Halloween Ramblings

As another Halloween approaches, I've been reading some interesting news stories regarding the traditional fall event. For instance, a woman in Fargo, North Dakota has said that she plans to give out notes to overweight trick-or-treaters instead of the traditional sugary treats. The purpose of the note is to lecture parents about their overweight kids. Come on, really? Hey, when I was growing up, I was one of those overweight kids. And I can tell you this, if someone dropped a "fat note" in my plastic pumpkin, their car windows would have been immediately introduced to my bar of Ivory soap.

Back in the day, we certainly had our share of Halloween disappointments. But it usually came in the form of pennies or a piece of fruit. I always perceived the people who dropped a few pennies into your bag as cheapskates. But the people who gave a kids fruit for Halloween were delusional. If a kid has a choice between a Snickers bar, a Reese's Cup, a roll of Smarties and an apple, guess which one he won't pick?

But probably the worst trick-or-treat "candy" that I ever received was a hard boiled egg. Looking back on it now, this was quite possibly my very first "WTF" moment. For a kid, getting a sweater for Christmas is bad. But getting an egg for Halloween is ridiculous. The neighborhood kids eventually developed a "system" to alert future trick-or treaters of the egg lady. They basically just tossed the eggs into the street. If you saw a rubbery sea of yellow and white in front of a house, you knew to bypass it. Simple, but effective. That's how we rolled....

While we're on the subject of undesirable Halloween treats, according to a recent Fox News report, here are the ten worst candies to give out:

• Necco Wafers - They look like large Smarties but instead of tasting sweet, they're bitter and nasty
• Circus Peanuts - These are actually soft, banana-flavored, peanut-shaped candy. The first one tastes ok, but any more and the nausea begins to kick in
• Mallo Cup - One of my all-time favorites. If anyone wants to get rid of their Mallo-Cups, send them my way!
• Mary Jane candy - Hard chewy peanut-butter candies. A money maker for dentists as they have a tendency to extract fillings and crowns.
• Goldenberg's Peanut Chews - Another candy that I really like. I'm surprised to see it on the list. Maybe it has something to do with peanut allergies?
• Wax Lips - These are just silly and flavorless.
• Wax Coke Bottles - These always seemed like a wasted effort. You chew and chew then eventually get a squirt of colored, sugar water. We even bother?
• Hershey's Symphony Bar - I've never had one, but if it's made with chocolate, can it really be that bad?
• Licorice Bites - I always preferred the longer Twizzler sticks.
• Jaw Breakers - I've never heard of anyone breaking a jaw on one of these, but I imagine quite a few teeth got broke.

I was also reading about an Ohio dentist who was offering to buy back candy from local kids. I don't quite get this. This would be like the Post Office promoting email. As I pointed out in my Mary Jane comment above, candy is good business for dentists. Why would they want to take it away?

Moving away from the candy, Halloween costumes can be interesting, funny and sometimes quite controversial. For instance, Dancing With The Stars winner/actress Julianne Hough got into some hot water when she dressed up as a character from the hit series "Orange Is The New Black". Honestly, I had never heard of the show until I read the news blurb about Hough. What really got the actress into trouble was that she was dressed up as "Crazy Eyes", a black woman on the show. Apparently, people took offense to Hough wearing dark face paint.

Taking it one step further, a duo in Massachusetts dressed up as George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin. While I think a lot of the racial stuff is overblown, I think this one was in very bad taste.

Last week, the University of Colorado instructed students to not wear any costume that could be deemed offensive or a crude stereotype. Included in the list were cowboys, Indians and anything "ghetto" or "white trash". 

Speaking of white trash, a mother and daughter in Detroit dressed up as exactly that. Donning white trash bags and face make-up which simulated blackened eyes, the couple wore the controversial costumes to an elementary school's "Trunk or Treat" party. Something tells me that me that Mom won't be invited to the PTA Christmas party this year. 

And lastly, dressed up as a clown, some drunk moron in Wisconsin dangled an 8-year-old from an overpass. A clown is already terrifying enough to a kid. The clown in Stephen King's "It" still freaks me out. Can you imagine the emotional distress that would result from a shitfaced clown dangling you from an overpass? If there's anyone out there from social services, you really need to pay this guy a visit. 

