10 years in the making

   We needed a shot in the arm. The last 10 years have been tough. Two wars (well...if you count Libya three), spiraling deficits, a troubled economy, crumbling infrastructure, George W. Bush, a divided nation, etc, etc., but today we have something to cheer about. I usually feel odd cheering for one's death, but Bin Laden is different. This is a man who ordered the USS Kohl bombing, 9-11 attacks, and countless others that either killed hundreds overseas or were going to until they were stopped by intelligence services or clumsiness. There is no doubt that the US has followed policies that have angered Bin Laden and others in the Middle East, but killing innocents was uncalled for and that's exactly what the 9-11 attacks were. Bin Laden's death comes at an interesting time in the Middle East. Let's hope his death helps usher in an era in that region where such elements are dismissed and dismantled.

    Peter Bergen just said that the War on Terror is over. Will it ever be over? I hate to lace this positive, celebratory blog with skepticism, but when there is money to be made, threats can be found, even when they may not exist (I'm looking at you military-industry complex). As for terrorism, Bin Laden's death certainly marks a great achievement, but I'm not willing to turn out the lights just yet. With that said, I hope Bergen's right. Bin Laden's death has been 10 years in the making (actually longer than that, because he was targeted by the Clinton administration) and although we may have given up on the hunt, it appears those who make the decisions were not asleep at the switch. Congratulations to those who raided the compound and killed that motherfucker. Congratulations to President Obama and all of those (Leon Panetta--CIA Director) (yes, even Bush) who tried their hardest to make this happen. It's a night to celebrate. Revenge, retribution, has finally been exacted after almost 10 years.

One more thing...I can't wait for the book detailing the account. You know it's coming, maybe Woodward has already penned it, and I can't wait to read about the raid on the compound. Those guys are heroes. Wow.

Why does anyone care?

   If I see another Prince William and Kate Middleton story I'm going to throw up. Why is this news? Who cares about these two people? We've got a mass slaughter going on in Syria, a Taliban prisoner escape in Afghanistan, Mugabe is still destroying his country 30 years running, and the top story is that Kate's vows have been leaked? Clearly, there is a demand for such trash or news organizations would not follow it. So who is to blame? I'll tell you who. You know who follows this shit? 40 year old single women who have never married, still have stuffed animals on their bed, always tune into Delilah (to request Richard Marx songs because they remind them of the last time they had a chance to score), and routinely watch General Hospital. I can see them right now, eating a pint of chocolate ice cream, softly petting Fido, watching the latest report on Kate's dress, and dreaming of the day they'll get married, hoping it will come sooner rather than later. I've got news for you, it's not happening, so find a good job, get another pet, and stop paying attention to this meaningless drivel (oh, and stop buying magazines like US Weekly so I don't have to stare at the latest about the Teen Mom 2 breakup or some reality show celebrity's baby; your demand for such products are to blame). You are not Kate Middleton and you will never marry a prince. End of story. Move on. And get rid of the fucking stuffed animals. You are 40.

What a world

   I tend to be a pessimist. That is just my nature. I tend to look at the world as a dark place, filled with horrible people. I know this probably isn't the best way to go about life, but every time I try to be positive I read some news story that makes me hate this fucking place. So you could only imagine my reaction when I came upon this news story http://www.indystar.com/article/20110412/LOCAL18/104120345/4-held-alleged-plan-sell-baby-sex-offender?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|IndyStar.com. Read the story first. I'll wait. Yep, that's right, these parents tried to sell their child to a convicted child molester. I don't think there is much worse you can do than this right here. What kind of punishment is adequate for such an act? Selling a child for 300 dollars to a child molester? Despite their heinous crime they will not face the death penalty. They'll be sentenced to prison and eat better than most children in impoverished countries. Is that justice? Regardless of the sentence, the fact remains that parents tried to sell their child to an individual who was most likely buying her to molest her. I am sickened by this story. All I can say is what a world.

Is baseball slouching towards boxing?

     Opening weekend has come and gone and the White Sox are 2-1. I'll take a series victory, although a sweep against Cleveland (with 8,000 strong watching the Cleveland victory at Jacobs...oh...Progressive Field; by the way, is it Progressive Field brought to you by.... or just Progressive Field? Watch out. Sponsorships of sponsorships are coming) would have been nice.

