It Boggles the Mind 3: Fast Food Edition

Oh, what an interesting half hour I had tonight:

At 8:07, I arrived at a local fast food chain's drive thru. I'm not going to name the place, but let's just say it rhymes with "Fairy Spleen". I know it was 8:07, because I glanced down to turn the CD player down. The CD player was on an AC/DC disc, from Slot 4, Cut 6 in the changer. Store this information, it's important to the story.

I was the fourth car in line, behind a boring Chevy sedan (okay, that was redundant), a white four door Pontiac Grand Prix (a good looking car, by comparison to the afore mentioned Chevy), and a BMW Z3 convertible, driven by a young man of fairly immense proportions, he looked slightly out of place in this little car. Why do I have so much information here? Because I had plenty of time to assimilate it, that's why.

Window down, I listened as the people in front of me ordered. At 8:10, the Chevy ordered two ice cream treats. Now, keep in mind this Fairy Spleen does serve hot food, but they STILL specialize in ice cream delights. I hear the person on the other end say "pull ahead to the window" and the Chevy sits still. Why? Because it cannot move. I'm guessing (not sure, just judging distance in my mind) there are three cars in front of the Chevy waiting for their order.

Finally, at 8:14, we lurch forward. The lady in the white Pontiac orders a drink and an ice cream treat. At 8:17, the Z3 driver orders THREE ice cream treats (not all for himself, I'm guessing). Finally, at 8:20, I get to move to the order screen. At 8:23 (!) I order. I order two large Pepsi's. I'm greeted with "what size mistys did you say?" I repeat, "two...large...Pepsi's...Cola...in a glass...with a straw...".

She does not sound amused. I cringe at my next item before I even get it out: "I also need a large Sierra Mist". Oh, oh. Surprise! She gets it. Then says, "that it?"

"Nope, I also need two plain hot dogs."

"What do you want on them?"

"Nothing. Plain is fine."

"zat it?"

"I also need a caramel Sundae."

"What size?"

"Small"

"We're out of small cups."

"Fine. Medium. Do I get that at a small price?"

"'zat it?" (The lack of a sense of humor is appalling to me.)

"Yep, that'll do."

"Please pull forward."

At 8:28, the Z3 gets his three ice cream treats, totalling just over $5. Not wanting to be left out in totally pissing me off, he breaks out the debit card to pay for it. This, of course, is followed by an employee leaving the drive thru area to go to the front...I do not blame Fairy Spleen for this...who the hell uses a debit card for five-something dollars at a drive thru? In a BMW? With the top down? Sheesh.

It's 8:32. Those four minutes were used for the employee to jog three blocks to the South Side Bank ATM, pull out five-something dollars for the guy, and jog back with his receipt and his card. Apparently. I notice the CD is on Slot 4, cut 12. Crap. I've missed 1/2 of an AC/DC disc. I also observe the gas gauge in the Ford to be in a different position than when I arrived.

At 8:34, I pull to the window. Four employees are staring up at a screen that I cannot see. They are either looking at my order, or watching The Gilmore Girls. I can't be certain. I pay. I wait. At 8:36, I get my beverages. With one loose lid that threatens to turn the passenger side of the Explorer into Lake Sierra Mist. But I catch it.

At 8:37...YES, a FULL 1/2 HOUR, we HAVE A WINNER!!!!....at 8:37, I get my plain hot dogs. I drive away, and notice that while I pulled up to the south side of the building wearing sunglasses as Ol' Sol tried to squeeze through the clouds at sunset, I am now having to turn on the headlights as I leave the North side of the building. Damn. Summers are so short anymore. And mine was spent in the drive through at a Fairy Spleen.

I cannot emphasize this enough, the three in front of me ordered about 12 dollars TOTAL worth of ice cream treats and beverages. And it STILL took that long.

As I pull onto Sher...oops, I can't name the street, you might figure out where I was. Um, er, as I pull onto the street, I turn up the CD player. Marc Chesnutt is singing "Someone Save The Honky Tonks". Angus Young is nowhere to be found.

Hells Bells.

Meanwhile, In A Red State

Let's start the clock and see how long it takes for this to be called a "cheapshot".

Whatever...or Whoever...Could They Be Referring To?

I do like the question that is posed. Good humor. A true tickler.

It Boggles The Mind 2

So the long-grass Nazis are already out in force in East Peoria. If you don't live there, you should know that as soon as your lawn gets a little long, you get a "friendly reminder" from that city that you need to mow the lawn or risk getting a ticket.

Meanwhile, the weeds along the sides of many city-owned and maintained streets in the area are already three-feet high. Yet another "do as I say" proposition to make more money for a municipality.

A source of revenue, that's all it is. Like parking tickets in Pekin. Look forward to another edition of "It Boggles The Mind" highlighting Pekin's insane parking ticket racket in the next few days.

Reid In Hot Water...And He Should Be

Senate's top Democrat took free boxing tickets

Add Harry Reid to the list of dipsticks getting free stuff to "learn how his legislation might affect an important home state industry." Bull. Boxing is one of Nevada's largest industries and the lobbyists wanted something from him, so they provided him with primo seats for big fights.

With all the idiotic ethics violations finally catching up to the GOP, the last thing Democrats need to do is the same idiotic stuff. And this qualifies as idiotic stuff. Yet another guy that needs to be punished and subsequently voted out next go-round. Way to go, Harry. Not.

For the record, Harry Reid is one of my favorite politicians I've ever hung out with. He was a regular visitor to my radio show in Carson City, NV in the early 90's (along with Richard Bryan, former Governor Bob Miller, and the coolest Republican on the planet, Nevada Secretary of State Dean "The Machine" Heller, who I got hooked on stock car racing to the point where now he has his own stock car). For him to accept these gifts is one thing, to try and defend it now in this time of "gotcha" is silly. I wish he'd just say, "dang, I screwed up big time and deserve punishment of some kind."

It Boggles the Mind

Obviously, this one has been going on for years. But it doesn't make it any less annoying. It just happened again on my way back from the store:

While I sit inside my 4,000 lb Pontiac coupe, surrounded by air bags both front and side, metal all around me and over me, safety features built into virtually every inch of the car to ensure that I am safe...I have to strap on my seat belt, whether I want to or not.

Next to me, 35 MPH, cruising down Knoxville, is a husband and wife on a motorcycle. Never mind the fact that he is barefoot, she is wearing flip-flops. Never mind that he is shirtless and wearing cutoff shorts, and she is wearing a tiny tank top and a pair of shorts. That, to me, is their choice and a dumb one at that. What boggles the mind is the fact that neither of them have helmets on, and they're well within their legal rights to do so. That's what boggles the mind.

I'm an inundated with commercials (bought with taxpayer dollars, btw) ordering me to click it or get a ticket. While the guy next to me has the right to cruise on a fenderless, roofless, bike with his head, elbows, legs, and feet completely uncovered. I'm not complaining about the biker and his wife, they can be stupid and dangerous if they want to...they're doing nothing illegal.

It's a screwed up world.

Happy Trails, Don't Reach For The Soap.

Buh-bye, Kenny-boy. Buh-bye Ol' Skillster. Hopefully someday some of the good ol' boys living in the White House can join you. Jerks.

Tip Talk

There's been quite a bit of talk in the Journal Star letters to the editor lately about tips. Gratuities. The writers say the people of Peoria are poor tippers, i.e. tightwads. They're right, from what I can see.

I spent seven years in Nevada. You give everyone a tip who provides a service for you. At first, I would calculate the 15% in my head and just leave the standard tip. But some service is better than others. So you found yourself tipping more. Now? I don't tip less than 17 or 18% anywhere I go, and sometimes will go to 22-25% of it's warranted. Why? Because I appreciate the good service, and I appreciate that many of these hard working folks don't make a lot of money. Niether do I, but that doesn't mean I can't tip them for good service.

And as I've done this around town, I've come to have servers thank me for the big tip, and co-workers or friends I'm dining with, and even guys sitting at the next table, say, "wow, why so much?" Then I watch as they calculate 10% or sometimes even less, or I watch as some people get up without leaving even a penny and then walk to their new Cadillac (I witnessed this last summer), and I'm embarrassed for them.

"That's why you'll never have a Cadillac," I'm told by such tightasses. Well guess what, if I've gotta be a snotty, under-tipping customer with no apprecation for living day-to-day and check-to-check, then I'm GLAD I'll never have a Caddy.

If you read this and you're a Mister 10-percenter or less, cough up a bigger tip next time. On a $30 check, it's an extra buck fifty. You can save it by buying the eight dollar cigar instead of the 10 dollar cigar next time you're at the Weaver Ridge clubhouse.

Wow. How Long Will The Bushies Let THIS Guy Stay?

Iraqi minister defends Iranian nuclear program

So here's a man who was appointed by the Iraqi Interim Governing Council, which was appointed by the Bush Administration, saying that Iran has every right to pursue nuclear technology.

Look for him to get his walking papers sometime in the next week or two, that would be my guess. From the story:

"Iran doesn't claim that they want to obtain a nuclear weapon or a nuclear bomb, so there is no need that we ask them for any guarantee now," Hoshyar Zebari said after meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Manouchehr Mottaki.

Iran's nuclear ambitions are "an international issue," Zebari said. "In our beliefs, it is a matter of principle. Every country has the right to have its nuclear technology, every country like the Islamic Republic or any other country, since it is for peaceful purposes."

How many F-bombs do you think Dick Cheney has dropped over this one this morning?

Boy, I Hope It Isn't True

I have long said, and taken heat from co-workers for it, that I don't make blanket statements like "I support the troops", because in fact I don't support all of them. I don't like to make ANY blanket statement, because there's always a bad apple or two in every bunch.

So when I see this:

Pentagon sources: Civilians likely killed without provocation

I am saddened, but not surprised. I am also vindicated in my thoughts, but not happy about it. I hope it isn't true, but if it is, I don't want to hear excuses about the "pressure" they're under. I don't care what kind of pressure they are under, they are smart enough to know the difference between right and wrong. I would hope to see these soldiers brought to justice the way they would be if they killed our own citizens on our own shores. Why? Because they give our other brave armed forces personnel (the vast majority) who HAVEN'T done this kind of thing a bad name.

