Gwynn, Ripken in Hall of Fame - McGwire Benched

Tony Gwynn, arguably one of the best hitters in history and Cal Ripken Jr., the ironman of baseball were both elected to the hall of fame today with record votes. Mark McGwire, however, did not garner nearly enough votes due to suspicions of steroid use.

McGwire's alleged steroid use has become so important to America that he had to testify in front of Congress about it.

Why? It's none of congress's business. And should he not be elected to the hall of fame because of his steroid use? Of course he should. He has a record number of home runs, RBIs, etc., just as every other member of the Hall of Fame has. He hasn't "wronged" America, he has only wronged baseball - and one could argue, as I will, that it is baseball's fault for not testing when the testing was available. Rumors of his steroid use were rampant years before he retired, yet no action was taken. No one knows that previous members of the hall of fame did NOT take steroids. And he was untested and thus it is unproven.

If you need some sort of justice for McGwire, which is fully understandable, then place the asterisk* by his plaque. But don't deny someone what they've accomplished simply because they allegedly did something, maybe, possibly, perhaps, feasibly, and most likely but unprovably in the past. And certainly this shouldn't be a political matter. Although, to be fair, it's not as if they were doing anything important at the time.

A Better President than Ours - If Only

The way to address homophobia:


Word.

California Governor - Democrasizing Los Angeles, One Republican at a Time

How does a Republican governor win over a notoriously liberal state? He becomes a Democrat.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has recently proposed to provide health coverage to roughly 6.5 million uninsured Californians. The law will give employers the choice between either providing insurance for their employees or paying 4% of their payroll towards a Government fund.

Although he still refuses to replace the "R" with a "D" (Perhaps he likes "R-CA" because it reminds him of his big screen TV), during the last few years he has repeatedly pandered to -- some would say "sucked up" to -- the Democratic party and its goals.

Back in 2003, when asked if he would seek bipartisan consensus, his answer was "I have no reason to talk with losers." Whereby he repeatedly called the Democratic State Politicians as "Girlie Men."

But after his four ballet measures during a special election were all defeated, the Governator decided his original plan of being a belligerent jackass towards Democrats wasn't quite working, and appointed not only a Democrat but also a lesbian as his Chief of Staff.


During his January 2006 Speech, he made the following promises to California:
- $222.6 billion in public works improvements over 20 years, to be paid partly by $68 billion in new general obligation bonds
- 550 miles of new carpool lanes, 750 new highway miles, 600 miles of new commuter rail lines and 8,500 of bicycle and pedestrian paths
- $26.3 billion for new charter and technical schools, 2,000 new smaller public schools, and modernization of 140,000 classrooms
- Two new prisons
- A new crime lab
- Repair and reconstruction of California's aging infrastructure, including ports, dams, power plants, levees, bridges, prisons, mental hospitals, parks and the state's 50,000 miles of freeways.
- $1 per hour raise in the state minimum wage for all hourly workers

And now he has offered Health Care. So to Arnold I say: Welcome to the Blue Side, Governor. You'll find it's a lot more comfortable here, and I hope you enjoy your stay.

News Headline: Experts Agree that Oranges, are in fact, the Color Orange

Since we're in the mood for obvious headlines, here's an actual New York Times headline for you: Bush Tax Cuts Offer Most for Very Rich, Study Finds. What's this? Next you're going to tell me that "wherever you go, there you are."

No. Freakin. Way.

I think the larger question is: Who financed this study? Did MY tax money finance this study? Because I could have told you that conclusion some 6 horrible years ago.

Also found in the study, which was researched by the non-partisan "Congressional Budget Office," was that although the richest 1% of the country got the most tax breaks, the wealthiest of the wealthy (the richest .1%) paid a bigger share of the total taxes. Why? Because, and I kid you not, the wealthiest .1% got so much extra money during the Bush administration's tenure that they had literally millions more taxable income because their income climbed more rapidly than that of the middle class. Shock and Awe!

Now, I know my fellow Liberal Democrats who read this blog are saying to themselves: "But that means that the 49% of the country that votes for Republicans because of the tax breaks votes against their own interests. Surely they could not all be such idiots!"

Sadly...

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"Condescending is a word that means talking to someone as if they are Stupid"
--Al Gore

Democrats Urge for no Increase in Troop Levels

Next week, when Bush "unveils" his already leaked plans for a small troop increase, Democrats will be there, pitchforks in hand, ready to do some shouting. The words are different, with Speaker Nancy Pelosi using the phrase "Harsh Scrutiny" and Joe Biden refers to it as "tragic mistake."

