Hope, Wi-Fi, and Bobbleheads

Rhode Island is aiming to become the first state to have a wireless network from border to border. The nation's smallest state hopes to have a high-speed wireless Internet connection available everywhere by 2007. There are many reasons why the state would want to spend $20 million on such a project, but their main goal is to attract business away from Boston and into Rhode Island. Rhode Island announced its wireless initiative after similar counties and cities have begun projecting regional wi-fi access for all over the past few months. Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Suffolk Co. NY, and many other regions have all proposed similar plans. Residents who want to subscribe to the statewide network will have to be around $20 a month based on their use according to state officials. Graduate students from Brown University are helping to spearhead the project and are excited about the many possibilities such a network could produce......

Also today under pressure from the UN, Sudan accepted a Darfur peace deal that will hopefully end the conflict that has taken the lives of almost 1/2 a million people over the last 2.5 years. Many rallies have been set up around the country today. To make a difference visit the save Darfur homepage. Pray for peace and reconciliation.......

NBC has announced that they will begin production of Dwight Schrute Bubblehead’s that were demanded by fans of the Thursday night sitcom "The Office". Petitioners on a fan website gathered enough names that NBC decided to sell the miniature figurine that was popularized by a Valentine's Day episode of the show. Pre-order yours today,,,,,,,

Yesterday was a rough day for the Red Wings and Pistons. The Red Wings lost at home to the Oilers falling behind 3-2 in round one of the playoffs. Meanwhile it appeared the Pistons took the night off letting the Bucks beat them 124-104, they remain in control of the series however 2-1. The Tigers and Reds both gave their fans some better news however. A day after pounding the Twins 9-0, Detroit hammered Minnesota 18-1 yesterday afternoon. The Reds maintained the best record in the majors winning their sixth straight game and second of three against the NL Central rival Houston Astros. Both the Reds and Tigers are looking to sweep their respective series today.

Oil Slick

BBC Reporter Matt Frei has been embedded in America covering American issues from a British perspective. His insights though staunchly biased and overtly anti-Bush are none the less very insightful. Especially his most recent article about the petroleum prices in America. For those without the time to read the entire article here is his summary.

But consider the irony: The Texan who was widely accused of invading Iraq because of oil is brought to his knees by petrol prices. It is the Chevron version of Hamlet. Personally, I don't know what all the fuss is about. Petrol in the UK is averaging almost one pound per litre - that's more than twice as expensive as here. I have just dragged my family on a driving holiday through Arizona and New Mexico. We drove 1,000 miles in a minivan and only filled up twice for less than $100. Wise up, America. Things could be so much worse!

Frei makes a good point when he talks about how petroleum in the UK and throughout much of Europe is much more expensive than it is here in the states. Although the Brits don't usually drive as much as Americans, they are very concerned about price of petrol, which is a major reason why European automobiles are so small and underpowered by American standards. They have had it right all along, rather than spending outrageous amounts of money on oversized trucks and SUV's, Europeans are much more content with smaller, more fuel efficient cars that save them money at the pump and on the actual cost of the car. This is a microcosm of how the Europeans are more focused on the quality of life, rather than the quantity of possessions that we Americans tend to obsess over.

Trust-Busting

This week Microsoft will begin an international appeals process over the legality of sanctions that were imposed on them by the European Union over antitrust violations. Two years ago the EU ruled that Microsoft was in violation of antitrust laws concerning its packaging of Windows XP along with certain software applications. It ordered Microsoft to share its software coding and proprietary information with its competitors to soften its monopolistic dominance on the market. Microsoft is attempting to persuade the EU not to enforce the $615 million in fines it was supposed to pay. However the moral of this story is: don't over look the EU as a challenge to American hegemony and dominance in the world. Gone are the days when the world looks to the U.S. alone economic, and political dominance. America is still the dominant military leader in the world, but the days of rule by hard power are over. In society today soft power is emerging as the new driving force behind becoming a Superpower. Today's Europe is no longer a partitioned and divided continent as it was just 20-30 years ago. European nations of all sizes are realizing that by unifying on an economic front, they can together match and in some cases overpower the U.S. The world was shocked with the pull that the EU has over such cases as the Microsoft ruling, as well as for the rejection of the GE-Honeywell merger back in 2001. Americans were puzzled at how much power the EU had, not because of their ruling, but because these are all American companies that were being controlled by Europe. With 25 member nations, and many on the waiting list including Turkey, the extremely successful implementation of the Euro in 12 of its member countries, creation of a European Rapid Reactionary Force, a centralized capital in Brussels, and growing support of the European population, Europe will continue to strengthen and slowly eat away at America's status as the worlds only superpower......

