Sharks and Bears

The unseen forces

2011-02-13T20:58:00.003-06:00

I know...two posts in one day! What has come over me? Well, give me a few months and I'll probably be able to answer that but first, on to the reason for this unprecedented outpouring of verbiage.

I decided a bit ago to go back over my writings here over the past two years and was more than a little shocked at what I found. I know that the last two years for me haven't been the easiest I have ever faced, but I had no idea that the bitterness that I was feeling was so obvious in my writings. More than once I found myself saying, "Wow...that was quite snarky!" to something I wrote. I'm fairly sure that there was no coincidence that most of the snarkiest writing came during my long stretch of unemployment when the issues in my personal life were really dragging me down.

In the early days of this version of the blog, I'll freely admit to intentionally going for the low punch occasionally. In this 'shock and awe' world we now live in, the only way to stand out is by making more noise than those around you. Looking at those posts now, from a quite different perspective, I see what they really were...A mean spirited attack born from a time of great frustration with myself and my situations. Even the more recent posts (2010) also had a few daggers (no, not quite the same as Wayne Laravee's) that I'm a bit disappointed about.

I don't want to end up a bitter old man so soon, but it looks like that's what I became, at least for a little while. I know that my life has had more downs than ups lately, but that shouldn't come out as much in my writing. I'm hoping to change all that now. Maybe, just maybe, I can get back to the lighter side of life and it will reflect in my writing. Here's to hoping...

TJ's easy guide to going green!

2011-02-13T14:53:00.003-06:00

OK...I know what you are thinking. I am no real big fan of all these 'green friendly' ideas. My belief is that the planet will be here, survive, and thrive long after we're gone. I was thinking recently that if you consider the fact we have not mastered the art of cryonics, nor can we travel off our galactic block so to speak, I guess we should consider doing things a bit differently. Below you will find my easy, step by step guide to doing your part in protecting our precious resources.

Save water - Shower in pairs!

This is the #1 best way to save that most vital of resources, water. By grabbing a coed, you cut the amount of water you use by a whopping 1/2! The average shower uses 2.5 gallons of water per minute (per USGS estimates), so a ten minute shower uses 25 gallons! Showering together will save you 12.5 gallons per shower! That's a kind of savings that will warm any environmentalists heart! (Thanks go out to Kelly Farris for the assist on this one!)

Save energy - Reduce the temperature and find a cuddle buddy!

All the experts agree that one of the biggest ways that the average person can save energy is by reducing the temperature in your home by just a few degrees and grab a sweater. Well, you can save even more energy by reducing the ambient temperature in your bedroom to just a few degrees above the outside temp in the winter! Then all you need to do is grab that special someone and keep each other warm. Survival experts will tell you that the most efficient way to share warmth is by skin to skin contact. One warm quilt plus two naked bodies equals environmental bliss!

Save landfill space - Use rechargeable batteries!

Ladies (and some guys), by switching to environmentally friendly rechargeable batteries you can reduce the hundreds of thousands of disposable batteries that end up in our landfills from all of your 'toys'. With just a few sets of rechargeables, you can play to your hearts (and every other part) content, confident in the knowledge that you are saving valuable landfill space!

Reduce impact from clothing - go natural

If you ask any person who is doing a lot to reduce their environmental impact one of their favorite ways to reduce their impact is by buying gently used clothing from local thrift stores. Not only does it save everything that goes into making an article of clothing (land used for growing cotton, energy wasted in producing the fabric, energy wasted and pollution from transporting, etc) but many of the thrift shops (like Goodwill) use the money raised from the sale of donated items to support social programs. I say, if you want to really become truly green, you should dispense the need for clothing entirely! In 2009, 9.1 MILLION acres of land in the US alone was used in the planting of cotton (Per the National Cotton Council stats). Imagine how much of that land could be used for other green ideas if it wasn't needed to grow all that cotton!

Can't go clothes free? - Go commando!

Ok, I'll admit, most of us are unwilling to go the au natural route even if all the indecency laws would be stricken from the books (and believe me, I'm no exception). The average household does around 400 loads of laundry in a standard year (per Energy Star estimates). Here's an easy way to see what kind of impact you have. Take all your unmentionables and place them all in the washer (just for scale). now, if say you have one load of undies and you wash them, say every other week, that's 26 loads of laundry per year that you save by just getting rid of the first layer! 26 loads of water and detergent is great savings for both the planet and the wallet!

By following these simple, eco-friendly suggestions, soon even you can be proud to shout, "I'm green and I'm LOVING it!"

Jane, stop this crazy thing!

2011-02-12T03:01:00.003-06:00

OK, I'll admit that ill, overtired and more than a little pissy is no mood for good writing, but as long as I'm going to be awake anyway, I might as well put the time to good use.

If you saw my post from last weekend, you'll know that the ups and downs in my life have been a little bit out of whack. Well, dear readers, apparently we ain't seen nothing yet. The great cosmic roller coaster that is my life cannot go a few hours without correcting itself. We'll put aside the fact that I had three Mondays this week (believe me, we'll touch on that later) and just concentrate on the end of the week and work from there.

Friday promised to be a, well...if not good, at least a decent day by my recent standards. Yea, I did wake up with the first twinges of a cold, but working in an elementary school now, I'm pretty sure that my life will be an unending series of head colds and other various viruses. What was going to make it good-ish was the fact that I was going to be able to squeeze in about an hour of happiness before work. It was too. That hour was quite nice even if it was way too short. At this point I should have went with my gut...It was telling me to slag off work in favor of more fun. However, as a 'responsible' adult, I trudged to work anyway. How was I rewarded for my devotion to my occupation? That's right...the twinge of a cold hits me full force less than two hours into my shift, effectively taking my feet right out from under me. In retrospect, it wasn't so bad...I've worked through colds before and I did have my phone which allowed me access to some relief, so it wasn't completely unbearable.

So what do I get hit with when I get home? Of course, another bump in the personal road. One more fire in the making that will need to be stamped out before it has a chance to toast me to a delightful shade of charcoal black.

Of course, Monday started off the week with fireworks of it's very own. I came to find out that, due to a rare set of circumstances, my payroll check bounced. Yessiriebob...I get to jump through more hoops than a show dog (one of which is STILL being navigated) just to get the money I earned back and all the fees removed. Of course, the bank can't be arsed to process all the fees on the same day...Oh no...that would be to f'ing easy. Let's do one a day for THREE DAYS just to make it more interesting. Oh yea...turning Tuesday and Thursday into Mondays makes my life so much more interesting.

I understand that the world needs balance. The whole system would collapse without it. Honestly though, does the counterbalance have to come SO DAMN FAST?! Can't I enjoy the good for more than an hour or two before the next ton of bricks hits me on the head? One question that has been rolling around my head a lot these past few days is, at what point does constantly picking yourself up turn from noble and courageous to pathetic and foolish?

I'm starting to think that a balanced world doesn't include me being happy. Up until recently, I would have been content to sacrifice a bit of happiness for some stability. Not now though. I have a reason to keep picking myself up and refusing to dust myself off after the brushback pitch. Is it foolish? Maybe. Will I begin to look pathetic? More than likely. The thing is, I got a taste of happiness that I haven't had in quite some time. Once I got it, I had no idea how much I missed it. If I'm going to go down hard, than dammit, I'm going down kicking and screaming...

You come and go...you come and go....

2011-02-06T14:14:00.002-06:00

Yea, I'll probably never forgive myself for using a Culture Club reference for the title, but I guess I'll just have to live with it!

Whether they want to believe it or not, most people believe in the concept of Karma. Even if you are not a follower of Buddhism or Hinduism, where Karma is a big influence, you have to admit that if you do good things, good things will happen to you. I'm no different. As you saw if you read my writings over the past months, religion was something that just wasn't a fit for me. Still, I've seen too many times where good people get good things because they did good deeds. I've also seen bad people get what was coming to them for their bad deeds. Yea, bad people get good things and good people get crapped on, but overall, things do equal out.

Which brings me to me. Yes, I've made mistakes in my past, but none have been close to what you would consider evil. Yes, there was one chapter of my life that was quite bad and more than a little immoral, but that is long behind me and will never happen again. Over the past few years, I have tried to do good as much as possible. It was not that I was looking for good return Karma (well, at least most of the time!) I was just trying to do the right thing. Now I'm confused. I can't for the life of me figure out what it was that I did that allowed the current run of good. It's just over and above anything that my manic depressive roller coaster of a life has ever given me before.

As you may have noticed, it's been almost a month since anything was posted here. It's not that there wasn't anything I wanted to write about...I had several ideas and a couple even have drafts that were partially written. The two biggest hurdles were the total lack of desire to write and a bit of a lack of time. The lack of time was partially due to the depression of mine requiring me to sleep a lot more than I had before. Now, suddenly, there's a big boost of energy and motivation. With a little luck (and me not having to rely on my total lack of memory) I can take this and pour it into my book and finally get that finished.

There is only one question I have left to get over. How far do I push this? Good Karma is one thing, but pressing my luck during the good run may just push that old roller coaster into a steep dive. For anyone that knows me, I'm not one to do the smart thing very often! Do I push my luck and go for the gold or do I settle for the bronze? I'd love to take some time to think about it before I make that decision. Unfortunately, there's no way of telling how long this good streak will last. Stay tuned my dear reader...this could get interesting...

What a 24 hours....

2011-01-15T02:01:00.003-06:00

Well, I had a few things I was going to write this weekend about my personal life, but things took a bit of a turn internationally. I have a unique insight to the issues in Tunisia. I am hoping to take advantage of it in the next few days. Hopefully, by the time I can get the questions I have answered, it will still be relevant. I know it's been several weeks since I wrote, but it has taken a bit for me to adjust to full time work again. Keep up on Facebook to see the story idea I have. Believe me, it will have more substance than anything this country's media will come out with.

Stay tuned...

**Update** Unfortunately, this will not come to pass. I have been unable to convince my roomie to allow me to publish his comments online. He is too concerned about his friends and family, which is both understandable and commendable.

A quick check-in

2010-12-28T10:20:00.004-06:00

Hello all. Yes, I am still ticking, although my life over the last few weeks has had me considering, seriously, removing myself from the mortal coil. That has passed, as I now (as of yesterday) can count myself among the ranks of the full time employed! YAY!

Anyway, I still have one major hurdle ahead of me, so I'm by no means out of the woods yet. I can, however, see the clearing ahead. Hopefully the new year will allow me to get on a regular writing schedule so that maybe, just maybe, I can turn this into something more than an intellectual exercise.

I would like to thank my 3 readers for sticking with me. It will be more worth it in the near future. I have some big plans for this. Will it ever materialize like I want? Probably not, but the maybe is getting stronger! My writing time has been divided lately and this has suffered. I've regained focus on my book and a new story began to take shape Sunday. I'm still not sure where that one will take me, but I am excited about the premise. If any of you are fans of White Wolf's games, you may enjoy that one once (if) it gets finished.

Well, this seems rather short...How about a story? Here's another from my collection of flash fiction. There is a bit of a moral to this one, and it's pretty in your face, but I still enjoy the premise. I hope you do too!

"It's still amazing," DeShawn says without looking up from his gloves.

"What's that killer?" Rod, DeShawn's manager, asks from his usual position, leaning against the dressing room door.

"It's amazing that, without fail, this is always the calmest moment. Not after the match, not on the ride home, right now." DeShawn sighs. "I'm actually going to miss this. Right here, right now."

At 41, DeShawn knew that, essentially his career was over. Sure, the big name heavyweights could still fight into their 50's, but he was no big name star. Although the last 20 years were great, he just couldn't get over that hump. Never quite made it.

Everything started out so well too. Golden Gloves championship in his class on his 21st birthday. Under card matches for some of the biggest events of the time. But all that is ancient history. Now, it's merely survival fights in dingy arenas where more often than not the purse isn't enough to cover the travel expenses. DeShawn would have hung up the gloves months ago, except for the phone call.

Six months ago, DeShawn got a call from an old sparring partner who turned into one of the larger promoters in the Deep South. He was putting on a huge card over Thanksgiving weekend, and wanted DeShawn to fight in one of the under card matches. A few years earlier, and it would have been a no-brainer. Now, staring retirement squarely in the face, DeShawn wasn't sure if he had what it took to put on a good match, even if it was for an under card. The persuasiveness of his old buddy and the guaranteed purse eventually won him over.

Now, just a few short minutes from his last ever professional bout, the doubts that DeShawn had all those months ago came flooding back.

"Rod," DeShawn asks with a tear in his eye, "What am I doing here?"

"One last, big payoff killer!" Rod responds in his usual gruff exuberance. "A chance to go out in front of a big crowd instead of in front of a few dozen drunken gamblers!"

"Yea, I suppose," DeShawn replies weakly. "Is it worth it though?"

"Of course you punk!" Rod jests. "Now get out there and beat that mook senseless!"

With a chuckle, DeShawn headed out of the locker room for his last, long walk to the ring. Upon entering the arena, he was overcome by the spectacle. Nobody would confuse the Bartow Arena with Caesar's Palace, but it was a damn sight better than the back of Ernie's Pool Hall in Tulsa, the site of his last bout. Even a half full house was still good for several thousand boxing fans.

Climbing between the ropes, DeShawn is confronted by his opponent for the night, a lean, hungry up and comer 15 years his junior. The last thought DeShawn had before facing off for the last fight of his career was, 'Lord, please let me not get embarrassed out there!'

At first, it seemed to DeShawn that the youngster would make quick work of him. His opponent came at him from the bell with a flurry of punches that DeShawn barely was able to fend off. As the round went on however, DeShawn began to see a few flaws in the youngster's game that could be exploited. Unfortunately, his opponent's age allowed for a torrid pace that DeShawn was unused to.

As the first three minutes came to a close, DeShawn was only able to land a few weak punches. What he lacked in offense however, was made up for in the amount of knowledge he gained about his opponent. With the ringing of the bell for the second round, DeShawn's confidence began to grow. Not only did he think that he was going to have a decent fight, he might actually win!

After three more minutes and a few more weak, tentative attacks, DeShawn began to see his opponent weakening. Apparently this was the youngster's first fight in front of such a large crowd. He had thrown everything he had in the first two rounds. Now it was time to show the rookie what a veteran can do!

Dashing from his corner at the start of the third round, DeShawn began throwing powerful punches with bad intentions. After exhausting himself in the first two rounds, the youngster's defense wasn't as quick and sharp as it should have been. Glancing blows turned quickly into solid, damaging shots. One shot ended in a sickening crunch as DeShawn crushed his opponent's nose. Only feeling slightly guilty, DeShawn continued the onslaught until a solid shot to the youngster's midsection crumpled him like a used beer cup.

Collapsing into a neutral corner, DeShawn watches as the referee slowly counts, quickly becoming aware of his own fatigue. Only after he hears the three chimes from the bell does he realize that he has won. Dropping to his knees, fists thrust triumphantly above his head, DeShawn basks in the polite applause from the crowd.

Striding back to the locker room, head held high, DeShawn finally knew what it was all about. It wasn't about the fame, glory, or money. It was taking pride in a job well done.

Brain Nuggets

2010-12-15T16:19:00.004-06:00

Time for a few more things that are too short for a post on their own, but too long for a Facebook status!

At what age, if any, is it too old to have crushes? Seriously, is there a point that it turns from 'Awww...that's so cute!' to 'EEEEEEWWWWW....creepy!'? Does it make it worse that the person knows it's a crush? Pre-teens and teens by and large don't know the difference, that's what makes it sooooo cute. I get that a 60 year old man crushing on a 21 year old is creepy in the extreme, but what about the gray areas? These are the things that come to my mind as I'm coming off of a caffeine fueled Epiphany...

Ladies...What is the big deal with the 'bad boys'? I'm not talking about the barflies that act all big and bad, I mean the true bad guys. The guys with a rap sheet that goes from Green Bay to Milwaukee. Maybe it's a difference in the sexes, but in reverse, I wouldn't find a gal with multiple felonies and who was just released from prison attractive, no matter what they looked like on the outside. I just don't get it. The incident in the Milwaukee freeway recently brought this one to mind. When given the choice, the gal stayed with the felon. Am I missing something?

As much as it pains me to say it, I have officially gone over the line from huge fan to fanboy. It's not something that I want to admit. I have spent my entire adult life trying desperately to avoid becoming the 'OMGOMGOMGOMG' kind of fan of anything. Yes, I have deep respect and admiration for many different people from all walks of life (writers, musicians, sports players, etc), but it has always been in a respectful way. I came to the realization last night that there is now one person that, if I ever got the chance to meet, would turn me into a blubbering pile of fanboy goo...The conscious part of my brain was a little surprised by the subject of said fanboydom, but the subconscious apparently always knew. Oh well...time to go over to the dark side.

edit: After a bit of a reflection, it has come to my attention that if you look at my electronic presence, you might get a hint at the person who is discussed above...

Googling away knowledge?

2010-12-11T12:08:00.002-06:00

Over the past few months, there have been times where I thought it would be fun to have a bit of a trivia contest either here or on my Facebook page. After about 10 seconds thought, I realized how silly that sounded. With the ease of finding information online, any contest is only as good as the fastest Googler.

That got me thinking. Are we losing the desire for knowledge? With the ease of web searches at any time thanks to PDA's, cell phones, and netbooks, what motivation does the average person have to actually learn things? Am I the only one left that enjoys reading information and learning it so I don't have to Google everything?

I heard a story on my way home from work the other night that said teachers, despite the negative affects that it has, have had to introduce more electronic media into the classroom so their students pay attention at least part of the time. Now, I'm not a technofear person, but perhaps the reason that we seem to be getting less and less out of our students lately is the fact that they don't feel the need to learn anymore. If the 'typing' I see online is any indication, that attitude is getting more and more widespread.

Yes, we need to embrace the future. So much good has come from technology over the past 25 years, but if we don't remember what got us here, how can we continue to move forward?

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale...

2010-12-05T01:33:00.007-06:00

As some of you may or may not know, I have turned writing into a bit of a hobby. Not only here (which is mostly my random thoughts and feelings at the time), but also in the forms of novels, short stories, and poetry. Most of this has been unpublished for various reasons (in the case of the novels, they are all in rough drafts that are in various states of incompletion). Until now.

The reason for this is kind of a bit long winded, but if you will bear with me for a minute, it will become clear.

