The picks!
DIGGER PHELPS:
Louisville
Missouri
Pittsburgh
North Carolina
Pittsburgh beats Louisville
HUBERT DAVIS:
Louisville
Memphis
Villanova
North Carolina
North Carolina beats Memphis
DICK VITALE:
Louisville
Connecticut
Pittsburgh
North Carolina
North Carolina beats Louisville
JAY BILAS:
Louisville
Memphis
Pittsburgh
North Carolina
North Carolina beats Memphis
ME???????? I dunno yet.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Global Warming, Meet SNOW!
I can't help but chuckle.....
"Civil Disobedience" is promised by this group, at the coal plant outside D.C. tomorrow.
Only problem? It's SNOWING like cats and dogs in D.C. overnight tonight!
You've heard of "raining on a parade".......
God apparently gets a chuckle out of "snowing on global warming civil disobedience"...
This is GREAT!!
"Civil Disobedience" is promised by this group, at the coal plant outside D.C. tomorrow.
Only problem? It's SNOWING like cats and dogs in D.C. overnight tonight!
You've heard of "raining on a parade".......
God apparently gets a chuckle out of "snowing on global warming civil disobedience"...
This is GREAT!!
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Paul Harvey (1918-2009)
Radio mourns, America mourns.
Thank you, Paul Harvey, for the incredible legacy you have left for radio. You can never be placed, you will never be forgotten.
Good day.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Biden Pulls a Quayle......
But you'll never see this "potatoe"--type snafu on the Evening News.
Get your pencil out now to jot down the "web site number". WHAT?!?!?!?
Get your pencil out now to jot down the "web site number". WHAT?!?!?!?
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Byrd on Obama Power Grab
Click on the title above---this should make headlines, but may not because there's no "price tag" to it, nor does it create jobs, and that's all the media wonks are talking about.
Give Senator Byrd credit here for looking at the much more important, bigger picture of the system of checks and balances that are so important to us. The Democrats certainly yelled and screamed about "executive prviliedge" during the Bush Administration. It'll be interesting to see how the Reids and Pelosis respond to Byrd's comments.
Do I dare suggest it? If Byrd stirs a pot against a Presidential move enough, will the Dems play the "age card" and begin to lead the man offstage?
Let's keep an eye on this one (see "Robert Byrd" on my Headlines to the right to do so....)
Give Senator Byrd credit here for looking at the much more important, bigger picture of the system of checks and balances that are so important to us. The Democrats certainly yelled and screamed about "executive prviliedge" during the Bush Administration. It'll be interesting to see how the Reids and Pelosis respond to Byrd's comments.
Do I dare suggest it? If Byrd stirs a pot against a Presidential move enough, will the Dems play the "age card" and begin to lead the man offstage?
Let's keep an eye on this one (see "Robert Byrd" on my Headlines to the right to do so....)
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
LIVE BLOGGING: The President's First Speech To Congress
Now that the clap-happy is done.....(that always trips me out)
I don't think it's ever taken a President 17 minutes to get in, shake hands, and start speaking.......
Well, here we go.
1) So far, one "crisis" and lots of word pictures of difficulty and loss.
2) "We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than ever before."
(Pelosi ruined that line by standing up too early; that was the cornerstone line of the speech, given to the press earlier, and some people missed it all. Why am I critical? She HAS A COPY of the speech in front of her, and has had it for some time!)
3) It didn't happen overnight. Here's the lineup. Energy. Health care. Education. Debt. "Short term gains were prized over long term prosperity".
OH, first notice of "wealth to the wealthy".
OH II----people bought homes they couldn't afford......
----------------------------------
We're five minutes in, have heard nothing new.
He gets applause for saying he wants to talk to us tonight. Dear heavens!!!
Our first split decision: That "Recovery and Reinvestment Act" is now law. GOP stays seated.
3.5 million jobs......when we're done building broadband, turbines, and rebuilding roads, what do we do then?? What jobs will be next to create?
UNEMPLOYMENT HEALTH CARE COVERAGE? WHAT?? I didn't get that option last year. No, I'm NOT jealous.
--------------------
9:25pm---"Nobody messes with Joe." And thus is the bone thrown tonight to the Vice-President, who won't be seen again for a week.
--------------------
Time for the "credit CRISIS". (I'm not being tongue-in-cheek with the CAPS, I am trying to keep tabs on the use of the word.)
3!
"A New Lending Fund"-----paid for by????????
"Plan to help Responsibile Families" on their homes------how do they determine who a deadbeat is?
"Provide Support to clean up (bad banks) balance sheets...."------is that code speak for some sort of "nationalization"?
4!
Everybody stands on accountability. :) No brainer.
CEO's: "Those days are over". What about the ball players who make eight figures?
(REMEMBER---I ASK QUESTIONS TO MAKE US THINK!)
SIDEBAR: I do VERY much appreciate Obama's speaking style. He is speaking "to" the American people. Not all Presidents do that.
---------------------------
Hmmm......."our outdated regulatory system." Haven't heard anyone in the media tackle this one yet.
Ut oh.......Obama history lesson. Ah, the GI Bill was AFTER THE DEPRESSION AND WAR. Sorry, that one doesn't wash.
Government "catalyzed"??? "CATALYZED"?? We can't spark anything without the government??? What the????
Now it's time to hear the cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching.......
REMEMBER, we're in a trillion dollar deficit. Trillions of dollars in debt.
1) Energy----love the ideas. Who pays for it all?
Good line about cars. "The nation that invented automobiles cannot walk away from it."
2) Health Care-----a bankruptcy every 30 seconds. It COULD cause 1.5 million people to lose their homes. (Can we check that figure in a year, just to make sure that wasn't a throwaway line? Didn't say it wasn't true, but it should be fact checked.)
OMG----Pelosi is jubliant almost to the point of RUDE!!!! She wasn't sure whether to stand for a cure for cancer in our time, but she jumped up at that 11 million children figure. Legislation! I'll clap to that! I love it when children have health care. Who's paying for it? That's my only question.
"It will not wait another year."---oh, boy; so, who's paying???? And how does the GDP grow when you're thinking of taking 1/6th of it and nationalizing it?
3) Education-----Okay...the same public high schools he applauded in his history lesson are now desperately in need of fixing. It's either one or the other.
College affordable for seven million more students. Details??? Figures??? Who's paying the tuition???
Teacher incentives...."rewards for success". Criteria? Based on what?
WHOA----expand our committment to charter schools!!! Pelosi was STONE FACED on that one. Thank you, Mr. President, for realizing there are MANY ways to fix the education problem. I hope that wasn't a throwaway line.
By 2020----the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. CONGRESS IS ALREADY FILLED WITH THEM! Just a reminder, folks......
Responsibility begins at home. AMEN, MR. PRESIDENT!!!
--------------------------------------------
Okay, now the fun. Listen CAREFULLY. All this spending, and don't pass on debt. Hmmm......
WHOA---DEMS ARE DRUNK WITH POWER! Did U see Chuck Schumer laughing at the GOP while clapping over the "inherited deficit".
NO EARMARKS? EXCUSE ME?? 2 Trillion Dollars in the next decade. POST IT ALL ON RECOVERY.GOV!!!
"Cold War Era" weapons programs gone. Okay, so what do we REPLACE them with?
Notice, so far, NOT A WORD on defense. All this will be wonderful, so long as we don't get hit with "9/11 II", or, God forbid, beyond.
----------------------
"Not one single dime." Wonder how many people making between $250,000 and $500,000 owns small business and are about to get "gouged", now that they've been branded "rich"? I don't know a lot of people that make more than $250K that isn't either an owner or seriously invested in the company where they hang their hat, do you?
Americans-----PLEASE, PLEASE think for yourselves when it comes to the "definition of the rich".
---------------------
Yikes! We won't allow terrorists to plot attacks in safe havens halfway around the world. Do you realize what that means??? Did you see all the Democrats clapping?? That means CONTINUAL WAR for the FORESEEABLE FUTURE, FRIENDS! Don't you get it? Don't you understand?
And that's the reality of war that could never be wiped away by the campaign slogan, "ending the war in Iraq". There are people in that hall tonight simply not thinking. They're listening to soundbites and responding like Pavlov's dog to make sure they're doing the politically expedient "thing" if the camera comes upon them.
And DON'T get me started on "The United States does not torture......"
---------------------
Time for the conclusion.
Bank CEO in Miami shares wealth. Private citizen; private decision. That rocks!!!!
"We are not quitters."-----The Bible says "...out of the mouth of babes...."
Great story, and yes, government can answer the need and cry of a neglected public school system.
5!!!
And 51 minutes later, we're done. Let the pundits with cameras begin. :)
I don't think it's ever taken a President 17 minutes to get in, shake hands, and start speaking.......
Well, here we go.
1) So far, one "crisis" and lots of word pictures of difficulty and loss.
2) "We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than ever before."
(Pelosi ruined that line by standing up too early; that was the cornerstone line of the speech, given to the press earlier, and some people missed it all. Why am I critical? She HAS A COPY of the speech in front of her, and has had it for some time!)
3) It didn't happen overnight. Here's the lineup. Energy. Health care. Education. Debt. "Short term gains were prized over long term prosperity".
OH, first notice of "wealth to the wealthy".
OH II----people bought homes they couldn't afford......
----------------------------------
We're five minutes in, have heard nothing new.
He gets applause for saying he wants to talk to us tonight. Dear heavens!!!
Our first split decision: That "Recovery and Reinvestment Act" is now law. GOP stays seated.
3.5 million jobs......when we're done building broadband, turbines, and rebuilding roads, what do we do then?? What jobs will be next to create?
UNEMPLOYMENT HEALTH CARE COVERAGE? WHAT?? I didn't get that option last year. No, I'm NOT jealous.
--------------------
9:25pm---"Nobody messes with Joe." And thus is the bone thrown tonight to the Vice-President, who won't be seen again for a week.
--------------------
Time for the "credit CRISIS". (I'm not being tongue-in-cheek with the CAPS, I am trying to keep tabs on the use of the word.)
3!
"A New Lending Fund"-----paid for by????????
"Plan to help Responsibile Families" on their homes------how do they determine who a deadbeat is?
"Provide Support to clean up (bad banks) balance sheets...."------is that code speak for some sort of "nationalization"?
4!
Everybody stands on accountability. :) No brainer.
CEO's: "Those days are over". What about the ball players who make eight figures?
(REMEMBER---I ASK QUESTIONS TO MAKE US THINK!)
SIDEBAR: I do VERY much appreciate Obama's speaking style. He is speaking "to" the American people. Not all Presidents do that.
---------------------------
Hmmm......."our outdated regulatory system." Haven't heard anyone in the media tackle this one yet.
Ut oh.......Obama history lesson. Ah, the GI Bill was AFTER THE DEPRESSION AND WAR. Sorry, that one doesn't wash.
Government "catalyzed"??? "CATALYZED"?? We can't spark anything without the government??? What the????
Now it's time to hear the cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching.......
REMEMBER, we're in a trillion dollar deficit. Trillions of dollars in debt.
1) Energy----love the ideas. Who pays for it all?
Good line about cars. "The nation that invented automobiles cannot walk away from it."
2) Health Care-----a bankruptcy every 30 seconds. It COULD cause 1.5 million people to lose their homes. (Can we check that figure in a year, just to make sure that wasn't a throwaway line? Didn't say it wasn't true, but it should be fact checked.)
OMG----Pelosi is jubliant almost to the point of RUDE!!!! She wasn't sure whether to stand for a cure for cancer in our time, but she jumped up at that 11 million children figure. Legislation! I'll clap to that! I love it when children have health care. Who's paying for it? That's my only question.
"It will not wait another year."---oh, boy; so, who's paying???? And how does the GDP grow when you're thinking of taking 1/6th of it and nationalizing it?
3) Education-----Okay...the same public high schools he applauded in his history lesson are now desperately in need of fixing. It's either one or the other.
College affordable for seven million more students. Details??? Figures??? Who's paying the tuition???
Teacher incentives...."rewards for success". Criteria? Based on what?
WHOA----expand our committment to charter schools!!! Pelosi was STONE FACED on that one. Thank you, Mr. President, for realizing there are MANY ways to fix the education problem. I hope that wasn't a throwaway line.
By 2020----the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. CONGRESS IS ALREADY FILLED WITH THEM! Just a reminder, folks......
Responsibility begins at home. AMEN, MR. PRESIDENT!!!
--------------------------------------------
Okay, now the fun. Listen CAREFULLY. All this spending, and don't pass on debt. Hmmm......
WHOA---DEMS ARE DRUNK WITH POWER! Did U see Chuck Schumer laughing at the GOP while clapping over the "inherited deficit".
NO EARMARKS? EXCUSE ME?? 2 Trillion Dollars in the next decade. POST IT ALL ON RECOVERY.GOV!!!
"Cold War Era" weapons programs gone. Okay, so what do we REPLACE them with?
Notice, so far, NOT A WORD on defense. All this will be wonderful, so long as we don't get hit with "9/11 II", or, God forbid, beyond.
----------------------
"Not one single dime." Wonder how many people making between $250,000 and $500,000 owns small business and are about to get "gouged", now that they've been branded "rich"? I don't know a lot of people that make more than $250K that isn't either an owner or seriously invested in the company where they hang their hat, do you?
Americans-----PLEASE, PLEASE think for yourselves when it comes to the "definition of the rich".
---------------------
Yikes! We won't allow terrorists to plot attacks in safe havens halfway around the world. Do you realize what that means??? Did you see all the Democrats clapping?? That means CONTINUAL WAR for the FORESEEABLE FUTURE, FRIENDS! Don't you get it? Don't you understand?
And that's the reality of war that could never be wiped away by the campaign slogan, "ending the war in Iraq". There are people in that hall tonight simply not thinking. They're listening to soundbites and responding like Pavlov's dog to make sure they're doing the politically expedient "thing" if the camera comes upon them.
And DON'T get me started on "The United States does not torture......"
---------------------
Time for the conclusion.
Bank CEO in Miami shares wealth. Private citizen; private decision. That rocks!!!!
"We are not quitters."-----The Bible says "...out of the mouth of babes...."
Great story, and yes, government can answer the need and cry of a neglected public school system.
5!!!
And 51 minutes later, we're done. Let the pundits with cameras begin. :)
Saturday, February 14, 2009
WHOSE recession??????
As usual, my first blog love hits the nail on the head regarding the first essential element of the house of cards that created the economic mess we are in.
As opposed to people like Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, my girl uses FACTS to prove her point.
WHO warned us about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
WHO praised them for almost a decade?
Moby Rebuttal brings the facts; you decide. Click the title above for the TRUTH!
As opposed to people like Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, my girl uses FACTS to prove her point.
WHO warned us about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
WHO praised them for almost a decade?
Moby Rebuttal brings the facts; you decide. Click the title above for the TRUTH!
The Truman Papers.......
Since there are no sex scandals or 18 1/2 minute gaps, you won't see this in the headlines, but for history buffs, 24,000 pages of former First Lady Bess Truman's papers were released recently.
Click the title for the article. Surely this was the last "common" man with some good sense to be our nation's President.
And before you go nuts on me over our current President, my use of the word "common" is used under the connotation of someone who did not use power, money, "party influence", a family name, a Hollywood career, a father's huge fortune, or elements of the Chicago political machine to be President.
No "common" man or woman, under this definition, will ever be President again, thanks to all that being forever linked to the process of becoming the Chief Executive.
And that's a shame.
Click the title for the article. Surely this was the last "common" man with some good sense to be our nation's President.
And before you go nuts on me over our current President, my use of the word "common" is used under the connotation of someone who did not use power, money, "party influence", a family name, a Hollywood career, a father's huge fortune, or elements of the Chicago political machine to be President.
No "common" man or woman, under this definition, will ever be President again, thanks to all that being forever linked to the process of becoming the Chief Executive.
And that's a shame.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
THIS is why TV breaks into Oprah and Dr. Phil for weather.......
Watch this video---live coverage of a tornado on the ground near Oklahoma City today, beginning near a middle school, proceeding toward an interstate.
I tire of reading blogs and people's comments at Richmona media Web sites complaining of how the meteorologists break into their favorite shows to talk about "breaking weather that's nowhere near me".
Deal with it.
Your community is one of many served by any television station. And if ONE life can be saved by pre-empting Jeopardy, then so be it.
If my child were at this middle school, or my wife commuting on I-35, I'd be grateful to this station for their service, and MOST especially if I lived just the other side of I-35.
I tire of reading blogs and people's comments at Richmona media Web sites complaining of how the meteorologists break into their favorite shows to talk about "breaking weather that's nowhere near me".
Deal with it.
Your community is one of many served by any television station. And if ONE life can be saved by pre-empting Jeopardy, then so be it.
If my child were at this middle school, or my wife commuting on I-35, I'd be grateful to this station for their service, and MOST especially if I lived just the other side of I-35.
Monday, February 02, 2009
Greatest Super Bowl?
Ah, sorry Peter. Not even close.
Last night's Super Bowl (in spite of Roger Goodell's pronouncement at the trophy ceremony that the NFL somehow topped last year's game) was NOT the greatest of the 43 played.
It reminded me of Super Bowl 38, when a slow, plodding first half between New England and Carolina turned into a good game in the 3rd quarter, and a classic, mind-boggling 4th quarter. (Remember, don't go for two unless absolutely necessary!)
The first half was decent, but got a huge exclamation point with James Harrison's record-setting INT return for a TD. That changes many people's perspective on the entire half, and it shouldn't.
There was a point in the 3rd quarter where I thought Pittsburgh was almost ready to put it away, but credit Arizona's defense for the TWO goal line stands resulting in a 20-7 score after three, rather than 24-7.
The fourth quarter was nuts. Classic II, throwback to five years ago. Both Fitzgerald and Holmes putting on receiving clinics. It was so much fun to watch.
But all this has me thinking......what are the "greatest" Super Bowls of all time? Here are my five, counting down.....
FIRST, the honorable mentions, in no order.
Super Bowl 42: Greatest upset. Period.
Super Bowl 3: Second most important game in football history (after the '58 NFL Championship)
Super Bowl 32: Elway helicopters his way past the Packers and out of futility.
Super Bowl 10: A sloppy game that stayed close and gave us a Hail Mary ending.
Super Bowl 23: An overrated game, with a great winning TD drive from Joe Montana.