"There was no firefight. There was no IED that killed these innocent people. Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them, and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood," Murtha said. "They actually went into the houses and killed women and children."

That is just not right. Yes, I know that's a politician commenting, but commenting after he'd seen video of the incident. But what is even worse, is that there will be comments after this post that will condone the soldiers' behavior, and those comments will be made by people who talk a tough game but refuse to sign up and get their rear ends over there. I believe the term is "chickenhawk".

Now That I'm Moving...

...to Kewanee, in the next month, I can write an open letter to Ameren:

To Whom It May Concern,

If your company's mission statement is to have yourselves and your employees become known as the meanest, rudest, most heartless, most uncaring, most undiplomatic, most arrogant monopoly in history...CONGRATULATIONS, YOU'RE A WINNER!!!!

If that is NOT your mission statement, you need to make some changes.

Sincerely,

A customer who cannot wait to get power from another company.

From My Favorite Column

The Minneapolis Tribune's "By The Numbers" always puts things into perspective for me.

Here are some recent findings:

73 percent

Correlation between those saying that "prayer is an important part of my daily life" and those saying that "the best way to ensure peace is through military strength," according to a study by the Harvard Institute of Economic Research.

Praise god, pass the AK-47.

Another:

200,000

Number of gallons of crude oil that were spilled on Alaska's North Slope in March as a result of a leak in a pipeline.

4

Number of consecutive days in the week prior to discovery of the pipeline leak that an alarm went off signaling a leak, but was ignored as a false alarm.

"Hmmm...we ignored the leak and lost crude...let's jack up the price to cover it."

And one more:

5-8-2006

Date on which President Bush nominated Gen. Michael Hayden as director of the Central Intelligence Agency, saying "he's the right man to lead the CIA at this critical moment in our nation's history" and that he will "provide outstanding leadership to meet the challenges and threats of a dangerous new century."

8-10-2004

Date on which Bush nominated then-Congressman Porter Goss as CIA director, saying "he's the right man to lead this important agency at this critical moment in our nation's history" and that he is on an "essential mission to lead the agency for the challenges and threats of a dangerous new century."

"Hey, can we use this speech again?" "Why not, they're just Americans, they're below us. They'll never know the difference."

$48 To Fill Up A Grand Prix?!?!?!

I couldn't believe it. Ever since gas went completely out of hand (along with the profits for the oil companies), I've tried to fill up when the tank got to half-full, so it didn't seem to be as bad in my mind.

So we filled up Diane's work car this weekend. She was on "E" for "End of Ride". The car took $48 to fill up. $48! Just one year ago it would have been $25! Just four years ago, after 9/11, that same fillup would have cost $16.

I see the conservatives and free market supporters trying to trot out numbers about how "adjusted for inflation, it's still lower...blah blah blah". Well, adjusted for inflation, has anybody reading this have your paycheck tripled since 2002? I didn't think so.

Michael Barrett Is A Punk

Nice sucker punch, Barrett. Even Dusty Baker said Pierzynski's play was simply baseball the way it was meant to be played.

Here's the difference in the two franchises in Chicago right now: One of them gets guys who want and know how to win, the other tries to make a profit. You people who continue to root for these guys and spend money on jerseys and hats and buy tickets to that pathetic, rickety old dump on the North Side have to STOP doing that if you want that team to win. Demand excellence. Demand a winner. Or shut up when you get your butts kicked by the teams that want to win.

For all of those Pierzynski haters out there...in and out of the game of baseball...I'd like to point out that that kid has never played on a losing team, and only missed the playoffs twice...since becoming a full-time big leaguer. He was Minnesota's catcher in 2001, taking a team that had finished last the year before (69-93) to an 85-77 season, finishing second in the AL Central. Only three regulars changed from 2000 to 2001, BTW: Pierzynski for Matt LeCroy behind the plate, Doug Meintkeiwicz for Ron Coomer at first base, and Luis Rivas took over for Todd Walker at second base. Please note that while A.J. is now with the White Sox, both Ron Coomer and Walker became Cubs, and LeCroy has just this year helped the Washington Nationals go from contender to doormat. Good teams find the right players...bad teams (i.e. the Cubs in most cases) take what's left.

In 2002 and 2003, the Twins won the Central with Pierzynski behind the plate. In 2004, he went to San Francisco and that team missed the playoffs by one game. Then in 2005, it was off to Chicago, where as we all know he was a key player in the Sox winning the whole ball of wax. They'll do it again this year, and you can bet Pierzynski will be making big plays all the way.

The Cubs catcher? He should spend a couple of nights in jail for assault.

Wow, This Wraps It Up Nicely

But it already needs updating. So much has happened since December. No matter what party you a part of, by the end of the list you're just giggling.

STATE BY STATE GOP SCANDAL SCORECARD

Google Fun

Just type in "indicted" and among the top six stories are:

"DeLay Indicted"
"Abramoff Indicted"
and
"Cheney's Top Aide Indicted"

The other three talked about a drug smuggler, the guys who hacked into Lowe's corporate computers, and the South Korean scientist indicted in the cloning scandal.

Pretty good company, there GOP.

Now, we await word on Saturday's rumors that no less than Karl Rove has been indicted. Nothing definite on it, but don't be surprised when it happens this week.

It's Starting To Get Funny

Look, I'm well aware that both major political parties in this country have their crooks and corruption, but isn't it safe to say at this point that the GOP is pitching a shutout in 2006?


Kentucky governor indicted over hiring practices

It's not major, it's misdemeanors that we're talking in this case, but he'll still have to step down if found guilty.

Anybody In Here Rich Enough To Benefit From This? Not Me.

This stuff has got to get to the voting public. I never see this talked about in the local news, and it IS important. Does any local station or paper talk about this? This is from a New York Times editorial this past Thursday:

A puzzling aspect of Congress's latest tax-cut package is why its overwhelmingly Republican supporters believe that its passage will be a big win for them and their party. There's nothing in it for most Americans, and yet all Americans will pay its cost: $69 billion over the near term. That price tag will be reflected in incessant budget deficits, which will further impair the government's ability to meet Americans' needs, and force the government to borrow more, mostly from abroad, to plug the budget gap.

The bill, which was passed yesterday by the House and is expected to clear the Senate as early as today, has two main provisions. The first, and dearest to the hearts of President Bush and his allies in Congress, is an extension of the temporary low tax rates on investment income. The top 10 percent of income earners will get almost all of the benefits, and everyone else will get crumbs.

To justify the giveaway, President Bush and Congressional Republicans insist that tax cuts for investors benefit everyone — and pay for themselves — by stimulating economic growth. That assertion is seriously delusional. Economic theory suggests that a fraction of the tax cuts' cost could, perhaps, be offset by higher growth, all other things being equal. But when a nation must borrow to pay for tax breaks, as is the case in the United States today, any ability of tax cuts for investors to spur growth is severely diminished.

If you've got the free subscription, it's here:

Editorial

What A Bunch.

At least this cabinet member ADMITS what goes on in today's White House:

HUD secretary's blunt warning

They have no shame. From the story:

"He made a heck of a proposal and was on the (General Services Administration) list, so we selected him. He came to see me and thank me for selecting him. Then he said something ... he said, 'I have a problem with your president.'

"I said, 'What do you mean?' He said, 'I don't like President Bush.' I thought to myself, 'Brother, you have a disconnect -- the president is elected, I was selected. You wouldn't be getting the contract unless I was sitting here. If you have a problem with the president, don't tell the secretary.'

"He didn't get the contract," Jackson continued. "Why should I reward someone who doesn't like the president, so they can use funds to try to campaign against the president? Logic says they don't get the contract. That's the way I believe."

Wow.

Speechless I am.

Rifle pointed at protesters in Florida during Bush visit

Hat tip to my buddy Allan.

Oops.

If I was in charge, somebody would get fired over this:

Sensitive Presidential Papers Found In Trash

More Findings

From the USA Today, three months ago:

The price of ethanol has been driven up because major oil refiners are suddenly buying in bulk. They're stocking up on ethanol as a replacement for MTBE, a petroleum-based additive suspected of causing cancer. MTBE and ethanol boost the octane of gasoline and can reduce pollution.

So, even though it's cheaper to make and therefore should be cheaper at the pump, we can thank the refineries (i.e. the oil companies) for making sure that gouging stretches to E85 pumps as well.

Just Throwin' Out Some Of My Findings From Looking Around

MYTH:
Ethanol takes more energy to produce than it contributes.

FACT: In June 2004, the U.S. Department of Agriculture updated its 2002 analysis of the issue and determined that the net energy balance of ethanol production is 1.67 to 1. For every 100 BTUs of energy used to make ethanol, 167 BTUs of ethanol is produced. In 2002, USDA had concluded that the ratio was 1.35 to 1. The USDA findings have been confirmed by additional studies conducted by the University of Nebraska and Argonne National Laboratory.

These figures take into account the energy required to plant, grow and harvest the corn—as well as the energy required to manufacture and distribute the ethanol.

The net energy balance of ethanol production continues to improve because ethanol production is becoming more efficient. For example, one bushel of corn now yields 2.8 gallons of ethanol—up from 2.5 gallons just a few years ago.

Attention State Police:

Thank you.

Thank you for starting to crackdown on I-74 construction zone speeders. It is appreciated. Good idea, too, by being where those drivers least expect you to be.

And it WASN'T entrapment, because you announced it before you did it:

Trooper will pose as flagger on I-74 today

This thank you comes from a guy who is unashamed to admit I speed on open highways. 74-77 MPH on the interstate, 64-67 MPH on two lane highways in Illinois.

Like I said before, I don't speed in construction zones, school zones, and residential areas. I speed on the open road. If you catch me, fine, but I'd rather you be doing just what you did Friday...catching people speeding where men and women are trying to work.

Thank you.

Sorry, Josh

I think I mighta made Josh H. frustrated. For that, I apologize. Back on Feb. 25 I wrote this:

Who is responsible for these words:

"MUslims do not "hate our freedom," but rather, they hate our policies. The overwhelming majority voice their objections to what they see as one-sided support in favor of Israel and against Palestinian rights, and the longstanding, even increasing support for what Muslims collectively see as tyrannies, most notably Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Pakistan, and the Gulf states. Thus when the American public diplomacy talks about bringing democracy to Islamic societies, this is seen as no more than self-serving hypocrisy."

