An Independent Mind

Keeping the Game Close

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:33:00 +0000

Week after week lately, I've been turning on the Colts games and expecting it to be a rout (except the Patriots game) and I can then go on and do other things. But they seem to have this knack for keeping it interesting and making me watch the whole game. They fell down to Houston by several scores early in the first half and I was beginning to wonder if Peyton Manning could pull it off. Actually I didn't have too much doubt. I just wondered how it would happen. He did it and made the game close in the second half.

Good for the networks. Good for the commercials and not so good for my time management.

I don't think games are scripted like wrestling was but sometimes I wonder if it is ever possible. Especially with some of the games I've seen this year.

Antarctica in my sights

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:58:00 +0000

I need your help and vote to go as a writer/blogger to the Antarctica with Quark Expeditions....

http://www.blogyourwaytoantarctica.com/blogs/view/89

If we all just did the right thing

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 22:09:00 +0000

My viewpoint has been a bit harsh on here at times. Although I write daily in other places, it seems to be that I only post here when something gets me really riled up and that's not good. I need to change that behavior. I just wish people would just do the right thing, instead of just doing things for themselves or some group mentality.

If banks and bankers did the right thing, they could have made money and not driven the economy into the ground.

If developers did the right thing, they wouldn't be unemployed right now wishing they hadn't taken that extravagant trip a few years ago. Slow and steady.

If politicians on whichever side you want to look at, did the right thing, we'd all be better off.

If spammers didn't go so heavily in one direction all at once, it may last longer and make more money in the end.

If things had been built with energy efficiency in mind over the years and using smart design, we'd all be better off today and things would still sell.

Twittering we will go

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:36:00 +0000

Finally playing around with Twitter a bit.

I think it's great for friends and family. It's great for a known person who can have followers to push a book, a blog post or some kind of promotional blurb. Not sure otherwise. It can get pretty noisy and spam filled in no time.

I still don't see how they will make money of it as it is now. But perhaps something will change. This really seems like it needs to be part of a bigger company, like Google or Facebook.

Peanut Stewart Parnell is a Nut

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 16:55:00 +0000

Peanut Corp. of America owner Stewart Parnell is one of those strange cases that probably deserves worse than the death penalty to set an example. This guy has murdered at least 8 people, caused at least 600 serious illnesses and millions of dollars of costs to other companies in pulling products, sales and reputations. There isn't enough money around this guy to pay back the damages he knowingly caused. His actions put him up there with the worst mass murderers in history. He could have easily killed hundreds of people instead of losing a few sales.

This is just another example of the greed at all costs that comes from the Bush administration and recent Republican viewpoints. They encourage behavior that leads people to die and kill others. Whether knowingly like this guy did or driving people to kill themselves and possibly their families while the executives get high pay offs and extravagant trips. They don't care how many people die, starve, lose jobs or have miserable lives as long as they can make a dollar off it.

Republicans Still Lost

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 16:20:00 +0000

Most of government is lost these days but the Republicans are especially silly these days. Michael Steele, the new resident Republican in the Moron Chair keeps saying that government has never created a single job. Uh, aren't all federal, state and local positions jobs? We're paying for them. If they're not jobs, why are we paying them? He should give back his past salaries if he never had a job in government all those years. He says spending project jobs like construction jobs eventually end. Don't all construction jobs end and then something else comes up? No construction job is permit.

Steele just said that Bush inherited a great recession from Clinton. I don't really recall it that way. Another Republican said that Bush inherited the effects of 9/11. There is some revisionist history. I thought that W was President at that time. Maybe he was just playing the role, not actually doing the job. I could go with that. He spent more than a third of his eight years on vacation so I guess he wasn't really President.

So the Republicans are still lost. They want high salaries for banks defrauding America but they don't want unemployment benefits for normal people. They want tax cuts for the rich and no new jobs for the average person. They just don't have a clue. People like Andy Card come out talking about a dress code in the oval office when there are photos of every president in the last 40 years not wearing a jacket the same way. Who cares?

