Intellectual Poison

We are heading out for a drive up to the snow for a day of fun and playing around and sledding. It'll be about a three hour drive up but that should give us plenty of time to play around in the white stuff, get a good lunch and then get home before the crazy New Year's Eve nutters get out on the road.

Of course I will have my camera with me so expect a few pics either later tonight or tomorrow.

Happy New Year to you all!

Labels: snow

After reading this Ask Metafilter question: Can I give my kids back? and the resultant storm of comments, my own included, it got me to thinking.

The poster in this case has two teenaged daughters, 17 and 13, and they are both kind of mean and nasty to her a good chunk of the time right now. She is wondering whether it is normal to have moments of hating your own children.

My answer, and many others, is that yes, its normal. It isn't normal to hate your children all the time or stay up late plotting their public humiliation and downfall but yes, there are moments when they are being such horrible, horrible creatures that hate can surface.

I know my two boys aren't spiteful or malicious, yet. I know that they are having fun when they are being terrible little buggers. But the combination of tiredness, of feeling taken for granted, of waiting on them day and night, of wiping their dirty butts and dripping noses and their hyena-like laughter after dumping an entire glass of soda on the table, chair and floor can just momentarily overwhelm you. Or me.

It doesn't make you a bad parent, it makes you human.

And, I like to think, for every bad moment there are dozens of deeply endearing and wonderful beyond awesome with ecstasy whipped cream and jubiliation cherries on top moments. Like when Grady snuggles up to me on the couch and whispers "I love you, Poppa" or when he'll bring me something I've been looking for and say "Here you go, Poppa." Or when Sully runs up to me when I pick him up at daycare and throws his arms around me, wrapping his hands around my neck and nuzzling his face into me. And he will not let go.

Raising children is an exhausting rollercoaster of emotions with soaring highs and four-drink inducing lows. And it is, without a doubt, the hardest thing I've ever done or will do.

Labels: raising children

We had a wonderful trip out to the beach this afternoon. Nande got a chance to run and run and run some more. And I got a chance to take about 150 photos of her and the boys playing in the water, which was cold as hell!

A great time and now Nande is wiped out cold on her bed.

Labels: beach, life with a dog, sunshine

Futilty belt - the belt that attempts to hold up a seriously overweight person's pants is a futility belt because, no matter how tight it is cinched, those pants are going to droop.

Why yes, I do feel a little bad about this new word but not bad enough not to share it.

More new words at the Fictionarium.

Labels: nwotd

Wow, what an excellent and exciting night of fights. No submissions and lots of knockouts!

The Mir win over Nogueira was the house favorite of the night. Frank Mir looked poised, confident and very, very dangerous.

Rashad Evans had to work for his knockout win over Forrest Griffin but when it came, he hammered Forrest and it ended quickly. A new light-heavyweight champ has been crowned and Rashad looked excellent in the fight.

The other fights on the card were also pretty good. Rampage's wicked knockout of Wanderlei Silva was impressive and it looks like Rampage may be back on the path of utterly destroying his opponents again. Scary and fun to watch.

Cheick Kongo pretty well dominated Al-Turk with his sharp striking and then finished him with heavy elbows on the ground to cut him open and get the knockout. Another impressive win.

Overall, I split on my predictions going 3 for 6 calling Rampage, Dolloway and Hamill and missing on Mir, Evans and Kongo. I wasn't too bummed about my weak record because the fights were highly entertaining and it was a good night for the UFC.

And 2009 will bring many more excellent events starting with Franklin vs. Henderson in Ireland on January 17 and Penn vs. St. Pierre on January 31.

Labels: mma, UFC, wrap-up

Let me preface this by saying that the Smart Cycle has been extremely well received by the boys. They have put many miles on it since it got put together and connected up to the TV.

But one might expect that something called Smart would, you know, actually be smart. From design to use. And the Smart Cycle comes up short in a number of areas that make me question how much use testing was done on it before it was sent to production.

