative writing mojo going. My art pretty much came to a standstill as well. I've never had the well run dry like that. Thing is, it's not like there's anything in my life right now that's stressing me out to the point that my creativity has shut down. I just - can't seem to get my thoughts focused to write about something. It's not like there hasn't been anything to write about; I just can't seem to get the words going before X news event is replaced by another.

So what do I hope to be doing here now? I don't know. Like I said, I've never had a creative shutdown like this. I guess I'm just writing about my experience so that I might find some focus to get my creative mojo flowing again. You know how I feel right now creatively? Like a boxer in a ring who's being given the countdown, and who's trying to decide whether or not to get back up again. Thing is, why do I feel like I've been in a fight? What has brought about this boxer analogy impression? Like I said, it's not like I'm going through a divorce or custody suit or anything truly stress-inducing.

Well, the helpful thing about the boxer analogy is that it reminds me that the boxer won't win the fight if he doesn't get back up before the countdown is done. No, I will get through this. I've fought through ruts before and I'll do so again. I've just never been so public about it. Again, I don't know what I hope to accomplish by being so public about this - perhaps I'm just trying to stretch my creativity into new directions. After all, part of being an artist or writer is the willingness to take such chances. So - what happens next? I don't know, but I will find out.

I had considered taking a short break, but that would only get me out of the habit of writing, and if I get out of the habit of writing, then I'll never get out of this creative rut. No, the solution here is to keep plugging along. I'll keep you updated on my progress. Understand though, that I will get through this - this I promise you, folks. I will remain standing in the ring when the count is done. And I won't need no Rocky music to do it.

The BCS and history

2008-12-07T13:29:00.000-08:00

From an e-mail I got earlier this week:

--------------------------------------

The BCS is so proud of their computer rankings that they have gone back and rated historical events. In a stunning turn of events they have declared Germany the winner of World War II!

The BCS criterion for this amazing pick was:
* Germany’s strength of schedule in defeating Austria , Poland , Norway , Belgium , Yugoslavia and at-the-time number 2 France.
* Losses to Russia and the United States at the end of the WWII Bowl were not enough to erase style points from their early decisive and overwhelming victories.
* Germany also fought a tough number 1 ranked Great Britain team to a draw which helped boost their poll standings even more. Britain fell to number 5 after the battle

The Final Poll ranking at the end of WWII
1. Germany
2. Italy – their defeat of the mighty Olympic country of Greece was almost enough to push them to the top
3. Japan based on victories over Manchuria, the Philippines and an early victory over the US in the Hawaii Bowl at Pearl Harbor
4. France – based on strength of schedule from WWI and holding off Germany for 6 weeks
5. Great Britain – Inability to defeat Germany during the Blitz Bowl doomed their title chances
6. Russia – strong finish but lost style points at the beginning of the War. Loss of Poland ended their title run
7. United States – decisive victory at the end could not overcome late entry and stunning defeat in the Hawaii Bowl.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops was quoted as saying “this again shows the wisdom of the BCS system in awarding the victory to Germany . They certainly have a grasp of the value of running up the score on opponents – coach Hitler had the right idea and we just followed that example when we play and it has paid off for us”.

Rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated...

2008-12-03T05:49:00.000-08:00

...but not by much! Sorry I've been so lax in posting the past couple of week, folks. Things just piled up on me, and last week was just crazy-busy. But I wanted to post SOMETHING today so that you won't think that I was kidnapped by gypsys or abducted by aliens. I'm good.

I'll try to hit the ground running tomorrow.

Hey, I'm back, and I brought Leonard Pitts with me

2008-11-18T10:52:00.000-08:00

Sorry to have been away longer than expected, folks - but I'm back, and I'm bad. Well, not really - I'm just back.

Anyway, to hit the ground running, I'd like to bring up an issue that Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. brought up about public education in D.C. and whether Barack Obama is going to send his daughters there. Pitts feels - as I do - that Obama should send his kids to a private school. He feels that way, and yet he laments that it's necessary. At the end of his column, he states:

"Too many of us, I think, have made peace with the idea that public schools don't work, have come to regard it as normal that they crank out poorly educated kids, have come to accept that certain children in certain places are ineducable. But I saw the falsity of that with my own eyes while traveling the country for ''What Works,'' saw some of the nation's best students in some of its most dire places.

The failure here, then, is not the students', but ours, a failure of will and imagination. We need to reassess the things we take for granted. We need to decide that our children deserve better.

And we need to ask a simple question: If public schools are not good enough for the president's kids, what makes us think they are good enough for ours?"

I was also surprised to see actual criticism of teachers' unions in his column. I have been critical of teachers' unions for years, and they are one of the reasons that I advocate tuition vouchers. Pitts does not state his views on the matter, but it seems to me that public schools and teachers' unions are not going to be motivated to change unless they have competition to gain and retain students.

You know what? If Obama truly intends to bring change, this would be a good start. Obama, start by changing the Dept. of Education and the teachers' unions. Get them to realize that they're part of the problem instead of part of the solution. Get them to realize that their obsession with protecting themselves and their power has damaged generations of kids. Obama, you could REALLY institute change by advocating tuition vouchers. I don't buy that argument that tuition vouchers violate the church/state separation wall, because the gov't had already had a form of a tuition voucher with the GI Bill, and our school system didn't go to hell in a handbasket, did it? In fact, it helped a lot of students. Like we could do now.

If Obama can manage to get this ball rolling, then I'll start believing that he's a miracle worker.

Gas prices and blog news

2008-11-11T08:00:00.000-08:00

Below are a couple of pictures I took while testing out my new cellphone. The Santa one is a t-shirt in a local store. The other pic is to show that gas actually went under $2 a gallon here. Wow.

Now for some blog news: Gang o' mine, I am going to take a short respite. I got real-life stuff to take care of, an' me writin' fangers is gettin' tired. I'll be back on Sunday the 17th.

In the meantime, enjoy my buddy Joel's blog. I certainly do! :-)

See you in a week!

Reporter is "excited" about Obama victory

2008-11-10T07:36:00.000-08:00

I'm posting a link to this edtoon, rather than posting the image here, because some of you might find it offensive, and it's probably not safe for viewing at work. It's an actual editorial cartoon, and I have to wonder how many newspapers ran it. However, I have to ask:

NOW do you believe that there's a liberal bias in the media? ;-)

There's a pun I could use here, but it's so bad that I'll pass. :-p

A quick note

2008-11-09T12:59:00.000-08:00

For those of you who saw the start of my entry on gay marriage - er, that was supposed to be a draft. Apparently, I hit "Publish Post" instead of "Save Now", because I noticed later that I had already got a comment on it. Anyway, that blog entry is back in draft status, and I'll publish it later. However, for the commentator, your comment is still there. I'll publish it whenever I publish the blog entry that it goes to. My apologies.

TCU falls to Utah, dooming BCS chances

2008-11-07T05:26:00.000-08:00

As I was in the process of noticing that fellow blogger Joel had posted rather lightly yesterday, I watched in horror as my local university, TCU, lost to its conference foe Utah. Thus, its hope for a shot at the BCS is dashed for another season. See, if we were USC or some other BCS school, we'd still have a shot even with two losses, but non-BCS schools have to be abso-freakin-lutely perfect just to get a look in our direction. I wanted to wax eloquently about the heartbreaking loss, and I wanted to describe the agonies of defeat and such, but despite all that, only one word comes to mind:

CRAP!