Democrats are following the trail into the woods by adding stupid things to a bill. The first large President Obama bill should have been pure construction projects, energy, education and job creation. No crap at all. They could add more stuff later and do other less attention grabbing bills. This was a Pelosi disaster.

Change? Not So Much

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:49:00 +0000

I had to look again at old Obama signs a promotional items. I was pretty sure they had a letter C on them somewhere. Competence? Clinton? Change? Oh yes, it was Change.

Change meant changing the faces to people named Clinton or those that worked for a Clinton.
Change meant changing from incompetent government officials to competent ones.
Change did NOT mean bring somebody in that wasn't part of the Clinton administration.
Change did NOT mean to have anything to do with Joe Lieberman.

At the time of this writing, we have Emanuel, Holder, Clinton, Podesta and Lieberman having important spots somewhere in the upper end of the Democratic power scope. If it were up to me, I probably wouldn't punish Lieberman right now either. I'd wait until it's out of the spotlight for a while.

I am a bit conflicted so far. Yes, you need experience and competency but now the hope that I need to believe in is that President Elect Obama hires someone that didn't work for the Clintons. He's one hundred percent for the past administration at this point and he needs to get someone in a position that didn't work for the Clintons. At least symbolically? Please?

Change Won

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 06:03:00 +0000

Change has come to the White House in the United States of America. The change argument won. The biggest change I care about is the change to competency. The current corrupt and inept administration has to go far away and never be seen again.

It is going to be a very hard road no matter who is leading. Let's hope a better leader can smooth some of the bumps down and keep the cart on the road.

Lies and Truth

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:10:00 +0000

One of the lies on Wednesday night at the anti-American RNC as that Sarah Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

Hmm, Joe Biden got 76,165 votes and dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses. Sarah Palin was elected mayor with 616 votes.

And from the looks of it, most of that was her family. Since Palin likes to ban books, they don't have as much to do in the household other than multiply and consume the resources of Earth.

So they are only off by 75,549 votes. Close enough apparently. Another example of Republican accounting that has run up the big government debt over the past 28 years. The only persons who can cut government and balance a budget in the last 50 years, amazingly, are the Democrats.

Mitt Romney also embarrassed himself because he didn't know that 7 of 9 Supreme Court Justices were nominated by Republicans. Or that George W. Bush was the Republican president the last eight years. Or that congress was completely under Republican control up until recently. Looks like he needs a refresher course on how to destroy the country first.

Sarah Palin a true Republican

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:47:00 +0000

Sarah Palin is a true Republican. She became mayor of Wasilla, AK with an even budget and no debt. She left the town with a 22 million debt, even after getting 27 million in earmarks (those things that McCain is supposedly against) for the town.

Woohoo! She is a real Republican, which is someone that spends much more money than they have, hands it off to friends and personal profiteering, and lays the debt on the people.

I used to be a Republican but I was disqualified because I balanced my checkbook and paid off my own debt.

Pay for attendance

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:51:00 +0000

Fred Thompson, Joe Lieberman, George HW. Bush, Ronald Reagon video George W. Bush...

The party of old rich white guys who have no idea how real people live.

The audience is two parts. One part rich benefactors of said people. The other are naive wannabes.

I've never seen so many grim people at a convention. Some people clapped. Some didn't. A few smiled but most were grim and straight faced. There were a few young people in the convention audience but they didn't seem interested. And why were they there to see a bunch of old guys who will be dead before their friends finish destroying the country? Were they paid. Were there incentives for a some young people, perhaps others children, to attend?

McBush was a POW in Vietnam!

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:55:00 +0000

How many houses do you own?

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam, we didn't have houses.

What kind of car do you drive?

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam, we didn't have cars.

It's a beautiful day outside today

John "McBush" McCain: I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and the days were not so nice outside.