Yesterday the Pistons easily beat the Bucks in their first game of the NBA playoffs; they are off today and meet again tomorrow night for game 2. The Red Wings suffered a tough playoff defeat yesterday at home to the Edmonton Oilers. The series is evened at 1-1, and they will face off tomorrow in Edmonton. The Tigers swept the Mariners last night and improved on their very successful west coast road trip. Detroit is headed into Anaheim tonight to try and maintain their 5 game win streak.

Fencing

After returning from 4 1/2 days in beautiful Scottsdale, AZ, I feel refreshed, relaxed, and ready to take on the mundane tasks of finishing up my final semester of undergraduate studies. The golf, sun, food, family, hiking, and resort were all amazing parts of the trip, but while I was on holiday something else struck my interest while out in the desert. In the surrounding Phoenix area there are many immigrants who work in the tourist industry whether it be at restaurants, the airport, resorts, or as transportation drivers. People who are from outside Arizona filled the majority of these jobs, and most are from outside of the United States. Being a border state, Arizona is also closely tied with the immigration debate, and Phoenix was the site of one of the largest protests that took place earlier this month. Within Arizona an ultra-right border patrol exists which call themselves "Minutemen" who are fierce proponents of stricter border policies. Minutemen border watch leaders have issued an ultimatum to Bush stating that if the government does not begin construction of a wall along the Arizona-Mexico border, than the Minutemen will begin constructing a wall themselves through private means. Now beyond all of the logistical problems of such a far-fetched idea such as building along federal land, and private property, paying for such a project, and so on, this has to be the most ridiculous idea I have heard in quite some time. Browsing the minutemen website it is clear to see that this is a far right, paranoid, shortsighted, and ignorant group of "full-blooded Americans" (whatever that means). While I am no proponent of illegal entry into the U.S. (or any country for that matter) it is ridiculous to think that building a fence hundreds of miles long will significantly aid in preventing immigrants from entering the U.S. In my contact with a number of legal immigrants this past week it was clear to me that they provide a benefit to our nation in many ways, socially, economically, culturally, and so on. Taking a cab from Sky Harbor Airport to the Camelback Inn I was able to dialogue with a Sudanese Muslim who came to the States in 1992 to build a better life for him and his family. His day job was networking with IT services, but he drove a cab on the weekends to make extra money for his family still living in Sudan. He shared with me many stories about growing up in Sudan, playing soccer against Hakim Olajuwan before he came to the U.S. as a NBA star, his own family, and crazy antics he has seen during his "cabbie" experience. While at the Camelback Inn, it was clear to see that many of the workers were immigrants from Latin America, Europe, and the Caribbean. What was common about each of these people was that they were hard-workers, very friendly, and could speak both their native tongue and English. They were happy to be living and working in America, and they added a very valuable cultural and social aspect to the American southwest. Personally I think it is great to have "foreigner" come to America (legally of course) to come study, work, and live out their own version of the American dream. Just as I think it is beneficial and enjoyable for Americans to work, study, and live abroad, these experiences can only enhance and unite humanity in a world which is too divisive and partitioned as it is.

Sunny Side-Up

Spending a week in Arizona has become a family tradition. Every year since I can remember our family has gone to Scottsdale, AZ for a week of sun, swimming, good food, and relaxation over our Spring Break. This year marks the first time that I have been able to come out here since I was back in high school. Thanks to the time change we were up at 6:00 am and by 7:00 am we were on our way to hike to the top of Camelback. The journey down and back was enough of a reward, but the beauty of the mountains of Arizona topped it off even better. It seems every time I am away from the Midwest I come back wondering why anyone chooses to live in such an uneventful place with such a boring landscape. Oh well, I suppose it adds to the anticipation of looking forward to taking trips......

Skimming the news briefly I saw an article that says the majority of Americans feel that our tax system is unjust. Citing that middle class/working class, small business owners, and entrepreneurs face too high a tax bracket, while big business and corporations receive too many tax breaks. This system is of course based on Reaganomics or trickle-down economics that uses the premise what’s good for big business is good for America thanks to the creation of jobs and higher wages that accompany tax breaks for big business. My opinion is a bit more socialist in nature. I still feel an allure about Scandinavia’s "cradle to the grave" social system which taxes exceed 70% of income for the wealthiest elite and provide up to two years paid vacation after the birth of a child, outstanding health care coverage, and an average of thirty hour work weeks........