Super Bowl 16: The second half of the first SF/Cincy matchup is highly underrated and mostly forgotten, but shouldn't be.
NOW.......(well, there will be six in the five slots....)
5) Super Bowl 34: St. Louis completes the miracle season with the 23-16 win over Tennessee. Caught most of the 2nd half of this game on NFL Network last week. I had forgotten how the flow of that half unfolded. And not just the Warner story, but the Mike Jones play, leaving Tennessee one yard short. I never did understand why McNair didn't throw it into the end zone. McNair's performance in that fourth quarter was off the chart.
4) Super Bowl 38 and 43 (tie): For the reasons unveiled above. Two fourth quarter classics create fantastic finishes.
3) Super Bowl 13: In my eyes, the game that changed the Super Bowl into "an event", rather than just a "championship sporting event". Pittsburgh vs. Dallas II, Bradshaw vs. Staubach, Hollywood Henderson's mouth, Swann's classic catch for a TD, Dallas' frantic comeback from 18 down, Jackie Smith's TD drop, all the drama you could ask for was in that game. Super Bowl I wasn't even known as Super Bowl I until after the fact. Super Bowl III was stunning. But Super Bowl XIII was the first "Super" Super Bowl.
2) Super Bowl 36: Against the backdrop of a nation still reeling from 9/11, with Paul McCartney and U2 bringing the nation hope, a then HUGE underdog Patriot team comes in, makes the now memorable "team" entrance, stops the "greatest show on turf", and punches right back after Warner and Company scored the tying TD. John Madden said at the time it would be smart for the Pats to prepare for overtime. Good thing for Tom Brady he had his coach on the in-helmet speaker. This young guy from nowhere moves his team down the field and Adam Vinatieri calmly nails the winning FG (from 47 yards no less!) for the Super upset.
1) Super Bowl 25: I will be accused of being biased due to me being a Giants fan. But note, Super Bowl 42 isn't in the top five, and I've been a Raider fan even longer and none of their Super Bowls made the list (no cliffhangers....but lots of Cliff Branch!) So, hear (read) me out......
It's early 1991, and America is less than ten days removed from entering Operation Desert Storm. Whitney Houston's rendition of our National Anthem is still the greatest I've ever heard. The nation was at a critical moment.
Enter two football teams from different roads. Buffalo had been building and building into a team capable of winning it all, and 1990 had seemed to be their year. The fast-paced offense, a defeat of their Super Bowl foes in the regular season (the game where Phil Simms blew out his knee), and a complete blowout of the Raiders in the AFC Championship.
Then there's the New York Giants. Someone forgot to tell them that the 49ers were supposed to be going for the "three-peat", because the Giants traveled west, and shocked San Francisco to become the party crasher.
So the Giants come onto the field a decisive underdog to the Buffalo Bills. Somehow, Jeff Hostetler had handled the pressure of having to rally the team behind him and he was the starting QB in Tampa that Sunday night, having led them through the playoffs.
The game was close all the way, many critical moments that could have decided it, but two drives will forever be etched in Super Bowl history.
---If you are a running football team, and you are playing a team with a prolific offense, the blueprint for a drive is the opening drive of the 3rd quarter for the New York Giants. 14 plays, 75 yards. 5 passes, 9 runs, taking 9:29 off the clock. The Giants now had the lead at 17-12 after being down 12-3. Buffalo didn't run an offensive play until nearly 10 minutes of the 3rd quarter were gone.
---The final drive. First, the set-up. Buffalo scores the go-ahead TD on the first play of the fourth. The Giants proceed to run another long drive....13 plays, 74 yards, taking another 7:32 off the clock, kicking a field goal to go up 20-19. They exchange drives, setting up Buffalo at their own 10, 2:16 to go.
Jim Kelly has to scramble for yardage three times on the drive, and two huge "shotgun draws" to Thurman Thomas get the Bills to the Giants 29 with eight seconds left.
We all know the next play. The underdogs survive, the backup quarterback comes through and the 20-19 upset was a final.
THAT is the greatest Super Bowl of all time.
What's your pick? :)
Last night's Super Bowl (in spite of Roger Goodell's pronouncement at the trophy ceremony that the NFL somehow topped last year's game) was NOT the greatest of the 43 played.
It reminded me of Super Bowl 38, when a slow, plodding first half between New England and Carolina turned into a good game in the 3rd quarter, and a classic, mind-boggling 4th quarter. (Remember, don't go for two unless absolutely necessary!)
The first half was decent, but got a huge exclamation point with James Harrison's record-setting INT return for a TD. That changes many people's perspective on the entire half, and it shouldn't.
There was a point in the 3rd quarter where I thought Pittsburgh was almost ready to put it away, but credit Arizona's defense for the TWO goal line stands resulting in a 20-7 score after three, rather than 24-7.
The fourth quarter was nuts. Classic II, throwback to five years ago. Both Fitzgerald and Holmes putting on receiving clinics. It was so much fun to watch.
But all this has me thinking......what are the "greatest" Super Bowls of all time? Here are my five, counting down.....
FIRST, the honorable mentions, in no order.
Super Bowl 42: Greatest upset. Period.
Super Bowl 3: Second most important game in football history (after the '58 NFL Championship)
Super Bowl 32: Elway helicopters his way past the Packers and out of futility.
Super Bowl 10: A sloppy game that stayed close and gave us a Hail Mary ending.
Super Bowl 23: An overrated game, with a great winning TD drive from Joe Montana.
Super Bowl 16: The second half of the first SF/Cincy matchup is highly underrated and mostly forgotten, but shouldn't be.
NOW.......(well, there will be six in the five slots....)
5) Super Bowl 34: St. Louis completes the miracle season with the 23-16 win over Tennessee. Caught most of the 2nd half of this game on NFL Network last week. I had forgotten how the flow of that half unfolded. And not just the Warner story, but the Mike Jones play, leaving Tennessee one yard short. I never did understand why McNair didn't throw it into the end zone. McNair's performance in that fourth quarter was off the chart.
4) Super Bowl 38 and 43 (tie): For the reasons unveiled above. Two fourth quarter classics create fantastic finishes.
3) Super Bowl 13: In my eyes, the game that changed the Super Bowl into "an event", rather than just a "championship sporting event". Pittsburgh vs. Dallas II, Bradshaw vs. Staubach, Hollywood Henderson's mouth, Swann's classic catch for a TD, Dallas' frantic comeback from 18 down, Jackie Smith's TD drop, all the drama you could ask for was in that game. Super Bowl I wasn't even known as Super Bowl I until after the fact. Super Bowl III was stunning. But Super Bowl XIII was the first "Super" Super Bowl.
2) Super Bowl 36: Against the backdrop of a nation still reeling from 9/11, with Paul McCartney and U2 bringing the nation hope, a then HUGE underdog Patriot team comes in, makes the now memorable "team" entrance, stops the "greatest show on turf", and punches right back after Warner and Company scored the tying TD. John Madden said at the time it would be smart for the Pats to prepare for overtime. Good thing for Tom Brady he had his coach on the in-helmet speaker. This young guy from nowhere moves his team down the field and Adam Vinatieri calmly nails the winning FG (from 47 yards no less!) for the Super upset.
1) Super Bowl 25: I will be accused of being biased due to me being a Giants fan. But note, Super Bowl 42 isn't in the top five, and I've been a Raider fan even longer and none of their Super Bowls made the list (no cliffhangers....but lots of Cliff Branch!) So, hear (read) me out......
It's early 1991, and America is less than ten days removed from entering Operation Desert Storm. Whitney Houston's rendition of our National Anthem is still the greatest I've ever heard. The nation was at a critical moment.
Enter two football teams from different roads. Buffalo had been building and building into a team capable of winning it all, and 1990 had seemed to be their year. The fast-paced offense, a defeat of their Super Bowl foes in the regular season (the game where Phil Simms blew out his knee), and a complete blowout of the Raiders in the AFC Championship.
Then there's the New York Giants. Someone forgot to tell them that the 49ers were supposed to be going for the "three-peat", because the Giants traveled west, and shocked San Francisco to become the party crasher.
So the Giants come onto the field a decisive underdog to the Buffalo Bills. Somehow, Jeff Hostetler had handled the pressure of having to rally the team behind him and he was the starting QB in Tampa that Sunday night, having led them through the playoffs.
The game was close all the way, many critical moments that could have decided it, but two drives will forever be etched in Super Bowl history.
---If you are a running football team, and you are playing a team with a prolific offense, the blueprint for a drive is the opening drive of the 3rd quarter for the New York Giants. 14 plays, 75 yards. 5 passes, 9 runs, taking 9:29 off the clock. The Giants now had the lead at 17-12 after being down 12-3. Buffalo didn't run an offensive play until nearly 10 minutes of the 3rd quarter were gone.
---The final drive. First, the set-up. Buffalo scores the go-ahead TD on the first play of the fourth. The Giants proceed to run another long drive....13 plays, 74 yards, taking another 7:32 off the clock, kicking a field goal to go up 20-19. They exchange drives, setting up Buffalo at their own 10, 2:16 to go.
Jim Kelly has to scramble for yardage three times on the drive, and two huge "shotgun draws" to Thurman Thomas get the Bills to the Giants 29 with eight seconds left.
We all know the next play. The underdogs survive, the backup quarterback comes through and the 20-19 upset was a final.
THAT is the greatest Super Bowl of all time.
What's your pick? :)
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Super Bowl XLIII
My brain says "Steelers 30, Cardinals 17"
My heart says "Cardinals 32, Steelers 25"
GO CARDINALS!!!
(P.S.---Kudos to Jennifer Hudson on a fantastic rendition of our National Anthem!!)
My heart says "Cardinals 32, Steelers 25"
GO CARDINALS!!!
(P.S.---Kudos to Jennifer Hudson on a fantastic rendition of our National Anthem!!)
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Happy Belated Birthday, Mimi!!
To one of my favorite Hollywood ladies, happy birthday to Mimi Rogers! :)
Friday, January 23, 2009
Al Qaeda 1, Guantanamo 0??
Well, apparently it's not just the town drunk, the drug dealer, or the federal racketeer that seem to find themselves back in their same line of work after being jailed.
Now we hear of a Guantanamo detainee, released last year into a Saudi "rehab" program, who has returned to his love of planning to kill innocent infidels.
Wonder if he graduated that rehab course "Magna go boom" or "Summa go boom"?
And now with the liberals' countdown clock to the closing of Gitmo underway, it does beg the question of how we might be able to help the Saudis (and the Yemeni officials, too) do a little bit better job in that "rehabilitation" process.
Or, BETTER YET, just send them to John Murtha's Congressional District in Pennsylvania! Apparently he can't wait to house the soon-to-be ex-Gitmos.
He could teach them ABSCAM while he's at it, too!
Now we hear of a Guantanamo detainee, released last year into a Saudi "rehab" program, who has returned to his love of planning to kill innocent infidels.
Wonder if he graduated that rehab course "Magna go boom" or "Summa go boom"?
And now with the liberals' countdown clock to the closing of Gitmo underway, it does beg the question of how we might be able to help the Saudis (and the Yemeni officials, too) do a little bit better job in that "rehabilitation" process.
Or, BETTER YET, just send them to John Murtha's Congressional District in Pennsylvania! Apparently he can't wait to house the soon-to-be ex-Gitmos.
He could teach them ABSCAM while he's at it, too!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
We Should Also Pick Up After Ourselves
Of all people, I thought the Obama-nation, complete with their impeccable concern for "mother earth", would be the last group of people to, well, trash the place.
Click the blog title above!
OH, and P.S.----President Obama needs to lead the nation in a basic course in civics. Lesson one:
YOU DON'T THROW AWAY THE AMERICAN FLAG!!!!!
Click the blog title above!
OH, and P.S.----President Obama needs to lead the nation in a basic course in civics. Lesson one:
YOU DON'T THROW AWAY THE AMERICAN FLAG!!!!!
Leading By Example: We Should All Serve
From the Washington Post:
Hundreds of thousands of volunteers in the Washington region and throughout the country turned out to do good works for their communities yesterday, an overwhelming response to President-elect Barack Obama's call for a day of public service in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.
They crowded into soup kitchens to feed the homeless, flooded school hallways to paint walls and flocked to neighborhood parks to pick up trash in what may have been the largest day of national service ever. It was propelled by the same kind of millions-strong network of e-mail and text messages that marked Obama's presidential campaign.
The impact was particularly strong in Washington, bolstered by the thousands of people who arrived in recent days to take part in the inauguration and who eagerly joined the area's community service activities.
Hundreds of thousands of volunteers in the Washington region and throughout the country turned out to do good works for their communities yesterday, an overwhelming response to President-elect Barack Obama's call for a day of public service in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.
They crowded into soup kitchens to feed the homeless, flooded school hallways to paint walls and flocked to neighborhood parks to pick up trash in what may have been the largest day of national service ever. It was propelled by the same kind of millions-strong network of e-mail and text messages that marked Obama's presidential campaign.
The impact was particularly strong in Washington, bolstered by the thousands of people who arrived in recent days to take part in the inauguration and who eagerly joined the area's community service activities.
Well, I see the hate instantly went away.......
I thought with the Obama Administration's arrival, we were all told to be "at one" and "in unison".
Unless you hate George Bush. Or his dad. Or someone with a monument whose last name is Bush.
The funny part of the story? Read the description of the suspect in regards to the possible presence of paint.
Unless you hate George Bush. Or his dad. Or someone with a monument whose last name is Bush.
The funny part of the story? Read the description of the suspect in regards to the possible presence of paint.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
No Inaugurations For Clear Channel People........
From Allaccess.com:
Mark Mays: Clear Channel Reduces Workforce By 9%
A 9% Reduction
Today, we had the unpleasant task of bringing our Outdoor and Radio businesses’ staffing in line with these challenging economic conditions.
This has been an historic and yet bittersweet day with the inauguration of President BARACK OBAMA, and the dramatic downsizing at CLEAR CHANNEL that affects 9% of the workforce, across the board, totalling approximately 1,850 postions.
CLEAR CHANNEL CEO MARK MAYS sent the following companywide email out, today:
As I've mentioned previously, we are facing an unprecedented time of distress in the general economy – and the ripple effects have hit some of our largest customers hard.
Today, we had the unpleasant task of bringing our Outdoor and Radio businesses’ staffing in line with these challenging economic conditions. In doing so, we enter 2009 as a solid company and in the most competitive position possible.
We have thought carefully and at some length about the steps we need to take as a company to succeed during this unprecedented downturn. As a result, we have eliminated approximately 1,850 positions across Corporate, Outdoor and Radio. While a significant portion of these positions represent a realignment in our sales departments, the positions span all departments and represent approximately 9% of the total CLEAR CHANNEL COMMUNICATIONS workforce.
One of the things that has kept CLEAR CHANNEL strong throughout our history is a willingness to deal with difficult situations in an immediate way -- to make the tough decisions today in order to secure a strong future. It is this trait that has gone furthest in enabling us to weather many difficult downturns in our 37-year history. It always requires clarity, collaboration and courage.
Please know that these have been difficult decisions -- yet necessary ones. We will miss those who are departing -- even as we renew our shared commitment to success among all of us who will stay.
Everyone in our investor group, on the Board, and in the executive leadership team remains bullish about the long-term growth prospects for CLEAR CHANNEL. We continue to believe that the Outdoor and Radio businesses offer excellent opportunities.
We need to remain highly entrepreneurial and innovative. We also need to remain focused and compassionate. If we continue to manage our business carefully, and invest with discipline in the right strategic opportunities, we will navigate this downturn effectively and emerge even stronger and better positioned when things improve.
Starting now, it is our ability to bring creative thinking to the current business climate - to focus on the benefits we deliver for customers - to show extreme focus and commitment -- that will create results.
CLEAR CHANNEL COMMUNICATIONS has more resources than any of our peers. The tools are here. The support is here. It's time to use them to create lasting competitive advantage for our customers - and for our company.
Please know that we continue to be extraordinarily appreciative of all of the passion and hard work that each of you continues to commit to this phenomenal business. We will get through this together.
We're in this together. We have the best team. And we all have important work to do.
As we head into the New Year, I know we will meet the oncoming challenges with focus, determination and grace.
Please let me or your management team know if you have any questions.
With Regards,
In support of the downsizing, the company supplied the following Power Point presentation.
ALL ACCESS reached out to CLEAR CHANNEL with some specific questions.
The company declined to answer specifics about percentages of cuts from specific divisions, job levels, and how this would affect bonuses, or pay adjustments in the wake of the downsizing.
We did learn that there is a total cost-savings of approximately $350 million, but they declined comment regarding additional downsizings in the future.
ALL ACCESS also learned that there will still be national sales and there will still be direct sales on a local level as well.
Q: Were reductions predicated by certain operating cost goals dictated by recent loan covenants tied to the privatization of the Company?
A: Reductions were made to bring Clear Channel in line with the changed economic and advertising realities and outlook. In this sense, the company is among all in American business today that are taking these types of prudent actions.
Q: There are a lot of rumors that the changes in programming will lead to hub & spoke programming where music decisions are centralized, and no longer taking into account for individual market tastes. Will this be taking place?
A: There is no absolute approach. Clear Channel Radio is focused on delivering the best and biggest audience to our advertisers. We have no room for low performers. That’s true all across the company – whether in Radio or Outdoor.
Q: Do you feel these moves will signal where the radio industry is moving as a whole as an operational trendsetter?
A: We’re focused on our business. Our colleagues in other companies need to make their own decisions.
Q: Where does the company see itself in six months, in a year, and in two years?
A: Continuing to employ the most talented and highest-performing professionals in our industries. Continuing to provide those professionals with the best and broadest array of resources. And continuing to attract and deliver the largest and highest quality audiences.
Q: Will there be additional waves of staff reductions?
A: We will continue to watch the advertising and economic situations closely.
-------------------------------------------------------
My analysis later on. Suffice it to say this is just the first wave. :(
Mark Mays: Clear Channel Reduces Workforce By 9%
A 9% Reduction
Today, we had the unpleasant task of bringing our Outdoor and Radio businesses’ staffing in line with these challenging economic conditions.
This has been an historic and yet bittersweet day with the inauguration of President BARACK OBAMA, and the dramatic downsizing at CLEAR CHANNEL that affects 9% of the workforce, across the board, totalling approximately 1,850 postions.