With all of this being said, I hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween. And don't forget to send me those unwanted Mallo Cups!

kw

If You like Your Plan.......Oh, Nevermind

The Affordable Care Act was sold to us from the very beginning on a big lie. We were told that it wasn't a tax. However, after taking a trip to the Supreme Court, is was indeed determined to be a tax. So, it shouldn't come as a big surprise when we hear of even more lies concerning the President's signature domestic achievement.

When President Obama started hawking the ACA back in 2009, he promised time and time again that people would get to keep their existing doctors and healthcare plans. It turns out, that was a lie. In fact, we're learning that approximately 1.5 million* Americans have already received cancellation letters from their insurance companies. Current policies are being cancelled because that fail to meet the minimum requirements dictated by the Obamacare mandate. It has been estimated that the cancellations could reach 14 million.** These are the folks who purchase insurance on the individual market and not through their employer, Medicare, Medicaid or the V.A.

It's one thing to lie or equivocate. After all, we've come to expect it from politicians. But it is now being reported that even though it was known that people would be forced out of their current plans, Obama continued to spew the lie in which he promised people would be able to keep their plan. 

All of this is especially embarrassing for the administration after the computer debacle that continues to go on. Critics of Obamacare predicted that it would be a train wreck. And that's certainly what it has been so far. Even liberal news sources are uncharacteristically highlighting the mishaps of the ACA. It's like they have a premonition of things getting much worse, so they want to get out in front of it now. This way, the conservatives won't be able to accuse them of protecting the President and his healthcare reform later.

And I almost feel sorry for White House Press Secretary Jay Carney when I see him fumbling through his daily press briefings. Watching Carney attempting to put a positive spin on the Obamacare clusterfuck is like watching one of those sad SPCA commercials. I'm almost expecting a caption that says, "For only pennies a day, you can help get Mr. Carney out of the White House and into a warm, loving home...."

At some point, you would think that Obama himself would step up and take some of the responsibility. But considering he "knew nothing" about Benghazi, NSA spying, IRS abuse of power, Fast and Furious, nor what Reverend Wright was preaching for 20 years, I expect him to plead ignorance on this one as well. 

And remember when the ACA was passed and VP Joe Biden whispered into Obama's ear that "this is a big fucking deal"? Actually, I guess you could say that he had a point. But has anyone seen or heard from Uncle Joe since Obamacare went live? 

It's hard to say how problematic this thing really is. Will it ultimately become the train wreck that most critics predicted? I guess Nancy Pelosi was right when she said, "We have to pass the bill to find out what's in it...." By the way, has anyone seen her lately??

kw

* http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/10/28/ObamaCare-Costs-15-Million-Their-Health-Insurance-So-Far

** http://money.msn.com/investing/post--white-house-knew-millions-could-not-keep-plans-under-obamacare

Shut Up & Play Football

It's always disappointing to me when I see one of my favorite bands or actors trading the traditional stage for a political soapbox. When I go to a concert or a movie, my intention is to get away from the craziness of the world for a few hours. When politics are injected into the mix, there's always a tendency to ruin the atmosphere for many of the fans.

The latest example of this comes to us from the NFL's Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens recently accepted a $130,000 contract to promote the President Obama's Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). This comes after the NFL made a decision to ignore pleas from the Obama administration to promote the hotly contested healthcare plan.

This especially disappointing to me as I am a big Baltimore Ravens fan. I love watching them play on Sunday afternoons. But, I really don't look forward to see the organization pushing Obamacare down my throat. Quite frankly, they have really pissed me off on this one. At this point, I couldn't care less if won another game this season. They have risked angering a big portion of their fan base in order to promote a political agenda. I just don't get it. At the very least, I think the fans deserve an official explanation from the Ravens organization.

Although entertainers and professional athletes certainly have a right to their opinions, I don't think that it's a good idea to rub the fans' faces in it. In any group of people, it's very likely that a decent percentage won't share your political belief. So, why would you risk alienating any of them? Shouldn't all the fans be important? After all, they paid to hear you sing, act or throw a ball. When did ESPN and VH1 become CNN or Fox News?

