Change Is Coming--Be afraid. Be very afraid

If only this didn't turn out to be an ad for Ralph Nader, it would be freaking perfect.

Double Standard?

I just read that a Catholic priest in India was beaten to death by Hindu extremists.

It goes without saying that if a Hindu priest in the United States had been beaten to death by Catholics, this would have been front page news.

31 Years After His Death, Elvis Makes More Money in 12 Months Than You'll Make In a Lifetime (especially if you keep voting Republican or Democrat)

How awesome is/was Elvis Presley?

The guy has been dead for 31 years, but he still earned 12 million more than Madonna and 8 million more than Justin Timberlake did this year.













Goddamn, was he cool or what?

The Gipsy Kings--Hotel California

Well, if I'm going to post one Spanish language song (see below post), then I have to post my favorite.

You'll recognize it as a cover of the Eagles' "Hotel California."

You'll also notice that it's better.

Way better.

Antonio Banderas and Los Lobos - Cancion del Mariachi

Terrible movie, no matter how hot Salma Hayek is in it. However, this song almost redeems the whole thing.

College Sports

I played football from 4th grade through 12th grade, and I'm now on my 10th year as a coach (9 for pay+my first year as a volunteer). I have two fantasy football teams, and every Sunday (all day) and Monday (night) I am either glued to the television or at least close enough that I can hear what's going on in the NFL.

For this reason, many people are surprised to hear that I hate college football.

However, if you consider the fact that most of the people playing football on the top college teams probably don't even qualify for college, then you might understand why.

I don't care that college football brings a lot of money into the system. College is about higher learning.

Were it the case that colleges could only play students who actually qualified for their schools according to academic standards, then I would acquiesce on this point. However, listen to any post-game interview for the major universities, and you'll get my point.

The same is true for basketball, though I don't really follow the NBA.

Colleges that wish to excel in sports should have players equal to the colleges' reputations. That's why I don't follow the University of Michigan's sports teams. The UM passes itself off as a great learning institution, but its athletes do not usually reflect that.

If You Have Nothing Nice to Say...

According to professor William Schenck-Hamlin, "The use of negative political ads has increased dramatically over the last 25 years."

Many people have noticed that this election has an awful lot of negative advertising.

Allow me to submit a reason: the candidates suck.

In social situations, if you haven't anything nice to say then the rule is to say nothing at all. However, in politics, if there's nothing nice to say about yourself, then you need to say something bad about your opponent.

Essentially, each candidate is saying that if even if you think of him as bad, the other guy is worse, and bad is preferable to worse.

Hmm. Any wonder why we end up with so many bad presidents?

The Strangers Assessment

In a word, The Strangers was, at best, decent.

It offered nothing truly original. In many ways it wasn't much different than the movie Vacant, which appeared in theaters a year earlier.

At least it did not rely upon gore.

We'll see about that when the inevitable sequel comes about.

It started out good with a fine conflict, but there is something lacking to make the resolution important. Mostly, it just wasn't original enough.

The Strangers

I'm sitting down now to watch The Strangers. It's of the horror/suspense genre, of which I am quite affectionate.

If it is good or not, I will report.

Rob Lowe is (partially) Deaf? OMG!

I just read in a blurb-ish article posted at msn.com that actor Rob Lowe is deaf in one ear, possibly by the mumps, which he suffered from as a child (being born three years after the vaccine was invented).

People must care about this ridiculous "factoid," otherwise msn.com wouldn't have posted it on its homepage.

That's why people aren't terribly impressive.

Beethoven was deaf in both ears, and despite his miserable childhood and tragic adulthood managed to compose the single most beautiful and inspiring masterpiece of all time: his Ninth Symphony--specifically the "Ode to Joy" chorus.

Now that's impressive--that a completely deaf man can compose the finest music ever in the history of mankind.

Who in the hell cares that a man can act (badly) while being only partially deaf?

Ooh, I know! The same morons who will vote either for Barack Obama or John McCain.



Be honest--wasn't that an awesome turn of point?

Funny story:

When I was in high school, I worked at a video store. One day, a gruffly, bearded man walked in, picked out a movie, and approached me at the counter for the rental.

He gave me his membership card, and it came up as under a woman's name. I asked him for his name, and he said, "Rob." I looked at the screen and saw that "Rob" had permission to rent on the account, so I took his money and gave him the movie.

As he left, I looked to my right, and our assistant manager--I'll call her "Carrie" since that was her name--was reeling back and patting her chest. As "Rob" left the building, I asked "Carrie" what was wrong.

"Do you know who that was?" she said.

"Uh, Rob, I guess," I answered.

"Yeah, Rob Lowe," she fired back.

"No way," I said--though I quickly brought up the account, only to find that "Rob" was a permitted renter for a woman (whose first name I cannot recall) had the last name of Lowe.

