Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

Thought I'd use this week's spot to wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year, and list my resolutions for 2006.

*With Tom and Jenny's wedding coming up in June, I resolve to lose weight and get in better shape before the big day. Besides the health issue, it would sure feel nice to buy new clothes that are smaller than my current selection! Besides, people are starting to catch on that I'm NOT an offensive tackle for the St. Louis Rams.

*I have been promising to restore my wife's beloved 1986 Olds Cutlass for a few year's now, so I resolve to "git 'er done" (with apologies to Larry the cable guy) in 2006. Does anyone have a spare Olds 403-cubic inch V8 laying around? Preferably from a late 70s/early 80s Pontiac Trans Am. If you also have a set of 15'' Olds Rally Wheels, even better!

*2006 has to be the year for a real, away-from-home vacation. It doesn't have to be exotic, maybe Williamsburg, Monticello, Santa Fe, or even Chicago or Atlanta (would really like to see the new Atlanta Aquarium or the Shedd in Chi-town!) How cool would it be to go to a Cards-Cubs game at Wrigley, catch a home run ball from Albert, and then refuse to throw it back onto the field?

*I always wanted to take part in a Highland Games-type competition. I believe there's a Saint Andrew's Society in St. Louis where one can get more info. Throwing a telephone pole around just sounds like a lot of fun. If my bad knees hold out, I'd really like to try. Aye, Laddie!

*I resolve not to cry like a baby in the emergency room after blowing out my knee, back, shoulder, etc, etc after taking part in above-mentioned games!

*I resolve to get my cholesterol, glucose, and blood pressure checked by my doctor, and actually follow her instructions if they're out of spec. Since I'm a drug rep and sell cholesterol and BP meds, it seems a little disingenuous to ask others to do what I won't do myself. Besides, I can probably become my own best sales tool!

*2006 will be the year I catch up with the rest of the world in technology. Out goes the ancient tv and pre-Deluvian home PC, in comes HDTV and a computer that can do more than play Solitaire. I've heard it's now possible to go more than 20 minutes without a memory dump, blue screen of death, or a lockup! Who'da thought?!

When, exactly, did Hell freeze over?

In the last two days, I have fixed the non-working gas lamp in my front yard, insulated the perimeter of my basement with fiberglass batts, cut out dead limbs from the apple and gum trees in our backyard, repaired a broken latch on the back storm door, and fixed a slow-running drain in the kitchen sink. All without falling off a ladder, being smacked with a tree limb the size of Montana, slicing off some fingers with a razor knife, or breaking a pipe inside a wall! With all this work and no disaster, I'm certain Hell has to have frozen over. I mean, I've used up nine lives worth of good luck in a two-day span. I haven't checked my astrological chart, but maybe my house, the planets, and all the other space junk out there are in some kind of once-in-a-millenium alignment (that would explain the White Sox winning the World Series, and Garth Brooks being in those Wal-Mart commercials).
Just to play it safe, I'm sitting in front of the computer with an aluminum foil hat on my head, a 4-leaf clover in my hand, and a St Christopher medal around my neck. These days, ya just can't be too careful!

Mmmmm.......Power Tools!!!

Over the last few months, I've accumulated a lot of new power tools. To wit, a 10-inch table saw, compound power miter saw, reciprocating saw, and now a combination fixed/plunge router (all Crafstman, of course). With my company's shutdown for the holidays, I've had the time to actually play around with them, and they are even more fun than I had previously thought. Using a 3000-rpm power saw to rip lumber is a feast for the male ego and an assault on said male's hearing (note--next time wear hearing protectors! PS to Jenny--I did remember my safety glasses a la' Norm Abrams).
The only limitations I still face are paying for quality wood and the cost of router bits. Apparently, there are 50 million router bits on the market, and you have to have every one to be a real woodworker. High-quality lumber is so expensive I'm going to take up part-time lumberjacking to secure wood at a reasonable price (look out, Earth-Firsters!)
I guess it could be worse. I could be into golf and spend all my money on bright yellow pants and tweed socks!

White Christmas

I woke up about 4 a.m. on Christmas morn 2005 to a bedroom lit up like the airport. During the night, the rain from Christmas Eve had changed over to snow, and there was enough of the white stuff to cover the ground and reflect the ten-thousand Xmas lights on our street. It was the perfect snowstorm--just enough to blanket the grassy areas without turning the sidewalks, driveways, and streets into a skating rink.
It reminded me of the year my wife and son and I went looking for the proper Christmas Tree on a snowy weekday evening. We sorted through the rows of potential purchases as Bing Crosby crooned "White Christmas" through speakers strung above the tree lot. The specimen we picked out was covered with snow, at least until I hoisted it up to load in the bed of my truck. At that moment, I got my first taste of what an avalanche feels like. As we drove home, with the now melting snowpile on my head running down my neck and soaking my t-shirt, I realized why people move to warmer climes!
Not every St. Louis Winter is cold. One Christmas Eve, we enjoyed lunch at Red Lobster, saw the movie "E.T." and then returned home to open presents on a balmy 70-degree evening.
On the flip side, in 1983 it was below zero every day for a week, and we had to thaw our tree before we could get the branches to relax so we could add lights and ornaments.
I wonder how hard it is to string lights on a palm tree?

Merry Christmas!!!

Here's hoping that everyone in the blogosphere has a very Merrry Christmas, a Happy Hannukah, and a prosperous New Year. As a public service, here are a few hints to make your holiday season a memorable one:

--When leaving snacks for Santa, shy away from the traditional glass of milk. Doctors at North Pole Regional Medical Center report that the Jolly Old Elf's cholesterol is "through the roof", and suggest herbal tea or diet Dr Pepper as a more appropriate beverage for a hundred-something senior with a body-mass-index in the high 30s.

--Mrs Claus asks that homeowners disable their cable/satellite tv boxes so Santa won't be distracted on his big night. She recounted a harrowing tale from a few years back when a suburban Chicago man inadvertantly left the Playboy Channel on the tube and Father Christmas came home four times that evening to badger his harried bride for "holiday cheer"! Needless to say, he almost didn't finish all his deliveries due to the time-consuming tomfoolery.

