Bring Your Gun to DInner

The NY Times headline reads, "More States Allowing Guns in Bars and Restaurants." I have to think this would lead to more accidents. Booze and guns seem like a bad combination, no?

6 Year-Old Kid and Balloon

Is this for real? A 6 year-old kid is thought to be in a runaway balloon, only to be found in the attic? Meanwhile, the media eat this garbage up all day? Yet again, the so-called "news" continues to amaze. What a waste of resources.

And who owns a balloon large enough to have a kid hide in it and fly away in the first place?

Shooting Down a Satellite

Apparently one of our old satellites is about to drop down into the atmosphere, and so to protect our interests (and our people?) the US Government as decided that the best thing to do is shoot this thing down with a $10M missile.

My first reaction to this news is surprise that we have the accuracy to hit a satellite with a missile. Apparently there is a "10 second window" that they will have to make the right shot.

My next reaction is wonder. If a satellite falling to the earth is dangerous as debris, what happens if we miss the satellite? Then the missile gets detonated high above and the satellite falls? Can the missile miss and hit something else? Is the satellite debris dangerous too?

My final reaction is cynical. Are we really doing this to protect our secrets and prevent damage, or are we just doing this for posturing and to show off to the rest of the world that we can shoot down satellites because we're the USA. On the one hand this seems like an expensive way to do this. On the other, it's pretty cheap compared to starting a war.

A Noun, a Verb and 9/11

Nice line from Senator Biden...


John McCain - can lines like this earn him a comeback?

Mariska Hargitay Gets Benefits from the Police?

In a curious article, Mariska Hargitay says she can't seem to get away from Law and Order. Why do I find this article so curious? Well, first of all, how does this little anecdote justify an article? After all, Law and Order:SVU has been on the USA Network nearly 24/7 for years, and the fact that a celebrity gets recognized while she's on vacation hardly seems like news. Second, it checks in at 191 words, which seems incredibly short even for CNN.com.

Also, it seems silly for there to be a 34 word summary at the top of the article.

Finally, Hargitay notes that cops have been "very patient" with her. Why would they need to be patient with her? Why is she getting stopped so often? Doesn't anyone else find this surprising?

Oddly enough, while I'm writing this, it's the #8 article under CNN.com's "Most Popular" section.

Rudy's for the Sox

I couldn't believe it when I saw it: Rudy Giuliani is rooting for the Red Sox in the World Series. Here's his explanation (and impressively, it has nothing to do with being in a post-9/11 world).

“I will be rooting for the Red Sox because I’m an American League fan, and my tradition has been to root for the American League team, particularly if it’s a team that beats the Yankees. And in this case, you won the division and we lost. Somehow it makes me feel better if the team that was ahead of the Yankees wins the World Series, because then I feel like, well, we’re not that bad.”

Talk about a load of horse dung. Maybe it's because the people of good ol' New Hampshire are part of Red Sox Nation? It's amazing since he has often criticized Hillary Clinton supposed Yankee loyalty.

The Daily News reminds us that Giuliani doubted he could ever root for Boston back in July, and that Mrs. Clinton has learned a lesson saying, "Neither of my teams is in, I'm going to be an interested but dispassionate observer."

Finally, I would like to add that I would never pick a President based on which teams a candidate roots for, however in this instance, I get the sense this is another clear example of pandering by Giuliani, a very undesirable trait.

Are we going to war with Iran? (and other thoughts)

A few thoughts:

1) Are we trying to go to war with Iran? New sanctions today? I didn't even realize we traded anything with them! The markets aren't looking so good, the Canadian dollar is worth as much as the US dollar, we're entangled with Iraq and Afghanistan and now we're acting tough towards Iran? It seems like we're nearing a critical point these days where things can go totally south, really fast.

2) Looks like the Red Sox are going to win the World Series. I am completely envious of the Boston sports scene, and the fact that it's the Red Sox / Patriots makes it even worse. With the Red Sox, are they the "new Yankees?" I thought this the other day and then suddenly Bill Rhoden of the NY Times read my mind and wrote a column about it. Unfortunately I never wrote that thought down anywhere and have no proof that it happened first. But think about it - big payroll, recent success, low key manager, fans with unattainable expectations and national popularity... you get the picture.

2a) I never understood Mets fans who root for the Red Sox just to spite Yankees fans.

2b) I have also never understood the recent fad of rooting for the Red Sox because they're the anti-Yankees. That bugs me to no end - if you're going to be anti-mainstream, you can't root for the same team as everyone else!