CLEAR CHANNEL CEO MARK MAYS sent the following companywide email out, today:
As I've mentioned previously, we are facing an unprecedented time of distress in the general economy – and the ripple effects have hit some of our largest customers hard.
Today, we had the unpleasant task of bringing our Outdoor and Radio businesses’ staffing in line with these challenging economic conditions. In doing so, we enter 2009 as a solid company and in the most competitive position possible.
We have thought carefully and at some length about the steps we need to take as a company to succeed during this unprecedented downturn. As a result, we have eliminated approximately 1,850 positions across Corporate, Outdoor and Radio. While a significant portion of these positions represent a realignment in our sales departments, the positions span all departments and represent approximately 9% of the total CLEAR CHANNEL COMMUNICATIONS workforce.
One of the things that has kept CLEAR CHANNEL strong throughout our history is a willingness to deal with difficult situations in an immediate way -- to make the tough decisions today in order to secure a strong future. It is this trait that has gone furthest in enabling us to weather many difficult downturns in our 37-year history. It always requires clarity, collaboration and courage.
Please know that these have been difficult decisions -- yet necessary ones. We will miss those who are departing -- even as we renew our shared commitment to success among all of us who will stay.
Everyone in our investor group, on the Board, and in the executive leadership team remains bullish about the long-term growth prospects for CLEAR CHANNEL. We continue to believe that the Outdoor and Radio businesses offer excellent opportunities.
We need to remain highly entrepreneurial and innovative. We also need to remain focused and compassionate. If we continue to manage our business carefully, and invest with discipline in the right strategic opportunities, we will navigate this downturn effectively and emerge even stronger and better positioned when things improve.
Starting now, it is our ability to bring creative thinking to the current business climate - to focus on the benefits we deliver for customers - to show extreme focus and commitment -- that will create results.
CLEAR CHANNEL COMMUNICATIONS has more resources than any of our peers. The tools are here. The support is here. It's time to use them to create lasting competitive advantage for our customers - and for our company.
Please know that we continue to be extraordinarily appreciative of all of the passion and hard work that each of you continues to commit to this phenomenal business. We will get through this together.
We're in this together. We have the best team. And we all have important work to do.
As we head into the New Year, I know we will meet the oncoming challenges with focus, determination and grace.
Please let me or your management team know if you have any questions.
With Regards,
In support of the downsizing, the company supplied the following Power Point presentation.
ALL ACCESS reached out to CLEAR CHANNEL with some specific questions.
The company declined to answer specifics about percentages of cuts from specific divisions, job levels, and how this would affect bonuses, or pay adjustments in the wake of the downsizing.
We did learn that there is a total cost-savings of approximately $350 million, but they declined comment regarding additional downsizings in the future.
ALL ACCESS also learned that there will still be national sales and there will still be direct sales on a local level as well.
Q: Were reductions predicated by certain operating cost goals dictated by recent loan covenants tied to the privatization of the Company?
A: Reductions were made to bring Clear Channel in line with the changed economic and advertising realities and outlook. In this sense, the company is among all in American business today that are taking these types of prudent actions.
Q: There are a lot of rumors that the changes in programming will lead to hub & spoke programming where music decisions are centralized, and no longer taking into account for individual market tastes. Will this be taking place?
A: There is no absolute approach. Clear Channel Radio is focused on delivering the best and biggest audience to our advertisers. We have no room for low performers. That’s true all across the company – whether in Radio or Outdoor.
Q: Do you feel these moves will signal where the radio industry is moving as a whole as an operational trendsetter?
A: We’re focused on our business. Our colleagues in other companies need to make their own decisions.
Q: Where does the company see itself in six months, in a year, and in two years?
A: Continuing to employ the most talented and highest-performing professionals in our industries. Continuing to provide those professionals with the best and broadest array of resources. And continuing to attract and deliver the largest and highest quality audiences.
Q: Will there be additional waves of staff reductions?
A: We will continue to watch the advertising and economic situations closely.
-------------------------------------------------------
My analysis later on. Suffice it to say this is just the first wave. :(
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Clear Channel, Inaugural Costs, Jack Bauer, and other things.........
Things I'm thinking about......
1) Clear Channel--my lovely former employer prepares their blood-stained guillotine for another round of job cuts, this time apparently around 7% of their workforce, or somewhere near 1,500 jobs. We're hearing ad sales will take a hit (and no offense to my friends in sales, but it's way past time this happened; the programming departments are already at bone at many stations), plus MORE programming, as the company heads further toward its ultimate goal of "national programming". The word I don't like hearing though is that some "back-office operations" will be consolidated, and that's where my best friends are.
The cuts are allegedly scheduled to take place on Tuesday, so as to allow the bad news to receive minimal publicity, what with the media world all focusing on the Inauguration that day. Only that fact has been publicly known for close to a week now. Part of me does honestly believe this whole "bury the axe-swinging on Jan. 20th" stuff is actually done on purpose, so the "Clear Channel haters" would have meat to chew on.
I don't care what is ever said by anyone in Clear Channel corporate, trust me when I say this company does not care for the majority of its employees. The suits who have the power and opportunity to be in jobs where they can improve cashflow for the company, when they DO produce positive cashflow.....they are the ones who are cared for.
Everyone under said person who creates that environment and that success is given ubiquitous emails from Mark Mays once in a while under the guise of "pumping up the troops and thanking them for their continued service despite these harsh economic times....blah, blah, blah.....".
And now, some of those people, many of them great professionals (and others, frankly, dead weight, which is found at all companies), are going to be rewarded for carrying their bosses to their bonuses by being given their walking papers, and the ever-popular "Future Endeavors Box".
Little known fact, my Future Endeavors Box had been sitting half full under my cubicle for three months before I got the axe.
So, thousands of Clear Channel employees have spent the past two weeks watching the fat lady being escorted into the building and they've now heard the orchestra tune up. I'm sure Monday, where Clear Channel offices are open, there will be all the excitement of an upcoming wake, knowing that some people you see Monday, and maybe have seen for years in the office, won't be there 24 hours later.
LOTS of companies have laid off thousands and thousands of people recently (my home city is the corporate home of Circuit City, trust me, we know ALL too well), BUT, few companies "drag out the painful pre-firing show" quite like Clear Channel.
If a company really cared about people, decisions would be made privately, action would be made swiftly, with little fanfare and LOTS of compassion, complete with the best possible severance and aid packages possible for the people who are being thanked for all their unpaid salary hours, nights and weekends in the office, etc, etc, by being kicked to the curb.
A quick study of news reports and radio Web sites over the past two weeks will show you that Clear Channel does none of that. It's like they want people to know when they're going to do all this. Otherwise, why do it this way??
---------------------------------------------------------------
2) The Inauguration-----I simply cannot help but think two things:
----This is an historic event, and should be treated as such
----In light of the State of The Union, historic events need not be expensive
Remember early 2005, when Democrats were SO upset that the second Bush inaugural would go on with the usual celebrations, Inaugural Balls, etc, during a "time of war"? They felt that any celebration should be toned down.
Fast forward to 2009, and with the popular Democrat on deck to take The Oath, the Dems are already in party mode. Even with the Obama Inaugural Committee raising some $41 million to help defray costs, it looks like some $150 million (and probably more once security costs are finally figured out in hindsight) will be spent on an event that, at its heart, consists of about 20 seconds of activity.
We're still at war----and now we're supposedly on the precipice of the 2nd Great Depression, yet there will be ten Inaugural Balls? Where are Anthony Weiner and Jim McDermott now? They are the two Congressmen who wrote a letter four years ago calling on President Bush to tone down his Inauguration, saying such festivities would be undignified.
This time? We hear from former CBS/ABC News reporter, now Obama spokesperson Linda Douglass------
"That is probably not the way the country is going to be looking at it.....it is not a celebration of an election. It is a celebration of our common values."
Excuse me? What? Heh?
Let's simply be honest-----this event is historic because we are seeing the Inauguration of the first African-American President in American history. That deserves a VERY dignified and extremely positive celebration!!! But it's like planning a birthday party for your child. You can have a great celebration, but do you have to hire the live band and the inflatable train the kids can crawl through?
Historic and dignified does not equal nor demand expensive.
Five balls instead of ten, maybe? Would having five less Inaugural balls forever shatter the historic nature of this event? Ah, no.
MY POINT----This is case proof number #374410 of how liberals, when pressed to use their own solution to certain problems, proceed to ignore them and let the party keep on going.
Those two aforementioned Congressmen, in their 2005 letter, noted how FDR's final Inauguration in 1945 consisted of the Oath, a short speech, and a lunch for guests consisting of cold chicken salad and plain pound cake. In 1917, President Wilson didn't have a party, as the country continued in World War I.
OH----and the best piece of irony? Raising up to $300,000 for the Inaugural effort? A leading Obama campaign fundraiser......his name?
LOUIS SUSMAN---he just retired THIS MONTH as vice chairman of....CITIGROUP!!!
You might be aware that Citigroup posted a LOSS of $8.29 BILLION yesterday. You might also know that Citigroup has already received $45 BILLION in bailout money, and that may not be the last of it.
Just think---six former Citigroup workers who made $50K annually and now can't pay their mortgages could have kept their jobs if ol' Louis had decided to take that $300K and help bailout six struggling Americans, rather than paying for the catering at TEN Inaugural Balls, or whatever the crap his money is paying for.
Anyone for chicken salad?
-------------------------------------------------------------
3) "24" IS BACK!!!! And not a moment too soon. This review pinpoints the strengths of the first four hours of Season 7, points out how the show is evolving with the times, isn't leaning too heavily on Jack, and how, so far, there isn't a glaring "weak link" either in storyline or in character (REMEMBER PALMER'S ANNOYING SISTER????).
And I love the portrayal that brings to the forefront the current controversy over torture. Agent Renee Walker of the FBI (a new character) interrogates a suspect while he's in the hospital with a breathing tube. He taunts her about how she cannot use "certain methods" of interrogation.
Keith Olbermann's reply to this would be, "Oh, you're right! Need a fresh pillow, Mr. Enemy of All Innocent Americans?"
Walker's response was to crinkle his breathing tube and tell him to use his last breath wisely.
Say you have Osama Bin Laden, or Rommel, or Mussolini in that hospital bed. Who do YOU want trying to break them before thousands of Americans die?
Whenever I hear people decry "interrogation" of prisoners in the War on Terror, all I have to do is remember the sight of one innocent, hard-working American, jumping to their death from a tower of the World Trade Center to remind myself these are not "criminals", they are "war prisoners", and they'd better be glad they don't have much worse treatment given to them.
Go Jack!!!!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Lately I've "watched" Music Choice channels on my cable more than actual cable channels. I'm paying a cable bill to listen to music. That's a pretty big indictment of the complete dearth of decent television programming.
I felt like I had more choices 30 years ago, living in the country with a TV antenna, and the choice of ABC, CBS, NBC, or PBS, with an occasional appearance by an out-of-town independent station thanks to certain atmospheric conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Could Bert Blyleven please just get elected to the Hall of Fame already? A friend of mine, local sports broadcasting legend Terry Sisisky, and I once had a debate on this issue--------back in 1996!!!
Andre Dawson--get him in there, too. Good Lord. Baseball purists take themselves so seriously. It's a game, folks. A game.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
And to close, with my Giants now out, I turn to the true underdog and give my support to the Arizona Cardinals to do the seemingly impossible.......make it to the Super Bowl. :)
1) Clear Channel--my lovely former employer prepares their blood-stained guillotine for another round of job cuts, this time apparently around 7% of their workforce, or somewhere near 1,500 jobs. We're hearing ad sales will take a hit (and no offense to my friends in sales, but it's way past time this happened; the programming departments are already at bone at many stations), plus MORE programming, as the company heads further toward its ultimate goal of "national programming". The word I don't like hearing though is that some "back-office operations" will be consolidated, and that's where my best friends are.
The cuts are allegedly scheduled to take place on Tuesday, so as to allow the bad news to receive minimal publicity, what with the media world all focusing on the Inauguration that day. Only that fact has been publicly known for close to a week now. Part of me does honestly believe this whole "bury the axe-swinging on Jan. 20th" stuff is actually done on purpose, so the "Clear Channel haters" would have meat to chew on.
I don't care what is ever said by anyone in Clear Channel corporate, trust me when I say this company does not care for the majority of its employees. The suits who have the power and opportunity to be in jobs where they can improve cashflow for the company, when they DO produce positive cashflow.....they are the ones who are cared for.
Everyone under said person who creates that environment and that success is given ubiquitous emails from Mark Mays once in a while under the guise of "pumping up the troops and thanking them for their continued service despite these harsh economic times....blah, blah, blah.....".
And now, some of those people, many of them great professionals (and others, frankly, dead weight, which is found at all companies), are going to be rewarded for carrying their bosses to their bonuses by being given their walking papers, and the ever-popular "Future Endeavors Box".
Little known fact, my Future Endeavors Box had been sitting half full under my cubicle for three months before I got the axe.
So, thousands of Clear Channel employees have spent the past two weeks watching the fat lady being escorted into the building and they've now heard the orchestra tune up. I'm sure Monday, where Clear Channel offices are open, there will be all the excitement of an upcoming wake, knowing that some people you see Monday, and maybe have seen for years in the office, won't be there 24 hours later.
LOTS of companies have laid off thousands and thousands of people recently (my home city is the corporate home of Circuit City, trust me, we know ALL too well), BUT, few companies "drag out the painful pre-firing show" quite like Clear Channel.
If a company really cared about people, decisions would be made privately, action would be made swiftly, with little fanfare and LOTS of compassion, complete with the best possible severance and aid packages possible for the people who are being thanked for all their unpaid salary hours, nights and weekends in the office, etc, etc, by being kicked to the curb.
A quick study of news reports and radio Web sites over the past two weeks will show you that Clear Channel does none of that. It's like they want people to know when they're going to do all this. Otherwise, why do it this way??
---------------------------------------------------------------
2) The Inauguration-----I simply cannot help but think two things:
----This is an historic event, and should be treated as such
----In light of the State of The Union, historic events need not be expensive
Remember early 2005, when Democrats were SO upset that the second Bush inaugural would go on with the usual celebrations, Inaugural Balls, etc, during a "time of war"? They felt that any celebration should be toned down.
Fast forward to 2009, and with the popular Democrat on deck to take The Oath, the Dems are already in party mode. Even with the Obama Inaugural Committee raising some $41 million to help defray costs, it looks like some $150 million (and probably more once security costs are finally figured out in hindsight) will be spent on an event that, at its heart, consists of about 20 seconds of activity.
We're still at war----and now we're supposedly on the precipice of the 2nd Great Depression, yet there will be ten Inaugural Balls? Where are Anthony Weiner and Jim McDermott now? They are the two Congressmen who wrote a letter four years ago calling on President Bush to tone down his Inauguration, saying such festivities would be undignified.
This time? We hear from former CBS/ABC News reporter, now Obama spokesperson Linda Douglass------
"That is probably not the way the country is going to be looking at it.....it is not a celebration of an election. It is a celebration of our common values."
Excuse me? What? Heh?
Let's simply be honest-----this event is historic because we are seeing the Inauguration of the first African-American President in American history. That deserves a VERY dignified and extremely positive celebration!!! But it's like planning a birthday party for your child. You can have a great celebration, but do you have to hire the live band and the inflatable train the kids can crawl through?
Historic and dignified does not equal nor demand expensive.
Five balls instead of ten, maybe? Would having five less Inaugural balls forever shatter the historic nature of this event? Ah, no.
MY POINT----This is case proof number #374410 of how liberals, when pressed to use their own solution to certain problems, proceed to ignore them and let the party keep on going.
Those two aforementioned Congressmen, in their 2005 letter, noted how FDR's final Inauguration in 1945 consisted of the Oath, a short speech, and a lunch for guests consisting of cold chicken salad and plain pound cake. In 1917, President Wilson didn't have a party, as the country continued in World War I.
OH----and the best piece of irony? Raising up to $300,000 for the Inaugural effort? A leading Obama campaign fundraiser......his name?
LOUIS SUSMAN---he just retired THIS MONTH as vice chairman of....CITIGROUP!!!
You might be aware that Citigroup posted a LOSS of $8.29 BILLION yesterday. You might also know that Citigroup has already received $45 BILLION in bailout money, and that may not be the last of it.
Just think---six former Citigroup workers who made $50K annually and now can't pay their mortgages could have kept their jobs if ol' Louis had decided to take that $300K and help bailout six struggling Americans, rather than paying for the catering at TEN Inaugural Balls, or whatever the crap his money is paying for.
Anyone for chicken salad?
-------------------------------------------------------------
3) "24" IS BACK!!!! And not a moment too soon. This review pinpoints the strengths of the first four hours of Season 7, points out how the show is evolving with the times, isn't leaning too heavily on Jack, and how, so far, there isn't a glaring "weak link" either in storyline or in character (REMEMBER PALMER'S ANNOYING SISTER????).
And I love the portrayal that brings to the forefront the current controversy over torture. Agent Renee Walker of the FBI (a new character) interrogates a suspect while he's in the hospital with a breathing tube. He taunts her about how she cannot use "certain methods" of interrogation.
Keith Olbermann's reply to this would be, "Oh, you're right! Need a fresh pillow, Mr. Enemy of All Innocent Americans?"
Walker's response was to crinkle his breathing tube and tell him to use his last breath wisely.
Say you have Osama Bin Laden, or Rommel, or Mussolini in that hospital bed. Who do YOU want trying to break them before thousands of Americans die?
Whenever I hear people decry "interrogation" of prisoners in the War on Terror, all I have to do is remember the sight of one innocent, hard-working American, jumping to their death from a tower of the World Trade Center to remind myself these are not "criminals", they are "war prisoners", and they'd better be glad they don't have much worse treatment given to them.
Go Jack!!!!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Lately I've "watched" Music Choice channels on my cable more than actual cable channels. I'm paying a cable bill to listen to music. That's a pretty big indictment of the complete dearth of decent television programming.
I felt like I had more choices 30 years ago, living in the country with a TV antenna, and the choice of ABC, CBS, NBC, or PBS, with an occasional appearance by an out-of-town independent station thanks to certain atmospheric conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Could Bert Blyleven please just get elected to the Hall of Fame already? A friend of mine, local sports broadcasting legend Terry Sisisky, and I once had a debate on this issue--------back in 1996!!!