--Make sure that everyone in the house knows whether the Christmas Tree is real or artificial. Forgetting to water a real tree, or watering a fake, can have disastrous consequences, especially if the artificial tree has built-in electronics.

--Drink holiday spirits in moderation. Remember that different brands of egg-nog can have varying amounts of egg and nog. Christmas morning is a lot more enjoyable if your head is NOT suspended above a toilet bowl or stuck in a lampshade!

--Don't forget pets in your holiday planning. Santa still has scars from attacks by unmuzzled pit bulls and free-ranging chinchillas. Maybe it's the red suit, but the old guy really seems to set off the wildlife.

--Finally, don't give away every dollar you've earned during the holdays. That's what April 15 is for! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!!!

Santa Claus a High-Tech Spy?

Reliable news sources are reporting that the Bush Administration secretly recruited Pere Noel to assist the US government in spying on suspected terrorists following the September 11 attacks. A spokesperson for Jolly Old Saint Nick confirmed Santa was cooperating with federal authorities, but insisted he had only turned over the "naughty" list to authorities. In a related development characterized as "chilling" by civil libertarians, the FBI announced it would vigorously pursue those individuals receiving lumps of coal this holiday season.

Patriot Act Stalled

Senate Democrats, aided and abetted by RINOs (Republicans-In-Name-Only) have voted against extending the Patriot Act. Fearful that President George W. Bush may actually be succeeding at fighting terrorists, these idiotic politicians have come down on the side of Islamofascists and their financial supporters rather than on the side of the American people.
US Armed Forces are winning in Iraq and Afghanistan, democratic elections have taken place in both countries, and liberals can't stand it. To the hate-America crowd, the thought of a Western victory over the forces of darkness is too horrible to consider. Just imagine what kind of world we'd be living in if we hadn't abandoned South Vietnam to the North Vietnamese Communists. Maybe we'd have been seen as such a bully that no one would have ever dared attack us again! Oh the horror!!
Most of the provisions of the Patriot Act are modeled after similar legislation used to combat organized crime syndicates. Contrary to the lies being peddled by the Left, judges must OK surveillance, and members of Congressional intelligence committees were advised of actions taken by the Administration. According to Senator John Kyl (R, Arizona), post-9/11 surveillence centered on telephone communications between Al Queda members in the Middle East and suspects inside the United States. Attorney General John Ashcroft never checked to see what books Barbra Streisand checked out of the Beverly Hills Library! He was too busy trying to prevent a repeat of September 11 and finding those responsible for the anthrax attacks (Have you forgotten so soon?).
Maybe these kooky politicians could try spewing their venom at the nuts that are trying to convert the world to their twisted ideology by slaughtering children and incinerating innocent people with jet fuel instead of slandering our Commander-in-Chief during a time of war.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

*In the true spirit of Christmas, St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke has excommunicated several board members of St. Stanislaus Catholic Church, along with a priest who came to the parish to minister to the members. "St Stans" parishioners have been in a dispute with Burke over control of the church's property and financial holdings for some time. The Archdiocese demands that the parish hand over its assets and submit to the Archbishop. The members are fearful that in doing so, they will sign the death warrant for the beloved church they have worked so hard to preserve.
Strangely enough, Burke has ignored the concerns of St Louis-area Catholics regarding the priest sex abuse scandal, and I doubt very much whether he will soon be excommunicating Catholic politicians who are avid supporters of abortion-on-demand. Better to pick on the faithful whose only crime has been saving a beautiful old house of worship from the auction block/wrecking ball.
Memo to Archbishop Burke: What would Jesus do?

*The national press is all in a twitter over reports that the Bush Administration surveilled possible terror suspects without first obtaining warrants in the months immediately following Septemeber 11, 2001. Democrats, like Seanator "Depends" Leahy of Vermont (also home to professional nutter Howard Dean), howl that they are "outraged" by this 'violation' of the Constitution.
Looking at the facts, however, one can draw a different conclusion. Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, including Dem Jay Rockefeller, had been advised of the surveillence, and a judge assigned to the intelligence agencies was also in the loop. The New York Times reporter who wrote the story said he had been asked by officials in the Administration to delay publishing the story to prevent alerting terrorists, but had finally decided he had to come forward. Turns out he has a book being released in the near future and apparently felt profit was more important than national security. These are the same folks who would flay the President unmercifully if another 9/11-type attack (or worse) took place.

*Old Busch Stadium, former home of the St. Louis Cardinals (baseball AND football!), Rams, and soccer Stars, is no more. The last section fell to the wrecking ball in the wee hours of a cold Midwestern morning. Next Spring, the Redbirds will open a brand-new shrine just across the street from the old ballyard. Here's to many more pennants, a World Series or two, or three, or four, and a million memories from across the street. The king is dead...long live the king!!

*The St Louis Blues announced they have a potential buyer--a financial holdings group that has mentioned the possibility of bringing in former Bluenote great Garry Unger as part of the mangement team. Here's hoping the deal gets done and the rebuilding of the franchise begins.

*I'm in a bit of a quandry. I purchased a tree to put up in the house, but don't know if I bought a Christmas Tree or a holiday tree. The guy at the tree lot was too busy trying to stay warm to talk about it, and none of my neighbors has a clue. I guess I'll just put it up, decorate it, and hope for the best. If Santa doesn't come by, I'll just have to pin my hopes on Kwanzaa.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

*I read an interesting take on the stem cell debate today. In her latest book, How to Talk to a Liberal, conservative pundit Ann Coulter questions the need for taxpayer support of stem cell research if the potential rewards are so great.
Bans on embryonic stem cells only prohibit the spending of public money on research. If the claimed benefits of curing everything from alzheimers to cancer are so possible, why isn't research drawing in all types of private funding? Can you imagine the profit to be made on a cure for dread diseases or disabilities? Or are proponents overselling the potential in order to get their hands on the billions of taxpayer-supplied dollars government-supplied funding would provide?

*The St. Louis Rams lost to the Washington Redski...Oooops, I meant Native Americans, 24-9 on Sunday, ending their slim hopes for a playoff spot. Oh well, at least we'll get a higher pick in the draft next Spring.