I should have answered this weeks ago, but here it is:

William Schneider, Jr., Chairman of the Pentagon's Defense Science Board, and a signing member of the Project For A New American Century papers, the scary works written by all of the country's most well-known war mongers during the Clinton era.

Paul Wolfowitz had asked Schneider to study "how America could improve its strategic communication in the global war on terror".

The worst part? The report was finished and presented to the administration in September of 2004, but not released to the press until the day before Thanksgiving 2004. Why? Well, because there was an election to steal first. Then, of course, the timing of the actual report comes on a day when few actually read the paper. By giving them the info on Wednesday, the story shows up on Thanksgiving Day newsstands, (the ones that are open, anyway), and...oh, darn it...the networks - both radio and TV - have their main newspeople on vacation and in many cases, preempted entirely by football. In other words...no one cares about news on Thanksgiving, therefore, no one knows about this report.

So, in summary, a formal report from an advisory board to the likes of Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz, from inside the Pentagon, written by the guy who is supposed to be a cheerleader for the administration, tells those same people how off base they are.

And to think, Democrats, Independants, and wise Republicans thought WE were the only 67% who thought that.

Big Brass Ones, Part Duex

Since many of you that NEED to read this WON'T take the time to register with the NY Times, I'll go ahead and reprint the whole editorial:

One of the abiding curiosities of the Bush administration is that after more than five years in office, the president has yet to issue a veto. No one since Thomas Jefferson has stayed in the White House this long without rejecting a single act of Congress. Some people attribute this to the Republicans' control of the House and the Senate, and others to Mr. Bush's reluctance to expend political capital on anything but tax cuts for the wealthy and the war in Iraq. Now, thanks to a recent article in The Boston Globe, we have a better answer.

President Bush doesn't bother with vetoes; he simply declares his intention not to enforce anything he dislikes. Charlie Savage at The Globe reported recently that Mr. Bush had issued more than 750 "presidential signing statements" declaring he wouldn't do what the laws required. Perhaps the most infamous was the one in which he stated that he did not really feel bound by the Congressional ban on the torture of prisoners.

In this area, as in so many others, Mr. Bush has decided not to take the open, forthright constitutional path. He signed some of the laws in question with great fanfare, then quietly registered his intention to ignore them. He placed his imperial vision of the presidency over the will of America's elected lawmakers. And as usual, the Republican majority in Congress simply looked the other way.

Many of the signing statements reject efforts to curb Mr. Bush's out-of-control sense of his powers in combating terrorism. In March, after frequent pious declarations of his commitment to protecting civil liberties, Mr. Bush issued a signing statement that said he would not obey a new law requiring the Justice Department to report on how the F.B.I. is using the Patriot Act to search homes and secretly seize papers if he decided that such reporting could impair national security or executive branch operations.

In another case, the president said he would not instruct the military to follow a law barring it from storing illegally obtained intelligence about Americans. Now we know, of course, that Mr. Bush had already authorized the National Security Agency, which is run by the Pentagon, to violate the law by eavesdropping on Americans' conversations and reading Americans' e-mail without getting warrants.

We know from this sort of bitter experience that the president is not simply expressing philosophical reservations about how a particular law may affect the war on terror. The signing statements are not even all about national security. Mr. Bush is not willing to enforce a law protecting employees of nuclear-related agencies if they report misdeeds to Congress. In another case, he said he would not turn over scientific information "uncensored and without delay" when Congress needed it. (Remember the altered environmental reports?)

Mr. Bush also demurred from following a law forbidding the Defense Department to censor the legal advice of military lawyers. (Remember the ones who objected to the torture-is-legal policy?) Instead, his signing statement said military lawyers are bound to agree with political appointees at the Justice Department and the Pentagon.

The founding fathers never conceived of anything like a signing statement. The idea was cooked up by Edwin Meese III, when he was the attorney general for Ronald Reagan, to expand presidential powers. He was helped by a young lawyer who was a true believer in the unitary presidency, a euphemism for an autocratic executive branch that ignores Congress and the courts. Unhappily, that lawyer, Samuel Alito Jr., is now on the Supreme Court.

Since the Reagan era, other presidents have issued signing statements to explain how they interpreted a law for the purpose of enforcing it, or to register narrow constitutional concerns. But none have done it as profligately as Mr. Bush. (His father issued about 232 in four years, and Bill Clinton 140 in eight years.) And none have used it so clearly to make the president the interpreter of a law's intent, instead of Congress, and the arbiter of constitutionality, instead of the courts.

Like many of Mr. Bush's other imperial excesses, this one serves no legitimate purpose. Congress is run by a solid and iron-fisted Republican majority. And there is actually a system for the president to object to a law: he vetoes it, and Congress then has a chance to override the veto with a two-thirds majority.

That process was good enough for 42 other presidents. But it has the disadvantage of leaving the chief executive bound by his oath of office to abide by the result. This president seems determined not to play by any rules other than the ones of his own making. And that includes the Constitution.

November 2006 can't come fast enough.

Big Brass Ones

King George never fails to disappoint.

Goss Resigns

The ink on Goss' resignation wasn't dry before Bush tapped Gen. Hayden of the NSA. Which means this is in the story:

The new CIA director must be confirmed by the Senate, which may bring Hayden's tenure as NSA director in 2001 under scrutiny, after Bush authorized a controversial anti-terrorism spy program.

Without court warrants, the NSA monitored the communications of people inside the United States who were in contact with suspected terrorists outside the country.

November 2006 can't come fast enough.

Popular Republican Mechanics

When did this magazine swerve so far to the right?

As I mentioned on Bill Dennis' blog, this month's issue featured an article on alternative fuels. Without going into too much detail, here's what got me from the start.

They compared several fuels, but did not use the same vehicles. The "benchmark" vehicle was a 2006 Honda Civic, running on 87 octane regular fuel (no blends). They show it getting 33 MPG at $2.34 a gallon (wow, what a difference a month makes, huh?) and an average yearly fuel cost of $212.

Then, right next to it, is a Ford Taurus FFV (flex fuel vehicle) that can run on anything from straight unleaded to E85. They quote the cost of E85 to be $2.41 per gallon, and the car gets 17 MPG (or about 3 MPG less than it would get on straight unleaded) for an annual fuel cost of $425. Of course, the "annual fuel cost" numbers are bolded to stand out, just like those two words just did.

Aside from the obvious unfairness of comparing a 33 MPG powerless compact with a much larger Ford Sedan with a larger more powerful motor, the biggest thing is, of course, the obvious flaw in their gas prices.

Right now, in Geneseo, IL (near where I now work) the lone E85 pump has fuel for $2.39 per gallon, and regular E10 blended unleaded for $2.89, with unblended fuel for $2.99 per gallon. Quite a far stretch from the figures quoted in Popular Mechanics. I've never seen E85 more expensive than regular unleaded, that's the point of going with an E85 pump to begin with. Sheesh.

Obviously, saving 60 cents per gallon (or 20% of the total cost) while losing only 15% of the gas mileage would show a yearly advantage to running an E85 car.

But Popular Mechanics chooses not to show things correctly, thus giving the impression that "plain ole' regular gas is still the best way to go."

Again, I have yet to finalize my own personal opinion. But it's quite obvious what opinion Popular Mechanics wants me to have, and that kind of crap ticks me off.

Better Idea

This whole noise ordinance thing has me chuckling still.

Here's my new idea. To heck with tickets, impounding, etc.

Whenever a police officer pulls over one of these cars with excessively loud music, he makes them take off their music of choice and change it to something they will not like.

Metal too loud? Make 'em crank up Celine Dion. Rap too loud? Make 'em crank up an old Ricky Skaggs CD. It'll be turned down real quick. Count on it.

Same goes for Harleys. Pipes too loud? Pull 'em over, take off the leather, and make 'em put on a parrothead outfit, complete with flip flops.

And why stop with noise? How about fixing the dress code with youths in this country? See a kid in a pair of exceedingly baggy pants with his ugly plaid boxer shorts showing? (My kid does this sometimes...drives me NUTS) Make 'em wear Sears Toughskin skin-tight plain pocket blue jeans with a three-inch Beaver Cleaver cuff on 'em.

See a kid wearing basketball "shorts" that go down to the mid-calf? Hello, young man, here is your brand new pair of Bob Cousy tighty whitey short shorts. Wear 'em with pride. Let's see those thighs...oh, and get a tan.

See a girl dressed all "goth" with chains, black clothes, nose rings, black eye shadow, spiked hair, trying to look all "80's Wynona Ryder"? Take her to the Gap, put her in pastels, lose the jewelry, the metal, and the sourpuss look on her face, and make her skip down the street instead of sulk and drag her oversized boys tennis shoes.

I'd feel better if this stuff happened.

The Moving Overpass

Ah, the joys of rural driving. I ran up behind one of these bad boys today.

Actually, the one I saw was much bigger than this. At least 12 feet from ground to bottom of "cab". A six-step ladder hangs down so the driver can climb up into it. My car would fit right underneath it. I wanted to try it so bad, but I just didn't know if the guy would freak and make a sudden turn. The thing was going about 25 MPH, I know I woulda made it.

If I see one tomorrow, I might give it a shot.

Courage

I should have put this post BELOW the Sam Cassell post, so read it first, then come back up to this one.

Are ya back? Okay, good.

Friday afternoon Diane and I drove up to Greene, IA, northwest of Waterloo, to watch my son, a sophomore, run in a high school track meet. I had been thinking about Sam Cassell this week, and other guys like Kerry Wood and Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa...guys who soil their games through apathy, cheating, steroids, lack of heart to come back from injury, etc.