You sang a song about bombing Iran. Do you really want to bomb every country in the world?

John "McBush" McCain: I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and I didn't have any bombs to use.

You cheated on your wife...in that foreign land of Hawaii.

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and I didn't meet any women there.

Your wife was a drug addict and previously stole drugs from her job but Michelle Obama is a black person from the southside of Chicago.

John "McBush" McCain: I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam.

You had a father in the military pulling strings and you married into money. What have you done for yourself in life?

John "McBush" McCain: I wrecked a few planes, was shot down d and was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. I also participated in enemy propaganda but I didn't get attacked for it like John Kerry did before.

You are worth over a 100 million dollars. Mitt Romney is worth over 200 million and also got a great start from his dad. The Obamas made a few million on book sales and Joe Biden is only worth about $150,000 as he hasn't taken extra payoffs from corporations. Yet you attack them as being elite.

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and we didn't have currency converters there.

You've actually voted against most funding and benefits for veterans yet you proudly tout your history of being one.

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. I then cheated on my first wife who was injured in a car accident and then married into big money so I don't need any military benefits.

You have changed your position on just about every major issue facing America but you aren't being attacked on it or being called a flip-flopper.

John "McBush" McCain: Well I was a prisoner of war in Vietnam and we didn't wear flip flops.

Capitol One Sucks

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:23:00 +0000

The title of this post is general knowledge but I wanted to share my latest story. Yet again, they just suddenly decide to stop my account until I figure it out and call them. I was booking travel plans to go to Europe and in the middle of multiple transactions, I get declined. And of course, during that period of time, other ongoing charges get declined too. So then I have to take the time and straighten those accounts out as well.

Why aren't I grateful for this security? I don't get any emails or phone calls. They just halt the card until I take 15-30 minutes to call them. Then they want to verify a bunch of charges. The Capitol One service person is across the world and can barely speak English. So I have to verify charges that I can't really understand? How is this secure? They also turn off online access so I can't even view the recent transactions to verify what is going on with the person I can't understand.

I also have a lot of trouble with Capitol One at gas stations. The pump shuts off before I can get a full tank. With today's prices, even a $75 limit is too little. Or they halt the card as the transaction starts so I'm stuck at a gas station in the middle of nowhere hoping my cell phone has service. Then I can sit on hold in the boiling Arizona summer desert waiting to talk to someone I can't understand.

I can spend thousands of dollars and then it's triggered by some little amount. One time I spent a couple thousand on automotive repairs and then my card was halted by $1.00 gas purchase. I had to top off the mechanics loaner car's gas tank after driving it for only a few miles. So this small purchase was of more concern to them since it didn't fit my habits. I can somewhat understand that but it's annoying when they just stop a card with no notice or effort of contact first.

Luckily I continue to carry spare credit cards and can use another one when this happens. I've had other companies do this kind of thing but they usually call after that fact to check it out. If there is a problem, they know they can investigate later and get the money back. But Capitol One wants to annoy it's own customers first.

The best interests of the future

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 04:11:00 +0000

Using a little common sense, who has a better interest in the future of America. A younger president who will live a long time alongside his children and beyond the age of mass oil as an energy source in the world.

Or an old man, made much older by war injuries and reoccurring cancer, who will be gone within a few years, and who takes big checks from the oil industries?

Who is really interested in our energy future?

Cheap Advertising

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 16:03:00 +0000

A form of cheap advertising was dominant in politics this week. John McCain (aka John Big McOil, John McBush) is using the technique of creating ridiculous ads to make news. His campaign is already a schoolyard disgrace (as an AZ resident, I voted for him when we played the now obviously "strike-a-pose," maverick role) so why not go all the way. And incredibly, the news is falling for it. He doesn't have to spend money on ad buys because the news networks run the ad over and over as they talk about it. One ad was only bought 5 times in the entire country while MSNBC showed it more times than that just during one show like Hardball. And then through Race for the White House, Countdown and the Verdict. So for less than $200,000 the McCain camp gets millions in advertising. They've done it for two weeks now. They play the pathetic old man ads over and over again while Obama uses real ads that don't get played.

