Dallas Cowboys

How about them Cowboys?

Ask Jerry Jones. Then ask the sad sack head coach that wanders the sidelines like a lost Santa Claus, Wade Phillips. He waddles back and forth and seems lost in space from my viewpoint. He rarely wears his headset and probably wonders what the voices mean when he does. Does he carry a piece of paper around with him that looks like it might have the roster of players on it? Maybe in his pocket?

I don’t get it. Wake up Jerry! Your head coach has red hair and is calling the  game, why not admit it? Get off the field and let your team play the game. Your special teams coordinator runs up and down the sideline and coaches his guys the best he can. Is Wade thinking about a ham and cheese sandwich he left in the locker room?

The game the Cowboys just lost to the Arizona Cardinals was a pathetic display of poor coaching. It happened against Washington and it will happen again if Jason Garrett isn’t promoted to position of head coach. Wade can make Gatorade and hand out towels if the thought enters his mind. The old guy doesn’t seem to have the reins in hand.

The Dallas Cowboys have the talent to win a Super Bowl but don’t have a head coach to lead them. Bill Cowher would be a kickass head coach for the Cowboys and needs the job. Any coach that can inspire would be a good choice for me. He is a cocky little guy that will stand toe to toe with those super stars and put them in their place. Santa doesn’t put the same fire into them The Tuna did.
I would love to hear the NFL Network’s opinion concerning the manner.

How unprepared can they be for other games that should be smackdowns? Fumbles, sacks and penalties are killing them and they are playing as if they have no will to win. The only time I see them fired up is when there is a sense of urgency. They should play all 60 minutes with urgency.

Folk can hit a 55 yard field goal dead center but anything in the 30-40 yard range is in danger. The missed field goal was the game.

What is the offensive line coach doing during game time? Listening to the same Lawrence Welk Muzak on his headphones that Wade does? He must because Romo is eating dirt every play. Aikman and Staubach had too many concussions and Danny White suffered a few as well. Do ya wanna go a round of deja vu?

Jerry, get the kindly old timer off the field and put the red haired guy up front. He knows what is going on during the game. You used to pay him to ride the pine, pay him to run your team.

Signed,
A fan who has been a fan of the Boys for 41 years and can’t watch it fall apart further.

Blacks for McCain?

Mow the Lawn

I have been mowing lawns of some sort ever since I was 13 years old. As with any family with siblings there are chore assignments. I have done all of them but my father saw to it that my main chores were taking out the trash and lawn care. My younger brother came along and relieved me of the trash detail before we moved across the country.

We lived in a typical 1960s housing development – the lots were typically 1/4 acre and the lawn needed mowing once a week. Mowers in those days were basic 3.5hp Briggs and Stratton push mowers with side discharge. The bag and it’s hanger came along with it but gathered dust. My father insisted on perfection as far as the sidewalk and driveway so he also acquired a 3hp gas powered edger so that it looked like the military bases he was stationed at. Those were the implements of my chores. String trimmers weren’t in vogue for some time so if any trimming was needed my father got out his trusty hand trimmers and found one of my sisters. I got on my father’s good side with my use of the mower and edger and the only comment I would want to hear would be “good job”. No comment was fine as that meant the same.
While growing older – how did I get to be 50 this fast?!! – I learned too much about turf. I was interested in a Lawn Doctor franchise, one half of my life ago, and like any business had to learn how it all worked. I learned about fertilizers, molds, grubs, weed control and sales. One summer of fertilizing and mowing yards along with “in the field” upkeep of the machinery curtailed that interest though I have kept it with me all of these years, I can still grow a nice lawn. I don’t care much for high mantenance shrubbery and let someone else trim that. I think she likes it.

My present canvas is 1/2 acre of zoysia grass. It looks like hay from October through May but is the most resilient I have encountered as far as drought or weeds. It needs little care other than rain and will choke out weeds or other grasses that try to grow in it. Crabgrass? Maybe some along the driveway in the spring but it is short lived. Dandelions will grow in anything and a few get their chance before May. After that I don’t see them. Two “weeds” that can cut it is clover and wild onions. The clover is alright as the bunnies eat it and I like seeing them around. Wild onions look like a few spikes poking out of the ground, who cares?