Then I saw some young men who reminded me how great sports can be. One of the kids on Justin's team runs the 110-meter high hurdles and the 400-meter low hurdles. He has no hope of winning, he's not fast. He has to wear special tennis shoes instead of regular track spikes because of a severe heel problem, possibly from birth, my son is not sure. He finishes 3-4 seconds behind...a virtual eternity...in the 110's. While he's running, his teammates implore him to go faster and cheer him on, supporting him all the way. He smiles, puts his sweats back on, and goes into the infield to rejoin his team before his next event. He comes back out for the 400 Lows, and finishes well off the pace again. But he checks his time, smiles, and comes back to the team. They congratulate him. His only concern is having fun and his only goal is setting new personal best times. That's why he runs.

Later, a young man from another school (there are students from 14 Iowa high schools at the event) skips by Diane and I, with an obvious disorder or ailment. His legs don't bend much, and his hips appear to be very tight. He hops more than he actually runs. He is about 5-foot-4, 100 pounds soaking wet. He is in uniform. His event? The 100 meter dash. No hope of winning. He doesn't care. Finishing and setting personal bests are his goal, too. The gun goes off, the kids take off. When he comes by us at the 40-meter mark, he is 40 meters behind. He finishes. The crowd and his teammates cheer him on all the way.

Still later, my boy competes in the 2-mile run. There are 16 starters, after one of eight laps, Justin is in 10th, side by side with a kid we later find out is a senior from Mason City Newman high school. Justin, as I said, is a sophomore, he looks strong against the upperclassmen, and Di and I cheer him on every lap. His teammates across from me in the infield do the same. The lead pack of four steadily pulls away, and I notice the leaders catching a young man in a gold and black uniform who is way, way, way behind. He gets lapped with about two and a half laps to go, but he doesn't stop. He keeps competing. The winner crosses in just over 10 minutes, Justin makes a late kick to pass two kids and finishes 8th in just over 11 minutes. I am very proud. I couldn't run a lap right now, let alone 8.

But what he does next makes me more proud. After catching his breath, after resting in the infield for a couple of minutes, he sees the young man in black and gold finally finishing, some four or five minutes later. My son gets up on still tired and wobbly legs, and goes 25 yards over to the other young man and pats him on the back and tells him something. He then comes over to me and I ask him what he said to the kid, he said, "I told him 'good job, you always finish and you always try hard. It's good running with you.' I've run with him before."

I didn't write this to only brag up my son (although yes, I'm bragging him up...I'm proud of him!). I wrote this because of all the kids, all the courage, all the support they get in all the sports they play. And this was at one small track meet with kids from 14 small Iowa schools, whose total enrollment would probably equal Pekin + Richwoods. I can only imagine how many youngsters are doing this every day around the country. Beating the odds. Pushing themselves. Not letting their deficiencies change them in any way. Not cheating to get better. Not quitting because "it isn't worth it." Not staying home and collecting varsity letters because "my arm hurts a little bit.

I don't hate pro sports, I love pro sports. When I see the packages that some of the overpaid underperforming CEO's in this country steal from their employees, I'm the first guy to defend professional athletic pay. But I won't defend guys who collect money and won't try. Or whine while getting paid. Or won't play because of a little "ow-ee". Or have to cheat to set a record.

I can't wait until my next track meet. I enjoyed the heck out of it.

Sam Cassell...Freeloader

In 2003-2004, Sam Cassell, a fine point guard with two NBA championship rings, went to Minnesota to help Kevin Garnett. He did just that, leading KG and the Wolves to the Western Conference Finals before being jobbed by the NBA, who wanted the Lakers in the finals (check the stats, the most passive team in the NBA suddenly became a fouling machine in the Western Finals...whouda thunk it?)

Then, in 2004-2005, Sam felt "underappreciated", loudly announcing his desire for a re-worked contract for his services. T-wolves brass refused. Cassell suffered through the worst season of his career by far, both on the court and with "injuries" keeping him out of games. Most thought he was probably done, having been in the NBA for over 10 years, much longer than the average career length for point guards.

So Sam gets dealt. To the woeful Los Angeles Clippers, who haven't been a contender since Ronald Reagan was running up the national debt. What happens to Sam? He turns in an all-star year, just like '03-'04, and the Clip Joint is hosting playoff games this weekend. Cassell starts, teaching young Peoria Central phenom Shaun Livingston the ropes.

The point? I've got no beef with Sam teaching Livingston and the Clips how to win. My beef is with his behavior last season. He obviously tanked the entire season. In a fair and just world, he'd give back every single dollar the Timberwolves paid him last year, because he didn't earn it. He purposely threw in the towel last year because he was "unhappy". To me, that's just as bad as throwing games because of gambling interests. Minnesota's fans, coaches, players, and staff were all cheated last year because Sam Cassell (and his whine-mate Latrell Sprewell) were unhappy. Kevin Garnett showed up to play every game in '04-'05, and continued to be one of the top five - no, make that top 3 - players in the sport. But his teammates weren't trying. That's sad.

I like Shaun Livingston, and I think he has a tremendous career ahead of him. But I'm rooting against the Clippers in the playoffs, because of Sam Cassell.

I Know, I Know, Driving Again

But this is really getting out of hand.

First, I'm a speeder. I drive fast. EXCEPT in two places: school zones and construction zones. Meanwhile, I run into people every night that DON'T speed UNTIL they get to the 45 MPH zones inside the construction areas of I-74. So here's a memo to those drivers:

I hope you get nailed for a 375 dollar fine. Every last one of you. And the ignorant moron in the blue Camaro who fingered me tonight because I shook my head at him as he roared past? I hope you're the first one nailed. I set my cruise at 45 as soon as I hit the west end of town, and it's amazing how many times I get passed in the next four or five miles. And many times by the same people I just passed in the wide open area near Kickapoo. I go 75, they go 65. Get to the zone, I go 45, they go...62. Whattha?!?!

Now, a message or two to the State Police:

1) Get your butts into those construction zones 24 hours a day, and instead of just sitting in the median looking tough, DO something. STOP somebody. MAKE AN EXAMPLE. Going 46? Pick 'em up.

2) Unless you do this every time, the very next time you see me going 75 in a wide-open, arrow-straight stretch of road with no one around me...leave me alone. Because I'm the wrong guy to target right now. With all the construction between Danville and the Quad Cities right now...and for the past several years...on I-74, there shouldn't be ANYONE picked up for going 75 in a wide open area all by themselves. We're not the problem. The dude going 52 in a construction zone? Yeah, he IS going 23 MPH slower than me. But I'm doing it where the only thing I might hit is a junebug...HE's doing it within inches of humans with a hard hat and little other protection. Who's more dangerous?

This Week's Driving Pet Peeve.

Note to 93.4% of all Illinois drivers: The turn signal lever is not a factory option. Use the damn thing. Morons.

Is This Cruel?

Driving to work the other morning on IL 78, minding my own business, cranking up a little Waylon Jennings music, I glanced at a farm to my left. There, in the yard behind the barn, was a nice little herd of cattle. Muddy, as is everything else in this state right now, but they looked content. Then, I noticed a couch sitting on the porch outside the farmhouse. The couch was covered...I kid you not...in a black-and-white cow pattern.

I thought about that for a second. Then, these questions started popping into my head: Do the cows give milk better because of the impending threat of becoming couch upholstrey? Is "upholstrey" somehow related to the word "holstein"? Does "couch" come from "cow"? Do the cows know which cow is covering the couch? Did she protest giving milk one morning and suffer the consequences? And of course, the burning question, can the Twins keep up with the White Sox?

The mind does weird things at 7:30 in the morning on a two-lane Illinois Highway.

While I'm In A Cranky Mood...

...another thing that Peoria seems to lead the free world in would be "rude dipsticks in movie theatres."

If you can't shut up during the movie, stay the hell home. It's not just voices, either. Last night, Di and I were at Goodrich (only because the movie we watched wasn't available at The Rave). We were among only 15-20 people in the theatre when we arrived. We sat four or five rows from the top, with only one couple two rows behind us, and four people three rows in front of us. Everyone else was closer to the screen.

So a family of four walks in...the two teenage boys smelled like they really needed to take a shower after working under the hood of the Family Truckster all day...and where do they plop their odoriferous selves? You guessed it, they end up RIGHT behind us. 125 empty seats, at least 10 empty rows, they gotta sit behind us.

So they talk...loudly...through all the previews. I gave them "the look" and they at least had the courtesy to shut up as the movie started. They didn't talk much during the movie, although they chose to laugh when things weren't funny a couple of times, but about halfway through the movie...i.e., too late to get up, move, and make a scene, which I'm not into doing...the fun began.

First, Mom breaks out a box of candy. (The popcorn was gone by this point, I guess). Now, she's had it since before the movie started, but picks a particularly quiet time in the soundtrack to rip open the noisy plastic wrapping paper around the candy. Then, she begins to reach her hand inside the little skinny box instead of pouring it into her hand. This noise repeats approximately 326.4 times in the last half hour of the movie. At the same time, one of the Grease Twins decides he's allergic to being quiet, and develops a loud, LOUD, cough every few seconds. Just over my left ear. I was waiting to be spat upon.

Not to be outdone, Dad, who among the family most resembled the star of the movie...Larry The Cable Guy...decides his size 12, three-year old, tattered, Spalding-brand, $9 K-Mart tennis shoes need to be on the seat in front of him, meaning two seats to my left. From that point on, every time he moves, our whole row of seats feels it. Nice.

We did our best to enjoy the rest of the flick, but they weren't done. One more nudge towards rudeness must occur. When? Where? How will it happen? You know it's coming. Ahh...here it is. As we're walking out, Diane is one step in front of me. We pass the men's restroom, and Dad comes out just as we go by. What does he do? Does he wait for me to get by? NO! Much like a Peoria driver running the turn lane light (see below) he somehow WEDGES himself between Diane and myself as we walk towards the exit. Amazing. The guy left the bathroom and MERGED with a couple trying to leave.

People oft times suck.

...Oh, Yeah, Here's Another One

A poster called "Maubs" on the Bill Dennis blog brought up some excellent points about the timing of lights within Peoria.

Let me add this little pet peeve that makes me scream: There's not a city in America with more people running red lights in left turn lanes than Peoria. It's absolutely ridiculous. From War Memorial to Glen is a particularly bad one. From War turning onto Scenic at Northwoods Mall is another. There are always two, sometimes three idiots trying to run that left turn lane light after it goes red. Same goes for ALL FOUR directions at War and University.