Here are the Smart Cycle's stupidities in my ever-so-humble opinion:
1. Lack of memory - there is no way to save settings for multiple riders so it is, essentially, a clean slate every time you turn it off and on.
2. No AC adapter - batteries are wasteful and expensive. This seems like a no brainer.
3. The recessed seat knob adjustment - it is annoying to try and change the seat often as we have to with two different sized kids using it and the recess makes it alot more annoying.
4. The seat adjustment - there's no easy way to tell where the hole is, no clicks, no guides, no nothing, its just hit and miss, alot. Stupid.
5. The On/Off Switch Location - my younger son has decided that the power switch is part of the game and he turns the bike off regularly which means we have to do the whole stupid choose a car, choose a color and a horn again and again and again.
6. Cartridge seating - unless the cartridge is seated perfectly, which is tough for a youngster to do, the game will not work. It should be easier to get in there.
7. No resistance pedaling - this seems almost dangerous for young knees, there is literally nothing slowing down pedaling. It would be nice and smart to be able to dial up a bit of resistance on the machine.
8. Not all biking - there are several activities on the bike that don't involve pedaling at all, just the joystick and buttons. What's the point of these?
9. Its huge - our living room is now dominated by a toy bicycle tethered to our television. And there's no way we're putting a tv in the boy's room.
10. Lack of tutorials - there are few instructions, just pedal and learn how to learn as you go.

So, what's good about the Smart Cycle?
1. Kids learn to equate pedaling and exercise with playing.
2. Kids ride miles and miles without even noticing it.
3. The games require different skills and does not ding kids for not doing it right.
4. The cartridges can all be added to a keychain so they are harder to lose.

That's about all I can think of for now. I like the Smart Cycle and am really happy that we were given it by grandma but it seems like they rushed it to production without testing it out enough or they'd have realized some of the design flaws and been able to fix them. Unless they are thinking they'll do those in the 2nd generation and all the current owners will upgrade to it. That's not likely to happen in this house.

Labels: review, smart cycle

Tonight's UFC 92 The Ultimate 2008 is one of the most anticipated nights of mma fighting in the entire year. The card is STACKED!

Here are my predictions:

Main Event:
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin (16-4) vs. Rashad Evans (12-0-1)
Prediction: Tough call, Forrest is as tough as anyone but Rashad is pretty impressive. I'll go with Forrest in a decision.

Main card (Televised):
UFC Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (31-4-1) vs. Frank Mir (11-3)
Prediction: Never bet against Nogueira, the guy is like an ass kicking machine. Noqueira by TKO in Round 3.

C.B. Dollaway (7-1) vs. Mike Massenzio (11-2)
Prediction: I'd like to see C.B. start winning some fights and he's got history with Mike. C.B. by submission in Round 2.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (28-7) vs. Wanderlei Silva (32-8-1)
Prediction: Rampage has lost to Wanderlei twice in the past. I expect Rampage will be as motivated as he's ever been. Rampage by KO in Round 2.

Cheick Kongo (12-4-1) vs. Mustafa Al-Turk (6-3)
Prediction: If this fight stays standing then Cheick wins but, as it is likely to do, if it goes to the ground, he's toast. Mustafa by TKO in Round 2.

I'm not going to get too much into the undercard that won't be televised but I will call Matt Hamill vs. Reese Andy. Hamill is very powerful and has been working on his standup. I'm seeing Hamill with a TKO in Round 1.

There ya go, check back tomorrow to see how I did this time after my last not so awesome calling job.

Labels: mma, prediction, UFC

Twas the night after Christmas
And all through the house
Not a creature was sleeping
Not even a mouse

The problem you see
Was two little boys
One stuffed up and weeping
The other annoyed

All through the night
They are up and put down
Until morning comes
With, not a smile, but a frown

Today will be mellow
In fact, crying free
Because Poppa's near breaking
So there'd better not be

Two little boys who'll sleep
A nap or early bed for certain
And if they do not
Then there'll be hurtin'

I love my children
Yes, I do
But sometimes I wish
We'd gotten a cockatoo.

Labels: bad poetry

I sometimes think of the effort it takes to get Sully or Grady down for a nap to quite like a cowboy breaking in a wild horse. They fight and kick and stomp around and have a strong, strong will until that will is finally broken and they fall in line and fall asleep.

Sully can be a handful to put down until he reaches that point and then he's as sweet as can be, all snuggly and asleep.

Until he wakes up and can't find his tete (pacifier) then he does a rather impressive imitation of an ambulance siren.