But I think I speak for all of the Democrats when I say:




YOU


SUCK!!!


Anyway, despite the media's portrayal of the Democrats' new power, they can't do much other than stop funding, which they will never do because it puts the troops already there in greater danger. So don't expect a huge backlash at the President's proposal and be happy he is at least changing something, even though what he changes will probably be useless.

Number One Search Term "Hate Cavuto?"

If you search for "Hate Cavuto" on google, I show up #1.


That's important, because I hate him. I hate him so much. He's a flea. A rabies infested flea with genital warts and the runs who regurgitates Republican propaganda as if he drank a gallon of ipecac.

Still, I can't imagine how I'm number 1.

Geraldo Rivera - "At Large" Proves too Small and Old

There is a penis size joke in that title, somewhere, but I don't need yet another one in my blog posts.

"Geraldo at Large" was cancelled this week, according to MSNBC. The "journalist," known for his serial-killer-esque mustache and for drawing a map in the sand of the location of a large number of US troops, is now out of a job, thanks to his audience being too small in number and too old... in number. I guess. Either way, he will be sorely missed... by a few people in Florida with bunions.

Geraldo, I'd like to take a moment to say:

"Man, I really need to clean my kitchen counter. It looks like a hurricane... oh, what's that Geraldo? You're leaving? Okay, bye."

A New Majority - With a Minority that, Ironically, Hates Minorities

Today is the first day of the Democratic Majority. I shed a little tear of happiness when I woke up this morning, and ran outside to take the first breath of fresh air I've had in... Well, roughly 12 years. Give or take a day.

Representative John Boehner, Republican from Ohio, handed the gavel to Nancy Pelosi, and Pelosi took the gavel with open arms and beat Boehner in the head with it.

No, wait, that was just my imagination. Too bad. Anyway, in the spirit of bipartisanship, both of them argued with each other equally. So that's something. C-Span showcased a delightful exchange between house members about the ethics overhaul, where Republicans (Shock and Awe) said that banning gifts from lobbyists, etc., was awful for America.

Oh well, no one ever said progress was exciting, just that it was progress. I'm ready for Reid and Pelosi to "lay the smackdown."

My Own Political Conspiracy Theories

I'm not a real conspiracy theorist, but I do have a few thoughts on political agendas and plans that are reported as "illogical courses of action" on news reports, and I will share one with you now:

1) Bush is waiting to release his new Iraq strategy, which everyone expects to be a "surge" (aka, last ditch effort) of soldiers to Iraq. But no one can understand why he is waiting until the day the Democrats take office, and why he didn't announce in December. I have a theory. Sending thousands more troops into Iraq is going to cost the government billions more than originally anticipated. Billions. So much more that there will only be two courses of action: Raise taxes or increase the deficit. I don't believe anything is politically below Bush, and everything is calculated, so I believe that he and fellow Republican strategists are already planning ways to win back the house in November: Blame the Democrats for the increase in deficit and spending, while taking credit for anything that happens in Iraq.

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I used to have more, but they escape me now. Check back.

I Made $0.31 Working Just 1 Hour a Day for a Month! ! Found Out How!

Considering it is almost 1:00 AM, there isn't much to say. I did, however, make my first profit off this blog. Someone clicked on one of my ads and I made a whopping $0.31! That was exciting. I didn't start this blog to make money, only to get readers and provide my humble opinion, but it's nice to see it is also good for something financially. Maybe I can buy a gumball or something and invest the remaining 6 cents in Delta Air Lines stock.

Anyway, what's the news. The Democrats start tomorrow as the leaders in congress, and supposedly the first 100 hours are going to be exciting, barring any long speeches by Kerry. I'm excited at least. It's been a long time since I felt anything positive was going to come out of Washington for a while. Although all the New York Times has been reporting lately have been stories about how the Democrats are going to pull their punches. We'll see...

Often Times I Write 140 Page Strategies for Things I Don't Plan on Doing

Rudy Giuliani, ex-Republican mayor of New York and likely presidential candidate in 2008 got his first taste of presidential press time today when a 140-page strategy for his bid for the White House.

According to the spokesman for former Time Magazine's "Man of the Year" (Note: This year, it was me. I was Man of the Year. Your congratulations can be made in the form of generous donations), the document did not actually belong to Rudy Giuliani but rather his staff member, and the documents were someone else's ideas that were "committed to paper."

That reminds me, I left my 175 page strategy document that I wrote this morning possible about dinner ideas on the kitchen counter.