"The Will of the People" spoke Tuesday

2008-11-06T05:33:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, the "Will of the People" - the sacrosanct philosophy that determines who will lead us and what path we should take on a given issue - spoke forcefully. After a long and contentious campaign, it chose Barack Obama. Lauds and accolades ensued everywhere.

But wait....

The "Will of the People" also spoke on the matter of gay marriage in three states - and in all three states, the "Will of the People" stated that they were opposed to gay marriage.

So - what the hell?

Not only that, a group that helped bring in Obama also voted in large numbers against gay marriage - namely, black folks. So what's going on here? Is this a case of "Equal rights for me, but not for thee?". Talking to people I know personally and reading the blogs of others who were in favor of gay marriage, the answer is simple: They - that is, everyone who voted against gay marriage - are bigots. They're narrow-minded, unenlightened, and short sighted bigots.

"Okay then," I ask those who are both elated over Obama's election and outraged over the failure of gay marriage to pass, "So you're saying that the same wonderful people who were so open-minded and enlightened to have voted in the first black president - "

At this point, some of those who know me and how I tend to argue will eye me suspiciously for a second before they respond, but almost always curiosity gets the better of them as to what I am about to say, so they answer anyway. I love that, by the way. Their response: "Yeahhhh....."

" - are the same narrow minded bigots that kept gay marriage from becoming the law." Uncertain of where I am going with this, I finally get to my point: "You're saying that Americans are a bunch of open-minded and enlightened bigots!"

"Now hold on there..." is the usual reaction. From that point, their arguments goes along the line of "Americans were ready for a black president, but not for gay marriage" reasoning; but I think that these conflicting election results and the gay marriage supporters' reactions to them suggests something else: They're just as bigoted as they say gay marriage opponents are.

Why do I say that? It's because of the nature of their reactions - that is, to them there is only one reason and one reason only that someone would be opposed to gay marriage, and that's because they are narrow-minded bigots. Know what I think of when I hear that?

I think of back in 2002, in the raw days just after 9/11, in which the patriotism of anyone who wasn't gung-ho on going after the terrorists was questioned. "If you don't do (stated action), then the terrorists win." was the mindset back then. See what that kind of thinking is? It's called "Either you're with me or against me", or sometimes abbreviated (as I shall now do) as "e/o".

I don't like e/o thinking. It leaves no room for shades of gray, and it's actually a means of trying to shut down any discussion of a given issue. In case you haven't figured it out already, I am diametrically opposed to attempts to shut down discussion. The reason that war supporters said "If you don't do (stated action), then the terrorists win" is because they didn't want to consider that there might actually be good reasons not to go to war. Seven years later, it looks like they should have questioned the desire to go to war a little more.

Now fast forward to today. Gay marriage supporters are now the ones engaging in e/o thinking. "Either you support gay marriage, or you're a bigot." No room for discussion. In their minds, there is NO good reason to oppose gay marriage. So my question to them is: "Really? Are you sure about that? No reasons whatsoever?"

I was about to continue, but you know what? I'm going to let this sit and stew for awhile and let my readers - especially those that support gay marriage - think about this some before I continue. Just as war supporters in 2002 should have questioned their e/o thinking before going to war, I'm going to give gay marriage supporters the opportunity to question their own e/o thinking before I continue my discussion here.

If I get any responses, I'll post them here.

Congratulations to Barack Obama

2008-11-05T05:19:00.000-08:00

The results are in, and Barack Obama is now our president-elect. My congratulations to him, and for setting an historic precedent. For me, my feelings are mixed.

On the one hand, it does my heart glad to see that our country has now been able to advance to the point that we can elect a black candidate to the highest office in the land. It is truly awesome to have been witness to this - to see the dream of millions finally fulfilled, including those who never lived to see this dream come true. The election of Barack Obama is vindication for all those who suffered during too long a stretch of time in our nation's history. Whatever our country's faults and shortcomings, we still maintain the capacity to change for the better. What was unthinkable in Dr. Martin Luther King's time is now reality. It is a time for rejoicing.

Now for the other hand. I am both saddened and deeply disturbed that President Obama's first act as president is NOT going to be pulling the troops out of Iraq, NOT going to be lowering our taxes, but to sign into law the Freedom of Choice Act, or FOCA. Basically, the FOCA would wipe away all the progress that the prolife movement has made in recent years and altering the playing field in favor of the likes of Planned Parenthood. For a candidate who had promised change and unity, this is a slap in the face of a movement that seeks to promote the rights of the unborn community. "Unborn community" is going to be my new term, by the way, for unborn Americans, as a reminder that we are not dealing with a "what" but a "who" when we make decisions involving them. Obama's promises of freedom and change, unfortunately, do not extend to the unborn community. That is why it is also a time of weeping.

It is my hope and - literally - prayer that Barack Obama will see that the unborn community deserve just as much protection as members of any other community; and even more protection, since they are unable to defend themselves. They are always, 100% of the time, dependent upon someone else to defend them.

It is my hope that President Obama will be outraged at the news that black women have abortions disproportionate to their numbers of the population as a whole, and part of that reason is that abortion clinics tend to set up shop in their neighborhoods. None other than the niece of Dr. King himself discusses this in this article. It is also my hope that President Obama will wonder why he supports an organization like Planned Parenthood that hires racists and protects statutory rapists. It doesn't take a lot of digging to find these articles. Just a few should be enough to shake President Obama to his soul, and hopefully to help him see the errors of his ways in this issue.

I've been chided before for being such a "one issue guy"; that I'm letting this one issue take away from more important issues. If this were an issue of whether it's acceptable to wear white after Labor Day, they'd be right. If this were an issue of whether young people should pull up their damn pants instead of letting them hang around their knees, they'd be right. But we're talking about a community of Americans that our laws have chosen to not recognize. Why have we gone from not recognizing the rights of women and blacks to not recognizing the rights of the unborn? Why does our country need to always have a group of people to use and exploit? Yes, I'm "one issue"- just like abolitionists of the past were "one issue".

Again, I'm happy for Obama and for his supporters, and I am overjoyed to see that our country has progressed to the point that we can elect a man that would have been unelectable mere decades ago. I'm excited to have been witness to this historic event. But my enthusiasm is going to be subdued until the day that the unborn community is allowed to share in all that our country offers. If President Obama can be the man who extends the right to life to the unborn community, then he'll enjoy my full and total support. In the meantime, I'll go back to hoping and praying - both for him, and for the unborn.

GO VOTE. GO VOTE NOW.

2008-11-04T06:14:00.000-08:00

Okay folks, this is it. The preliminaries are finally over, and now it's time for you to go over to the voting booth and do your civic duty. Many of our fellow Americans have fought and died for the right for you to vote, so don't let them down. We enjoy many advantages in this country that many others in other parts of the world do not, and that includes the ability to choose the leader that will be leading us for the next four years. Go choose Barack Obama. Or John McCain. Or a third party candidate, if you prefer. But choose. And don't forget to study the various state and local candidates as well as any bills or referendums, as they will impact your life and finances more immediately than the national elections will. In other words, it's all important.

Then tomorrow, join me here as I comment on the election results and give my take on what it all means.

McCain victory via Obama voter assumption?

