How quickly they forget...or a zealot is a zealot

The murder of the British soldier was horrible and those sick bastards should suffer.  I read a bunch of interesting comments about how this somehow proved that Muslims were violent and horrible people, despite denunciations by 99.9% of Muslims.  The irony is that those same people making those claims didn't assert that Christianity/Catholics were inherently violent and evil when the IRA was targeting British soldiers and killing them in acts of terrorism just a few years ago.

A short memory?  Hypocrisy? Racism? You pick.

I thought the right wingers loved guns...oh I see the difference now

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/23/justice/florida-zimmerman-defense/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

So, the Right Wing who loves guns and shooting the Trayvon Martin, now is trying to paint him as a thug b/c he sent texts about guns?  Wait a minute, I thought they loved guns and everyone should own them.  OH I get it...they don't want black people to have guns.  That's really what it boils down to isn't it.

He might have smoked some pot, so this is some sort of proof that he should be dead?  Most Americans have smoked pot and many own guns, so they should be shot?  Deserve to be shot?  read the comments.

Of course Zimmerman had a bloody nose, he followed a guy and attacked him and that guy fought back.  Zimmerman's intent to engage was clear from the 911 calls, despite being asked not to engage.  If someone chased after you and attacked you, you're going to defend yourself.  How is the aggressor allowed to claim he stood his ground (which I understand he's not going to claim now), it was Trayvon that stood his ground after being engaged and attacked.

And as for why releasing texts about him talking about guns is supposed to paint him in a bad light when the Republicans and the NRA who really want to see Zimmerman get away with murder last week were doing everything they could to celebrate guns and make it really easy for people to get them...typical Right Wing Hypocrisy.  The only thing more pathetic is the racism inherent in their hypocrisy.

Senator Rob Portman is NOT a hero, he's a selfish jerk

The media seems to be loving Senator Portman for his change of heart like he's now some enlightened thinker.  HE'S NOT.  He's a selfish clown.  He had NO concern for the rights of gays until it impacted his family which seems to be the way that most Republicans come to support any sort of gay rights (Looking at you Dick Cheney)...only when their son or daughter comes out.  Portman's "Change of heart" is a good thing, but his reason's a selfish.  Not because it's the right thing to do, not because he empathizes with those who are different than him.  He now supports marriage rights only because it impacts him directly.  That's not courageous that is simple selfishness.

I'd much rather have politicians that ran this country not from their own narrow point of view and for what benefits them, but for what is right for America and the world and human beings.

Go Buy this Album

When I lived in Boston back in the early 90s one of my favorite bands was a band called Tribe.  Loved them.  Loved the sound.  I loved the two women in the band.

A few weeks ago, my wife told me about this song she heard. I listened once and it took me back to Boston.   Loved the song and I bought the CD, yes CD (which then was added to my Cloud Storage on Amazon along with another 1000 songs I bought in CD form from Amazon.com since 1999 via their AutoRip feature which is freaking AWESOME)

Here's the song I heard:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9blpg5NknU



http://www.twofiftyfour.net/

Why "The Mindy Project" annoys me

I think Mindy Kaling is very funny.  Talented. Smart.  So it's with disappointment that she has made her character on The Mindy Project so lame.  It hit me in the episode where she deals with her best friend's child and she's completely clueless about children and doesn't even really like them.  SHE"S AN OBSTETRICIAN for God's sake.  She delivers babies, but she doesn't like kids?  Lately she's become more and more silly and ridiculous with her relationships with men.  She acts like a 19 year old idiot but she's been to Medical School.  I'm not sure if she's trying to channel some kind of stupid Ally McBeal lameness, but it's annoying.  Why make such a smart and successful woman look so ridiculous? It is lazy writing and I would expect better from Miss Kaling and crew.  The women she represents deserve better.

And please don't give me this "Go write a better show yourself you overly critical loser".  She's the one who got the show based on her talent and I can bitch about my disappointment without having to write a better show. She's the one wasting her comedic gifts and her fans deserve better.