I am a bit of a sci-fi/fantasy fan. Growing up with Red Dwarf, Star Trek (Both TNG and watching TOS reruns with my mom), and being introduced to David Eddings and Robert Jordan. As such, one of the places I drop into fairly frequently is WWdN: In Exile, the personal writings of one Wil Wheaton. Mr. acting Ensign Crusher himself. It was because of his recurring role that I really got into The Big Bang Theory.

Anyway, some time after his first appearance on that show, I came up with a bit of an odd story idea. I had been playing with the flash fiction genre (generally 1,000 words or less) at the time. One night at work, I made two critical mistakes. First, I let my muse and my mind wander off together unsupervised. Secondly, when they returned REALLY happy about what they created, I was foolish enough to listen. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the insanity that my mind lives in and the creativity of my muse startles even me with it's brilliance sometimes. That doesn't mean that I should have even considered hearing their love child. I was tired. I wasn't thinking. I let them tell me about what I created...

I will have to admit, it was pretty good in a funny, demented, fan fiction kind of way. So when I returned home that night, the three of us sat at the computer and put 0's to 1's and saved it for posterity (or at least until a hard drive crash). That's where it's sat for well over a year. Now we return to the afore mentioned Mr. Wheaton. For some reason, I commented on a post of his where I vaguely mentioned the story I wrote about him. About a week later, he posted an unrefined story of his own. After the story, he made a comment to other writers to not be afraid to publish to the world. I think in some way that was, at least partially, directed at me.

So, in that spirit, and without further ramblings by yours truly, here is the first of my short stories that I am willing to bring to the light of day. Most of these haven't seen any revision since I originally wrote them, nor have they undergone any more advanced editing than a spell check, so don't expect perfection.

Trying desperately to avoid being lulled to sleep by the rhythmic swish swish of the wiper blades, Pamela began to wonder, again, whether this trip shouldn't have been put off until tomorrow. No matter how many times her mom told her that it was just a routine procedure, Pamela had this funny feeling that there was nothing routine about it. So, after only a few minutes thought, she grabbed what she needed and headed off into the rainy, Ohio night.

Approaching Akron with no sign that the rain will let up anytime soon, Pamela decides to pull into the truck stop ahead. "Maybe", she thinks, "I'll get lucky and the diner will still be open and I can get a cup of coffee." Pulling into the well worn parking lot, it appears that Pamela's luck is with her. Although empty, it does indeed look like the diner is still open.

After carefully parking her car as close as she can get to the door, Pamela sprints to the diner door in a vain attempt to avoid most of the rain. Practically diving into the diner, Pamela is greeted by the inviting warmth. "Hey hon!" calls the waitress cheerfully. "Dreadful night isn't it?"

"Tell me about it!" Pamela says breathlessly. "You guys are open, right?"

"Of course!" the waitress replies. "24 hours, even on Christmas! The name's Flo. Grab a spot anywhere you want. I'll grab ya a menu and be over in a sec."

"Thanks!" Pamela calls as she slides into a booth near the register. Looking around, she sees that, while clean and tidy, there isn't much remarkable about the place. Just your typical roadside diner.

"Hear you go dear," Flo says returning with the menu. "Can I get you something to start with?"

"Just a cup of coffee," Pamela replies while trying to shake the last of the rain from her hair.

"Sure thing," Flo calls over her shoulder. "Leaded or unleaded?"

"Leaded!" Pamela chuckles. "Haven't heard that term in quite a while!"

"Well, we are pretty old fashioned here!" Flo says chipperly, returning with the coffee. "What brings you out at this time of night?"

"Just passing through and need a bit of a recharge," Pamela says with a nod of thanks. She explains to Flo about the issues with her mother while giving the menu a once over.

"Oh honey," Flo says empathetically. "Sorry to hear that. I'll get this over to the cook."

As she casually flicks the ticket to the cook who is leaning through the service window, Flo calls to Pamela, "Care to talk about it some?"

Even though the last thing Pamela wants to do is air her problems to a complete stranger, she does that the entire time. The odd thing about it is, since her dad passed away several years ago, Pamela has had such a hard time talking even to her close friends about her feelings. Now, sitting in this little roadside truck stop, talking to someone she has never met before, she finds herself pouring out emotions she never knew she had.

Dabbing up the last bit of egg yolk with the last scrap of toast crust, Pamela turns to Flo and says, "Thanks a lot. I guess I've been meaning to get that off my mind for quite some time."

"Oh, don't you worry dear," Flo replies sweetly. "We don't often get customers this late during the week. Well, except for the long haul guys, and I spend most of the time trying too keep their hands off of me!"

Getting up with a long needed stretch, Pamela says, "How much do I owe you?"

"Never mind dear," Flo says. "It's on me. Like I said, it was nice to have someone to talk to for a bit."

"Really?" Pamela asks incredulously. "No, I got to give you something!"

"No really," Flo insists. "Go see your mom. She needs to see you."

With a wave to the cook and a hug of thanks to Flo, Pamela heads back into the monsoon. As she pulls onto the frontage road, Pamela is startled by the sudden appearance of flashing red and blue lights in her rear view mirror. Slightly annoyed, she pulls over and waits for the officer to approach.

As she rolls down her window to talk, the officer gruffly barks, "Please turn off the car miss!"

Complying quickly, Pamela asks, "What is the problem officer?"

"Can you tell me what you were doing back there?" the officer asks sternly.

"I was just getting something to eat and some coffee. I have a long trip ahead of me!" Pamela says innocently.

"Right," the officer replies sarcastically. "Give me another one!"

"No really!" Pamela pleads. "You can even go back and ask Flo!"

"Flo?" the officer replies, significantly less gruff than he was a few seconds ago.

"Yes!" Pamela almost squeaks. "She's the waitress!"

"Miss," the officer replies gently. "That restaurant has been closed for years. Ever since the fire."

Whipping her head around, Pamela notices that the place where she was just minutes ago has, in fact, been shuttered for years. The faded fire scars are still visible even in the dark. "Wha...Who..." Pamela stutters. "What is happening?"

"I think you better come with me miss," the officer says calmly. "We'll get you a room at the motel."

Following the officer numbly, Pamela wonders, did she imagine the whole thing, or did something else happen out here? Although no answers would come on the short drive to the local motel, Pamela did know one thing. Her life had changed in a way she wouldn't have believed just a few hours ago.

Perhaps I'll share some more in the coming days and weeks. Real life is going to get VERY real for me, so I can't make any guarantees. Anyway, I'm sure you were expecting the Wil story. Sorry dear reader, but whether it's actually a legal issue or not, I don't feel comfortable publishing anything, even digitally, that contains a real person without their blessings. Sorry to disappoint!

This Old Cub

2010-12-03T04:50:00.006-06:00

OK, fist things first. This is probably the worst thing to do considering the news is less than a half an hour old as I write, but if I don't get it down now, I don't think I will be able to.

WGN is now reporting that legendary Cubs player and announcer Ron Santo has died at the age of 70.

It will come as no great surprise that I am a Cubs fan. I have been as long as I can remember. I am a proud member of the WGN generation, growing up with a summer of 140 games televised on the network. When I got older and found myself away from the TV more frequently, I turned to the radio to get my Cubs fix.

I never got the chance to see Ron play. He retired a few years before I was born. My love for Ronnie developed over the years as I listened to the games on WGN radio. I'm sure there are a lot of people that feel that he wasn't a great color guy, but to those of us who were fans he was the perfect color guy. He was as much a fan of the team as we are. I know I don't speak just for myself when I say that we often didn't hear Ron's cries of despair because they were drowned out by our own. Often, you didn't need the play-by-play. Ron's emotions told us all exactly what happened.

There's no more deserving player who is not in that Hall that deserves to be there. I'm not going to go into this now. It's not the place or the time. All I'm going to say is that it's way past time. Let's get it done now.

I can't go on anymore...I'm still too shocked. Rest assured I will say more later and it will be more of fitting tribute. I'm not real religious, but if everything the Christians have been telling me is true, God is now blessed with the best baseball announce team. Rest well dear Ronnie....

Peu de mort blanche

2010-12-02T23:33:00.005-06:00

Well, it starts...

Yea, I know we've been spoiled. It's already December and we are looking towards only our first accumulating snowfall. It doesn't mean I'm happy about it!

Well, let's be honest here. I am looking forward to it a little bit. I'm a weather geek, and that means all weather/storms. The reasons I'm not happy about it have been fairly well documented. I won't rehash this, even though I know damn well it will happen again. As I write this, we are roughly 24 hours from the expected start of the snow and the exact strength of the system is unknown. That makes me very nervous. Doubly so when they are talking about possible lake enhancement.

But I digress...The real reason for this post is to gather advice. For those that missed it, the first storm last winter was also a doozy. One of the more complex storms of the season a well. During that storm, I made hourly observations as long as I was physically able (it was overnight and I did have to sleep a bit). I put it to you, dear reader (yes, I mean my only reader!) should I do the same this year? It will be a bit more difficult as there are few places where I'm living now that I can use for official depth measurements, but I am willing to give it a go.

So, what say you? It will be a fairly short duration storm (aprox. 6 hours as of this writing), so the only thing stopping me from every hour is the timeframe (12 am-6 am Sat.). Would you be interested in my hourly updates on Facebook? Leave a comment either here or on Facebook.

TSA T&A

2010-11-30T22:27:00.003-06:00

I joked about this earlier on Facebook, but, as my mind often does, it's been chewing on it all night and an interesting thought came up...

As I mentioned semi-jokingly today, if you are fed up with the TSA's patdowns, all you need to do is fly naked. At first blush, it would seem likely that you would be arrested for indecent exposure, the story would make the rounds for a day or so and that would be it.

However, there could be a but at the end of that sentence. The TSA is a government agency. If done properly, presenting yourself to the TSA screeners in your birthday suit could be taken as a protest. In that case, which wins. Your First Amendment rights or indecency laws? What a sticky wicket that would create.

I'm not going to go into a long editorial about the current security issues. Many others who feel stronger about it have said a lot more than I could. I prefer to look at things from unusual perspectives. You can't have it both ways kiddos. You either have high security or you have more attacks. It's just that simple. This is the most unconventional war (and yes, it is a war) that we have ever fought. We are constantly on defence because as soon as something works, our enemies change tactics. They change because they know our playbook. They know that one chance is all they get before they have to think again.

We've gotten so used to our freedoms that as soon as someone wants to curb them, even if it's to protect us, the cries go out. We are so concerned about offending people as well. We know damn well who is doing a vast majority of these attacks. Muslims, of middle-eastern decent, male, aged 18-30. The minute we say that all people fitting into that group is going to get extra attention, the liberals start screaming 'racist!'.

I'm going to leave it there, because that's not where I want this to go. Back on topic. Now, the thing is, who to get to do this? I think I'm a bit too self-conscious to do it. Of course, if I was 6'4", toned, tanned, and hung like an Arabian, it would make it a bit easier! It's a difficult choice. It can't be a celebrity...people will think it's nothing more than a publicity stunt. It can't be a person that's too hot either, for the same reason. Best bet is a moderately attractive C-list star. Get to it folks! I want to see that protest!

(insert depressed sigh here)

2010-11-20T16:06:00.005-06:00

As you may have noticed, a majority of my recent posts have leaned towards the socio-political aspects of life. I've been meaning to get around to a few other, significantly less important, things, but the motivation just wasn't there.

Even now as I write this, the desire is pretty low. My beloved Wolverines dropped another turd in the proverbial punch bowl today with an embarrassing 48-28 loss to Wisconsin. The problem with writing about them is it's not really news. I was never a fan of the Rodriguez hiring in the first place, but I was willing to give him a bit more of a break than a lot of fans. After all, he was completely redoing the team concept. Now that his first recruits are finishing their junior year, it's time for the axe to fall. With an offense that is sporadic at best and a defense that gives up more yards per game than Magellan logged, it's time for a change.

It's even hard for me to write about my dear Sharks. 9-5-4 isn't horrible, but after all the recent disappointments and a huge shakeup in net, it's real hard for me to get excited right now. Niemi is the over-rated stiff I thought he was last year. Niittymaki has done well, but he always will be a solid #2. He wasn't meant to be the go to guy. The depth is still an issue, particularly on the blueline. They are only 18 games into the season and they are already scrambling to find injury replacements.

My offline life is a swirling shitstorm, but I'm not going to go into that. So that's that then. I guess it's back to the socio-political!

A greater mission?

2010-11-20T15:07:00.007-06:00

For those of you that follow my inane ramblings on Facebook, you might have noticed some rather unusual posts the last few days. Now, I can imagine that most of you thought that I sustained a sharp blow to the head, finally made the transition from normal crazy to foaming at the mouth insane, or, more likely, both. No my dear friends, I have retained the tenuous grasp on both sanity and reality that I always had.

I stumbled upon a very interesting site a few nights ago. It had the Hail Mary translated into many different languages. The first post was me being fascinated with languages and, honestly, trying to buy a little karma (yes, I know the idea of trying to acquire a tenet of Sikhism/Hinduism with a Christian prayer is a little counter-productive, but just go with me here). However, after I posted the first one my mind, as it does from time to time, took the idea and ran off with it for a while. What it came back with really got me thinking.

As we all know, there are many places where Christianity is not welcomed at all. Still, there are always missionaries that are going to these places to spread The Word. In many of these places, they are literally putting their lives on the line. Uttering those words in those languages could easily be a death sentence. That has always amazed me about people who were totally devoted to their faith. The fact that they would willingly put their lives on the line for an idea.

People like Paul Hypki from Crosswalk Church in Waukesha. Granted, he wasn't putting his life on the line when he was going to Tajikistan, but the government really didn't want him there. At one point, if he was caught, he would have been lucky to just be deported (the restrictions have since been eased). That still didn't keep him from going over and guiding a small group of Christians in the small, poor, former Soviet republic.

So, as a very small tribute, I would like to share a few of my favorites. For the less known languages, I will provide a short explanation.

Ave, Maria, yu pulap long grasia. Lord, i stap long yu. Ol i onaim yu moa long ol meri, na ol i onaim Jisas, Em Pikinini bilong bel bilong yu. Santu Maria, Mama bilong God, pre bilong helpim mipela manmeri bilong sin, nau na long taim milpela i dai. Amen. - Tok Pisin

Tok Pisin is a Creole/English hybrid that is spoken in Papua New Guinea. Although the government of Papua New Guinea has a freedom of speech law similar to ours, there are literally thousands of different cultural/ethnic groups in the country. Many of them can be hostile to those who are different, especially once you get outside Port Morseby.

Ave Maria, nopunu' do graasia, miampai diau O kinoingan, obitua ko do id saviavi' tondu, om obitua o tuva' tinan nu Jesus. Sangti Maria, tina' do Kinoingan Pokiinsianai zikoh tu' tuhun do momimiduso; baino om ontok jaam do kapatazon za. Amin. - Kadazan

Kadazan is a language spoken in an area of Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Again, the Malaysian constitution insures freedom of religion, however, over 60% of the country is Muslim and Shariah law is upheld in their court system. Also, ethnic Malays are constitutionally considered Muslim.

聖母經

萬福瑪麗亞，你充滿聖寵！主與你同在。你在婦女中受贊頌，你的親子耶穌同受贊頌。

天主聖母瑪麗亞，求你現在和我們臨終時，為我們罪人祈求天主。阿門。- Chinese

Arabic

I really don't have a greater point or moral for all of this. It's just food for thought. I'm not really out to shift any personal paradigms. Take from this whatever you will.

Live on Big Fritz

2010-11-10T00:18:00.002-06:00

35 years ago, the greatest Great Lakes maritime wreck occurred. At approximately 7:20 pm, November 10th, 1975, the Edmond Fitzgerald went down in Lake Superior. With a mere 17 miles (15 nm) to go until they reached the relative safety of Whitefish Bay, The Big Fritz succumbed to a severe storm with wind gusts of up to 100 MPH and waves as high as 35 feet. As no distress signals were sent, the true cause of the Fitzgerald going down will never be known.

As a born and breed Wisconsinite, the tale of the Fitzgerald is well known to me and most folks in the Great Lakes area. What really brings this home is the storm we had just 15 days ago. It was a almost identical storm to the one that brought the Fitz down. Just experiencing that storm on land gives me new respect of what happened on that lake that night.

29 men went down that night. 29 men who were just doing their jobs. The youngest, Watchman Karl A. Peckol, was just 20 years old when the ship went down. With the current glorification of blue collar workers in tough jobs, I hope that the memory of the Fitzgerald and other wrecks on the Great Lakes will live on. Even though Great Lakes shipping isn't what it once was, the men who still ply the mostly calm, but often deadly, waters of those inland seas take a great risk just to make their way in life.

So, as my last thought, I leave you with the words and music of Gordon Lightfoot...

Kill all the babies you want, just put down the Big Mac!

2010-11-09T22:42:00.003-06:00

As I look around at all the laws that have been passed to force us to change our behaviors, the ones that really frost my knickers are the ones that are "for our own good."

It's not just San Francisco and their idiotic new law banning happy meal toys...It's all the laws that put us in the middle of the Demolition Man world. If some morally righteous zealot deems something to be even slightly bad, they will get some politician to pass a ban against it. Even if it's a legal product, they will do everything they can to prevent you from using it (am I right smokers?). If I am to believe the teachings I got while I was searching for religion, we were given the gift of free will. Why are our "leaders" doing everything they can to take that away?

You have to wonder though...Why is it that they are so intent on legislating all sorts of behaviors that are bad for us, but they still allow abortion? When you boil it down, it is all about life. These laws are supposed to save our lives. So why not preserve life by passing a law against the behavior that directly leads to taking a life? Why is free will good in this case and not in any others? If you ask a pro abortion person, their first argument is always, "We must protect a woman's right to choose!" Well, what about my right to choose to stuff my face with never ending plates of poutine? What about a parent's right to choose whether to get the Happy Meal for their kid or not?

Our society has truly begun it's decent. We can't keep the worst among us (murderers, rapists, child molesters) behind bars, but we can pass laws telling us what to eat, what to drink, what to wear, and even what kinds of products to buy (bye bye incandescent light bulbs). Has it really come to this? No, I'm not advocating anarchy, but come on, if I want to sit in a greasy spoon diner and have a jumbo rack of ribs with a side of chili fries, why should the government feel the need to try to stop me?