2008-11-03T13:28:00.000-08:00

I'm getting this in before the election: Could John McCain win via the assumptions of Obama voters that Obama had it in the bag anyway? That's the problem with the press coverage of Obama's lead in the polls in recent days; that it's giving this impression that Obama's going to win, and win big. I got this impression from discussions with others. The J-Mac supporters are as determined as ever to vote, while the Obama voters are telling them that they'd be wasting their time. I think it's a good possibility that J-Mac could pull this out via Obama voter assumption - at least a 60% chance of happening, maybe as high as 65%. We'll see tomorrow.

Election notes

2008-10-30T06:25:00.000-07:00

We're now less than a week away from the election, but in some states, including Texas where I'm at, early voting is going on. In fact, I plan to vote tomorrow. However, don't fret, as I'll still be commenting on the election right up to Election Day.

As I observe the political landscape, signs seem to be pointing to an Obama victory. However, as I tell people who ask, signs and polls don't vote. Ultimately, they mean nothing. Obama won't win unless he's got more votes, plain and simple. Or as I tell others, if you're an Obama supporter and you don't vote for him on Tuesday, it's as good as voting for McCain. In turn, if you're a McCain supporter and you don't vote, it's as good as voting for Obama. Or if you are as I am and giving serious looks to third party candidates, then vote for them. But vote. The power of the ballot box is the only control that we have over those that are alleged to serve us, and if we don't exercise our power of the vote, then special interest groups and PACs will do it for us. Use your vote so that our public servants will know that we're still out here and still expect them to serve us, and not some high-dollar PAC.

As for my take on the candidates, I won't be voting for Obama because he is not only prochoice, he is probably the most prochoice politician in Washington. Even though he wants to "institute change", it does not extend to this issue. The change in this instance is the kind of change that is referred to in the saying, "the more things change, the more they stay the same". He consistently voted against the born-alive bill, even though it isn't about abortion, but about protecting a newborn life - that is, NOT unborn, but already born. Also, one of the first things Obama is going to do once in office is sign the "Freedom of Choice Act" (FOCA). Right off the bat. I'll discuss FOCA more at another time, but for someone to claim to want to bring change, this certainly is a slap in the face to those who oppose legalized abortion. Wait, I guess it is change. He's going to change the law of the land from being prochoice to being VERY prochoice. Sorry, my bad.

As for Joe Biden, the less I say about the man, the better. I have absolutely no respect for him, and of Obama for nominating him as his running mate. Obama selecting Biden to me was an error in judgment - one among others that Obama has made in his run for office. Sarah Palin can't so much as fart without the press questioning her credentials for office, but Biden can gaffe like Curly Howard in a high society function and they just laugh it off as Joe being Joe. Sorry, but I don't want the human gaffe machine to be a "hearbeat away from the presidency". I still feel that Bill Richardson would have been a far better selection as a running mate, and Biden keeps confirming that for me.

I also have a problem with McCain. He had been seeking this office for years - and now that he gets his shot, his alleged "knack for reaching across the aisle" has shown itself to instead be a way to hide the fact that often he doesn't know what the hell he is doing. He had a huge head start getting nominated early while Obama was in a slugfest with Hillary Clinton virtually all of the primary season, and yet it looks like he did absolutely nothing in that "bye week" time to help himself for right now. Also, his idea of strategy seems to be "go with whatever pops in my head first". That was demonstrated by his idea of suspending his campaign and asking to delay the first debate so that he could go to Washington and help with the financial crisis that had brewed at that time. Did he seriously believe that the Democrats were going to play along with his "coming to rescue" idea when they have their own candidate running for office? I dread to see what he'd do as president with such "strategy thinking".

And I also think that McCain mishandled the charge that his running mate, Sarah Palin, brought to the ticket. Yes, she's been made to look like some sort of backwoods idiot in the press, but I don't think she's as dumb as she's been made out to be. An idiot couldn't have gone from being a member of the PTA to being in the governor's seat to being a vice presidential candidate; especially at her young age. Of all the four candidates running for office, she's the one that intrigues me, and I'm not alone. If she isn't elected vice president, I think she'll be back. Thing is, wherever she goes, she draws a crowd. An example of this is her appearance on Saturday Night Live. The ratings for that episode were the highest in 14 years. What this shows is that, whether they tuned in to watch Palin or to watch her fall flat on her face, they tuned in.

Something about the woman draws ire and scorn like a magnet. Not just a lack of fondness, but an outright aggressive attack, largely by a group of people who claim to be tolerant and open-minded - especially for historically oppressed groups, like women. One of the alleged weaknesses of Bill Richardson is that he isn't smooth. And Joe Biden is? I wonder how Bill would have done against Palin in the veep debate, and I wonder how Bill would have done given the chance. Surely he wouldn't have gaffed his ass off like Biden has so far. Not picking him was an opportunity lost to have had two historical vice presidential candidates.

Some articles I've read have said that if McCain loses, then it will be because of Palin. I say the same thing about Obama should he lose, that it was because of his running mate.

Why I oppose legalized abortion

2008-10-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

In conversations with people in real life and online (including very recently with a co-worker), almost always they assume I'm a left-winger until they hear that I'm opposed to legalized abortion. Then they think I'm a right-winger. Funny how that almost always happens. Why do they assume that? I oppose the war; I oppose the death penalty; I think the rich get too many tax breaks - but that's not enough to validate my left wing credentials.

"Real liberals support a woman's right to choose", is the usual response. And also almost always (including that same co-worker), they bring up why I let ONE issue determine how I'll vote for a candidate. My usual response is, "Well, if that ONE issue isn't that important to the Democrats, then they should drop it from their party platform, as there's a lot of left-wingers like me who'd go back to the party in a heartbeat if they ever did."

Well, it turns out that this ONE issue is important to them as well - so I don't know why that argument keeps being brought up. It's supposed to shame me for limiting myself to one issue, and yet it's damned easy to show how the shamers are just as bad. But I'm not the only prolife left-winger - in fact, there's a bunch of us. In another blog entry, I'll provide a whole list of sites of such folks, including atheists, anarchists, gays, feminists, vegetarians, and even pagans (this list does not pretend to be comprehensive. Folks, in other words, that aren't likely to wander the convention floor of the GOP.

For this blog entry, though, let me relate why I'm prolife. Part of it is because of my Catholic faith. I believe all of us are created by God, and that we all have a reason for having been created. Because God created us, that makes us all unique and special. Granted, not all of us reach the potential that we have - in fact, the greater majority of us will not - but we all have the right to find out for ourselves. But we must exist before we can achieve that potential.

What would those of you who are prochoice say about a single parent teenage high school dropout living in poverty giving birth to her son? Dooming him to a life of despondency and crime? No hope for him because she didn't even finish high school, much less go on to college? Some of you are probably thinking that this is a set-up; that I'm that son, but I'm not. He's my older brother. I'm the SECOND son born to that same teenager. NOW what do you think of that teenager? Greatly irresponsible and thoughtless?

My mother fully admitted that she made mistakes, but she made every effort to provide for me and my brother. She sent us to a Catholic school because she wanted us to have a religious education, even though it taxed her meager budget. She'll also be the first to tell you that she had LOTS of help. And during my childhood, I never felt poor, even though technically I was. I never felt unloved. I never felt like I didn't deserve to be here. So what happened to those two boys?

