Shame On You, Mr. Kennedy

I'm a registered independent. I subscribe neither to be a Democrat or Republican, because I feel that I shouldn't have to align myself with a political party. It leaves me the option to think independently.

With that said, I just came across the following blog on huffingtonpost.com, by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. In short, he said "As Hurricane Katrina dismantles Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, it’s worth recalling the central role that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour played in derailing the Kyoto Protocol and kiboshing President Bush’s iron-clad campaign promise to regulate CO2."

Come again? Thousands of people are fighting for their lives along the Gulf Coast, and all you can say is "I told you so"? First of all President Bush isn't God. He doesn't control the weather. Even if he signed off on the Kyoto Agreement, do you think that would have stop Hurricane Katrina? Or any Hurricane for that matter. Do you think that would have stopped all the tornados ripping through the Midwest, or the record snowfall in the Northeast? Or, perhaps the Kyoto agreement would have been able to stop the tsunami?

Mr Kennedy, I agree that global warming is a threat to our planet, but, this is not the time to trumpet your agenda. People are fighting for their lives in New Orleans, and all you can do is say "we are all learning what it’s like to reap the whirlwind of fossil fuel dependence which Barbour and his cronies have encouraged. Our destructive addiction has given us a catastrophic war in the Middle East and--now--Katrina is giving our nation a glimpse of the climate chaos we are bequeathing our children." Give me a break. In case you didn't know, this isn't the first Hurricane to hit the US. In fact, I'm sure you can find many a scientist that would suggest that there have been even stronger hurricanes that have existed in the past, long before global warming. I hope you put as much energy into helping give aid to those affected by Katrina as you did in your blog.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr/afor-they-that-sow-the-_b_6396.html

Thinking Of Those In New Orleans and The Gulf Coast

Yesterday, one of the worst hurricanes in recorded history slammed into the U.S. Gulf Coast, taking aim at the east side of New Orleans and southern Mississippi.  The devastation that followed is surreal.  I was part of the group of US soldiers that took part in relief efforts in Homestead after Hurricane Andrew, but, from what I've seen in the news, the effects of Hurricane Katrina are much more catastrophic.  My kid sister, who is attending school at Loyola University, was able to get out of harm's way.   

 

 

http://www.wwltv.com/sharedcontent/breakingnews/slideshow/082905Katrina/1.html

A Mother With No Common Sense

Can someone answer this for me?  When is it ok for someone to allow a 4 year old child to run around inside a moving car?  Better yet....when is it ok to take your 4 year old child out driving butt naked?   I don't want to be outside in my birthday suit, so why would I let my kid do that?

The following happened here in Tulsa.  A woman was spotted driving a car with her 4 year old daugther, not strapped in a carseat, butt naked, and hanging outside the car.  Eyewitneeses reported her to the police, and a chased ensure.  If you go to KTUL's webpage you will be able to view the resulting crash.   The child made it out ok, and the mother was arrested.  

Read that again.   Ok, read it one more time.   I'm not making this up.   What in the world was this woman thinking?  This makes Wacko hanging his kid outside a hotel window look almost normal:

http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0805/255028.html

From NewsChannel 8:
Woman Faces Charges After Crashing Car With Four-Year-Old Daughter Inside
Location: Tulsa
Posted: August 26, 2005 8:17 AM EST
URL: http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0805/255028.html

Tulsa - A mother faces child endangerment charges after leading police on a low-speed chase overnight.

The woman hit stop sticks, but continued to drive. Our cameras were there when the woman, with her four-year-old daughter by her side, rounded the corner at 21st and Yale, where she crashed.

The little girl appears to be fine, but was checked out at a hospital as a precaution.

Meanwhile, her mother was arrested. Officers say she appeared to be under the influence.

Copyright 2005 KTUL, LLC.

 

Is The Rising Cost Of Gas Making Your Piggy Bank Look Like This?

Thanks for the pic, Kat.   My piggy bank looks as sick as this one.    If gas prices keep going up, I'm going to have to go back to being a prostitude to make ends meet.   The demand for overweight prostitudes is very low, but I think I can make it work.

P.S.:  I wuz jest keeding!!

You can't handel the truth!

Before reading this story, keep in mind that I, along with an increasing number of Americans, am obesse.  I don't like the word, but there it is.  I'm fat.   I've lost 25 lbs since the beginning of 2005, and hope to keep up this pace for at least the next year or so.   