I'm seriously tempted...again...to go buy a '73 Pontiac Grand Safari Wagon (or "Sherman Tank with fake Woodgrain siding") and just start blasting away from the opposite direction, ramming anyone who runs those intersections under red. I mean, I really get sick of watching morons cruise through intersections in front of me while I'm sitting stopped - although my light has been green for two seconds. Do you think this behavior would stop if I got a bunch of buddies from the Peoria Speedway, bought 'em all these big wagons, and we just started ramming people that ran red lights?

Can't be any more dangerous than walking around with a concealed weapon sticking out of your boxer briefs, can it?

Yet Another Blogosphere Rant About Drivers

Lots of folks in our area have been blogging and ranting about bad drivers. I don't disagree with any of them, and I have my share of road rage.

Here's my latest beef. If you happen to be lucky enough to drive in an area that is NOT under construction, why is it that invariably you run up behind an idiot in the left lane who has decided to set the cruise on 64.2 MPH so he can rocket (not) past the other law-abiding citizen going 64 MPH in the right lane.

It's times like these I want to pretend I've got a number on the side of my car and a big "Home Depot" logo on the quarter panel, and drive up behind the idiot in the left lane and "put a bumper on him" as they say in NASCAR. Give him the ol' "chrome horn" and root him out of the way. If he spins, he spins, oh well. Just GET...THE...HELL...OUT...OF...THE...WAY.

There is nothing more dangerous than bunched-up interstate traffic, NO MATTER what the speed is. It's far safer to have cars spread out. I'd rather be alone on 74 DOING 74 than be in a bunch of cars and semi trucks going 65 together. I think there's even a law to make that happen now, giving State Trooopers the right to yank a guy over when he's clogging traffic. I wish I'd see that law enforced JUST ONCE.

It happens in town, too. You're on War Memorial, and the two guys (or women...come to think of it, it's often women) are oblivious to their surroundings, and are driving side by side two MPH below the speed limit, and causing backups. When you flick the bright lights at 'em, or give a little honk to get their attention, their first reaction...ALWAYS, it seems...is NOT to quickly get out of the way or sheepishly apologize with a "sorry" facial expression, no...instead, it's usually a one finger salute and the easiest two words in the English language to lip read.

I am not asking them to move so I can speed. Yes, I DO speed. But that's not the point. The point is you are statistically MUCH SAFER spread out than you are bunched together, and I've ALWAYS said I'd rather be in front of a clueless idiot than behind him...her.

How Often Do You Meet Legendary Film Stars?

Okay, they were in two movies. Okay, they weren't actors. But they're among the best-known characters in film history. Dave Hanson, Jeff Carlson and Steve Carlson starred as "The Hanson Brothers" in the 1977 classic "Slapshot".

They were in town last night for an appearance at the Rivermen game to do a little on-ice schtick and sign autographs. Almost 30 years after the movie came out, they're still dressing up to to the "Hanson Brother" thing, and the people love it! Cool guys, too, the Carlson's are Minnesota Iron Range boys, and were legendary players in my home state. Jeff spent many years in the IHL after the movie, and also played a few games in the WHA with the Minnesota Fighting Saints, Steve did most of his pro time in the AHL in the 80's, and also appeared with the Saints, and their brother Jack, who did not appear in the movie, was actually the most successful pro in the family, playing over 600 games in the WHA and NHL.

Dave Hanson, at 6-2 and 200 the SMALLEST of the three, grew up in Wisconsin and played in about every league, from the AHL to the IHL to the NHL to the WHA, and met Jeff Carlson while playing for the old Johnstown Jets. It was in Johnstown that "Slapshot" was filmed, and the team was called the "Johnstown Chiefs". Due to the popularity of the movie, the pro team in Johnstown, PA is now called the Chiefs, and played against the Rivermen in the ECHL from 1996 to last season.

I'm not much of an autograph hound, but I had to ask those three guys to sign a Riv cap. You just don't get to meet stars of the silver screen too often, especially those whose short movie career has become legendary in it's own way. What a neat thing for a couple of Iron Range things to do...make one movie, carry on the act for 30 years. That's cool.

Darn Dog

Our mostly wonderful, sometimes wandering dog got out earlier today. We got a call. "We got your dog."

I found out where, said I'd be right there. When I got there, I was told, "he bit my little sister", I said, "show me where". I know my dog. He doesn't bite. Needless to say, they couldn't show me any proof. Which is just what I thought. Keep in mind when I got there he was on a leash...THEIR leash...and was sitting down with two boys sitting next to him petting him. Wow, what a mean beast.

So I load him up, thank them for calling (our number is on his tag), and head home. As I'm pulling in the driveway, I get another call, same folks: "I think you owe us some money for watching him, don't you?" I laughed. I said, "no, sorry, I thanked you for doing it, and I'd do the same for you without asking for any money."

The voice said, "what about the bite?"

Amazing. Amazing what people will try to pull for some money. By the way, the dog left the house clean as a whistle, was gone for less than an hour, and came back so filthy it looks like he has been on the road for a month. He has something resembling...but not smelling like...mud on his neck and shoulders, but his head is completely clean. Makes me wonder what other games they might have been trying to play.

What A Changed World

Thirty years ago, as a teen living in the country in Minnesota, we had no TV after about 12:30 AM, even on Saturdays. A new show called "Saturday Night Live" would end, followed on NBC by a news show with Lloyd Dobyns and Linda Ellerbe, and that was it. No VCR's, no DVD's, nothing. The night ended with the National Anthem and then fuzz and white noise. So on the nights you had to change the clocks, you'd all do it before you went to bed.

Not so much anymore. I was on the computer, being a night owl, watching a movie on Encore, and watched as both my computer and digital cable box automatically went from "1:59" to "3:00". Same thing with the cell phone and even the DVD player.

Cool. I had to change three clocks today...the alarm clock on the headboard, the watch, and the car. Okay, two. I purposely left my car one hour ahead for the last six months just to see if I could do it. Viola! Today, the car arose with the right time on it!

I'm weird.

The long-awaited answer.

I forgot I'd asked a question in a previous post, and I forgot to print the answer. So...the answer is on the way. Hang on! :)

Tony, Dan and the guys (and gals) rule!

A big hello to the Aggatucci bunch. Another fabulous Aggy's pizza has been consumed by yours truly again this evening. There is great pizza in Peoria, Aggatucci's would have to rank right up there. Plus, the place is just flat cool.

Diane and her folks introduced me to Aggatucci's several years ago. Di's got good taste in pizza, without a doubt. When I moved here, I just settled into the big chain routine, familiar is good, ya know? But Diane has introduced me to Aggatucci's, Childer's, Polanza's, and the Hofbrau, just to name a few. My apologies if I spelled any of them wrong, but I'm now officially part owner of each of them, based on what I now spend there.

Prepare yourselves...

...for another barrage of "pro-mid major" basketball column from Kirk and the rest of the PJS gang. George Mason has had an incredible run, and is going to the Final Four. I think it's great! But it's not so much a product of the mid-majors getting better talent than they have in the past, it's more likely because the so-called "power conferences" are getting LESS talent than they're used to. Why? Because many of the best basketball players of the last three or four years went straight to the NBA. Some (LeBron James, Shaun Livingston) are very high profile and very much success stories, others are not.

Countless other big names played one or two years of college ball and then moved on (such as Andre Iguodala - one and done at Arizona out of Lamphier). Where did these players come from? The power schools. How many guys have left Duke early? North Carolina? All the big-name schools lose players year after year to early entry into the NBA. Meanwhile, the mid-majors have a better chance at keeping a guy four years. Experience and continuity are so key in basketball.

George Mason started three seniors and two sophomores today. They played a vast majority of the minutes. The only sub to play more than ten minutes was a junior. No freshmen in the main rotation. But the "power" schools' rosters are dotted with freshmen who start, sophomores who are the most experienced players on the roster, and then they leave for the NBA.

So congrats to George Mason, but the real power schools are still the same as always, and will get back to being more dominant now that the NBA has raised the age requirement for eligibility to play in The League.
M

Some Interesting Numbers

Compiled by John Gaw of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. He supplies no additional commentary, just raw numbers. I love this stuff:

75
Percent of Americans who trust the Internal Revenue Service to safeguard personal information, according to a survey by the Michigan-based Ponemon Institute.

17

Percent who trust the Department of Homeland Security to do so.

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

15

Number of months ago that President Bush signed a law creating the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, which operates at the behest of the administration and whose purpose is to ensure that privacy and civil liberties are protected in the fight against terrorism.

0

Number of times since its creation that the board has met.

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

32

Number of workers laid off this month from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory to help cope with a $28 million budget shortfall at the lab.

1

Number of days before President Bush's visit to that lab last week that $5 million was restored so that those workers could be rehired.

0

Number of the formerly laid-off workers who were invited to see Bush's speech at the lab.

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

75

Shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, percent of Americans who thought that leaders of other countries around the world respect President Bush, according to a Gallup Poll.

33

Percent of Americans who feel that way now.

This report dates back to February 26th. More coming soon.

I Mean, C'mon

I'm kicking back on a day off before I start a new gig, and I'm watching an old SNL on E!, and here comes a promo for Ryan Seacrest joining E!News.

Someone please tell me: what discernable talent does Ryan Seacrest bring to the table? Really, what talent does he have? It's like Bob and Tom. What talent do they have other than the ability to laugh moronically at Chick and their other guests?

Just wondering.

What a different world

I just caught the tail end of a commercial on cable that said:

You may be infected!

Now, growing up, this meant you'd better get checked for an STD, but today the ad was for a computer virus protection program.

It got me thinking. I'm only in my 40's, and look at the differences in our life. To wit, here are just a few thoughts that crossed my mind:

I learned how to type on an IBM Selectric.
I remember how we ooh'd and aah'd when we cooked our first hot dog in a microwave.
I remember an entire staff of a radio station standing around a fax machine waiting to see a message from our corporate office come through.
I remember how "realistic" Nintendo seemed.
I remember reading something called a "newspaper".





I'm just kidding about that last one, I just read them online now. But really, I haven't seen a paper copy of the USA Today in about four months.