*There are only 18 shopping days left 'til Christma---Ooops, I meant the Winter Holiday. Oh the heck with it----MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!

*Former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark is representing Saddam Hussein in his trial for crimes against the Iraqi people. Clark will insist his client never had sex with "those women...the one's in the rape rooms", and trot out dozens of former Baathist officials to swear they believe their President.

*Why do I always come down with a cold/virus/flu/lyme disease right before a holiday?

*Rumor has it that Santa has a new helper to assist him on Christmas Eve. The newest North Politan is a Golden Retriever named Elfis who brings treats and toys to all the good little animals. It is reported that Elfis loves cookies as much as Jolly St. Nick, but would prefer Coca-Cola to milk since moo-juice gives him gas. Elfis leaves his calling card by marking all the presents under the tree (No, not that! He leaves sticky notes with his name on them). He also pees on everything (with apologies to the comic strip "Get Fuzzy" for lifting their stuff!).

More Kudos for Kurt!

The National Football League has named Kurt Warner National Football Conference Player of the Week for his performance in a 38-28 victory over the St. Louis Rams. His lifetime quarterback rating at the Edwards Jones Dome is now the highest for any player at any stadium in NFL history.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

* Three cheers for QB Kurt Warner for leading the Arizona Cardinals to a 38-28 victory over the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome on November 20. #13 completed 27 of 39 passes for 285 yards and 3 touchdowns as he returned to the town he put on the football map with 2 Super Bowl appearances, a World Championship, and 2 MVP awards. In spite of being treated shamefully by the Rams organization, Kurt remained the class act he is and only said good things about his former team. Best wishes to the Warner family. We still love you in St. Louis.

*What a pain it has to be to work in retail these days. Not only do you have to put up with low pay, long hours, and crabby customers, you also have to get up at the crack of dawn the day after Thanksgiving to be on station at 5 a.m. when the stores reopen after the holiday! To add insult to injury, some places (e.g. K-mart) were open on Turkey Day. I'm guessing the big shots at Sears Holdings (the parent company) weren't at their desks catching up on paperwork.

*Watched an AKC dog show on TV yesterday to pass the time between helpings of turkey. I saw breeds of dog I never heard of before (a bearded collie?), and some pretty silly-looking examples of the canine species. The Best-of-Show winner was a Bull Terrier that was about the ugliest mutt I ever saw. Instead of picking a cool dog like a lab or retriever, the final group came down to a pit bull. Maybe the American Kennel Club is trying to polish the Bull's image, but come on! If you're into this sort of thing, you can catch the results at www.dogshowusa.com

*I'm trying to get into a new hobby: woodworking. I've bought a table saw and compound power miter saw so far, and from what I've been reading, I only need to spend about $10,000,000 more to be ready to go. I started pricing wood as well, and unless you're able to mill the trees in your yard or driftwood you find along the river, the materials will cost and arm and a leg as well. No wonder homeless people have to settle for cardboard!

*Old Busch Stadium is only about 1/3 still standing as demolition continues to make way for the new St. Louis ballpark. Last night's local news showed lots of people stopping by in sub-freezing temperatures to get one last picture of the old shrine. At least they've got their priorities straight and know what's really important.

*My wife and I went shopping on Wednesday evening (Thanksgiving Eve), and on the drive home had a close encounter with both a deer and a possum. Luckily, I was driving the Mighty Merc at about 30 mph and didn't hit either animal, but it was quite a surprise. I've seen plenty of possums in North St. Louis County over the years, and several deer, but this was almost inside a subdivision called Ville Maria. The development that's going on all around the area is apparently really infringing on wildlife, and I hope the critters don't all end up as hood ornaments.

*All I want for Christmas is a 2 HP, 1/2 and 1/4 inch collet router, a router table, a matching plunge router, a supply of straight and blemish free hardwood, and a Norm Abrams-clone to show me how to properly use them (don't forget safety glasses and hearing protection!). Oh yeah, and to still have 10 fingers when I'm finished working with all those spinnig bits and saw blades!

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

This weeks Rants, etc, etc, is being published on Friday rather than Saturday because I have to work tomorrow morning. (Boo!)

*How come the Democrats are OK with Zarqawi and Al Queda winning in Iraq but are unhappy with the United States winning? Probably preoccupied with the threat Judge Alito poses to the employment of all those abortion providers out there. After all, first things first!

*The St. Louis Blues broke an 11-game losing streak with a victory over Columbus last night. Unfortunately, it was the PeeWee League team in Columbus that the BlueNote beat up on! (Just kidding, just kidding)

*The Arizona Cardinals come to the Jones Dome in St. Louis this Sunday to play the Rams. I know the Big Red are bad, but the sight of that white helmet with the "ornery bird" on it brings back a lot of gridiron memories, most of them painful. I even have a set of drinking glasses with the Cardinals logo on them that date back to the 1960s. Man, talk about a glutton for punishment.

*Bought a new Craftsman reciprocating saw from Sears that can cut through just about anything. One note of caution: make sure what you're demolishing isn't a load-bearing wall!

*St. Louis is working hard to get a new bridge built across the Mississippi River connecting the Gateway City to the nudie bars on the East Side (Illinois). Who says the movers and shakers (bad pun) in this town aren't civic-minded?

*Is there a chinchilla doctor in the house? Seriously.

Bush Hits Back, Democrats Scream!

