Random Notes

Is this a threat?

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Wednesday that he would possibly send troops into Pakistan to hunt down terrorists, an attempt to show strength when his chief rival has described his foreign policy skills as naïve, the AP reported

In addition, "The Illinois senator warned Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf that he must do more to shut down terrorist operations in his country and evict foreign fighters under an Obama presidency, or Pakistan will risk a U.S. troop invasion and losing hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. military aid."

That must be causing Musharraf to have some sleepless nights.

Happy Anniversary.

August 1st was the 19^th anniversary of the legendary Rush Limbaugh program. Happy Anniversary, Rush. Here’s to many more years of broadcast excellence.

Baseball Notes

Baseball’s non-waiver trading period ended the other day. The Dodgers shored up their bullpen, acquiring Scott Proctor from the Yankees to infielder Wilson Betemit. Listening to Yankee games on XM, I heard their announcers complain about Proctor’s tendency to walk the lead off batter. Statistics show that when the first batter of an inning gets on base, he scores 40% of the time. Hopefully he can improve in this area in the next few months.

The Angels stood pat…oh and this just in, the sky remained blue.

My opinion is that they needed an impact bat at 3^rd. People will argue with Chone Figgins’ success since late May. However they need someone to bat behind Vladimir Guerrero. Figgins could have been packaged in a trade with a prospect or two to get a power-hitting third sacker. The problem is, most teams wanted Joe Saunders, and the Angels pitching depth is down with the injury to Bartolo Colon, and Ervin Santana pitching more like Carlos Santana, than Johan Santana. The other problem? No one seemed to be offering any power-hitting third basemen.

In addition, Vladdy needs to be a little more selective on what he swings at. If he had Barry Bonds’ plate discipline, he would be unstoppable. This “nose to toes” strike zone has got to stop. Maybe chin to shin would help.

Golf

The Bridgestone Invitational at the Firestone Country Club got underway today. Tiger Woods has won this event two years in a row, and also one three straight times from 1999 to 2001. He finished the first round at -2, one stroke behind the leaders.

Hunter Mahan is one of three golfers leading the pack at three under par. Right now there is no hotter golfer. Mahan has finished in the top-10 in his last four starts, and in the top 25 in his last six. He is making a charge to be on the President’s Cup team.

-Keep Grinning

What File Extension Are You?

I've been kind of quiet lately. Not that there's been nothing to say, I just haven't felt like writing.

Anyway, here's a fun little quiz to take?



Which File Extension are You?

Keep Grinning

It's a slow news day, so here's my take on Britney

I have had a few thoughts on this sordid Britney Spears mess. It’s probably a few too many, so I’ll keep them short.

1. Britney is not serious about straightening her life out. If she was, she would have stayed in rehab. I’m sure her handlers got her to check herself in so she would appear sympathetic to the public. But rehab is hard work. You’ve got to admit you have a problem, and she does not want to face that yet. Much of it is a result of having never been told that she is flawed, being propped up artificially by her entourage and other hangers-on.

2. Much has been made of why people are so interested in this situation. One theory offered is that people gain some sense of satisfaction when they see a celebrity or someone with some degree of notoriety. They think, “Gee, I’m not so bad”. Instead of using Britney, or Anna Nicole, or these pathetic people who inhabit daytime tabloid TV as a standard. Instead, find a role-model with good character and habits worthy of imitation. Reach up and try to improve instead of looking down on someone and feeling self-satisfied.

3. Was does it say when Kevin Federline is the stable one in the relationship?

On the bright side, “Britney” had an entertaining Q and A session with Letterman last night.



Keep Grinning!

Is this news, or something else?

http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/scalias-daughter-charged-with-dui/20070214133109990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001

Justice Scalia’s daughter was arrested and charged with DUI and child endangerment earlier this week. Obviously there is a problem here that she needs to get help for, and I hope she does.

But the question is, why is this news? Why was did AOL put this on it’s front page. What Justice Scalia’s daughter does, good or bad, in her private life, does not effect how he does his job. Is it just the media taking a shot at him, or trying to humiliate him? Probably.

Furthermore, if one if the more liberal justices, (Ginsburg, Stevens, etc) had something similar happen, would it lead on AOL, or get buried or ignored all together.

It’s similar to Wolf Blitzer questioning Vice-President Cheney on his gay daughter being pregnant. What ever Mr. Cheney thinks about homosexual behavior, he loves his daughter, and is pleased to be having another grandchild. Blitzer was just trying to embarrass the vice-president, nothing more.

Keep Grinning!

Channeling Yakov Smirnoff

My son saw this picture in a travel magazine. His reaction:

"In Soviet Russia you don't wear glass slipper, glass slipper wears you."

Keep Grinning!

Home Improvement

We've hired a landscaper to do some work on our front yard. The demo work is complete and the compost has been put in. Here is what it looks like so far.

Next week, the sprinklers go in!!!

Keep Grinning!

Respect and civility

I was out at a branch the other day, replacing a crashed hard drive. A young man caught my eye. He was obviously in the military, as he was dressed in his camos. But what really stuck out was that his hat was in his hand, not on his head. Certainly, he wore it en route to the bank, and made the effort to remove it upon entering. It would not surprise me that if I were to speak to him, he would answer "yes sir" or "no sir" to a direct question I might have for him.

That is a courtesy you don't see much anymore. People can't be bothered any more to remove their hats when entering a place of business or someone's home. At one time it was a common sign of respect a gentleman would observe. Now hat's stay on heads (all too often with the bill facing the wrong way I might add).

And I admit I am often guilty of non-chivalrous behavior. I forget to hold doors for my wife when entering a building. If my 17-year old son is with us he will remind me though. Perhaps this young soldiers example will stay with me and remind me to behave respectfully towards other people and when in a business.

Keep Grinning!

My calendar says January, but it feels like July

The past two days were unseasonably warm as evidenced by this screen shot from weather.com. I'm not trying to gloat but...

Seriously, I know people in the northeast and upper mid west are freezing right now. And I sure would like to get some rain soon. Still, it made for a nice weekend.

Keep Grinning

The Super Bowl is over...

That's right, that one team beat that other team. And that one guy, he's going to Disneyland.

But the clouds have parted, the sun is coming out and I can gladly report...pitchers and catchers report in 12 days!!!

Keep Grinning!

Henrik Stenson wins the Dubai Desert Classic

Now why would I post this headline. Because most of the other web sites are posting that Tiger Woods lost. Stenson shot a 68 inlcuding a birdie on the last hole to hold off Tiger, who birdied four of the last six holes, finishing with 69.

The headline in ESPN.com read "Els, Woods fall short of Stenson for Dubai crown".

"Woods Finishes Third in Dubai Desert Classic" is how aol.com teased the story.

Sportsline.com says "Tiger falls short in Dubai; Stenson wins"

The Golf Channel reports on their web site, "Stenson Tops Els, Woods in Dubai" But the typical visitor to that site will likely be more familiar with Stenson than those to the other sites. And most of the sports news sites are talking about some football game taking place in Miami today

I understand, most sports fans are going to ask, "Who the hell is Henrik Stenson?" Tiger is one of the most recognized sports personalities in the world. Of course most of the news reports will use Woods' name to grab attention. But give Stenson credit. He played well over four days, and made the clutch putt on the 18th to finish one shot over Ernie Els. So here's to you Henrik for a tournament well played.