My brother graduated from a Catholic high school with a 4.4 GPA in his final semester, which got him a 4 year scholarship to college. He went on to college to graduate with a marketing degree, and he's now happily married to a wonderful woman, and they have 3 beautiful children. He's also an executive in an auto parts company, and doing very well. I also went on to college, and even went on to get my Master's. Not bad for two boys born to a teenage single parent mother living in poverty. And when she holds her grandchildren in her arms, she forgets all the pain and suffering she went through to raise my brother and me. You won't find a prouder grandmother.

I oppose legalized abortion, because it denies stories like mine. Legalized abortion means giving in to fear and hopelessness. It means denying life to someone whose story deserves to be played out. Legalized abortion would have also denied a woman two sons and three grandchildren. What would have her life been like, I wonder, if she gave into her fear all those years ago? The abortion issue may indeed be "one issue", but it's a damned important one, because I'm fighting for the right of the existence of people like me and my brother. We deserve to be here, and I dare anyone to try to tell me otherwise.

Candidate masks for Halloween

2008-10-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

I said before that I'm going to make this week Halloween week. Well, why not combine both the election and Halloween? Below are masks from Amazon.com. I didn't see a Joe Biden mask, however. Maybe they couldn't get the hair plugs down right. ;-)

How Obama can still lose the election

2008-10-27T05:49:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I was asked how - given the lead that Barack Obama has in the polls - he could lose the election. Understand that this person was an Obama supporter, and he feels that it's in the bag. To him, it's inconceivable that he could lose unless the Supreme Court pulls a "2000" (as in, the election of) on him. Not expecting an answer, he asked me. He should have known better than to ask even rhetorical questions to me. ;-)

I said, "Yes, Obama can still lose the election, and not by any judges. Obama's supporters could get so confident of victory that they don't bother to vote. They read the newspaper headlines and see that he has a large lead and then assume that they don't need to do anything. On the other side, John McCain's supporters are reading the writing on the wall, so that could provide motivation to go out and vote. Of course, some J-Mac supporters could feel that it's a lost cause and not vote, but I think more of them would vote than not vote."

"So the question is, can Obama rely on his supporters to go do their civic duty? I think the answer to that would be how many of the young people - one of his biggest supporters - can overcome their traditional notorious unreliability in regards to voting and come through this time. They show up, he wins. They go back to their SMO, and McCain wins."

Really, the lesson here is the importance of voting. As it's been said before, polls don't vote, people do. The best thing you can do for your candidate is to be at that voting booth. Unlike some other parts of the world, our lives and limbs aren't threatened by going to vote, so there's no reason to not go. As I've told others, if you don't vote, then you can't complain about the leadership if you don't like it.

Here's my PSA to you, folks: Vote because you can.

TCU moves up to #12!

2008-10-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

The Mighty TCU Horned Frogs move up to #12! YESSS!

Now if we can finish the season unbeaten, we just might have a shot at this rigged election that is the BCS!

New words

2008-10-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

Below are some of the word verification letter groupings that have appeared whenever I’ve wanted to post comments on someone’s blog. I’ve always thought that some of them should be actual words, so with this blog entry, I’m making them actual words. Feel free to use them in your everyday conversations. More to come later.

Buncy (adj.): A term referring to a person – usu. female – with a very pleasant and outgoing personality. “Her outlook on life is so buncy that she's lots of fun to be around.”

Gecons (pl. noun of “gecon”): A term that is the combination of “geo-” and “conservative” and which refers to an environmentally conscious political conservative. “Jerry Griswald may be a right wing nutjob, but at least he’s among the gecons.”

Ovelacte (verb): To make a dish combining milk and eggs. “I didn’t have enough of either milk or eggs to make a meal, so I ovelacted them.”

Spadro (noun): A term referring to a very overweight man wearing a pair of Spandex shorts that are several sizes too small, or a large man with equally bad taste in fashion. “Fred used to be studly, but now he’s ballooned into a total Spadro.”

Sprex (verb): A term that is a combination of the words “sprint” and “sex”, and refers to a sexual act that is completed in a very short span of time. “He sprexed me so quickly that I wasn’t sure that we did it.”

(by the way, in case you're wondering, I checked with dictionary.com to make sure that the above words weren't already actual words.)

Halloween

2008-10-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

I think in the coming week, I'll try to have a Halloween theme. Today I want to ask all of you this question:

If money were no object, what costume would you wear?

For me, I'd like the classic Lon Chaney Wolfman. I always thought that it was cool.

Conceding a point to a fellow blogger

2008-10-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

Okay folks, listen up. In the 500+ posts that I've had on this blog, I don't think I've ever publicly conceded a point that was made in a previous blog entry.

However, fellow blogger Joel has, in comments to my previous blog entry and in an entry in his own blog, provided enough argumentation and persuasion on the Sarah Palin $150k wardrobe issue that I must concede a point that I had previously made. I had said before that it was a non-issue. Now I must say that the wardrobe issue is indeed a valid election issue, especially considering how that $150k could have been spent helping with GOP state campaign efforts instead of helping to deck out Palin to make sure she stayed looking hot.

Joel had further argued that the GOP's spending habits in this instance can be seen as an indicator of how they'll spend OUR money should they get elected. I stated in the comments section of his blog entry that the Obama camp should use this argument in their campaign ads. Having said all this, let me finish by saying:

Okay dude, you won this one. :-)

Sarah Palin's wardrobe issue

2008-10-23T06:34:00.001-07:00

I've been asked to comment on the recent news story about Sarah Palin's wardrobe and that the GOP spent $150,000 on her. Well, it's a non-issue with me, because it was the GOP that spent that money, and not the taxpayer. It's their money, and if they want to spend it dressing up their "Caribou Barbie" to look more professional, then fine. Just don't stick us with the bill later.

Yes, Palin's trying to sell an image of being a "Josephine Six-Pack", and the $150,000 sum is not an amount that the average American worker would spend on their wardrobe. But c'mon - she's on the national stage of a very public campaign. She can't exactly go around in jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt! And even though I don't have a wife, even I know that women spend more time and money on their appearance. Us dudes want women to look attractive, so we have to understand that women have to work at it to look the way they do.

It seems to me that if we're going to look at how much one candidate spends on their wardrobe, then let's go ahead and see how much they ALL spend on their wardrobe. After all, wouldn't it be sexist just to look at how much was spent on the lone female candidate? To be fair, let's go ahead and see how much was spent on the wardrobes of the other three male candidates, and let's also factor in that they (at least to the best of our knowledge!) don't wear make-up or have their nails done and other such things that women do for their appearance.

Nope, so long as it's the GOP spending their dough on her, then it's a non-issue with me.

Killing two stones with one bird

2008-10-21T20:48:00.001-07:00

As I read today's newspaper about the possibility of having another "economic stimulus package", and idea came to me. "Bailout bill".

"Economic stimulus package"

"Bailout bill"

"Economic stimulus package" = "bailout bill".

See what I'm saying?

We just passed an unpopular bailout bill, right? And our leaders want to pass an economic stimulus package, right? So how to make the bailout bill more appealing? Rather than give the bailout money to nutso bankers and financial institutions who made stupid decisions, why not turn that $700 billion into the economic stimulus package?