Having said that, this story makes me sick.   A patient is sueing him for calling her fat????   I'm not exactly sure what he told her (did he use profane language).   In fact, does it really matter?   I wish more doctors were more upfront like this one.   At some point obesity will become the number killer among American adults, surpassing smoking.  Yet, in our soceity we snear at smokers and offer to value-size fatty's #3 with a coke.  

Hey, lady, I hope you get to read this.   You are, what we call back in NY, a moron.   Save yourself the retainer for your lawyer and use that money to buy a treadmill.  Fact is, if your doctor says your fat, then you must be fat.   I mean, why did you go see him in the first place, to talk about world events?   The fact that you went to see him suggest you already knew you were overweight.   Keep in mind, I'm fat, too.  I'm not some skinny person giving you grief, but I am asking you to use some common sense.

Oh, by the way, just because I said I'm overweight doesn't mean I'm not hot!!! Oh, yeah!!!

Woman Offended by Doctor's Obesity Advice 'I Told a Fat Woman She Was Obese'

ROCHESTER, N.H. (Aug. 24) -As doctors warnmore patients that they should lose weight, the advice has backfired on one doctor with a woman filing a complaint with the state saying he was hurtful, not helpful.

Dr. Terry Bennett says he tells obese patients their weight is bad for their health and their love lives, but the lecture drove one patient to complain to the state.

"I told a fat woman she was obese," Bennett says. "I tried to get her attention. I told her, 'You need to get on a program, join a group of like-minded people and peel off the weight that is going to kill you.' "

He says he wrote a letter of apology to the woman when he found out she was offended.

Her complaint, filed about a year ago, was initially investigated by a board subcommittee, which recommended that Bennett be sent a confidential letter of concern. The board rejected the suggestion in December and asked the attorney general's office to investigate.

Bennett rejected that office's proposal that he attend a medical education course and acknowledge that he made a mistake.

Bruce Friedman, chairman of the board of medicine, said he could not discuss specific complaints. Assistant Attorney General Catherine Bernhard, who conducted the investigation, also would not comment, citing state law that complaints are confidential until the board takes disciplinary action.

The board's Web site says disciplinary sanctions may range from a reprimand to the revocation of all rights to practice in the state.

"Physicians have to be professional with patients and remember everyone is an individual. You should not be inflammatory or degrading to anyone," said board member Kevin Costin.

Other overweight patients have come to Bennett's defense.

"What really makes me angry is he told the truth," Mindy Haney told WMUR-TV on Tuesday. "How can you punish somebody for that?"

Haney said Bennett has helped her lose more than 150 pounds, but acknowledged that she initially didn't want to listen.

"I have been in this lady's shoes. I've been angry and left his practice. I mean, in-my-car-taking-off angry," Haney said. "But once you think about it, you're angry at yourself, not Doctor Bennett. He's the messenger. He's telling you what you already know."

08/24/05 09:28 EDT

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050824093009990004&ncid=NWS00010000000001

Jay Mohr Has It Right! War FSU!!!!

The following was written by actor/comedian Jay Mohr, aka SlamMan.  This is an excellent read.   I hope the NCAA reads this, and understands what they have done with this whole mascott issue is a joke.   Both the Seminole Tribes of Florida and Oklahoma have come out to support Florida State.   In fact, as you see in this story, the student that gets the honor of riding into The Doak as Chief Osceola must first complete and pass studies in Seminole history.   Also, the Seminoles have a part in desinging FSU's unis.    So, who exactly are offended by FSU use of the Seminoles as it's nickname?  The people they represent have no issue with this:

Lame name game NCAA's ban on "offensive" monikers goes too far

Being a stand-up comic, I am no stranger to falling victim to political correctness. I have seen the people of PC nation go from strange to overzealous to downright crazy, especially when it comes to the NCAA's recent ban on 18 Native American nicknames, mascots and logos in college sports during the postseason. I was grateful to read here at SI.com that Florida governor Jeb Bush lashed out at the yahoos trying to legitimize their existence by rallying against the proud logos of proud institutions.

Apparently the rich white men whose forefathers tried (and nearly succeeded) to commit genocide against the Seminole tribe of Florida now deem Florida State's Seminole logo "hostile and offensive." Come again? The logos in question are not the red-faced, grinning Chief Wahoo of the Cleveland Indians. Nor do they use the disturbing moniker ("Redskins") that the NFL team housed in our nation's capital does. No, the "hostile and offensive" logos that the NCAA finds so troubling include such "slurs" such as "Seminoles" and "Utes" and "Fighting Illini." I ask you, what do these three team names have in common? They all are respectful nods to the people who were run off the land long before the student unions were built.