After too many months of silence, President Bush finally came out swinging against Democrats attacking the liberation of Iraq. In spite of past pronouncements of the threat posed by Saddam Hussein, former Clintonistas and Senate liberals have now seized on Iraq as their majic carpet back into power.
The Dick Turbans of the world want to rewrite history in order to claim that the intelligence that led the Bush Administration to remove Saddam in 2003 is somehow different than the material that allowed Bill Clinton to launch missile and bomber strikes against Iraq and that pushed Congress to pass the "Regime Change in Iraq" resolution in the late 1990s. Unfortunately for the Democrats and their accomplices in the media, conservatives on Talk Radio and in the blogosphere aren't so willing to go along.
To be sure, the Iraq War has been costly and difficult, but the sight of Senate Minority Leader "Dingy" Harry Reid and Ted "the Swimmer" Kennedy proclaiming that the President of the United States sent American troops to "die for a lie" is downright treasonous. These anti-American political hacks and their co-conspirators from the looney Left are willing to sacrifice US troops in order to defeat George W Bush politically. Since they failed to beat 'W' at the polls, and fear still greater defeats from a realigned Supreme Court, the Left-wing fringe is going all-out to destroy the President by attacking him in the most disgraceful manner possible. It's a safe bet that Al-Jazeera is gleefully spreading this poison around the Middle East.
Hopefully, President Bush and VP Cheney will continue to counter the distortions of the Democrats and promote the growth of representative government across the Middle East. More importantly, our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines need to hear from their civilian leadership that they are fully supported by every resource the nation can muster, and that they are admired and appreciated for the tremendous job they are doing in the most trying circumstances.

Albert the Great--MVP!

Congratulations to Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols on being named the 2005 National League Most Valuable Player. After finishing second twice before to Barry Bonds (Boo!), the voters finally came to their senses and recognized the best player in the League. Hopefully, Albert will get a World Series ring in the not-too-distant future, along with a Gold Glove, to round out his trophy case. If the rest of his career is anything like the first few years, he's gonna need a bigger place to house all those awards!

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

*Democratic Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada wants another investigation into pre-Iraq War intelligence in order to embarass President George W Bush. "Dingey Harry" and the rest of the Congressional Leftists think it more important to score propaganda points on the political scene than it is to prosecute the War on Terror. The "Bush lied, people died" cliche is disingenuous considering the fact that the Left's poster boy, Bill Clinton, made the exact same charges against Saddam Hussein in the late 1990's. If not for the diversion caused by the Lewinsky scandal, the US was prepared to take out the Iraqi dictator long before Hillary looted the White House on her way out the back door.

*Speaking of misguided thinking, Republicans aren't immune from moments of lunacy either. John McCain and Lindsey Graham, GOP members of the Senate, are stumping for new laws to protect the legal rights of terrorists. Deftly rewriting the Geneva Conventions, these fellow travelers want to apply the rules of conventional war to those who wear no country's uniform, murder innocent civilians, including children, without hesitation, and vow to destroy Western Civilization in the name of God! Maybe these guardians of the "rights" of Islamofascists should be forced to issue their bleatings from Ground Zero in New York, the Pentagon, or the field in Shanksville, PA, where Todd Beamer and the other passengers of Flight 93's fight against terrorism ended on 9/11.

*Thanks to the St. Louis County government for mailing out property tax bills with a hefty increase. Some years back, homebuyers complained that they were being unfairly burdened with higher property taxes than those existing residents who had purchased their homes years earlier at far lower prices (Thanks to Jimmy Carter and the double-digit inflation of the late 1970s). True to their reptilian nature, local politicians agreed, and the result was a system of re-assessing all property every two years and adjusting (read:increase) taxes accordingly. Notice the true nature of this "solution": New homebuyers didn't get any relief from their tax burden, the politicos simply raised everyone else's taxes. Since home values have jumped sharply in recent years, so have tax bills.
In answer to the outraged voices of County residents, County Executive Charlie Dooley, in true statesman-like fashion, has refused to even consider reducing tax rates. Meanwhile, homeowners are selling their houses and fleeing across the Missouri River into St Charles County, where no doubt a different group of "public servants" will find ever more ingenious ways of separating citizens from their hard-earned paychecks.

*On a lighter note, the St Louis Rams, under interim head coach Joe Vitt, defeated the heavily-favored Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday. Even though the Male Sheep had every reason to be distracted by the number of offensive stars out with injuries and the medical leave of Head Coach Mike Martz, the Lambs played with a lot of emotion and an inspired defense that was minus its starting Defensive End. Enjoy the bye week guys. You've earned it!

*You can now buy a new, steel,1969 Camaro convertible body and frame from a GM-authorized manufacturer, and a '68 Mustang Fastback is rumored to be in the works. What an awesome opportunity for those of us living in the Rust Belt! Will this inspire an entire series of classic musclecars from the 1960s? I sure hope so. To learn more, see the December 2005 issue of Hot Rod Magazine.

Vehicle Inspection--Your Tax Dollars at Waste

I went though the ritual of having my 2001 Mercury Marquis emissions tested today. In St. Louis, part of the license renewal process is a smog test at a privately run, state-mandated emissions station. The fee is $24, and if you pass, you breathe a sigh of relief that the bi-annual ordeal is finally over. Of course, you're lighter in the wallet, but the whole process is such a hassle that most folks are just happy to get it over and done with.
1996 and newer cars hook into a computer at the station that verifies the car's emissions controls are working properly. If not, you have to go to a state-approved repair facility and hand over your life savings to either fix the problem or get a waiver if the vehicle's beyond repairing to compliance. Older vehicles roll onto a dyno where the "technician" hooks an exhaust analyzer to the exhaust system and runs the vehicle through a "drive cycle". In reality, it sounds like they're trying to blow up the motor by continuously revving the engine to it's rpm limit!
The Missouri Legislature has tried to eliminate this boondoggle several times, but our most enlightened (read: bribed) public servants derail these efforts each year in the name of clean air. The privately-held stations are guaranteed cash cows for connected individuals, and we all know what politicians will do for money.
And I thought that only happened to you when you bought the car!

Halloween Rainout

It rained in St. Louis on Halloween. It hasn't rained much all year, but it rained on Halloween. St. Louis is in the midst of a drought, but it rained all day and most of the night. We had 26 brave tykes and their parents show up in spite of the gloomy weather, but the soaking definitely put a damper (sorry for the pun) on the festivities.
I suppose it could have been much worse. The trick-or-treaters were all well-behaved, and we had plenty of candy to last the evening. Sometimes in the past, we'd be down to handing out change and chewing gum. The only downside is that all that chocolate around the house draws me like a nail to a magnet. I guess we could always buy less candy, but then all those varieties strewn across the stores' shelves would be left homeless, and my selection of leftovers would include things like candy corn and Sweet Tarts.
Think I'll just stick with gluttony.