It's our money to begin with, so it seems only right to just give us the bailout money. The way I see it, it's a win-win situation. The pols look good giving money back to the people, and we the people can walk away for once not feeling like we've been ripped off.

Anyway, I hope one of the presidential candidates gives it some serious thought. I think the idea's brilliant.

Sarah Palin on SNL, in case you missed it

2008-10-19T15:12:00.000-07:00

Okay, admit it - "Caribou Barbie" did pretty well. And Alec Baldwin did pretty well acting with her. Anyway, enjoy.

Final debate report card

2008-10-17T05:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry I didn't do this yesterday, folks, but I spent most of the day getting ready to watch the TCU Horned Frogs whip the asses of BYU! YEAAAAH!!!!!

Ahem. Sorry.

Anyway, on to my report of Wednesday's final debate between Barack Obama and John McCain. As I said yesterday, I stated that Joe the Plumber won. Why do I say that? Because both Obama and McCain brought him up several times. "Joe, I'm your friend and here's why..." "No, Joe - I'M your friend and here's why..." "Here's my plan to cut your taxes, Joe..." "Here's how my tax plan is better, Joe..." And so on. Joe the Plumber basically served as a face for Gov. Sarah Palin's usual reference to "Joe Six Pack" - in other words, blue collar American workers.

Before the debate, I had said that Obama needed to close the deal in the way that he didn't do for the Democratic primaries. He didn't have to bring his "A" game, he just needed to provide himself a boost so that his lead in the polls can increase. However, he was thrown off his game plan by McCain's introduction of Joe the Plumber. In a way, Joe was bait for Obama to respond to, and he bit like a deep sea fish. What set this up, though, was the tape of Obama talking to Joe and his unfortunate use of the term "spread the wealth", which for conservatives is code for "tax your ass off". I say 'unfortunate', because Obama happened to use a common phrase from the liberal lexicon that conservatives flock to like vultures on a carcass whenever it was used.

While Obama does not have the experience that McCain has in being a candidate for office, he at least has been at it long enough to know what phrases to avoid while on the campaign trail. This is especially in light of the fact that the GOP is so desperate to latch Bill Ayers (aka the so-called "unrepentant terrorist"), Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and other radical left wing folks onto Obama through guilt by association. If not Obama himself, then someone in his campaign staff should have instructed him on certain words and phrases to avoid on the campaign trail; especially when he went from the primaries to the general election. In essence, what sells to Democrats ain't necessarily what will sell to the rest of the general population.

Anyway, I felt that Obama was thrown off his game plan by the introduction of Joe the Plumber, and he ended up in that "explaining away" method of his that makes him sound like your run-of-the-mill politician. Other examples of this are his "above my pay grade" and "bitter Americans clinging to their guns and religions" comments that put him in a less than favorable light that he didn't need to put himself into. He didn't close the deal - it just didn't happen.

In the meantime, John McCain at times was aggressive, pouty, surly, and even downright Cheneyesque - and that's when he was being nice! Some are going to interpret J-Mac's surliness as "finally standing up to Obama", but I felt that he just came across as a grumpy old man. There was no real focus to his attacks, which basically sounded like he was rattling off the current list of GOP talking points. In other words, J-Mac does not make a good "bad cop" - he probably should leave the bad cop role to Palin, who can at least deliver her lines with a better sense of timing. The only reason that I'm awarding McCain the debate this time around was because he introduced Joe the Plumber into the debate, throwing Obama off his rhythm, and also because Obama didn't close the deal. McCain did only marginally more than Obama in accomplishing the goals that I had set out for them - and even in this McCain fell short.

What you can say, then, is that McCain may have won this battle (this final debate, that is), but there's still the war to go. McCain, ultimately, didn't do enough to give him any significant bounce in the polls, and with no more debates in the horizon, that was his last chance in a face-to-face with Obama. Now he needs to figure out how to reach the voters in other ways, and Palin now needs to really boost her learning curve if she is going to be any help for the rest of the campaign. If there were more time, she might be able to learn what she needs to do, but three weeks might not be enough. Time will tell.

Now Obama will need to do what he does best - speak to the crowds. He also needs to avoid any more left-wing blurbs that the GOP and conservative talk-show hosts can latch onto. He can do that easily if he wants to - he only went to freakin' Harvard, after all! Obama is currently like the playoff team that is in a bye week, while McCain is like the team that has to play during a bye week. The only way that this election can get interesting is if Obama lets it.

My final debate results: (out of 3 presidential debates and one vice presidential debate)

Obama: 1.75
Palin: 1
McCain: 1.25

Debate winner: Joe the Plumber. Details to follow later

2008-10-16T06:43:00.001-07:00

I'm still working on my official report of the debate, but I'm posting my view now of who won to answer people who've already asked me; and that answer is: Joe the Plumber.

Details to follow later today.

For my buddy Joel

2008-10-15T05:13:00.000-07:00

This is for fellow blogger Joel. Enjoy, dude!

www.palinaspresident.com

Last Debate Strategeries

2008-10-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow's the last debate between Barack Obama and John McCain. Here's what I think each needs to do to win.

Barack Obama
Three words: CLOSE. THE. DEAL. During the Democratic primaries, he needed to do exactly that: close the deal. Instead, the primaries dragged on and on practically right up to the convention date. He doesn't need a repeat of that for the general election. Right now he's gotten a bump in the polls and tomorrow's debate can help insure that those polls' margins keep increasing. Obama needs to do something that is unlike what he's done before: Be more direct in responding to questions instead of "explaining away" as he usually does. Somehow he needs to channel his oratory skills that he uses so effectively in speeches to supporters and translate them into a format that he can use in debates. It's one thing to "preach to the choir", but another thing to use those persuasive skills in a debate. If Obama can master that, then he has a lock on this debate, and perhaps the election. Anything short of that will leave a crack for John McCain to possibly exploit. Merely eking out a win against J-Mac isn't going to do it unless J-Mac stumbles spectacularly; now is the time for Obama to show his leadership potential and bring his "A" game.

John McCain
Three words for McCain: Do or Die. Due to her lack of experience in campaigning on the national stage, Sarah Palin is not skilled enough yet to help save the campaign on her own. In order for her to work the magic that she had at the convention, she needs J-Mac to demonstrate why he's the top of the ticket. Whatever magic J-Mac has left, whatever mojo he's got in his tank, whatever skills and tactics that he has remaining in his campaign playbook, he needs to bring them all out, and do it now. In the debate, J-Mac's experience over Obama needs to show itself now more than ever. Just repeating the results from the previous debate is not going to do it this time; anything less than his "A" game will help further the slide he's already got in the polls. As it is, if both bring their "A" games, then such a tie will go to Obama. No, J-Mac has to be at his stellar best for the debate, and exploit any opportunities that present themselves. If he accomplishes that, then it will give his campaign a much needed boost, and from that point Palin may be able to feed off of that and restore her own luster.

Bob Schieffer
Needs to be a better moderator than Tom Brokaw!

Get the popcorn folks. Hopefully it will be a debate for the ages.

Possibly the most controversial topic that I've discussed on my blog!

2008-10-13T07:38:00.001-07:00

Okay, folks - I've discussed a few controversial topics during my time blogging, so I feel that you all are ready to touch upon a particularly thorny topic.