2c) The Patriots are good, huh? They haven't scored less than 99 points in a game (give or take 70). They rely on a passing attack. The defense seems to allow relatively many points - I'm guessing that it's because they play a "prevent" style most of the time. Hmm. High scoring offense + passing attack = "finesse offense" right? I'd like to make that label stick. I suspect they will adjust to the cold weather well, but I think that might be their only challenge to going undefeated.

2d) Thinking about it the other day - it obviously pains me that the Red Sox are in the World Series and incredibly hot against Cleveland, the same team that shut down the Yankees. First, because I think the Yanks had a good shot at actually beating Boston, and second because it looks like they're on their way to another hot streak + title a la 2004. Here's hoping David Ortiz boots a few ground balls and Kevin Youkilis gets lost in the outfield while playing at Coors.

2e) You'd never realize the Yankee facial hair rule until you watch Boston on a regular basis. Even a hardcore fan has to admit that the Red Sox have their own roving police lineup. Goatees are the "official facial hair" of the Sox: Kevin Youkilis, Jason Varitek, Mike Lowell, Josh Beckett, Eric Gagne, Eric Hinske and JD Drew are all among the white dudes with goatees.

2f) I don't mind the Yankees being knocked out and the Jets stinking so much but the Knicks just add insult to injury. I have to admit, however, that last season was really entertaining off the court. I hadn't followed the Knicks so closely in years!

2g) Will the next Jets / Miami game be for the #1 pick overall? I suppose that's a bit of a stretch right now, but it could be. The Jets have actually been surprisingly close in every game. That sort of makes the misery worse.

3) Joe Torre got fired. Well, actually, he didn't get re-hired. Sort of a crummy way to end it all, huh? Too bad, I think it would have been nice to part ways with him on good terms!

4) Back to politics: a few words on the Presidential contenders...

4a) Rudy Giuliani - Can this guy go one minute without mentioning 9/11? Can he go 30 seconds without mentioning either 9/11 or Hillary Clinton?

4b) Mitt Romney - Just seems like such a businessman. The funny thing with him is he's changed positions on social issues as much as Giuliani (see: gun control) but for some reason he gets more flack for it (see: not involved with 9/11).

4c) Fred Thompson - That didn't last long, huh?

4d) John McCain - He goes to Bob Jones University after criticizing it, then says that Mitt Romney changes his mind too much. Once a maverick, now part of the establishment.

4e) Mike Huckabee - He seems like a nice person who I don't agree with very much. But he also lost a ton of weight, which has to be commended.

4f) John Edwards - Trying to offer a more liberal viewpoint than Obama or Clinton and comes up pretty flat. I think the group of people that were inspired by him back in '04 are now lined up behind Obama. My lasting memory of him is when he awkwardly mentioned Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter back in the 2004 VP debates.

4g) Joe Biden - I wonder why his campaign hasn't gained as much traction. He's always on the Sunday AM talk shows and has a ton of experience. It must be because he talks too much.

4h) Bill Richardson - Summary of his campaign: he said on Meet the Press that he roots for both the Red Sox and Yankees. Some would say Hillary did the same thing in her hypothetical "rooting for both sides" if the Cubs and Yankees made the World Series. Can someone tell politicians that nobody cares what teams they root for as long as they just stick to one? Rudy is a Yankees fan and I don't think it will cost him any Massachusetts votes.

4i) Barack Obama - I think this guy could actually bring some ideas to the table and take action if he got elected. At this point, however, seems more style over substance.

4j) Hillary Clinton - She's come a long way, but some people just absolutely hate her. Why? It's true, she doesn't seem like a very nice person, but most of these candidates don't. From what it seems like, she is one of the hardest working candidates in that she is always preparing and rehearsing and never makes a mistake while in a public appearance. As it turns out, back in 1993 she didn't shy away from introducing some pretty radical legislation. If you think about it, that sort of change rarely happens any more. My only fear is that the Republicans seem so eager to use her as a target, and that if she becomes the nominee, all the hate directed towards her will lead to another Republican President.

5) On flip-flopping. It's noted as such a negative, but people change their minds all the time - especially on non-moral issues. Consider that the popularity of the Iraq war has completely changed since it started. Does that mean most of the US public has flip-flopped on this issue? Or have we just received more information? Why is there a double standard for our leaders changing their minds? In fact, I would suggest that the best leaders do change their minds when confronted with overwhelming evidence against their original position.

6) While we're talking about the Presidency... Everyone says, "Whoever wins Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina will be a force to contend with." Why is this? The populations of these states are tiny and don't necessarily represent microcosms of the US in terms of opinions or priorities. Then with the primaries - all the jockeying for position on the political calendar is ridiculous. It's really pathetic how states like Michigan and Florida trying to move their primaries up so they can become relevant and reap the benefits of campaign dollars.

