Uh, how's that LeBron thing working out?

I don't mean to be poking at any one team or anything, especially when the Timberwolves are my hometown team, but isn't there a whole lot of underachieving going on in south Florida? Just wondering . . .

If only Brad Childers had thought of this.

New interim Vikings head coach, Leslie Frazier, has discovered the secret to winning football games - let Brett do what he does best (ahem).

How to spoil a a holiday parade

This was the first float of Minneapolis' Holidazzle Parade. The celebrity was someone from some year of American Idol that I had never heard of before. We had the best seats possible, except for one thing. See if you can tell what an elementary school age girl did as every float went by that was totally obnoxious. Some people's kids . . .

Even Effie the Super Cat wouldn't do this.

But what's really amazing to me is the casualness the humans have around the alligators, especially when the kids get close to them.

First taste of why we serve.

Aspiring veteran-to-be, Clay, got his first taste of what it means to serve in the military. Yesterday, his high school had a Veteran's Day ceremony complete with a color guard and speeches by notable military veterans from the area. At the end of the ceremony, students were asked to stand if they had a parent who was a veteran. Clay stood up with a half dozen other students. There was applause and then everyone was asked to stand to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. A student near Clay refused to stand. When Clay asked him why he wasn't standing, the kid said, "It's my right, dude." Rather than reason with him and explain how veterans serve in order for this pothead to have his rights, Clay responded with the Trace Adkins line, "And it's within my rights to kick your ass." Then walked away. (We're still working on the fine nuances of becoming an officer in the US military) I loved it.

I wonder where the kid got the idea of dis'ing the Pledge of Allegiance.

Now what?

If, starting in January, the US Congress is not doing the following, we should be asking, "Why the hell not?"

FREEZE AND CUT SPENDING: Congress must immediately freeze discretionary budget authority at 2010 levels; and cut at least $170 billion from the federal budget for fiscal year 2012. This is only a first step. In the past four years, Congress has approved more spending than even the bureaucrats can handle. Congress must immediately survey unobligated balances of all appropriations made in the past four years and should reclaim these unspent taxpayer funds and use them to reduce the deficit.

REPEAL OBAMACARE: Congress must immediately pass a bill that repeals Obamacare. Until Congress is able to get the President to sign a law repealing Obamacare, it must withhold funding, block key provisions and override regulations carrying out Obamacare. Only after Obamacare is rejected, can Congress undertake a careful, thoughtful legislative process to make practical adjustments that allow the free market to provide affordable, effective health care insurance choices.

STOP THE OBAMA TAX HIKES: Congress must immediately reject the Obama tax hikes, and make permanent the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, thereby helping the economy grow and create more jobs.

PROTECT AMERICA: Congress must immediately pass a budget resolution that won’t put our troops at risk or leave Americans vulnerable. It can do this by providing for defense an average of $720 billion per year (to be adjusted for inflation) for each of the next five fiscal years, in addition to the funding needed for ongoing contingency operations. Congress must make the defense budget as efficient as possible and reinvest dollars achieved from reforms in the military to offset the cost of modernizing and developing next-generation equipment.

GET CONTROL OF GOVERNMENT: Congress must immediately reestablish legislative accountability by posting complete legislation, ending earmarks, reviewing all unauthorized programs and respecting constitutional limits on government. Congress must check executive branch overreach with aggressive oversight, roll back recent government interventions, stop unnecessary administrative regulations and sunset new ones, restrict bureaucrats’ rulemaking authority and override expansive executive orders.

Mayhem

I'm a Democratic U.S. Senator up for reelection in 2012. I've just watched my state legislature go from blue to red, a Republican governor elected in my state, the Congressmen from my state's Democrat delegation and the other liberal Senator from my state lose their jobs, control of the U.S. House of Representatives go from blue to red, and Democratic control of the U.S. Senate effectively neutered. The Republican Congress sends a bill repealing Obamacare forward to the Senate for a vote. If I want to keep my job, how do I vote?

THIS is what I'm talkin' about!!!

The President of the United States, the Commander in Chief of the most powerful military in the world where those who serve die every day, the Great Uniter, and to some the new messiah has now resorted to consorting with comedians to make his case for the upcoming election. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! There is no dignity, no shame, no embarrassment. It's all about power and the willingness to do ANYTHING to obtain and retain it. What's really bad about this demonstration of idiocy is he's appearing on "The Dunce's Show" to appeal to YOUNG people. Why? Because he thinks young people are dunces and the only way to reach them is by demonstrating his own idiocy. Young or old, be embarrassed by our leadership and get out and vote. End the lunacy!
. . . I'm going to SO enjoy the Congressional investigations to come.

What if . . .

someone changed their name to an Islamic name as a joke? What would happen to that person today? Decapitation? Assassination?
Stoning? What if this person changed their name to a Jewish name as a joke? Funny? Despicable? Politically incorrect? Well, that's exactly what Caryn Johnson, an up and coming comedienne, did - changed her name to Whoopi Goldberg because she thought it would be funny. Ms. Johnson then has the gall to storm off a set because O'Reilly said "Muslims" instead of "muslim extremists". By the way, she got the name "Whoopi" from her on set nickname "whoopee cushion". Apparently she had a problem with flatulence, not to mention heroin, back in the "good 'ole days". How quickly they forget . . .

I gave this guy a ride home Sunday night.

2009 Cy Young winner, Tim Lincecum

Yep, I did - in an Airbus 330. After their 2 game series ended Sunday night in Philadelphia with a 1-1 split, I flew the San Francisco Giants home on a special charter, arriving at 4:20am Monday morning. The Phillies followed us in a Delta 747-400. The Phillies' aircraft received priority handling from Air Traffic Control in the Philadelphia area. We received the good treatment in San Francisco. It was pretty cool - except for being an all nighter. When I met the Giants' manager, I asked him "How's it going?" He said, "More importantly, how're YOU doin'?" I said, "Great!". He said, "Then so am I."