Andre Dawson--get him in there, too. Good Lord. Baseball purists take themselves so seriously. It's a game, folks. A game.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
And to close, with my Giants now out, I turn to the true underdog and give my support to the Arizona Cardinals to do the seemingly impossible.......make it to the Super Bowl. :)
Sunday, January 04, 2009
2009: SHOCKER in radio; another "forced" Witham vehicle buy......
I'm (finally) relaxing at big bro's house Saturday evening during NFL action, catching up on news from home, when I get to vartv.com and get the early candidate for "shock of the year".
Hoffman Communications has apparently laid off the entire staff of WGGM and WZEZ. I worked for Hoffman for nine years (1988-97), so this surprised me, but the second sentence floored me.
Apparently also exiting is long-time VP/GM Paul Scott. He was my boss there, and had been a fixture there for over 25 years.
The only conjecture I have as to why this has all happened is that Hoffman has a buyer and is getting out of radio. Back in the 80s and 90s, Hoffman owned WDYL here in town as well as WGGM, plus stations in Baton Rouge and near Atlanta and almost acquired one in Norfolk.
As the 90s progressed, the company shrunk, selling off the Georgia, then the Louisiana station, before selling WDYL in 1999. WZEZ was a new sign-on in 2001, a station won via FCC auction. Its signal has never been good enough to attract a large Richmond audience, and thus, firm placement in ad buys unfortunately.
My prayers are with my friends in Chester. This was not the way I wanted to see 2009 begin.
And we haven't even touched the 900-pound gorilla in the radio room known as Clear Channel. All CC GMs are headed to Texas for a "budget meeting" this week, and I am expecting to start reading about tons and tons of "layoffs due to budget cuts" at about anytime, as the new privately owned CC gets ready to swallow tough, and very high, debt payments.
Don't be surprised when, one day, one person will be the program director for every Clear Channel-owned station in America that shares the same format; say, country, for example. Rather than having a person in-house in each city programming the station to fit the taste, culture and styles unique to that city, one human will cookie-cutter the country format from some "format lab" and they'll magically determine what country listeners want to hear in Birmingham, Boise, Bismarck, Boston, and Baton Rouge, and pipe it nationwide.
Scary, isn't it? Radio's BIGGEST advantage is being sacrificed at the altar of high debt payments. LOCALISM. Why pay the money to have locals when one guy or lady can decide what songs to air on your favorite station from the CC corporate offices in San Antonio, and thus, cause 75 program directors across the nation to lose their jobs? That'll save some money!
At the costly expense of radio continuing to lose touch with its listeners.
BEFORE television, the "network" model (CBS, NBC, et al) was the way of radio. You listened to your favorite network shows on your favorite station, and they offered local programming when the network wasn't on (sound familiar??).
In the case of the behemoth companies like Clear Channel, this is where they're going (Ryan Seacrest, come on down!), and it's not just them.
Radio's best hope? That the big companies, in order to survive, have to sell lots of stations and a new generation of owners that understand RADIO will be able to independently own, or build companies that will re-introduce localism to radio.
We'll see what happens, but I'm not looking forward to reading the radio web publications for the next few weeks.
---------------
I'll save the vehicle story for another post. Suffice it to say, the Withams never get the chance to sit down, decide when they'd like to buy a "new to them" car (we don't buy new cars anymore), then start shopping, dickering, etc.
We always have a car self-destruct, forcing upon us a car buying experience within 24 hours or so. Such was the case in North Carolina during our New Years getaway.
We left for Carolina in a Ford, and returned in a Hyundai.
Even though I hate the car payment, the preceding sentence does promote the fact that we've upgraded. :)
Hoffman Communications has apparently laid off the entire staff of WGGM and WZEZ. I worked for Hoffman for nine years (1988-97), so this surprised me, but the second sentence floored me.
Apparently also exiting is long-time VP/GM Paul Scott. He was my boss there, and had been a fixture there for over 25 years.
The only conjecture I have as to why this has all happened is that Hoffman has a buyer and is getting out of radio. Back in the 80s and 90s, Hoffman owned WDYL here in town as well as WGGM, plus stations in Baton Rouge and near Atlanta and almost acquired one in Norfolk.
As the 90s progressed, the company shrunk, selling off the Georgia, then the Louisiana station, before selling WDYL in 1999. WZEZ was a new sign-on in 2001, a station won via FCC auction. Its signal has never been good enough to attract a large Richmond audience, and thus, firm placement in ad buys unfortunately.
My prayers are with my friends in Chester. This was not the way I wanted to see 2009 begin.
And we haven't even touched the 900-pound gorilla in the radio room known as Clear Channel. All CC GMs are headed to Texas for a "budget meeting" this week, and I am expecting to start reading about tons and tons of "layoffs due to budget cuts" at about anytime, as the new privately owned CC gets ready to swallow tough, and very high, debt payments.
Don't be surprised when, one day, one person will be the program director for every Clear Channel-owned station in America that shares the same format; say, country, for example. Rather than having a person in-house in each city programming the station to fit the taste, culture and styles unique to that city, one human will cookie-cutter the country format from some "format lab" and they'll magically determine what country listeners want to hear in Birmingham, Boise, Bismarck, Boston, and Baton Rouge, and pipe it nationwide.
Scary, isn't it? Radio's BIGGEST advantage is being sacrificed at the altar of high debt payments. LOCALISM. Why pay the money to have locals when one guy or lady can decide what songs to air on your favorite station from the CC corporate offices in San Antonio, and thus, cause 75 program directors across the nation to lose their jobs? That'll save some money!
At the costly expense of radio continuing to lose touch with its listeners.
BEFORE television, the "network" model (CBS, NBC, et al) was the way of radio. You listened to your favorite network shows on your favorite station, and they offered local programming when the network wasn't on (sound familiar??).
In the case of the behemoth companies like Clear Channel, this is where they're going (Ryan Seacrest, come on down!), and it's not just them.
Radio's best hope? That the big companies, in order to survive, have to sell lots of stations and a new generation of owners that understand RADIO will be able to independently own, or build companies that will re-introduce localism to radio.
We'll see what happens, but I'm not looking forward to reading the radio web publications for the next few weeks.
---------------
I'll save the vehicle story for another post. Suffice it to say, the Withams never get the chance to sit down, decide when they'd like to buy a "new to them" car (we don't buy new cars anymore), then start shopping, dickering, etc.
We always have a car self-destruct, forcing upon us a car buying experience within 24 hours or so. Such was the case in North Carolina during our New Years getaway.
We left for Carolina in a Ford, and returned in a Hyundai.
Even though I hate the car payment, the preceding sentence does promote the fact that we've upgraded. :)
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
2008: it's been a year alright.....
So, my original plans were to blog once a day in 2008. 366 posts minimum.
Ah, didn't work out so well.
It's kinda like when you start to do to many little projects around the house; six months later, none are completed, but everything looks like a "work in progress" instead.
Well, that's me. I need to update my PH football blog to wrap up 2008 and prep it for 2009, finally really get REW Sports Online up and going (as it looks like I'll be doing all tape delay broadcasts this season), return to MySpace long enough to say hi to my friends there who think I'm dead, and, keep rolling on Facebook (my one success right now).....
.....because if you look at this blog lately, you'd think I was simply a fed up, bitter Republican. I'm really none of the three, but we're not here for that.
When little ol' Rob looks back at 2008, I'll remember the following:
CURRENT EVENTS:
---Barack Obama (congrats to the President-elect)
---Sarah Palin (see you in a couple of years....)
---The loss of ALOT of our 401K.....you know the feeling.....
---SUPER BOWL CHAMPION NEW YORK GIANTS!!!!
---The loss of even MORE of our 401K, et al.....
---2,923 Democratic debates......
---The REAL bear of Russia beginning to rise from its self-imposed Communistic slumber of the past 15 years or so.....
---How nasty the air was in China during the Olympics....
---How many Christians got bullied in China during the Olympics....
---The horror of Mumbai on Thanksgiving Eve and Day.....
---The Puerto Rico primary (c'mon; did you know they had one? I didn't!)
---The Hillary Clinton pantsuits
---The Barack Obama lefty jumper
---John McCain
---Joe The Plumber
---Facebook and Twitter......
---The end of Fannie Freddie Bear Mac Morgan Stearns almost AIG Mac
---Car executives who come to Washington in.....not cars.....private planes.
---Superdelegates, delegates, half-delegates....where were the diet delegates?
---Memphis won the NCA.....oh, that's right, they let Kansas back into that one, didn't they?
---The Phillies beat the Rays for the World Series title and the celebration goes into a three-day rain delay when water leaks into the Phillies' clubhouse.
---The youthful Penguins were flying toward the Stanley Cup....until the old guys from Detroit taught them a thing or two.
AROUND HERE?
---The end of the Wilder Administration
---The ongoing struggle of the Times-Dispatch to survive the media world changes
---The arrival of "radio layoffs" to local TV....
---The buildup of Short Pump is almost maxed out....for the fifth time....and then they'll find more land somewhere....
---The end of the Richmond Braves
---Goodbye to A&N, Shevel's, and we're warming up the fat lady for Circuit City, unfortunately...
---2008 National Football Champions--THE RICHMOND SPIDERS!!!!
2008 FOR THE WITHAMS:
---Goodbye elementary school! Rachel turns 11, ends fifth grade
---Hello middle school! Rachel starts sixth grade, keeps growing like a tree
---Back to school! Two years at Hermitage down, two to go for Mr. Witham, who can't wait for NEXT New Year's Eve! :)
---Mom continues her success with her Lapband, in the best shape of her life, and still helping people with their money at Virginia Credit Union
---Two wrestling events at the Coliseum, with Rachel's dream of touching Jeff Hardy's hand coming true!
---Robbie's second choral trip, this time to Chicago, complete with a game at Wrigley Field!
---Goodbye to our good ol' large van
and....the event of the year for the Withams, BY FAR:
The Trip to New York City!!!
---first time the four of us flew together since 1997
---Mom, Robbie, and Rachel's first trip ever to NYC; Dad's first in 22 years
---our first time in a NYC taxi!
---LOTS AND LOTS of walking in and around Times Square
---BROADWAY! Mary Poppins and Spamalot!
---The world-famous NYC bus tour! Nighttime in Brooklyn, the skyline from across the river, and a funny trip through lower Manhattan and the East Side with a GREAT hometown tour guide (complete with the accent).
---The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
---Rockefeller Center and Observation Deck
AND the two biggest events:
2) Dad's 28 year dream to see David Letterman live comes true!
1) The Withams' first trip to Ground Zero. It revolutionizes the way you think about, not just 9/11, but everything.
Rob? Me?
---dealing with unemployment
---dealing with interviewing
---becoming a first-time ever substitute teacher! I thoroughly enjoyed my work at Hanover schools, especially my adopted "home" school of Pole Green Elementary. I met so many wonderful teachers, made friends, and was moved by lots and lots of incredible boys and girls.
---my short time at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, a WONDERFUL group of people that I would recommend to everyone for employment, networking, and friendship! KD, Tad, Blair, and about 15 other wonderful people.
---my work at Robinson Radio; christening a new position with a relatively new company, reconnecting with some radio friends, making new ones around the country, and much, much more.
---sleep apnea
---lack of sleep
---lots of time in bed
BUT.....
---the demise of my depression from 2002 on (not far left until it's GONE!)
---meeting new friends at work and chat friends online
---reconnecting with old friends (thank you, Facebook!!)
---another GREAT season of Patrick Henry football, even though they didn't make the playoffs.
----------------------------------------
2009? Well.....
---I'm learning more answers (FINALLY) in my ongoing physical battles, so I hope there is MAJOR progress (FINALLY) in 2009, so I don't spend days in bed out of complete inability to operate.
---Helping my employer continue to grow into a major player in our industry in the years to come.
---Watching my son off to another choral trip and wrap up his junior and begin his SENIOR year of high school!
---Working on the beginnings of REW Sports Online
---Hopefully watching the Giants repeat as Super Bowl Champs!!!
Who knows what else may come? Well, we will. About 365 days from now. And I would REALLY like to ring in 2010 in Times Square.
You never know....... :)
Ah, didn't work out so well.
It's kinda like when you start to do to many little projects around the house; six months later, none are completed, but everything looks like a "work in progress" instead.
Well, that's me. I need to update my PH football blog to wrap up 2008 and prep it for 2009, finally really get REW Sports Online up and going (as it looks like I'll be doing all tape delay broadcasts this season), return to MySpace long enough to say hi to my friends there who think I'm dead, and, keep rolling on Facebook (my one success right now).....
.....because if you look at this blog lately, you'd think I was simply a fed up, bitter Republican. I'm really none of the three, but we're not here for that.
When little ol' Rob looks back at 2008, I'll remember the following:
CURRENT EVENTS:
---Barack Obama (congrats to the President-elect)
---Sarah Palin (see you in a couple of years....)
---The loss of ALOT of our 401K.....you know the feeling.....
---SUPER BOWL CHAMPION NEW YORK GIANTS!!!!
---The loss of even MORE of our 401K, et al.....
---2,923 Democratic debates......
---The REAL bear of Russia beginning to rise from its self-imposed Communistic slumber of the past 15 years or so.....
---How nasty the air was in China during the Olympics....
---How many Christians got bullied in China during the Olympics....
---The horror of Mumbai on Thanksgiving Eve and Day.....
---The Puerto Rico primary (c'mon; did you know they had one? I didn't!)
---The Hillary Clinton pantsuits
---The Barack Obama lefty jumper
---John McCain
---Joe The Plumber
---Facebook and Twitter......
---The end of Fannie Freddie Bear Mac Morgan Stearns almost AIG Mac
---Car executives who come to Washington in.....not cars.....private planes.
---Superdelegates, delegates, half-delegates....where were the diet delegates?
---Memphis won the NCA.....oh, that's right, they let Kansas back into that one, didn't they?
---The Phillies beat the Rays for the World Series title and the celebration goes into a three-day rain delay when water leaks into the Phillies' clubhouse.
---The youthful Penguins were flying toward the Stanley Cup....until the old guys from Detroit taught them a thing or two.
AROUND HERE?
---The end of the Wilder Administration
---The ongoing struggle of the Times-Dispatch to survive the media world changes
---The arrival of "radio layoffs" to local TV....
---The buildup of Short Pump is almost maxed out....for the fifth time....and then they'll find more land somewhere....
---The end of the Richmond Braves
---Goodbye to A&N, Shevel's, and we're warming up the fat lady for Circuit City, unfortunately...
---2008 National Football Champions--THE RICHMOND SPIDERS!!!!
2008 FOR THE WITHAMS:
---Goodbye elementary school! Rachel turns 11, ends fifth grade
---Hello middle school! Rachel starts sixth grade, keeps growing like a tree
---Back to school! Two years at Hermitage down, two to go for Mr. Witham, who can't wait for NEXT New Year's Eve! :)
---Mom continues her success with her Lapband, in the best shape of her life, and still helping people with their money at Virginia Credit Union
---Two wrestling events at the Coliseum, with Rachel's dream of touching Jeff Hardy's hand coming true!
---Robbie's second choral trip, this time to Chicago, complete with a game at Wrigley Field!
---Goodbye to our good ol' large van
and....the event of the year for the Withams, BY FAR:
The Trip to New York City!!!
---first time the four of us flew together since 1997
---Mom, Robbie, and Rachel's first trip ever to NYC; Dad's first in 22 years
---our first time in a NYC taxi!
---LOTS AND LOTS of walking in and around Times Square
---BROADWAY! Mary Poppins and Spamalot!
---The world-famous NYC bus tour! Nighttime in Brooklyn, the skyline from across the river, and a funny trip through lower Manhattan and the East Side with a GREAT hometown tour guide (complete with the accent).
---The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
---Rockefeller Center and Observation Deck
AND the two biggest events:
2) Dad's 28 year dream to see David Letterman live comes true!
1) The Withams' first trip to Ground Zero. It revolutionizes the way you think about, not just 9/11, but everything.
Rob? Me?
---dealing with unemployment
---dealing with interviewing
---becoming a first-time ever substitute teacher! I thoroughly enjoyed my work at Hanover schools, especially my adopted "home" school of Pole Green Elementary. I met so many wonderful teachers, made friends, and was moved by lots and lots of incredible boys and girls.
---my short time at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, a WONDERFUL group of people that I would recommend to everyone for employment, networking, and friendship! KD, Tad, Blair, and about 15 other wonderful people.
---my work at Robinson Radio; christening a new position with a relatively new company, reconnecting with some radio friends, making new ones around the country, and much, much more.
---sleep apnea
---lack of sleep
---lots of time in bed
BUT.....
---the demise of my depression from 2002 on (not far left until it's GONE!)
---meeting new friends at work and chat friends online
---reconnecting with old friends (thank you, Facebook!!)
---another GREAT season of Patrick Henry football, even though they didn't make the playoffs.
----------------------------------------
2009? Well.....
---I'm learning more answers (FINALLY) in my ongoing physical battles, so I hope there is MAJOR progress (FINALLY) in 2009, so I don't spend days in bed out of complete inability to operate.
---Helping my employer continue to grow into a major player in our industry in the years to come.
---Watching my son off to another choral trip and wrap up his junior and begin his SENIOR year of high school!
---Working on the beginnings of REW Sports Online
---Hopefully watching the Giants repeat as Super Bowl Champs!!!
Who knows what else may come? Well, we will. About 365 days from now. And I would REALLY like to ring in 2010 in Times Square.
You never know....... :)
Thursday, December 11, 2008
KB Toys---RIP
This hurts for me personally because KB Toys was based in a place near and dear to my heart, Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
I'm sorry to see this happen.
I'm sorry to see this happen.
GLOBAL WARMING INVADES BEAUMONT, TEXAS!
The snow is here, for a short time
By AMY MOORE (Beaumont, Texas "Enterprise")
December, 11, 2008
From half an inch of snow in Jasper to three inches in west Beaumont, Southeast Texans woke up to a white Thursday.
But with the sun and the temperatures rising, Lance Escude with the National Weather Service said the snow won't stick around much longer.
"The temperatures at the airport are at 34, but I suspect with the sun breaking through the clouds, the temperatures will warm up to get the ice off the ground," the meteorologist said.
Estimates of snowfall at 7:30 a.m. were two inches at the Southeast Texas Regional Airport, Beaumont and Groves, and one inch in Nederland, Port Neches and Orange, Escude said.