     This post is not about the White Sox though. It's about the popularity of baseball. As someone who has his pulse on the youth of America (or at least I like to think I do), I must say I feel that baseball will soon be relegated to the "sport that was once really popular" bin, alongside boxing and horse racing. This may take a decade or two, but I believe it's coming. I lament this fact, for I love the sport and all its strategy and inherent languidness. However, many kids do not feel this way. In my line of work I run into young kids all the time and inevitably sports pops-up as a topic of discussion. With the exception of those who play the sport, virtually every teen, female and male, sports-fan or not, express their dislike of the game and how slow it is. In this age of short attention spans and instant gratification, baseball seems to lose out. More than a few have claimed baseball is akin to watching paint dry. Depending upon the poll you look at, baseball has already fallen behind basketball as America's third favorite sport.

     Judging by my observations, it has virtually no chance of moving up, and may even fall behind UFC or some other sport. This is sad. Baseball is synonymous with America and I feel its decline will leave us with a void. Baseball is woven in the fabric of our nation. The lazy barbecues with a beer in hand and either the game on the radio or the TV, the discussions about legendary teams that either won or should have won (i.e. '93 Expos), the challenge of naming an entire starting lineup of your favorite team that made one of your childhood summers magical, etc. etc. Football is a great sport, but it does not have the tradition that baseball has. It doesn't have the same feel and it does not carry the same resonance.

Oh well, enough about the future. I will not let the potential demise of baseball ruin this year or future years. After all, I know how good the sport is. For those who don't see it, well, it's their loss. So here's to a White Sox season that is sure to be filled with excitement and a Cubs season sure to be filled with misery! It will be 103 years after this season Cubbies. Go Sox!

Weekend observations

    I'm not wasting my time on an ND basketball team ever again, or at least until Mike Brey and his goofy-ass Bill Belichick-light turtleneck sportcoat disappear. ND was outplayed, outcoached, and outclassed last night and I'm pissed I wasted time watching them.

Wear a tie and try getting to the Sweet 16!

    I watched Fab Five this past weekend and enjoyed it thoroughly. It reminded me of my younger days and I'll never forget that UNC/Michigan matchup. You can tell Jimmy King is still irritated with the timeout (how could he not be?). I still wonder why Webber just didn't wait for Rose to come to the ball. He panicked after his travel (that wasn't called). What's with C-Web not taking part? That's cowardly if you ask me. You made your bed, now lay in it. ESPN has always been a target of mine, but I have to say the 30 for 30 series has been spectacular. 

    How much money did the marketing company that created that NAPA commercial (you know it if you watched the tourney at all) get paid? Whatever it was, they were paid too much. That is the worst commercial I've seen in while---how did they decide who was going to be the customer who sings alongside the quasi-country singer behind the counter? Did they have a casting call for a Mario lookalike who could smile and mouth words? More importantly, how much was that guy paid? 

    No more talk about how the Big East is tough. I don't believe it. 

    Not sure where I stand on Libya. Part of me feels that we should have done it sooner. It's not like we were waiting for France and the UK to join us. They were waiting for us. Now the "action" is going to take much longer. Granted, the President probably wanted the rebels to do it themselves, but anyone paying attention knew that Qaddafi's superior firepower would overwhelm the rebels eventually. Do we know who we are dealing with on the rebels' side? Are we ousting a dictator to replace him with a group of people who want to implement sharia law and create wahhabi-sect schools (like Saudi Arabia, our friends...hmm)? I guess that is unfair of me to assume the worst. In the end I want the money we are spending to be worthwhile. If we are going to remove him (and I don't know how you can't at this point, he won't willingly step down), I hope those who take over recognize what the West did here. We tend to take a lot of heat in the Middle East (and...sadly...most of it is justified), but in this case I believe we are a force for good and I hope that is acknowledged by the people of Libya. 

The most efficient practice

   Everyone knows I am in love with efficiency. No, I'm not Fredrick Taylor, but I do love the idea of being efficient at all times (great reference by the way). In fact, I've toyed with a book titled The Efficiency Doctrine in which I give guidelines on how to be more efficient (only watch the last five minutes of an NBA game, one line e-mails, etc.). The idea has been on hold ever since my wife and I had a son (who just turned two), but recently I came upon what I consider the most efficient activity I have ever engaged in: books on CD. Now I am able to get to the books I haven't found the time to read and I'm doing it while driving. Usually I commute with my wife and child to work, but with tennis season in full force I've had to drive alone. There is nothing more efficient than using that time to listen to a book I've wanted to read. I love books on CD! They are quasi-performances just for the listener.