A real “treat” is mowing zoysia. I used to run around behind self propelled mowers in my 30s and bagged the clippings. I would have a stern talking with myself these days about that stupidity. Even though they had 5-7hp engines it was backbreaking work. My rationale was it was good exercise.
I went through 3 good mowers; that should have been some message.

I now ride around on a 20yr old John Deere 175. It was used and free so I didn’t eat the $$$K price tag but never realized how expensive the upkeep is when that name is involved. I might as well mow with a Porsche. The push/self propelled mowers in my past were easy. Change the oil, spark plugs and air filter. Voila!

With the John Deere comes hydrostatic drive; tres cool, pressurized oil system with spin on filter, headlights and most important, a battery. Along with that battery comes a cursed electrical system that rivals the old Lucas systems used in British cars such as the MG or Jaguar. Why the engineers at JD jumped through hoops to make something so difficult is stupefying. I have replaced the battery 3 times since I have had the thing. I got it with the original green JD battery and have been putting cheap Auto Zone units into it. It needs another now. So much for Auto Zone batteries. I tried one in my truck years ago and faced the same problem. Go to WALMART for a good car battery. I think I am going there for my mower battery after this next free replacement dies.

Something to be said about the JD monstrosity is it plows down grass faster than walking behind it. I get into varying the mowing directions from diagonal, vertical, horizontal and even cicular. Circular is a new one and best suited to the huge back lawn. Hitting it once a week is best for negative clippings and I keep the blade at maximum height to let the grass grow. She scalped it a few times and brought upon the need of attention to the blades. Something I have noticed from watching my neighbors on their Sears, Murry or MTD mowers is the JD is a beast. It will let you know when you get in over your head trying to be fancy with it as It is heavy and you better know when and how to stop it when needed or you will fuck up and hit something or hurt yourself. I haven’t gone through anything yet but I have had my leg pinned against a tree and knocked a neighbor’s shed pretty good.

If I was to put the bucks down on a new rider I would look at Bad Boy mowers. I don’t like the complicated crap on the market these days and their smallest one fits my bill.

Make them simple and tough, it’s only a lawn mower. They don’t require bluetooth technology, iPod capability with weatherproof speakers or stringent EPA exhaust standards. Mow the lawn.

Are Veterinarians Exempt from Malpractice?

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I have an 11 year old American Staffordshire terrier who has led a charmed life. I have given him anything my little heart desired. He has been to Atlantic City, NJ, Ocean City, MD, Assateague, VA and the Chesapeake Bay to play in the surf. Add to that – weekly trips to the Potomac River at Ft Washington, MD as well as several swimming holes within 150 mile radius of my home in Camp Springs. The boy could swim for 8 hours at at a clip. He knows the word “burger” well as that was quick food when out on the road.
In short, I have spent a lot of time with my dog. I am disabled and he is my companion dog. Everyone, including my family, always referred to us as Mike and Buster. The best thing I could ever recommend to a disabled person is to get a dog as a companion.
I saw him a week after he was born and had pick of the litter. No human is as close to me as my dog.

My quandary at this point…Buster has always been in good health, gets his vaccines and takes his heartworm medicine monthly and eats Iams Natural. He scratched his eye this spring with his dewlap as his eyes always react to pollen as a humans’. I didn’t like the way it looked so a month ago I took him to the big name vet down the road – he knows the place and the staff all know him. He was seen by a young vet we have never encountered there who wanted to look at his eye – yeah, he was tired of me doing so – so it was a trial. She surmised it was a scratch and I paid $200 and walked out with some eye ointment and Cephalexin capsules he was to take orally twice a day. As I was given the medicine the technician saw something on the labeling that wasn’t right with her and had it changed. His dosage was 750mg twice daily – for a 62 pound dog.
Buster will swallow medicine without a fight – it has always been place it on the floor and he will eat it. What a dream. I gave him this for a while and didn’t like the dosage or length of time. He seemed to be a bit lethargic as well.
I am not a stranger to toxicity from antibiotics as I suffered ototoxicity due to Gentimicin in fall of 2002 at the “capable” hands of the head of the Neurological Dept at Johns Hopkins University. I suffer from bi-polar vestibular damage. Vestibular death as far as I am concerned.
I took part in poisoning my dog to the point of ototoxicity because I trusted the veterinarian. I questioned the dosage but it all seemed fine with them.
Buster can no longer hear me call his name. It happened as suddenly as it did to me. I can hear but suffer tinnitus 24/7. He often shakes his head so I can only guess at what he is experiencing. His breathing has changed and he is not as stable on his rear legs.