It really ticks me off to have my tax dollars going to my favorite football team to promote something that I don't support. Although I haven't found any specifics on why the Ravens chose to go against the NFL's decision, I have a suspicion that some of Maryland's "Obama-ass-kissing" politicians could have been a major factor.

As silly as it might sound, I actually feel betrayed by my team. I'm not sure what kind of long term impact all of this will have on me. Right now, I'm not sure how I'm going to deal with it. Maybe I'm just caught up in the emotion right now and I'll eventually find my way through it.

Under normal circumstances, I would stick with my team through thick and thin. However, when they start pushing a political agenda, especially one that I don't agree with, it really makes it tough for me to just sit back and ignore it. To add salt to the wound, I have friends who are big fans of the Steelers, Patriots, Colts, etc. They will undoubtedly be giving me a bunch of bullshit over this. And what will I be able to say? Nothing! I'll just have to sit there and take it. Do you how humiliating it's going to be to have a Pittsburgh fan bust my balls over, of all things, Obamacare?

I'll probably get over this but the bottom line is.......Football teams should focus on playing the game leave the political grandstanding to the assholes in Washington.

kw


 http://washingtonexaminer.com/super-bowl-champ-baltimore-ravens-getting-paid-130000-to-promote-obamacare/article/2537602

Pressure Mounts on the Redskins

I wrote about the Redskins "offensive" name a couple of weeks ago*. But since then, depending on who you talk to, things have gotten even more serious or ridiculous. For example, there's a newspaper in Virginia (Richmond Daily News) that has announced that they will not be using the word Redskins in any of it's pages. The newspaper says the word is insulting to Native Americans, racist and divisive.

Another Richmond based newspaper, the Richmond Free Press, is dropping the Redskins name from it's pages because it calls the name racist. The publication, which targets Richmond's black community, has called the word "Redskins" divisive and insulting to Native Americans.

The Virginia newspaper isn't the only one that has chimed in on the subject. a New York paper recently published a political graphic (shown below) which comperes the Redskins logo to the swastika and confederate flag. The flags are described as "Archaic Symbols of Pride and Heritage". Are you kidding me? The swastika, I agree, is a deplorable symbol of hate. Although the confederate flag is certainly part of American history, it has been abused by white supremacist groups, so I can understand why some people might be offended by it. However, I don't see how the Redskins logo represents hate of any kind. In fact, I think it portrays the American Indian as proud and brave. What's so offensive about that?



And the controversy has moved beyond the media outlets. In Washington DC, several schools are pushing for a ban on Redskins jerseys in the classroom. I guess the ban on education wasn't enough?

Even on last week's Sunday Night Football game, announcer Bob Costas took an opportunity to get up on his politically-correct soapbox and chime in on the Redskins controversy by saying, "It's an insult, a slur, no matter how benign the present day intent." Remember when Costas lectured us on gun control during a game last year? I wish he would just stick to calling the game and leave the politics to the assholes in Washington.

And speaking of Washington, there is actually a bill in Congress to strip Dan Snyder's football team of it's trademark protection of the Redskins name. Snyder, however, has vowed that no matter how much pressure comes his way, he will not change the team's name.

There were also suggestions from a few commentators for a more "appropriate" name. For instance, columnist Charles Krauthammer suggested shortening the name to the Skins. Since most fans refer to the team by this term anyway, it seems like a logical choice. But perhaps the most interesting suggestion came from Fox News host, Bill O'Reilly. During a recent interview with David Letterman, O'Reilly said that he would like the team's name changed to the Washington Chaos. With everything the craziness that's going on in DC today, O'Reilly's idea sure seems fitting.

And no fabricated, racial-charged controversy would be complete without the race-hustling Grand Poohbah, Jesse Jackson chiming in. Super Jesse, through his twitter account said, "The name of the NFL's Washington Redskins must be changed."