More to come later on Why I thought the first season of "Friday Night Lights" was filled with every TV plot device every created in 22 episodes.

The problem with the pro-gun folks...

http://www.salon.com/2013/01/29/david_mamet_should_stick_to_writing_plays/

The biggest problem with the pro-gun lobby is that the people speaking the loudest and getting the most press are 1-Crazy as hell 2- misinformed about the reality. 

Aren't there any well-informed, rational people who could make a cogent case for guns?  Granted the case for everyone needing an assault weapon is a tough case to make, but that doesn't have to be the only position they put forth.  

Hand wringing

So, I looked in at Facebook and all kinds of posts about how people are "sick" and holding their kids a little tighter right now, but they'll go back to normal tomorrow.  And it should.  It's a horrible tragedy and one that we all have the most slight chance of ever experiencing.  Everyone will wring their hands and go back to normal, take everything granted.  And that's probably best b/c we can't go around living in fear, seeing a crazed killer around every corner.

It was interesting that I just read Malcolm Gladwell's book "tipping point" where he talks about mass shootings occurring in waves.  I have to wonder if this shooter got is "ok" from the sick fuck in Clackamas Oregon a few days ago?

Lots of talk about gun-control or not talking about gun-control, but hell that's not going to stop this kind of stuff.  Have you seen the war on drugs?  That's gone so well.  A war on guns isn't going to fare remotely as well considering the number of legally owned guns in this country and the Constitution.  But NO ONE is mentioning the sorry state of mental health care in this country.  The sick and twisted will always find weapons, why not treat the illness instead of the tools of the crime?  Guns exist, no one is going to ban them or take them away.  But we can treat mental illness more effectively, why not start there?

Media/NFL coverage of KC Linebacker Jovan Belcher

The networks and the players seem to forget that this guy that killed himself was a murderer.  He killed his girlfriend first.  While it's tragic, isn't it MOST tragic that he killed an innocent person.  The girlfriend barely has been mentioned, she's the victim of his violence.  Yet after a 5 minute piece on how horrible it was the Belcher was dead, the announcer finally mentioned the name of the woman he killed.  Sorry, I don't have sympathy for him.  He killed an innocent woman.  I can't weep for him, especially when everyone seems to be ignoring the fact that he was a murderer when he died.

Seems like a lot of my friends on Facebook forgot entirely 2008

Bush 2016

I wonder if the "Jeb Bush 2016" bumper stickers will be available tomorrow.

Romney speech

Solid speech Governor. Feel bad for him a bit, he's been running for 7 years. I would like politicians to heed his advice to overcome partisanship and do the country's business, but from what I've seen already tonight that doesn't seem likely.

If you can win it...steal it

We all know that polling places in cities in Ohio won't have enough ballots, poll workers, while the rich suburbs will have no lines.  I will hand it to the GOP while they steal elections these stories get very little attention from the press (Diebolt machine irregularities anyone) but the GOP propaganda arm at Fox talks about ACORN all the time as if it had ANY impact on actually voting.  The Republicans are so much better at suppressing Democratic voting and way better and crying foul and diverting attention from their illegal activities.  

It is amazing though considering Obama is "the worst President ever"  a "Socialist", A "communist", a "Muslim", an "Atheist", A "blind Adherent of Rev Wright" a "Fascist",  and "incompetent" and has "ruined America" in 4 years that the Republicans couldn't even come up with a guy that good beat such a horrible President in a landslide.  

http://www.wweek.com/portland/blog-29390-department_of_justice_investigating_alleged_ballot_fraud_at_clackamas_county_elections.html

Sources familiar with the incident say their understanding is that the woman filled in a straight Republican ticket on the ballots where preferences had been left blank by voters.

http://www.newsleader.com/article/20121103/NEWS01/311030020/Va-voter-fraud-probe-widens

Companies created or led by Sproul have been paid more than $3 million by the Republican party during this election campaign. Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign paid Sproul’s firm $71,000 late last year for “field consulting.”