This was only a month ago and I am livid. My dog had the sharpest hearing i can remember with most dogs. Being my companion, he would often keep one ear trained on me and used the other as a radar to find the source of other sounds. I felt special in that regard. Now they lay flat for the most part – he only pricks them up if I stand or make a hand gesture.
Something truly upsetting to me is he whines on occasion as if lost or confused, something he never did in the past – ever.

Several people have noticed this sudden change. I only came to learn of what the cause of it is today when I looked up Cephalexin and its possible side effects.
As I stated, I am no stranger to ototoxicity. I suffered from it first hand and I know how quickly it can affect the ears.

What I want to really know…

Is my dog’s veterinarian guilty of medical malpractice? Are veterinarians accountable for the pain they cause to one who has had an animal suffer at their hands?

Robert Jordan and his legion of followers

I have been an avid fan of science-fiction of the fantasy genre for longer than I remember. I took the Hobbit and the 3 Lord of the Rings books home from my high school library and still have a few of them, cards and all, over 30 years later. In the very early 1990s I was employed at a government facility monitoring data on midnight shifts and needed something to occupy my mind so that I wouldn’t fall asleep as my co-workers did. I went through a plethora of novels from the library and by chance saw the cover of “The Great Hunt” which piqued my interest. I opened the book to the first few pages to find out more of what the book might be about. It was published by TOR (Bytor?) a company I had come to know as a house for sci-fi writers and learned this was the second of two. I picked up the first, “The Eye of the World”, as well and checked them both out.
I finished these off in a week and thought them to be good writing with a lot of page turning action. The plots and interpersonal relations were good but these books are in the 500-600 page range. Whew! It seemed that a new book in the series was being published every year or so – an average guess – and I have procured them all to date, most first publishing hardbacks. I’ve read them several times.
This tale, also known as the “Wheel of Time”(WOT), seemed to have a huge following though I knew no one that read them. I came to the conclusion that it was a crowd 15 years younger than myself as that is who I saw buying the books. It seems very few people in my age group read sci-fi if they read at all. Stupid yuppies. My 11 year old nephew is into them now.
Once the internet became a common meeting place of those that share like interests, years ago, I looked around for any having to do with the series as it had grown to 5-6 books and hopefully coming to a conclusion. After a few years I found a few sites inhabited by fans that were seemingly role playing and hung up in the world of the books rather than reality. No book has ever done that to me as it is entertainment and not a script for my life.
The WOT series began to drag on as if there was no end in sight. I entertained the thought that TOR wanted Jordan to stretch this saga on to that of an endless daytime soap opera.
I was reminded of reading “Casca, the Eternal Mercenary” written by Barry Sadler(of Green Beret fame). That series is endless and mindless as it went past the mid teen releases of those short pocket novels when Sadler died. I quit reading those long before I got to the 10th release and Sadler was gone at that point so I gave in. I understand another author has taken up the torch and is running with it. Please finish it.

The WOT series seemed to be written by another hand for a few books until a novel entitled “A New Spring” came about. It had the older Jordan touch and IMO should have been the first book in the series. This was considered a supplementary novel to add to the story; why, I will never know. I almost passed it over. I stayed with the series as the writing was good though though I almost gave it up when it became a tale of women bickering over trivial matters. The last two came out and they seemed to have some of the feel of the first three.