Ok, for arguments sake, let's say that the Redskins do indeed changed their name. Do you think it's going to stop there? After all, there are several other high-profile sports teams with "Native American" names. A few that come to mind are the Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs, Florida State Seminoles, Golden State Warriors and Chicago Blackhawks. Are any of these team names any less offensive than the "R" word?

As I mentioned in my previous blog*, the majority of Native Americans (aka Indians) have no problem with the Redskins or any other name connected to the "indigenous" people of America. So, what's the big deal?

I'm a Ravens fan at heart. But I have to admit, after hearing all of this bullshit, I find myself saying, "Hail to the Redskins!"

kw

* http://www.kensmouthpiece.blogspot.com/2013/10/are-redskins-offensive.html

An EBT Shopping Spree

As if the government has hadn't enough recent "glitches", on Saturday there was another glitch in the Louisiana area in which EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) cards were showing no limits. Although the limit varies for different people, there is definitely a limit. But when it was discovered that the EBT system was "broken", word quickly spread around Louisiana towns like Springfield and Mansfield. And before long, people were flocking to Walmart.

When Walmart announced that it would honor EBT cards in spite of the glitch, EBT cardholders began to load up their shopping carts with "free" stuff. Shoppers impatiently lined up, eagerly waiting to "pay" for their goods before the system came back on line. Louisiana area Walmarts hadn't seen this much action since Hurricane Katrina. 

But then, to the EBT shoppers' dismay, the system came back online....

Almost immediately, all of the would-be shoplifters abandoned their overfilled carts and left them scattered all over the store. The place looked like a cyclone hit it. And Walmart employees spent the rest of the weekend restocking the shelves.

What the hell is wrong with people? Although these folks were already getting a government handout, apparently it still wasn't enough. By choosing to steal these items (and yes, it is stealing), they're essentially biting the hand that feeds them. I know there will be people ready to break my balls for picking on welfare recipients. But I'd like someone to try and explain to me how any part of the Louisiana EBT incident was right. The people that took part in these activities knew what they were doing was wrong, but they did it anyway. 

To me, this is the same as finding a credit card on the parking lot. You know the card isn't yours, but you decide to run into the Best Buy and load up on the latest electronics anyway. Sure, you might get to walk away with your new I-pad and 60-inch TV, but someone else will ultimately get stuck paying the bill. In the case of welfare fraud, it's usually the taxpayer who gets left with the bill. These types of people have no moral conscience and, in my opinion, they are nothing more than social parasites.

Just to be clear, I am NOT criticizing all welfare recipients. I know there are decent people out there who happen to be struggling  due to circumstances beyond their control. I have no problem at all helping people get back on their feet. With that being said, no one is ever going to convince me that there's not a hell of a lot of welfare fraud out there.

So, the the big questions now........What's going to happen to these people who knowingly overspent the limit on their EBT cards? Will they be forced to pay back the money? Will they be charged with welfare fraud? From what I understand, you have to use a PIN number to activate each card, So, it seems like it would be fairly easy to track everyone down. Of course, if the government cuts off next month's deposit, these same assholes will be complaining about how unfair and unreasonable it is.

Defend them if you want to, but these folks were nothing more than a bunch of thoughtless morons who saw an opportunity to steal. They can try to feed me all the bullshit they want about how "they just couldn't wait", "they had hungry kids waiting at home", blah, blah, blah...I'm not buying it! No one was going to starve because they had to wait an extra hour to purchase a pack of Hot Pockets. I get sick of this crap. Walmart should have refused to process any EBT purchases until the system was back online. If people had an issue with it, too f*cking bad. We all have to deal with inconveniences in life. The difference is that most of us don't react by shoplifting!

kw

The Initial Days of Obamacare

The other day, I attempted to log into the Maryland Health Connection website to explore the recently implemented Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). However, in order to explore to site, you need to create a user ID which requires your social security number. Now, I had just finished watching a CBS news segment where they were reporting on the glitches of the new Healthcare websites. They also advised current users to change their passwords. When I heard this, I figured that offering up my SSN to a vulnerable website might not be such a good idea.

So, I researched several other safer web sources and this what I found out....