The Underground Conservative Part VI

2010-11-07T15:03:00.003-06:00

OK, I admit it. I was dumb. I gave in to the hoopla.

After I volunteered for the Walker campaign on election day, I grabbed a bumper sticker and...put it on my car. Yea, it makes it a bit harder now to be undercover, but I don't care. This was such a historic election cycle for me. I had to do it.

I have always leaned towards politics. I rarely miss voting in an election. I've voted in every presidential election since I turned 18. I have missed a few primaries though. By and large, I have always participated in the process. Over the last two years, however, I have taken it to a new level. I have blogged about it (both here and in the first version of Sharks and Bears), written about it at various other sites, and this year I actually pounded the pavement and knocked on doors on election day. I have attended rallies and defended my candidates online. I don't consider myself a political activist yet, but I do feel that I am knowledgeable enough to be considered a pundit.

I'm more than a little nervous about the sticker. My car is my lifeline (needed for work and food shopping) and in a neighborhood where windows were broken by bricks over a sale of a TV that died (yes, this really did happen...I watched the guy throw the bricks), a Walker bumper sticker might be all the motivation needed for some prick to slash tires or break windows. Still, I am proud to have it there. Make no mistake though, if he doesn't live up to his promises, I will be one of the first ones to vote him out.

That is what all of us who identify with the TEA Party are all about. It doesn't matter if you have a D or an R after your name. If you are committed to lowering the tax burden on the people, control spending, and return this country to it's glory, then we are with you. If you don't do what you said you were going to do, we will find someone who will.

Congressional twister

2010-11-04T22:18:00.002-05:00

Now that all the election data has shaken out from that historic midterm, we move on to the first huge decision that the state has to face...Redistricting.

For those that don't know how this works, here's a short overview. Every 10 years, the government sets out to count every person in the country (the census). The numbers that the census turn up play a large part in the government at various levels. Perhaps the biggest, most visible way, is the number of representatives that each state sends to the US House. Since 1913 (not counting the one time Alaska/Hawaii exception) this number has been set at 435. Leaving out the complex math that goes into it, after each census it is determined how many house representatives each state gets (although each state is guaranteed one) based on the number of people there.

That's where it gets interesting for Wisconsin. We will be losing one seat. Considering the fact that every congressional district has to include the exact same number of people at the time of redistricting, it seems likely that the seat that will be lost will be in SE Wisconsin. Logic would dictate that the current 4th district would be absorbed by the 1st and 5th to some degree. Of course, we won't know for some time yet what sort of cartography contortions will be done to give Wisconsin it's 7 seats, but with the Republicans in control of the Governor's Mansion, State Assembly, and State Senate, you can be sure that the balance that we currently have in SE Wisconsin will change.

But what to do with that extra representative? Someone is losing his/her job. I'm far from a scholar when it comes to redistricting, but if it were me, the person that is representing the district that is eliminated would be out of a job. Some people, I'm sure, would argue that the most junior representative would be tossed. And that's the ballgame folks. Either very liberal Gwen Moore (WI-4) is out if the 4th really is dumped or either Sean Duffy or Reid Ribble (both won their first terms on Tuesday) will be ousted. It is possible, although quite unlikely, that a current representative would voluntarily retire to free up the seat. The only candidates that I see doing that are James Sensenbrenner (WI-5) and possibly Tom Petri (WI-6). Tammy Baldwin (WI-2) is such an entrenched part of the Madison liberal establishment that I don't see her going anywhere. Ron Kind (WI-3) may also consider it. Had the winds of change not been blowing so hard the other way, Kind would have considered a run for governor this year.

As much as I hate to say it, the wild card here is Paul Ryan (WI-1). He is a rising star in Republican politics and is poised to become a leader in the new Republican majority. However, despite his assurances to the contrary, if the tide continues to turn against the Democrats, he will be given the full court press by the RNC and prominent Republicans to change his mind. A one year break to put his ducks in a row before a big time campaign might be enough to get him to at least consider it.

It will be a very interesting time. How are the lines drawn? Who will be looking for a new job? Will someone "take one for the team" so another colleague can keep their job? Only time will tell.

2010 midterms - a look back

2010-11-03T22:05:00.002-05:00

It's interesting how things can look so different just by changing the perspective. Nationally, the Republican wave didn't surge as much as it could have. It was still pretty powerful, (taking back the House with a significant majority and evening up the Senate) but it wasn't quite the tsunami that it could have been.

Here in Wisconsin, however, it was quite a different story. Two House seats went from blue to red (a third, WI-3, nearly fell in what was, going in, considered a safe seat for the Democrats), the governor's mansion will be occupied by Republican Scott Walker, Wisconsin's junior Senator is now a conservative business owner from Oshkosh, and the State Assembly and the State Senate switched to a Republican majority. The last time the Assembly, Senate, and Governor all switched parties in the same year, you have to go back to 1938.

All that is a good thing. Perhaps we can get the big spending under control now. While I know that Mr. Walker and Mr. Johnson know that if they don't do what they promised, we will replace them with someone who will. Hopefully the State Assembly and Senate get the hint too.

The most confusing thing though, is what's coming out of the WI-4. For those that don't know, the 4th is basically the city of Milwaukee and as strong a lock for the Democrats as any district in the country. In this election, Gwen Moore was challenged, rather strongly as it turns out, by local business owner Dan Sebring. At first glance, the 69-30% win for Moore is what you would expect in a race that wasn't heavily backed by GOP money. However, all doesn't seem to be kosher. After Mr. Sebring posted on his Facebook account last night that he would not be conceding due to what he called "irregularities" in the vote counting. I took a bit of time myself and dug a little deeper.

Granted, I do not have access to the numbers of same day registrants, but basing the vote totals for the Senate race and the number of registered voters in Milwaukee county as of October 20th, it began to look a bit fishy. According to my numbers, 63.5% of Milwaukee county registered voters turned out to vote. Now, there was a VERY high turnout in the south suburbs, but that also is a cause for concern because those areas also voted heavily for Ron Johnson and Scott Walker. Cudahy, St. Francis, South Milwaukee and a segment of West Allis are a part of the 4th. According to JSOnline's map, those areas also voted pretty strongly for Walker and Johnson. I would tend to believe that they would have voted for Sebring as well.

That leaves us with the city of Milwaukee. Sure, Republicans tend to do very poorly here, but even still, there were irregularities. Again, according to JSOnline's maps, Aldermanic districts 11 and 13 leaned significantly to Walker. You would think that those voting Walker would vote Sebring as well.

So what does this all mean? Could it be possible that all this evidence only accounts for 30% of the vote? Sure, it's possible, but unlikely. That is probably the reasoning behind Mr. Sebring's official protest of the election's results. Thee has already been one account of illegal actions by poll workers (an inner city poll worker said to a voter, "Let me show you some of my favorite candidates"), who's to say there wasn't more?

It looks like it will be quite a while until the dust settles in this one. If you are interested, go ahead and follow Mr. Sebring's Facebook account. I'm sure that it will be very interesting...

Election night thoughts

2010-11-02T23:44:00.002-05:00

Just a few quick things while they are still fresh in my mind.

I just returned home for the Scott Walker victory rally. Two things stuck out. First, to no real surprise, there was only a few African American faces in the crowd (I counted 3, but there was a HUGE number of people there). What did surprise me a bit was the number of younger people. I did see some college age people, but not nearly as many as I would have hoped. I don't consider myself young by any means, but we need us younger folks to step up and get active. The generation before us is aging quickly. If we want to continue the gains we made tonight, we have to keep it up.

Milwaukee county concerned me. It seemed that they took forever to report their totals. Maybe it was the fact that there were long lines at 8, I don't know for sure. All I do know is that the only time I saw slower return reporting was when I was living in Appleton. Whatever the reason, it does look a bit shady...even more so when you consider all the fraud allegations that come from certain parts of the city.

I'll write more tomorrow once all the dust settles and we get the final numbers. There seems to be a bit of an issue in the WI-4 race. Dan Sebring refuses to concede under allegations of Irregularities in vote tabulation. We'll check that out as well.

Prediction time!

2010-11-01T14:25:00.002-05:00

Well, since every other political blogger is putting their money where their mouth is, I guess I should too.

US Senate

This one will be real close. With the announcement that Joe Liberman may caucus with the GOP should there be a party flip or a 50-50, it makes the Senate races all that more interesting. I do think that the Senate flips straight out and Liberman starts to vote with the GOP, giving a 52-48 majority to the Republicans.

Locally, it's practically a foregone conclusion that Ron Johnson defeats Russ Feingold. It's just a matter by how much. There are reports that the turnout in Milwaukee could be as high as 55%. If that holds true, it will be a narrower margin. The problem is, despite how liberal this city is, I haven't seen a large amount of yard signs/bumper stickers for any of the Democratic candidates. While far from scientific, that leads me to think that the turnout may be a bit lower than they think. If that's true, Johnson wins by at least 4 points.

US House

This is a slam dunk. The Republicans will take back the house, the only thing in question is by how much? I have heard anywhere from 50 to 76 seats. I think the 50-55 range is closer to the truth, but we will know for sure how big of a tide this is by 9pm CDT. The WI-3 race will be a key. If Ron Kind loses out there, you know that things are going to go very badly for the Democrats nationwide.

There really are only the 3 seats that are in play in Wisconsin. As far as the 3rd goes, it truly is a tossup. I haven't followed that race as closely as the others, but I think Kind will hold on. The 7th and 8th are runaways for the GOP. Sean Duffy will dominate in the 7th while Reid Ribble holds on to win in the 8th. Steve Kagen turned himself into the Dan Quayle of this generation. I think the GOP could have run a stuffed bunny against Kagen and received 40% of the vote. There is a challenge in the WI-4, and despite what Dan Sebring is saying on his Facebook page, he really doesn't have a real shot. Even with the reports of vandalism to his supporters' homes, it's not going to be enough to overcome the long odds.

Wisconsin Governor

Again, this is almost a sure thing. Tom Barrett has been the reluctant candidate all along. I'm sure, deep down, he never really wanted to be governor. He's happy being the mayor of Milwaukee. The president and the DNC sweet talked him into this. Scott Walker should win by a comfortable margin. Again, Milwaukee turnout will determine by how much Walker wins, but I'm thinking a 59-41% margin is realistically attainable.

The moment before the moment

2010-10-30T12:09:00.002-05:00

You know, Lewis Black had it right all along when he said, "This moment we are sharing right now...Is as good as it's going to get."

The moment of anticipation. There is no better moment. There's nothing better than the feeling you get right before something big happens.

That's where I find myself. This weekend will, for the foreseeable future, be my one and only weekend where I can do what I want, when I want. I'm going to try to enjoy it. I have determined that it will be either the best weekend EVER or suck on toast. There will be no middle ground. I'm going to get out of my comfort zone. I'm just going to let the night come to me. Where I end up is where I end up.

That's the big issue. As Mr. Black also said, "The moment is reality, and reality kinda sucks". I have no delusions about my luck. I have seen it work for me and against me too many times to be able to properly gauge what is going to happen. Still, it will be worth the effort I believe. I've really only just begun to feel 'normal' (I'm never going to be mainstream normal...I'm just aiming for normal for me) and I'm hoping to keep that going as long as possible.

So, if you are a praying person, say one for me. If you are not, I'll be starting the night at Stonefly, so feel free to join me! :)

The Underground Conservative Part V

2010-10-27T00:37:00.002-05:00

We all know that sex sells. We see it every day. Every consumer product out there has used sexuality at some point to sell itself. What confuses me is why don't political campaigns do the same?

I've been debating with myself ever since about whether I would share any/all the details of my journey into the absurd that occurred last Friday night/Saturday morning. On one hand, there are many details of my life, past and present, that I will never be sharing online. That's just the way I am. Still, what happened to me borders so much on the insane/absurd/bizarre that it is hard not to talk about it. I've gone over a few details with a good friend (mostly to confirm my own thoughts), but for the most part I've been silent because I still have not fully come to terms with what went on and how I reacted.

However, when the above thought came to me earlier today, I had a bit of an epiphany. Perhaps it is now time to share a bit of my night.

As a part of the unusual night, I met several new people. One of which just happened to be a very attractive young woman. We had a good time just talking for well over an hour. Somehow, the conversation turned to politics. That's when I discovered that she was a rather extreme liberal. Now, normally under these circumstances, I would have had a good game of Tweak The Liberal and call it a night. After all, I had just met her in the most random way and unless the gods of chance have a sense of humor like mine, we would never see each other again. However, this time was a bit different. For whatever reason (Yes all you dirty minded people...That's probably why!) I found myself either being vague about my beliefs or flat out concealing them just to continue talking to her.

Which brings me back to the original point. I do believe that I would be strong enough to avoid the "vote for my guy and I'll sleep with you" invitation, but we all know that there are an awful lot of people who don't vote on a regular basis that would, given the right enticement, go along with those terms. So why don't we hear more about it? I'm sure that if it IS going on that the media in this country would jump all over it. So if it isn't going on, why not? Bribery has always been a part of politics in one shape or another. This would just be another form of bribery with the added bonus that the politician in question could have total deniability.

Maybe politicians hold themselves to a bit of a higher standard. As hard as that is to believe when you look at all the attack ads that are out there now, maybe it is true. Honestly, I think the only reason that they don't do it is that they haven't found a way to get their followers to do it and still keep that deniability...

Have boombox, will travel...

2010-10-24T23:41:00.005-05:00

Ok...Anyone who's my age or slightly older knows this scene well...

Well, in jest, I was taunted with it by a good friend earlier (Now that I think about it, I owe you a bit of payback Denise! :P) and like it usually goes, my mind started chewing on it.

While under my current circumstances I wouldn't consider something this extreme, there was at least one point in my life where I seriously considered it. I never did for several reasons. This always looks so good in the movies, but is it something that translates to real life? Has anyone ever done that? Have any of you considered it and didn't? Why not?

The logical part of my brain tells me that this looks WAY better on the big screen than it would in real life. However, I'm sure that it could be pulled off if done in the right way. I wonder if any of the MP3 player folks have a docking station that big...

Bye bye Tom...bye bye happiness...

2010-10-24T23:28:00.002-05:00

Wow....I think I'm living in Bizarroworld.

In a move that nobody was expecting, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has endorsed Scott Walker for Governor.

How on Earth does the second most liberal editorial staff come to the conclusion that a fiscally conservative Republican is their candidate? Why, when every little perceived flub is blared across the front page of the paper, would they say that Scott is their guy. I can think of only one reason.

The editors may be raging liberals, but they are not stupid. They see the writing on the wall as much as anyone. As far as I'm concerned, the only reason that they are endorsing him now, less than two weeks from election day, is that they want to keep bashing him hard and often. When they are called on it, they can point to today and say, "See?! We endorsed you! You can't attack us for attacking you!"

Way to go Mr. Pimentel...You just made yourselves even more irrelevant that you already are.

Eat right, exercise, and die anyway

2010-10-19T00:04:00.002-05:00

I know, with the exception of the one little rambling post the other night, it's been nearly a month since I've posted anything. Sorry. Like I said before, my offline life has to take priority over my online life, and my offline life has tossed me more than it's fair share of brushback pitches. I guess I've been bad, so you will just have to spank me (no, not you...or you...you, the blonde in the back, YOU can come over and spank me).

Anyway, now to the issue at hand. There has been some debate over whether the Wisconsin Food Share program should limit the kinds of foods that are purchased with taxpayer funds. Soda, chips, and other junk foods are most often cited as things to be restricted.

At first blush, I tend to agree with this. There are healthier options out there for food. The more my mind mulled this over, the more confused it became. I mean, what exactly is healthy? The obvious answer is to be healthy. When I asked my Facebook minions why we should eat healthy, most of the responses I got were health related. With the exception of Faith, who seemed to think the only reason to eat healthy food is to make the bad stuff taste better, Everyone agreed that healthy eating habits can keep you from having problems in the future.

The big sticking point is that word healthy. It seems so vague, yet so limiting at the same time. Take a person who eats right, exercises frequently, has a well toned body, but has a genetically inherited disease that will limit their lifespan significantly. Is that person healthy? What about a person who, by all current medical standards, is in perfect health but eats what would be considered by most to be equivalent to rocket fuel. Is he healthy? Are we ready to tell tens of thousands of people that have genetically passed diseases that they are never going to be healthy?

What about the foods themselves? In my own lifetime, the following foods have both been considered healthy and unhealthy: Eggs, soybeans (and other soy products), dried fruit, most dairy products including milk and sour cream, and even water for crying out loud! If doctors can't agree what is healthy, how can the rest of us?

I remember hearing somewhere (I can't remember if it was a medical journal or Lewis Black) that a craving is your body's way of telling you that you are deficient in something that the food you crave has. Can't drink enough milk? You could need the calcium or vitamin D. You won't rest until you get that perfectly grilled T-bone? Probably you need a bit more protein. If that is the case, the only one that truly knows what is best for you is you. All the advice from doctors and nutritionists won't mean squat.

So, if the doctors can't tell you and the only one that can is your own body, why does a bureaucracy like a state government seem to think it knows what's best for you? It doesn't. It's another overreaching thought by politicians in the greatest nanny state of them all. Just another way of circumventing your freedom of choice by scare tactics. They all tell you that if you don't do this, you'll die earlier. What if I don't want to live a long life? As with everything else, quantity is rarely trumped by quality. If you don't accomplish anything in 75 years, will it make a difference if you don't accomplish anything in 100?

Our culture has an obsession with what's next (save for retirement, eat well for a long life, pre-planning everything). The problem is, we spend so much time looking ahead that, when we get there, most of us look back and realize that there's nothing there. I'm no different. Granted, I have only one regret in my life (no, you can't ask because I won't tell you), but I also haven't accomplished much either. Everything was always about the future. Perhaps if we spend a bit more time enjoying the present, maybe when the future does arrive we can look back and at least have a little smile. So go out, splurge, and enjoy the jumbo rack of barbecue ribs with the side of chili fries. Make that trip to the Red Dot and grab a plate of poutine. We only have one go-around in the mortal coil (unless you are Hindu) so you might as well enjoy the ride.

Late night musings

2010-10-16T02:21:00.002-05:00

As I sit here, it is 2:21 am and I am in an odd mood. As you may have noticed (or not...my readership is a bit on the thin side), there hasn't been a lot of new writings. There's a good reason for that. As I stated quite some time ago, my offline life at this point has to take precedence over my online life. Lately, it has really overrun me.