Jordan admitted to having a debilitating blood disorder know as amyloidosis a couple of years back. I feel he has suffered from this much longer and the quality of his eternal saga is proof.
During the slow times I read the entire “Left Behind” series by Tim LaHaye – why not mix a little spiritual sci-fi in with it? I came across two marvelous compilations of novels; “The Deed of Paksenarion” by Elizabeth Moon and “Double Exposure” by Piers Anthony. The “Alvin Maker” series by Orson Scottt Card is great. I found the novel “Ringworld ” by Larry Niven and that was great though I didn’t read the 2nd book as it wasn’t needed. I reread Phillip Jose Farmer’s initial “River World” series. I couldn’t find myself cracking open a Harry Potter” book. George Lucas and Peter Jackson each made three highly acclaimed films during this time and I read the bible. I recorded a bunch of music.

Robert (James Rigley) Jordan died a couple of days ago and left his near 20 year old tale unfinished as did Sadler. I am glad I read what I did because the series was good enough to have me believing I was in the story at times but the 600 page installments that detailed garments, wine and cheese grew on me. The last installment is reportedly due for 1000 pages!! Was an ending ever planned?

My condolences to his family – he was an artist that captured the imagination of more than mine.

I’m curious who will pick up this torch and what is to become of all of the fans that call themselves Aes Sedai, Warder, Aiel and Ogier.

Are you tired of being POLITICALLY CORRECT?

Patience, civility, understanding and following the “Golden Rule” is all that is really necessary for mankind to exist. Following a set template of “right, wrong and do the right thing” is quite obtuse to that. Change is needed for any advancement in any society but the mindset of being “Politically Correct” is nearly insane.
Retitling all of the supposedly “offensive” names of anything and everything so that we all feel good in a homogeneous society of “Warm and Fuzzy” cripples the psyche in as much as we will never know what is not “Warm and Fuzzy”.

If a dog never gets into a row with another dog he/she hasn’t lived a dog’s life.
“What does that NONSENSE mean?”
That row might not have been more than a quick scuffle and wrestling match but, that dog had contact with another of its kind and in a manner that befits their species. The dog will have grown by that contact and will actually have dreams about it. Dogs don’t shake hands and chat – they like to run and wrestle about.

Where am I getting my crazy info? I am a scientist of my own world. We can all be if we take the time to do so.
If you have ever spent much time with your dogs over some years and were truly observant of mannerisms you would know your dog. Why do little dogs that are tossed around by a larger one get up and charge back? First and foremost, dogs are highly social and enjoy the company of another dog. Left to their own they behave as children. I have seen lines of dogs trotting around my neighborhood just checking things out. My dog would run over me for the opportunity to run around with them.
The point? Dogs work out their problems by being the open and honest beings that they are. Sure, they may snap at each other or get rolled by one larger but, it is the definition of the pack. There is no room for 12 alpha dogs in a pack.

We humans have not learned to assert this into our own lives. Though we would never admit so, we each believe we are all alpha and others are below us. One problem is that we don’t have the opportunity to get into a row with those that oppose us. No, we are “civilized”. We have come to rely on others that we raise to alpha status – and shouldn’t be – to guide us as a true alpha being of a species would. The old cliche “the blind leading the blind is frightening when it is truth.

There has been a social push in the past 30 years of this country’s history that echoes of the ideals of communism. The number one goal in a socialism/communist regime is to eliminate the class system. Make everyone homogeneous and held at bay by a ruling party that treats one and all as a CITIZEN rather than a fellow human being.
Bizarre concept? Consider the fact that the middle class of this nation has almost disappeared. That which passes off as the middle class in this day and age is actually what used to be the upper middle class. The word POVERTY is used very little unless describing the homeless or those on welfare and living in inner-city apartments. Poverty has claimed a lot of America in hidden ways.
Most of America is firmly entrenched in debt due to credit cards, their fancy cars or their overpriced houses and all of the fixings that go with it. America’s cash flow is basically from employer to those that hold the debtor’s tab.

Along with this ability to be in debt came the naming of politically correct terms for all races of mankind in the workplace and in the world of commerce. Come one, Come all! People are qualified for loans that far surpass their means for the reason of political correctness. They cannot be turned away or it is a civil crime and politically incorrect.