How come they can? Or can they?

I leave McDonald's Shell on Knoxville a little after nine pm last (Monday) night. I pull into the left turn lane on Nebraska, so as to go towards Downtown on Knoxville. The car in front of me is one of Peoria's finest, without a turn signal on as we await the green light. It turns, he turns, still no signal. Next, instead of properly turning into the left lane, he shoots all the way over into the right. Then, after two bad moves, he hits the trifecta with a right turn into Taco Bell...with no signal.

Now, how can those of us who are frustrated daily by terrible drivers that do not properly signal and properly change lanes expect those faults to be corrected when the guys who can write the citations can't even follow the rules? This has never, BTW, been a problem in any city I've previously lived in. Carson City, Nevada; Dubuque and Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Iowa; Rochester, Minnesota. I've never witnessed the lack of regard for simple traffic laws by officers OF that same law in those cities, yet I see it daily in Peoria.

Meanwhile, there are five troopers stationed on an overpass and on-ramp outside of Morton, keeping the that completely flat and straight stretch of I-74 safe from the dreaded speeders during the last week of every month.

Wow, I feel safer just knowing that. Not.

My beef? I'm sick of speeding accounting for about 92% of all tickets written in this state, and I'd be willing to bet any amount that improper lane changes and lack of turn signals cause far more accidents.

Today's News Quiz

Here's a new feature, kids. Let's take a look at recent history and see how much truth we know about what's happened in our country and the world in the last few years. We'll start with this one.

Who is responsible for these words:

MUslims do not "hate our freedom," but rather, they hate our policies. The overwhelming majority voice their objections to what they see as one-sided support in favor of Israel and against Palestinian rights, and the longstanding, even increasing support for what Muslims collectively see as tyrannies, most notably Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Pakistan, and the Gulf states. Thus when the American public diplomacy talks about bringing democracy to Islamic societies, this is seen as no more than self-serving hypocrisy.

You will not be graded on your answer, this is open discussion. So, who wrote those words?

Fast Food "Service" - When Did It Go Bad?

Raise your hand if you've had an order goofed up at a fast food drive through in the past week.

No store, no chain, is immune. I can't remember the last time I got exactly what I ordered at a fast food place. Throw in the fact it's darn hard to get a smile and even a simple "thank you, have a nice day" at half of the stores in this town, and it's making one of my favorite things to do an ugly chore.

Yes, I love fast food. Yes, I know it isn't good for me. I'm well aware. I was a sleek 180-pound speedster...the White Hope of Sprinting...coming out of high school. No one who's met me since I moved to Peoria in 1996 would believe that, and obviously I can't blame you. But it's true. Now? My left thigh goes about 145 all by itself.

Be that as it may, when I go spend $15-$25 for the family to eat at a fast food joint, all I'm asking is that the order is right. We'd certainly expect it at a sit-down place. What part of "no tomato" do they not understand? What part of "with a packet of barbeque sauce" can they not compute? What part of "diet" is so hard to figure out? And that doesn't even count the items that simply don't exist when you drive away from the window.

I've learned my lesson. I refuse to leave the window until EVERY item in EVERY bag is checked, which sometimes takes a minute or two. Then, considering how long it takes to get through the line, make your order, pay at window number one, wait until reaching window #2, and finally get your food, (then do the fact-finding mission in the bags)....well, it's suddenly no longer "fast food", is it? Damn.

When McD's and Hardee's and BK and Wendy's first became popular, the speed involved in getting your food was a key selling point. As a 17-year old working in a Wendy's in Minnesota, we had a rule: If the customer sat at the window more than 60 seconds after paying for his/her lunch, we gave them a dollar back for every 15 extra seconds. You think our boss wasn't pushing us to get the order done? Oft times the order was ready, the burger made, the fries bagged, the drink poured, before the guy even got around the building from the ordering board to the window. And we didn't get the orders wrong, either. It was simple. Why is it so hard now?

Meanwhile, beyond the Knoxville lights...

Yes, the red/green lights on Knoxville are still messed up. By design? I'm sure. Someone thinking it's a good idea to have pre-6am commuters stop four times when there's no reason to on their way down Knoxville is supposed to be "safer". When in fact, all it does is bunch traffic that otherwise wouldn't be bunched.

But beyond that, once one crosses I74 on the new ramp and heads into downtown Peoria, credit to the designers is due. The new exits and entrances to the interstate, as well as the new 4-lane wide "frontage" roads on either side of the interstate are simply excellent. Heading back downtown yesterday during rush hour and seeing traffic flowing so smoothly, and all those lanes handling all those cars so easily, it's quite clear that the new design is a huge improvement for Peoria. Same goes for the actual interstate itself. We all cringed at the thought of the I74 bridge being closed for so long, and the highway getting torn up on both sides of the river.

But wow, has it been well done. Are there any complaints about the new highway on either side? Only one I've heard is the little kink in East Peoria heading South under the interstate. That's a little confusing first time you head through there...but it's my guess that there is still more work to be done there. Otherwise, the new flyover ramp on the East Peoria side, the new frontage roads on the Peoria side, the new exits by Northwoods Mall onto Sterling...all are awesome.

Just Read It.

I'm going to just go ahead and print this whole editorial from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, in case the link doesn't work.

A new batch of horrific Abu Ghraib torture photos has turned up on Australian television and at salon.com. It's not getting much attention in the United States, but it is drawing expressions of disgust and outrage abroad. The difference is remarkable, because those were American soldiers engaged in the abuse. You'd think Americans would be most outraged of all, and would want finally to get an answer to the fundamental unanswered question: How far up the chain of command does responsibility for the Abu Ghraib torture go?
The Bush administration is both angry and nonchalant about release of these images: A State Department official said release of the photos violated the privacy of the abused and that it was likely to increase the violence spawned by cartoons of the prophet Mohammed. A Pentagon spokesman said there is "nothing new" in these images; the abuses they depict have been investigated and the perpetrators punished.
Actually, some of these photos and videos are worse than those seen previously, and the American public deserves to see them all. A spokesman for the Australian television network said the images mark a "leap in seriousness" from the previous photos. They show, the network said, "homicide, torture and sexual humiliation." Included in the salon.com set is an image of an Iraq prisoner sodomizing himself with an object that appears to be a banana. An image on another website shows a prisoner giving oral sex to another man. The setting and the photos strongly suggest both behaviors were forced.
The United Nations has said it finds these new photos disturbing; it also has demanded that the United States either charge or release the prisoners it has detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The International Committee of the Red Cross has denounced the behaviors recorded in the newly published photos.
As for this being a "bad time" to have the photos released, they would have been out long ago if the Pentagon hadn't tried every trick in the book to keep them under wraps. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights sued almost a year ago to have them released under the Freedom of Information Act. A federal court judge agreed and ordered their release last fall. But the Pentagon delayed and delayed, then filed an appeal which has yet to be resolved.
It appears that someone in the military finally got fed up and sent a CD with apparently every Abu Ghraib image to salon.com. The source said he was partly motivated by resentment that only low-rank enlisted personnel were being punished.
He makes a powerful point. There has never been a full, independent investigation of how this abusive treatment came to Abu Ghraib. Did Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld authorize it? Did he know about it? Did some other senior civilian or military official order it? This has never looked like the isolated, renegade behavior of a few that the Pentagon has made it out to be.
Congress must initiate a comprehensive, independent investigation of prisoner treatment by all U.S. agencies worldwide. President Bush and his team are employees of and accountable to the American public. It's way overdue that they be held to account for abusing prisoners and violating both U.S. and international law.

http://www.startribune.com/561/story/252784.html

How come this isn't bigger news in the SCLM right now?

Heh heh.

http://dickcheneyquailhunt.cf.huffingtonpost.com/

Call it "Senator Leahy's sweet revenge". I love it.

Great playlist!

I finally found a "station" I could listen to non-stop for over an hour...the looped music at Lonestar Steakhouse this afternoon.

In an hour, I heard (and pretty much in this order, I didn't write it down, but I have a tremendous memory when it comes to this kind of music):

Brooks & Dunn "Rock My World..."
Fleetwood Mac "Say You Love Me"
George Strait's obscure single "Don't Make Me Come Over There And Love You"
Tom Petty "American Girl"
Travis Tritt doing Waylon Jennings' great "Lonesome, On'ry and Mean"
Lone Justice "Shelter"
Dwight Yoakam doing "Suspicious Minds"
Junior Brown's fabulous seven-minute long "Surf Medley" (I couldn't believe it, Junior Brown! Junior Brown is a true guitar god.)
Asleep at the Wheel w/Brooks & Dunn singing "Corrina, Corrina" (from their first marvelous tribute album to Bob Wills)
and the Mavericks "What A Crying Shame"


It sounded like a Saturday night at a great Southwestern roadhouse, wouldn't that be a great idea for a show? You could call it "Texas Roadhouse Saturday Night" and you could get really big ratings on the radio and then some guy from out West could move to town and take it off the air and then....

damn, this sounds soooooo familiar.

...and now I have disappearing posts

Oh, for the love of pete.

This is an offensive foul...

...unless you're wearing #23.







For my friend Bill.

St. Jude Radiothon

I know, I know...don't blog about work, right Bill?

But we're still on quite a high around here after raising more than 22% more money than we raised last year at the St. Jude Radiothon. We had a little hiccup last year, but, how should I say this, the 'hiccup' is gone, back to the Pacific Time Zone.

So this year was a great effort from all of our volunteers, the St. Jude staff, and the staff of the radio station. Most of all, it was a great effort from the people of Central Illinois who made the huge dollar amount happen. We had two great days of phone calls, we all had a great time at Bergner's (at the Shoppes), and I was VERY happy to see Sheriff McCoy doing so well and in such great spirits. And Dan Dermody got a much deserved award to cap off the event.

If you volunteered, thank you. The St. Jude staff? Thank you, you guys were great. Diane? Thank you, honey, for all of the time you put in to help the cause.

If you donated, if you became a "partner-in-hope", thank you most of all!

I don't know why comments aren't working...

...because according to the settings, they are. Guru Dennis is going to have to come to the rescue again.

Kobe's 81..