This is the earliest measurable snowfall at the airport since the late 1800s, Escude said. It is also an all time record of snowfall for the area for the month of December.
The last significant snowfall in the area was Dec. 22, 1989 when just 7/10 of an inch fell.
Despite the record breaking snowfall amounts, Escude said the snow will be melting very soon.
"It will melt in the next hour or two," he said.
And don't think that more will come. Escude said the forecast doesn't call for precipitation again until Sunday.
By AMY MOORE (Beaumont, Texas "Enterprise")
December, 11, 2008
From half an inch of snow in Jasper to three inches in west Beaumont, Southeast Texans woke up to a white Thursday.
But with the sun and the temperatures rising, Lance Escude with the National Weather Service said the snow won't stick around much longer.
"The temperatures at the airport are at 34, but I suspect with the sun breaking through the clouds, the temperatures will warm up to get the ice off the ground," the meteorologist said.
Estimates of snowfall at 7:30 a.m. were two inches at the Southeast Texas Regional Airport, Beaumont and Groves, and one inch in Nederland, Port Neches and Orange, Escude said.
This is the earliest measurable snowfall at the airport since the late 1800s, Escude said. It is also an all time record of snowfall for the area for the month of December.
The last significant snowfall in the area was Dec. 22, 1989 when just 7/10 of an inch fell.
Despite the record breaking snowfall amounts, Escude said the snow will be melting very soon.
"It will melt in the next hour or two," he said.
And don't think that more will come. Escude said the forecast doesn't call for precipitation again until Sunday.
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Michele's Curtain Call
One of my favorite blogs (and a fixture on my favorites list to the right for a long time) has been Michele Agnew.
Her blog has been a great place for fun, meeting people, and most importantly, getting to know and enjoy her.
As I discovered tonight, she has written her final post. Make sure you click on the title and read, but then take five minutes and skim through the archives. Her blog will be a great read for some time to come. I hope it stays available, at least for awhile.
Thank you, "Michele Agnew"! Until we meet again.....
Her blog has been a great place for fun, meeting people, and most importantly, getting to know and enjoy her.
As I discovered tonight, she has written her final post. Make sure you click on the title and read, but then take five minutes and skim through the archives. Her blog will be a great read for some time to come. I hope it stays available, at least for awhile.
Thank you, "Michele Agnew"! Until we meet again.....
Monday, December 01, 2008
Now, If Sarah Palin Had Ordered This Ring of Rhodium.....
.....Olby and the likes of the MSM would be peeing in their pants, trying to get on the air with SPECIAL BREAKING NEWS COVERAGE!!!!
You'd see these "headlines" on the bottom chryon:
"PALIN RING PURCHASE RINGS HOLLOW WITH ALASKANS LOSING THEIR JOBS"
"WHAT WOULD SARAH DO? IGNORE THE PLIGHT OF JOBLESS AND BUY A BIG RING"
"PALIN TO GIVE HUBBY CATALYTIC CONVERTER....FOR HIS FINGER!"
"GOP NEVER LEARNS---OUT OF TOUCH PALIN BUYS FIVE-FIGURE RING"
"SHOULDN'T A THANK YOU NOTE AND SOME MOOSE CHILI BE ENOUGH?"
"HEY SARAH! EVER HEARD OF ZALES?"
"PALIN PANDERS TO HER RICH STREAK, CUBIC ZIRCONIA LOBBY FURIOUS"
"A THIRTY THOUSAND DOLLAR RING? YOU BETCHA!"
Instead, the man formerly known as Senator Obama (how much DO Senators make anyway?) gets a pass and this will be a "feel-good" story.
He can give his wife anything he wants if he's got the $$$, but...as libs would say:
"What kind of message does this send our nation, at a time when people making $30K are losing their jobs, The President-Elect elects to spend as much on one gift?"
I guarantee you, that would be headline fodder had a GOP'er been the one purchasing.
FOOTNOTE: For those who read this and still think I'm just furious over an Obama Administration, I've never been furious. I have been (and am still) quizzical over who he really is.
This post goes out to the media wonks who can't get enough Sarah Palin, and would do the very thing described above.......
You'd see these "headlines" on the bottom chryon:
"PALIN RING PURCHASE RINGS HOLLOW WITH ALASKANS LOSING THEIR JOBS"
"WHAT WOULD SARAH DO? IGNORE THE PLIGHT OF JOBLESS AND BUY A BIG RING"
"PALIN TO GIVE HUBBY CATALYTIC CONVERTER....FOR HIS FINGER!"
"GOP NEVER LEARNS---OUT OF TOUCH PALIN BUYS FIVE-FIGURE RING"
"SHOULDN'T A THANK YOU NOTE AND SOME MOOSE CHILI BE ENOUGH?"
"HEY SARAH! EVER HEARD OF ZALES?"
"PALIN PANDERS TO HER RICH STREAK, CUBIC ZIRCONIA LOBBY FURIOUS"
"A THIRTY THOUSAND DOLLAR RING? YOU BETCHA!"
Instead, the man formerly known as Senator Obama (how much DO Senators make anyway?) gets a pass and this will be a "feel-good" story.
He can give his wife anything he wants if he's got the $$$, but...as libs would say:
"What kind of message does this send our nation, at a time when people making $30K are losing their jobs, The President-Elect elects to spend as much on one gift?"
I guarantee you, that would be headline fodder had a GOP'er been the one purchasing.
FOOTNOTE: For those who read this and still think I'm just furious over an Obama Administration, I've never been furious. I have been (and am still) quizzical over who he really is.
This post goes out to the media wonks who can't get enough Sarah Palin, and would do the very thing described above.......
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
What? I Won't Need Pliers, Industrial Scissors, and Band-Aids Christmas Morning??
Well, whaddya know? Some companies have realized that, we, as a people, are just not into clamshell packaging. :)
We Don't Want West Virginia
So, if this Russian's theory becomes reality, let it be known that we in the Mid-Atlantic have little in common with, say, West Virginia. Heck, it's been 145 years since Virginia let 'em go their own way, things have changed!
What "smaller" country would you live in?
What "smaller" country would you live in?
Friday, November 14, 2008
VMI!!! Keydets Baby!!!
The Chicago Tribune must not have thought VMI had a chance to beat Kentucky at Rupp Arena tonight on opening night of the 08-09 college basketball season. They didn't take the time to look up the correct spelling of "Keydets" (click title to read story and see typo).
Sorry, couldn't resist.......
VMI??!!!??? WHOO HOO!!!!
Sorry, couldn't resist.......
VMI??!!!??? WHOO HOO!!!!
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Friday, November 07, 2008
"Billy Graham Doesn't..." What??
Note to author: Who you pray "for" is more important than who you pray "with".
How dare you insinuate this about Billy Graham.
How dare you insinuate this about Billy Graham.
On the other hand.....
A great deal of thanks to "hek", who commented on my Olbermann post of last night, and offered excellent insight into Olbermann's reasons for using the term, "What do we do now?"
I share.....
Greetings, Mr. Witham: At the risk of engaging in some kind of non-productive firefight with someone I don't really know, I just want to correct your record about what Mr. Olbermann is speaking of. He is making reference to the 1972 political film, Michael Ritchie's "The Candidate," in which Robert Redford convincingly plays a vibrant young candidate whose ideals are twiated and turned on the punishing road to high office, across bridges built of compromises. Toward the end of the film, on the verge of his U.S. Senate election, and just ahead of a clamoring crowed, he hustles his campaign director into a hotel room and asks, "What do we do now?"The film is more about the absurdities of running for high public office, and how any candidate is a cipher into which the public project their expectations which he/she then cannot possibly meet. At least not for all of them, all of the time. As Olbermann uses the phrase, it is through a sense of facetiousness. It isn't that Obama doesn't know what he must do, but that considering all that confronts the nation at this juncture, what priorities will go to the top. No matter what happens, whether the trends existed before he showed up, Obama is going to get blamed. For everything. The weather, you name it. Such is the pathetic shambling wreck that is the practice of politics.I'm watching Rachel Maddow more these days, anyway. Carry on.
Now I better understand the background behind it. And I THANK this poster for their comment!
I do still find incredible irony in Olbermann's decision to use this question on multiple occasions, as he positioned Obama as the one to answer all of our questions and meet all our needs. It would seem plausible that he should be able to handle multiple issues at once. At this juncture in our nation's history, he's gonna have to.
FDR didn't want to fight a World War on two fronts, but had no choice.
But I can assure you one thing, Obama is not being blamed on this blog for anything happening prior to the night of November 4th, except for what can be tied to his Senate voting.
But.....now that he has a title other than Senator, he now is fair game. For example:
Wall Street always gets jittery when a Democrat is elected. And the Dow went down 900 points combined on Wednesday and Thursday. With the horrible unemployment report this morning, one would think the trend would continue.
The Dow went up about 250 points today. All I've heard in the media the past two days is how the Dow is tanking because of the economy. Sure it is. But there's another thing: The Democrat factor. No one spoke to that.
With the Dow rebounding on the same day as bad economic news arrives, one wonders now exactly how many of those 900 aforementioned points can be attributed to our economy, and how many are attributed to how people view our "economy yet to come" under an Obama Administration.
Now, let's see what he can do.
I share.....
Greetings, Mr. Witham: At the risk of engaging in some kind of non-productive firefight with someone I don't really know, I just want to correct your record about what Mr. Olbermann is speaking of. He is making reference to the 1972 political film, Michael Ritchie's "The Candidate," in which Robert Redford convincingly plays a vibrant young candidate whose ideals are twiated and turned on the punishing road to high office, across bridges built of compromises. Toward the end of the film, on the verge of his U.S. Senate election, and just ahead of a clamoring crowed, he hustles his campaign director into a hotel room and asks, "What do we do now?"The film is more about the absurdities of running for high public office, and how any candidate is a cipher into which the public project their expectations which he/she then cannot possibly meet. At least not for all of them, all of the time. As Olbermann uses the phrase, it is through a sense of facetiousness. It isn't that Obama doesn't know what he must do, but that considering all that confronts the nation at this juncture, what priorities will go to the top. No matter what happens, whether the trends existed before he showed up, Obama is going to get blamed. For everything. The weather, you name it. Such is the pathetic shambling wreck that is the practice of politics.I'm watching Rachel Maddow more these days, anyway. Carry on.
Now I better understand the background behind it. And I THANK this poster for their comment!
I do still find incredible irony in Olbermann's decision to use this question on multiple occasions, as he positioned Obama as the one to answer all of our questions and meet all our needs. It would seem plausible that he should be able to handle multiple issues at once. At this juncture in our nation's history, he's gonna have to.
FDR didn't want to fight a World War on two fronts, but had no choice.
But I can assure you one thing, Obama is not being blamed on this blog for anything happening prior to the night of November 4th, except for what can be tied to his Senate voting.
But.....now that he has a title other than Senator, he now is fair game. For example:
Wall Street always gets jittery when a Democrat is elected. And the Dow went down 900 points combined on Wednesday and Thursday. With the horrible unemployment report this morning, one would think the trend would continue.
The Dow went up about 250 points today. All I've heard in the media the past two days is how the Dow is tanking because of the economy. Sure it is. But there's another thing: The Democrat factor. No one spoke to that.
With the Dow rebounding on the same day as bad economic news arrives, one wonders now exactly how many of those 900 aforementioned points can be attributed to our economy, and how many are attributed to how people view our "economy yet to come" under an Obama Administration.
Now, let's see what he can do.
Again, to those who comment.......
Since I've received one reply to my "comment" post of yesterday, let me reiterate to simply explain what I ask anyone to do to explain a point or offer proof to show the point as truth. Doesn't have to be political. In fact, I might ask you to prove a point with which I am in agreement. Why? To make sure people are informed, and not walking around saying they want to vote for someone because he/she will bring "change"....but the voter has no clue how to explain what the change is. And if I'm offering an opinion and cannot back it up, then SHAME ON ME!!!!!
Here's my quote from yesterday's post:
Ask my kids; when you come to me attempting to prove your point of view correct and/or mine incorrect, have specifics and facts to prove them. Don't use terms that make you sound enlightened, when in fact, Katie Couric might have a field day with you on follow-up questions.
With this in mind, I receive this today:
I was the one who left the "there" comment. I'm sorry if I didn't write you a 20 page essay explaining each basic idea point by point. I was under the foolish assumption that you had payed attention to politics, or maybe had read a book, at some point in the last 6 years. Considering the way you parse my every word, I'd expect you to be a bit more literate. One thing I really don't understand is how Obama's plan to provide health insurance for citizens is so often described as OMG GOVERNMENT RUN SOCIALIZED HEALTHCARE!! 1nazis!Seriously, with nearly every response you act like the Democrats are going to throw you into a concentration camp.
Did I get any answers to the question I posed, which was done for the expressed and sole purpose of having the commenter explain and defend their positions and beliefs? Not one.
But, I did learn that I don't pay attention to politics, don't read books, I'm not very literate (certainly less so than he/she), and finally, the obligatory accusation of using inflammatory terms, this time related to the health care issue, rather than answer my questions and helping me understand how, if my health care is going to be the same as Congress', it's going to still be part of the free market. Congress' insurance is government-paid. I'll get the same. Therefore (a little postulate/theorem throwback to 9th grade Geometry), I get government-paid insurance, correct? And nothing paid for by the Federal Government comes without, well, some rules and regs.
Then, as we would do in geometry, we would go off on the search to prove this either right or wrong. I didn't get any answers as to whether my concern is justified or not.
But I was told, in so many terms, that I'm spreading the words of fear.
----------------------------------------------
So, so glad I don't have Alex Trebek's job. All day I would say, "The answer is......", and I'm concerned that all I'd hear in response would be crickets........
Here's my quote from yesterday's post:
Ask my kids; when you come to me attempting to prove your point of view correct and/or mine incorrect, have specifics and facts to prove them. Don't use terms that make you sound enlightened, when in fact, Katie Couric might have a field day with you on follow-up questions.
With this in mind, I receive this today:
I was the one who left the "there" comment. I'm sorry if I didn't write you a 20 page essay explaining each basic idea point by point. I was under the foolish assumption that you had payed attention to politics, or maybe had read a book, at some point in the last 6 years. Considering the way you parse my every word, I'd expect you to be a bit more literate. One thing I really don't understand is how Obama's plan to provide health insurance for citizens is so often described as OMG GOVERNMENT RUN SOCIALIZED HEALTHCARE!! 1nazis!Seriously, with nearly every response you act like the Democrats are going to throw you into a concentration camp.
Did I get any answers to the question I posed, which was done for the expressed and sole purpose of having the commenter explain and defend their positions and beliefs? Not one.
But, I did learn that I don't pay attention to politics, don't read books, I'm not very literate (certainly less so than he/she), and finally, the obligatory accusation of using inflammatory terms, this time related to the health care issue, rather than answer my questions and helping me understand how, if my health care is going to be the same as Congress', it's going to still be part of the free market. Congress' insurance is government-paid. I'll get the same. Therefore (a little postulate/theorem throwback to 9th grade Geometry), I get government-paid insurance, correct? And nothing paid for by the Federal Government comes without, well, some rules and regs.
Then, as we would do in geometry, we would go off on the search to prove this either right or wrong. I didn't get any answers as to whether my concern is justified or not.
But I was told, in so many terms, that I'm spreading the words of fear.
----------------------------------------------
So, so glad I don't have Alex Trebek's job. All day I would say, "The answer is......", and I'm concerned that all I'd hear in response would be crickets........
Oh, it's MANDATED change.......
There's something just not quite right about the concept of "mandated volunteerism".
After reading this post, please, click HERE and enjoy the future of volunteering in "Obama-Land".
At first, the way the paragraph is written, it reads that ALL Americans would have to serve either 50 hours in middle or high school, or 100 hours at a college. I later learned that this program is simply for the students, thanks to one of those evil blogs.
Note to self: Send the Obama transition team an English teacher with excellent grammar skills.
But, BEFORE you click the link (which is to HIS OWN site, BTW, not some hack right-wing blog....), PLEASE read how this "program" was presented to the American people during the campaign.
From BarackObama.com:
Obama and Biden will set a goal that all middle and high school students do 50 hours of community service a year, and will establish a new tax credit that is worth $4,000 a year in exchange for 100 hours of public service a year.
--------------------------
Now, go click on the link to the President-Elect's site and see how "set a goal" was code-speak for mandatory volunteerism. And my post here focuses on the middle and high school student portion (which offers no dangled carrot of a tax credit, BTW)...
Obama wants to dictate to my two kids (and yours, too) HOW and WHEN to volunteer in their community! MINORS! I know there's gotta be something in the First Amendment that would, well, expose this for what it really is......
After reading this post, please, click HERE and enjoy the future of volunteering in "Obama-Land".
At first, the way the paragraph is written, it reads that ALL Americans would have to serve either 50 hours in middle or high school, or 100 hours at a college. I later learned that this program is simply for the students, thanks to one of those evil blogs.
Note to self: Send the Obama transition team an English teacher with excellent grammar skills.
But, BEFORE you click the link (which is to HIS OWN site, BTW, not some hack right-wing blog....), PLEASE read how this "program" was presented to the American people during the campaign.
From BarackObama.com:
Obama and Biden will set a goal that all middle and high school students do 50 hours of community service a year, and will establish a new tax credit that is worth $4,000 a year in exchange for 100 hours of public service a year.
--------------------------
Now, go click on the link to the President-Elect's site and see how "set a goal" was code-speak for mandatory volunteerism. And my post here focuses on the middle and high school student portion (which offers no dangled carrot of a tax credit, BTW)...
Obama wants to dictate to my two kids (and yours, too) HOW and WHEN to volunteer in their community! MINORS! I know there's gotta be something in the First Amendment that would, well, expose this for what it really is......
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Teacher Lovingly Explains McCain Platform.....NOT!!!
Click on the blog post title and watch a North Carolina school teacher scare one of her students to death over the fact the girl supports John McCain.
Her father is in the military. And this "educator" thinks her Dad will live well into his 120's, I guess.
This is cruel, and the teacher? I post, you decide.
Her father is in the military. And this "educator" thinks her Dad will live well into his 120's, I guess.
This is cruel, and the teacher? I post, you decide.
Olbermann equals "Obama-bot"
As the kids type today......"OMG!!!!"
This is TOO funny.......
Keith Olbermann is now using this question to lead his sheep....ah viewers into that new spiritual realm of "change" that he and so many of his friends desperately yearned for during the Presidential campaign.........