The Seminole tribe of Florida was led by a fierce warrior, Chief Osceola, who fought bitterly with the white man. While routinely outnumbered, Chief Osceola had the whites in fits as he led his warriors deeper and deeper into the Everglades, where they hid and then defended themselves. Chief Osceola died at 34, roughly the same age another proud Seminole, Chris Weinke, entered the NFL draft.

The student who rides Renegade, Chief Osceola's Appaloosa, through Florida State's stadium on game day, only earns that honor after studying the heritage of the tribe. The Seminole Nation is happy the university is using its name for its sports teams -- so much so that it actually designs the team's costuming and rigging. So what's the problem with using the name Seminole? Why are rich white men putting their noses in business that Native American Seminoles find honorable and fitting?

Native American logos aren't the only ones taking a hit these days. I recently performed at Elon University in North Carolina. The Elon sports teams are known as The Phoenix. Seems fine enough. I learned while on campus that until a few years ago they were called The Fighting Christians. "Fighting Christians" is one of the cooler nicknames I've heard. Too cool, I guess. It fell under the PC inquisition and was changed. Why? Was that also deemed "hostile and offensive"? What is offensive about a Christian defending himself? 

 

The Illini of Illinois and the Utah Utes will have to defend themselves against these jokers in the NCAA offices who think they know what we as a society can handle. Students and boosters must fight the good fight. Stand up to the same people who refuse to give us a college football playoff and keep your nicknames where they belong. On your teams' jerseys. If not, when will it end? Will it end at all?

The Fighting Irish are likely next in line for the chopping block. It is just a matter of time before some wacko finds a public forum to denounce Notre Dame's mascot as "inappropriate and insensitive" to Irish Americans. The Leprechaun is "hostile" -- standing up all straight and strong, with his fists balled up ready to brawl.

Wait until the Catholic church takes offense at the "derogatory" use of the Louisville Cardinals mascot. I can see a church spokesman declaring, "We are not birds!"

You can probably set your watch to the moment the vegetarians of the world come out swinging against the University of Texas' mascot, Longhorn. "Love animals! Don't eat them or make them play for Mac Brown!"

That will certainly be a precursor to the X-Men protesting against Michigan's Wolverines. I hear the cast of M*A*S*H is prepared to take part in a sit-in over the use of Iowa's Hawkeye. The Tennessee Volunteers will be boycotted by people who work for a living. That will be followed immediately by the farewell to the nickname Sooners by people who prefer to arrive Later.

It has to stop. Florida State University vice president Lee Hinkle said, "With the Seminole Tribe and Governor Bush on your side, how can you go wrong?"

Hopefully you don't.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/jay_mohr/08/16/hot.read/index.html

When I Had Hair........

It was the Summer of 1989.  It was hot; the commies just put down a revolt in Bejing, Ghostbusters 2 just came out (how come it didn't win an Oscar?), and I was graduating high school.   I just came across this picture, and I have to admit...I was damm hot!!! What happened to me?  LOL

Bad Dude Vs. Bad Dude

Possibly the two biggest sports stories for the last two weeks involve Baltimore Orioles 1st Baseman Rafael Palmeiro (steriods) and Phliadephia Eageles Wide Receiver Terrell Owens (loudmouth).  While I'm not here to stand up for Ownes (just shut up and play the contract you signed), I beg to differ with a poll on AOL that suggest that fans dislike TO more than Palmerio (73% against T.O.) and that T.O. is more detrimental to his sport (56% agaisnt T.O)

Keep in mind, while Terrell Owens made be a loud-mount, and very brash, he has never been arrested (as it seems alot of NFL players are), or been caught cheating like Palmerio.  In fact, Palmerio went in front of Congress earlier this year and professed he has never taken steroids.  Yet, here we are, months later, and he's been caught red handed.   As far as I'm concern, Palmerio is doing more damage to baseball than T.O. could ever to the NFL.  Palmerio lied in front of Congress, knowing that he was on steriods, and has left a huge mark on his legacy and baseball as a whole.   Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but, come on?  If you think a steriod user, and a lier are not as damaging to a sport than a loud-mouth, selfish player, then you need to rethink your stance.   After all, almost all atleties are self-centered, including Palmerio.   The only differnce between T.O. and other players is that he's more vocal.  That's all. 

 

Which player is disliked more right now? Terrell Owens 73% Rafael Palmeiro 27% Total Votes: 57,317 Note on Poll Results

 

Who is more detrimental to his sport? Terrell Owens 56% Rafael Palmeiro 44% Total Votes: 57,720 Note on Poll Results

 

 

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/sports/article.adp?id=20050810170709990009&ncid=NWS00010000000001