That’s it for today; there is plenty of sun to soak up, good food to eat, and rounds of golf to be played.

Super-Sized

In downtown Cincinnati yesterday, Black Fist leader Kabaka Oba was fired at and shot 3 times shortly after addressing city council. The Black Fist is a militant activist group that has been accused of being anti-Semitic. The 48 year old was is in critical condition at University Hospital today. Howard Beatty has already turned himself in and admitted to shooting Oba, after he allegedly threatened him just outside city hall. Beatty claimed self-defense saying that Oba had threatened him Sunday at the broadcast of a television show. The two men have had a long standing dispute, and it all culminated yesterday afternoon. The claim of self-defense seems shaky especially when police found no weapons in Oba's car, and due to the fact that Beatty had a restraining order which prohibited him from being within 500 yards of Kabaka. This shooting comes just a day after police have committed to cracking down on crime in the crime-riddled, poverty stricken area of Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine. The last two days police have made over 100 arrests from drug possession to parking tickets. We can only hope that this program helps to clean up the streets, and does not incite racial tensions or prejudices that could lead to violence that have a history in Cincinnati.......

Well good news for American fast food junkies who enjoy stuffing their faces with super-sized portions of french fries and chicken nuggets. A study released Wednesday showed that fast food fries and chicken are fattier in the U.S. than they are in other countries. The culprit behind this is vegetable oil that is high in trans fat used for frying chicken and fries. While McDonalds and KFC claim that the reason for varying degrees of trans-fat in their oil is based on consumer taste from restaurant to restaurant, the real answer is that oil that is high in trans-fat is cheaper than a healthier (if that’s at all possible) alternative. The difference between America, Europe, and Russia was not small either "At a New York City McDonald's, a large fries-and-chicken-nuggets combo was found to contain 10.2 grams of the trans fat, compared with 0.33 grams in Denmark and about 3 grams in Spain, Russia and the Czech Republic." While many have petitioned and pleaded the FDA to limit the amount of trans-fat allowed in food, the FDA will not impose these sanctions that most European nations mandate. Even more maddening is the fact that switching to canola, corn, or soy vegetable oil would not only be healthier, but it would just cost an average of $.01 per food order. I suppose this price is too high though. It will be much more cost effective for us to pay billions of dollars in healthcare to support the 127 million adult Americans (not to mention the 15% of children) who are not just overweight, but obese......

The Tigers dropped another close one to the White Sox yesterday 4-3, Shelton hit his sixth home run of the year but it wasn't quite enough. The Reds managed to have more errors than hits yesterday committing 5 and only managing 4 hits. Its tough to win ball games when its barely a when you commit 12 errors in 8 games. Edwin Encarnacion leads the way with 5 errors committed thus far. As if this weren't enough Griffey came out of the game yesterday with soreness in his right knee. The news is easier to bear though knowing that the Pistons shellacked the Cavs 96-73 last night.

Nukes, Felons, and Giant Rabbits (?)

German rabbit breeder Karl Szmolinsky presents his giant male breeding rabbit 'Robert' in Eberswalde, eastern Germany, February 2006. In a tale reminiscent of the last Wallace and Gromit movie, furious villagers in northeast England have hired armed guards to protect their beloved communal vegetable gardens from a suspected monster rabbit.


What a week for public demonstration. Just a few days after Jacques Chirac dropped his youth labor law due to large riots and protests throughout France, it appears that the Republican members of Congress have decided to concede a bit on their immigration policy. The original guest worker plan had stated that illegal immigrants would be felons within the U.S. Over the last week or so protests have taken place in many cities, and this along with internal divisions in the GOP has lead to a softening of the immigration policy being debated in Congress right now. There are still many other arguments over specifics within the legislation, but the major objection was the fact that simply being in the country is viewed in the same light as other felonies in the U.S. Now that we got this ridiculous measure out of the way its time to start focusing on an immigration policy which will benefit both Americans, and those seeking a better life here in our nation and just want to make an honest living......