According to the latest US Census statistics, approximately 46 million Americans have no health insurance. The purpose of Obamacare is give these folks an opportunity to purchase affordable insurance. However, in the political arena, there's a fine line between the meaning of opportunity and demand. People no longer have a choice in whether they want insurance or not. The government is now forcing us to purchase insurance.

Of course, you might feel compelled to give Uncle Sam the middle finger and say, "You can't make me buy anything. That's unconstitutional!" In the old days, when the constitution actually meant something, you would have a valid point. However, in today's world of  "let's pass the bill to see what's in it", your argument doesn't apply. You see, the Affordable Care Act was sold to us on a lie that it was not a tax. And on this premise, it was reviewed by the Supreme Court, who ultimately ruled that it was indeed a tax. Otherwise, they would have had no choice but to rule it unconstitutional. But enough of the history lesson....

Let's get back to the nuts and bolts of the program.....

If you choose not to purchase health insurance, you will be forced to pay a fee (the current bullshit word for "tax"). How much tax? Well, it will start off at $95 per adult or 1% of your family income, whichever happens to be greater. You're probably thinking, "$95 a year isn't going to break the bank. Things could be worse." Exactly. Things will get worse. Starting in 2016, the tax will be $695 per adult or 2.5% of your family income, whichever happens to be greater. For instance, if you and the wife are making a combined income of $100,000 per year and choose not to buy health insurance, you'll be required to pay $2500 to the government.

All of this reminds me of a line from the Rush song "Freewill"......."If you choose to not decide, you still have made a choice." Although this is true, either "choice" is going to cost you.

So, why not just buy health insurance? After all, it's probably the responsible thing to do. For people who currently have health insurance through their employer, aside from higher premiums and deductibles, things will pretty much remain status quo. However, should you have to purchase insurance from the exchange, things might get a little tricky. The following graphic was pulled from a conservative North Carolina website. If this happens to be true, I have to wonder how anyone will be able to afford it. You'd probably be better off paying the tax or "fee" and then just paying for your healthcare needs out of pocket. In that situation, people can continue to do what they've been doing for years with the exception that now they'll have to kick over some money to Uncle Sam.




It would be unfair to say that Obamacare will be unaffordable to everyone. For instance, people who are now living below the poverty line, will likely get a government subsidy in the form of a tax credit to offset the costs of their healthcare plan. However, they may be impacted by longer wait times due to the influx of millions of newly insured.

And how will the ACA affect business? If a business has more than 50 employees. beginning in 2015, they must provide health insurance for those employees. If they choose not to, they will be required to pay a tax of $2000 per uninsured employee. With the cost of most health insurance plans, I would think that it would be a hell of lot cheaper for employers to just pay the fine.

Many high-profile people have weighed in with their opinions of Obama's signature act. Probably one of the most compelling opinions came from world renown neurosurgeon, Ben Carson. Yesterday, at the Voter's Value Summit in Washington, DC, Carson summed up the Affordable Care Act by saying, "Obamacare is really, I think, the worst thing that has happened to this nation since slavery. And in a way, it is slavery. It is making us subservient to the government. And it was never about healthcare. It was about control."

If the recent glitches with the health exchange websites are a sign of things to come, we could be in for a whole lot of trouble. But then again, what could possibly go wrong with a government run program.....

kw

The Party Flight from Panama City

A couple of weeks ago, Tina & I were flying home from Florida. Since we were flying via Southwest Airlines, I made sure to check in early enough to secure decent seats on the plane. When we finally board, Tina takes a window seat and I decide to strategically take the aisle seat. If I'm lucky, everyone will pass us in an attempt avoid the dreaded middle seat. But before I even get a chance to stretch my legs, a guy walks up, and with a southern drawl, asks, "Hey, y'all mind if I take that middle seat?"

Southern people always seem so nice to me, so I say, "I'll tell you what, I'll slide over and let you have the aisle seat."

He seemed grateful and thanked me. Trust me, most people would not voluntarily sit in the middle seat. But I figured with Tina sitting next to me, we could pull up the arm rest to make things a little more comfortable. Well, before I could even buckle my seat belt, the guy leans over and says, "Excuse me, are y'all together?"

I respond, "Yes. This is my wife."