"Holy *expletive*," I said.

And that's the story.

I never said it was interesting.

I also rented movies to Randy Johnson, Nate McMillan, James Doohan, and this guy named Karl who always rented porn.

Heresy

A Christian who acts outside of biblical axioms is a heretic.

An American who acts outside of constitutional axioms is a republican or a democrat.

Listen, folks. We don't need to burn them at the stake. We just need to form a new party to stop them.

Know that men such as McCain and Obama can cite scripture for their own purpose (as Shakespeare said of the Devil in The Merchant of Venice).

Listen to what both men said in their debates. Can you doubt that they would rather rule in Hell than serve in Heaven?

Economic Stimulus

If congress can actually improve the economy with a stimulus package, then why shouldn't it pass a stimulus package every year, month, week, or day?

The answer, of course, is that congress cannot actually improve the economy unless it stands out of the way.

That's right. The best stimulus package is no stimulus package and an unwillingness to meddle in economic matters.

It seems counter-intuitive that doing nothing is in fact doing something, but consider if everything that you do is wrong, then doing nothing is a good idea.

End the Two-Party Madness

The fact that "Joe the Plumber" and "Joe Six-Pack" are issues in this election just goes to show why our system is sick. Indeed, the false two-party system is so sick that it needs to expire. Let both parties die, asphyxiated by their own crap.

What should replace them? If not a party dedicated to the principles of the Constitution, then nothing at all.

I'm sick of being told that if I don't support X, then I support Y. That's a ridiculous and baseless conclusion. Of course if I don't support X then I might support Y, but I might also support Z or A or B or any single or combination of letters ad infinitum.

What bugs me most is that people won't just let go. I am unwilling to bind others to my beliefs, but so many others are willing to use violence against me if I do not step to their time.

Listen to what the republican and democratic candidates for president say they are going to do, and compare it to what the president is actually supposed to do according to the Constitution.

These men are not running for president. They are running for king or for emperor, and if you vote for one of them then you are a traitor who must never say the part of the pledge of allegiance "and to the Republic for which it stands."

Does it not bother anyone else that the founding fathers would look upon our current system with the utmost disdain?

Who put us here? The answer is twofold: 1) The republicans and democrats; 2) The people who elect republicans and democrats.

Alas, how like a classical Greek tragedy is this country?

Link to Article on the "Choice" this November

I found the link to this article on the "choice" between Obama and McCain at Free Advice.

I'm not trying to copy your stuff, Bob, but it's too good for me not to post.

Choices Schmoices

As a reply to a comment made on a previous post, I was very crass in my treatment of an argument made by someone calling himself "aconservativeteacher."

At the time, I thought that aconservativeteacher was my good friend, bar, who was commenting under another name. I believed that bar was trying to get my goat by making an argument that he knows irritates me.

Bar has since denied having made the comment, and that left me wondering who it was and realizing that it was probably sincere--which would cast my reply in a bad light (you see, I thought that I was being toyed around with).

Thinking about it, I'm pretty sure that I know who aconservativeteacher is, and I am also pretty sure that he was sincere. This leaves me with some explaining to do.

The question should not be Will A be a better president than B? The question should be Will A make a good president?

If A will make a good president, then A should be president.

Another way to look at it is this:

If A will not make a good president, then A should not be president.

Let's allow A to represent John McCain.

If John McCain will not make a good president, then John McCain should not be president.
John McCain will not make a good president.
Therefore, John McCain should not be president.

What aconservativeteacher has offered us is a false dilemma. A dilemma is an argument pitting an A against a B in an either-or proposition.

Something like "Either John McCain or Barack Obama can be president. Whoever is better should be president. McCain is better. Therefore, McCain should be president."

The reason this dilemma is false is because there are other candidates running for the same office. Someone else can be elected. Of course there is a historical likelihood that either McCain or Obama will be president, but that' s only because so many people--like aconservativeteacher--are convinced that the two-party system is somehow carved in stone.

It's not coarved in stone. It's a myth, and a highly destructive one at that, for it has saddled us with poor policies and poor leadership for well over a century. aconservativeteacher argues that Obama is the equivalent to Hitler. Now I don't like Obama at all, but that comparison is quite ludicrous. However, I'll use aconservativeteacher's own exaggeration to reduce his argument to absurdity.

A vote for John McCain is a vote for Benito Mussolini.

OK, aconservativeteacher, it's your turn. You know well that both Hitler and Mussolini were tyrants. However, according to your implied position, you're going to vote for Mussolini because he's less of a tyrant than Hitler.

The thing is, we don't merely have to choose between German National Socialism and Italian Fascism. There are other options. Even if there were no other options, could you really lend your moral support to the fascists?