Iranian President Mahmoun Ahmadinejad announced yesterday that Iran had successfully enriched low-grade uranium recently. This has caused much strife and opposition most notably by the U.S., Russia, and in part in the EU. Iran claims that they are developing these nuclear capabilities in order to create nuclear power, and not to eventually create an atomic warhead. While experts say that Iran is years away from being able to have nuclear capability, this is a step in that direction. The UN is sending International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohmamed ElBaradei to inspect Iran's uranium facilities to determine whether Iran is violating and agreements and whether or not they will face international punishment.......

In sports, yesterday the Red Wings beat the Edmonton Oilers 2-0 and in doing so they clinched the Presidents Trophy with the best overall regular season record. This will ensure them home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. Way to go boys!!!! The Reds opened up a series at Wrigley yesterday and they homered their way to a 9-2 victory over the Cubs. The Reds had home runs from 6 different players including a grand slam for Edwin Encarnacion, and a solo shot by Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo, his second of the year. So far Arroyo has had two starts, two wins, and two home runs. Not too bad for the recently acquired pitcher who spent the previous 3 seasons in the AL. The Tigers resume play today with the White Sox after a day off yesterday.

Prodding His Way to the Top

Today's number is 59. As in there are 59 days left until the 2006 World Cup in Germany. This year all 64 games are broadcast in HD, and I can't wait.....

The results of the Italian elections are in, it looks like Romano Prodi edged out Berlusconi by a very tight margin. The official count is not yet tallied, but victory by Prodi is assured winning 4 of 6 seats necessary for victory in the Italian chamber. Let's hope that Prodi and his men can do what they did for the European Union and help strengthen the national economy of Italy which has been in a bit of a fiscal crisis recently.....

In the Middle East yesterday Israel declared that Ariel Sharon is officially incapacitated now, and is no longer fit to run the country. Sharon suffered a stroke in the beginning of January, and ever since he has been in a coma, under Israeli law after 100 days if the prime minister is no longer able to run the country then he must forfeit his seat and is not longer able to have a temporary prime minister. Last week's election saw Sharon's successor Ehud Olmert winning the vote for prime minster, Olmert was second in command behind Sharon, and he won largely due to the legacy and the nation's love of Sharon. Many around the world are praying that Olmert can come to some type of a border agreement with the PLO and hopefully create two seperate nations in this hotbed of violence and opposition in the Holy Land.....

In our own nation, thousands took to the street yesterday in U.S. cities all over the country to protest Bush's new immigration policy. Immigrants from Boston to Alaska rallied throughout the streets banging drums, chanting, and flew Mexican and American flags to show their allegiance to both countries. The talk show lines are buzzing with controversy with proponents and opponents to this new act of legislation. All I can say is that this plan needs to be reworked. On one hand American taxpayers should not have to bear all the burden of health care for illegal immigrants, but by the same token a kid born to immigrants in the U.S. that has never been to Central America should not be considered a felon, this is the only land he knows. Either way this immigration debate will continue to press on before a resolution is reached......

In sports yesterday, the Tigers lost a tough one to the White Sox in their home opener at Comerica Park. The teams get a day off today, and hopefully Detroit can take a day off, bounce back and get them Wednesday. The MLB also decided to fine and suspend Nationals manager Frank Robinson and pitcher Felix Rodriguez for hitting Paul Lo Duca in the 8th inning of last Thursday's Mets v. Nationals game. In all, seven batters were hit, but only one Met was hit and since it was after both benches were warned the Nationals will pay fines and serve suspensions. This to me is outrageous because Pedro clearly threw at Guillen twice, and this was his third day being hit in the series. For Pedro to get away with out a fine or suspension is outragous especially given the fact that he has hit Guillen many times throughout his career. This is just one of many examples of bad policy and control that MLB has had under the tutelage of Bud Selig, and its about time for a new commisioner that can restore dignity back to this great game.

Jacques be nimble

A thousand apologies to Detroit Tiger fans around the nation and to the club itself on my behalf. I had to open my metaphorical mouth yesterday to gloat about the surprising unbeaten start they had, and as soon as I posted, of course they dropped a game to the Rangers. My bad.......

Well the Tigers lost yesterday, but they did not give up. Jacques Chirac on the other hand had given up (as if France needed one more way to surrender), and given in to protests all across the country over the controversial youth labour law that would have made it easier for French business to fire workers under the age of twenty-six. From the outset the law was flawed and needs to be reworked, however there is nothing worse than a weak leader, and now thanks to Chirac, that is exactly what France has. Now that Chirac has backed down from this law, where does it stop? Will protestors just have to scream loud enough and long enough before they can get their way? The world anxiously awaits the outcomes of this defeat.......