Intelligent Design? Are You Kidding Me?

Every time I hear an argument for Intelligent Design, I get ambivalent feelings. I look at the stars in the heavens at night, or at storm clouds from the window of an airliner and think, "Yeah, it would take somebody pretty awesome to create that". Then I see Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Harry Reid, and Chuck Schumer and I say, "Nah!!".
Of course, maybe God's just got a really great sense of humor.

Judge Alito

It looks like President Bush recovered pretty quickly from the Harriet Miers flap by nominating an experienced jurist to replace Sandra Day O'Conner on the US Supreme Court. Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr has a long and distinguished resume as a Federal Appeals Court judge, federal prosecutor, and lawyer. No word on whether he ever volunteered for Meals on Wheels.
That didn't stop knee-jerk liberals (including just-plain-jerk Chuckie Schumer) from attacking Alito as "dangerous" and a person "who would divide us rather than unite us". Huh?! Exactly where does it say in the job description that a Supreme Court justice must somehow 'unite' the people of the United States? I can just see the Senate hearings now: "Judge Alito, can you provide some examples of how you've brought people together since you were first appointed to the bench?". "Well, Senator, in one case involving the issue of gun control, I put a rifle, 5 bullets, and a law-abiding citizen together. It was a match made in heaven!" I bet Ted "hiccup" Kennedy's face would really blotch over that one!!
The 'Pro-Death' crowd will also be up in arms for fear that a new conservative majority on the Court will lead to greater restrictions on abortion. Funny how the same liberals who think the government should control every aspect of our lives, from where we live to where our kids go to school to how we should spend our own money get so whacko when it comes to ANY government intervention that preserves human life and dignity.
The Democrats will howl and scream, but in the end, I believe Alito will be confirmed. With any luck, more of the Court's liberal wing will decide they've had enough and give Bush the chance to add another Justice who believes in measuring laws by the Constitution and not creating law out of thin air.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever.

*Congrats to the Chicago White Sox on their World Series victory. Now, if only the Cubs could learn from their cross-town cousins! As a Cardinals fan, I wonder why the ChiSox batters could hit 'Stros pitching while the Red Birds (who knew the Houston pitchers far better than did Chicago) couldn't buy a hit in the League Championship Series? Was it the closed roof at the Houston ballpark? PS Hey Oswalt, nanny nanny boo-boo. You lost!

*Happy Birthday to the St. Louis Gateway Arch, which is now 40 years old. I've been to the top about 3 times since it opened. Not exactly the best record, but I'm always amazed at the number of home-town folks who've never ridden the cog train to the viewing deck. I know it can be a little claustrophobic, but the view is worth a little white-knuckle time.

*In 2005, homicides in St. Louis are way up. The Chief of Police says he doesn't think it represents a trend. If not, just what the hell does it represent?!

*I recently got a flu shot, but it just protects you from the most prevalent bug this season, not the possibility of a Bird Flu pandemic. I've heard that people who've gotten the Bird variety and died were all killed by smacking into picture windows! Easy, easy, it's just a joke.

*Speaking of flu shots, I didn't have any reaction to the vaccine itself, but the glue on the bandage the nurse put over the area did a number on my arm. When I ripped it off later that night, the skin underneath looked like I had the plague! I can see the headlines now: "Widow of man killed by Band-Aid receives millions in landmark court case".

*Highway 40 leading into St. Louis is headed for a major re-do. Let's hope they don't hire the same bunch that worked on the Metro-Link expansion! We'd have to change the name to US Highway 38 3/4.

*Happy Halloween, and you vandals stay the hell away from my Jack-O-Lantern!!

Farewell Harriet, we didn't know you well.

The Miers' nomination has been withdrawn, and conservatives across the airwaves and ethernet are touting their 'victory' over President Bush's choice to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court. Although I think Harriet Miers was not the best choice for Associate Justice, I'm a little surprised at the bally-hooing by some on the Right at her withdrawal.
National Review and some talk-radio hosts fretted that Miers was an unknown quantity who couldn't be counted on to uphold conservative principles once confirmed. They spoke of the pressure the 'elites' on the Court would put on her to conform in order to be accepted. They even mocked her lack of solid Ivy-League law school credentials as another reason for their lack of support. They even brushed off 'W's' entreaties on Miers' behalf, claiming the President couldn't be trusted.
There also appears to have been a general uneasiness about the appointment of an evangelical Christian to the nation's highest court. The East Coast GOP Brahmin may solicit donations and volunteers from the Red States, but it's not so certain they intend to share power with a bunch of Jesus-loving rednecks from outside the Beltway. Unlike Ronald Reagan, the 'Easties' have met Republicans they don't like.
No wonder the Democrats are able to maintain their standing with their constituencies despite having no ideas and no solutions. Just leave Republicans alone and they'll quickly devour each other. GOP Senators who were elected to restrain government spending and immediately went on an LBJ-style giveaway spree were bleating that the President didn't keep his word!
Forcing the President to cave on Miers may also come back to haunt Republicans in 2006. Already a lame duck, Bush will have little coat-tail to offer GOP candidates, and any political consultant will tell you that disharmony in the Party spells disater at the polls.
George W may recover by finding a strong Supreme Court candidate in the mold of Antonin Scalia or William Rehnquist. Let's just hope the internal squabble in the Republican Party doesn't beget us another Anthony Kennedy or David Souter.

Tool Days, Tool Days

Took advantage of the Craftsman Club tool sale at Sears today and picked up a compound miter saw and a lightweight 2-ton floor jack that weighs less than 45 lbs. Haven't put the saw together yet, but had to take the jack back to Sears for a refund after discovering a leak at the lift valve.
I'd gotten the thing out of the box, and was following directions to purge any air that had set up in the cylinder during shipping (it's made in China), but just couldn't seem to get the darn thing purged. Then I noticed a small pool of hydraulic oil under the jack and started really looking the unit over carefully. After all, a floor jack that won't hold a car can be a bit off-putting! I finally found a leak right at the fill valve attached to the pump handle that was blowing oil out on lift and sucking air in on release.
Back I went to Sears, where the really nice folks apologized for my inconvenience and offered to get me another jack. After my experience, I decided to just take a refund for now and make a decision later. In all the years I've been purchasing Craftsman tools (30+), this is the first one I've had a problem with. I have an old Sears 1 1/2 ton jack that's about 25 years old, is American-made, and weighs almost as much as it lifts! It still works great, I was just hoping to get a jack that was a little easier to maneuver in my old age.
On the lighter side, I felt a little bit better knowing that the Chinese Army may have a million soldiers, but if they ever get a flat tire on their transportation they're gonna be stuck by the side of the road for a long, long time.
Now, I did see a really great price on a Craftsman scroll saw while I was waiting for my refund......