What gives?

I have no concept of what society is any longer as we have no time for ourselves, let alone another. Hurry, hurry, hurry and road rage is the preferred style of driving. America is obese – that means FAT - due to our diets.
FAT would actually be weight challenged or some such crap.
People are no longer black, white, brown or yellow as titles have been assigned to some that have never been to the country with which they are tied to.

Children no longer flunk grades in school because it may impune their mental well being.

Tough shit! Pay attention.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY?!

I have been to numerous fireworks shows – my father used to moonlight for good cash and do those shows while he was in the military. The best one I ever remember seeing was in the 1960s. We lived in Libya and the shows were shot off over the Mediterranean sea while all of those watching were on blankets, towels or whatever on the beach. He did them everywhere we lived and I learned the technical side; basically cool for an adolescent military brat.

Second to that was the time I went to the Mall in DC and had a day of wall to wall people. Like Mardi Gras, I suggest it for the young and all should attend once. I went in the 1980s – my girlfriend’s parents even dragged me downtown for Reagan’s second inauguration back then. I guess you gotta do it all if you live here. What!?? You don’t like CRABS!!!

I got to see the Beach Boys perform a full concert way back in time. The fireworks were the icing on the cake after checking out the . Back in the days before the WWII memorial (like there are not enough memorials on the mall) displaced the beauty of the Mall the works were shot up over the reflecting pool and that was the place to be. The show took place directly overhead and the little silver and gold sparkling embers fluttered down to the point you could almost touch them.
I’ve had a seat on a rooftop of a 10-story building a dozen blocks away as well as watching them from across the Potomac river near Arlington memorial cemetery – underneath is the best.

I’ve gotten into watching the annual Maryland public television program “A Capitol 4th” over the past few years. I enjoy seeing the entertainment on the west lawn of the capitol building that I would never have a chance to see otherwise. The National Symphony Orchestra is a staple and is one of the best, in my opinion.

I don’t know about the rest of my fellow citizens but, I get a warm fuzzy feeling when I hear Patriotic standard tunes such as “Stars and Stripes Forever”, “God Bless America”, “America the Beautiful”, “National Anthem” and a dozen more when played by by a full symphony orchestra such as the NSO.
I hear and feel the emotion behind the words and musical notes and it takes me away from present day America.

What do I mean?!

I don’t know how anyone in their sane minds can feel any patriotism for the sorry excuse of a government that WE,THE PEOPLE vote into the White House, senate and congress. This has to be the low point of American government for the ages.

Tomorrow, all of the “4th of July” magic will be gone save for the fact it is a 5 day weekend for most federal employees and the rest of America that will continue to swill beer until Sunday night.

When did WE, THE PEOPLE decide that we couldn’t have our own simple fireworks – firecrackers and bottle rockets – for this holiday??! This is but one freedom lost to the political machine with the assistance of lawyers. What else is to follow? I can count a few already.

Does anyone feel that patriotic magic at any other time of the year? It’s not like our over-commercialized fake Christmas season that goes on for 60 days. The majority of you get more worked up about that than being Americans as it is. Christmas starts the day after Halloween and ends January 1 = 60 days. The majority of people that take part in all of the festivities are not Christians. They may claim to be but, it is merely a part of our society that has become a festive custom with no thought of who. what when, where or why. Show me in any bible where it is written that Christmas is to be an observed “HOLY DAY” and I will look further and write about it. It was against the law to celebrate the holiday in this country at one point.
Cards, present, decorations, special clothes and parties…that’s Christmas. Most know the words to several carols but can’t recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

I pledge allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America,
and to the Republic for which it stands:
one Nation under God, indivisible,
With Liberty and Justice for all.

The latest assault on our patriotic heritage is the want to remove the two words “under GOD” from this pledge of patriotism as some think it is against their better judgment. The ACLU has been taking an active part in this move to erode a very wee part of America – a part that most people have no contact with to begin with. The following is Eisenhower’s words when changing the wording …

“In this way we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful resource in peace and war.”

