Random Rantings

I've not found any one thing to warrant an entire post so I'm going to toss out a few quick thoughts regarding a few different issues.

"Rafael Paliero has been using ear plugs recently to deal with the boos he's been receiving."

Oh, poor baby. Ya know what? You shouldn't have cheated and then lied about it before congress!

"Peace Mom" to go to Maine to protest the flying of the Blue Angels. Claiming that we should not "worship the 'gods of war.'"

No no, the 'gods of fame' are far better. We should rather have a far less technologically advanced military so that we require more boots on the ground and definitely more casualties. Great idea. Another protester thinking through her emotional knee-jerk feelings!

"Ask Amy" in the Boston herald has recently been using her advice column to spread her own political views and agenda! She received a scalding letter from a man who'd been married for 60 years chastising her for encouraging people to shack up before marriage. She sited imaginary studies that claim there is no difference between the divorce rate of people who do cohabitate prior to nuptials as compared to those who don't (and chose to ignore the people who live together with the intention of marriage who never even make it to the alter). She then said "and based on your view of marriage, I'm sure you are hoping that those who currently are not allowed to enjoy the security of marriage will soon be able to marry each other." She also encouraged a 14 year old girl who thinks that she may be "transsexual" (not homosexual, mind you, transsexual) to read up on it and see if she is indeed a boy trapped in a girls body.

What part of advice does she think means agenda? There is good advice and there is using an "advice column" to promote your own opinion. I understand that a large part of advice is opinion, but there is a difference between advising based on viewpoint and promoting controversial agendas. Especially with the marriage issue. The writer of the letter made no mention for or against homosexual unions, but she saw it as a chance for her to lobby for her own political views.

There's a group of eight people in a London zoo posing as an animal exhibit. There's a sign near them that says "Warning: Humans in their natural environment."

While this may seem innocent and somewhat humorous (or juvenile and stupid) there is a serious message that they are attempting to softly portray. That there is no difference between people and animals. Of course PETA is eating this up (not literally because PETA can only eat things that rhyme with Kung Fu) but this is where evolution has led us. We are no longer any better than the tuna I had on my sandwich today, or the kelp that tuna fed on. If this is true, let's close every hospital because the old and the sick are the first to go for every other species on the planet so that the young and the strong can survive. Sorry Grandma.

Errors in fighting terrorism

I'm sure there are many errors in the war on terror that we all make that we aren't aware of. The right shouts at the left regarding the errors they see and the left returns the favor. Now, I will be shouting at Israel and anyone who supports the PLO or Hamas.

The error that I see is when those of us who are rational believe that the terrorists share our logic and honor.

Israel recently withdrew unilaterally (there's that evil word) from Gaza in the hopes that this gesture of good will would show the Palestinians that they truly desire peace. This means that they decided to leave without actually being promised anything in return. They hope that this first step toward peace would encourage the Palestinians to take a step as well and cease the terrorist attacks in Israel.

Is anyone else laughing?

Palestine is counting the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza as a victory. Palestine is taking credit for the "retreat" of the Israelis! In fact, with a Palestinian election coming up, the two front runners are arguing over which one of them is responsible for the withdrawal!

No, wait, it gets worse!

Hamas is now calling for further attacks until Israel is "erased from the map!"

Here are some good sites for info regarding this.

We saw it in Spain, we are seeing it in Israel. If you react to terrorists like they are people with brains you are only asking for more death and destruction! I would suggest that in the light of the Palestinian response that Israel retake Gaza and any other place they please, but I fear that would cause more trouble than it's worth.

Hey Israel, before you do anything else nice for your neighbors get what they will do for you in writing! And have big friends with baseball bats standing by.

Hey, just my opinion.

Sheehan da Prez have already met

I have discovered new information that has been supported on a few different websites that has infuriated me even further regarding Ms. Sheehan.

She and the President have already met! On the taxpayers dime she and a few other families of soldiers lost in combat were flown to the President so that he could have a private meeting with them. This was not a publicity stunt by President Bush, which is why we have not heard that the "Peace Mom" has already been granted her audience with the leader of the free world!