Rams 31 Titans 27

In a game that saw two teams combine for 7 turnovers, the St. Louis Rams defeated the Tennessee Titans at the Edward Jones Dome in the Gateway City. The Titans jumped out to a 10-0 lead before Adam Archuletta's interception of a Steve McNair pass gave the Male Sheep their chance to get back in the game. Later in the contest, the Rams had their opponents on the ropes before several miscues opened the door for a Titans rally. Fortunately for my blood pressure, McNair's 4th down pass fell incomplete, giving the Rams possession with just 29 seconds left in the final quarter.
Tennessee coach Jeff Fischer must be wondering how his team can play so hard against the Rams and still come up empty, especially with the similarities between Sunday's game and Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000. Once again, the Titans were driving for victory near the end of the game, only to come up short in the final seconds.
For Rams fans, one hopes the fire that Archuletta lit jumpstarts a team that had played fairly mediocre football, at least on offense, in the first two regular-season games. Losing to the 49ers (pain!), and barely squeaking by Arizona (only because the Big Red exhibited poor game clock management), wasn't exactly inspiring confidence in the team's 2005 prospects. At 2-1, the Lambs now have a chance to get back in the driver's seat in the NFC West, provided they can get past Seattle. That showdown with the Seahawks and Shaun Alexander will be the real deal, and may well determine who goes to the playoffs and who goes home.
But for now, it's time to savor the moment. The home opener ended in victory, both the Ram defense and offense came to life, and Torry 'Big Game' Holt turned in another spectacular performance, pulling down 9 catches. RB Steven Jackson showed the stud he is with his bruising running style, and Marshall Faulk showed he's still got gas in the tank when he lines up in the backfield.
Now...if Kansas City can keep winning, it could be an all-Missouri Super Bowl in Detroit!!

Katrina/Tsunami Comparisons and Media Bias

Following Hurricane Katrina's assault on the US Gulf Coast, the news media rushed to bash President George W. Bush for the slow response of federal relief efforts. Forgotten was the malfeasance of New Orleans Mayor Nagin and the mayor's political enemy Governor Blanco. 'W' was pilloried for everything from broken levies to stranded residents to global warming. News propagandists from the major media outlets cited the superior effort afforded to victims of the December 26, 2004 tsunami that devastated parts of south/southeast Asia and eastern Africa. If only Bush the Younger had been more vigilant, homes, businesses, and lives would already be rebuilt and thriving.
The problem with all the hyperbole, however, is that relief efforts in the tsunami-affected areas are still ongoing at a painfully slow pace. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (www.ifrc.org) reports that more than eight months after the earthquake and tidal wave struck, tens of thousands of people are still living in tents, huts, and other temporary shelters, and hundreds of thousands still depend on outside assistance to obtain food and clean drinking water. With roads and airports still out of service in many locations, aid deliveries take days instead of hours, and many evacuees wonder when their lives will regain some sort of normalcy (sound familiar?). Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like the IFRC are working with the United Nations and local governments to provide aid and begin rebuilding, but all realize the recovery will be a herculean task that will last for years.
The American news media didn't report these facts about the tsunami because after a few days of newspots where TV reporters and print journalists got their Pulitzer Prize-submission pictures taken, they went home. What self-respecting network celebrity wants to hang out in Sri Lanka, the Maldives, or Indonesia when they can hang out with the beautiful people in New York or Los Angeles and write about Brad and Jennifer and Angolie? Besides, they have bigger fish to fry in the person of President Bush, a known eater of red meat (BBQ!) and worse yet, a Christian!
So many of the anti-American Left claim to be outraged at the supposed lies the Bush Administration told in preparing the United States for the Iraq liberation. Strange how lies perpetrated by their cohorts in the mainstream media don't bother them at all.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

*It's Saturday morning, September 24, 2005, and Hurricane Rita has come ashore on the Gulf Coast. Thankfully, the storm damage does not appear to be as severe as many feared it might have been, and that sent the news media into a deep depression.
NBC's John Roberts stood in the lobby of his hotel as wind and rain raced through broken windows, and bemoaned the "inch of water" on the floor. He was probably more upset that the hotel's room service was out.
Over at CBS, Tracy Smith was doing her best to knit her brow and find the dark cloud in the good news, constantly intoning that the storm "wasn't over yet". Her co-host Russ Mitchell was more upbeat, and so will probably be relegated to covering John Kerry's latest Bo-Tox injections and Dick Turban's rants against the US military.
The rest of the country will spend some time offering thanks.

*Speaking of events that the news media will drool over, Cindy Sheehan and her anti-American cohorts will spend much of this weekend protesting the Iraq liberation, America's Armed Forces, Israel, George W, and the number of shoe stores in shopping malls across this capitalist, decadent, evil country. Musical entertainment will be provided by Joan Baez, who hasn't had a hit since Dien Bien Phu! "Hanoi Jane" Fonda will probably show up to hawk her book and condemn the greedy country that provided a pampered life to the daughter of a movie star and ex-wife of one of the richest men in the world. She probably spent the week at Tiffany's picking out the perfect accessories for protesting with the masses.

*Kudos to elected officials and public safety officers for their great work since multiple disaters struck the Gulf Coast almost a month ago. While politicos were running their mouths, a lot of regular folks were out on the front lines, repairing storm damage, tending to the needs of their neighbors, and risking their own health without a word of complaint. This Mississippi Highball is for you!