In more European politics, Italy today resumes the second of two days of voting for the nation's next premier. Current conservative Silvio Berlusconi is fighting to maintain his status as premiere despite his criticism for backing President Bush (and America in general), entering the war in Iraq, and failing to revive a stagnant Italian economy. His opponent is Romani Prodi who took the Premiership from him ten years ago in 1996. Centre-left candidate Prodi is a former EU chief, and university professor of economics. The campaign has been a mud-slinging battle between the two candidates, and Prodi's main attack on Berlucsoni is that he has become lazy and ineffective while taking advantage of laws designed to keep the premier's party in Parliament as well as office, making it difficult for the dissenting voices to be heard. Stay tuned for the results.........

Congratulations are in order to Phil Mickelson, who won his second green jacket at Augusta yesterday. Besting his opponents by three strokes Lefty was able to tap in for par on 18 with a three-stroke cushion. This is only Mickelson's second major victory and he described as much less stressful than his first two years ago in the same tournament. In baseball both the Tigers and Reds dropped the final game of their series, just barely missing the sweep of the Rangers and Pirates. The Reds are off today, while the Tigers host the White Sox today in their home opener at COPA.

Amerekan Edukashion

The word of the day is domination. Domination is the only way to describe the Detroit Tigers start to the 2006 MLB season. The Tigers thoroughly trounced the Texas Rangers 7-0 yesterday in Arlington, TX thanks to an outstanding pitching performance from rookie Justin Verlander tossed 7 scoreless innnings, and phenom firstbaseman Chris Shelton continue his reign of terror over AL pitching going 3-4 with two triples and 3 RBI's. This makes Detroit's record a perfect 5-0 to start the season, and they haven't even played a game at Comerica Park yet. For sure the first week of the season is by no means enough time for serious judgment, but if the Tigers continue to get dominate starting pitching across the board then Detroit is going to continue to surprise many......

In its current issue, Time Magazine has brought to attention that the national rate of high school drop outs is somewhere between 20-30% in the U.S. This figure may come as shocking to many Americans, but given the status of public education in our country, this figure really isn't all that surprising. Due to mandatory graduation tests, dilipadated school environments, outragoulsy low teacher salaries, and the failure of No Child Left Behind many school districts across the nation are having alarmingly high dropout rates. Many wonder why our schools have been performing so poorly on tests compared to other nations around the world, and the answer is that our country simply does not place a high enough value on education. We spend more money on our military, prison system, and the United States ranks 11th out of 20 in total direct public expenditures for education as a percentage of the gross domestic product. What this boils down to is that we don't place a high enough value on education, and until we start to funnel more resources into our schools, our nation will continue to lag behind Europe and Asia. O well, as long as we can build bigger homes and buy more SUV's we don't really need to vote for levy's, I mean our children aren't even in school anymore..............

On a brighter note, since last month's official agreement to a ceasefire, the French and Spanish have shown more trust of their Basque populations. Arnaldo Otegi was released from custody in Spain after posting 650,000 in bail. Hopefully alliances and peace talks will continue as one of Europe's major terrorist threats is showing a movement away from violence and towards political means of achieving their goals. Hopefully the ETA and IRA can continue down the path of anti-violence and more compromise and debate can be held by all sides.

Swan Song

It's a beautiful Friday morning, and life is good. Unless your a member of the GOP. President Bush and his fellow Republicans in Congress have approval ratings that are at an all-time low during Bush's administration. Only 36 percent of the public approves of the job that President Bush is doing. The war in Iraq, CIA wiretapping/surveillance, and now the new hot button issue of his guest worker plan have all contributed to this dip in confidence of the president. The GOP fears that in the upcoming Congressional elections this November the pendulum may swing to a Democratic House and Senate. In a survey last week polls showed that right now the public would favor a Democratic as opposed to a Republican Senate by a margin of 49-33. It will be interesting to see if a lack of confidence remains throughout the summer, or if the Republicans can some how up their approval rating before the upcoming elections in November......