In fact, many of the reports I read said that she was pleased with their meeting and knew that President Bush really cared. Shortly after their meeting a columnist wrote about her son. That columnist subsequently received an email from Ms Sheehan requesting that the media not write about or mention her son!

What has changed?! Why does this previously private grieving mom suddenly have national attention? Why has she been supplied with people to screen the various news organizations that want to speak with her? Why has she met with CNN, Larry King, and been interviewed by Moveon.org but not with Foxnews or Bill O'Reilly?

So now I add the following questions to my previous one:
(Previous Question)How can the war be a lie and those who died for that lie be a hero?
If Ms. Sheehan has already met with the President, why is she demanding another meeting?
What has changed for Ms. Sheehan that she once was very private not desiring any media attention and now she is shouting her anti-war, anti-Bush opinion from the rooftops?
And a question that perhaps some people have an answer for: If we completely pull out of Iraq now, what will happen to that region? How do we keep that area stable without an active democratic government in Iraq?

Whether the war was ethical or moral or not, have we not made a mess that we need to clean up?

And those questions betray my opinion!

The Yankees and Hoover

It has been reported that "the trio" (That is the Red Sox ownership: John Henry, Tom Werner, and Larry Lucchino) are asking fans to no longer engage in the ever popular "Yankees Suck!" chant. They have gone so far as to request that fans who come to the games wearing those famous black and white tees turn them inside out as Fenway has a family atmosphere.

Our job, therefore, as loyal Red Sox fans is to invent a new chant that let's the Yankees know just how we feel. I've heard a few suggestions. "Ankeesyay Ucksay" and "Yankees Who?" are among my personal favorites.

I hereby challenge you, oh Fenway Faithful, to assist me in this endeavor. I will list a few of my own ideas and I encourage you to list yours. (Please feel free to take part even if you don't know what position Johnny Damon plays, or even if the Sox aren't your favorite team!)

My suggestions:
"Hoover's new model: The Yankees"
"The Yankees are a sub-par team deserving of no accolades!"
"Over-paid, over-rated, and over-the-hill!"
"2004"
"The Yankees inhale"

Cheaters never prosper

But they get into the Hall of Fame? No, I don't think so!

Rafael Palmeiro (First Base, Baltimore Orioles) recently tested positive for steroids. He claimed loud and clear that he never ever did them. Some of you may remember his adamant finger pointing denial during the Senate hearings regarding "performance enhancing drugs" in baseball.

Well, what do ya know, he lied.

I'm a bit late offering my thoughts on this as he has already served his 10 day suspension. (that's right, just a 10 day (not even 10 game) suspension if you are caught cheating!) What sparked this post is Frank Robinson's (Manager, Washington Nationals) recent comments regarding this subject. He said that MLB should wipe Palmeiro's slate clean. Rafael (who was headed to the Hall of Fame) has some incredible stats! 3020 Hits, 569 Home Runs, nearly 2000 Runs Batted In! But now we know he cheated! So what do we do?

First: Kick him out of baseball! What are we telling young up and comers? The current agreement between MLB and the players says that it's ok if you cheat once. You'll get a 10 day suspension. You'll even get you a second chance, if you are caught again it's a 50 day suspension. But if you are caught three times, then you are gone! Why allow even one?! If steroids have "no place in baseball" then anyone who uses them also has no place in baseball!

Second: Expunge all of his records and stats! Frank Robinson asked "Where do you go back, stop and say, 'OK when did he start using steroids?' To eliminate all that, and to get the players attention, you wipe the whole thing out!" Absolutely! Anyone think there are any players considering betting on the game? Or do you think the Black Sox and Pete Rose convinced them otherwise? Same idea! Sure, you can look at Palmeiro's stats and see that from 1989 to 1991 he jumped from 8 home runs to 26! Peaking twice at 47 homers in a single season. None of those stats matter because it's as if he never played!

Third: No chance of getting inducted in Cooperstown! This goes without saying if the second suggestion is carried out. However, many people say, "Well, his numbers are good enough to get him in. And there are probably people already in the Hall of Fame who did steroids so why should we keep him out?" Um, because he was caught! The people who suggest that he should be allowed to be honored for cheating say that there should be an "asterisk" by his name saying that he was caught using steroids. What, are you gonna give the steroid users their own wing? "And over here we have the Barry Bonds wing. You may notice it's shaped like a syringe. In this wing we honor all of the cheaters from the "Steroids Era" or as we like to call it the "I don't know how that needle ended up in my butt" days. Here's Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Sammy Sosa, and of course, our hero, Mr. Rafael Palmeiro!"