See, it's bigger than the current financial crisis. It's bigger than pondering the possibility of whether we're going to elect a bona fide socialist into the Oval Office or a genuine redneck moose hunter as a vice president. It's more controversial than the gay marriage issue and whether the states should allow it. It's bigger than my Madonna-Induced Career Implosion Theory (MICIT, formerly the Madonna Implosion Theory, or MIT)! Heck, it's even bigger than whether college football should stick with the BSC system or go with a playoff system! What is that thory topic, you ask? It's this:

What sorts of songs should I have on my Halloween playlist for my MP3 player?

Monster Mash for sure, and Ghostbusters. Gotta also have Thriller, and Werewolves of London. However, I don't like Love Potion #9, even though it's often on most Halloween playlists. Anyway, those are some of the classics for Halloween. My question is, what other songs could go on such a list?

I have Nightmare on My Street by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince on mine. Also, Midnight Rider by the Allman Brothers Band, Hotel California by The Eagles, and People are Strange by The Doors. From Santana there is Evil Ways and Black Magic Woman. The rest of my Halloween lineup shapes up this way:

* The Purple People Eater
* Lil' Red Riding Hood by Sam the Sham
* Somebody's Watching Me
* Theme from the Addams' Family
* Theme from the Twilight Zone
* Theme from Jaws

So with that, I ask you all: What else could go on this list?

Madonna again

2008-10-09T06:13:00.001-07:00

I was going to wait until Saturday to post again, but I just had to mention a news story that appeared about Madonna.

I had mentioned previously about my Madonna Implosion Theory, or MIT for short. The MIT is thus: The more that a given person's career was on the rise before meeting Madonna, the greater the likelihood and the bigger the implosion will be after meeting Madonna. Here's a short list of those whose careers sank, imploded, or who just plain went insane after meeting Madonna:

* Sean Penn
* Dennis Rodman
* Sandra Bernhard
* Warren Beatty
* Rosie O'Donnell
* Alex Rodriguez
* Amy Winehouse - who to my knowledge hasn't actually met Madonna, but since Madonna moved to England, Amy went nuts. The timing of this can't be a coincidence.
* and the most dramatic example, Britney Spears. Brit was on the rise before The Kiss. After that, she went insane.

Now we come to a news article that just appeared today. In this article, Madonna says that GOP candidate Gov. Sarah Palin is not welcome at her concerts. In light of the MIT and those whose careers were destroyed in its wake, Palin must be thinking, "THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

So Obama, listen up! If you want to win this election, DON'T MEET MADONNA!

Okay, folks - back to my short vacation. Enjoy!

Debate take: It's a tie!

2008-10-08T05:13:00.000-07:00

Sorry, folks, I couldn't come away with a winner this time. Both John McCain and Barack Obama did a better job of jabbing their opponent, which I was glad to see. That's more along the lines of what a debate should be - although poor Tom Brokaw couldn't get them reined in half the time - including the end where they blocked his view of the teleprompter!

The thing is, while they were doing a better job of actually debating - being more outspoken and such - they weren't focusing their arguments. They were like two Old West gunfighters just shooting wildly, aiming only in the general direction of their opponent without actually hitting them. Thus, neither of them met the goals that I had set out yesterday. McCain didn't do enough to rise above Obama, nor did Obama deliver the finishing stroke to put McCain away.

I know that each candidate's supporters are going to say that their candidate won - and each candidate did say and do stuff that made them look good - but just having the guts to draw your gun and shoot doesn't mean that you hit your target. I guess they'll get credit for firing their guns like Palin got credit for showing up at her debate and not losing her lunch. So as much as I wanted to always name a winner, I can't this time around.

I blame the lack of skill of debating on the current environment that seeks to sue over every little jot and tittle that doesn't meet some vague and ever shifting standard of non-offensiveness. Some call it political correctness, but it's more than just the PC crowd that does this. So as a result of this hypersensitivity, skills such as debating have become a lost art and replaced with the wild west shootout that we saw last night.

So the scoreboard so far:

Obama 1.5
Palin 1
McCain .5

There's only one more debate left. Let's hope that they make it a good one.

And I'll be off a couple of days and post again on Saturday. See you then.

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UPDATE:
This news article pretty much says what I said above, except that they give Obama the nod for the win. Well, they're wrong. ;-)

Prez debates round 2: Who needs to do what

2008-10-07T09:30:00.000-07:00

Tonight's the debate, and as usual, yours truly will give his take on how the debators did either tomorrow or the next day. Guaranteed to be fair and bias (to borrow a line from Fort Worth Star-Telegram sports columnist, Randy Galloway).

Here's what I think each candidate needs to do:

Barack Obama
Just like in the Democratic primary, Obama seems to have trouble putting away an opponent. Tonight that's what he needs to do. In the most recent, post-veep debate polls, McCain has had a slight uptick. Tonight's the night to nip that sucker in the bud before it becomes a bigger uptick. Obama needs to do what he didn't do in the primaries - namely, finish what he started. The last thing he needs to do is let the campaign linger on and on and on when a good finishing move could take care of it. If he wants to demonstrate his leadership skills, now's the time to do it. Oh, and stop agreeing with John so much.

John McCain
McCain needs to take what little uptick Palin gave him and run with it. Now's the time to shore up what had been missing in recent weeks and create the kind of momentum that could carry him all the way to the Oval Office. Even though it seems to still be a toss-up, I still think that it's Obama's game to lose. Whatever "game-changer" mojo McCain got out of Palin seems to be expired, and he needs to re-energize his campaign. Allegedly, town hall formats such as tonight's debate are supposed to be McCain's strength - so tonight's the night to show why. The economy was also supposed to be his edge against Obama, but that didn't quite work out as planned in the first debate. If J-Mac goes 0-2 in the debates, then it's a good chance that it'll be 0-3 later.

That's my pre-game analysis. Tonight we'll see how right I am.

SNL skit of the VP debates

2008-10-06T15:30:00.001-07:00

By the way, for those of you who might have missed it, here's the SNL skit of the VP debate:

As you can see, nobody was spared! I wonder what they'll do with tomorrow's second debate of Obama and McCain?

Wall Street falls down anyway

2008-10-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is going to be the first time I use this acronym on my blog: WTF? Last week when the House didn't pass the now well-known bailout - excuse me, rescue - bill, Wall Street responded with a down day. By 700 points, if I recall correctly. Well, last Friday the bailout - Dang it! Rescue! - bill passed. So how did Wall Street respond this time? Down even more!

I can only ask: WTF?

Isn't that what they wanted? Isn't the bill of goods we were sold was that this rescue - got it this time! -bill was supposed to fix things, not make things worse? So now I have to ask: Does anyone in D.C. know what the hell they are doing? See folks, this is why we have elections. You registered? Better find out fast!

Lipstick and pigs again

2008-10-04T13:34:00.000-07:00

It seems that someone agrees with me, and it's a fellow edtooner!

My take on the veep debates: Palin escapes with a win

2008-10-04T07:18:00.000-07:00

I had discussions all day long yesterday with folks both in person and online about whom I felt won the debate, and I thought long and hard to figure out what to say. It finally hit me: Palin didn't so much win as she escaped with a win. Here's why I say that:

Joe Biden had mucho more experience in this sort of thing. It should have been in the bag for him. Not only that, Palin was damaged goods after having weak showings in her two interviews. On top of that, the debate was being moderated by a seasoned professional in Gwen Ifill. And yet, a comedy of errors led to Palin getting away with one.