My one and only comment on Lance Armstrong...and one more

I posted this little rant on Facebook the other day and I got a ton of Likes and comments:

OK, my one Lance Armstrong post (although I still don't care about cycling and even if you're on "drugs" ...riding a bike 100 miles up the Alps is still a ridiculous feat). Since EVERYONE in cycling was apparently also doing the same drugs was HE really cheating? If cheating is about an uneven playing field (or uneven Peloton...ha Bike Nerds that's for you) or unfair advantage..if EVERYONE is do

ing the same drugs then everyone is equal. Level playing field. No cheating.

OH Yeah, for your clowns who now say you want your money back that you donated to LIVESTRONG...really? Because Lance (and everyone else ) did some PEDs, Cancer is not a problem and it doesn't deserve your money? You DO know the cause you donated to support right? It wasn't Armstrong's beach house, it was to fight Cancer. But hey, you go right ahead and get indignant b/c we all know that now that Lance has been stripped of his glories, that Cancer is not a problem anymore.
And....Scene.

and I followed up with this...

 I didn’t realize the amount of comments my little rant would generate. I guess my Klout score will be going up all while I become an “influencer” on the topic of cycling and maybe PEDs. Just wanted to point out that my rant wasn’t an impassioned defense of Lance, but more of a rant against the world of cycling which seemed obsessed with tearing down its most famous athlete. If you’re 95% of America you can name 1 cyclist, although you might remember Greg LeMond. I’m sure if you’re a fan of the sport and outside the US you may know a lot more. Seems a bit short-sighted even as you try to “clean up” the sport that’s now more famous for busting people for doping than it is for racing. 

But hey, if you’re a fan of sports and PEDs, check out the ESPN 30 for 30 (“9.79*”) on the 1988 Seoul Olympics 100m race and how it might appear all but one or two of those runners were on the juice, I’m looking at you too Carl Lewis.

Another reason that I've given up on baseball

I started losing my love of baseball with a couple of strikes (labor struggles, not Balls and Strikes) that bothered me back in the 80/90’s . Then they started Interleague play and the wildcard. Say all you want about evolution of the game and all that. The part I liked about baseball was the history and tradition. That’s all gone now. (Mr. November doesn’t have the same ring does it?)


Now as Cabrera wins the Triple Crown, something that hasn’t happened in most of our lives, word is that the Triple Crown is meaningless and he isn’t a lock for MVP. WHAT? Trout had a great year, no doubt, but all this talk of “Wins above Replacement”, “Bases per mile against starting left handed pitchers with blond wives” and such. Half the time I don’t even know what these baseball stats abbreviations are in articles I read. Tell me when a high batting average, a HR or an RBI was BAD for a baseball team?

The Triple Crown is an amazing achievement, it’s been 45 years since anyone did it. Ruth’s unbeatable HR record didn’t last that long when Maris broke it.

Saying that the Triple Crown doesn’t matter just because computers have made hits/HR/RBI unimportant is ridiculous. And an insult to Yaz, Frank Robinson, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams and others.



http://deadspin.com/5948944

Smashing Pumpkins New Album

Really digging Smashing Pumpkins new album.  For some context, I really believe that "Gish" and "Siamese Dream" were the highlights for SP.  Never liked the later stuff, just didn't have the edge I wanted.  "Gish" rocked so hard.  Still love that album.

So I heard an interview with Billy Corgan talking about the new album I listened.  He still comes off as a bit of a dick sometimes, and a bit pompous, but he's dealt with a lot of crap over the years, so I'll let some of that go.  Anyway, after the interview I noticed that Spotify had the album so I gave it a listen and I really liked what heard. Especially the first two songs.

Those two songs reminded me of "Gish" so I had to buy it, so off to Amazon I went and bought the CD.  Yes, the actual CD.

Since I received it it's been in my car CD player non-stop.  Now, I don't listen to it all the time, but I"ve probably listened to it 10 times and I like it even more.  The first 5 songs are excellent.  As I mentioned the first two have a early Pumpkins rock quality.  And at times the drumming reminds me of Jimmy Chamberlin's.  Love those first to songs.  Tracks 3 and 4 are a bit more mellow, but I like those a lot too.  Around track 6 it loses me some, but I'm going to give this one 4+ stars and I'd put it alongside Siamese Dream in terms of a SP album that I really enjoy.