*Congrats to Judge John Roberts on his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation victory, with approval by the full Senate expected next week. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she'll lecture the new Chief Justice on the importance of "finding enlightenment" in documents other than the US Constitution, including those from other countries. My own advice to Chief Justice Roberts is to tell Justice Ginsburg: "Thanks for your input. Now kindly sit down and shut the hell up!".

Hurricane Rita

This afternoon, Wednesday, September 21, Hurricane Rita graduated to Category 5 as it churned westward into the Gulf of Mexico. A mandatory evacuation has been ordered for Galveston, Texas, and let's hope and pray more people decide to err on the side of caution than did those in Louisiana and Mississippi.
Listened to a discussion by a meteorologist from Accu-Weather this p.m., and he predicts (as of this writing) the storm will make landfall about 60 miles west of Galveston. That would still make it a very serious storm, but would at least spare Galveston and Houston from bearing the brunt of a direct hit. Water temps in the Gulf are around 90 degrees, which is apparently ideal for percolating monster storms.
Hang on everybody, hurricane season doesn't die down until the end of November!
In a kind of weird twist (bad pun), the Space Center in Houston is shutting down due to Rita, and Ground Control for the International Space Station now resides in Russia. Haven't heard whether that agreement also covers the Astros, Texans, and Rockets!

Super Bowl Rematch

This Sunday, September 25, the St. Louis Rams and the Tennessee Titans will square off in the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. Titans' coach Jeff Fischer will have his team fired up to avenge the Super Bowl loss his team suffered to the Male Sheep.
The big question is, which Rams team will show up for the game? Will it be the cocky, swaggering 'Greatest Show on Turf', or the shadow of itself that has surfaced so far this young football season? A season-opening loss to the mediocre 49ers didn't inspire much optimism in the Gateway City, and the narrow victory over Kurt Warner and the Arizona (formerly St. Louis) Cardinals doesn't have anyone getting in line for playoff tickets.
When Air McNair and the Titans line up on Sunday, there will be fire in their eyes. They still sting from that Super Bowl loss, and they'll be out to garner whatever satisfaction they can get from beating, and beating up, the Rams.
If you watch the game, key in on how the St. Louis Special Teams play. If they cover punts and kickoffs well, and if they block for their their own receivers, the Lambs can topple the Titans. If they don't, and Steve McNair's offense starts each possession with good field position courtesy of the Rams, it'll be a long afternoon for St. Louis fans.
Also watch Rams QB Marc Bulger. If the offensive line protects him and blocks for RB Steven Jackson, the Jones Dome will be rockin'. If not, Jeff Fischer will get a little bit of that bitter taste washed out of his mouth.

Hardware store Heaven

I tell ya, there's nothing better than spending some time at a hardware store. I'm talking a fun visit here, not one involving plumbing or wallpaper. Just perusing all the tools, power and/or hand tools, is one of the best things a guy can do. Every time I go, and I go often, there's some new gadget that busts loose a bolt, trims a piece of wood, or cuts, digs, or scrapes the soil.
I'm not a fan of the big wharehouse-type stores with their 3 miles of floor space and 700 rows of Chinese duplex outlets. I like the smaller stores, especially Sears Hardware stores, because they've got a good selection at reasonable prices, and the majority of their Craftsman tools are made in the USA out of real forged steel (mmm........forged steel). The only complaint is that they recently added appliances to the stores, which takes up valuable floor space. Who needs a refrigerator with ice dispenser in the door when there are 12-inch compouned miter saws or 2-stage, oil-less air compressors to drool over?
So the next time you feel down, bored, or just need a little time with chrome-finish, offset box-end wrenches, head out to the hardware store. I guarantee it'll put a smile on your face and some new goodies in your toolbox.

Weekly Rants, Raves, and Whatever

*I'm getting a little tired of the Hurricane Katrina survivors that the media chooses to put on TV. The majority slander the President, demand compensation from their fellow citizens, and generally sound like whiners and complainers. It's probably an attempt to portray the US as rascist and evil, but the networks aren't doing evacuees any favors. If a lot of Americans feel as I do, it's got to make it harder to elicit charitable contributions when recipients do little more than growl at their benefactors.

*Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee haven't done well against Judge Roberts, and that's a good thing. What's really annoying is that they can't even come up with their own questions! Rather than pandering to abortion-rights groups, race-baiters, and environmental wackos, maybe they should pick up a copy of 'Selecting Supreme Court Justices for Dummies'.

*Officials in New Orleans say they want guns out of the hands of criminals, which is good. They want to go about it by disarming honest citizens, and that's nuts! Let's see, a flood hits a major American city. Panic ensues, the local cops split, the people are left to fend for themselves against Mother Nature, rapists, looters, and gang bangers, and the average New Orleanian is asked to submit like a lamb to the slaughter. This rant really ties in with my earlier rant about the evacuees. If you wait for the government to take care of your needs, the government will decide what your needs are and whose needs get filled. On the other hand, maybe Governor Blanco and Mayor Nagin don't want the people they abandoned to the tender mercies of criminals to have access to weapons when they come a-calling!

Breaking News.....

I have just received word from a confidential source that the New York Times will be renamed "The Clinton Cuckold" in a move intended to secure the 2008 Democratic Presidential Nomination for the junior senator from the Empire State. The editorial staff and management will also be shuffled in order to best serve Senator Hillary Clinton's campaign strategy.
Columnist Maureen Dowd will be replaced by a trained parrot named 'Polly Cracker', and scribe Paul Krugman will depart in favor of a homeless guy who has a better grip on reality!
Former President Bill Clinton will head the Lifestyle section, a position many say he was born for, and Bill's VP Al Gore is rumored to be the paper's new astrologer.

North County Blog vows to stay on the trail of this story, and is in negotiations with ex-CBS anchorman Dan Rather to affirm the veracity of the details. Stay tuned.