It has been done by private companies and corporations for years. Create a controversy and let the free advertising roll. It's a great technique but it shouldn't be used with national politics because it is so important.

How to stop it? Well, the news should only play and mention real ads. That is, they should have at least a million dollar ad buy in totality. If they are going to give away free advertising to YouTube quality crap from McCain, they should at least qualify it.

Fox News Catching Up With 8 Year old news

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 16:18:00 +0000

Remember to look closely at any footage of John Big McOil McCain on Fox News. They have already been caught using campaign footage from 2000 so they will probably keep on doing it. Remember one of their slogans; Fox News: "Deceptive and Unbalanced for the mentally challenged viewer" Yes, lets make him look like a 65 year old man instead of a 72 year grumpy old man!

McOil Gets More IOUs...Err, Cash

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 21:51:00 +0000

Hmm, John McCain just got over a million from big oil companies in just a couple weeks. I wonder if that means they like what he is doing for them? Or does that mean he is on the side of consumer for tax holidays and more drilling because that will lower oil prices?

Instinct says that when big companies contribute to your campaign, then they like what you are doing for them and you will owe them more later.

What do you think about John McOil's efforts for us consumers?

Gas starts its slide for McBush

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:05:00 +0000

A while back I predicted that gas prices would tumble a bit as companies do anything they can to keep the Bush/McCain administration in power. Big Oil. Big Mac. McBush. Whatever term you choose for the death of high quality of life. The prices are going down. After a dime decline in average price, McCain said it was because Bush talked about offshore drilling. How stupid are people who think that approving new areas for drilling is going to affect gas prices now? How about 20 years from now? That's how long it would take to set up and see the impact of all this new drilling talk. And it's just more profit for the biggest money makers in the world.

So we'll see gas prices continue to drop until the November election and then they will shoot up afterward like they did in 2004. And remember, the average price was around $1.47 when Bush took office. Now it hangs around $4. And we're to be happy that Bush/McCain talks drop it by a dime? Whoopee.

Fossil fuel will continue to be the primary cause of the decline of mankind until we wake up.

Where is John McCain the Maverick?

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 23:12:00 +0000

What the hell happened to McCain? I actually used to like him. Back when he was the Maverick. He was honest and didn't vote all to the right or all to the left, which is the way it should be. The issue is what counts. Sometimes left is wrong and sometimes right is right.

Now he sounds like an old man who can't find his slippers in the morning. He flip flops his way down the stairs to the kitchen and holds his Cheney-Bush flag out the window to see what way the wind is blowing. He can't remember the war in Afghanistan and thinks that Czechoslovakia still exists. That's not who should be controlling the country. He might forget that women and black people have the right to vote.

He's turned into a warmonger and feels that getting shot down, being held hostage and then being a career politician makes him know how to win a war and be President. Being smart doesn't count. Using judgment doesn't count. Trying to solve problems without deaths of soldiers, big oil and private contracts doesn't count. You have to send people to die, make money for oil companies and private contractors in order to do the right thing about any situation.

Budget? Who cares about the budget. Oil companies and contractors have never been so green with cash and profit as they avoid paying taxes. That is what now counts to John McCain.

I almost feel sorry for him with him acting so confused and pathetic....Nah.

Clintons to Destroy Democratic Party

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 23:15:00 +0000

I'm losing any remaining respect I had for Bill Clinton as the minutes go by. I thought he was a smart former President but he's showing otherwise.

And do we really want to elect him again if his judgment is already going senile? Yes, we are electing him by voting for Hillary. He has taken over the Hillary Clinton campaign and he'll do the same in the White House. After wondering about that for some time, the answer is obvious. He's in control. Hillary is turning into "just the first lady" again.