Well done Billy.

When Bushed Apologized to Muslims

When Bush Apologized to Muslims...Actually Apologized, used those words..HIMSELF.  Not some tortured bullshit about how "Obama" apologized for "American Values" when a embassy official condemned hate speech (apparently the only American Value that the right-wing actually values, especially when it's aimed toward Muslims, Gay, Unions, women, dark-skinned peoples, etc)

http://www.salon.com/2012/09/13/when_bush_apologized_to_muslims/ 

In 2008, a U.S. sniper shot a Quran in Iraq, causing  an uproar. President Bush expressly apologized. “He apologized for that in the sense that he said that we take it very seriously,” White House press secretary Dana Perino said. “We are concerned about the reaction. We wanted them to know that the president knew that this was wrong.” The sniper was disciplined and the upper echelons of the military put out numerous statements trying to soothe tensions. Nobody accused Bush of “apologizing to al-Qaida.” 

God sends Hurricane to Republican Convention, he must be mad at them.

We all know that God expresses his displeasure with America with Hurricanes.  Therefore it's interesting that during Obama's presidency there haven't been any big hurricanes to hit the US ( I think the one that hit New England/New York last year was the "big one").  What's more interesting that God is sending one directly to the GOP convention.  Their use of God's name while shitting on everything Jesus stood for is probably a big part of it.

Reflections

Yesterday a friend of mine died very unexpectedly and tragically.  Early 40's leaves behind the love of his life and some great kids and countless friends.  As I'm driving around today running some errands his death seems so, I don't know, meaningless.  That's not even the right word.  The thing that gets me is that this is an event that will devastate some people and make others sad, but the world goes on.  The world always goes on.  I feel like the world should change a little even for a moment when someone passes, but it doesn't.  Even though I'm hit pretty hard by this, I still have things I have to do.  I had to go to the store, I had to take my son somewhere.  The world hasn't changed, life is going on.  It makes it seem like life is so small in the grand scheme of things.

But then I get angry reading all of the Facebook posts to his widow.  Nearly every comment is about praying and God granting comfort to her.  Where was God yesterday?  Is this part of "God's plan" to "take" him from the world at this age with so much to live for, to provide for the people who depend on him?  Or was God just looking the other way yesterday and now we expect that God is going to somehow comfort his widow and family NOW?  Why not just let him live?  Why would God step in now?  Maybe those words do give her strength and maybe it will help her get through this, but if God can do that and change her feelings, why not just stop the physical actions and situation that caused his death?

Some more of that new mainstream Republican Party thinking

For a bunch of tough guys, Republicans sure see a lot of scary ghosts around every corner.


http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/23/us/texas-judge-warning/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Remember when Obama was going to take everyone's guns? All he did for guns was enable gun owners to bring loaded weapons into National Parks.


It's this type of paranoid bullshit that leads to militiamen group and terrorism. It sure does drum up support from the fringes though.  The NRA has been scaring you Republicans with this type of bullshit for years and they laugh all the way to the bank. You guys lap this shit up like an Apple Fanboy waiting for the next iPhone.

The Classic "I misspoke" (when I clearly laid out my well thought ideology)

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/20/politics/campaign-wrap/index.html?hpt=hp_t1



I LOVE LOVE LOVE that he now says he "misspoke". Misspoke is when you say of your kid's names instead of the other when asking them to pick up their dirty socks. This was a completely thought out political/medical/religious philosophy, a deeply held belief with no backing in science that he and many of his colleagues in Congress and the Republican party believe. Fortunately, when ridiculous ideas like this see the light of day (outside of press-excluded GOP fundraisers and the backrooms of GOP power) , the are shown for the idiocy and ignorance that pervades this type of God-first thinking, science be damned.

This is today's Republican Party and it's incredibly lame to say he "misspoke". This is mainstream Republican Party Thinking in 2012.