7) Fox News: I've watched about five minutes of it in the last week and can't stand it. Bill O'Reilly had a Democratic strategist on last night and they were talking about the California fires. O'Reilly was upset Democrats in Congress were trying to use Iraq as a reason that there was not enough National Guard support. He says, "I'm no expert, but there's enough support for the firefighters." Wait - if he's no expert, then how does he know if there's enough support? Then a week ago, Hannity and Colmes had family members of murder victims on and they were talking about how the convicted murderer needed a bone marrow transplant and how it was preposterous that the state would pay for his transplant and medical care (roughly $300,000). So instead we let him die in prison? At best, that's euthanasia and at worst that's cruel and uncivilized.

8) Full circle here. Would we actually attack Iran to prevent them from getting nuclear weapons? That seems a little scary to me. By the way, what do Osama bin Laden, nuclear weapons and military dictatorship have in common? They're all in Pakistan! Yay!

In the News...

Since there is not a lot of new programming on television in the summertime, I have been watching news and sports programming. Here are some of the more ridiculous stories I have seen. Some credit must go to the Daily Show and Colbert Report as well.

Florida State Representative Bob Allen was arrested for offering oral sex to a police department. Why was Allen do it? He was scared the undercover cop (an African-American) was going to hurt him! Nice alibi.

Moving over to the Garden State - poor Miss New Jersey. Someone was trying to blackmail her with photos from her facebook account. Who would do such a thing? Maybe, Miss New Jersey, you shouldn't have posted photos of you making out with all these random dudes. Check out the clip from Today. It's hilarious. How does Matt Lauer keep a straight face through the interview? Especially when she shows the photo of her boyfriend with his mouth over her (fully clothed) breast and says, "Oh but he's VERY intelligent."

In Iowa, Mitt Romney committed a faux pax when he was asked about how his sons would serve the war on terror. How can they help? By traveling around the country and supporting their father's bid for Presidency. What a sacrifice!

Over in Thailand, police officers who break the rules must wear a pink Hello Kitty armband for shame and punishment. Is this to encourage petty crooks to snicker at the cops trying to arrest them? I'm imagining a Thai police officer trying to arrest this teenager for graffiti and having difficulty because the kid is just cracking up.

Finally, Bill O'Reilly has been comparing the website dailykos.com to the Nazi party and the KKK. Since the website has people post comments on it that, for example, suggest that some individuals in the Bush Administration would be better off dead, he feels the hate is similar to that displayed on Nazi websites. Seems a little far-fetched to me. You can decide for yourself.

I must say, watching the news lately has been more entertaining than "Who Wants to be a Super Hero?"

Two items

The blog is due for a massive update - almost no updates in June so far. I do have a ton of Yankee updates. Before this, I can't let these two brief stories pass by.

First item
As seen on the Daily Show, Barack Obama ringtones. Ringtones?? Yes, they are soundbytes of Obama speeches mixed to techno music!

Second item
Larry King had the Beatles on the other night and called Ringo "George."

I saw the original article on Rollingstone.com, but here is the transcript as well.

KING: Where were you when — when John passed?
MCCARTNEY: When John passed I was in Sussex, at my home in Sussex. That’s where I was.
KING: Did somebody call you?
MCCARTNEY: Yes, my manager at the time called me. And it was just the shock of all shocks, you know?
KING: George, where were you?
MCCARTNEY: George!
KING: Ringo.
MCCARTNEY: No, this is Ringo here.
KING: Ringo, where were you?
STARR: I was in the Bahamas.
KING: I was getting to (INAUDIBLE) George.
STARR: I was…
MCCARTNEY: No, you weren’t, Larry. You said his name wrong.
STARR: Shut up, it’s my turn.
MCCARTNEY: I know, but he got your name wrong, Ringo, on national television.
STARR: I know. Give him a break.
MCCARTNEY: We can’t cut it. It’s live.
STARR: Anyway, I was in the Bahamas and the kids called and they said we’ve heard something, like John has been hurt.

Dollar Coins

As if the US wasn't trying to confuse foreign tourists enough with the 50 state quarters, now we get to add another variation on the dollar coin to our currency mix. Instead of Sacagawea, now 4 dollar coins per year will feature Presidents of the United States on the back. Sounds great, right? Makes you want to start using dollar coins, doesn't it? Interestingly the last President planned for this program is Richard Nixon. Why stop at Nixon? Aren't Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton worthy of this program as well? If Watergate isn't enough to prevent you from having a dollar coin, what is? Also, by the time their quarters would be available it will be 2016, 30 years since Reagan was in office. That should be enough time, right? Another fun fact, Grover Cleveland will get 2 coins for his 2 nonconsecutive terms. I don't know if I can wait until 2014 to get my Warren Harding coins!