  With that said, I'm now concerned that I won't receive credit for reading books if I listen to them on CD. Can I claim I've read the book if I've listened to it? Can I, at a dinner conversation, claim I've read Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison if I listened to the last half on CD (especially if one of the attendees happens to be a frequent Barnes & Noble visitor who makes remarks such as, "Hey, they have Kafka on the mural here. They don't have Kafka on the mural in Prescott, ha, ha".)? This is a controversy and I'm interested in hearing opinions from my readers (all three of you).

Friday video

   With the NCAA Tournament now upon us, I figured it was fitting to post a coaches rant from a few years back. I think this guy is angry.

NCAA Tournament

    Well, I'm glad I didn't put any money down on my bracket. Like a fool, I believed in Rick Pitino and his tough minded Louisville squad. With images of their upset of ND in the Big East Tournament still fresh in my mind I picked them to go to the Final Four. Is it me, or is the Big East overrated? ESPN tends to show a lot of the Big East and thus all you hear about is the Big East (the same thing happened a few years ago in college football when they praised the Big 12 countless times), but St. Johns got dominated by a 'Zags team that is nothing special and the Cardinals looked mediocre against Morehead State. I know that's only two teams out of the 75 that make up the Big East, but still, I expected better. Of course, this begs to question how I feel about ND's chances in the tourney. I picked them to go to the Elite Eight, but now I believe a loss to Purdue is more likely. Then again, what do I know? I have only watched a handful of college games this year and can't name the starting five on my favorite team. I love the tourney, but I must admit that I am no longer a college basketball fan. I consider myself a college basketball casual observer. Go ND. 

The disappearance of...

     I don't want to be one of those bloggers who wastes your time with senseless ramblings about the mundane (such as: "today I realized that I like vanilla soymilk better than chocolate soymilk and to prove my point I will offer a five reasons" or "yesterday I was playing with my dog. She's so cute when she..."), but I feel I must share with you the discovery I made yesterday. My copy of NBA Jam Tournament Edition for the SNES is missing. This is a troubling development. It is the only game I play on that oldie, but goodie of a system and although I play it once every six months I like the idea of having it around. Of course, now that I can't find the game it's all I want to do. I would even play with Eric Montross or Dino Radja! Ya, that particular game had a rookie team and those two gems were on the team. Now you understand why I am devastated.  Apparently I can download it (for a fee), but it's not the same. I've never wanted to blow a 12 point lead in 35 seconds (thanks to the ridiculously unfair computer) this much in my life.

An oldie, but a goodie

     This YouTube video is several years old, but I can't help but laugh when I watch it. During the stretch run of the 2008 election Matt Damon gets all riled up considering the possibility of Palin becoming President. It's a mini-rant and it is memorable. The best part is when he says he wants to know if Palin really believes that dinosaurs were here 4,000 years ago. Pot shots at fundamentalist Christians never get old. Here's my Friday selection...

Go Bulls

     Regular season games usually do not get me excited, but I must say I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the Bulls beating the Heat tonight. There's nothing like watching LeBron trying to break the backboard with 16 seconds left and a chance to tie. Way to go Bosh. 1/18 buddy. Let's get to the playoffs right now!

Not surprised, but disappointed

   I've got to get used staying on top of things. This past Saturday the U.S. House of Representatives decided to cut 61 billion dollars from the budget. Although the cuts were short-sighted and nothing more than a blatant attempt to appease the Tea Partiers, that is not my concern here. I am writing to inform you that late Saturday night the GOP inserted an amendment in the legislation that stripped the EPA from halting Mountaintop Removal, even if their decision to do so is predicated on scientific findings. This upsets me beyond belief and I let my representative Paul Gosar hear about it (he voted for it). The utter stupidity of such an act would be more disappointing if I didn't consider who voted for it. In other words, I'm not surprised by the idiocy. For those of you who have no idea about Mountaintop Removal here is Representative Yarmuth from Kentucky explaining what happens when such mining is permitted. Let's stop this short-sighted tomfoolery right now, before it's too late!

