Nationalism on Display

I noticed today while watching college football that all of the officials are wearing an American Flag patch on they shirts. I am a procatical man if anything, and I can't find any practical reason for having an American Flag on their shirts.
If this were international competition and you had officials from several different countries then it would make sense for each official to identify their origin.
Here you have American College Football. No foreign officials or even players.
Putting American Flags on officials shirts is nothing more than a feel-good display of nationalism. Are we really that insecure that we have to go to these ridiculous lengths to show that we're proud to be Americans? It actually makes us look like a bunch of idiots.
I wish the insanity were ending in the next election but I'm sure it'll be more of the same.

Football for Pussies

I am seeing a new trend in football. Last week they delayed the start of the Miami Dolphins game for 30 minutes because of lightning and today they delayed the Florida State game for 45 minutes, in the middle of the game, because of lightning.
What was notable is that the announcers in the Florida State game came back after 45 minutes and reported that they had not seen ANY lightning during that period.
WTF is wrong with football. There is NO record of anyone EVER being struck by lightning at a college or pro football game.
If there is increased risk then so what. Maybe it will make someone the unlucky designee as the guy that gets knocked off by lightning.
I go to every home Jaguars game and I accept that risk. If they delay one of my games for lightning then I'll call the players and officials exactly what they are ... pussies.

Offseason for Carrots

Apparently this is the offseason for carrots. Winn Dixie didn't have any of the baby carrots they usually have. I had to buy celery. I like celery but not as much as carrots ;-)

President Elizabeth Edwards

Whoever is running John Edwards' presidential election campaign really needs to have a talk with him.
I saw he and his wife, Elizabeth, not too long back on 60 Minutes and was a little intrigued that most of the questions and conversation seemed to revolve around Elizabeth.
Then last weekend on one of those Sunday News programs they were talking about some topic and then they went to quotes from candidates on the topic. First they showed a quote from Hillary, then Obama and then ... Elizabeth Edwards. WTF?
John had been my favorite of the Dems but unfortunately he is now at the bottom. If he can't be the boss in his own campaign then who's gonna be running things when he gets to the White House? I'm not willing to take that chance.
There is also the fact that as Elizabeth's cancer progresses John will be rightfully distracted from the duties of the presidency.
The only reason I can fathom that Elizabeth is out there so much is that they are trying to take women voters from Hillary.
Hopefully they'll get one to replace me.

Bush: History to prove Iraq war worth it

I am using the same title as the article that I read today.

When I read articles like this I usually have a commentary running in my mind that is contrary to what the written piece says.

In this piece they write: "The ideals and interests that led America to help the Japanese turn defeat into democracy are the same that lead us to remain engaged in Afghanistan and Iraq," Bush said in advance excerpts of a Wednesday speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

"The defense strategy that refused to hand the South Koreans over to a totalitarian neighbor helped raise up an Asian Tiger that is a model for developing countries across the world, including the Middle East," Bush said.

Meanwhile, in my mind he's hoping that in the future history will show that by his actions we have secured a long-term, stable source of oil for the United States.

I don't believe at all that he cares about spreading Democracy to either Afghanistan or Iraq. These are both God-forsaken countries and Afghanistan was only used as a stepping-stone to get to Iraq. If it hadn't been for the oil we wouldn't be there. Look at Sudan, and the issues in the Darfur region. Did we intervene there? Look at Rwanda. Did we intervene there?

It's all about the oil and he's hoping that we thank him in the future for lying, and misleading us in the present for our future happiness.

Minnesota Bridge Collapse - some perspective...

Two days ago a main traffic artery in Minneapolis collapsed into the river with bumper-to-bumper traffic on it. So far the death toll is at five and the news sources issued an audible sigh of disappointment when authorities lowered the number of missing estimate from thirty to eight.
The morbid media wants the big death count. They want human suffering because that's what people want. People have a morbid curiousity not too deep in their subconscious that gets satisfied by such big events like this.
I remember when the planes hit the towers and the media proclaimed that 50,000 people worked in those towers. Final deathcount: 3000+-
When Katrina hit New Orleans they were expecting 10,000 dead. Final deathcount: 2000+-.
They will never error on the low side because their estimates are always inflated five-fold or more.
After the event, there is always the "Are we at risk for another similar disaster?" related story followed by the "Who's to blame?" story that continues for years.
It's easy reporting. It's even lazy reporting.
Contrast this with the daily suicide bombings and sectarian violence in Iraq that kill scores or people on a daily basis. This is real devastation. Real people getting blown up. Real people grieving at the loss of family members. Real people leaving with nothing but the shirts on their backs in order to only find a place that is peaceful.
The US media has grown bored covering these stories because they are the same everyday. The faces all look the same. They literally could show film from events from last year and no one would know.
The US citizen doesn't want to see them either out of a collective shame that we feel for having caused it and now being able to do nothing about it.
So why are we getting 48 (going on 72) straight hours of bridge-collapse coverage? Very simply, it's a distraction from the misery going on in other parts of the world. It's a way for people to say "See, it happens here too."
Unfortunately, in the end, we will be disatisfied because of the disproportionate coverage given to such a small incident comparative to world-affairs.

The New Ten Commandments

I found these on line and thought how refreshing they were. These would be so much better for our secular society than the religious versions currently being pushed into the public sphere:

First Commandment: Do not do to others what you would not want them to do to you.

Second Commandment: In all things, strive to cause no harm.

Third Commandment: Treat your fellow human beings, your fellow living things, and the world in general with love, honesty, faithfulness and respect.

Fourth Commandment: Do not overlook evil or shrink from administering justice, but always be ready to forgive wrongdoing freely admitted and honestly regretted.

Fifth Commandment: Live life with a sense of joy and wonder.

Sixth Commandment: Always seek to be learning something new.

Seventh Commandment: Test all things; always check your ideas against the facts, and be ready to discard even a cherished belief if it does not conform to them.

Eighth Commandment: Never seek to censor or cut yourself off from dissent; always respect the right of others to disagree with you.

Ninth Commandment: Form independent opinions on the basis of your own reason and experience; do not allow yourself to be led blindly by others.

Tenth Commandment: Question everything.

I'm going to let these sink in a little bit and may offer my commentary on them in the future.