However, for some reason, I'm in an unusually good mood and feel like writing a bit. This will go in whatever direction it wants and will be quite random, so hang on!

Well, the NHL season is now upon us and whatever fears I had before are still with me. The Antti Niemi signing has helped a little, along with the minor miracle of Thomas Greiss clearing waivers and being assigned to Woostah. The whole thing seems a little same-y though for my liking. Here's a team that, on paper, should be able to run with any team in the league. We've heard that before of course. It's become so bad that the writers are refusing to consider the Sharks Cup contenders anymore. I don't blame them. It looks like it will be another cruise control season until April. Then we'll see where they are.

The midterm elections are just a few weeks away and things are definitely looking up! By now, you all have heard about the unreal strength of Rebecca Kleefisch. Also, the DNC has just recently announced that they are pulling out of the WI-8 race. Not good for Steve Kagen. Great for Wisconsin though! Now if we can only get them to give up on Feingold....

Speaking of Maverick...

Maverick the Lapdog

Thanks Charlie!

I've been considering doing some of my own exit polling. It would be interesting to see how my numbers would stack up to the actual results. Problem is, I doubt that Milwaukee county would like a conservative getting any numbers at all. Maybe a call to the election commission is in order...

I've been meaning to rant on this for a while, but I didn't have enough for a blog post, and it's too much for a Facebook status post. Ladies...It's a drink...not a marriage proposal. There's nothing wrong with accepting a free drink. Maybe it's the Wisconsin in me, but free is free regardless of the source. I would even take a free drink from a gay guy if it was still offered after I would explain that I'm straight.

Ok, time to sign off before I fall asleep on the keyboard and you all get a unintelligible string of characters. Check back soon though. I have another blog post forming in my brain that may just shift a few paradigms without a clutch...Stay tuned!

Political Burnout?

2010-09-25T15:24:00.003-05:00

Ok, I understand that over the last few years I have become a bit of a political junkie. Not everyone will see things the way I do. That being said, I am hearing, in my opinion, WAY too many people saying that they are getting sick of politics. Really? We are on the cusp of one of the biggest midterms since 1994 and people are already dropping by the wayside?

Not to demean any of the people that feel that way, but I have a hard time believing that these people vote on a regular basis. How can you be sick of it already? This is going to be a fascinating election no matter what side of the isle you are on.

If you just limit it to Wisconsin, it will be huge. Ron Johnson has a significant lead in the polls right now over Russ Feingold. David Obey saw the writing on wall and got out on his own terms. Reid Ribble not only had a 10 point lead over Steve Kagen (AAF Aug. 16-19) before he won the Republican primary but he is near that magic 50% mark. Scott Walker is taking a commanding 9+ point lead in the governor race (RCP average Sept 15-21) showing that a Milwaukee conservative can play well outstate as well as in SE Wisconsin.

If you expand it nationally, according to RealClearPolitics' current polls, the GOP picks up 7 seats in the Senate and in the House holds a 177-160 lead in safe or likely seats. On top of that, of the 38 seats that they consider toss ups, only one (IL-10) is currently held by a Republican. Whether you are a D or an R, watching those races will be interesting at the very least.

So why are people being burned out so quickly? Honestly I can't say. Maybe the vast amount of political ads is getting to them. Perhaps the economic troubles are stressing people out so much that they don't want to worry themselves with politics. Who knows, but this election plays a bigger part than any since 2000.

Why? Redistricting will happen after this election. This act of "creative cartography", as one writer puts it, can shift the balance of power in the house for years to come. Of the states that are gaining or losing seats, only a few are as key as we are here in Wisconsin. We will be losing a seat, down to 7. It may not seem like much, but that could play a huge role in the balance of districts. Wisconsin is home to one of the more liberal districts (WI-4 T43 in Cook PVI) that is adjacent to a fairly conservative district (WI-5). More than likely, due to it's small geographic size, the WI-4th will be absorbed into one of the two districts (WI-1 is the other) that border it. Where the final lines will end up is anybody's guess, but it could easily make the difference between two strongly liberal districts (evenly dividing Milwaukee amongst the current 1st and 5th) or one heavily liberal and one heavily conservative (all of Milwaukee becoming part of the first). How that falls will be decided by the party in the majority. With the balance at 18-15 Democratic in the state senate and a 52-46 (+1 Ind.) Democratic lead in the Assembly, it is a real toss up as to who will get to redraw the lines.

That is why this current round of elections is so important people. Every election is important if you want a voice in your (and it is YOUR) government. This year, however has the ability to shift politics for possibly a decade. So I urge all of you, no matter how fed up you may be to do some research and pick the candidate that you believe will do the best job for you at the local, state, and national levels.

Livin' the M'waukee life (sorta)

2010-09-25T14:42:00.002-05:00

While I have been hesitant to give too much detail when it comes to exactly where I live, the story I have to share kinda requires it.

For these past 2 months, I have been living in Riverwest. Since I have been living in the city, I have kept to myself and rarely went out to bars or restaurants. Well, last Thursday things changed. I decided that, for the sake of my mental well being, I needed a beer. Due to the fact that one of my roomies requests that no alcohol be in the apartment, I needed to find a bar nearby. So, out for a walk I went. A few minutes later, I stumbled upon the Stonefly Brewing Company. After 3 pints and 3 shots (only one of the pints and none of the shots I paid for) I have discovered that I may be home.

After talking for a few hours with a couple of regulars, apparently Riverwest is my home. I had no idea, but it's true. I guess that I am a perfect fit because I don't fit in anywhere else. I'm still not sure if that warm, fuzzy feeling I had was the acceptance or the Jameson, but either way, I think I may be on the way to mental fitness again. I was a little apprehensive about diving back into the bar scene considering the fact that I was not a real big fan of the bar/club scene when I was of the age of bar hopping. Granted it was a Thursday night, but from what I've heard, any night is a good night to drink in the areas around UWM and Marquette. I was pleasantly surprised. It was a nice, laid back atmosphere. I came to find out that it's usually pretty laid back most nights. Good. Just what I have been looking for, a nice place to enjoy a pint.

Which brings me back to the Stonefly beers. Wow. I was really impressed with their Brewtown Brown and 4 Wolves English Ale. Both of those went down WAY to easy for my own good! If you are a fan of Newcastle, you will love the Brewtown Brown. If you are a 'mainstream' beer drinker (Bud, Miller, Etc) the 4 Wolves will be a great spot for you to dabble into the world of micros. Unfortunately, I cannot afford to go out as often as I would like, but I will have to get down to try a new pint as often as I can. I'm not much of a stout drinker, but the Pierce Street Porter might be my next trial.

Thanks Dr. Nick and Mr. Mike for making me feel welcome. Sorry Mr. bartender sir, but I would have thanked you too, but I forgot your name!

Houston, we may have a problem...

2010-09-15T12:16:00.002-05:00

OK, I'll admit that I'm probably reading too much into this. Maybe I'm seeing trends where none exist. However, I am a little concerned with the vote numbers from last night's Gubernatorial primary.

Overall, Tom Barrett gained just shy of 211,000 votes. Walker gained 360,000. The biggest issues I saw were in Dane, Brown, Racine, and Kenosha counties. As we all know, Dane county is the second biggest liberal block of voters in the state. Brown, Racine, and Kenosha have a lot of union members who tend to vote democratic. The voter turnout for the democratic primary in all four of those counties seemed to me as remarkably low. Either there was no reason for the dems to come out (likely) or they crossed over to try to get the weaker candidate elected (way less likely).

While all the talking heads love to play all these conspiracy theories about liberal voters crossing over, I have a hard time believing it is widespread. Sure, there probably are some (one such voter is talking to Jeff Wagner as I type this), but the overall numbers are probably very low. What is more likely is that with so few big races on the democratic side this time around, most of the voters stayed home.

And that's where the problem lies. Statewide, there is at least 150,000 democratic voters that stayed home. Walker has a ton of work left. He has to get over the Milwaukee bias, the fact that Neumann was very successful in selling the 'not a career politician' idea, and the fact that he will need a lot more support if he wants to be elected.

That's where we come in folks. We need to help out and get things rolling into high gear for Scott. Friends, family, co-workers, pets (ok, maybe not pets!) all need to be convinced to show up in November. There's a lot of work to do and not a whole lot of time to do it in!

My Tuesday

2010-09-10T14:02:00.002-05:00

It will come to the surprise of nobody who reads my blog with any regularity that I am pretty conservative. So it will also come as no great shock that all of my marks will come on the red portion of the ballot on Tuesday. Although many of the races are basically one sided in this primary, I still wish to share with you my votes.

Senator

Ron Johnson - Yea, he's really the only candidate left on the ballot (Westlake and Finn have been so cash strapped that they are still unknown) but he would still get my vote. He is what the framers meant when they wanted a government of the people.

Governor

Scott Walker - Even though Mark Neumann does have some good plans and ideas, the casual on again, off again relationship he has with politics gives me a bit of a pause. Walker has the experience at the executive level that will translate well to Madison. Overseeing nearly 1/5th of the state's population already as Milwaukee County executive, it won't be too much of a stretch to taking on the entire state. Being conservative in a very liberal Milwaukee hasn't been easy, but he has dealt with all the mudslinging and has done what he felt was the best for the county.

Lt. Governor

Rebecca Kleefisch - It has been a running joke for many years (and even used in an ad campaign) that the Lt. Governor is a position with no duties, but it is a huge deal. As we have seen in the past, all it takes is a appointment by the President to move the Lt. Governor to the big chair. Kleefisch is another in the vein of Johnson. A normal person who genuinely wants to get into politics to do what's best for the state. She was my choice anyway, but what really sealed the deal was the fact that she took the time to say hi and thanks to me while struggling with getting her vehicle set up for the Sussex Lion's Daze parade. A lot of people would have just said a quick 'hi' and went back to setting up. The entire conversation probably lasted less than a minute, but it just goes to show that it takes little to make a big impact in people's minds.

US House

Dan Sebring - I was able to meet Dan briefly last year at the rally at Veteran's Park. He would serve Wisconsin proudly in the House, except for one fatal flaw. The fourth. The only way that you could get a Republican elected in the WI-4 district is by getting one of the following to run with a (R) behind their name: Aaron Rodgers, Robin Yount, Bob Uecker, Donald Driver, or possibly Bill "The Big Unit" Michaels. Still, Dan will get my vote in the primary and the general as well.

The only other contested race in the primary in my area is for state treasurer. I haven't made up my mind as yet, mostly because I haven't had the time to look into them even though treasurer doesn't have a whole lot to do with policy. I'll probably pick a guy when I get in the booth.

I wrote about this years ago in the original version of my blog (I may go back and see if I still have the handwritten copy somewhere so I can repost), but it bears repeating. I am so disappointed that, once again, my vote on Tuesday will, due to low turnout, probably count for 8-10 people. I hear so many people complain about government, but these same people cannot be arsed to do anything about it by voting or getting involved in the process. Unfortunately I have had to spend the greater part of the last 3 months insuring that I can survive which has limited my ability to get involved myself. Hopefully now that things have settled down I can help out when the above people win their primaries. So if any of you read this (and I will be linking to this on your Facebook accounts if I have them!) feel free to contact me if you want another helper!

Political Tourism

2010-09-04T21:50:00.002-05:00

I took a little day trip with my kids today to go visit my dad. Once I got off the freeway in the Appleton area, I noticed something a little odd. While there was an abundance of political yard signs, a vast majority (10:1 at least) of them where for local (Congressional or lower) candidates. I figured that it was a geographical oddity so on the way home I took the scenic route through Oshkosh, Fond Du Lac, and the smaller towns of EC Wisconsin. The same thing held true all the way back.

What I saw both encouraged and discouraged me. While I know that yard signs are not anywhere close to gauging voter turnout, the vast number of signs in some areas showed at least more than a passing interest in the upcoming elections. The vast amount of Congressional and state assembly signs also was a good sign. Usually, the off year elections are ignored because there is no big, national election. The fact that a lot of people are paying attention to elections on the state and local level is great. However, the distinct lack of signs for statewide races (governor and Senator), even in the yards of those folks that had a lot of other signs, was a bit discouraging. Granted, a large chunk of my trip was through the WI-6th which, from my experience, is a bit of a ho-hum district when it comes to voter turnout. Still, it seems like people are concentrating on smaller races.

Another encouraging sight was the amount of Scott Walker signs. Yes, there were very few gubernatorial race signs, but the fact that there were Walker signs outside of the Milwaukee area was good to see. There also were a roughly equal amount of Mark Neumann signs. That should be good news for the Neumann campaign. Perhaps the Republican primary will be a bit closer than the current polls suggest. Again, yard signs are not scientific, but the lone Tom Barrett sign showed me that he may not be playing as well outstate as he hoped.

Another oddity was that I saw a few signs for Lt. Governor. I was not expecting those at all, even leading up to the general election. Every sign was for Brett Davis too. While he's not my candidate (I'm voting for Rebecca Kleefisch), it is encouraging to see that of the people that are choosing to put signs out for Lt. Governor, it's the Republican candidate.

Now that I think about it, I cannot recall seeing one Russ Feingold sign. There were quite a few Ron Johnson signs, but I kind of wrote that off as I was travelling through the Oshkosh area. But to not see one Feingold sign was a bit, well, shocking. He is well known and his TV commercials are all over the Green Bay TV market.

So what does that all mean? Honestly, very little when it comes to the general election. However, nowadays when people are hesitant to place a pink flamingo on their lawn for fear of what the neighbors might think or the risk that they will lower their property taxes, seeing people bucking the trends and not going with the incumbent could spell trouble.

The Underground Conservative Part V

2010-09-02T14:04:00.002-05:00

Well, now that I am officially registered (which was remarkably easy to transfer from my Sussex registration, but more on that later) to vote here at my new address in the lovely 16th Assembly District, I am ready to go for the primaries in a couple weeks and the general in November. In the last few weeks, I have received now fewer than 4 fliers left on our door.

I'm a little disappointed though. I know the city of Milwaukee is very blue, but come on. Isn't there at least a token conservative running for anything near me? Is it up to me next time?

Now that's an interesting notion. Me in the state assembly or state senate. Do I have a chance? Not yet. But that would be an idea. What better way to make change than to become one of the lawmakers.

Getting back to the transfer of my registration. Wow....no wonder there's so many allegations of fraud. All I was required to do was fill out a simple, one page form. I was required to write down my driver's licence number, but the representative I talked to never asked to see my licence or any other form of ID. Yikes. Granted, I am not using a fake ID or address, but the ease at which it could be done is bordering on absurd. Really Milwaukee? When it comes to something as important as elections, you can't be bothered to make sure that someone is who they say they are and prove that they live where they say they do. Well, with me registered and voting, there will be one less fraudulent vote that counts.

Well, this is a turnup isn't it?

2010-09-02T11:42:00.002-05:00

Earlier today, the San Jose Sharks signed goaltender Anti Niemi to a one year contract. With Thomas Greiss and Antero Niittymaki already under contract, the Niemi signing adds much needed depth.

It's been nearly two hours now since the Sharks released the news of the signing. I have taken the time to think about it and read some comments from other Sharks fans. There are some people who think that this is a bad signing. That Niemi was a product of the Blackhawks defensive system. I tend to disagree.

I do agree that a good defense will make a marginal goaltender good and a good goaltender great. That's what makes the Niemi signing a good thing. Neimi is a very good goaltender in his own right. Without this signing, the Sharks were going to be faced with the choice between Niittymaki and Greiss, two goaltenders who had one good season as an NHL starter and very little NHL experience period respectively. Niemi, the #1 goaltender going into traing camp, brings solid play and a ton of playoff experience.

True, Niemi was a huge breakout rookie last season and could be poised for a huge dropoff. Still, the Sharks needed to do something unless they truly were rebuilding. Honestly, I think the Sharks could do with a little rebuilding. That's what makes the Niemi signing a little disturbing.

The signing of Niemi causes a bit of a domino effect that could be more damaging long term than it helps short term. Unless someone has a killer camp, Greiss will end up back in Worcester. That leaves one spot for three goaltenders who need playing time. If Tyson Sexsmith, Alex Staylock, or Harri Sateri are going to be the future in net, they all need significant playing time in the AHL. Something they are not going to get backing up Greiss.

There has to be another move yet. Greiss or Niittymaki may be heading out of San Jose. If not, I think that, while the Niemi signing will help the Sharks this year, may be the final nail in the coffin of Doug Wilson's GM career.

All time best Sharks A-Z

2010-08-31T13:42:00.004-05:00

As I sit here, wondering whether I should be excited or scared about the upcoming Sharks season, I decided that it would be fun to go back through the all time Sharks roster as we go into the 20th season and pick out the best of the alphabet, A-Z. Without further ado, here we go...

LW Perry Anderson - OK, there weren't a lot of A Sharks (a trend I'm sure will repeat itself), but this one does stand out a bit. Anderson was one of the original, Cow Palace Sharks. Those brave souls that went through the years in Daly City will always have a special place in this Sharks fan's heart.

D Rob Blake - With Jamie Baker, Dan Boyle, and Brian Boucher on this list, it was hard to pick out just one. While all of those guys did have huge contributions to the Sharks, but no one person had a bigger positive impact on the Sharks than Mr. Blake.

RW Jonathan Cheechoo - Lauded for not living up to the hype after his Rocket Trophy winning season, Cheechoo still played a big role for a few seasons before being dealt to the Senators.

C Vincent Damphousse - A key cog in the early 2000's Sharks teams. Damphousse was the quiet leader of the Sharks and will always be linked to the teams of the 2000's.

LW Bob Errey - As tempting as it was to select Christian Ehrhoff, Errey brought a valuable veteran presence to the early days of the Sharks, Playing 64 games during the 93-94 season.

LW Jeff Friesen - Another Shark that, although a good player, never lived up to the potential that he had. Still, he was a solid Shark and the best of the 'F' group.

RW Tony Granato - Although past his prime when he joined the Sharks and a huge question mark coming off a potential life threatening injury, Granato was the first Shark to bring home an NHL award (96-97 Masterson).

RW Dany Heatley - My own personal feelings aside, Heatley has stood over and above every other 'H' Shark, with the possible exception of Scott Hannan. In his short time with the Sharks, Heatley has left an indelible mark on the history of San Jose hockey.