Got Da Blues Over Da Blues

Hockey season is set to resume after a year's hiatus. As if things weren't rough enough for the average NHL team after the strike/lockout, the St. Louis Blues are without their two All-Star defensemen. Chris Pronger is now in Edmonton, and Al McKinnis retired. Pronger could make some dumb mistakes and take some stupid penalties, but when his head was in the game he was the best, and his passes to the forwards were things of beauty. McKinnis was just an awesome defensive player, and had a slapshot that could dent a battleship. He's a Hall-of-Famer for sure.
We also lost forward Pavel Dimitra, who always showed tons of potential but never quite lived up to it.
Those of us who bleed Blue now have to pin all our hopes on Doug Weight and Keith Tkachuk, two high-priced players who have yet to string together several good games in a row. I think I'd have been tempted to dump most of the veterans and go with a bunch of younger players, but the team is for sale and a commitment from Bill Laurie to the future of the team is about as secure as a Wal-Mart employee's pension. Oh well, maybe the new owners will dump GM Larry Pleau and finally bring a real hockey mind to lead the Blue Note. How I long for the days when enforcer Tony Twist would skate out to beat the opposing team's goon into a bloody pulp, or mighty mite Kelly Chase would fight a player twice his size to protect his teamates. Twister and Kelly, wherever you are, this Bud Light's for you!

The 2005 Most Valuable Player Award goes to...

It's the middle of September and the Major League Baseball regular season is drawing to a close. According to the scribes, the contest for Most Valuable Player is between mighty Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals (cheers, loud applause) and some guy from the Cubs. They've got the right team and a great player in Albert, but if I had my say I'd choose the Red Birds' utlity players who have filled in so well for Scott Rolen, Larry Walker, and Reggie Sanders. John Mabry, Hector Luna, Abraham Nunez, So Taguchi, and John Rodriguez have played inspired baseball, and are a major reason the Birds have run away with the NL Central Division title. These super-subs deserve all the accolades the great St. Louis fans can throw their way.
Now, on to the World Series and avenge last year's loss to Beantown!

Diane, Ted, and Curly Joe!

There's a new "Dawn of the Dead(heads)" now showing in our nation's capital. Ted Kennedy, Joe Biden, and Diane Feinstein star as zombies attempting to eat Supreme Court Justice nominee John Roberts' brain. Reading from a script worse than Ishtar, the 3 Senate Stooges are making bigger fools of themselves than I'd have thought humanly possible.
I think Biden is the pick of the litter. With talk radio constantly replaying his remarks during Ruth Bader Ginzburg's hearing, where he forthrightly defended her right to refuse to respond to questions concerning issues that might come before the Court, Plagiarizing Joe insists that Roberts must respond or the Republic will collapse. Maybe Mr. Biden is planning for another unsuccessful bid for the presidency, and needs the support of NARAL, Planned Parenthood, and the rest of the baby killers to jump start his campaign. (Note to Joe: Quit while you're ahead. A wasted mind is a terrible thing to lose!)
In comparison, Judge Roberts appears thoughtful, forthright, and way smarter than his inquisitors. I think the only person capable of pulling the Democrats' Oldsmobile out of Chappaquidick is Howard Dean. If anybody can make these three look better in comparison, it's Howlin' Howard.

Top Ten Questions for the 9/11 Commission

The 9/11 Commission asked a lot of questions during its existence, but I've thought of a few I can't remember them asking. Here are my Top 10:

10. Why is Al-Jazeera still on the air?
9. Why does the news media keep trying to discredit the passengers' actions on Flight 93?
8. How come Democrats and RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) are so concerned about the
legal rights of terrorists?
7. Does Saddam wear boxers or briefs?
6. Why do people not want us to fight for oil yet not let us drill for oil in our own country?
5. What qualifications did the Commission members have to investigate the worst terrorist
attack in our nation's history?
4. In the War on Terror, just whose side is Dick Durbin on?
3. Why do we still associate with countries known to support terrorist groups?
2. Why do liberals hate Christians but excuse the outrages committed by Islamic fanatics?
1. Why does the Left want photos of dead US soldiers shown on television while fighting to
keep images of the 9/11 attacks off the air?

On the 4th anniversary of the worst terrorist attack on US soil, let's start asking our elected
leaders to actually fight the War on Terror instead of running their mouths about the rights
of murderers. There's a scarred piece of land in Pennsylvania marking the spot where a brave
group of average people sacrificed themselves to keep a small band of fanatics from obliterating the US Capitol. Does the Blame America First crowd ever think of those folks? Do they even care? Let's Roll!!!

Katrina: The Political Storm

Hurricane Katrina has come and gone, and much of the Gulf Coast of the United States has gone along with it. Hundreds of thousands are homeless, tens of billions of dollars of property damage have occurred, and the nation is just coming to grips with the magnitude of challenges the region will face in rebuilding.
Of course, not everyone was stunned into quiet disbelief. Race-baiters and hucksters of all kinds, from opportunity-seeking politicos to looney Hollywood lefties, have attacked the relief effort as rascist and representative of the indifference of middle-class America to the plight of the poor. Celine Dion, the noted philanthropist, wailed to Larry King that looters should be allowed to touch the things they could never touch under normal circumstances. Somehow, I don't think she'd let them touch her or her Grammys, or invite evacuees to stay with her on her palatial estate. The Quebec native is typical of elites who speak reverently of the poorer segments of American society but never actually associate with poor people.
Jesse Jackson and Cynthia McKinney opined about the resemblance of storm shelters to the holds of slave ships and concentration camps. Fortunately, while the "activists" ran their mouths ad nauseum, relief workers from all parts of American society worked tirelessly to help their displaced fellow citizens begin the long process of rebuilding their lives. In the first 10 days following the massive storm, more money was donated to charities than the first 10 days after the 9/11 attacks and the Tsunami combined! So much for the hustlers' cry of a rascist America.
That isn't to say we couldn't have done a better job in the early days of the disaster. Local and state officials in Louisiana bungled the pre-storm evacuation and were clearly shell-shocked by the storm's destruction. Federal officials worried too much about appearing overbearing in their dealings with local officials and lost precious time intervening with support and supplies. Even the attack on New York and the Pentagon in 2001 hasn't altered America's reluctance to trust the national government to assist without taking over.
As painful as it was, Katrina's wrath can help the United States be better prepared for the next disaster. If the nation can avoid internecine political fights, move beyond racial politics, and remember that national disasters and terrorist attacks are our real enemies, not each other, then America will have learned a priceless lesson purchased at a terrible cost.