The big news in Europe yesterday was a dead swan in Scotland. This of course is no ordinary dead swan, but rather a swan that was shown to be killed by the H5N1 strain of the Bird Flu. The swan was found in Fife, Scotland which is a town right off the eastern coast of Scotland. Surveillance zones, safe areas, and loads of other precautions are being taken in order to contain the outbreak of bird flu, and many farmers are trying to assure consumers that there is no risk in poultry products. We can only hope that scientists and experts can continue to contain and neutralize the threat of bird flu, otherwise we are all vegetarians. Next time your at Wendy's imagine an order of 99 cent veggie-nuggets, or a spicy soy sandwhich, that will be enough to scare the world about this bird flu scare.....

In sports yesterday the Tigers kept their unbeaten streak going as they coasted past the Rangers 10-6 powered by a pair of home runs by Magglio Ordonez and rookie sensation Chris Shelton. The Pistons continued their domination of the NBA by beating their eastern conference rivals the Miami Heat 95-82 at Miami. Vijay Singh shot a 5 under 67 yesterday at Augusta in the opening round of the Masters. He is entering the day a stroke better than Rocco Mediate, and 5 strokes better than defending Master champ Tiger Woods who was an even 72 for the first round. Thats it for now, stay tuned for the next installment of Ramble On.

D-Wight

Whatever you have planned for tonight from 9:30-10:00, cancel it. Do yourself a favor and watch The Office on NBC, and I promise that you will not be dissappointed. You will be able to see Dwight Schrute (pictuered here), as well as the entire other cast of the office which works for self-proclaimed "super-boss" Michael Scott, played by Steve Carrell. This Office is the cleverest show on television right now, and it always finds a way to capture that akwardness of everyday life that hits home with each one of us. For a little sampling of what it is like to be in Dwight's head read his blog.....

In world news today British PM Tony Blair along with other Irish premiers met to develop a framework for devolution. This commitee has 6 weeks to elect executives, and then the conference will resume in the middle of May to further develop and implement devolution strategies. This marks the first time that talks have resumed since the 2002 Good Friday accords were signed. This process will hopefully bring more peace and stablility to a region which has known only violence and opposition over the past 40 years....

All of you who have read the New Testament story of Jesus walking on water, this story may surprise you. A Florida State University scientist now claims that he think that Jesus didn't walk on water, he walked on Ice on the Sea of Galilee. Professor Doron Norf believes that there were two cold periods in the Middle East, and that one of these periods was during the time of Jesus' life. He claimed that through a series of unique weather conditions, a strip of ice could have formed on the Sea of Galilee that Jesus walked on, and this ice would have been hard to see for anyone else. I don't know about you, but I'm not buying this one.....

In sports the Masters gets underway today as the PGA's first of four major tournaments of this season. Tiger is favored to win this weekend as he is expected to be further motivated by the illness of his father. Yesterday in baseball we saw Jeremy Bonderman and Bronson Arroyo both got off to an excellent start for the Tigers and Reds. Bonderman gave up only 3 hits through 6 2/3, while Arroyo struck out 7 Cubs, and even hit a home run in his Reds debut. Thats it for this edition of Ramble On, but be sure to tune into NBC's The Office tonight at 9:30.

Good morning Vietnaaaammmmmm! The hang-over has set in, opening day has came and went so fast that it now seems like a blur, and sadly there will never be as many games televised in one days as there was yesterday. O well, we will take a look at Opening Day winners and losers later on "in sports".......

Lets get started now however with some news headlines. Ever since 1998 the province of Ontario has paid a hefty sum to ship their trash across the border to Michigan landfills. However Republican House Representative Dan Acciavatti has head enough, and wants Canada to build their own landfalls and take care of their own trash. Claiming that as soon as he gets federal approval, Canadians will no longer be allowed to ship and dump their trash on U.S. soil. The whole reason Ontario does not have their own landfill is because "environmentalists" in Canada don't want to see a landfill in their country, but it is perfectly acceptable to these "environmentalists" to have a landfill 300 miles across the border. I guess as long as you don't have to drive past the landfill then the landfill must not exist. Out of sight out of mind............

Looking for the key to longer life? Excercise routinely, healthy eating habits, regular doctor visits, and now going to church have all been linked to increasing the human life-span vs those who do not regularly attend church. A survey done by medical resident Daniel Hall found that those who attend church regularly live 1.8-3.1 years longer than those who do not regularly attend. I wonder if there will be a follow-up study to see how much longer those who give offering regularly live? Anyways you can't argue with this evidence, God loves those who attend church more than everyone else........besides its science, and you can't argue with science..........