Then, he comes back with something that made me cringe....."Can I ask y'all to do me a favor?"

Now, I had already done the guy a major solid by offering him my aisle seat. But, crazy enough, he wanted more. With his young son standing in the aisle behind him, he says, "Would y'all mind switchin' seats with my wife and son? He wants to sit with his Mom & Dad."

Now, normally, I would probably say, "You're f*cking kidding me, right?"

But the guy had me over a barrel. With his son hanging out in the aisle with a sad face, I really didn't have much of a choice. If I tell the guy no, I'll look like the anti-Christ. Plus, if the kid whines all the way to Baltimore, I'll have all of the other passengers blaming me. This guy committed a major "bro faux pas" but I was stuck. What could I do? So, I said, "Sure, we'll switch. Where's your wife?"

He points to the back of the plane and his wife emerges from the very back row. As Tina & I make the transition, the guy and his wife thank us. Yeah, yeah, whatever. But as we approach the last row of seats, there's a large women who resembles Sweet Pea (the infamous stripper from the recent Jacoby Jones incident) sprawled out over the window and middle seats. She's sound asleep as I can hear her sawing logs from a few rows back. This makes me immediately want to run towards the southern guy and punch him in the head. But quickly realizing that there's probably some stupid FAA rule that prohibits that type of thing, I take a deep breath and let it go.

Figuring I got us into this mess, I told Tina that I would sit next to Sweet Pea. As I sat down, one of the woman's oversize thighs was clearly intruding on my seat. It was like deja vu all over again*. I sat down and slowly pushed my hips against her fat leg. I managed to move her an inch or two, but she was pretty much dead weight. I prepared for the inevitable backache and neck cramps that would likely kick in before we hit cruising altitude.

But there was some good news.......

Although I felt like an idiot, we looked golden to the rest of the passengers and the crew. One of the flight attendants walked over and, it her own southern drawl, said, "That was very nice of you, folks. I will get you a complimentary drink shortly." (Did I mention that I really like southern people?)

And then, the guy sitting across from Tina in the aisle seat says, "Hardly anyone else would have given up their seats. You guys are really nice. Do you drink?"

Of course, I immediately say, "Does a TSA agent grope a 90-year-old? Hell yes, we drink!"

The guy, who introduced himself as Larry, signals for the flight attendant to bring a round of drinks for us. He tells us that the drinks are on him all the way to Baltimore. All of a sudden, even with Sweet Pea breathing down my neck, things were finally looking up!

I must mention that Larry appeared to be three sheets to the wind before the plane even took off. I knew that we would get along just fine....

We knocked back several rounds and swapped funny stories. I could tell that we were getting louder because people were turning around and laughing too. Before long, Larry is giving us a humorous show-and-tell via his cell phone photos. He covered everything from the shark he recently caught in the Gulf of Mexico to his girlfriend's tramp-stamp. Despite Sweet Pea leaning on me and practically cutting off the circulation in the left half of my body, I was comfortably numb enough from the beer to not care. We were having a euphoric blast. But then, it abruptly stopped.....

Larry asked the flight attendant for another round. But instead of complying, she shocked us with a beer drinkers worst nightmare..."Sorry, I'm going to have to cut you guys off."

We couldn't believe it. We were being cut off at 30,000 feet. This would be a personal first for me.

Using Tina and myself as leverage, Larry pleaded with the flight attendant, "Aw, come on. These guys gave up their seats. They gave up their seats for a kid. You have to admit, that was a pretty decent thing to do. Can't you just give us one more round?"

When that tactic didn't work, Larry resorted to flirting. Still holding the flight attendant's attention, he said, "You know, you are really cute. I'll bet you hear that all the time. Hey Ken, isn't Crew cute?" (She was wearing a nameplate that said "CREW", so Larry assumed it was her name)

Before long, we were descending into Baltimore. And wouldn't you know it, Sweet Pea finally decided to wake up. I don't know how she possibly slept through our loud joking and storytelling. It's quite possible that she was hibernating.