"What do we do now?"
Keith, you, ah, don't know? Two quick points to help you, Mr. Sheepherder:
1) There have been dozens of prior transitional periods between outgoing and incoming Presidents where you can learn the basics of what needs to be done and how our nation's wonderfully seamless transitional tradition has developed and proven how incredible this nation truly is.
2) Ah, you voted for Obama (don't tell me otherwise); you've been singing his praises, begging the world to vote him in as savior, while personally attempting to tear apart people who get in your way. Of ALL people I see on TV.........YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR MAN, YOUR CANDIDATE, YOUR PRESIDENT-ELECT IS GOING TO DO???????
Well, I guess that's what happens when America elects a President that offers a one-word mantra, and not a heckuva lot else.
This reminds me of Robert DeNiro's strangest movie role ever......."Fearless Leader" in "Rocky and Bullwinkle".
It's a wonder Olbermann didn't end up sounding like the minions in that movie once RBTV had put all Americans into the "trance with a directive".....
"We will vote for Fearless Leader....."
This is TOO funny.......
Keith Olbermann is now using this question to lead his sheep....ah viewers into that new spiritual realm of "change" that he and so many of his friends desperately yearned for during the Presidential campaign.........
"What do we do now?"
Keith, you, ah, don't know? Two quick points to help you, Mr. Sheepherder:
1) There have been dozens of prior transitional periods between outgoing and incoming Presidents where you can learn the basics of what needs to be done and how our nation's wonderfully seamless transitional tradition has developed and proven how incredible this nation truly is.
2) Ah, you voted for Obama (don't tell me otherwise); you've been singing his praises, begging the world to vote him in as savior, while personally attempting to tear apart people who get in your way. Of ALL people I see on TV.........YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR MAN, YOUR CANDIDATE, YOUR PRESIDENT-ELECT IS GOING TO DO???????
Well, I guess that's what happens when America elects a President that offers a one-word mantra, and not a heckuva lot else.
This reminds me of Robert DeNiro's strangest movie role ever......."Fearless Leader" in "Rocky and Bullwinkle".
It's a wonder Olbermann didn't end up sounding like the minions in that movie once RBTV had put all Americans into the "trance with a directive".....
"We will vote for Fearless Leader....."
The Left has not "Left" those talking points.....
WOW! They know me; they really know me!
I've gotten comments from those on the other end of the political spectrum who do two things:
1) Criticize my postings, each of which were NEWS reports or INTERVIEWS with a comment or two from myself.
2) Get in their "left" jab. Look, just because their guy is heading to the White House, did you actually think they'd stop talking?
I only quote some of them to prove that, well, they prove my point without my help.
ITEM: Commenting on my reposting a news article on Obama workers not getting paid.....
Well it's not like his campaign doesn't have the money. And it's not like he didn't run a rock solid campaign. So by all means, let's make a big deal out of some stupid payroll mistake.
With all due respect, the headline from that story was not a payroll mistake, it was how some Obama workers were already demanding what was theirs and got mad at their guy's payroll team. The final guy quoted doesn't even expect to ever see all the money due him. The PEOPLE and their subsequent reactions were the story here, folks. Dang, the polls hadn't been closed 24 hours and they were already up in arms.
I've worked in independent contractor, et al situations on many, many occasions over the years, and let me tell you, you don't go to your "payer" and DEMAND payment in 18 hours. Makes me wonder how many of these people truly understand the economic system. Getting paid twice a month, or once a month.......
Were they told to come that day and get their money? Yep, so shame on the campaign for not being ready. The people's reactions take center stage here, though, which is why I closed with my comment on being anxious to see their response when they realize Obama won't be paying every bill they have (Peggy, calling Peggy in Florida??)
ITEM: One comment on my Brokaw/Rose post asked for attribution on my "claim".
I should have been a bit clearer, as I did have issues posting the You Tube Video. Click on the blog post title, and Tom and Charlie will answer your questions themselves.
ITEM: My favorite comment, coming on the post where some loon celebrated in D.C. Tuesday night with the fashionable Soviet flag....complete with a pole to use to wave it! But this comment is to my question which will stay at the top of my blog for the foreseeable future:
WHERE IS THERE?
Here's the comment in its entirety..........
"There" is a few places. There is back where we were before Bush messed everything up and left America on the brink.There is being in a position to truly show that we value life by allowing people to seek medical care without fear of financial ruin. There is where we can all be proud of America because we're not doing Godless things like torture, and carrying out needless wars just so billionaires can profit from the destruction and nation-building.And we'll get "there", with or without your help.
------------------------------------
BTW, my comments below are in the smaller font, so people don't think I'm belittling the poster.
"...back where we were before Bush messed everything up....."
Messed up "what"? What did we "have" prior to that? Define "everything".
"...left America on the brink."
The "brink" of "what"? Nuclear war? Economic collapse that can never be fixed? Change?
"....we value life by allowing people to seek medical care without fear of financial ruin."
Allowing? I agree there are people don't have a way to get necessary care; absolutely true. But by letting the government take over health care, how does that justify the use of the word "allowing"? When I get "there", am I gonna need the government's permission to get health care? I thought Obama believed it was a right......
"....where we can all be proud of America because we're not doing Godless things like torture, and carrying out needless wars just so billionaires can profit from the destruction and nation-building."
What's your definition of torture? What do you know about international law and the Geneva Convention regarding this? I wonder if the hundreds of innocent Americans who slowly burned to death in the World Trade Center towers on 9/11 considered that a tortuous way to die? Do you know the difference between a "defendant" and a "war criminal"?? If so, give me some explanation.
Name three billionaires who have profited. Some may have! Name them, prove it, and let's go after them! But.....to accentuate your line of thinking, if this were the end game, with many more countries worldwide without democracy, why have we not invaded at least two or three more nations, like in areas much easier to invade (you know, countries without legitimate military protection) so we could rake in a few more billion in the name of democracy?
"And we'll get there, with or without your help."
Now THERE is a clue as to what we'll find at "there". In other words, "we will get it the way we want it, whether you help or not", which also concludes, if I or others get "in the way", gee.....what becomes of us? Simply a dissenting point of view......do I pay a penalty for having one in this place called "there"?
I thought the days of "partisan bickering" and "divisive politics" were over. Well, this comment, plus "Go F*** Themselves" Emanuel prove that those days are not going away.
----------------------
So, friends, let's review some facts of the last 48 hours:
1) Some Obama supporters already think they won't get what Obama owes them.
2) Tom Brokaw and Charlie Rose were dumb enough to actually admit before the election that they don't "know" Barack Obama on many fronts. You know, when it comes to those who influenced him, his views on CHINA, etc.......(psst....guys, it's your JOB to find these things out).
3) Obama's Chief of Staff is partisan and "Chicago Machine politics" head-to-toe, and we all know how the Chicago Machine respects "bipartisanship".....
4) George W. Bush will be blamed for everything in everyone's lives for the next 25 years. Including the paper cut some unknown Obama supporter in Colorado will get in 2011 opening a ream of paper.
5) Oh, and America is on the brink.
The "brink" of what? I don't know. My commenter wouldn't get specific.
He/she didn't get specific about alot of things. Which is exactly what we "heard" from Barack Obama. Change. Change. But NO clue as to what kind or how it's done.
------------------------------
Ask my kids; when you come to me attempting to prove your point of view correct and/or mine incorrect, have specifics and facts to prove them. Don't use terms that make you sound enlightened, when in fact, Katie Couric might have a field day with you on follow-up questions.
If I don't know something, I'll tell you. If I'm wrong, I'll tell you. But note, much of what you'll see posted here politically, especially between now and January 20th, will be NEWS. All of the above comments were posted based on NEWS items.....and a very simple question.
EVERY American, no matter who they voted for, should now assume the role of the lovable but tired kid in the back seat (or the middle seat of the SUV or minivan).....and just ask:
"Are we 'there' yet?"
I've gotten comments from those on the other end of the political spectrum who do two things:
1) Criticize my postings, each of which were NEWS reports or INTERVIEWS with a comment or two from myself.
2) Get in their "left" jab. Look, just because their guy is heading to the White House, did you actually think they'd stop talking?
I only quote some of them to prove that, well, they prove my point without my help.
ITEM: Commenting on my reposting a news article on Obama workers not getting paid.....
Well it's not like his campaign doesn't have the money. And it's not like he didn't run a rock solid campaign. So by all means, let's make a big deal out of some stupid payroll mistake.
With all due respect, the headline from that story was not a payroll mistake, it was how some Obama workers were already demanding what was theirs and got mad at their guy's payroll team. The final guy quoted doesn't even expect to ever see all the money due him. The PEOPLE and their subsequent reactions were the story here, folks. Dang, the polls hadn't been closed 24 hours and they were already up in arms.
I've worked in independent contractor, et al situations on many, many occasions over the years, and let me tell you, you don't go to your "payer" and DEMAND payment in 18 hours. Makes me wonder how many of these people truly understand the economic system. Getting paid twice a month, or once a month.......
Were they told to come that day and get their money? Yep, so shame on the campaign for not being ready. The people's reactions take center stage here, though, which is why I closed with my comment on being anxious to see their response when they realize Obama won't be paying every bill they have (Peggy, calling Peggy in Florida??)
ITEM: One comment on my Brokaw/Rose post asked for attribution on my "claim".
I should have been a bit clearer, as I did have issues posting the You Tube Video. Click on the blog post title, and Tom and Charlie will answer your questions themselves.
ITEM: My favorite comment, coming on the post where some loon celebrated in D.C. Tuesday night with the fashionable Soviet flag....complete with a pole to use to wave it! But this comment is to my question which will stay at the top of my blog for the foreseeable future:
WHERE IS THERE?
Here's the comment in its entirety..........
"There" is a few places. There is back where we were before Bush messed everything up and left America on the brink.There is being in a position to truly show that we value life by allowing people to seek medical care without fear of financial ruin. There is where we can all be proud of America because we're not doing Godless things like torture, and carrying out needless wars just so billionaires can profit from the destruction and nation-building.And we'll get "there", with or without your help.
------------------------------------
BTW, my comments below are in the smaller font, so people don't think I'm belittling the poster.
"...back where we were before Bush messed everything up....."
Messed up "what"? What did we "have" prior to that? Define "everything".
"...left America on the brink."
The "brink" of "what"? Nuclear war? Economic collapse that can never be fixed? Change?
"....we value life by allowing people to seek medical care without fear of financial ruin."
Allowing? I agree there are people don't have a way to get necessary care; absolutely true. But by letting the government take over health care, how does that justify the use of the word "allowing"? When I get "there", am I gonna need the government's permission to get health care? I thought Obama believed it was a right......
"....where we can all be proud of America because we're not doing Godless things like torture, and carrying out needless wars just so billionaires can profit from the destruction and nation-building."
What's your definition of torture? What do you know about international law and the Geneva Convention regarding this? I wonder if the hundreds of innocent Americans who slowly burned to death in the World Trade Center towers on 9/11 considered that a tortuous way to die? Do you know the difference between a "defendant" and a "war criminal"?? If so, give me some explanation.
Name three billionaires who have profited. Some may have! Name them, prove it, and let's go after them! But.....to accentuate your line of thinking, if this were the end game, with many more countries worldwide without democracy, why have we not invaded at least two or three more nations, like in areas much easier to invade (you know, countries without legitimate military protection) so we could rake in a few more billion in the name of democracy?
"And we'll get there, with or without your help."
Now THERE is a clue as to what we'll find at "there". In other words, "we will get it the way we want it, whether you help or not", which also concludes, if I or others get "in the way", gee.....what becomes of us? Simply a dissenting point of view......do I pay a penalty for having one in this place called "there"?
I thought the days of "partisan bickering" and "divisive politics" were over. Well, this comment, plus "Go F*** Themselves" Emanuel prove that those days are not going away.
----------------------
So, friends, let's review some facts of the last 48 hours:
1) Some Obama supporters already think they won't get what Obama owes them.
2) Tom Brokaw and Charlie Rose were dumb enough to actually admit before the election that they don't "know" Barack Obama on many fronts. You know, when it comes to those who influenced him, his views on CHINA, etc.......(psst....guys, it's your JOB to find these things out).
3) Obama's Chief of Staff is partisan and "Chicago Machine politics" head-to-toe, and we all know how the Chicago Machine respects "bipartisanship".....
4) George W. Bush will be blamed for everything in everyone's lives for the next 25 years. Including the paper cut some unknown Obama supporter in Colorado will get in 2011 opening a ream of paper.
5) Oh, and America is on the brink.
The "brink" of what? I don't know. My commenter wouldn't get specific.
He/she didn't get specific about alot of things. Which is exactly what we "heard" from Barack Obama. Change. Change. But NO clue as to what kind or how it's done.
------------------------------
Ask my kids; when you come to me attempting to prove your point of view correct and/or mine incorrect, have specifics and facts to prove them. Don't use terms that make you sound enlightened, when in fact, Katie Couric might have a field day with you on follow-up questions.
If I don't know something, I'll tell you. If I'm wrong, I'll tell you. But note, much of what you'll see posted here politically, especially between now and January 20th, will be NEWS. All of the above comments were posted based on NEWS items.....and a very simple question.
EVERY American, no matter who they voted for, should now assume the role of the lovable but tired kid in the back seat (or the middle seat of the SUV or minivan).....and just ask:
"Are we 'there' yet?"
Ut Oh.......
Ah, didn't take long for Team Obama to make some of their faithful unhappy. From Indianapolis yesterday....
Obama campaign workers angry over unpaid wages
Posted: Nov 5, 2008 3:38 PM EST
Updated: Nov 6, 2008 10:47 AM EST
Indianapolis - Lines were long and tempers flared Wednesday not to vote but to get paid for canvassing for Barack Obama. Several hundred people are still waiting to get their pay for last-minute campaigning. Police were called to the Obama campaign office on North Meridian Street downtown to control the crowd.
The line was long and the crowd was angry at times.
"I want my money today! It's my money. I want it right now!" yelled one former campaign worker.
A former spokesman for the Obama campaign said 375 people were hired as part of the Vote Corps program and said people signed up to work three-hour shifts at a time. Three hours of canvassing got workers a $30 pre-paid Visa card.
The workers showed up to get their cards Wednesday morning at 10:00 am.
"There was a note on the door saying 1:00 pm and then at 1:20 pm everybody was like why is nobody here. They just got here and they're trying to get it organized," said Heather Richards, a former campaign worker.
The large gathering of around 375 people prompted police to call in extra officers and set up temporary barricades. The barricades helped keep the crowd from spilling out onto Meridian Street. Police say the several hundred people in line were for the most part orderly.
"No arrests. Some of the people were upset at first because the line wasn't moving as fast as they thought it should. But we really haven't had any problems," said Major Darryl Pierce, Metro Police.
Eventually people did start getting paid, but some said they were missing hours and told to fill in paperwork making their claim and that eventually they would get a check in the mail.
"Still that's not right. I'm disappointed. I'm glad for the president, but I'm disappointed in this system," said Diane Jefferson, temporary campaign worker.
"It should have been $480. It's $230," said Imani Sankofa.
"They gave us $10 an hour. So we added it. I added up all the hours so it was supposed to be at least $120. All I get is $90," said Charles Martin.
"I worked nine hours a day for 4 days and got paid half of what I should have earned," said Randall Waldon.
Some people weren't satisfied with filling out a claim form for money they felt was still due to them.
"They say that they gonna call you or they going to mail it to you, but I don't know. We'll see what happens," said Antron Grose.
"Talking about they'll mail it to us. I ain't worried about that, man. They're not going to mail nothin'," said Martin.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wait until they find out they won't be getting lots of tax cuts, either.
Obama campaign workers angry over unpaid wages
Posted: Nov 5, 2008 3:38 PM EST
Updated: Nov 6, 2008 10:47 AM EST
Indianapolis - Lines were long and tempers flared Wednesday not to vote but to get paid for canvassing for Barack Obama. Several hundred people are still waiting to get their pay for last-minute campaigning. Police were called to the Obama campaign office on North Meridian Street downtown to control the crowd.
The line was long and the crowd was angry at times.
"I want my money today! It's my money. I want it right now!" yelled one former campaign worker.
A former spokesman for the Obama campaign said 375 people were hired as part of the Vote Corps program and said people signed up to work three-hour shifts at a time. Three hours of canvassing got workers a $30 pre-paid Visa card.
The workers showed up to get their cards Wednesday morning at 10:00 am.
"There was a note on the door saying 1:00 pm and then at 1:20 pm everybody was like why is nobody here. They just got here and they're trying to get it organized," said Heather Richards, a former campaign worker.
The large gathering of around 375 people prompted police to call in extra officers and set up temporary barricades. The barricades helped keep the crowd from spilling out onto Meridian Street. Police say the several hundred people in line were for the most part orderly.
"No arrests. Some of the people were upset at first because the line wasn't moving as fast as they thought it should. But we really haven't had any problems," said Major Darryl Pierce, Metro Police.
Eventually people did start getting paid, but some said they were missing hours and told to fill in paperwork making their claim and that eventually they would get a check in the mail.
"Still that's not right. I'm disappointed. I'm glad for the president, but I'm disappointed in this system," said Diane Jefferson, temporary campaign worker.
"It should have been $480. It's $230," said Imani Sankofa.
"They gave us $10 an hour. So we added it. I added up all the hours so it was supposed to be at least $120. All I get is $90," said Charles Martin.
"I worked nine hours a day for 4 days and got paid half of what I should have earned," said Randall Waldon.
Some people weren't satisfied with filling out a claim form for money they felt was still due to them.
"They say that they gonna call you or they going to mail it to you, but I don't know. We'll see what happens," said Antron Grose.
"Talking about they'll mail it to us. I ain't worried about that, man. They're not going to mail nothin'," said Martin.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wait until they find out they won't be getting lots of tax cuts, either.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
The end of the press.......more proof
Tom Brokaw and Charlie Rose don't know about Barack Obama.
No commentary necessary.
Well, except I'm sure they made everyone aware that Sarah Palin really couldn't see Russia from Alaska. You know, the important things.
No commentary necessary.
Well, except I'm sure they made everyone aware that Sarah Palin really couldn't see Russia from Alaska. You know, the important things.
Aren't We Still the Nation of the Stars and Stripes??