I was told that Biden held back because Palin's a woman, and he didn't want to be viewed as sexist. I say: Pfft! How long did he know that Palin was going to be his debating opponent? And in all that time, he couldn't round up the local coven - er, I mean, a group of feminists to help coach him in debating female opponents without appearing sexist? How many feminists are in the Democratic Party anyway? (it could be that the Dem fems are still mad about the turnout of the primaries...)

Next, Biden had concentrated his attacks on McCain as a way to avoid criticizing Palin. Others told me that McCain is the top of the GOP ticket and that it was legitimate to criticize him. Yes, I agree with that - but, if the Dems wanted to show that Palin is too inexperienced for the veep job, then this was the time to do it. Here the Dems had an opportunity to take a wounded Palin down in probably the most public way that they're going to get before the election, and they let that opportunity slip away.

Not only that, this was a debate between vice presidential candidates! Their job in this debate is to show why they would be the better man (or woman) for the job. Part of doing that is to demonstrate why your opponent is NOT qualified. The closest Biden got was his "bridge to nowhere" comment, which actually got a brief rise out of the crowd that was supposed to be silent. But he didn't follow it up - instead continuing his attacks on McCain. Biden really needed a "You're no Jack Kennedy" Lloyd Bentson moment, and it didn't come. I blame Biden's failure to capitalize on finishing off the damaged goods that was Sarah Palin on poor coaching and preparation by the Democratic leadership. Look, do they want to win this election or not?

Next, in regards to Gwen Ifill, I felt that she handled herself professionally, and even said so here on my blog. However, others told me that she pulled her punches and didn't follow up on some of Palin's responses or chide her for going off track of the topic that was being discussed at the time. Others still said that this book controversy thing got into her head. I still feel that she is professional enough to deal with that, but I seem to be in the minority on that view. Why don't they think she could handle it? No one I asked who criticized Ifill's performance have been able to tell me that one.

As for Palin herself, her performance was well enough to save her a total meltdown. There were some of the flashes that got her in the national stage in the first place - even if she did use the word "maverick" half a gajillion times. Some critics chided her folksy twang, but maybe that's the way she talks - because 5 weeks into a national election is not enough time to lose one's twang. She went off track a few times, and didn't answer the question at other times. The shorter time for response benefitted her, but I think it did the same for Biden who has a tendency toward wordiness.

I'd rate her performance about a C+ at best, and she got away with a win mostly on the charity of her opponent rather than her own efforts. By the way, I give Biden a B-, but no more, because he didn't accomplish what he should have accomplished, and that was to stare Palin down. That Palin escaped being taken down completely is enough for me to award her the win.

Score for the debates so far:

Obama: 1
Palin: 1

Two debates to go. As usual, I'll be giving my take on how they did. Stay tuned!

Last minute advice for the debators tonight

2008-10-02T05:27:00.000-07:00

If the veep candidates bent an ear in my direction asking for last-minute advice, here's what I'd tell them:

Joe Biden
Look Joe, your worst enemy is not the GOP, but your own mouth. Not that you cuss, but that you don't know when to stop talking. The longer you go on talking, the more likely you are to gaffe. While one might say that you making a gaffe tonight is virtually inevitable, what you at least want to do is to not make a MAJOR gaffe. So keep your responses short and sweet, and that should decrease the odds of gaffe-making. You got years of experience on your debating opponent, so work that in your favor.

Sarah Palin
Sarah, something about you got you from the PTA to the vice presidency, so tonight's the night for the U.S. to see what that is. You need to recapture whatever you had that night at the GOP convention and bring it out again. No pressure, but McCain's success or failure in this election largely rests on how quickly you adjust to the big stage. In addition, your opponent has a tendency to gaffe , so if he makes a particularly juicy gaffe, work that in your favor so as to draw attention to him and away from your own shortcomings.

For both
Forget that Palin is a woman, and debate as equals. Palin needs to be treated the same as if it had been Mike Huckabee or Mitt Romney that had been nominated. She will need to sink or swim on the basis of her own debate skills. The more even-handed this debate is done, the better.

Gwen Ifill's book with Obama in it
Hngh. This news item is an annoyance that shouldn't have happened. Even if Ifill isn't "in the tank" for Obama, she should have revealed the fact that she's writing a book on Obama on her own - and much, much sooner, instead of letting conservative talk show hosts and websites come across that fact. She's an intelligent woman as well as a professional, and she above all should have known that this was going to come up, especially in this contentious election season. Had she made this fact known sooner, it could have been dealt with already.

Now the GOP will have a ready-made excuse should Palin not perform well. Not only that, now that this has come out, Ifill might have to "pull her punches" so as to keep from looking like she is favoring Biden. I can't believe that someone in the Dem side didn't think that this would at least give the appearance of a conflict of interest! This was poorly handled, and it will become an element of tonight's debate that shouldn't have been there.

In any case, however, I still will be watching. And of course, I'll give my take on how the candidates did.

UPDATE: According to this article, Ifill didn't inform the Commission on Presidential Debates about her authoring this book. That would have been the perfect time to do so. Even if the CPD wasn't informed of it, they should have had some mechanism in place that would seek out such information. According to a fellow blogger (see comment below), knowledge of this book had been known beforehand. A quick Google search by the CPD should have brought this out. I still maintain that this could have been better handled.

UPDATE 2:
Gwen Ifill handled the debate totally professionally. She made the book issue a non-issue. Although the Hannitys and Limbaughs will probably still find something, I don't think they will have a leg to stand on in regards to how she handled being the moderator. My debate review will come tomorrow, but I wanted to get my kudos in on Ifill's moderation skills right now.

When is a bail-out not a bail-out?

2008-10-01T05:28:00.001-07:00

In today's Fort Worth Star-Telegram, there was an article in which some politicians felt that calling the bail-out plan a "bail out" was a mistake. Perhaps, they mused, it would help if they instead call it a "rescue". I'm thinking lipstick and pigs here. This bail-out crisis has reminded me once again that we should never confuse "politician" with "leader".

Bail out plan bailed out

2008-09-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

The bail-out bill got bailed out yesterday, and Wall Street went into a funk as a result. However, what I found most interesting is how the GOP was getting blamed for it. But if one looks at the voting, here's what they discover:

The bill needed 218 votes to pass. It got 205, and 95 Democrats voted against it. Had less than a fourth of that number voted in favor of that bailout, it would have passed - and done so without the GOP being able to do anything about it. So why weren't the Dems able to get the necessary votes from their own party?

Well, it seems that there is something even more important than doing "what is good for the country", and that's making sure that you have nothing in your voting record that could come back to haunt you later. Basically, the Dems didn't want only their asses to be hung out to dry in case this comes back to bite them in the butt.

And yet, that's not how I read it in most newspaper articles yesterday. Instead, I read mostly about Speaker Nancy Pelosi scolding the GOP for failing to show up and being unpatriotic and such. It seems to me, though, that her scolding should have instead been directed towards members of her own party. Like I said, this bill was GOP-proof if the Dems wanted it enough, but I didn't see that particular fact mentioned in newspaper articles yesterday. I'm not saying that there's liberal bias in the media, but....