I have to tell you that most flights seem like they take forever. But this particular flight, for some reason, seemed like it only took about ten minutes. What could have turned out to be a miserable experience, turned into a party. At least for three of us......;-)

kw

* http://kensmouthpiece.blogspot.com/2013/05/big-man-in-middle.html

The End of Real Balls?

Ok, so I'm reading an article* about how a Long Island middle school is banning baseballs, footballs, basketballs and even soccer balls from their recess activities. The reason? They're afraid that the kiddies might get injured. Other schools outside of the Long Island school district are also considering banning the balls.

Instead of the traditional "dangerous" balls, the kids will now be restricted to Nerf balls and other kinder, gentler alternatives. "Rough" games of tag and even cartwheels are also unless they are supervised by a coach. The kids now need a coach in order to do a cartwheel? Are you kidding me? What are the credentials for being a cartwheel coach?

I can see being reasonably protective of our youngsters. But don't you think that treating a football like it's an assault weapon is a bit extreme? Learning to throw a spiral is a rite of passage for most boys. And snagging the ball out of mid-air allows youngsters to vicariously become Jerry Rice for a brief moment.  And now the schools are saying that that it's too dangerous?  Hey, I could understand it if we were in France. But this is the United States of America where boys play with real footballs. They'll never make it to Ball-So-Hard University if they're restricted to playing with foam balls.

And regarding the other sports, is it even possible to dribble a foam basketball or kick a foam soccer ball? I figure that it would be like playing with a giant marshmallow.

Can you imagine this kind of nonsense when we were in school? I can remember playing dodgeball during recess as a kid. The object was to hit your opponent with the ball. But more precisely, your goal was to drill him with everything your ten-year-old arm could muster. I can even remember the teachers encouraging it! Hell, if a teacher did that today, he would probably be looking at felony child-abuse charges.

And when it came to baseball, I will admit that it could sometimes be a little scary. I can remember facing Joe Mundell, who even at 12 years old, threw like a freight train. With each subsequent trip to the plate, I would gain a little more confidence. Before long, I actually looked forward to batting against Big Joe. I figured if I could get a hit off of him, any other pitcher would be a piece of cake. Of course, there were some bumps and bruises along the way, but it was well worth it. Not only did it build up my fastball hitting skills, it also built courage and character. Somehow, I don't think I would have felt the same sense of accomplishment if I had been facing a 80 mph piece of foam.

Now, aside from the safety issue, there's also another reason that the schools might be banning "hard" balls. In today's "sue happy society", schools are concerned that they may face lawsuits for any potential schoolyard injury. Of course, back in the day, if you scraped your knee during recess, the school nurse cleaned it up, slapped a Band-Aid on it and sent you back out to the playground. Nowadays, school nurses practically face distribution charges if they give a kid a cough drop.

I'll sum it up by saying this......If you take away real balls from our kids now, they won't have any real balls when they grow up.

kw

* http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/10/07/long-island-middle-school-bans-footballs-other-recreational-items/

Are The Redskins Offensive?

During recent years, certain sports teams have come under fire for their "controversial" names and/or mascots. A good example is the the Washington Redskins. Although the American Indian is usually a symbol of pride and strength, the Redskins' native American mascot has been called racist and insensitive by many in the politically correct crowd.

(By the way, I never quite understood why American Indians are referred to as "native" Americans. After all, by definition, aren't most of us "native" Americans since we were born here? To stir the pot on this subject, I used to check off the "Native American" box on various forms and applications. When people would eventually ask me if I was an Indian, I would explain,"No, But I was born in America. So, therefore I'm native. Should I have checked another box?" Of course, this would usually generate a "deer-in-the-headlights" look from the person.)

Anyway, back the Redskins mascot. I'm not really sure what's so offensive about it. Although, I'm not a huge fan of their football team, I always thought the Redskins' mascot looked bad ass. But not everyone feels the same way...

Tomorrow, a group known as the Oneida Indian Nation plans to hold a public conference in Washington DC. The group plans to call for the NFL to end the use of the word "Redskins", as they consider it a racial slur. Several US lawmakers are also scheduled to be in attendance. Even President Obama has recently commented on the issue by saying,"If I were the owner of a team and I knew that there was a name of my team, even if it had a storied history, that was offending a sizable group of people, I'd think about changing it." (Yep, the government is still shutdown and these guys are worried about who might be offended by the word "Redskins".)