G Arturs Irbe - Despite there being a scant 3 names on the 'I' list, this one is a no-brainer. Irbe still holds the Sharks team record for most minutes played by a goaltender in a season and was a big part of the Sharks early success.

D Derek Joslin - Another short list, I chose the player that still has his potential ahead of him. Joslin looks to play a big role in future Sharks season, including this year.

C Viktor Kozlov - Another name that had a huge role in shaping the face of the Sharks early days. While overshadowed by his fellow Russian teammates, Kozlov's 41 points in 96-97 are not to be overlooked.

C Igor Larionov - Another one of the early 90's Russian Invasion members to find his way to San Jose. A solid +20 in the 93-94 regular season and a respectable 18 points in the playoffs.

LW Patrick Marleau - With apologies to Brantt Myhers and in spite of his recent difficulties, Marleau is still one of the best Sharks in the M class.

G Evgeni Nabokov - A hard list to be sure, but the nod has to go to Nabokov. Nobody had a bigger impact for longer than Nabby did. Forced into a starting role due to injury, Nabokov took the Sharks, placed them on his back, and never looked back.

D Sandis Ozolinsh - Few players had a bigger impact on the Sharks during his tenure, even less on the blueline. One of the Sharks first offensive defensemen, Ozolinsh left his mark.

C Joe Pavelski - The newest member to the 'P' list is by far the best. 'Little Joe' (a nickname that needs to go, by the way) has shown that he will have a long and productive NHL career. Let's hope most of it is in teal.

LW Jean-Francois Quintin - Yea, he's the default winner here, with a whopping 22 games in teal. Still, anyone that had to endure the Cow Palace stairs to and from the locker room deserves a mention in a best list.

(tie) D's Marcus Ragnarsson and Mike Rathje - Hands down the most important and dynamic defensive pairing the Sharks had during the late 90's, 'Rags' and 'Rat' were often tasked with the difficult task of defending the opponents top guys. A task at which they excelled.

D Gary Suter - Suter wins out by a hair, owing mostly to the fact that Teemu Selane's Sharks tenure wasn't as productive as Sharks management and fans would have hoped. Suter was another stalwart on defense for the early 2000's Sharks.

C Joe Thornton - What else is there to say? Thornton is one of the two or three Sharks that are responsible for their current success.

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D Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Another hard choice on a short list, I gave the nod to 'Pickles' for the fact that we have yet to see his best play. Despite being limited to 64 games last season, Vlasic still managed to post a career best +21.

LW Ray Whitney - One of the Sharks first true star players, Whitney was one of the leaders behind the Sharks improbable playoff runs in the mid 90's.

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RW Alexi Yegorov - Another winner by default, Yegorov had a cup of coffee with the Sharks in both the 95-96 and 96-97 seasons.

D Rob Zettler - Another Cow Palace Shark, Zettler is probably better known for his time behind the bench than on it.

The above opinions are those of the author and are in no way intended to be a complete statistical breakdown. Also, the players time as a Shark is the only part of their career that is used in the determination of inclusion on this list.

Climate change or equipment change?

2010-08-30T11:39:00.002-05:00

As all of you know, one of the most hotly debated issues right now is climate change. There is a mountain of evidence on both sides of the debate. One of the biggest pieces of data on both sides is climate trends based on observed temperature trends.

So what happens when you move the sensors? So what happens when the terrain right around the sensors change? The National Weather Service recently concluded a study of two Caribbean ASOS sites. In one case (St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands) the sensor pack itself was moved nearly 1/2 mile. While that may not seem like much, but it "has led to nearly a 20% reduction in the diurnal temperature cycle being recorded at the Cyril E. King Airport since 1998." [1] Basically this has caused a cooler daytime maximum and a warmer nighttime minimum. In the second case, (San Juan, PR) a new taxiway at the San Juan airport was installed 10 years after the equipment was sited. The new taxiway came within 61 feet of the temperature sensor. While there was no significant increase in daytime maximums, the nighttime minimums increased 1.4ºF.

I have no numbers on how many climate data sites have either been moved or have had significant changes to the surrounding territory, but you have to wonder how much question there now is in the data. I know that the scientists say that they have adjusted for these variances, but when they are dealing with fractions of degrees, how do we know that they are even close to using a correct adjustment?

Bottom line is this. Yes, the climate is changing. However, the climate has always changed. It has never been static. The planet has gone through four major ice ages. We know that the overall temperature was a lot higher during the age of the dinosaurs. Just because the climate has been good for us for this long, doesn't mean that it will always be that way.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles 2: Welcome to Wisconsin

2010-08-25T12:17:00.004-05:00

As a parent, I have learned many things. One such thing is, if you are going to make threats, you better;

1) make the threat believable

2) be willing to follow through on said threat

3) make damn sure the treat isn't what the child wants anyway

Recently, Wisconsin transportation secretary Frank Busalacchi, in response to concerns from the residents of Oconomowoc, took his ball and went home by removing the stop in Oconomowoc from the high on speed rail line. The only problem with that Frank is that you forgot to check #3.

True, it's only a partial win. They are still trying to push through this rail line. However, with the residents of both Brookfield and Watertown (the other two proposed stops) also voicing concerns, it could very well end up as a limited route between Milwaukee and Madison. That would kill the line. One of the big selling points was that this would be a great way to get from the suburbs to Milwaukee. With no stops, I know nobody will travel to Madison to get to Milwaukee.

Will Governor Doyle and Busalacchi finally wake up and realize that nobody wants this boondoggle? With them now trying to allocate $300 million before the gubernatorial election in November, I don't think so...

And because I have no official connection with the Walker campaign....

Life? I can tell you things about life...

2010-08-25T11:14:00.003-05:00

Man, it's amazing the number of things that life can dump on you at once.

Anyway, the blogging will now continue after a longer than anticipated one month hiatus. Here's a bit of an update. The Underground Conservative will continue. It turns out that I had to, for financial considerations, stay in the city of Milwaukee. Honestly, this couldn't work out better. One of the most important elections to occur in Wisconsin will take place in November and it will be interesting to be here for it.

I still have a few hurdles to clear in my offline life that will be a higher priority than the online life, but on the whole, things are a lot better than they were a few short weeks ago. Time to rebuild the readership!

Things that would make me happy

2010-07-18T12:45:00.003-05:00

OK, I understand that this will come off as a whiny, unhinged, old man rant, but I can't help myself. People always say that it's the little things in life that make it all worth it. Well, these are some of the little things that, if improved, would make my life a lot better.

Proper merging onto freeways

Here's a quick quiz. Which of the following is true when you are merging onto the freeway:

a) You must use your blinker

b) You must be at freeway speeds when you merge onto the freeway

c) The freeway traffic has the right of way

d) All of the above

In case you are unsure, D is the correct answer. I addressed A in an earlier post, but it seems to be more of a problem in cases where it's needed most. The real issue here is a combination of B and C. The next time I have to slam on my brakes to avoid a person doing 45 at the end of the on-ramp I just might be tempted to NOT hit the brakes.

Just because NASCAR is popular, doesn't mean you have to draft off of me

If I had a dollar for every car that was mere inches off my bumper, I could sit on here and blog all day and still be able to support myself. Getting right on my bumper will not force me to go faster. In fact, I'm the kind of person who will slow down when tailgated. I had a situation earlier today that I was shocked that didn't end up in a bumping. I was being followed so closely by an Audi that was so close, I could not see the entire logo on the front grill! I knew he was too close as I was approaching my turn, so I turned my blinker on VERY early. Even so, when I went to brake to make my turn, he STILL had to swerve around me to avoid hitting me! People please...getting to your destination 45 seconds sooner is no reason to risk property and bodily damage!

My government giving me something I really need

The only thing that the current government loves better than taxing is spending. The thing is, a lot of the things that they are spending the money on are really not worth it...Trains, bridges, roads, education....Come on! If they really want my vote, all they have to do is introduce a bill that says, "Free Air Conditioning for All"! With the fact that we are only in July and the days of high temps and even higher humidity have been plentiful, this is a government spending program I can really get behind!

Trolls of all shapes and sizes need to disappear

This gets me the most when people who have, at best, a passing knowledge of the weather, but continue to bash the weather guys when things are not predicted perfectly. Despite all the technological advances we have, the weather still is going to do what it wants and we will not know ahead of time. It's just the way weather works. Unpredictability is the only constant in weather.

There's really only one person who knows what's best for me

That's me. I know what my body craves. Cravings are your body's way of telling you that it needs something. You crave a burger, you probably need more protein. If you just have to have some milk, you are probably needing calcium. You only live once folks. Enjoy the ride. Eat what you like, drink what you like (responsibly of course), and enjoy life. Telling me that eating that four pound burger will kill me will more than likely evoke a "So?" response from me. Life is a terminal disease...enjoy it while you can.

The racism of greed

2010-07-12T22:29:00.002-05:00

I have no idea what's worse, the fact that these people might be hiding their racism behind the desire to maintain their property values, or the fact that they really are more concerned about the loss of value...

In case you haven't heard, the DuPage county zoning board met to discuss a request by the Islamic Center of Western Suburb to get a conditional use permit for a single family home. The permit would allow them to have services and add 30 parking spaces nearby. Many of the opponents of the permit do not want the property to be rezoned commercial because it would decrease property values.

Maybe I'm just not materialistic enough, but when did property value become so important? Is it a status symbol now? From where I'm sitting, all a high property value means is a high property tax bill. Personally, I feel that they are just using the property value to hide behind.

That's the rub. It would be easier to see the bigotry if they just came out and said that they didn't want the Muslims in their neighborhood. Not that I'm defending them by any stretch, but in this day and age, you can understand a bit why they would be nervous to have the center there. However, if these opponents want to keep their freedoms, they better be prepared to give them to others, even when the others are people that they don't agree with. That is the reason so many people have come to this country in the first place. The freedom to be who they want to be, wherever they want to be.

It's examples like these that make me wonder sometimes how we got on this path in this country. How did it become ok for one group of people's rights and freedoms to be suppressed because it infringes on another's? Why is it ok for me to try to stop you from enjoying your freedoms because they interfere with mine? We may never know the answers to those questions, but until we do, we will never be at peace with ourselves or others.

Jim Batzko for WI 99th

2010-07-11T13:06:00.003-05:00

Normally I wouldn't do this due to the limited exposure that my blog has and the small area that this will affect, but I learned something yesterday that I had to comment on.

Jim Batzko, former Village of Sussex trustee, is deciding to run against fellow Republican Don Pridemore for Wisconsin's 99th Assembly District. While living in the 99th, I had no problems with Pridemore. He is a good conservative and serves the residents of the 99th well. However, as a former resident of Sussex, I was a regular attendee of the village board meetings and was able to see first hand Batzko's devotion to the residents of Sussex. That devotion and the desire to genuinely do what was best for the village will translate very well to the state assembly.

A family man and already a public servant as a local police officer, Batzko has the motivation to make the 99th a better place for every resident of the district. If you live in the 99th (Sussex, Lannon, Lisbon, Merton, Erin, and parts of Hartford and Richfield), I strongly encourage you to get out and vote for Jim in the primary and again in the general election!

The Underground Conservative Part IV

2010-07-10T20:42:00.002-05:00

I had a chance to return to my people today. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the Waukesha County GOP rally this morning. It was an electrifying and invigorating event. Vicki McKenna did a wonderful job emceeing the event. Being able to meet, albeit very briefly, and hear from Ron Johnson, James Sensenbrenner, Paul Ryan, Scott Walker, and Reince Priebus was a great way to start the day and getting a chance to mingle with all the other members of the state senate, assembly, and other GOP candidates made me feel secure in the fact that I am among friends in the GOP.

Which puts me in a bit of a dilemma. I got all sorts of great signs and bumper stickers at the rally today. Do I place them proudly on my car and in the windows, or do I continue to try to keep my low profile? I want to do everything I can to help support the GOP candidates here in one of the bluest areas of Wisconsin, but I'm afraid of the potential consequences. I do not put it past people in this city to break windows and slash tires just because there's a Scott Walker or Paul Ryan sticker on it.

I knew coming in that my current living situation would be temporary. As I'm now discovering, I may have to keep my current job a little longer which will limit my living options. That means staying in Milwaukee County a bit longer. I haven't had the time to explore the city as much as I would have liked when I started this series, so the idea of placing the stickers and signs on my car might be a bad idea.

Still, where more than Milwaukee County do the conservative candidates need all the support that they can get? One car full of stickers by itself may not be enough to sway someone's vote, but one car in a constant stream of cars full of stickers just might. What a decision to make....

Defending Arizona

2010-07-10T01:41:00.002-05:00

Well, well, well....I can't imagine the ultra liberal media expected this. As of the afternoon on July 9th, $500k donated to the state of Arizona to help defend itself against the federal lawsuit. Donations from all 50 states, D.C., and even Puerto Rico in amounts of $2,000 or less.

Immigration laws have always been a hot button topic among those of us into politics, but now it appears that by bringing it to the forefront, the Obama administration has involved a majority of the population. The bad news for the president is that it appears that he seems to be on the wrong side of this particular debate. One of the phrases that the liberals loved to use when talking about the TEA party movement is that it wasn't truly grass roots. There's no way that they can ignore this grass roots movement.

The funny part is how the media is portraying the Arizona law and how that it appears that a lot of people are seeing through that portrayal. All that the Arizona law does is empowers Arizona law officials to enforce federal law. It does NOT empower Arizona cops to round up any Hispanic looking people and arrest them for no reason, as it seems to be thought among the left. In it's own way, this is no different than local authorities enforcing federal drug laws.

It will be an interesting fight. One that I believe the federal government will lose. One more in the line of failed attempts by President Obama to be the first World Leader.

Independence thoughts....

2010-07-03T14:09:00.002-05:00

As we approach our independence day here in the US, you have to think back and marvel at the courage of those men. It took a lot of guts to do what they did. Think about it. The English empire was one of the most dominant nations on the planet at the time. Every single one of those men that signed the Declaration of Independence knew that if they were unsuccessful, that they would die. The crown did not take kindly to traitors.

Granted, the fact that they had no say in their government but were expected to pay like every other subject of the crown made things frustrating, but the east coast of North America was a fairly serene area. The Native Americans did cause the occasional tiff and the French in Canada continued the institutional hatred on this continent, but all in all it was a pretty decent life for the time. Freedom, however was a word that held little meaning for most.

Looking at it from over 200 years in the future, it's hard to envision that era...not knowing what it was like with the restrictions they lived under. I can only imagine what it was like to not be able to say what I want (within reason) when I want. Yes, I know there are places on the planet now where the freedoms I enjoy are not available to the public, but not having lived or even visited them, I still don't truly know the feeling. What must it be like not being able to share your thoughts for fear that the government might not agree and, at best, toss you in jail?

To make things worse, many of these guys were pretty young by today's standards. Jefferson was 33, James Madison was 25, Robert Livingston was 30, John Jay was 31. I'm 33 now...I can't imagine putting my life on the line for any ideal, much less one that was far from certain when they put pen to paper and, essentially, signed their own death warrants. Thank God for the French. No empire in that era wanted the Colonies to succeed lest it inspire revolutions in their own realms, but the hatred that the French had towards the English was stronger than the fear of revolution in their own borders.

As with many of our holidays, the real meaning of it has been lost over the years. It's too bad that when most people hoist their favorite beverage tomorrow, they don't truly understand what a group of fairly young men put on the line so that we can sit around with our friends and family and speak freely about the state of the government. I admit that I haven't given the holidays the respect they deserve lately. I tend to treat holidays as just another day. That makes their devotion to their cause that much greater. They risked all so I have the freedom to mark the day in any way I feel, even if it's no special way. Thank you Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and all the rest who made all of this possible.

You gotta laugh....

2010-07-03T12:39:00.003-05:00

There's been a lot of things in my life that, when observed, I just have to laugh at. A few of the more recent examples are below.

A Harley rider wearing earplugs

What takes this from a chuckle to an outright belly laugh is the fact that most of the current Harley riders came from the generation that claimed that if it's too loud, your too old!

Two drivers, trying to get in each other's lane, slow down at the same rate waiting for the other car to pass

Sad part about this is that I was one of the drivers. The other car was in a position that didn't allow me to see her blinker at all. Once we figured out what we wanted to do, I but out laughing in the middle of rush hour traffic!

A domestic disturbance, in a car stopped in the middle of a busy road

You would think that you would at least pull over first! When I first saw it, I thought that the car had stalled and they couldn't get it restarted. I offered to help push them out of the way. They said that they were ok and needed an officer. I thought that was odd, so I moved on. A few seconds later, I talked to another witness who told me that they did the exact same thing a block or so away!

The direction of the Sharks

2010-06-30T15:32:00.002-05:00

As we are less than a day away from the beginning of free agency in the NHL. Let's take a quick look at my Sharks and what they should and need to do.

Goaltender

With the Sharks not tendering a contract offer to Evgeni Nabokov, you can rest assured that he will be signed tomorrow. Where does that leave the Sharks? Thomas Greiss is decent, but the Sharks can't rely on him to take a full season and nobody in the system is ready to come up and split time, so free agency is the way they have to go. What direction is the team in though? If the Sharks want to take one or two last chances at the Cup before rebuilding, they have to go after either Marty Turco or Jose Theodore. Personally, I believe it's time to start over. I think that they should go after Michael Leighton. He showed what he could do with Philadelphia in the playoffs last season and at 30, still has a few more years left to either lead this team or backup Greiss while Harri Sateri, Tyson Sexsmith. abnd Alex Stalock battle to be next in line.

Defense

Although the retirement of Rob Blake leaves a huge hole, this is not a position that is in dire need. Derek Joslin is ready enough to take Blake's roster spot. Again, if the Sharks are going to make one last Cup push, there are a few good defenders that can come in and replace Blake. I think that would only be a short term fix though. With 4 defensemen 30 or older currently under contract, the Sharks need to develop their youth on the blueline than plugging the holes with veterans. The only exception is if the Sharks can put together an offer good enough to convince Dan Hamhuis to leave Pittsburgh.

Forward

Here's the big issue. With Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski resigning already, it does take some pressure off the team. However, the depth of the team in regards to players already signed (Devin Setoguchi has been tendered a qualifying offer, but has yet to accept) is troubling to say the least. Talent really falls off sharply after the top 6 forwards. There are a few guys in the AHL that could be ready to come up, but not into a top spot. There are a lot of decent guys available, but I'm still of the mind that the Sharks need to start looking to the future. If the Sharks agree, you will know as soon as the trade rumors begin to swirl around Joe Thornton. With one year at $7.2 million left on his contract, if the Sharks are committed to rebuilding, he's the best trade option they have to get talented youth.

