Current Events - April 2007

Nobody asked me, but...

1) Imus: Who really cares about this guy? His comments where certainly racist, but then again, Chris Rock can stand up in front of 1,000 people and cut on white people and nobody blinks an eye. I’m white, and even I don’t mind an occasional dig by Chris Rock, so I think people need thicker skins. I’m not a huge John Edwards fan, but I think he strikes the right tone with his call for forgiveness. With that being said, Imus already sucked, and I think that this issue just highlights the fact that he’s not worth the trouble. I don’t see a bright future for Mr. Imus and don’t really care. Maybe somebody can pick off Mancow next. In any event, I’m tired of the media being the news. A sure sign of arrogance and overindulgence is a person who spends all their time talking about themselves, and the American media is becoming as much of their own story as what is really happening in the world. I’m tired of seeing this kind of crap making headlines.

2) Stagflation: A good way of missing all the BS in the American media is to focus on financial news. Money talks and bullshit walks, the saying goes, so CNBC doesn’t have time to devote to crap news stories because if it doesn’t impact markets, then it’s not really news. With that being said, the economy is still slowing and the four key inflation indicators (Gold, US Dollar, Commodities, and the TIPS Spread) are all showing marked signs of increasing inflation. This is the big story that most people are missing. The Fed’s statement yesterday just confirms that. Get ready for higher interest rates.

3) Anna Nicole: Once more, who cares? What a fucking goat rope. I could care less who the daddy is. Why is something that should be buried in the gossip column making front page headlines??

4) The Surge: I have family in harm’s way right now, so I sincerely want the surge to work. I am also an actively drilling member of the National Guard, so I back that up with my own personal willingness to deploy to combat again. I have been pretty pleased with the results so far, but two BIG attacks in Baghdad really concern me. One was a bomb in the Green Zone and the other was a VBIED (Car Bomb) that blew up a major bridge over the Tigris. We better get our game on better than that, because if there isn’t a marked improvement by late summer, our politicians will be falling all over themselves to see how fast we can leave. My opinion here is that the Dems want to see this fail fast, so the pull-out and bloodbath that follows are politically viewed as a final failure for George Bush and the GOP, not a sitting Democratic President. Did I mention I have family over there?? I am an independent voter, but to the politicians trying to make Iraq a failure, I offer a hearty, “fuck you.”

5) Madam Speaker: It’s pretty hard to get any lower than the likes of Ted Kennedy, who actually had links with the USSR to explore how Ronald Reagan could get defeated in his re-election campaign, but Madam Speaker Pelosi seems determined to do so. She not only visited Syria, but is now pondering the possibility of also visiting Iran. What really pisses me off, is that she could spend her political capital a lot more wisely in a way that might actually help Americans, but is instead hell bent on undermining the current administration while we are fighting a deadly counter-insurgency. My advice, “Mam, start acting more like Tip Oneil and less like George McGovern. That way, we can remember the first female speaker of the house as a woman with dignity and wisdom, not a shrill, partisan hack more interested in political advantage than the actual state of her country.” Oh, and yes, she did get submarined by Israelli PM Olmert when he called her out after her “offer of peace” with Syria. Then again, that’s why politicians shouldn’t engage in their own personal diplomacy. There is nothing sovereign about a congresswoman visiting a foreign state, which means said congresswoman takes on a lot of risk trying to do what the State Department is constitutionally empowered to do. Somebody with her tenure knows that, and the scary thing is she simply doesn’t care.

6) Rosie: Oh, yes, let’s have some more people in media talking about other people in the media. That’s great news! I always thought Rosie was a gifted comic, but when she stated something to the effect that terrorists are mommies and daddies too, I tuned her out. At this point, why bother with what she says. It’s too hard to understand anyway. She is a rabid progressive, so her job is very secure. It’s a lot easier to just vote with your personal actions and tune her out. Ellen is a much more gifted and fun lesbian comic and talk show host anyway.

7) Mrs. Edward’s gun toting republican neighbor: I find this story a bit hypocritical. If I were someone in the media, my first question to her would be, “how many armed security personnel do you normally have on duty at your home?” With a husband as a presidential contender, I can’t imagine there are no armed guards at their house. If that is the case, why is it OK for the Edwards family have armed guards, while their neighbors of lesser social accomplishment are somehow a pack of backwoods retards for wanting to defend their personal property with a gun. The gun issue aside, I sincerely hope she gets through her current bout of cancer. I might not agree with her about her neighbor (I mean c’mon, yall do live North Carolina), but she is a mother and wife that hopefully can survive her disease.

8) Duke Lax: I’m glad to see that justice seems to have prevailed over politically motivated abuse of prosecutorial power. On top of that, I watched Duke thrash Johns Hopkins pretty good last weekend, so the team itself seems to have recovered and may have pretty good odds in the national tournament this year. Lacrosse is a magical mix of speed, endurance, precision, and violence, the perfect training for young warriors (next to rugby). Arghh! Give me a double of single malt scotch, neat!

9) Hillary’s Intern: There is a video somewhere of a guy offering to be Hillary’s intern. I think that’s pretty funny. Hopefully she doesn’t have a cigar fetish like her husband, or the fellow might be in for a real shocker!