...is still not as impressive as Wilt's 100. Nothing Kobe Bryant will ever do will put him to the level of Wilt Chamberlain, Mikey Jordan (whom I have no love for), Kevin Garnett, Bill Russell, Kareem Jabbar, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Larry Legend Bird, or even The Diesel, Shaq O'Neal.

Getting the point? Kobe might have the most talent in the league today, but he wouldn't know how to spell team if you spotted him the T-E-A.

(Shout out to Hollywood Henderson with that one.)

Lights on Knoxville

Anybody else have to go to work before standard rush hour begins at 6am? For the past few months, since the move of the radio station I work for, I have had to go the other way (towards downtown) on Knoxville at 4:55, 5:00 am. I have never been able to go from McClure to Downtown without stopping at least once for a stoplight, usually twice.

It seems the light by the McDonalds is set for traffic coming the other way (is that Frye? Help me out.) Problem is, there's NEVER any traffic entering Knoxville from that street, and as McDonald's isn't open yet, there's NEVER any cars coming out of there. So what gives? Are the city's traffic engineers told to do that so that we WILL stop on Knoxville? Is this "traffic calming" without the speed bumps?

The other problem intersection is Richmond. Same thing. Street only enters Knoxville from one side, yet the light is set opposite in my mind. If 97% of the overnight traffic is on Knoxville, shouldn't the lights always stay green on Knoxville until those streets actually produce traffic?

Just wondering, in frustration, while I sit for 25-30 seconds watching nothing happening while I could be closer to work.

Team Overrated: One and done.

The short postseason is indeed the case. Damn fine season by the Bears, who overachieved tremendously with that pop-gun offense and a good (but not great) defense. They were exposed in a pressure situation today. Over 400 yards allowed, able to score 21 with the aid of six first downs aided by Panther penalties (I didn't realize the Carolina defense made this many mistakes...they sure did today...but still won).

Carolina-Seattle. That'll be a pretty good game. Oh, and New England (many observers chose them to make the Super Bowl again...Rob) are done, too. All in all, a pretty good weekend.

Oops!

Sorry, didn't know I'd shut off comments from non-bloggers, I'm very sorry. Josh, thanks for bringing it to Bill's attention, who brought it to mine.

I was trying to figure out a way to stop the anonymous comments that bug me...guess there's not a way. For those who use their internet "handle" or their real names: thank you.

For those who post anonymously, please try not to do that. I realize sometimes it's a mistake, and sometimes even a necessity, but in most cases from my experience it's mostly McFlyish...as in "chicken".

What A Joke

The Hall of Fame will welcome Bruce Sutter this year. And only Bruce Sutter. It's not Sutter's election that is a joke, it's the lack of enough votes for Bert Blyleven, who should already have been voted in several years ago.

More later on this, but suffice to say it's time, IMO, to blow up the current voting process. A vast majority of these old egomaniacal jerks on the BWAA need to be put out to pasture. The baseball Hall of Fame has now become too exclusive. Great players are being left out for the lamest of reasons.

Bert Blyleven struck out more batters than all but four...FOUR...pitchers in major league history, and won 287 games playing with some of the weakest run support of all major league pitchers in his era. He got screwed again today.

As I've always said, if he'd have worn a Yankee or Dodger (or even Cardinal) uniform for a majority of his career, he'd have been elected the first chance he had.

Teach Your Kids

I almost saw a teen on a bike get killed Sunday evening. How? By some daredevil driver speeding down a city street? By a bluehair not paying attention and weaving off the center of the street and into the bike's path? No and no.

It was because the young man on the bike, I'm guessing 14 or 15 years old...decided to blow by me on the right as I was stopped at a four-way stop, and he just missed being hit by the attentive driver coming through the intersection from my left. The driver nailed his brakes just in time, the kid on the bike swerved through untouched, flipped off the guy who could have killed him, and just kept peddling up the street. I was ticked. I was going to chase the idiot down and give him a lesson on road rules, on who was really at fault, and otherwise verbally smack him around a bit to try and talk some sense into him. By the time I got through the intersection, he had turned right down an alley and disappeared into the gloaming.

If you have a kid who rides a bike, remind him/her that the streets signs and stoplights are there for them to obey as well, that they don't have free reign to just drive through the intersection at their leisure. If someone in a black Pontiac pulls up in front of your house and comes up to your front door and says your kid almost got himself killed by not obeying traffic laws on his bike, don't blow that guy off and tell him to mind his own business, fix the real problem...the kid...instead.

I am personally shocked that there are not more car/bike fatalities in this town, the way these morons fly through stop signs.

Cool little quiz

I just went here

and took a 10-question quiz. It came out exactly as I have always protrayed myself...a centrist that leans left:



So then I did one for a couple of others. Based on the opinions and posts I've read from Vonster, here is what he showed as:



Not at all shocking. Next comes Bill Dennis, again, based on what I think he's say:



Try the quiz, see how you fare.

As a side note, I also took a six-question quiz here (a "youth" website).

I answered that civil unions were okay with me, that abortion is 100% the choice of the woman, that government should be able to fix schools by taking money away from other programs and not raising taxes, and that school vouchers are detrimental and violate the separation of church and state. It told me I was "probably somewhat conservative" and should "contact the Republican National Committee" to learn more about myself.

So I changed the answer to one question, the "fixing schools" question. This time I went with the first answer, the one that praises government for wanting to raise taxes to fix public schools.

I checked my answers. Now I was definitely a Democrat.

I thought I smelled a rat. So I looked into the site. It is run by the Tides Center. I didn't see anything that would toss up a red flag in the mind of centrist such as myself. So I took the test again, taking a right wing stance on everything. The test said I was definitely a Republican. Okay, fine, that's what I expected. So I retook the test one more time, going back to my original answers, including my original answer on taxes. This time I was probably a Democrat.

I'm going to mark it down to a glitch in their computer. Hope it doesn't happen to too many teens, they could be lead down the opposite path of what they believe.

My Top Movies of '05

Everyone has published or announced on the radio their lists from 2005. This week the PJS had three different Top 10 Movies lists.

I don't go much for the artsy-fartsy stuff that sometimes makes these lists, you know, the ones where their total box office is $74.32 and they get nominated for 12 awards. Mine are more of the "common man" variety. Also, unlike many people's lists, these movies have to meet this standard: I had to see them to rate them. So all of these movies? I've actually seen them. So this eliminates quite a few movies from my list. I don't do Star Wars, so I purposely missed "Stith". Star Wars? Blah. Star TREK, now THAT'S science fiction. I have so far not seen Cinderella Man, but I want to. And there are several others in that category. But I won't sell out and fib. So my list is just made up of movies I paid money to see. By the way, why I haven't seen Wedding Crashers is beyond me. It looks like it's right up my comedic alley. Family Video, here I come.


Honorable mention: Sky High - Look, guys, sometimes, when you have a nine year old in the house, you see "kid" movies. You've gotta do it. This was the best of the bunch this year, because Kurt Russell was in it. 90 minutes of mindless entertainment that Miss Emily loved, and I liked. I enjoy when Russell plays the old glasses-wearing geek guy. He's done it quite a few times, and always pulls it off.

10. Hitch - Look, guys, you can't always go to guy flicks. You've gotta do date night once in awhile. And if you're gonna do date night, you can do much worse than having Will Smith and Kevin James together crackin' wise. When you see the 2004 list below, you'll see many more date flicks that I like. I'm not so macho I can't admit to liking chick flicks.

9. Bewitched - Wasn't great, wasn't bad. But there were some very funny moments, particularly the wink-and-nods back to the old series. I liked the way they did the plot, it was a neat twist on how to make it work. I still don't think Will Ferrell has done a movie approaching his hilarious run on SNL, but he still makes me laugh. Plus, as a kid, I loved Bewitched.

8. North Country - I wrote a post about this one a couple of months ago. Being from Minnesota, I always like seeing movies reference the home state. Charlize Theron was convincing, many of the supporting cast was more so. They pulled it off.

7. Bad News Bears - Billy Bob rules. The kids weren't as funny as the originals, save maybe for the kid in the wheelchair, but Thornton cracked me up like he always does (and like he did a couple years back in Bad Santa), and I always dig baseball movies...even the ones with Cubs in 'em.

6. The Interpreter - I like this a lot. Kidman was good, Penn was good, they were good together on screen (who'da thunk it?), and the story was very interesting. I thought this was an underrated movie.

5. The Longest Yard - Shut up, it was good. It was funny, it was stupid. Isn't that what it was supposed to be? Sandler was okay, but the WWE guys stole the show: Goldberg, Nash, Austin. Vince McMahon should be an acting coach. All his wrestlers know how to make a scene work. Nash was a riot. And they made Nelly look like a helluva ballplayer. If you didn't see it, rent it and sit back for two hours and let your need for gratuitious physical violence and jarring hits be satisfied.

4. Walk The Line - It was very, very well done. But I don't give it the rave reviews that everyone else does. Not that it was bad in any way, it just wasn't the "best movie ever" and the "most moving biography ever about the greatest artist who ever lived". I actually saw those quotes in print. Look, Johnny Cash was an awesome talent who may indeed actually have "invented" rock and roll. But he is getting much more credit in death than he ever got in life. The same people who wouldn't play his records on the radio for the last 15 years are professing his greatness now. Bottom line: he was one of the greatest artists of our time, and the movie was a nicely done version of his early years of fame.

3. Batman Begins - Christian Bale did a marvelous job. I liked his portrayal a lot. Only complaint I had was the electronic enhancements on his voice when he was Batman. Liam Neeson is outstanding in the movie. The Scarecrow didn't scare me, but the possibility of a sequel with The Joker, as the closing scene between Batman and Gordon (Gary Oldham) implies, could be awesome. Plus, I really liked the "explanation" of how Batman came to be. Oh, and Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman were perfect in smaller roles.

2. Sahara - Indiana Jones with a funny sidekick. Matthew McConaughey is cool as hell, and I don't care if Diane thinks he's smokin' hot...she SHOULD think that. But Steve Zahn makes the movie for me. For those who don't like nudity, there isn't any, unless you count Matty's chest. Penelope Cruz stays dressed the whole time, the movie keeps moving, and it's just a trip.