In sports yesterday opening day proved to be a day of some good baseball, and some really bad baseball across the nation. Gold glovers Derek Lee, and Andruw Jones both made atrocious fielding errors, Tom Glavine looked like it was 1996 when he was 30 years old, David Ortiz hit a home run that still has not came down yet, Scott Rolen and A-Rod both hit grand slams, Zito, Sabathia, Millwood, Hernandez, Hurang, Hudson, and Carpenter all were aces who got shelled, Kenny Rogers was Detroit's oldest opening day starter and pitched a gem, Chris Shelton hit 2 home runs, and the reds showcased their obligatory awful baseball giving up 16 runs to the rival Cubs. Of course this marks the beginning of fantasy baseball as well, and thus leads to decreased work productivity across the nation, because one study showed that some fantasy owners spend up to 2-3 hours a day crunching numbers and adjusting lineups. Also there was a championship NCAA game yesterday, but does anyone really care this year?

While checking over the news this morning one particular headline caught my eye. "Youth Minister Smites Dodgeball Opponent". This is a story about a youth minister who became engraged after one of his students hit him in the head with a dodgeball that he pushed the kid to the ground, and then as the kid got up, he kicked him in the groin. The youth minister is charged with third degree assault, and one can only hope he will also be forced to take a kick in the groin from each of his students at that church in Missouri......

Fortune announced over the weekend in its annual ranking of the nations largest publically traded companies that Exxon Mobil took over the number 1 spot from Wal-Mart in the fiscal year 2005. Rising crude oil prices were the obvious factor in this equation over the past year. One can only wonder as well if all of the controversy surronding Wal-Mart's complete lack of compensation, health care, and benefits for their workers and workers' families could contribute to their drop from number 1......

In sports the 2006 MLB season got underway last night, and ended early this morning. The defending World Series champion Chicago White Sox hosted the Cleveland Indians last night defeating them 10-4. The game started at 8:00 pm, but due to a 3 hour rain delay the game did not end until about 2:30 am this morning. Also yesterday the Pistons clinched home court advantage throughout the playoffs thanks to a come from behind victory over the red hot Phoenix Suns. Rasheed Wallace picked up his 16th technical foul of the year en route to the victory which means he will most likely face the mandatory 1 games suspension that accompanies picking up 16 techs in a season. Finally the Red Wings further proved their dominance as the NHL's best club beating the Minnesota Wild 3-2 thanks to 2 power play goals. Finally tonights NCAA championship game will start at 9:00 with Florida battling UCLA. My prediction: who freaking cares, its time for baseball and NHL/NBA playoffs, this has been a very disappointing NCAA tournament and my hope is that they have lower ratings than the women's final tomorrow.

He needs no introduction. He doesn't march to the beat of a different drummer, he is so far beyond drummers that most of us simply will never wrap our feeble minds around his superior intellect and ability. Ability to do what you ask, the ability to do whatever he wants. One day he will captivate the masses, but just remember you saw him here first, uncensored, unedited, yes, in his purest form. He was and shall be the Marty, nothing more needs to be said.....

They sip coffee while eating their croissants, they can't wear religious symbols in schools, they riot in their ghettos, they scoff at our barbarious, intolerant American culture, they haven't won a war since Waterloo, and now their right-wing government wants to make it easier for companies to fire their own youth. French President Jacques Chirac is enraging students, unions, left wing opposition and many other groups with his backing of the CPE, which is a law that will make it easier to fire French workers under the age of 26. With youth unemployment at a shocking 20%, this bill is supposed to help alleviate the problem of unemployment in typically poor, suburban areas of the country. Makes perfect sense. We have an youth unemployment epidemic, naturally the solution would be to make it easier ot fire workers, well youth workers that is. Maybe Chirac and his advisors (?) should spend a little less time ragging on us, and spend a little more time trying to figure out how to justify this joke of a law (and country for that matter)......

In sports, (and crazy African nations) the Nigerian Football Assoication released a statement Friday which claimed that it is okay for their football referees to take bribes...as long as it doesn't effect their calls, decisions and outcomes on the pitch. This is exactly the type of reverse psychology that will no doubt help Nigeria to explode into the 21st century, well the 20th century at least. Nigeria as a nation is seen as one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and this holds true with their football league as well. It will be interesting to see if the fairness of the matches spirals downward further, or if by some act of God that by accepting bribes openly football will become less tainted. In any case sign me up, I've got my whistle and cards packed, and am now accepting bids.....