If we read of very early American history, the reason so many Europeans to made the trip is in these words.

Those that want to change it are the same people that worry about the Political Correctness of our very lives. Get off of it folks – read The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution instead. Base your “feelings” – where feelings come into play, I dunno – upon the written word the government of this country is based. There is no crying in baseball and there is no allowance to tear down the fabric of this country on behalf of PC either.

As for the Republican weenies that are trying to push “Truth, Justice and the American Way” onto the rest of the world – unconstitutionally – be ready to tumble. I certainly hope and pray that my fellow countrymen are learning to put down their TV remotes and beer so that they may re-educate themselves about the political process. Get your friends and family registered to vote and let’s get this train back on its tracks.

If you were born in this country and are at least 35 years of age you are eligible to run for president of the USA. If the selection we have to pick from is the very best and brightest this country has to offer we are, quite frankly, FUCKED.
The two party system is ineffective and the results of such can be seen by the “war” we are five hundred billion dollars in debt to.
WE, THE PEOPLE have to vote at every election so that the old wood is lost and new minds can start to legislate. There are far too many professional politicians on Capitol hill with tenures of 20 years or more. And doing what?? Google congress or the senate and look at the years of the individual’s tenure.

My favorite presidential candidate to point out is Ron Paul from TX. He is an old goat; where has he been with all of his political genius for the past 30 years?? He is now the tool of the internet crowd that have as much of a clue as he does. This guy is their political saviour?

I have come to learn that the more one is detested for no reasons, the more they are a threat to the status quo. The status quo is dangerous in two respects as it can be the same old bald tire about to go flat in one sense or the knife that is slicing away the prime cuts and leaving nothing but bone in another. Either way, it is a system that is wholly inefficient.

Back to the main point…will you feel the same about your country in two months as you did today when you watched the fireworks?
If no, why?

Think of how a child stares in wonderment of a fireworks display and has no idea at all why it is there. He has yet to learn why he lives in a cornucopia which the rest of the world desires; in some regards. At least he was free to watch the fireworks and hopefully went home with his parents to sleep in a nice bed.

Global warming…Myth, Reality or Scare Tactic?

All of the above.

The earth’s weather is cyclic. There is no ideal model on which to base and project from; especially given the fact that modern data records of any arguable scientific consistency are less than a century old.

The argument may start there as a lot of people will point and say daily temperatures and precipitation have been documented for 2 centuries. That may be so but, I stated “ideal model and modern data records of scientific consistency.” Before the “scientists” of the world begin to predict gloom and doom upon us a true model of the standards of global weather patterns has to be established as a baseline. This is more than political fare, folks. If we are facing global catastrophes in the near future due to “man vs earth” and the affects on weather patterns, it deserves a bit more than AL GORE – inventor of the internet – and his stump thumping. It might sell plastic wrist bracelets to the puberty crowd but – HEY, that’s more plastic to pollute the earth!!!

I searched around for some data on the internet – IT MUST BE TRUE! – and found this seemingly official site from NASA – http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/graphs/
This was basically what I was looking for; the earth’s temperature has skyrocketed out of control according to this grouping of charts. NOT!
Is the earth’s temperature truly out of control or is it closer to those temperatures that we may associate with the late Paleozoic era, specifically the Carboniferous period, when the earth’s temperature was most conducive to plant life?

The weather patterns on our world will never be eternally consistent and to believe otherwise is foolish. Why did the earth undergo an “ice age” whose aftermath we are seemingly in the dangerous peril of escaping?
Victorian literature, as well as our very own 18th and 19th century American literature, are full of harsh winters with extensive snowfalls, frozen lakes, ponds and rivers and very mild summers.
Remember the old line from the movie “A Christmas Story” – “You’ll shoot your eye out!”?”
The entirety of the USA seemed to have those levels of winters. “I’m dreaming of a White Christmas” wasn’t written in the last decade.
The winter of 2006-07 in the DC are was rather mild until the end of January and into February. I was wearing shorts and t-shirts on Christmas day. The air temperature of this spring has been below average, sometimes cooler than those days in December. Warming? No, it is natural changes in weather patterns.
I figure the love of impending gloom is the sought after thrill ride of those that want to keep at it all of the time. Look into doing something to support your worries! Push for solar energy like it has never been before. That is a truly renewable energy source that is free of emissions. Push your elected officials for research funding. They will fund any other “Global Warming” band aid that is pushed upon them.