Apparently not to one Obama celebrant last night. Good Lord.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Election Night 2008----Live Blog
A rolling blog entry of thoughts, facts, and whatnots on this 11/4/08:
1) Jessica Yelin "via hologram" from Chicago into the CNN HQ in New York talking to Wolf Blitzer.
"Help me, Obi Wolf Kenobi, you're my only hope!!"
---------------------------------
2) PMSNBC gives us the word that McCain will win South Carolina. That's a "whew" for the GOP.
---------------------------------
3) Looking now at the huge stage in Grant Park, Chicago, where some 90 million people....ah, one million people are expected to celebrate with the.......winner? I think he will be.
---------------------------------
4) Here in Virginia, former Governor Mark Warner won (yawn) the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retiring John Warner (no relation) in a cakewalk over another former Governor Jim Gilmore.
I've never seen two Virginia politicians fall so quickly than Jim Gilmore and George Allen. Before Allen's stupid "macaca" moment, there were many that thought he could have become the next President-elect tonight. As for Gilmore? Happy retirement and don't worry, he'll get a job. He's an attorney.
--------------------------------
7:54pm ET
5) The BBC World News guy says South Carolina is the start of "the real Southern U.S.". Ah, buddy, there's this other place called North Carolina. Apparently you are placing way too much emphasis on the word "North".
Shouldn't BBC America be worried about telling us about Gordon Brown??
--------------------------------
6) 2008 brings a whole new meaning to "Wall-To-Wall Coverage". John King, the incumbent at CNN, versus Bill Hemmer at Fox, with Brit Hume saying if he tried to run the wall, he'd "set the place on fire"......
8PM ET:----------------
Well, here we go; this should change the night.......
Obama gets Dukakis-country
Obama gets Maryland
Obama gets Illinois
Obama gets DC
Obama gets Connecticut
Obama gets New Jersey
McCain gets Oklahoma
Obama gets Maine (must have gotten past that 2 to 1 vote total they've been showing for the past hour or so....)
It's now 77-28, Obama. McCain won't see the electoral lead again.
Now, about that U.S. Senate........
We know Warner gets the vacant one here in Va........
--Inhofe wins in Oklahoma
--Joe Biden wins in Delaware......
--Frank Lautenberg is still alive, and will be shipped back to DC......(he's 84; if McCain is too old, then explain THAT one!!!)
--Susan Collins, the Republican in name only, survives in Maine.......
805pm ET-------
McCain gets Tennessee, cutting the lead to 77-39. Sounds like a fantasy football score! The GOP sure hopes Philip Rivers and Kurt Warner can help cut into the lead.......
808pm ET-------
Mitch McConnell survives in Kentucky and will most likely become the senior Republican in Washington come January.....period.
809pm ET-------
Kay Hagan ends the Dole Political Era. Elizabeth Dole goes down........long live Chiquita! Wha???
North Carolina's Senate seat goes from GOP to Dem......
BULLETIN-------------
Pennsylvania is called for Obama.....on NBC and ABC only.
CNN, CBS and Fox News are holding off......
Meanwhile.......
Obama wins New Hampshire, and it's 81-39 (102 for Obama if you watch ABC or NBC.....)
Vote totals (WOW!!!!!)
Ohio, less than a percent
West Va, less than a percent
Georgia, four percent in
New Hampshire, five percent in, but CNN hasn't called it yet.
Also in New Hampshire, Jeanne Shaheen takes a seat back for the Dems, beating Sununu II.
--------------------------------------------
Point by CBS-----with Elizabeth Dole defeated, 2009 will be the first time in 50 years that neither a Bush nor Dole will be serving in Washington.
--------------------------------------------
Fox News gives Pennsylvania to Barack Obama at 8:29pm.......and at 8:30?
Fox News gives Arkansas to John McCain.......
So, it's now 103-45, Obama.....
WE BREAK to help Rachel prepare for her P.E. test on basketball history tomorrow!!
-------------------------------------------
John McCain says, "Roll Tide!" Alabama goes to the GOP.........
THE LATEST ELECTORAL SCORES BY NETWORK AT 8:41PM:
CBS: Obama 102, McCain 54
ABC: Obama 102, McCain 49
Fox News: Obama 103, McCain 69
CNN: Obama 102, McCain 34
BBC America: Obama 103, McCain 49
NBC: Obama 103, McCain 58
NOW at 9pm----
Obama gets Minnesota (God, PLEASE not Al Franken!!!)
Obama gets New York
Obama gets Michigan
McCain gets Wyoming
Obama gets New Mexico
Obama gets Wisconsin
Obama gets Vermont
McCain gets North Dakota
McCain gets Kansas
Let's go with Obama 183, McCain 81.........from Fox.....
Let's go with Obama 174, McCain 100....on CBS....
Let's go with Obama 174, McCain 76....on ABC, the Stephanop....the Stepha....George's network.
Let's go with Obama 175, McCain 70....on NBC (The Obama Network)
Kevin Tibbles of NBC says Grant Park reminds him of Woodstock. I see people wearing coats, rather than nothing......and they seem orderly, too.
Oh, and there's CNN-------Obama 174, McCain 49. 49??!!??
918pm: Ohio does go to Obama, according to Fox News. 183-81 now the score.
Obama up 174-115 on CBS right now. I can't wait to see what kind of confetti they throw over on MSNBC when it's 270, which should be at 11pm when California falls.
Meanwhile, BBC America continues to show its ignorance with some dumb reporter saying Palin was a drag.......maybe Romney would have been better, blah, blah, blah, and former U.N. Ambassador Bolton SCHOOLED her.
"I think you show a fundamental ignorance of the Republican Party", says Bolton to the idiot reporter. Palin energized the base. McCain NEVER did. Romney NEVER did. For one independent she may have created a question mark in their mind, there were more conservatives than came aboard.
They quickly ended the live shot with that reporter at McCain HQ in Phoenix, tried to switch to another, couldn't, and the anchor (OOPS!) admitted the truth......
"Maybe we did that just to stop the argument....."
Meanwhile, of ALL PEOPLE, Larry Sabato (??!!??!!) was sitting there?? On BBC America???
-------925pm: Wolf Blitzer teases a big projection! Fox News says 200-81........
AND?????? La dee la dee da..........nothin'.........
Thanks, Wolf. Go teleport somebody.......
CBS says 194 to 124 now.
ABC says 195 to 90 now.
NBC says 200 to 85 now.
Fox now 200-90.
Fox gives Louisiana to McCain.
Fox gives New Mexico to Obama.
Rob breaks to show stupidity........
Brian Williams, thank you for reminding us that I live in the area of the former "Capital of the Confederacy".........as my county, Henrico County, was featured by Chuck Todd as a Republican suburban area of Virginia now taken by Obama.
A Democratic operative told Brian today about how bad they want to win there!
Yes, because obviously there are people who STILL THINK we're the Capital of the Confederacy! Sorry, but that makes me MAD; thanks, Brian!
Oh, and Brian-----we elected the first-ever African-American Governor......he lived in the Capital of Richmond......NEARLY 20 YEARS AGO??!!??!!
We now return to live blogging, hopefully without stupid interruptions......
9:42pm------Tavis Smiley discusses dividends with, that guy, on NBC. He says dividends about nine times in two minutes. Interesting perspective; think I'll keep an eye on his show going forward, even if it is on PBS (hee hee.....)
9:45pm------On Fox, Sen. Bill Casey of Pa. thinks that 51 percent of the vote for Obama in the popular vote means a broad victory. Heh?
The Democrats are already spinning a "mandate". Hold up a sec.....
1) The Dems are only getting more seats in Congress because of such an unpopular President. The President creates "coattails" or "drags", Congress never does.
2) Guess who has a LOWER approval rating right now? Bush? NO---Congress!!! Led by the Dems.....but that doesn't matter right now.
3) Finally----51 percent of the electorate is NOT a mandate; never. Ever. 1996, when Clinton was re-elected 49 to 40 over Bob Dole is the closest we've had to a mandate in the past 20 years. Still, Clinton never won 50 percent of the vote in either election to the Presidency.
Real mandates? Try:
1984: Reagan wins 58.8 percent of the popular vote.
1972: Nixon wins 60.7 percent of the popular vote.
1964: LBJ wins 61.1 percent of the popular vote.
1956: Eisenhower wins 57.4 percent of the popular vote.
10pm ET--------
Obama gets Iowa (switching from GOP, like Ohio and New Mexico)
McCain gets the token prize of Texas (did anyone remember Texas??)
Fox News says 207 to 129
CNN says 206 to 89
BBC America says 207 to 135
Speaking of......the BBC America anchor now asks Larry Sabato if this will be a "mandate". Sabato reminds the Brits that the last Democrat to get more than 50 percent of the vote was Jimmy Carter in 1976.........LBJ gets the last Democratic "mandate", he reminds them. In a nice way, Sabato says, NO.
Now, from Times Square, another BBC blonde, this one with cleavage, who wasn't ready for her live shot, talks of the "cheers in Times Square" when Obama wins a state, then interviews the elder statesmen, comedian Eddie Izzard.
Oh, dear. Now we welcome Erica Jong. "We've been through so many stolen elections", she proclaims. What? Reagan screwed Mondale?? Bush stole it from Dukakis?? Heh???
I thought Ted Koppel was supposed to be part of their coverage. Maybe he thought the better of it at the last minute.......and RAN!
Jong believes Obama has "serenity". Yes, that'll solve the economic crisis. That should bring Osama Bin Laden out to be arrested, too.
Kum by yah........
----------------------------------------
It's hard to watch ABC News' coverage. Not the bias.
They're constantly showing Times Square. WE WERE THERE!! I WANNA GO BACK!! I LOVE NEW YORK!!!!
ABC says 207-135.
NBC says 207-135.
CBS says 206-135 (where's that other vote?? Dan Rather stole it!!!)
Fox News says 207-129.
CNN says 207-95. Wow, being hard on an old guy, aren't they?
OH!
BBC America says 207-135. On their screen. Anything said on the channel, other than John Bolton and Larry Sabato..........and sometimes Sabato is.......well.........
Bolton just SCHOOLED them again over their Colorado reporter, who Bolton says, should be fired for not interviewing, but arguing with the state Republican committee head.
John Bolton rocks!
--------------------------------------------------
Heading to the bedroom for more.....tired of sitting in Rachel's foldout chair. I once had a recliner. Then I got a mother-in-law in-house temporarily.........so long, recliner! :)
--------------------------------------------------
SPECIAL NOTE!!!!!!--------------I passed an African-American woman, probably over 60, in the parking lot at my voting precinct today and thought to myself, I'm sure she never thought that in her life she would have the chance to vote for an African-American who really had a good chance to win the Presidency.
I thought that was really cool. I thought to myself, "I don't want your guy to win, but...", my feelings have nothing to do with race.
I wish my first friend from elementary school, Darrell, were still here to see this; he went home to be with God in April.
--------------------------------------------------
Back to the hilarity of BBC America, we see they've shown John Bolton the door, and I don't see Larry either. New people and the first I see is some old Clinton crony. They don't show names on this channel, apparently; I've seen two I think tonight.
We're all just waiting for the final dominoes to fall here......
OH WAIT!!!!!! A HOLOGRAM ON CNN!!!!
Anderson Cooper (the gray Darth Vader????) has teleported the sage political scientist.....
Will.I.Am
who is really in Chicago.......
.....had McCain upset Obama, would they have hologrammed Joe The Plumber??
Ewwww......does he have the butt crack thing going on? Didn't think of that.....
OKAY-----back to the Electoral College......
CNN: Obama 207-135
ABC: Obama 207-141
NBC: Obama 207-142
CBS: Obama 206-141
BBC America: 207-141
Fox News: 220-138 (220 because.......)
ALERT-----------------FOX NEWS says OBAMA wins VIRGINIA.........
Wow..........what else can be said?
This-----FOX NEWS is the first media organization to call the Virginia race.
---------------------------------------
Well, as it was when I was on the air live in 1992, when California closed at 11pmET, I led into the news that William Jefferson Clinton would become the 42nd President of the United States.
16 years later.......Barack Obama does the same, about to become #44.
---------------------------------------
CNN gives Virginia to Obama.......
---------------------------------------
Fox News has a blinking 297 on the screen at 10:59ET. Oops......
And at 11pm, the victory.
Lots of people going nuts......Times Square, Chicago.......they're hugging in Times Square, like it's New Year's Eve.......
Well-----LET THE MEDIA PARTY BEGIN!!!
First........good live camera shot on MSNBC of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta; MLK's church.
CNN just showed the church, and good ol' Al Sharpton is there. Well, everything can't be perfect.
---Chris Matthews says the world will wake up tomorrow and say, "Damn it, they did it!"
---Eugene Robinson says American history goes back 389 years. Jamestown was pretend.
McCain has called Obama. Classy to the max. Didn't wait for "the rest of the rest".
---David Gregory says this election wasn't about race. Does that go with or against all we've heard the past many months. Just throwing that one out to y'all.
---Chris Matthews: "The best is yet to come tonight!" referencing Obama coming forth soon to speak to us.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, a moment to say.....
This is a wonderful moment for the United States of America. It's about time. Black, woman, Hispanic......whichever, this is good. Very good.
Now, let's get the rest of the hatred crap out of us (the collective us) and out of the way. Also, those who have used race politically, from both sides, lay it down. It's over.
I must confess I have doubts about much of this. Electing Obama President does not magically make hate and "the race card" disappear. But they should make them SO DULL, that they die of irrelevancy.
-----------------------------------
John McCain, as always, first class as he congratulates Obama.
And that's it from this election headquarters.
HEADLINES AS I LAY ME DOWN:
1) Obama wins historic election, becomes first African-American President
2) Watershed day as youth make impact
3) "Race Card" blunted
4) One more BIG shovel of dirt dumped on top of the grave of an ugly portion of American history
Well, we'll see what happens next. :)
1) Jessica Yelin "via hologram" from Chicago into the CNN HQ in New York talking to Wolf Blitzer.
"Help me, Obi Wolf Kenobi, you're my only hope!!"
---------------------------------
2) PMSNBC gives us the word that McCain will win South Carolina. That's a "whew" for the GOP.
---------------------------------
3) Looking now at the huge stage in Grant Park, Chicago, where some 90 million people....ah, one million people are expected to celebrate with the.......winner? I think he will be.
---------------------------------
4) Here in Virginia, former Governor Mark Warner won (yawn) the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retiring John Warner (no relation) in a cakewalk over another former Governor Jim Gilmore.
I've never seen two Virginia politicians fall so quickly than Jim Gilmore and George Allen. Before Allen's stupid "macaca" moment, there were many that thought he could have become the next President-elect tonight. As for Gilmore? Happy retirement and don't worry, he'll get a job. He's an attorney.
--------------------------------
7:54pm ET
5) The BBC World News guy says South Carolina is the start of "the real Southern U.S.". Ah, buddy, there's this other place called North Carolina. Apparently you are placing way too much emphasis on the word "North".
Shouldn't BBC America be worried about telling us about Gordon Brown??
--------------------------------
6) 2008 brings a whole new meaning to "Wall-To-Wall Coverage". John King, the incumbent at CNN, versus Bill Hemmer at Fox, with Brit Hume saying if he tried to run the wall, he'd "set the place on fire"......
8PM ET:----------------
Well, here we go; this should change the night.......
Obama gets Dukakis-country
Obama gets Maryland
Obama gets Illinois
Obama gets DC
Obama gets Connecticut
Obama gets New Jersey
McCain gets Oklahoma
Obama gets Maine (must have gotten past that 2 to 1 vote total they've been showing for the past hour or so....)
It's now 77-28, Obama. McCain won't see the electoral lead again.
Now, about that U.S. Senate........
We know Warner gets the vacant one here in Va........
--Inhofe wins in Oklahoma
--Joe Biden wins in Delaware......
--Frank Lautenberg is still alive, and will be shipped back to DC......(he's 84; if McCain is too old, then explain THAT one!!!)
--Susan Collins, the Republican in name only, survives in Maine.......
805pm ET-------
McCain gets Tennessee, cutting the lead to 77-39. Sounds like a fantasy football score! The GOP sure hopes Philip Rivers and Kurt Warner can help cut into the lead.......
808pm ET-------
Mitch McConnell survives in Kentucky and will most likely become the senior Republican in Washington come January.....period.
809pm ET-------
Kay Hagan ends the Dole Political Era. Elizabeth Dole goes down........long live Chiquita! Wha???
North Carolina's Senate seat goes from GOP to Dem......
BULLETIN-------------
Pennsylvania is called for Obama.....on NBC and ABC only.
CNN, CBS and Fox News are holding off......
Meanwhile.......
Obama wins New Hampshire, and it's 81-39 (102 for Obama if you watch ABC or NBC.....)
Vote totals (WOW!!!!!)
Ohio, less than a percent
West Va, less than a percent
Georgia, four percent in
New Hampshire, five percent in, but CNN hasn't called it yet.
Also in New Hampshire, Jeanne Shaheen takes a seat back for the Dems, beating Sununu II.
--------------------------------------------
Point by CBS-----with Elizabeth Dole defeated, 2009 will be the first time in 50 years that neither a Bush nor Dole will be serving in Washington.
--------------------------------------------
Fox News gives Pennsylvania to Barack Obama at 8:29pm.......and at 8:30?
Fox News gives Arkansas to John McCain.......
So, it's now 103-45, Obama.....
WE BREAK to help Rachel prepare for her P.E. test on basketball history tomorrow!!
-------------------------------------------
John McCain says, "Roll Tide!" Alabama goes to the GOP.........
THE LATEST ELECTORAL SCORES BY NETWORK AT 8:41PM:
CBS: Obama 102, McCain 54
ABC: Obama 102, McCain 49
Fox News: Obama 103, McCain 69
CNN: Obama 102, McCain 34
BBC America: Obama 103, McCain 49
NBC: Obama 103, McCain 58
NOW at 9pm----
Obama gets Minnesota (God, PLEASE not Al Franken!!!)
Obama gets New York
Obama gets Michigan
McCain gets Wyoming
Obama gets New Mexico
Obama gets Wisconsin
Obama gets Vermont
McCain gets North Dakota
McCain gets Kansas
Let's go with Obama 183, McCain 81.........from Fox.....
Let's go with Obama 174, McCain 100....on CBS....
Let's go with Obama 174, McCain 76....on ABC, the Stephanop....the Stepha....George's network.