The biggest question is: Why does the players union want to protect the cheaters in their own ranks? If the majority of baseball is clean, why not "expel the wicked brother?" This leads me to speculate that perhaps there are more cheaters in baseball than we even want to imagine! Why else allow three chances before truly disciplining the offending players?

Rafael and any other juicers need to go! And that's just my opinion!

Just Your Opinion Previous Results

Poll of the week of August 29-September 5
Question:What should the legal driving age be?
Results:

16 years of age

4 votes (26.7%)

18 years of age

6 votes (40%)

21 years of age

2 votes (13.3%)

25 years of age

3 votes (20%)

Poll of the week of August 22-August 28
Question: Who will win the MLB NL Wild Card Playoff spot?
Results:

Houston Astros

3 votes (37.5%)

New York Mets

3 votes (37.5%)

Florida Marlins

2 votes (25%)

Washington Nationals

0 votes (0%)

Philadelphia Phillies

0 votes (0%)

Final Wild Card Results for the NL:

Houston Wins the Wild Card
Philadelphia was 1 game back
Florida was 6 games back
New York was 6 games back
Washington fell to 8 games back

Poll of the week of August 15-August 21
Question: What is film's greatest trilogy?
Results:

The Lord of the Rings

8 votes (50%)

The Original Star Wars Trilogy

3 votes (18.8%)

The Godfather

2 votes (12.5%)

Indiana Jones

2 votes (12.5%)

Back to the Future

1 vote (6.3%)

RedSauce Review

Recently, the Queen of Hearts and I went to the new RedSauce restaurant across from the Sylvan Street Grill with our friends, Legolas and Arwyn. As a public service I'd like to review the restaurant for you:

The Atmosphere: This restaurant didn't shout "Welcome, come have a nice quiet meal with us." In fact, the problem was that it seemed like the restaurant was shouting! There was a noticeable lack of walls which allows the sound from all around to echo throughout the warehouse-like eatery and made communication around our table quite difficult. The decor was attractive: there were beautiful chandeliers over the bar and some of the booths, large flat screen TV's by the bar, and huge black and white photos were placed around the perimeter of the dining area.

The Service: The service was very friendly. We were seated approximately in the amount of time we were quoted when we got there (30 minutes). However, it took longer than expected for our food to arrive. The staff was dressed in formal red coats which fit with the atmosphere of the establishment, but some of the waiters didn't carry themselves as though they were dressed in such attire. It was somewhat distracting and took away from the overall feel of the restaurant.

The Food: While slightly (just ever so slightly) overpriced for the size of the portions, the food was delicious. Our party had the eggplant parmesan, chicken parmesan, and torteloni. The eggplant was cut a bit too thin but was impeccably flavored. The chicken was delicious as well. The torteloni was passable but noting to rave about. Their sauce is obviously something that is a source or pride for them. The sauce was a bit thin, but not too spicy. While I've had better (my mother-in-law's, for example) I thought it was very good as it complimented the seasoning used in the dishes garnished with their red sauce. One way they showcase their sauce is by providing the diner with bread and dipping sauce before the main course arrives.

Overall: I would give RedSauce a three out of five stars. The food was memorable and there is great potential for this establishment. Perhaps the largest problem is the same one that the previous restaurant had in controlling the noise level in the dining area. Random side note: five out of five stars for the restrooms.

So, give it a chance. You don't have much to loose if you are looking for good food. However, if you want to propose or have a deep meaningful conversation, you may want to enjoy your dinner someplace else.

And that's just my opinion.

The Queen of Hearts and a Whiffle ball

I am going to risk sounding like a Jane Austin novel and subtitle this post Pride and Guilt. Here's why:

My lovely wife, the Queen of Hearts, and I went to attend a weekly meeting at our church. Either it was canceled and we weren't informed or it's the summer and everyone else was busy. Either way, we were the only ones there. Ok, we decide we will wait around to see if anyone else will show. My wife suggests that we use some of the sporting equipment in the car. GREAT! Yeah, let's play some whiffle ball.