The fuel crisis we are seemingly experiencing is a spin off of the 1970s version. The twist?
In the 1970s the oil companies had the gas but didn’t want to sell it at 60 cents a gallon. The result? A “shortage” and lines we would wait in for hours to fill our tanks. Gas lines are something that today’s society could not work with. Those of us that remember know this to be true and so do the oil companies.
Instead? Gasoline has climbed in price so that it is now $3 gallon and will most likely remain so forever; barring the possibility we start receiving steady lines of oil tankers of free crude oil from the middle east.

An alternative to the massive gasoline consumption that we, as a nation, give no thought to is downsizing our vehicles. I live in the Washington, DC metro area and rush hour means “parking lot”. The really maddening part of it is observing the sheer amount of over sized SUV s with a lone occupant.
I remember when fuel mileage was a part of one’s decision of purchasing an automobile. In today’s America, mileage is not a thought until paying for gas at the pump. Even then, the driver merely gripes about how much it set him/her back to pay for ¼ tank of gas.
Vanity takes over at the dealership and the bigger the motor, the better -a giant 4×4 SUV is the profile that gets one noticed. I am amazed by the show “Unique Whips” on Speed channel and the behemoth vehicles their customers bring to them. If a giant 4 door 4wd Ford Expedition with gigantic wheels is THE THING to drive, who am I to judge?
I remember when the first HUMMERS hit the street in civilian form. They are now pared down to a Blazer chassis with the HUMMER JR body.

I remember VW beetles of the 60s and 70s. My nephew has one. That was a gas mileage machine. My father owned a 1971 Toyota Corolla that I drove quite a lot; I probably put most of the mileage on it. It got 30 mpg to the point I could calculate when to worry about filling up. My 1966 Chevy Belair had a 283 ci engine and got respectable mileage. A car I want to see in this country is the http://www.smartusa.com

They are in the big cities of Europe, where petrol is $5-$6 gallon. I think they make far more sense in the commuting world than the latest “275 hp Asian car company rocket of the month”. 275 hp is worthless when commuting and burns a lot of gas while doing so.
I would like to test drive a  smart car and perhaps buy it. The existing American point of view that deems little cars are unsafe doesn’t hold so with me. I have driven small cars as well as a pickup all of my driving life.

I still can’t get over the Chicken Little POV of “The sky is falling, the sky is falling!” that has taken over the minds of those who should know better.
Global Worming; it’s a buzz word that infects people, much like a virus does a computer, and takes over their mindset to the point they recite it over and over and not really cognizant of the fact.

The Man of Steel

I watched the movie “Superman Returns” last night and what a great piece of cinema. I watched the Disney film “Sky High” the night before and was fully entertained by a flick that has no need for gratuitous sex scenes for kids to wonder about.
The new Superman wins easily as it picked up the droll tale that was spinning along year after year. The first big save was brilliant and left me laughing and clapping all along. That was a real Superman feat that makes Superman fun.

One thing I had a problem with was the conversational context of the father to son relationship. It was as derived from the new testament of the Bible and eerie at times. If one is familiar with Bible content it is quite evident. Whether this was done on purpose or not I have no idea but I thought about it.

Other than that, I had no problems with any of the flick at all as Superman still stands for truth, justice and the American way even if it is another set of actors that portray the roles. I could do without Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane but Brandon Routh is a good superman.

Open letter to Al Gore….