For me, it's way past time to blow it up. The current team does not have the killer instinct it takes to climb to the pinnacle of the NHL. We saw it last year. Instead of taking charge and going at the Blackhawks, the Sharks looked content to be happy to be where they were. There are too many players who are secure in their position on this team and that has led to a lack of desire to go over and above. Time to start over Mr. Wilson.

Is anyone really shocked?

2010-06-26T01:12:00.006-05:00

{SIGH}

Here we go again...

Seriously Mr. Hendry, how long to we have to take this crap? It's not even like his stats are good enough for us to ignore these whiny cry-baby tantrums. I know that at this point,his trade value is as close to zero as a pitcher can be in the majors, but seriously, why is he allowed to continue to do this? I say cut him loose. Who cares at this point if the Cubs have to eat his salary. It's not like they are going anywhere this year anyway.

Personally, I'm glad he went after D Lee. Lee is one of the Cubs few top players. There's no way that the Cubs are trading Lee (unlike Michael Barrett) to keep Zambrano out of trouble. It's got to the point that I no longer enjoy hearing Cubs games and Zambrano is a big part of that.

It's time to clean house Mr. Hendry. Take what you can get for all the overpriced, underpreforming "talent". If I'm going to listen to losing baseball, I would rather hear a bunch of youngsters who will get better as opposed to a bunch of veterans who are only getting worse.

The Underground Conservative Part III

2010-06-19T23:29:00.002-05:00

Well, now that I have gotten accustomed to my general surroundings, I am comfortable in finding my own detours (and considering I have had to find two in as many weeks, that's a good thing) around street festivals and the such. Up to this point, I know that I'm not in any real high rent district and I have come to terms with that. What I wasn't prepared for, however was this sight:

(not actual location picture)

Now, in case you haven't paid attention, most Popeye's are not going to be located in the elite districts. You will probably never see a Popeye's in Brookfield for example (heck, they fought tooth and nail when Aldi wanted to move in). As a personal observation, EVERY Popeye's I have ever seen has been in a low income or predominantly African American area. Not that I mind...I love Popeye's chicken. The fact that I have one less than a mile from me is still a bit disappointing in some ways. Call me a racist if you want, but a Popeye's in your neighborhood is like a giant, tasty beacon of low income.

Did I really need to see that big sign to know I was in a lower bracket neighborhood? Please. I know where I am. The several times a day police siren blaring past the house is reminder enough. Still, it was one more reminder that, given a choice, I wouldn't be here.

Now before you start screaming "RACIST", I am well aware that the reputation that African Americans have received recently is from a small minority of drug dealers and thugs. Unfortunately, most, if not all, of those thugs hang out in the low rent districts. I also know Milwaukee's reputation. It is far from common, but WAY far from a rare occurrence, that people have been wounded and even killed by stray bullets inside their homes. That's right, I could be sitting here, typing, minding my own business, inside my room, and just because some hormonally imbalanced rageaholic with the impulse control of a gnat decides to try to off someone, I could be snuffed out.

The upcoming weekend will be better. I will have the time to get out more and dig deep into the underside of this town. At least I hope it will be better. I know that what I hear on the news is not what Milwaukee is all about. There are so many things good about this city but they are often overshadowed by the bad. There is a ray of hope however. There is a red fox that seems to live in my neighborhood. Yep, deep in the heart of the city, a real slice of nature is here. Perhaps it won't be all bad.

Random rants

2010-06-14T23:06:00.002-05:00

OK, TJ is feeling a little pissy tonight, so it's time to get some things off my chest that have bugged me or annoyed me for a while...

Potheads should not have cute girlfriends

This should violate some law of nature. It's not right! Some hippie wannabe burnout gets the girls? What? Maybe it's because I'm a guy, but I can't see the attractiveness of a person who gets so wasted that they could buy out the local convenience store of munchies and discuss the deep, philosophical meanings behind Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

Blinkers do serve a purpose on your car

Yes folks it is true that when on the road you are not surrounded by a group of mindreaders. We have no earthly clue where you are going unless you give us some kind of hint. I must admit though that I may be asking a bit much out of a small segment of the population. Most of them have no earthly idea where they are going either...

Summer is wasted on baseball season

For those that know me, this comes as no surprise. As a almost lifelong Cubs fan, there has been WAY more disappointment than enjoyment these past 20 years than is healthy. There is nothing better than sitting on a patio, beer in hand, with a baseball game on the radio. Except for perhaps a game being played by a team that has a fraction of a chance to actually do something.

Soccer is a sure fire cure for insomnia

Ok, I know that I said that I would be giving soccer another chance this time around with the World Cup going on, but as a hockey fan, I can't get past the pace of soccer on TV. It is so slow! Maybe it will be better when my adopted team, New Zealand, takes to the pitch, but I doubt it. 90+ minutes of running around for two or three goals if we are lucky? Maybe it would be a bit better if the yellow cards were removed. No penalties until we see teeth on the ground or bones coming through skin. I can dream I guess....

A drum machine and foul language is not music

Sorry rappers. Turning on a drum machine and ranting about your bitches and avoiding the cops is not music. Music has melodies, rhythm, and thought behind it. This falls under the, "textspeak is not writing" category. Which leads me too...

LOL! OMG, WTF?! are not sentences

I do believe that I will be fighting this one to my dying day, but the proliferation of cell phones and text messages is removing the spelling and grammar skills from an entire generation of our people. It needs to stop! Kahlil Gibran turned out to be closer to being correct than I care to admit...At this rate though, we will be down to 7 letters, not words.

The Underground Conservative Part II

2010-06-13T20:24:00.006-05:00

After a few trips to the new place, I got comfortable enough with the route that I was able to look around a bit. I will have to say that Milwaukee is like any other large city. There are good things (the Milwaukee Art Museum, Miller Park, Meier Festival Park) and bad (high crime, run down neighborhoods). In general though, I have been in worse places.

As I was looking around, a sign caught my eye...

Intrigued by the fact that this is the first evidence of the projects that were sponsored by the stimulus plan that I have seen, I had to stop and see what was going on. I was a little shocked at first because this project was on a small, 6 block street that is right along the Milwaukee River. It is a relatively quiet (Locust Street is a fairly major road) residential street. The more I looked around, the odder it was. Yes, it was a nice area, but not really a major area that would benefit from a project paid for by federal money. As I wandered down to the area that was worked on, I saw another strange sight...

The project seemed to be a cistern of some sort. It went down at least 100 feet and ended with water at the bottom. Based on the proximity to the river, I can only assume that the plan for whatever this is is for it to connect to the river for some purpose.

Yes, I do not know what the details are for this project. No, I do not know how much stimulus money went into this. What I do know is that federal money was spent to make a very large hole in a street in the city of Milwaukee. I also know that I have not seen any activity around this hole for several days. There could also be a good reason for this.

It all makes me wonder though...How many other stimulus projects were of minor importance and not finished? How many other half finished construction projects are there throughout the country? Is this what we can expect for the next few years? Now I'm sure that all of my naysayers will scream, "You don't know anything about it! You don't know it's importance!" True. I did just say that. If it turns out that this is a solution to MMSD having to pump sewage into the lake anytime they get a minor rainstorm, then I am all for it no matter what the cost. I do plan on investigating this further in the next few days, however.

I do believe that what I find will be a very well argued point on why we needed to spend money we don't have on this. However, it will probably be nothing more than a wish list project that got approved in a cash grab. No more important than the ghost train that will be running from Milwaukee to Madison. Are there projects out there that are deserving of this money that need to be done? Sure. I have no doubt about that. Did any of those projects get set aside for piddly little things like this? I have no doubt.

The Underground Conservative Part I

2010-06-06T18:23:00.002-05:00

Oy Vey...

I never thought that I would be here. Don't get me wrong, Milwaukee is a great city to visit, I just never thought that I would be living here. A conservative stuck in the middle of Gwen Moore's 4th congressional district is not really a safe place. Still, I think that I will try to make the best of it.

A part of me wants to wear my conservatism on my sleeve. A sort of, 'You can't browbeat me into silence' statement. The rest of me says that perhaps the underground method might just let me get out of this town in one piece. So, in a decision that leans towards survival, I have decided to explore Milwaukee as a conservative in hiding.

Cowardly? Perhaps. It is a bit easier to let people be lulled by their assumptions though. If directly asked, I will not lie. Until then though, I will go about my day letting people think what they may.

It's too bad that the governmental meetings cause a conflict with my current work schedule. It would be very interesting to attend a county board meeting or a city council meeting. Until I started working evenings, I was a regular attendee of the village board meetings in Sussex. I really missed those meetings. I know I wrote about it at the time, but it was so odd that I had several members of the village of Sussex government ask me why I was there. They weren't trying to be mean, it was just so odd for them to see someone attend that didn't have a reason to (getting an award, presenting info to the board, etc.) that they wanted to know why.

Well, I guess we'll see where this takes me. Stay tuned fellow travelers!

Sorry....

2010-06-06T18:02:00.002-05:00

First things first. I would like to apologize to the 4 readers I had. My real life kinda took a hard left turn on me and writing of any sort was the last thing on my mind. Now that I'm (relatively) settled, things can get back to the way they were a bit. Expect more entries from me in the next month or two (until the shit hits the fan again!).

In the spirit of making lemonade out of lemons, I have come up with a new feature for this blog. As you may have guessed, I'm pretty conservative. So having to move to the second most liberal city in the state wasn't high on my list. However, I was left with few choices. Instead of focusing on the negative that being firmly in the 4th district, I have decided to make it positive. With that thought, 'The Underground Conservative' was born. Over the next two months, I will be taking as much time as I'm allowed and exploring the city with a set of conservative colored glasses.

For security reasons, I will not be disclosing my location other than saying I am inside the city limits of Milwaukee. If you think I'm being melodramatic, ask James T Harris about being conservative in Milwaukee. Several years ago, he had a brick tossed through the window of his home because of something he said on the air.

There may be other features coming up, but as for now they are just in the planning stages. I will continue my other writings as well. It is with some sadness that I have to report that my other feature "The Journey" may be coming to an end. I really can't see myself advancing any farther. I just haven't been able to put my feelings into words yet. Unless something comes along that really changes things, the next entry will probably be the last.

So stay tuned...Things should be worth reading in the next few weeks!

The "I don't know what to write" post

2010-05-15T14:59:00.002-05:00

Yea, you read that right. This is going to be the blog equivalent of a Seinfeld episode. There's really not that much to talk about...Sharks don't start until tomorrow...Cubs are being the Cubs...The big political stuff won't start for a few weeks yet...So what to do?

There is a lot going on internationally, but I really can't get too excited about it. Most of it is too depressing. Everyone knows about Obama pissing off the Israelis, so there's not much more I can say. The fact that the Japanese are getting more than a little upset about our military bases on Okinawa is a little disturbing. Granted, the base is over 1,500km from Tokyo, but I've always felt that our bases in that part of the world has kept the peace. China back in the day and North Korea currently have to take our presence in the region into account if they want to move against South Korea or Japan. Moving the bases out could be just the opening needed for things to get a little frisky.

Thailand has been an interesting situation and one that I admit I haven't followed as closely as I should. Martial law is about to be declared, a rebel general was shot and killed while talking to a reporter, and now the US is advising against travel and has closed the embassy in Bangkok. I half expect a civil war in the next few weeks.

The European economy is about to completely collapse. Greece is about to go bankrupt. What makes that worse is that the entitlement mentality that the workers have is not allowing anyone to make it better. Granted, the government isn't completely blameless. When you have an entire country that basically produces nothing (tourism and shipping are the biggest industries), it's really hard to stimulate the economy in tough times. Thanks to the close quarters that the European countries share and the other countries that are teetering on the brink, if Greece can't get the economy stabilized, Portugal will quickly follow suit and that could cause a cascade failure throughout Europe.

I know I should care more about this, but I don't. Yes, a economic collapse in Europe will send major ripples around the globe, but it's really hard for me to care about them when I cannot support myself right now.

Civil unrest in Africa and central Asia, economic issues worldwide, our usually crappy weather returns...Nothing really getting me motivated. Maybe the people who believe that the end of days is coming (or already here) have a point. Oh well...either way, it will get worse before it gets better I guess. Can we survive it?

I have to stop believing....

2010-05-08T15:48:00.003-05:00

{sigh}

Really I did believe. Honest. After the Sharks took a 3-0 series lead the other night after falling behind Detroit 3-1 in game 3 I was ready to believe that this finally was their year.

Ohh...Too soon Junior. I'm sitting here, five hours away from the start of game 5 and I have no idea what will happen. After the 7-1 drubbing that the Sharks suffered Thursday night, my doubts came flooding back. Do the Wings have a huge mountain to climb? Yes. Do the Sharks have what it takes to close them out tonight? Absolutely. Will they? That's the $64,000 question.

It's hard to point blame or find highlights from that embarrassing loss. It was a team effort in every sense of the word. However, two things stand out to me on the positive side. Thomas Greiss. It's never easy coming into any game cold for a goaltender. A playoff road game is way more difficult. Having it be your first career playoff game in the NHL on top of it...it's amazing that Greiss didn't puke in the crease from the nerves. Instead, he goes out and plays two solid periods, giving up only two PP goals. Dan Boyle. It would have been easy to pack it in after the first period, and based on the box score, a lot of guys seemed to do just that. Not Boyle. He led the team with 8 shots, far exceeding anyone else. Add that to his nearly 25 minutes on the ice, the fact that Boyle gave it his all for all 60 minutes, he's the leadership the Sharks need right now.

Will the Sharks advance to the Western Conference Finals for only the second time in team history, or will we be forced to endure a game 6 on Monday? Only time will tell. God I hate the Wings.....

So much promise too....

2010-05-08T14:46:00.002-05:00

Well, now that David Obey has run to the tall grass and given up his seat, you have to wonder what's in store for the rest of the Wisconsin representatives...

1st. District - Paul Ryan (R)

With the amount of national attention that Mr. Ryan is getting, coupled with the fact that as of this writing he's running basically unopposed, it's hard to see him out of his seat in 2010. There's a problem though. Despite what he may say, the RNC has to have him on the short list for presidential candidates in 2012. That would leave the first district wide open for the 2012 congressional race. If the Democrats are looking to pick up seats in 2012, this will be first on their list.

2nd District - Tammy Baldwin (D)

The problem with Wisconsin is that among the 8 current districts, three of them are so entrenched in their respective parties that it's almost impossible for the other party to make any headway. The second is one of these. The Madison area will stick with the incumbent Baldwin until she decides it's time to retire. With the $729,201 that she had on hand as of March 31st, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

3rd District - Ron Kind (D)

Kind, in my opinion, is the wild card in the state. He is facing a bit of a challenge from Dan Kapanke (WI S. - 32) for the seat, however with the issues that seem to be bogging down the Tom Barrett campaign for Governor, I still think that Kind is debating a run for governor. Kind is running out of time though. If we don't hear about Kind for Governor soon, he looks to be in a good position for another term.

4th District - Gwen Moore (D)

Short of Bob Uecker or Robin Yount setting up residence in Milwaukee and running as a Republican, Moore is another lifer from Wisconsin. It will be interesting to see where the census data ends up though. It does seem likely that Wisconsin will probably lose another congressman after this election cycle. Pair that with the fact that Milwaukee has been shrinking in population as fast, if not faster, than the rest of the state, will the 4th survive, or will it be absorbed by the 1st and 5th? Will be interesting to see.

5th District - Jim Sensenbrenner (R)

The third of the entrenched congressman from Wisconsin, Sensenbrenner is another lifer. Even if they redesign the 5th significantly, as long as Waukesha County is part of the fifth, this seat will be solidly Republican for many years. Even if a good chunk of the city of Milwaukee ends up in the fifth during redistricting (not a given by any means, but possible) there should still be a strong conservative base here.

6th District - Tom Petri (R)

The problem with the sixth is that most voters tend to be conservative and are rather apathetic towards their representative. This is partially due to the fact that this district is sandwiched squarely between the Milwaukee and Green Bay TV markets; too far away to be of any concern for the local news stations. Reasons enough to make the sixth the only truly unopposed race in the state. The district has been Republican since 1967, and I don't see it changing anytime soon.

8th District - Steve Kagen (D)

As a resident of this district for the majority of my life, it does pain me a bit to say this. This district is all about TV. If you have name recognition from any of the TV stations in Green Bay, you will win the election. That is the only explanation behind this district electing an allergist (his clinic sponsored the allergy counts on one of the TV station's local news) and a former news anchorman (Jay Johnson 1997-99). Kagen is by far the most vulnerable, but the bloodbath that will be the Republican primary (8 people listed at OpenSecrets.org as of this writing) will only serve to select damaged goods. All the mud will already be slung by the time the general election comes around in November. By that time, the electorate will be fed up with it all.

Once again, Wisconsin will be delegated to fly-over status. With one flip due to retirement (7th unless the Dems get a strong candidate quickly) and one and one hold for no good reason (8th), Wisconsin looks to be rather boring on the congressional side this November. It's a pity too...With the anti-incumbent tide that seems to be rolling in other parts of the country, Wisconsin could have been fun to watch. Well, if that's the case, I'll fall back on another Wisconsin tradition....I'll get another beer.

Bullied to death? WHAT?!

2010-05-04T00:33:00.005-05:00

At work this evening, I noticed a recent copy of People magazine. It was the one that featured the cover story of a 15 year old girl from Massachusetts who took her own life because she was bullied. As a person who dealt with his fair share of bullying in school, I'm left to wonder, are the bullies getting worse or is it the bullied getting softer?

In my day (yes, I am aware that using that phrase makes me sound like an old fogey) it was considered a part of growing up. It was the price some of us paid for being forced into a controlled environment with a large group of people that, if encountered in the real world, we would have not been around.