Now, before I continue, I need to inform you that this is no regular whiffle ball with the four slots on one side made of somewhat soft plastic. No no. This is someone's cruel idea of a whiffle ball. This is made of industrial plastic. There are not slots and there is no give to this ball. It is solid!

So, I'm pitching to my wife and she is shelling me! I'm tossin' the knuckler, the heat, the circle change, the curve and she is hitting all of them (except the knuckle which I couldn't get over the plate) to all fields! I finally catch a liner and so we switch places.

Now she's pitching to me. I hit a few. I miss many. Then she throws me a perfect pitch. Right across the numbers-right across the plate! I crack that pitch on a frozen rope right up the middle. You guessed it:

Think "Matt Clement."

I nailed the Queen of Hearts right on the forehead! A direct hit! I knew it as soon as I hit the ball. I started running after it hoping to catch it from behind. No such luck. This is the guilt part of the post.

Here comes the pride: The Queen of Hearts, after taking a knee, shook it off. She got up and said, "I know you didn't mean it. This kinda thing happens. Can you imagine what Matt Clement experienced?" I asked if she'd be afraid to play again. "No." was her simple answer!

What a woman! What a wife!

We got home and put some ice on it and the swelling is nearly gone. I still feel a little badly (please note the correct grammar) but I'm so proud of my wife!

(whoops, this is one of those "here's what I did yesterday." Oh well. My wife is amazing and that's the truth)

P.O.'d by T.O.

I'm not sure what kind of sports following I have here at the early stages of this blog but I'm a big sports guy so there will probably be a few (read: "many") sports posts.

This one is about Terrell Owens, wide receiver for the Super Bowl losing Philly Eagles. He seems to have some sort of chip on his shoulder and was recently asked to leave the pre-season practices by his coach for disciplinary actions. He has been reamed by the national sports media for this. He has responded with an article on his website in the form of a letter to his fans. The part that really gets me reads as follows:

"Terrell only asks what every other worker in America asks for, respect and dignity"

Yeah. I can't think of anyone else who strikes me as the "fight traffic to commute to my blue collar job so I can pay the mortgage" everyday American worker. I would be demanding respect if I made a measly $9,160,700. I'm not even making $10,000,000 to catch a football! The least you can do is show me some respect!

Respect? I'll tell you who I respect: Tom Brady, Priest Holmes, Brett Favre, Rodney Harrison. These are people who do their job, know the game, and don't spout off about how good they are. These are players who are respectable to their coaches, thankful to their fans, and reliable on the field.

Closing with an anecdote: Rodney Harrison had just assisted in the defeat of the Indy Colts in 2004. He was elated and celebrating with his coach when General Belichick said, "Great job, now we've got one more!" Rodney Harrison (one of the most feared safeties in the game because he plays and hits hard) who was just hugging this man turned to him and said "Yes, sir."

Respect is given to those who display it.

And that's just my opinion.

Czech out this Bud!

Dr James, you may appreciate this post most considering your daily calendar!
*Disclaimer* This post is about beer, something I do not drink, nor do I claim to know what is good and what is not (as I find all beer to fall in the latter category) but I've been waiting for this occurrence!

Finally! Finally! Finally! The real Budweiser is fighting the American Giant! A small brewer in the Czech Republic in a town called Budweis has been brewing beer under the name Budweiser (doesn't that make sense?) since 1802. In 1873, an ethnocentric American brewer began brewing cheap beer under the same name (Budweiser? Where'd they get that name? How inventive!). Unfortunately, The fraud Budweiser became so big so fast that the real thing was unable to sue for trademark infringement because of the legal costs. Well, Czech mate is close at hand in this chess game of naming rights! The European brewer is finally shipping their lager the US under the name B.B. Burgerbrau and calling themselves "the Original Budweiser." It's caught on in some pubs in Boston (who have stopped serving the counterfeit US version because they "want people to try real beer.") Hopefully, B.B. Burgerbrau will become popular enough to knock the yellow water we all refer to as Budweiser off the map (that's where they stole their name from anyway, right?!) Though they are starting small, their goal is obvious. They are even promoting their beer using the slogan "Enjoy the true original."