Dear AL,

What agenda are you trying to prove with your wild allegations of GLOBAL WARMING? It is quite the buzzword that politicians are attaching to their political platforms and people listen because it is the latest and greatest imaginary FEAR FACTOR. Are you merely trying to gain your way back into the public eye or do you really think you have what a fisherman may refer to as “THE BIG ONE” on the line? I think you have a “CATCH and RELEASE” license, big guy, as you are actually serving part in raising the price of gasoline – over $3 gallon today in the DC metro area and most likely not coming down.
That corn alcohol fuel additive your ilk is so favorable of actually lowers fuel mileage, as does the oxygenated gasoline we find at our pumps in the fall and winter months. Do the math with me on this one…if a car gets 20 mpg with the unadulterated 87 octane gasoline and the mileage drops to 18 mpg with either the oxygenated or corn blend, what is really happening?
Can’t answer? I didn’t think so. That change in the fuel mixture is causing the engine to dump more emissions into the air as it is not as efficient as it was before the fuel mixture was altered.

I have a better goal for you; far better. Our television and radio airwaves are constantly bombarded with commercials for trucks, trucks and more trucks with more torque and horsepower than the other model. This means the engines are larger, use more gas and emit more pollutants into the air.
The answer to this is to downsize our vehicles as the manufacturers did in the early 1970s so that we will, once again, have smaller autos in this country that are fuel efficient and using less gasoline thus, less crude oil.
The beauty of this is the start of these vehicles already exist!!
Yes, Daimler-Benz manufactures what is know as the SMART car; currently in Europe and should be here in the USA driven by commuters that sit in hour(s) long traffic jams on a regular basis in most metropolitan areas such as DC, NYC, Philly, Boston and LA.
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/smart-car.htm

I can imagine the EPA wants to slap some emission equipment on it which equals federal taxes. If someone can explain to me why a vehicle that can get 40-50 mpg needs emission equipment, in a sensible manner, I may believe it. I think 40-50 mpg is emission controls.

As far as global warming, I live in the DC metro area and I see no proof of it. Sure we had a late winter but, the local weather mouths on television are going on about how cool of a spring we are in. It has been this way for the past 5 years.

Mr. Gore,
I have lived in MD for 30 years. I have seen a change in weather patterns but nothing that could be classified as “GLOBAL WARMING”. In the infinite hours, days, months and years spent researching your global catastrophe did you ever think there may be a slight chance that the weather patterns of the world may change or did your research predict the weather was a constant from alpha to omega? Most of all GLOBAL WARMING models that these studies are based on are 2-3 centuries at the most. You nor I could be seen from a commercial airliner at a cruising altitude of 35K ft unless a sensor’s lens was configured to do so as the craft flew overhead at 500 mph. We are but specks of dust on this rock; one century’s weather seasons out of most likely millions is as a single fire ant from a nest of them.

I saw the Potomac frozen over like a bridge in 1978. I remember times when it was so cold the marinas would freeze and spit the boats out of the water and up onto the ice until it thawed. I remember summers of years past that had months of consecutive 100 degree days. Not any longer.
I don’t know where the polar caps are in dire straits and Canada is solid ice near the pole.
Picture yourself in a typical 20′x40′ backyard swimming pool. If someone slid two 500 lb blocks of ice in each end simultaneously would it be catastrophic? That would be 1/2 ton of ice – frozen water – the same as ten 100 lb people joining you; would the pool overflow? No.

Cease trying to scare everyone with rising tides that claims beaches. One of the hurricanes that blow by the east coast does that by itself. Flooding suggested by global warming is equivalent to 1/2 again the volume of water already on the earth’s surface being dumped in the seas. There isn’t that much ice on the planet.

As far as hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide; I suggest YOU pay YOUR friends at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue a visit and come to an agreement about the future of photo-voltaic energy. If, as your think tank suggests, we are supposedly burning alive under the sun, we may as well push on for the development of harnessing that energy in a far more efficient manner than what is at present.

One of the truly unfruitful dilemmas the world faces is clearing land for the sake of clearing land. Leave the trees. I have no idea of the true figures of the Amazon rain forest that has been leveled but more locations than that are being leveled because we can. A copse of trees in any locale is far better than flat land or lawn. People should be educated in that manner and not with impending doom.

Air pollution is inevitable unless we are to close shop and camp out without any of what we take for granted today. Then again, solar energy could eliminate a lot of it.