She wouldn't be a known name at all or even a Senator without her marriage to Bill Clinton. So how is it that she would be the first woman President? She would be the first woman President that another man allowed. That doesn't count. She wouldn't be there if not for a man. So I'm surprised that any feminist would defend or support her in this way.

And they have apparently hired Karl Rove for their campaign. Suppressing votes, slandering opponents records, making up lies, inserting subtle words in here and there, "extremely young African-American" instead of just another opponent. Shame, shame, shame. Anything they can do to win. So then Karl can help the Republicans beat her which won't be hard. She is the only thing that can unite the Republicans and give incentive for people to get out and vote....against her.

Hillary Clinton is the only way the Democrats can lose the White House again.

Michigan, Press 4 for English

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 03:16:00 +0000

Amusings from another night in 2008.

I was born and raised in Michigan but I have been gone over a dozen years now. It's not the state I new when I was there.

Michigan voted for Mitt Romney, the corporate candidate. He is the guy who represents the gutting of the the American company and it's factory jobs. But he talks about it so people vote for him. He is also from Michigan. He also, for the second time in the race, went against normal protocol and decency when he came out for his speech as others were speaking. Normally, the third person comes out, the second and then the winner. Romney is strategically going against this decency and cutting others off. He did so in Michigan even as his campaign was on the phone with McCain saying it's okay to go out and talk. Says a lot for how he'll run the country doesn't it?

7% of Michigan people voted for Fred-my-writers-are-on-strike-Thompson and Rudy-911-turrets-syndrome-Guliani. 7% is also the current unemployment rate in Michigan. The highest in the US.

McCain was rejected for several reasons.

McCain talked about global warming. Not a good Republican topic. Republicans believe strongly in Hell so it's not a big deal that we are getting warmer. Bush tried to take us there faster and many in the party wants to continue on that path. The Republicans want to keep us in a war in the hot Middle East deserts so we need to adjust our body temperature. Well, for at least a hundred years. Well, at least until the Rapture. Or maybe until every bit of oil is drilled up and sold to us suckers in America. And Michigan also has the Great Lakes. No worries, mate. Since we won't have jobs, we won't need the beef from all those dying cattle throughout Australia.

McCain talked about fuel efficiency. Republicans don't want to hear about that. The party believes they will share in the big oil jackpot. Just like they think those tax cuts are really benefiting themselves. Only the executives really win in the game of oil and tax cuts but that fact hasn't trickled down yet to the common folk. We wouldn't need many taxes if we stayed home and took care of ourselves in the US. Michigan also would have more jobs and be in better shape if they thought about fuel efficiency sooner....Say sometime in the last thirty years.

McCain talked about green initiatives and new technology. Republicans want oil and sand. Michigan wants big old dirty jobs back. They don't want sparkling clean jobs. They don't want to be an early leader in new jobs. They want the seventies back. They want big old cars that eat gas and rust out rapidly in the Michigan winter salt. They want to be paid $20 an hour to sweep the floor with full benefits at the auto plants. And if they can't have that, they'll have nothing.

McCain is not the answer either. And really, no President is the answer. They can't do anything good by themselves. Look at our current elected idiots. We all want to hang the hat of our own mistaken beliefs and lack of history knowledge on one person. We want to live in our own little world protected by SUVs and mobile media devices while believing all is good as along as someone else is suffering more than ourselves. We believe we have the right to make a few people rich as we try to police the world.

Here's a thought. Hire our own people, build our own stuff, buy our own stuff. We need to stop listening to people like Mitt Romney telling us we need open markets to sell our stuff to the world. What stuff? Factory production is said to be down to 12% of what it was twenty years ago. And even that sounds high to me. Do you see many USA Made items in Wal-mart, Target or K-Mart? Can you even find any? Do you see much produce in the grocery store from a nearby farm? Even our canned beans come from China!