1. The 40 Year Old Virgin - The funniest movie I've seen in years. And it's still pretty good on DVD, even with the lengthier scenes. Steve Carell is a kick, and Paul Rudd cracks me up in everything he's in.

All in all, '05 didn't compare to '04 in theatres. I had a much harder time narrowing my list to 10 in '04.

10. The Notebook - Oh my god, I bawled my eyes out. So did the 6'2", 300 pound black guy sitting across from me, one row back. Diane and I, and the big guy and his wife, were the last four in the theatre as the credits rolled, and we looked at each other and said "did it get you, too?" Two big dudes in a theatre making the napkin-to-tissue conversion. Wow, what a story. Yeah, I'm not ashamed. I still cry when we watch the DVD. I think Diane likes that. I hope she does. I hope she doesn't think I'm a puss or something.
9. Wimbledon - A love story in a sports movie, or a sports movie in a love story? Whatever, another "chick flick" date night story that was well done.
8. Collateral - So Cruise is a nut job. But he played a damn fine hitman. Jamie Foxx was outstanding, too.
7. King Arthur - Underrated, this was a very cool take on the King Arthur legend. Much grittier, muddier, and bloodier than past portrayals. I liked Clive Owen a bunch in this one. If you haven't seen it, you'll thank me afterwards. Check it out.
6. Dodgeball - More hilarity from Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller. Plus, it has Rip Torn in it. Love me some Rip.
5. Anchorman - Ferrell's best so far, plus it had Carell, Rudd, the hilarious David Koechner, Vaughn, Christina Applegate, and Fred Willard. Getting funnier every time I watch it.
4. Ray - I stil think Foxx did a better job at his capture of an icon than Juaquin Phoenix just did with Cash. Foxx was simply incredible, and the early Charles' music was amazing.
3. Meet The Fockers - I laughed just as hard as I did at the first one. Funny, funny stuff. DiNiro is a gem. I also enjoyed Hoffman and Streisand's wackiness.
2. The Aviator - As I've always been intrigued by the life of Howard Hughes, I couldn't wait to see it. I wasn't disappointed. He was an important figure in this country from the 20's through the 60's. Who else was that big of a deal for that long?
1. Fahrenheit 911 - The most talked about movie of that year, negatively or positively, and hence the most important movie of the year. I went and bought the 911 Reader afterwards, where Michael Moore backs up his assertions, scene-by-scene. Does he take artist liberty with some of his images, and some of his chronology? Yes. Does he lie at any point in the movie? I can't find any, and I've looked.

Here are some pretty good movies that didn't make the '04 list. I didn't have this problem with the '05 list:

The Incredibles - Good kid flick
Friday Night Lights - Billy Bob again, plus a drunk Tim McGraw. Country radio PD's are always interested in this stuff.
Ladder 49 - Phoenix did well, Travolta was good. For firefighter shows, however, I still prefer "Rescue Me" on FX with Denis Leary.
Shall We Dance - Is it a coincidence that after this Richard Gere/J-Lo ballroom dancing flick that the hit reality show of the next year involved Ballroom Dancing? Say what you want, it was kinda good.
Raise Your Voice - Great kid flick. Great message.
The Prince & Me - We have a thing called "the Princess collection". A collection of DVD's for Emily and Diane to watch together. I watch, too. I like this one.
Princess Diaries 2 - Ditto previous entry.
50 First Dates - Barrymore and Sandler were both entertaining in this one, a clever story.
Starsky and Hutch - Wilson & Sandler. Love it. Snoop as Huggy Bear was well cast, too. But he was too cool. The original Huggy Bear was a dork.

Bowling Party

Who wants to go bowling?

Last fall, Diane and I took the boys bowling and had a blast. I hadn't bowled in years. Diane breaks out the bowling bag and her own shoes and her own pink ball, and I rent the odor-rific size 11 two-tone slipper slides, and find a flat black 16-pound ball with the biggest thumb hole I can find to get ol' chubby opposable into position.

So we did it again, this time with Miss Emily, the precocious one. Enjoyable again. So we do it again...and again. Now, by my birthday, I'm sporting a new purple-swirl Ebonite Tornado and a pair of slick white Dexters instead of the rent-to-smell kind of shoe.

For Christmas, I got Diane a new bag for her ball and shoes. We're bowlers, baby. I'm terrible, mind you. She's good. She whupped my tail by 19 pins in Game 2 last Sunday morning. But I'm getting better. We'll probably head to Mt. Hawley to tear it up Sunday morning. I'll get back to you with scores.

The King of Glen Oak Zoo Has Passed

Long live The King.

I had the good fortune of visiting Boomer at least once or twice every summer I've lived here. I marvel at the size and regalness of lions everytime I see one. Sad that he's gone.

The story.

Say What You Want...

...about Al Franken, but last week, as I was just finishing his chapter in "The Truth...With Jokes" that told sordit details about one Jack Abramoff, Abramoff tells his side. Any differences in what Franken claimed and what Abramoff is admitting? Not a bit.

The trickle-down effect of Abramoff's testimony is being felt this morning, as Tom DeLay will apparently make it official today: he's quitting his leadership role. Many people will say this today: "At least it's a start."

DeLay stepping down.

From the story, just so we can get the facts out before Vonster trashes this post:

His [DeLay's] about-face came amid growing pressure from fellow Republicans who were concerned about their own political futures in the wake of this week's guilty pleas by lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Blogger sued in Minnesota

Attention all those who slander through blogs, anonymous or not:

A Minnesota blogger has been sued for statements made on his blog, statements which the lawsuit says have no basis in fact.

The suit has already caused him to unmask himself.

An excerpt:

Lawyers who filed the suit say that Web logs and other new media should be held to the same standards of accountability as traditional media and journalism. Brodbkorb, a former operative for the Minnesota Republican Party, pledges to protect his source and to keep his website going.

Here's an opinion piece from the Star Trib on the issue:

Reason #2

The Bears played five playoff teams all season. They were 2-3, but more telling, here was Chicago's offensive output in those five games: 7, 7, 13, 13, 9.

They were outscored 67-49 in those five games. That means they gave up an average of 13.4 points per game, including the two wins. Which is more than the highest score they were able to achieve in any of those five games.

Chicago benefitted from a seriously weak schedule, yet only were able to crack 20 points four times all year. If you'll look at the post below, you'll see that 10 of the 12 playoff teams average at least 22 points a game. Average.

It's going to be a short post-season for Team Overrated.

Why The Bears Won't Even Get To The Super Bowl, Part 1

10 of the 12 playoff teams scored over 350 points this season. Two did not. Tampa Bay with 300, and Chicago with 260. You don't give up 90-100 total points to another team (that's a touchdown EVERY game more) and expect to have your defense carry you.

Besides, that 260 includes what the defense scored, too. Rex Grossman will not make much of a difference, either. Scoring 24 against Green Bay? Ooooh. Grossman was 11-23 against that pathetic defense, and he's the second coming? For comparison sake, the week before Baltimore and THEIR pathetic offense torched the Packers for 48.

"Yeah, but Grossman killed Atlanta the week before that."

Yeah, he sure did, leading the Bears to 10 whopping points in a 16-3 rout (not), with a stellar 9-for-16 for 93 yards in one half. Do you guys realize you're getting excited about a QB who would be lucky to make half the rosters in the rest of the NFL as a backup at best? And he's the best you've got?

Belated Congrats To Fine GOP Judge and His Outstanding Ruling

There IS hope for this country after all.

Judge John Jones' ruling in the Dover, PA school board case a couple of weeks ago was dead-nuts perfect. Every case about ID...every case...will eventually include Jones' 139-page conclusion and decision, and in each case opponents of the separation of church and state will lose.

A federal judge barred a Pennsylvania school district yesterday from mentioning "intelligent design" as an alternative to evolutionary theory in a scathing opinion that criticized local school board members for lying under oath and for their "breathtaking inanity" in trying to inject religion into science classes.

Breathtaking inanity. I absolutely love it!

...(the Judge) explicitly sought to vanquish intelligent design, the argument that aspects of life are so complex as to require the hand, subtle or not, of a supernatural creator. This theory, he said, relies on the unprovable existence of a Christian God and therefore is not science.

And some sanity injected into the discussion by this judge. I love that, too!

Wow!

Bottom line, I begrudge no one for their personal and private beliefs. Private...as in don't push it into a public school. I am simply of the opinion (and Judge Jones is as well) that the existence of the christian god is unprovable...the existence of any supreme being is unprovable at this point.

Does that mean I can prove that there isn't a god? Of course not, no one can do that either. Do I hope there's a heaven the way it's described by christians? Abso-freakin'-lutely I do. I'm just open minded enough that I'll take a wait-and-see attitude on it.

Best Running Back Prospect Going Pro

No, not Reggie Bush. Reggie Bush will either be a washout running back or a great wide receiver in the NFL someday. But the guy who played college ball this year and who will have the most impact in the NFL rushing the ball, Laurence Maroney, has declared for the NFL draft.

Maroney rushed for over 1,000 yards in each of his three seasons at Minnesota, and the remarkable thing is he also had a teammate do it every year! Marion Barber III in '03 and '04, and Gary Russell this year.

Next year, with Russell and Amir Pinnix, the Gophers could extend this all-time college football record to four years.

But back to Maroney. He is bigger than Barber, faster than Barber, more elusive than Barber, and a better receiver than Barber, who already has a 100-yard game in the NFL as Dallas' backup tailback this year. He will be tremendous pro back.

Let The Excuses Begin...

The Bears got blown out today. There were many reasons. So don't bore me with the excuses, I'm well aware of them. But at least there were two honest guys on the airwaves after the game tonight: O'Bradovich and Buffone.

Those two guys were hot. And justifibly so. Pros don't mail in games. Pros don't say after the game "we knew we were going to lose, that's not the point". Several players were quoted as saying that. And O'B and Buffone were right. It was a lame effort, regardless of who was on the field.

BTW, Rob, O'B and Buffone also reported that of the previous 39 Super Bowl winners, less than 5 have lost their last game of the regular season, That means whether they had clinched a playoff berth already or not, championship teams show up every week.