Let's go with Obama 175, McCain 70....on NBC (The Obama Network)
Kevin Tibbles of NBC says Grant Park reminds him of Woodstock. I see people wearing coats, rather than nothing......and they seem orderly, too.
Oh, and there's CNN-------Obama 174, McCain 49. 49??!!??
918pm: Ohio does go to Obama, according to Fox News. 183-81 now the score.
Obama up 174-115 on CBS right now. I can't wait to see what kind of confetti they throw over on MSNBC when it's 270, which should be at 11pm when California falls.
Meanwhile, BBC America continues to show its ignorance with some dumb reporter saying Palin was a drag.......maybe Romney would have been better, blah, blah, blah, and former U.N. Ambassador Bolton SCHOOLED her.
"I think you show a fundamental ignorance of the Republican Party", says Bolton to the idiot reporter. Palin energized the base. McCain NEVER did. Romney NEVER did. For one independent she may have created a question mark in their mind, there were more conservatives than came aboard.
They quickly ended the live shot with that reporter at McCain HQ in Phoenix, tried to switch to another, couldn't, and the anchor (OOPS!) admitted the truth......
"Maybe we did that just to stop the argument....."
Meanwhile, of ALL PEOPLE, Larry Sabato (??!!??!!) was sitting there?? On BBC America???
-------925pm: Wolf Blitzer teases a big projection! Fox News says 200-81........
AND?????? La dee la dee da..........nothin'.........
Thanks, Wolf. Go teleport somebody.......
CBS says 194 to 124 now.
ABC says 195 to 90 now.
NBC says 200 to 85 now.
Fox now 200-90.
Fox gives Louisiana to McCain.
Fox gives New Mexico to Obama.
Rob breaks to show stupidity........
Brian Williams, thank you for reminding us that I live in the area of the former "Capital of the Confederacy".........as my county, Henrico County, was featured by Chuck Todd as a Republican suburban area of Virginia now taken by Obama.
A Democratic operative told Brian today about how bad they want to win there!
Yes, because obviously there are people who STILL THINK we're the Capital of the Confederacy! Sorry, but that makes me MAD; thanks, Brian!
Oh, and Brian-----we elected the first-ever African-American Governor......he lived in the Capital of Richmond......NEARLY 20 YEARS AGO??!!??!!
We now return to live blogging, hopefully without stupid interruptions......
9:42pm------Tavis Smiley discusses dividends with, that guy, on NBC. He says dividends about nine times in two minutes. Interesting perspective; think I'll keep an eye on his show going forward, even if it is on PBS (hee hee.....)
9:45pm------On Fox, Sen. Bill Casey of Pa. thinks that 51 percent of the vote for Obama in the popular vote means a broad victory. Heh?
The Democrats are already spinning a "mandate". Hold up a sec.....
1) The Dems are only getting more seats in Congress because of such an unpopular President. The President creates "coattails" or "drags", Congress never does.
2) Guess who has a LOWER approval rating right now? Bush? NO---Congress!!! Led by the Dems.....but that doesn't matter right now.
3) Finally----51 percent of the electorate is NOT a mandate; never. Ever. 1996, when Clinton was re-elected 49 to 40 over Bob Dole is the closest we've had to a mandate in the past 20 years. Still, Clinton never won 50 percent of the vote in either election to the Presidency.
Real mandates? Try:
1984: Reagan wins 58.8 percent of the popular vote.
1972: Nixon wins 60.7 percent of the popular vote.
1964: LBJ wins 61.1 percent of the popular vote.
1956: Eisenhower wins 57.4 percent of the popular vote.
10pm ET--------
Obama gets Iowa (switching from GOP, like Ohio and New Mexico)
McCain gets the token prize of Texas (did anyone remember Texas??)
Fox News says 207 to 129
CNN says 206 to 89
BBC America says 207 to 135
Speaking of......the BBC America anchor now asks Larry Sabato if this will be a "mandate". Sabato reminds the Brits that the last Democrat to get more than 50 percent of the vote was Jimmy Carter in 1976.........LBJ gets the last Democratic "mandate", he reminds them. In a nice way, Sabato says, NO.
Now, from Times Square, another BBC blonde, this one with cleavage, who wasn't ready for her live shot, talks of the "cheers in Times Square" when Obama wins a state, then interviews the elder statesmen, comedian Eddie Izzard.
Oh, dear. Now we welcome Erica Jong. "We've been through so many stolen elections", she proclaims. What? Reagan screwed Mondale?? Bush stole it from Dukakis?? Heh???
I thought Ted Koppel was supposed to be part of their coverage. Maybe he thought the better of it at the last minute.......and RAN!
Jong believes Obama has "serenity". Yes, that'll solve the economic crisis. That should bring Osama Bin Laden out to be arrested, too.
Kum by yah........
----------------------------------------
It's hard to watch ABC News' coverage. Not the bias.
They're constantly showing Times Square. WE WERE THERE!! I WANNA GO BACK!! I LOVE NEW YORK!!!!
ABC says 207-135.
NBC says 207-135.
CBS says 206-135 (where's that other vote?? Dan Rather stole it!!!)
Fox News says 207-129.
CNN says 207-95. Wow, being hard on an old guy, aren't they?
OH!
BBC America says 207-135. On their screen. Anything said on the channel, other than John Bolton and Larry Sabato..........and sometimes Sabato is.......well.........
Bolton just SCHOOLED them again over their Colorado reporter, who Bolton says, should be fired for not interviewing, but arguing with the state Republican committee head.
John Bolton rocks!
--------------------------------------------------
Heading to the bedroom for more.....tired of sitting in Rachel's foldout chair. I once had a recliner. Then I got a mother-in-law in-house temporarily.........so long, recliner! :)
--------------------------------------------------
SPECIAL NOTE!!!!!!--------------I passed an African-American woman, probably over 60, in the parking lot at my voting precinct today and thought to myself, I'm sure she never thought that in her life she would have the chance to vote for an African-American who really had a good chance to win the Presidency.
I thought that was really cool. I thought to myself, "I don't want your guy to win, but...", my feelings have nothing to do with race.
I wish my first friend from elementary school, Darrell, were still here to see this; he went home to be with God in April.
--------------------------------------------------
Back to the hilarity of BBC America, we see they've shown John Bolton the door, and I don't see Larry either. New people and the first I see is some old Clinton crony. They don't show names on this channel, apparently; I've seen two I think tonight.
We're all just waiting for the final dominoes to fall here......
OH WAIT!!!!!! A HOLOGRAM ON CNN!!!!
Anderson Cooper (the gray Darth Vader????) has teleported the sage political scientist.....
Will.I.Am
who is really in Chicago.......
.....had McCain upset Obama, would they have hologrammed Joe The Plumber??
Ewwww......does he have the butt crack thing going on? Didn't think of that.....
OKAY-----back to the Electoral College......
CNN: Obama 207-135
ABC: Obama 207-141
NBC: Obama 207-142
CBS: Obama 206-141
BBC America: 207-141
Fox News: 220-138 (220 because.......)
ALERT-----------------FOX NEWS says OBAMA wins VIRGINIA.........
Wow..........what else can be said?
This-----FOX NEWS is the first media organization to call the Virginia race.
---------------------------------------
Well, as it was when I was on the air live in 1992, when California closed at 11pmET, I led into the news that William Jefferson Clinton would become the 42nd President of the United States.
16 years later.......Barack Obama does the same, about to become #44.
---------------------------------------
CNN gives Virginia to Obama.......
---------------------------------------
Fox News has a blinking 297 on the screen at 10:59ET. Oops......
And at 11pm, the victory.
Lots of people going nuts......Times Square, Chicago.......they're hugging in Times Square, like it's New Year's Eve.......
Well-----LET THE MEDIA PARTY BEGIN!!!
First........good live camera shot on MSNBC of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta; MLK's church.
CNN just showed the church, and good ol' Al Sharpton is there. Well, everything can't be perfect.
---Chris Matthews says the world will wake up tomorrow and say, "Damn it, they did it!"
---Eugene Robinson says American history goes back 389 years. Jamestown was pretend.
McCain has called Obama. Classy to the max. Didn't wait for "the rest of the rest".
---David Gregory says this election wasn't about race. Does that go with or against all we've heard the past many months. Just throwing that one out to y'all.
---Chris Matthews: "The best is yet to come tonight!" referencing Obama coming forth soon to speak to us.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, a moment to say.....
This is a wonderful moment for the United States of America. It's about time. Black, woman, Hispanic......whichever, this is good. Very good.
Now, let's get the rest of the hatred crap out of us (the collective us) and out of the way. Also, those who have used race politically, from both sides, lay it down. It's over.
I must confess I have doubts about much of this. Electing Obama President does not magically make hate and "the race card" disappear. But they should make them SO DULL, that they die of irrelevancy.
-----------------------------------
John McCain, as always, first class as he congratulates Obama.
And that's it from this election headquarters.
HEADLINES AS I LAY ME DOWN:
1) Obama wins historic election, becomes first African-American President
2) Watershed day as youth make impact
3) "Race Card" blunted
4) One more BIG shovel of dirt dumped on top of the grave of an ugly portion of American history
Well, we'll see what happens next. :)
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Those Who Hang Palin Don't Hate Her......Or So They Say.....
Imagine, if you will, the uproar had Hillary Clinton been "hanging around" West Hollywood....
"Hillary Victim of Hate Crime!!"
What would Keith Olbermann say? OMG!!!!
Here is what Hillary would say:
More funding and stricter sentencing for hate crimes.
Clinton co-sponsored the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act:
Title: To provide Federal assistance to States and local jurisdictions to prosecute hate crimes.
Summary:
Provide technical, forensic, prosecutorial, or other assistance in the criminal investigation or prosecution of any violent crime that is motivated by prejudice based on the race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability of the victim or is a violation of hate crime laws.
Award grants to assist State and local law enforcement officials with extraordinary expenses for interstate hate crimes.
Award grants to State and local programs designed to combat hate crimes committed by juveniles.
Prohibit specified offenses involving actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.
Increase criminal sentencing for adult recruitment of juveniles to commit hate crimes.
Collect and publish data about crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on gender.
Source: House Resolution Sponsorship 01-HR1343 on Apr 3, 2001
"Hillary Victim of Hate Crime!!"
What would Keith Olbermann say? OMG!!!!
Here is what Hillary would say:
More funding and stricter sentencing for hate crimes.
Clinton co-sponsored the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act:
Title: To provide Federal assistance to States and local jurisdictions to prosecute hate crimes.
Summary:
Provide technical, forensic, prosecutorial, or other assistance in the criminal investigation or prosecution of any violent crime that is motivated by prejudice based on the race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability of the victim or is a violation of hate crime laws.
Award grants to assist State and local law enforcement officials with extraordinary expenses for interstate hate crimes.
Award grants to State and local programs designed to combat hate crimes committed by juveniles.
Prohibit specified offenses involving actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.
Increase criminal sentencing for adult recruitment of juveniles to commit hate crimes.
Collect and publish data about crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on gender.
Source: House Resolution Sponsorship 01-HR1343 on Apr 3, 2001
Monday, October 27, 2008
My comment to KYW-TV, CBS3 in Philadelphia, regarding their "embarrassment" at their Biden interview....
"Please, please tell me you have not bowed to the demands of the Obama/Biden campaign and have attempted to pretend the interview with Senator Biden didn't occur.
I cannot find it on your site, and, with the exception of the Breaking News at this hour on the alleged assassination plot against Senator Obama, it should be at the top of your news.
Your station's interview is making headlines nationwide, yet you ignore it?? Your management says it is "embarrassed" by it? Why? It was honest questions to a public figure, something the media is SUPPOSED to do!
I could care less whether the interview had been with Senator Biden or Governor Palin or Mickey Mouse for that matter, I cannot believe the power of the press, in your case and in this instance, has bowed to the strong-arm of the government.
You're supposed to keep them honest, not let them shut you up. When the tough questions aren't asked, people like Richard Nixon stay in office.
Please remember that, no matter WHO occupies the White House in January, 2009. Thank you."
I cannot find it on your site, and, with the exception of the Breaking News at this hour on the alleged assassination plot against Senator Obama, it should be at the top of your news.
Your station's interview is making headlines nationwide, yet you ignore it?? Your management says it is "embarrassed" by it? Why? It was honest questions to a public figure, something the media is SUPPOSED to do!
I could care less whether the interview had been with Senator Biden or Governor Palin or Mickey Mouse for that matter, I cannot believe the power of the press, in your case and in this instance, has bowed to the strong-arm of the government.
You're supposed to keep them honest, not let them shut you up. When the tough questions aren't asked, people like Richard Nixon stay in office.
Please remember that, no matter WHO occupies the White House in January, 2009. Thank you."
YOU MUST WATCH THIS REPORT!!!!
Now the "bully pulpit" of Obama/Biden has "banned" KWY-TV in Philadelphia from future interviews.......
.....all because they have two anchors not afraid to ask the tough questions.
Which of course means it's "ambush journalism".
KYW has completely sanitized their Web site, acting like the interview never existed. Station management says they are "embarrassed".
Next post is my comment to KYW-TV.
.....all because they have two anchors not afraid to ask the tough questions.
Which of course means it's "ambush journalism".
KYW has completely sanitized their Web site, acting like the interview never existed. Station management says they are "embarrassed".
Next post is my comment to KYW-TV.
Friday, October 10, 2008
What The??? Rewrite the rules???
It's one thing to push the ultimate reset button for global economics after a catastrophic event like World War II.
But NOW??
This sounds SO MUCH MORE like a secret agenda here. I can't say, as an American, I like the idea of my economic future and hopeful recovery pinned to a program whose mouthpiece is the Italian Prime Minister! I'd like it in the hands of America before we go holding hands with the rest of the world. (Let the idiots begin to accuse me of hating Italians now.....Good Lord!)
Watch this folks, watch this CLOSELY! This would be NOTHING like Bretton Woods. I smell an anti-capitalist rat here.
But NOW??
This sounds SO MUCH MORE like a secret agenda here. I can't say, as an American, I like the idea of my economic future and hopeful recovery pinned to a program whose mouthpiece is the Italian Prime Minister! I'd like it in the hands of America before we go holding hands with the rest of the world. (Let the idiots begin to accuse me of hating Italians now.....Good Lord!)
Watch this folks, watch this CLOSELY! This would be NOTHING like Bretton Woods. I smell an anti-capitalist rat here.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Here's where I've been.....
I've been hard at work on a new blog dedicated to our radio coverage of Patrick Henry Football on WHAN-AM in Ashland. The blog is actually much more than just about PH football. Check it out by clicking the title above!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tom Brady didn't die, he's just hurt!
Good Lord, you'd think they were gonna shut down the NFL for the season and award the Lombardi Trophy for Super Bowl 43 to the New England Patriots because the whole world is in mourning over Tom Brady's knee injury.
Headline I saw this morning:
"Will Tom Brady's injury mean to football what Tiger's injury means to golf?"
ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Golf is almost irrelevant to pop culture without Tiger.
NFL without Tom Brady? No offense, but, it'll be just fine. I've never once turned on the TV to watch a football game because "I wanna watch Tom Brady".
Had I felt that way as a kid, in 1980, after Dan Pastorini got hurt, I would have been like, "Well, I won't turn on the Raider games with Jim Plunkett at quarterback, I tune in for Dan Pastorini!!"
And I would have missed Super Bowl XV.
NFL equals TEAM SPORT. No offense, but no Brady is no problem. Please welcome Matt Cassell.
OH, and, from the how quickly we forget department, do you remember how we were all introduced to Tom Brady in the NFL??
That's right--the LONG-TIME quarterback of the New England Patriots, Drew Bledsoe, (gasp!) got hurt!!!
Bledsoe never goes down, and who knows where Brady would be today, or if we would have ever heard of him......
So, to all the TV commentators who acted like Brady died Sunday rather than just suffer a season-ending injury, take heart.
There are well over 1500 other players in the NFL. Some pretty good ones, too. We'll be just fine.
And besides, it gives you more time to fixate on Brett Favre, and you media guys LOVE to do that, right??
Headline I saw this morning:
"Will Tom Brady's injury mean to football what Tiger's injury means to golf?"
ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Golf is almost irrelevant to pop culture without Tiger.
NFL without Tom Brady? No offense, but, it'll be just fine. I've never once turned on the TV to watch a football game because "I wanna watch Tom Brady".
Had I felt that way as a kid, in 1980, after Dan Pastorini got hurt, I would have been like, "Well, I won't turn on the Raider games with Jim Plunkett at quarterback, I tune in for Dan Pastorini!!"
And I would have missed Super Bowl XV.
NFL equals TEAM SPORT. No offense, but no Brady is no problem. Please welcome Matt Cassell.
OH, and, from the how quickly we forget department, do you remember how we were all introduced to Tom Brady in the NFL??
That's right--the LONG-TIME quarterback of the New England Patriots, Drew Bledsoe, (gasp!) got hurt!!!
Bledsoe never goes down, and who knows where Brady would be today, or if we would have ever heard of him......
So, to all the TV commentators who acted like Brady died Sunday rather than just suffer a season-ending injury, take heart.
There are well over 1500 other players in the NFL. Some pretty good ones, too. We'll be just fine.
And besides, it gives you more time to fixate on Brett Favre, and you media guys LOVE to do that, right??
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Go Sarah!!!
I cannot wait to hear Sarah answer her critics in a few minutes!
Not that any of them (PMSNBC, CNN, Keith Olbermann, Daily Kos, Pravda, et al) will listen....they'll all dismiss her as "not ready".
And Barack Obama's two extra years in the Senate puts him over the top? Show me his administrative experience.....
She has no foreign policy experience, they say! Ah, how much did Bill Clinton have in 1992?
Go Sarah!!!
Not that any of them (PMSNBC, CNN, Keith Olbermann, Daily Kos, Pravda, et al) will listen....they'll all dismiss her as "not ready".
And Barack Obama's two extra years in the Senate puts him over the top? Show me his administrative experience.....
She has no foreign policy experience, they say! Ah, how much did Bill Clinton have in 1992?
Go Sarah!!!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Home from New York City
I tried to blog from the Big Apple, but couldn't get on Blogger for some reason. The internet connection at our hotel wasn't exactly lightning fast, either, but nonetheless......
Pictures and highlights to follow!!!
Pictures and highlights to follow!!!
Monday, August 04, 2008
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