But I digress. Anyway, the strategy was not exactly controversial. No plan of putting R. Kelly in charge of the House Caucus for Missing and Exploited Children. But it laid out all the possible negative campaigns against him, including allegations from his ex-wife, as well as his spending strategies.

Although, by far the most shocking finding was that he was torn between running for the president or continuing his business ventures.

"What's this you say? A REPUBLICAN who would care more about making money than helping the country? Why surely you jest!" -- Indeed, that was my reaction as well, but in fact it is true.

Otherwise this would hardly be news if it didn't seem like a purposeful political stunt by a fellow Republican presidential candidate. And considering Giuliani is one of the more liberal candidates in the Republican party, he probably wasn't going to get the nod anyway.

News From Around the "Blogosphere"

I hate the word "blog." Why couldn't it have been called "e-log" which makes much more sense.

Anyway, posts and reactions from bloggers 'round the globe:

One Pissed Off Veteran gives a rundown of some of the numbers:

Total American dead in the Iraq Illegal Occupation: 2500 2513 2532 2540 2546 2558 2571 2585 2597 2605 2619 2641 2710 2737 2758 2788 2809 2826 2865 2888 2906 2959

Total coalition forces dead: 247
Total Iraqi Dead: 600,000+

Number of days since Baby Doc said he'd get Osama Bin Laden "dead or alive": 1928
Number of days since the illegal occupation of Iraq began: 1379
Number of days since "Mission Accomplished": 1328
Number of days between Pearl Harbor and the end of WWII: Only 1347

Number of days that the the Vice President has NOT shot a man in the face: 311
Number of days that the Bush Twins are still not pregnant with baste-'em-or-waste-'em Snowflake babies: 157.

It is still 782 days until the end of the BFEE Maladministration.

I like that. Sadly, more days have passed. Someone should create a countdown (or count up) timer for each of those in HTML so we can all add them to our site. I did find this:



I'll probably post this somewhere on my site. It's available at www.backwardsbush.com. Also, you can buy an out of office calendar at Amazon.com.

Lean Left discusses the idea of multiple tours in Iraq, especially for people who don't believe they should be there:

Why should soldiers be forced to extend their tours or to serve more than one tour in a conflict they do not believe in? There have been a lot of stories lately about soldiers being sent back for two or three tours or being recalled after they had thought they had left the service. The stories are full of heart break, privation, anger, and frustration. Those kinds of stories should not happen in a democracy. Soldiers should have the right to refuse to participate in any conflict that they wish. These people are making the ultimate sacrifice: they are putting their lives on the line for the country. They should have the right to decide when an where that sacrifice is justified. Asking a man to be the last one to die for a mistake is bad enough; forcing that man t be the last one to die for a mistake is unconscionable.

Some will complain that such a rule would make military operations more difficult. Those people are correct: certain kinds of military operations would become more difficult. But I consider that a feature, not a bug. Presidents would have to convince soldiers that the action was justified and then continue to earn the soldiers trust throughout the operation. Military adventures like Iraq or Vietnam would become harder to start and harder to sustain, and that can only be to the good. And since I doubt that anyone would argue that the military would refuse to fight when the country was well and truly threatened, I fail to see the problem. If the 101st keyboarders want their Pax Americana through the barrel of the gun, they can either convince the military they are right or join up themselves. But they would no longer be able to use soldiers as if they were pieces in a game of Risk.

Death is a terrible thing. To steal a line, it takes away everything you ever had and everything you ever could have had. No one should be forced to risk that in a fight they don’t believe in.

Well said. I wonder if this will be exacerbated by the "larger army" Bush has planned.

2 Political Junkies has a list of Gerald Ford quotes about the Iraq war.

Those are some noteworth blog posts. More later.

Three Thousand Sacrifices for Freedom

3...2...1... 2007

The New Year came after the 3,000th death of US troops in the Iraq war conflict. In honor of Specialist Duncan Donica, the last casualty of this milestone, I won't make any jokes in this post, nor will I make any comments about the legality or ethics that started the conflict, or the competency of the commander who pit him there.

In honor of Duncan Donica, I will simply end this post here.

The Abusive Lesbian Nun

With the execution of Saddam Hussein, a whole lot has not happened. We haven't completed the war, we haven't solved the Shiite, Sunni conflict, and we haven't stepped foot in Darfur. So I consider it a slow news day.