Friday Fun

   I read Tom Ricks' blog and I notice that he always posts pictures and biographies of Army dogs on Fridays. Personally, I think it is a lazy way to take three days off instead of the customary two, but because I don't get paid for this blog I am going to adopt the same method. The difference is, I am just going to post favorite YouTube videos every Friday. Here is a blast from the past for all you sports fans. I remember when this happened and at the time I was a Rome fan. I guess I still am, but I must admit it is fun to watch Everett tip the table over and come after Rome. Hey, he warned him.

Watson

    Although I had a feeling Watson's victory was inevitable, count me as a person who was upset that humanity got drubbed by a computer in Jeopardy. It wasn't even close. As someone who is still amazed by Ipods, you can only imagine how awestruck I am of our (our meaning humans) ability to create something much smarter than us, when it comes to knowing facts. Is it me, or does it seem like T2 and I-Robot don't seem that far off anymore? That may be hyperbolic, but I am curious about what happens when we do create self-aware machines. According to an NPR story they are currently being developed. Interesting.

Egypt

     Congratulations people of Egypt. What a victory! Now, there is much work to be done, but the next few days should be filled with celebrations. History was made yesterday. A potential radical shift (it remains to be seen if other dictators will leave office in that region) just took place. Many in the United States are concerned about "instability" in the region, which is the code word for "people who won't do what we want", and the prospect of Taliban-like democratically elected leaders is certainly frightening, but I believe that will not happen in Egypt. I also believe that attitudes towards the U.S. will not change in the Middle East until we live up to the ideals we espouse. Why would we expect the Egyptian people to like us? We just propped up their dictator for 30+ years. Our steadfast support of Israel is another major issue, but I don't see that stance changing any time soon and that is a topic for another day. What we stand for and what we do worldwide does not always match. I know it's a complicated world with many enemies, but it bothers me that we are comparable to the preacher who preaches family values then slams a hooker every Friday night in a seedy motel. I could go on and on, but none of it would be worthy of your time and attention. Have a good weekend.

     I have nothing else to say.

U.S. foreign policy tomfoolery

    Does the U.S. government not realize the contradictory nature of their "support" of democracy and their direct assistance to dictators? The fact that some are arguing to still support Mubarak is sickening. How would we feel if we had some foreign entity trying to dictate our leader against the wishes of the populace? What side of history do we want to be on? The side that supports iron-fisted leaders who could care less about their people or the side that reflects the ideals we constantly pat ourselves on the back for promoting (and, supposedly, representing)? Now we have this half-measure, "I won't run the next election" move. It's clear we orchestrated that and, once again, we look like enablers. Do you really feel at this point the protesters, some 200,000 strong today, are going to be placated by such an announcement?

    As I said in a prior blog, the successor is immaterial. We should let the Egyptian people decide. Who do we think we are? I don't believe it will be a radical Islamist. Actually, in many cases democratic movements do not lead to such radicalism. Iran is an exception, not the rule. Power to the people. Stay strong Egyptian protesters.

Cottonwood and Egypt

    Although I don't like Cottonwood, I must say that there are days when it is tolerable. My favorite days are when there are clouds hanging over the Mingus Mountains, shrouding them in darkness and mystery. Don't ask me why, but such an image conjures up thoughts of a fool on the hill, gathering kindling for the day's fire (of course, the Beatles' song accompanies such thoughts). Of course, there is probably no one up there, but I like to think there is. Dreary days are the best.

     I want to express my support for the Egyptian people who are protesting against their dictator (and the same goes for those in other countries as well). Although, being an American, you probably wouldn't want me to join in, I want to say I am with you in spirit. It is high time the people of these countries throw off the shackles of authoritative rule. If that means anti-American leaders are elected than so be it. This contradiction of supporting a dictator then exporting democracy is inane and embarrassing. We have done it all too often. No wonder our credibility is shot in that region. Sure, I understand the concern of a radical Islamist gaining control, but I believe the Egyptians do not want a caliphate. Down with Mubarak.

   

    

Greetings

    I've decided to throw my hat into the ring and say a word or two about a thing or two. I'll work on posting everyday, but I can't promise much. As for the name, it's from a book that I highly recommend. I don't exactly agree with all the character's actions, but I couldn't think of another pseudonym.  See you soon.