So, my lager lovers, my pint pourers, my frothy friends, support the rightful owner of the name Budweiser and oust the big American Bully!

Baby on a stick

There is a fine line between getting what you are entitled to and getting what you can. Allow me to explain:


A family from Attleboro brought their 3 month old daughter to the hospital for blood tests because she was running a fever. The hospital was having problems drawing blood from the child's left arm, so they wrapped it in gauze and drew the blood they needed from the child's right arm. When the parents got the child home she was crying "like she was in pain." They decided to bathe the child so they took the gauze off and found a plastic catheter still injected into the child's left arm. They called an ambulance and an EMT removed the device. Their daughter is fine. The picture in the paper accompanying the article shows her bright eyed and smiling. Doctor's said that there was nothing serious that could have happened had the catheter gone unnoticed even for a week or two. The parents are seeking legal advice.


Pardon? The parents are seeking legal advice? Did the child die? Was the child hurt? Will the child even remember this incident in 4 month? What are they seeking legal advice for? "Oh, we need to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else." (Hypothetical statement, not uttered by the parents) Are they seeking the termination of the nurse or doctor involved? What is the purpose of their seeking legal advice?


Money! Hey, this thing happened, let's see if we can cash in! Sure our daughter is fine but if we can get some cash out of it, right?


This type of action is irresponsible and self serving. Doctors all over the place are leaving their practices because their malpractice insurance is sky high because of frivolous suits like this one. Hey! Your child is fine, your family is happy, you're just trying to get what you can. Don't.

And that's just my opinion.

Riding in cars with animals

Recently, I was having a discussion regarding cars named after animals. The members of the conversation were able to come up with the following:
Ford Mustang
Dodge Ram
Dodge Viper
Chevy Impala (does this one count?)
Jaguar
VW Rabbit
VW Bug

Can anyone think of any others?

Cindy Sheehan

Many of us are probably familiar with Ms. Cindy Sheehan. She has been camped 4 miles outside of the President's ranch (that's as close as protesters are allowed) in Texas to protest the war in Iraq. Ms. Sheehan lost a son in the conflict and has said that his death was pointless. She wants to speak directly with the President to ask him why he murdered her son.

This issue has been bugging me for quite some time. There are several angles from which I would love to vent regarding this situation. Among which are the following

1)Her son volunteered, this was always a possibility. If her son was a police officer who died on his way to a phony emergency would she blame the police chief for murdering her son?


2)The media has really made her a hero. We all should make these demands on the President.


3)I may be wrong but I believe she was quoted as saying that she wanted the President to sit down with every family who has lost someone in this conflict and explain why we are there. What I find interesting regarding this is that it is almost possible. Excepting the previous Gulf War, we have lost the fewest American lives in this conflict than any other. Someone making the same demand of President Roosevelt or Truman regarding WWII would be deemed ridiculous.

But I'm not going to expound on those. Here is what bothers me the most:

Her son is a hero. He accepted his duty (I believe he actually re-upped after his first term expired. I could be wrong.) and he went to war to defend his country (I'm not getting into that either.) However, here is his mother saying that this war is pointless, useless, and wrong. What, then, did he die for? If he died for nothing he is no hero. His own mother is striping him of the honor and respect he has rightfully earned.


That doesn't sit well with me. I will continue to believe that this conflict is necessary and I will continue to view the fallen as heroes.

And that's just my opinion.

An overview

A lot of people blog about their lives. Who they are and what they do. "Just got back from a day at the beach..." Great. Hey, no offense to those people. I sometimes find those interesting. However, I don't think that my life is interesting enough to simply chronicle my daily activities. I desire to spur people to action or anger. I intend for this blog to be a place for me to vent my political rantings, movie reviews, theological viewpoints, and general ramblings and epiphanies about life. Yes, I'll stumble into the "today I went to the zoo..." habit. Hopefully those will be recorded due to their instigation of some phenomenal personal enlightenment.

Today, I started a blog.

And this is just my opinion.