Another thing: For the better part of a week, we've been told how big a financial crisis this is and why it's so important that some bill goes through. And yet - and yet - Congress has recessed until Thursday because of Rosh Hashanah. Okay, if you're Jewish, I can understand that you would want to celebrate your holiday. BUT, if you're NOT Jewish, and if the crisis hasn't gone away - then getcher ass back there and settle this!

It's a crisis, right? And it needs to be dealt with, right? I'm not at all saying that the Jewish members of Congress should not be allowed time off to celebrate their holiday, but I ask: Will the financial markets wait until Thursday before something happens again? What I AM saying is - if the members of Congress can take a 2 day holiday despite having told us for days that something needs to be done NOW, then I have to doubt just how urgent this crisis really is.

That, plus the hard-sell that we've endured lately really makes me suspect that foul play is afoot. Throw in the fact that we are mere weeks away from a presidential election with candidates that have expended lots of emotional capital, and you have a virtual guarantee that conspiracies are in place that have more to do with achieving political aims rather than doing what's "good for the country".

The radar in my cynical side is going off like gangbusters here, folks. Time will tell whether I'm right.

First debate goes to Obama by a nose

2008-09-29T10:26:00.000-07:00

My official opinion is that the first debate goes to Barack Obama by a nose. Neither candidate committed any major gaffes, and basically each candidate was feeling out the other one for the most part without plunging into anything that might possibly backfire on them. I think that in the next debate, they'll each take more chances, and it should be very entertaining. I went with Obama this time because he seemed to carry himself off in a more relaxed and confident manner while John McCain seemed annoyed at times. McCain seemed to be on the verge of coming up with something a couple of times, but held back. However, he uttered my favorite line of the debate when he said - in words to this effect - "It's hard to reach across the aisle to someone as far to the left as you are."

The veep debate is next, and it could be one for the ages as far as veep debates go, as we have the human gaffe machine in Joe Biden vs. the country bumpkin in Sarah Palin. I imagine that there's going to be abundant white knuckles in both parties that night. For pundits such as myself, however, that's when we crack out the popcorn. :-)

And of course, I'll be giving my take on how each candidate did. Stay tuned!

John McCain to debate after all

2008-09-26T12:14:00.000-07:00

It looks like J-Mac is going to debate after all. Whatever he hoped to get out of this "I'm suspending my campaign to help rescue the nation" ploy apparently didn't pan out. Well, he took that risk, and it didn't work. Folks, that's why they're called risks. All he can do now is to make a good showing tonight, as he is now working under a deficit. And look for my reaction to how the candidates did here on my blog sometime this weekend.

I'm going to ponder something else over the weekend that I am getting increasingly disturbed about, and it is the increasing attacks on Sarah Palin. Barack Obama had gone through this during the primary season, and now it looks like Palin's turn.

A lot of the criticism is directed at her "lack of experience", but the same could be said for Obama - in fact, it applies even more to him than to her, because while she will be "one heartbeat away from the presidency", he will actually be in the Oval Office (that's if either of them are elected, of course).

And yes, her nomination is an election year ploy, but that's pretty much like saying that a sacrifice bunt is a strategy ploy in baseball or the fake handoff is a strategy ploy in football. In other words, it's part of the game. Both the experience and the "election year ploy" arguments are weak, in my humble opinion. More on this next week.

Have a great weekend!

Note on the journey to Nerdville: WoW update

2008-09-26T06:27:00.000-07:00

Time to update you good folks on how my WoW characters are doing.

Night Elf Hunter chick
My elf is now at level 18. She's learned how to skin critters and to make basic leather attire out of their hides. This gives her a little extra income besides the copper coins that she finds on some of them after she's finished them off. At first it bothered her to rob them of their dignity by stripping them of their skin, but eventually she reasoned, "Well, hell! They're dead! What do they care?"

In case you're wondering, when she's "skinning" a critter, all she does is have one hand make a circular motion for a few seconds over the palm-up other hand with a "shwrrrrip!" sound effect. There's no bloody mess of her actually removing a hide from a carcass, as the dead critter is still lying there with its fur once she's done with her hand motioning, and yet somehow she's got its hide . I'm absolutely certain that truly skinning an animal looks much, much worse, but if WoW tried to accurately depict an animal being skinned, PETA would probably skin the creators of WoW.

Anyway, my elf has gotten quite skilled at the bow. In fact, she's dying for a new bow - especially one with greater range. The critters she's dealing with now are higher level, and they're harder to kill - even with the grizzly bear that she now has as a pet (by the way, she named him "Yogi"). She had initially reached new levels pretty quickly, but lately she's slowed down, because not only are the critters harder to kill, but they often will attack in groups instead of coming one at a time like she's used to.

I think that in the past week, she's gotten killed more times than in the previous 3 weeks combined. If she's killed in a cave of critters, she sometimes have to get killed two or three times before she's finally out at a safe distance. I know that I'd hate to be killed two or three times just to get out of someplace. I've also been to parties that probably would have been the death of me two or three times to escape.

Fortunately, my elf's been invited to join a guild. She couldn't join at the time she was asked, because apparently people still on their free WoW time can't join guilds. But that free month ended on Monday, so she should be good to join now. She's already made a couple of online friends who appreciate her pet bear and her long range attack skills. I've found that some quests are much easier when you team up with others. It's a lesson that my dwarf character is still trying to learn. Oh yeah - let's talk about him now.

Dwarf Warrior dude
The dwarf is now at level 10. He's getting killed much less frequently, as he's gotten really good at swinging the double-bladed axe that he now sports (When he first got the axe, he exclaimed, "HAHA! A warrior's weapon at last! Fantastic!" and couldn't wait to go knock off a boar or three). He's also picked up a couple of skills: mining and metalworks - both of which he calls true dwarven callings.

He seems just as happy mining for copper as he is taking an axe to a bear. With his new axe and skills, he seems just a tad less cantankerous now - although he still feels the need to express cantankerousness from time to time so as to remind me that he's a dwarf. He takes to dwarven behavior like Worf from Star Trek takes to being a Klingon.

Anyway, he's gotten quite skilled at both mining and metalworking. He's got the physique for both, as both skills require a good deal of upper body strength - and he has that. He's also got a nose to know where certain lodes of metal are nearby, and before you know it, he's there with a pick in his hand, picking away the metal. Then he takes the fruits of his labors to nearby Ironforge, which is the capital of dwarfdom. Ah, does he go on and on about Ironforge! He should be a salesman for trips to there!

Oh! Not only that, Brewfest is also in town! Brewfest is a festival that celebrates the drinking of alcohol! Basically, it's the dwarven equivalent of Oktoberfest that many American towns celebrate. After a few ales, the dude is dancing like Michael Flatley! Well, maybe not quite like that, but he's got more twinkle in his toes than I ever expected him to have.

As he got up to level 10, he was able to handle most of what came at him, but now he's starting to run into critters that even his mighty double-bladed axe can't take down in a few swings. Now he's taken to teaming up with others more often than he's done in the past. Not only that, he was invited to join a guild! Right now, he can't join for the same reasons as my elf character, but I think he'd be willing to join this guild, despite his taciturn personality. The reason? It's a guild of dwarves!

And that updates you for now. More to come at another time, of course.

Words of advice: Don't fart at cops

2008-09-25T08:56:00.000-07:00

Words of advice: Don't fart at cops. You could be charged for battery!

Okay, who DIDN'T burst out in laughter after reading that?