For my part, I will support neither Hitler nor Mussolini. If it means that I am boarded up in my moral castle, then from there I will make my stand. At least I will have no blood on my hands. I am responsible to my conscience, so I must preserve it at all costs, no matter how un-pragmatic that may be on a political level.

Mark LaRusso

Only two hours ago, I was sitting comfortably in my family room, reclining on one of our new-used chairs, and thoroughly engrossed in Casino Royale. Suddenly--just after Bond destroyed an embassy in Madagascar--Natalie (age 8) came bursting through the front door to tell me that Mark (age 5) had just kicked a neighbor boy, Michael (also age 5), and Michael was crying.

Oh Jeez, I thought to myself. Perhaps the Karate lessons weren't such a good idea.



I quickly went out side, and across the street two houses down. There sat Mark on the lawn, surrounded by several other neighbor children. He looked upset (like a boy who knew he was in trouble should look). Michael was nearby, clutching his left humerus and wearing a painful look.

I told Mark to go home and wait for me on the living room couch. He looked scared, but he obeyed. Next, I asked Michael if he was OK. Michael said that he was OK, but that Mark had kicked him in the arm and in the face. I told Michael that I was very sorry and that I would take care of it.

Before going home, I asked the eldest two of the kids present if they'd come with me for a minute. I asked both what had happened, and who had started it.

Both answered that Michael had taken Mark's hat, tackled, and hit Mark when he (Mark) had tried to recover his hat. That's when Mark kicked Michael once in the arm and once in the face.

I went inside and asked Mark what happened, and he told the same story.

Having the story confirmed as such, I did not think that any punishment was due to Mark beyond having him stay inside for the rest of the evening. Anyone who disagrees must think that Daniel san should have just let Johnny and the rest of the Cobra Kai have their way.

I did, however, explain that it would have been better for him to have come home and gotten me rather than duke it out. However, part of me wanted to tell him "Good job" because, man, I hate bullies--and I love when they get their due.

Not a Reason to Vote

How about that pro-Obama commercial in which people say why their going to vote?

There's the one where the person says something like, "I'm registering to vote because I make less than two gallons of gas an hour." Another says something like, "I'm registering because it cost more to fill up my tank than my mom makes in a day."

My question: What in the heck does the president have to do with this?

You're going to vote simply because a candidate promises you more money? That's essentially what this advertisement suggests that you should do.

Using the coercive powers of government to line your pockets (which won't happen anyway) is the same as pointing a gun at a stranger in the alley and saying, "Your money or your life."

My Vote 2008

I have decided not to vote for president. My reason is simple and just: no one running is good for the job--and yes, I've looked at third party candidates.

Bob Barr sounds pretty good, but I cannot forget things that he's said and done in the past.

On the bright side, I can honestly tell people that I have no part whatsoever in the crap to come.

On the darker side, there are millions of people who are more than willing to saddle me with their crappy president.

Patrick Henry on the Current Coup by the Federal Government (Sorta)

Newton's law--Every action as an equal and opposite reaction.

Right?

Now reason: For every power granted to or assumed by the state, the people are less that same amount of liberty.

And now a few words from Patrick Henry:

"[I]t is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and, having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst, and to provide for it. I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past."

Now consider how much power the federal government has assumed, but not just since the Civil War, New Deal, or Great Society. I mean in the past eight years. Hell, try the past four weeks.

Patrick Henry:

"In vain, after these things, may we indulge the fond hope of peace and reconciliation. There is no longer any room for hope. If we wish to be free-- if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending--if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained--we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!"

It's not the time for a physical fight, and God willing it won't come to that. However, there are other meanings to the word.

Patrick Henry:

"They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed. . . . Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave."

If you ask me, it's getting pretty near the time either to learn the goose step, hide in an attic, or prepare for le resistance.

Why the French? It's simple. We've surrendered our republic to the national socialists.

I'm Agitated

All this talk of the bailout bill granting new powers to the Executive Branch has me really upset. Why am I the only one pointing out that a simple bill from Congress cannot create new executive powers.

Only a constitutional amendment can do this.

This usurpation of authority is the stuff of which rebellions are born. I mean, it's really getting on my nerves--to the extent that my thoughts nowadays aren't so much about how the government must be changed, but how it must be brought down. I don't just wish to see certain men defeated in elections. I want them brought up on charges of tyranny and treason.

The thing is, I don't wish to be the kind of guy who wants to "bring it all down." I want peace. I want a constitutionally limited government that is true to its charter: to protect the life, liberty, and property of each and every citizen.

I curse the men who have brought us here, and I despise the voters who have put those men in power.

It's time to be angry. It's time to be afraid.

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

Once they start jamming the chorus, check out the long-haired dude on the left. Cobain?

The Onion News Network: Most Children Oppose Child Healthcare

The Onion News Network: Kidney Donations