I have a sure-fire way of reducing the stress of bulling. These hints, to some degree, allowed me to survive school as a member of the geek fringe of the mainstream. First is ignore and avoid. From my experience most bullies are out to get a reaction to make them feel better about themselves. If you don't react or if they have to hunt you down, they will move on to easier prey. Remember, your average bully is little different than the modern NBA 'superstar', an insecure little boy with a "look at me" complex. Second is join in. There is nothing more unsettling for a bully than a target making fun of themselves. This one is difficult for most high school students. In fact, I didn't learn to get good at it until I left school. Thirdly (?), change your routine slightly. Now this could cause a few issues. Like I said, most bullies are looking for a response. You just have to give them one they don't want. Sit a few tables closer to the lunchroom attendants. Start hanging out closer to the room of that 'rules are rules' hardass teacher that every school has at least one of. Pass by the school's offices a little more frequently between classes. Most bullies are insecure, but few are stupid enough to harass people in these situations.

A few things to avoid at all costs. NEVER get the school administration involved unless they have an anonymous way to report these things. All you do is make yourself a bigger target for squealing. Under no circumstances go to the bullies parents. You will get one of the following responses: "Who are you to tell me how to raise my kid?!" or "Oh, it couldn't be MY child. They are a perfect angel!" In either case, you get nowhere at best, and at worst you get an ass kicking.

It all boils down to this: your good friends and family are all that really matters. Everything else is crap. It's not worth taking yourself out over it. High school is the bottom. That's the point. Surviving it is what makes you ready for the world. There are always going to be assholes in the world. You can't consider suicide as the answer every time you have an issue with them.

Yes, I quoted a movie...so sue me. It doesn't matter. The message is still the same:

Ron Johnson running for US Senate

2010-04-30T11:28:00.002-05:00

As it was reported by WisPolitics yesterday, Oshkosh businessman Ron Johnson plans to run for the GOP nomination to run against Russ Feingold in the fall. While I admit that I don't know everything about him, what I do know makes me feel that he's exactly what we need.

Johnson is the owner of PACUR inc., an Oshkosh based manufacturer of polyester and plastic products, and the founder of the Oshkosh Tea Party. His conservative ideals were brought to the forefront in a recent article in the Oshkosh Northwestern where Johnson was quoted as saying, "This is the greatest country on Earth and we are lurching towards socialism and that doesn't work. What does work is free markets." A conservative with strong interests in education will be the perfect option.

Unfortunately, Johnson faces a rough uphill battle. Thanks to Tommy dragging his feet, Johnson hasn't had the opportunity to get his name out there. I mentioned that earlier, but Tommy holding up the entire GOP side is not what we needed. Johnson also faces a hard challenge in the name recognition battle. EVERYONE in Wisconsin knows Dick Leinenkugel just because of his family business. That will be a huge obstacle for Johnson to overcome due to the electorate's tendency to vote for names over substance.

Still, if he can get a good team together, dump massive amounts of money on TV and radio ads, and press the flesh in as many towns as possible, I think that Johnson could unseat Feingold this fall. Here's to hoping!

Do they still play the blues in Chicago?

2010-04-28T12:42:00.003-05:00

"When the snow melts away, do the Cubbies still play in their ivy-covered burial ground?" - Steve Goodman, "A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request"

I know that the season is almost a month old and I haven't said anything about the boys in blue yet, but there are several reasons for that. The NHL playoffs, the political junkie in me, and my offline life are just a few of the reasons I haven't gotten around to the Cubs. However, the biggest reason is, I just can't get real excited about this team right now. Yes, Marlon Byrd has exceeded all expectations so far and, thanks to a sweep of the Brewers, the Cubs are hanging right around .500 which is all you can ask for from April. Still, I just don't see much that gets me thinking that this year will be any better than past years.

I agree that the ownership change is a big reason that not a whole lot was done in the off-season, but that shouldn't be an excuse for the entire season. I'm starting to think that we are going to slip back into the mentality of the '80's. The whole, "Wrigley will sell out no matter what, so why try" mentality could easily return. I'm not saying that it will, but when you try so hard (thanks Mr. Hendry) and spend so much money and nothing really come from it besides a few division championships, you have to wonder if Jim Hendry will stop trying.

On a related note, the no trade clauses need to stop. There's nothing like handcuffing team development because some whiny 'superstar' is paranoid that he may be sent to Pittsburgh, Kansas City, or some other last place team. I'm not going to turn this into a bashfest, but the Cubs wouldn't have had to toss Zambrano to the pen if there wasn't a no trade clause in his contract. He would have been moved in the off-season. How many more "arm cramps" will we fans have to endure?

"When I was a boy they were my pride and joy, but now they only bring fatigue. To the home of the brave, the land of the free, and the doormat of the National League."

Time to embrace the internationalness!

2010-04-25T14:03:00.003-05:00

Well now. There's been so much talk recently about how the US isn't very internationally minded. How we should be more like the other enlightened nations. Arizona's new immigration law is seen by many as an indication of this. Well, I think that those folks may be on to something. Maybe we should be more like our neighbors. Ah, but there's a caveat...

"A penalty of up to two years in prison and a fine of three hundred to five thousand [dollars] will be imposed on the foreigner who enters the country illegally."

Foreigners with legal immigration problems may be deported...instead of being imprisoned.

Foreigners who "attempt against national sovereignty or security" will be deported.

A [naturalized citizen] who marries a foreigner with the sole objective of helping the foreigner live in the country is subject to up to five years in prison.

Foreigners who violate the terms of their visa may be sentenced to up to six years in prison

Wow! Can you imagine the ACLU's reaction if we were to impose laws this strict? You would hear nothing but outrage for WEEKS!

Thing is, these laws are currently on the books...In Mexico. That's right, the nation that screams at the US for it's immigration policies has, in some cases, even more strict rules.

Is there something evil about our government trying to maintain some control over how many people flood into our nation? I think not. Granted, a VAST majority of the illegal immigrants want nothing more than to scrape out a better life than they had in their home country. It's that small minority however that makes strict laws necessary. That small minority that has no intention of living on the good side of the law. If I have to choose between a bit of 'racial profiling' and a tsunami of illegals that have only harm on their minds, you know how I'll choose.

Oh, by the way...To all those that scream "racial profiling!" in cases like this, when you say that we are all "White, well to do, conservative radicals", congratulations! You just racially profiled us.

(Above examples - "Mexico's Glass House," Center for Security Policy Occasional Paper, April 3, 2006)

WHEW!

2010-04-25T13:31:00.002-05:00

Ok, so it took six games and the boys having to seriously buckle down and put the screws to the 'Lanche, but they did it. Yes, you can say that it wouldn't have been that bad if it wasn't for a couple of fluky goals. I say that at least one should have never happened. Three OT games? Seriously? Yes, I know that the Avalanche are a decent young team that will be a force in the next few years, but come on! There's no way that those games should have been that close. Craig Anderson is decent, but he's not the kind of goaltender that can steal a game. At least he shouldn't be. Game three was all Anderson. You could even argue that game one he stole too. The best thing that you can take away from round one is that the scoring is coming from outside the top line. The Pride of Plover Wisconsin, Joe Pavelski, has 5 goals in 6 games. Classic.

Now, on to round two. Every other series is 3-2 as I write this (Phoenix leads Detroit 1-0 in the first period of game 6), so if you project the series leaders advancing, the second round will be Chicago Vs. Vancouver and the Sharks Vs. Detroit. Ugh. The history between the Sharks and the 'Wings isn't the greatest. The 'Wings lead overall two series to one. The one, any Sharks fans will know, is the huge upset in the 1993-94 season. The last time they met was during the 2006-07 season where the Sharks never scored more than two goals in any game. Yes, both the Sharks and Detroit are vastly different teams than they were then, but the fact that Detroit is on a huge roll going into the playoffs is not a good omen for San Jose.

If the Sharks have any chance of advancing, they need to do the little things. Work hard every shift, get pucks to the net, annoy the living hell out of Jimmy Howard, and generally outwork the 'Wings. Detroit will be ready to play. The Sharks better be too. I'm getting a little tired of all these seasons of high expectations, great regular seasons, and tanking (no pun intended) in the playoffs. Come on boys. Get 'em!

Mixed feelings

2010-04-24T10:25:00.002-05:00

If you've followed the blog for a while or know me, I'm a weather geek. I love severe storms. There is nothing I like more than a severe weather outbreak. That being said, as I sit here watching live coverage from ABC 33/40 from Birmingham, Alabama, and knowing what is in store for those folks, I wish that it wasn't happening.

It's still very early, but by the time it's all said and done, this will probably go down as one of the worst tornado outbreaks in the deep south in many, many years. If nobody is seriously injured or killed, it will be a major miracle. What is making this worse is the fact that this weekend is the NASCAR race in Talladega. Every weekend, many people camp out at the tracks for these races. Emergency shelters have been opened by Talladega County emergency managers, but I am unsure whether they have enough room for everyone.

As a student of history and weather history, this will be a day for the record books. I just wish that it wouldn't be happening to an area of the country that is historically poorer than the rest of the nation. If you are a religious person, please keep the deep south in your prayers today...

This IS a Christian nation

2010-04-20T23:35:00.002-05:00

Well, the vitriolic hatred that the left has for Sarah Palin has reared it's ugly head again. The problem is, this time it makes them look even more foolish than usual.

It all began with Palin's comments in Louisville on Friday, April 16th. As expected, the libtards began screaming their collective heads off. The only problem is, the United States is a Christian nation. According to the CIA's 2007 estimates, 76% of Americans identify themselves as one of the main branches of Christianity. The rest of the world's major religions makes up around 4% of the population, with around 15% claiming no religion or no affiliation. We are a nation of Christians that allows all religions.

I can hear you now..."That's not what she meant and you know it!!" I know what you are thinking of. Problem is, what you think is not the truth. I will be fighting this one until the day I die. NOWHERE in the first amendment are the words 'separation of church and state'. Go ahead. Take a look. I'll wait.

See? The actual text is as follows: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." So, as you can see, the only thing that the founders wanted to prevent was the United States either becoming a theocracy or promoting one religion over another. Which is why that the narrow minded ruling by a liberal, activist judge claiming that the national day of prayer is unconstitutional grinds my gears so much. The national day of prayer was not a command. There never was anyone saying who you had to pray to. The far left liberals could have prayed to Obama. Nobody would have cared. All it is is a call to the people to remember our religious foundations. It's these same anti-religious zealots that make such a stink every year at Christmas. What is so wrong about a city hall somewhere putting up a few Santa pictures? If you ask most Christians, Santa has as much to do with the real Christmas as a silly rabbit has to do with Easter.

Despite what the liberals may think and say, this is a nation of Christians founded by deeply religious Christians. Where we differ from other countries is that we allow anyone to worship however they wish. That also includes not worshiping at all. Show me a country on this planet where religious minorities have the protections and freedoms they enjoy here. You won't find one.

A part of every Georger has died...

2010-04-18T12:48:00.003-05:00

Earlier this week, my daughter brought home one of these. I will admit that, only mostly joking, I looked for little, tiny shreds of serial numbers and EMS marks.

Although I understand the recycling movement (despite opposing most of it), do we really need to turn everything into something else? What really concerns me is that, contrary to public opinion and the generic reference, our money is not paper. It is a unique blend of fibers making it closer to linen than paper. Do we really need counterfeiters being able to figure out what that blend is and make ultra high quality counterfeit notes?

The real issue I have with these pencils is the vast amount of EMS'ed bills that could be in there! I know that notes do wear down over time. With this new product, however, I have to wonder how many notes that just a few years ago would have been sent back out are now ending up in these pencils. Are the days of 6, 7, 8, and 9 hitters over? Are the days of the long soak sleepers over? The mind reels.

So, what are we Georgers to do? Short of a mass raid of the Fed by legions of people with Palette ink stained fingers hell bent on liberating all the bills, I'm not sure there's anything we can do. Damn you Al Gore and your Global Warming recycling nonsense! I WANT HITS!!!

Quick hits

2010-04-17T16:29:00.002-05:00

Just a few interesting things I ran across recently...

Alaskan town reduces PD to one guy

I'm not sure what's more embarrassing...Saying you had to close down your police department or having one guy that can go around and say, "I AM the PD!"

100 year old pedophile headed back to prison

Wow...I'm not sure where to go with this one. I guess I should say a tiger never changes his stripes and move on...

Police charge man in unlicensed dental operation

Although it would be hard to find anything scarier than an unlicensed dentist operating out of a two room office between a metal scrapping business and an auto body yard, the fact that when officers arrived, there were FIVE people waiting for 'service'. Yikes.

Lynx decides he's had enough of Colorado, returns to Canada

Maybe the food was better. Maybe he was looking for cleaner air. Personally I believe the 6 kids finally drove him to go! :D

Pontiac Silverdome to host an event for the first time in 5 years

Please tell me I'm not the only one that's more than a little shocked that thing is still standing!

Why can't we all be 7 years old?

2010-04-17T16:05:00.003-05:00

I took my kids to Frame Park in Waukesha earlier today. Aside from the fact that I'm still amazed at how different my kids are (daughter is a major social butterfly and my son will be content with imaginary play by himself for hours), what really gets me every time on how quickly my daughter makes friends where ever we go. The truly fascinating part is how socially blind she is. She will play and make 'friends' (friends we may never see again) with girls, boys, black, white, brown, yellow, green, blue...whatever. I would like to take some credit for that, but I know that the greatest part of it is she doesn't care. If they are nice, she likes them. If they are mean, she doesn't.

When and where did we lose that? I know I am not perfect, but there are others who see nothing but the outside. Why? Why can't we all go back to the attitude that my 7 year old has? Where did the distrust of anything different supersede all other attitudes?

I am by no means a bleeding heart liberal, but I think we all can agree that judging someone based solely on the color of their skin and not the content of their character is the way to enlightenment. Not everyone will agree about theology, political views, personal beliefs of all types, and social statuses, but can't we finally get passed skin color? It's so arbitrary.

Tommy Thompson MORE MORE MORE!!!

2010-04-14T23:19:00.003-05:00

Well, as I sit here writing, our dear former governor, Tommy Thompson, sits at home deciding if he wants to run for Senate against Russ "I'm a maverick...no, really...stop laughing!" Feingold.

...

....

.....

Honestly, this is not a bad idea. Feingold needs to go. The Republicans really have nobody else that is strong enough who is willing to run. Sure, you can say that Tommy's policies weren't the most fiscally conservative, but you can't argue that the good he did (School choice, Wisconsin Works, BadgerCare) outweigh the bad. Yea, he's not the perfect candidate, but I will be the first in line to vote for him.

But there's a problem. His family. You know that things are bad when your own family is leaking stories to the media trying to convince you not to run. Tommy will turn 69 shortly after the election. His family is not thrilled to go through another statewide election. I can't say I blame them. A statewide campaign is a huge undertaking.

Still, there's still a lot of love for Tommy here. Even without the Republican revolution that seems to be coming, I can easily see Tommy getting 50.1% or more of the vote. The biggest reason why is that he was what the Constitution had in mind...A government of the people. That's why Tommy was always good for the goofy soundbite. He was a ordinary man from blue collar roots who spoke from the heart. Did he make mistakes? Sure. He's human. Did he honestly do what he felt was right and what the people of Wisconsin wanted? Sure. Will he continue to do that in the Senate. Absolutely.

Will he run or won't he? Nobody really knows. One thing I do know is this; if he convinces his family to let him run, it will be for only one term. I cannot see his family allowing this to go on again in six years. Unless the Paul Ryan for President groundswell keeps rolling. How about an all-Wisconsin ticket...Ryan/Thompson 2012? Hmmm....

No Nukes! No Nukes!

2010-04-13T12:48:00.003-05:00

President Obama's nuclear summit is in full swing, and the snubs are a flying. I do understand that there are protocols and politics when you have a meeting at this level, but that is not what this post is about.

Before I begin, I have to say a few things. I am far from a Barack Obama fan. I cannot stand his policies, nor can I stand the fumbles he has made politically abroad. That said, I do admire his effort in this. Nuclear weapons, both A bombs and H bombs, are right near the top of the list of things the world would be better off if they were never invented, right behind New Coke and Crystal Pepsi. Where this summit loses credibility however, is the list of nations who are not here.

Israel - In this case, I'm not sure if the president was arrogant or merely stupid. You can't smack a proud group of people around diplomatically as he as done in the past few months and expect them to show up for your round of holy pictures. Besides, it's the world's worst kept secret where most, if not all, of Israel's nuclear capability has come from. It was 6-5 and pick 'em whether the Israelis were going to come anyway, now they have a legitimate, albeit not the real, reason to stay home.

North Korea and Iran - Two more nations that are notable for not even being invited. I will discuss them together as the reasons are similar. The White House claims that, due to their non proliferation violations, neither country were going to be invited. In my opinion, that is a huge reason for them to be here. Those two countries do not have the fear of the bomb that the rest of the nuclear nations do. They will continue to advance their technology to the point that they can build any device they want. Also, if the price is right, they will have no problems selling ready made devices to the highest bidders. Having leaders from those two nations in the same room with all the other nuclear powers to hear other opinions may have had an effect on their policies. We will never know now though. Thankfully China seems to, at least publicly, want to work with the United States to keep Iran and North Korea in line. I understand North Korea, as China has had them on a fairly short leash for a while now, but how would China have any influence over Iran at all? UN sanctions? Yea, like that works.

Another aim of these talks, some would say the primary aim, is to control readily fissionable material. There are reports that there is enough plutonium and highly-enriched uranium around the world to build 120,000 nuclear weapons. Again, another admirable goal on paper. When you consider that the average plutonium core for a nuclear weapon averages 5kg (approx. 11lbs), it wouldn't be hard to hide/smuggle enough for a bomb or two to radical groups. How can you stop it all? Yes, controls over production, transport, and distribution of fissionable materials are very good in most of the nuclear nations. It's the ones that don't have good records or control that are going to be a problem.

While the intent of the summit is good, I feel that this is nothing more than a feel good exercise for the president after the bloody battle he just fought over health care.

2009-10 NHL Playoff Preview

2010-04-12T23:11:00.006-05:00

Well, the second season of the 2009-10 NHL campaign is upon us. I guess I'll toss my two cents (1% of a Tom) in. The problem is, I have a bit of a split personality when it comes to sports. My head and my heart often have two very different opinions of the same thing. So, in that spirit, I will give both versions of the same series. Shal we begin at the beginning?

Western Conference

#1 San Jose Sharks Vs. #8 Colorado Avalanche

Heart: SWEEP BABY!!!!!!