According to a recent USA Today poll, 79% of Americans feel that the Redskins should keep their name. In a 2002 Sports Illustrated poll, 75% of American Indians surveyed, had no objection to Washington's use of the word Redskin. And in 2004, Annenburg Public Policy Center at the University of PA, conducted a survey among American Indians in the continental US. The result? 91% found the word Redskin acceptable.

So, why all the controversy? After all, almost anything can be deemed offensive if you twist it hard enough. Should we put an effort into changing things whenever anyone raises the PC flag?

Let's try to put things into perspective. Just look at Notre Dame. They're team name is the Fighting Irish and their mascot is a pissed off leprechaun. The mascot, possibly fueled by multiple shots of Jameson, always looks like he's ready kick someone's ass. If one were politically correct or grew up in France, I can see how they might see this as an insensitive portrayal of the Irish people. But do you think the actual Irish are offended by this? Hell, no! They're proud to be labeled as badasses! In fact, if some politically correct asshole even attempted to change Notre Dame's mascot, he would probably be pummeled by a hailstorm of Guinness bottles!

With all of this being said, I have to admit that I am a bit offended by the Florida State Seminoles. It has nothing to do with the their controversial name and everything to do with the 63-0 scalping that they gave to my hometown Maryland Terps yesterday. That was offensive and insensitive!

kw

Another Political Pissing Contest

As we close out the first full week of the government shutdown, there are all kinds of emotional reactions around the country. I can certainly understand the outrage from the people who are directly affected by this nonsense. After all, many of these folks are the sole providers of their family and losing their income for even a brief period can be tough.

I've heard arguments and seen the finger-pointing from both political parties. Hey, if it makes you feel better to side up with either of these groups, so be it. But the bottom line is that they're all politicians. And frankly, I'm tired of being a puppet for these assholes. Regardless of your affiliation, how many times have these guys let all of us down? The latest government shutdown is just the latest example.

Let's try to examine what's really happening here.....

First off, let's address the budget. Every year, Congress has to agree on a budget to fund the government. Of course, the government works on a fiscal year which begins on October 1. Although these jerk-offs had all year to come up with a solution, they still couldn't get it done.

Now, there's a pissing contest going on between the Democrats and Republicans primarily over the funding of the Affordable Healthcare Act (aka Obamacare). The Republican controlled House of Representatives has used the budget crisis as an opportunity to defund or delay Obamacare. Of course, the Democrat controlled Senate supports Obamacare and that's where pissing begins. Here's the lowdown:

1. The House passes a budget bill (including a few Obamacare amendments) and then sends it over to the Senate for approval. 
2. The Senate looks at it and says, "Whoa, Nelly! Nice try, boys!" And then they proceed to strip off the Obamacare amendments and send it back to the House for another try.
3. The political tennis match continues back and forth while almost a million Americans wonder when they'll get their next paycheck.

Republicans will say that Obamacare is an inevitable trainwreck and this might be the only legitimate shot to put the brakes on it. And the Democrats will point out that Obamacare is already in place. So, why is the GOP senselessly delaying the budget fix by using it as a political bargain chip? The truth of the matter is that either side could resolve this mess today. However, they won't because they would rather toe the party line than do what's right. That's the way politics work these days....

I just want to say a couple of things about Obamacare. Whether it turns out to be a good or a disaster, the whole thing was sold to us by Democratic sweethearts like President Obama and Nancy Pelosi on the premise that it was not a tax. However, on the verge of being declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, it passed only because it was indeed a tax. John Roberts cast the deciding "coup de grace", essentially blindsiding the Republican opponents of Obamacare. Politics is a bitch, huh?

We elect our representatives because we assume that they're smart enough to make the decisions that will benefit all of us. We put a boatload of trust in these people. How long will we continue to believe this bullshit? Politicians have two primary objectives: Getting elected and getting re-elected. I'm pretty well convinced that they couldn't give a rat's ass about you or me.....

kw