Continued from my previous post, the tirade continues below:

14) Ann Coulter - You're like elephantiasis. You're a worm that enters my lymph nodes through food and makes my testicles swell with toxic fluids. Your only redeeming quality is that you're already a sandy vagina, so there are no surprises in the bedroom. At least you don't have spawn.
15) Michelle Malkin - What a waste. So pretty, and yet, so wrong about everything. Luckily, I wouldn't need to hear you speak. I could just listen to Republican propaganda on repeat and I have basically your entire half of the conversation.
16) George Allen - Let me tell you how shocked I was to find out that a prominent member of the Republican party was racist. I macacan't control my surprise.
17) Conrad Burns - So... how's that super secret plan that going?
18) Kansas - ... that's all.
19) Members of the College Republicans - Daddy paid for college, daddy paid for your car, daddy brainwashed you to be a closed minded closet homosexual. If you have school loans, you support a democratic government. Period. Sorry to burst your incredibly small bubble.
20) People who walk up escalators - Why? They bring you up to where you're going. It's like walking towards the front of the plane because you hope it will get you their faster. The escalator carries you to your destination. That's their job. If you're walking up them, why did you not just take the stairs? Did you need the additional 3 seconds you save?
21) People who are against gay marriage - Stop blaming the gays because you're stuck in a crappy relationship. It's your fault for marrying a fellow Republican.
22) Apolitical people - So... your not voting killed about 3000 people in Iraq. Good job. At least the Republicans took time out of their day to make their poor decision.
23) Flip Murray - You're a ball hog. Stop dribbling and pass. If you're even in the game, it's because you've already lost.
24) Fox News - Simply taking away the "liberal bias" from your station doesn't make you moderate, objective news. I do admit there is a liberal bias in the media, it's called "Reality" and it's blatantly anti-Republican.

The list will continue sometime in the future. Keep your comments coming.

Finally - A Post Not About Iraq

This blog has only been about Iraq recently, but that is unintentional because I care about politics in general, not simply the failed administration. Because of this, I'm going to post a lot of gripes below:

1. John McCain - I don't appreciate Senators who sell their soul to idealistic fascists only to get a nod from Evangelical leaders. You were once considered the "Maverick Moderate" and now, you're more of a political prostitute. I also want to reiterate that I still would not have voted for you because you are a Republican. There is no such thing as voting "for the candidate." It's impossible, because with a two party system the candidate is almost meaningless. Bush may be the worst president ever, but it's his conservative and Republican policies that screwed up the country, not the stupid smirk he has when he is giving a speech on the problems in Iraq. So no, even if he were still Moderate, I don't vote for people who believe cutting taxes is how you save a failing economy.
   
2. Ralph Nader - Your whole platform is "I'm not a Republican or a Democrat." Almost anyone who voted for you in 2000 only voted for you not because you are a good candidate but because they don't like the Democrats and the Republicans because the represent the evil government. Sorry, but you haven't shown me he can do anything other than complain. Plus, your face looks funny. If your face is posted on the dollar, it would lose even more value.
3. Spokane, Washington - Dude, you're not important, stop making people believe Washington is a swing state just because you believe you should be making more money from your potato business. King County is the only reason this state is prosperous, Seattle has one of the most educated populations in the world, perhaps we may know more about politics than you.
4. California - I'm serious, you voted for Arnold Schwarzenegger again? I don't know what to say.
   
5. Wyoming - I don't think you deserve two senators. You can have a congressional Page at best. I heard Foley is gone so you have less to worry about.
   
6. People Who Clap After Movies - That's not political it just really pisses me off.
7. John Kerry - SHUUUUUUUUT UUUUUUP. I used to like you, but now you need to stop talking.
   
8. Elizabeth Dole - You ever experience that burning sensation in your anus after you had too much spicy foods the night before? I feel that every time I see you talking. Stop ruining life for the people who still have time left to live.
9. Messianic Jews/Jews for Jesus - .......Sorry, no. Just no. My "Catholics for Vishnu" friend agrees.
   
10. Sean Hannity - You'd be surprised how poor an argument tactic it is to start laughing like an idiot every time you don't know how to respond to an actual statement of substance from a Democrat. It would be demeaning, except that would imply you have some sort of value that, sadly, you don't have. Every morning when I take my dog for a walk, I think I pick you up with a plastic bag and stick you in the trash can next to the bus stop. But no, it can't be you, the contents of the bag hold more weight.
11. Neil Cavuto - 'nuff said.
    
12. Bill O'Reilly - Contrary to popular (aka your) belief, you don't matter.
    
13. Jack Abramoff - You know, almost 89% of the Jewish people are liberal. Thanks for reminding us why.
    

The list goes on...