Head: Honestly, there was no better matchup in the first round for the Sharks than the Avalanche. Colorado's young team took advantage of the rest of the Western Conference's inability to make a run at the playoffs. The Sharks have talent to spare and should breeze through this matchup...except for one thing. Over the last two seasons, the Sharks have had a knack for going into a cruise control mentality inn situations where they feel that they should win easily. The tale of this series will be in games 1 and 2. If the Sharks don't put the screws to the Avalanche early on, they could be on a collision course with another early exit.

#2 Chicago Blackhawks Vs. #7 Nashville Predators

Heart: Preds shock the hockey world with a win in 7.

Head : On paper, this looks to be a no-brainer. However, as they say, games are rarely played on paper. The problem for the 'Hawks will be in the net. Cristobal Huet is quickly becoming the NHL's answer to Penn and Teller...Making his talent disappear while making people laugh. Antti Niemi's numbers and play have been more than enough to take the 'Hawks to a division championship, but the playoffs are a completely different animal. If the rookie can't adjust, it could be very rocky. That dark cloud does have a silver lining for Chicago. The 'Hawks have more than enough talent to overcome the goaltending issues and win shootouts. Unfortunately for Nashville, I don't think they have enough goalscoring to match up with Chicago. The 'Hawks advance, but if they get a bad matchup in the second round, it very well could be an early exit for them.

#3 Vancouver Canucks Vs. #6 Los Angeles Kings

Heart: It doesn't matter as long as it goes 7, bloody games!

Head: If we are going to see an upset, this will probably be it. Yes, the Canucks have the Sedins and Roberto Luongo is one of the NHL's elite netminders, but the playoffs are all about the production from the 3rd and 4th lines. When you have a defenseman tied for 7th on your team in goals scored for the regular season (Christian Ehrhoff with 14) it could spell trouble in the post season. The Kings, if they want to pull off the upset, are going to need an epic performance from Jonathan Quick and their defense. If these games stay low scoring, the Kings have a shot. If not, it may be an early trip to the golf course for the LA boys.

#4 Phoenix Coyotes Vs. #5 Detroit Red Wings

Heart: Phoenix in 7 bloody overtime games!

Head: The Coyotes are in the playoffs simply because of the stellar play of goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov. Career highs in games played, wins, GAA, shutouts and second best save percentage helped Bryzgalov carry Phoenix to a #4 seed and a mere 6 points from a division championship. Out of all the matchups that the Coyotes could have had, probably the worst one for them was the one they got. No team has more post season experience over the last several years than Detroit. Combine that with their 8-1-1 run to end the regular season, and the Wings are poised to do what they do every year; make a deep run into the playoffs. The one upside for Phoenix is that this is the first time since 1997-98 that the Red Wings have ended the regular season without a 30 goal scorer. If the Coyotes can sneak a few past Jimmy Howard and keep Bryzgalov hot, they may have a chance to advance.

Eastern Conference

#1 Washington Capitals Vs. #8 Montreal Canadiens

Heart: Caps all the way!

Head: This series is the exception that proves the rule. The Caps have too much for Montreal to overcome. Yea, the Habs may steal a game, probably in Montreal, but there's not going to be a whole lot of doubt how this series will turn out. The only objective that Montreal should have in this series is to not embarrass themselves.

#2 New Jersey Devils Vs. #7 Philadelphia Flyers

Heart: Devils in 4! YEA!

Head: The Devils are probably the only team in the East, possibly in the NHL, that have a chance to take out Washington. Jacques Lemaire's defensive scheme, Martin Brodeur the goaltending cyborg, and the offense of Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk will combine to make the Devils an almost unstoppable force. The Flyers do have enough to take a game or two, but there's no way they put together enough to beat the Devils four times.

#3 Buffalo Sabres Vs. #6 Boston Bruins

Heart: Who cares? The matchup of the loser to either New Jersey or Washington in the second round.

Head: Buffalo will need to be more than Ryan Miller if they want to advance. While they have plenty of depth (4 20 goal scorers and a total of 12 with at least 10) what Buffalo seems to lack is that one superstar that can take the team on his back offensively and lead them to the promised land. Boston's struggles to even make the playoffs could be the spark they need to give Buffalo a run. The only issue there is, where's the offense going to come from? Tuukka Rask and Tim Thomas have been a remarkable tandem in net but, even though I love the guy, Marco Sturm leading the team with 22 goals isn't quite what you want to put fear in your opponent. This series will go as the first game goes. If Buffalo comes out strong and dominates, it will be a short season for Boston. If it's a back and forth affair, it will be a long, toss up series.

#4 Pittsburgh Penguins Vs. #5 Ottawa Senators

Heart: Penguins roll! The Igloo will see some more playoff hockey!

Head: Oh the East. Only in the NHL can a team like the Penguins end up a #4 seed. Once again it will be Sidney Vs. the World. The only problem with placing all of your hopes on the back of one player is that if your opponent can shut down your star, you could be in trouble. For the Penguins, that is a whole lot of trouble. If you remove Crosby from their team, Pittsburgh becomes remarkably average. 3 20 goal scorers, a defense that even with Crosby can only produce a +/- leader at a +7, and Marc-Andre Fleury having his worst season statistically since 2006-07 leaves you with a team that would be lucky to be in the playoffs. Will somebody shut down Crosby in the playoffs? Probably. Will it be Ottawa? Very unlikely.

Civic duty? What's that?

2010-04-10T12:53:00.003-05:00

I'm always a little amazed, and more than a little saddened, when I hear the turnouts for the smaller elections. I'm sure that most of you had no idea that we here in SE Wisconsin had an election this last Tuesday. Granted, most of the ballot was for local, mostly unopposed, races, but the ones that were contested were the ones that have the most day to day impact on people's lives.

Sure, the national ones are important and that governing often trickles down to the people, but when I hear people complain about education in this country and find out that they are the same people who don't go out and vote for the school board elections, I just have to shake my head. If you really want to affect things, the small, local elections are the best way to go. Even if you are new to the political process, it isn't too hard to find out about the candidates. Most of these smaller races are between real people, not career politicians. They also would love to hear from voters and have a chance to share their views. With just two phone calls, you can have a clear picture of the debate and should be able to make a good decision on who to vote for. Sadly though, this is largely not done.

This is why when I hear a story like that out of Pewaukee, where some polling places ran out of ballots, I smile. Yes it was an inconvenience. Yes I know they had a hotly contested mayoral race. Still, when you have a huge turnout for an off year spring election, I'm always elated. I really don't, despite what I may joke about, enjoy the fact that my vote counts for 10, 11, or even 12 other people.

I have made this point on several other occasions, but it still irks me. How is it we can have tens of millions of people who vote for American Idol, but a fraction of that who vote for local elections? Could it be that picking up a phone is easier than driving to a polling place? Surely we Americans haven't become that lazy. Could it be lack of awareness? This is probably more likely. Unless you are a listener to talk radio, you probably have no idea when the smaller elections are. There's plenty of blame to go around for that. Sure, they could do a better job of announcing them, but if more people were paying attention, the advertising wouldn't be as important.

Is there an answer? Probably not. If we made the voting process easier, there would be more fraud than there already is. There will always be a percentage of people who either don't care (they are all crooks and liers anyway) or are unable to get to the polls for whatever reason. Still, I can't understand why a majority of us can't be bothered to stand up for themselves by voting. Is it apathy or ignorance? More than likely both.

The quest for a better dining experience

2010-04-10T01:40:00.002-05:00

Before I start, I have to say that none of the following is a paid advertisement. Why would anyone pay for me to say anything? :)

I'm a foodie. I can't help it. I enjoy food way too much. Unfortunately, one of my weaknesses is for authentic, ethnic food. Being an American makes this very difficult. Everything has been "Americanized". While that is OK if you understand that this has never, nor will never, show up on the table of a real Mexican family, but if you are looking for food that is eaten by people in those other countries, your choices are few and far between.

The same can be said for any fast food. That is why I was so pleasantly surprised yesterday evening. I don't get to eat out much, but when I do, it usually has to be fairly kid friendly. If the kids won't eat, what's the point? Last night, however, I was in an unusual position. I only had to feed myself. I was finally able to satisfy my curiosity and get myself some Qdoba. I have to say, they are probably the perfect marriage of fast and authentic that you probably will get. Their Ancho Chile BBQ Burrito is amazing. Proper rice, black beans, and the chicken properly seasoned. It has plenty of spice, but without sacrificing the flavor. It's not hot for the sake of being hot. The heat comes from the flavor. Come hungry though. Not since the Appleton La Bamba have I had one burrito that made a meal for me.

I'm afraid I'm hooked. Solid, real Mexican cuisine fast? Put a Qdoba on one side of my home and a Round Table on the other, and I would never cook again! (OK, maybe not...I love to cook too much!)

Like a Phoenix....Rising from Arizona...

2010-04-09T15:33:00.003-05:00

OK, I know it's been several months and the three readers I had have probably gone the way of the dodo (but I'm glad to see the spammers made several visits!), but when things go kerflewy in real life the digital life often has to be pared down a bit. Now that things have leveled out some, I can get back to things here. This return post will be a big grab bag of things so please bear with me.

San Jose Sharks: 2009-10 Pacific Division Champs Pardon me if I don't get as excited about this as I probably should. This is the third straight year that my beloved Sharks have won the division. We all know how the last two have turned out. Last night's game against Vancouver makes me hopeful and nervous all at the same time. On one hand, it was nice to see the boys sticking up for each other on the eve of the playoffs. On the other, three 10 minute misconducts in the third shows a lack of discipline that is more than a little disturbing.

ObamaCare I will probably touch more on this in the near future. I'm not sure what I can say that hasn't already been said by now, but the biggest question I have is this: If this bill was so vital to the interests of the nation, why are we going to have to wait until 2014 for the first benefits to be paid out? There are reports out now that customer service lines at insurance companies and doctor's offices are already being flooded with people wanting to know how they sign up. If the general public wasn't pissed before, once they learn that they will be paying for 4 years before the first benefit is paid out, they will be.

Climb on the Peace Train Once again Diamond Jim and Mayor Barrett are Wisconsin's answer to Admiral Nelson ("I really do not see the signal") with their pushing of the "Half Fast" train to Madison despite a large and vocal opposition. I'm sure that given enough time to think about it, I could come up with several, well thought out responses to the train. Instead, I will let Owen over at Boots and Sabers do it for me.

Sounds good in theory I got to work a bit early last night so I wandered over to the gas station near the building I was working at. For the first time I encountered the talking pedestrian crossing switch. Now, I do agree that this is a pretty decent idea on paper. Problem is, the volume is so low and the quality of the audio so poor, that I had a hard time hearing it over the traffic. Oh well, there's a point in the life of everything that works where it didn't work.

There's always next year 1-3 after 4 games. A manager who says it's not his fault...the players didn't play. Yea, this is going to be a fun year....

Mr. Ryan go to Washington! I will expand on this in the future, but I have to say now that, while we love you here in Wisconsin Paul, I think we would be better served if you were in that great, bleached house in DC.

I wish I could make promises as to the amount of content that will be on here, but at this point I can't. Things are still WAY too much up in the air for me to know if I can stay with this or not. Keep in touch though!

Can good defeat evil?

2010-01-02T15:03:00.002-06:00

Most people would answer yes to the above question. Come to think about it, if you would have asked me a few years ago, I probably would have agreed. Now however, I'm not so sure. It seems the more I look, the worse things are. There are so many acts of pure evil out there, you really have to wonder if all of the good in the world can ever overcome it.

Life used to be similar to TV. The bad guy did his thing, but the good guy came along and either stopped him or made him pay for it. Not so much anymore. We have people getting away with horrific crimes with either no punishment because they claim insanity or a slap on the wrist because the criminal justice system has gotten too soft. Unfortunately, the criminals here in the US can't hold a candle to what I saw last night.

I caught an episode of 101 East last night on Al Jazeera English that I found disturbing on a level that I cannot describe. They were profiling acid attacks in Bangladesh. In one of the poorest, most crowded nations on the planet, one way for people to scratch out a living is jewelry making. Hydrochloric and nitric acid is used in the manufacturing process, which means that these acids are readily available for a cheap price. This acid is often used as a way of attacking people involved in disputes. Women and children are usually the victims of these attacks. According to the Acid Survivors Foundation, less than 10% of the offenders are ever prosecuted. The cases they profiled shocked me in a way I didn't think I could be shocked anymore.

WARNING: The following descriptions are somewhat graphic. If you are uncomfortable with this, please skip along.

The one woman they followed had acid tossed on her face because of a dispute over a bucket of water. Apparently there was some other tension between her father and his workers.

A six month old girl had acid poured over her head by her father because he wanted a son. Her picture is here. (Bangladesh story picture)

One woman was the victim of an acid attack because of a dispute between her husband and brother in law. This case is disturbing because they think that her husband carried out the attack to frame his brother.

And the worst one. A young boy had acid poured down his throat by his aunt because she was jealous. He was one month old at the time.

This is only the tip of the evil iceberg. Genocides, dictatorships, racial and gender strife...There are so many people out there who are doing things that seem inconceivable. How on earth can the good people of the world overcome the evil? I suppose this is why I'm having such a hard time with the whole religion thing. It's hard to have faith in anything when there is so much evil around. Maybe another talk with Pastor Randy is in order.

For those interested in watching this program, you will need to download Livestation. Go to livestation.com and get the player. Do not worry. I have used it many times, there is no virus risk. Al Jazeera English is one of the partners, so the channel will come included with the basic setup. The episode of 101 East will be re-broadcast at the following times:

Sunday January 3rd - 03:30 and 11:30 GMT

Monday January 4th - 16:30 GMT

Tuesday January 5th - 14:30 GMT

Wendsday January 6th - 08:30 and 19:30 GMT

Thursday January 7th - 06:30 GMT

(Central Standard Time is GMT -6)

Another word of warning. I am not one to get easily squeamish at things I see on TV. Several times I had to look away during the broadcast.

The Green Movement: Feeling good without doing good

2010-01-01T13:44:00.002-06:00

This green kick has been a fad for a while now. Being green is the newest status symbol. In their own little world, the greener you are, the better a person you are.

As it has been said many times before, the proof of climate change is far from undisputed. In fact, there has been some debate on whether some green items are any better for the environment. That is for another post though. This post is focusing on the things that are being ignored by the green scene.

Honestly, I feel a lot (not all) of the folks who are passionate about being green are willing to do so, as long as they are not significantly inconvenienced. Priuses, compact florescents, composting, recycling...These are all ways for people to feel good about themselves without going too far out of their way.

Everyone also is vocal about the big issues - Coal burning power plants, nuclear power, SUV's. But there are a few things that are potentially a lot worse for the environment that nobody seems to talk about.

1 - Fireworks. At first glance, fireworks don't appear to have that much of an impact. Individually, fireworks displays do not have a whole lot of impact. However, add up the thousands of firework displays that are fired off every year and you get a significant amount of nasty stuff exploded in the atmosphere. One of these compounds, perchlorates, are responsible for inhibiting the thyroid from absorbing iodine. Because fireworks are often exploded over water, the perchlorates end up in the water supply. Yet, despite the environmental impact, you don't hear anything about a call for banning of fireworks. Why?

Before you start calling me unpatriotic, I enjoy a good firework display as much as the next guy. However, if I have to choose between a fireworks display and infant retardation from iodine deficiency...Well...that should be a no brainer.

2 - Ethanol. Now, I know that this is the baby of environmentalists, but ethanol is no answer. It is expensive, requires a lot of land and water, and can even cause worse air pollution and CO2 emissions than 100% gasoline exhaust. Unfortunately, those of us who know that ethanol isn't the answer are fighting an uphill battle on two counts. We are shouted down as being unfriendly to the environment and supporting "countries that wish us harm". That's a good phrase, except for the fact that 65% of the US crude imports come from friendly countries. Only one of the top 5, Saudi Arabia, is in the middle east. So, in an effort to save the environment, we could be making it worse. Yep...good job greenies.

3 - Recycling. Now this is a hard one to attack. Recycling programs have been around in our country for over 30 years. A lot of people who wouldn't consider themselves environmental believe in recycling programs, so hearing the truth is unsettling. However, considering most communities that recycle have two different crews collecting garbage and recycling, and that most items can be made from raw materials as efficiently as from recycled materials, the environmental impact is greater than if we tossed everything. The only exception are metal cans. Those items are far better all around if they are recycled. For aluminum cans, it can be as high as a 95% savings. Don't believe me? There are plenty of examples here.

These are but a few examples. The environmental movement is attacking all aspects of modern society with shaky pseudo-science. They push for changes in the name of the environment before they even know if what they want is good for the planet or not. To me, that's just plain wrong.

The Journey Part IX

2009-12-23T13:03:00.002-06:00

The Journey is chronicling my thoughts and feelings as I proceed down the path of spirituality. For a detailed explanation, see The Journey Part I

Now, I know what you are thinking. Two Journey posts on the same day? It will become clear enough soon, but let's just say that what I have to say in this one needs to be separated from the other post.

Lately I have been having some doubts about this whole journey. I really can't see myself becoming religious at all. I don't, among other things, seem to have the temperament for it. I tend to take things seriously that others seem to think I shouldn't and I laugh off things others seem to think are serious. Normally, that wouldn't bother me. In fact, most times I laugh off things others take way too seriously. But religion is different. You need to have convictions that, for the most part, are not easy for me to have. I have a quizzical mind. I often question things. It's because I need to know why a lot. Religion is one area where too many questions are sometimes frowned upon. I do want to thank Randy Skaja and Andy Brumm for taking the time to answer the rather goofy questions I have had so far.

I'm sure you will agree that some questions are healthy, but the problem I have is I want to ask the unhealthy ones. I will admit that occasionally I have an unhealthy need for knowledge. That's just who I am. That is why I can identify the flag for Burkina Faso in just a second or two and tell you where it is.

I have a lot of questions that I probably will never ask because I do not want to offend a group of people who have been very good to me and my family for a very long time. I will not ask questions that will cause more stress and anger in my family. I will not, in a quest for knowledge, ask questions that appear to be questioning someone's religion.

So, that leaves me at a crossroads. One that I have been standing at a long time. Two choices stand before me. One path leads down a road where some knowledge is sacrificed in the name of faith. The other is a life of knowledge without faith. I have seen the beginnings of both paths. They both appeal to me. I do not know which path I want to go down. What's worse is that I do not know which path is the right one. I guess I will stand at the crossroads (listening to some Clapton) for a little while longer.