The Reagans, Bushes and Clintons sold us out. They have taken money for themselves and associates and turned us into a shell of what we once were. Executives that used to make $150,000 a few years ago now make millions. We are top heavy with bloodsuckers and running low on blood. We can't survive selling each other (imported) coffee, toxic fast food (majority of beef comes from outside the USA) and Oreo cookies. It's time Americans wake up and take our country back while we can. Before our own answering machines tell us "Press 4 for English" in a language we can barely understand.

Team Politics

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 16:55:00 +0000

The McCain Thompson duo is interesting. Fred Thompson once was part of McCain's campaign and is his friend. So he stays in the race despite pulling low numbers in various states. He attacks Mitt Romney where he is McCain's leading opponent. And he is attacking Mike Huckabee where he is McCain's leading opponent such as in South Carolina. So is Fred Thompson running for himself or his friend John McCain who can give him a cushy job in government where he doesn't have to work very hard?

McCain and Huckabee have been friendly helping each other beat Mitt Romney in Iowa and New Hampshire. McCain can now stay friendly while having his own friend in Thompson beat up on Huckabee. He doesn't take the negative heat but benefits from the attacks. And Mitt Romney is pretty much by himself in the race. He only has the corporations behind him. He is from Michigan so there is no better choice for some. Would you rather be fired by a faceless corporation or fired by the corporation given incentives by one of your own? Either way, he'll continue to help corporations sell Michigan out. It just depends whether Michigan residents want a familiar name to do it.

On the other side, Obama and Edwards both want Hillary Clinton to be knocked out of the race. And in previous times, it seemed like Richardson, Dodd and Biden were working to defend Clinton. But it's only a team for the moment. Eventually the Richardson camp was suspected of teaming with Obama's camp and throwing his support in caucuses over to them. But that could also happen on various state and local levels. There are really only two teams on the Democratic side. Those for Hillary and those against. No matter how much we love a family, do we really want thirty years of just two families running the United States? We're not supposed to be run by royal families but it sure looks like it.

Hillary Tears Up

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 01:01:00 +0000

I found Hillary tearing up a bit and almost had some sympathy for her. But I also thought about the tough women out there that must be cringing and yelling at that scene. She probably lost more people than gained with that one. I don't want a President crying at a State of the Union or any other public event for that matter.

But then she goes on the attack. And attacks just aren't going to work. It's too late for that. She needs to keep promoting herself instead of attacking others for some of the same positions she has had.

Mitt Romney Is A Moron In A Suit

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 01:01:00 +0000

"Don't make the pharmaceutical companies into the bad guys. " They are trying to do good work, says Mitt Romney at January 5th's debate.

What a moron. Tell that to the people they rip off every year. They only bother to do good work so they can make more money.

He may be a successful business person but based on the last few months of stupid comments, I can't figure out how he could sell a glass of lemonade and make money. I know he is a successful business person but either himself or his staff is terrible at giving him talking points. He changes too often (not FOR change) on so many things. He needs to get in touch with people and stop defending corporations. I've heard him do that many times on C-Span as well. It just sounds terrible as most people don't have much sympathy for big companies that sent their jobs away.

Huckabee Rises

noreply@blogger.com (- A) — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 21:08:00 +0000

I said a while back, when watching Mike Huckabee at a early debate (when he was still in single digits in the polls), that he was going to move up. He actually has a brain and can think on his feet. I don't agree with his religious angle on some things but at least he can talk and make a joke without rehearsing it.

Now he's coming up like cream floating to the top. Him and Ron Paul are the only two that make any sense on the Republican side. Well, the others make sense if you are a rich corporate CEO or dream of winning the lottery. People in America always think they are going to be richer than they are. If you make 25k, you are paying a higher tax rate than these millionaire clowns.

Why is it that some feel that we can cut taxes and spend more to go into debt. Can we just tell the credit card companies that we aren't going to pay interest or bills any longer and just keep charging indefinitely? That is what the US government does under the right wing neocons.