Labels: raising children, sleep

Yesterday ended up being a long one, as expected, and it was filled with lots of fun interspersed with a few tot meltdowns from lack of naps, too much sugar and the occasional cousin smackdown.

We went to an aunt's house first, as is tradition now, to partake in snacks, conversation and to let as many of the little monkeys play together as possible. One of the presents that had been opened was an elephant toy that blows butterflies out of its air-filled nose so that the kids could catch them in nets. There were a whole bunch of little ones playing with great excitement and Grady jumped right in and basically jumped up and down for as long as the game was going. Sully, who'd just woken up from a nap, needed a slow warmup to the party and glommed onto me with his face buried in my neck for a good twenty minutes after we got there. But he eventually did warm up and was running around like a little howling demon with the rest of them in pretty short order.

We got to visit with relatives that my wife hadn't seen in ten or fifteen years (one of the downsides to having a far-flung family) but it was fun to meet them myself for the first time.

After a couple of hours of visiting with relatives there, we packed up and went to my wife's parent's house for some Christmas dinner and more presents. The boys got a very cool Smart Cycle from their grandma and grandpa. My wife got some doodads and knick knacks that are pretty nice. And I got some socks. Which is fine by me since I always need socks and I'd already gotten some cool stuff from my wife. Oh yes, I also got a Lightning Lab which isn't as cool as it sounds and has no volume control.

By the time we got home, it had been a non-stop nine hours of holiday fun and we were all pretty wiped out. I ended up being up later than expected because of my addiction to Skyrates. And then, this morning, was pressed into assembling the aforementioned Smart Cycle for Grady. Upon completion we realized that we had no D-cell batteries for it. Which sent me to the store when it was still icy cold outside, I had to use the butt end up of a tube of moisturizer to scrape the windows off with until the heater kicked in and cleared the rest.

It was a fun holiday and we've had a pretty mellow follow-up day for the most part. Right now we're trying to get the boys down for naps and failing. I think I'll go and help out the effort.

Update: Forgot that I wanted to note favorite gifts.
Favorite gift to my wife: Two hand carved and painted Tiki masks for her shop.
Favorite gift from my wife: A totally geeky measuring cup with crazy units of measure (6.8 billions grains of flour, one T-Rex brain, 100 penne noodles, etc.).
Favorite gift to Grady: The junior lacrosse stick set.
Favorite gift to Sully: The mini Nerf Vortex football that he can throw a spiral with and that he left at his Auntie's house.

Most annoying moment of the day: Trying to get both Grady and Sully to stand together in front of the tree, look at the camera and both smile. It was very aggravating and I was not successful.

Happy Holidays to you all!

Labels: christmas, family, presents

As I write this, my house is quiet save for the dripping of the rain outside my window. We've been getting a good amount of rain this last week but I'm ready for a few warm sunny days again, preferably during my winter break.

For the last three days, Blogger has been broken and I've been unable to publish anything which just gets enormously frustrating amid an already enormously frustrating time of the year.

This has been a "down" year for Christmas in our house in terms of volume but I think we've made a few steps forward in terms of quality of presents. And in the thought behind some of them.

My favorite gift I've given so far is a pair of hand carved and painted Tiki masks for my wife's hair salon that has a Hawaiian theme. One is a bit garish but should look cool on the wall, the other is more subtle.
My favorite gift for myself so far is a Nerf N-Strike Maverick six shooter. It was extraordinarily satisfying to unload all six suction darts on Dr. Phil's face last night.

For now, I'm going to enjoy the peace and quiet with a cup of coffee and the morning news.

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Labels: blogger, christmas, peace

You cannot turn on the news these days without hearing about this being the worst retail season since they started tracking retail spending at Christmas way back in 1969. And, as Amy notes, maybe this isn't such a bad thing. I don't agree with everything in her post or linked articles, in fact, I think the alternet quote is utter bullshit, but the idea of moving beyond the spend, spend, spend mentality is extremely laudable.

We are subjected to a non-stop barrage of retailism that even knowing it is coming only deflects some of it. The sheer volume of the marketing is unavoidable and dilutes what the holiday is really supposed to be about.

No, I'm not talking about the religiousity of it all and the birth of Jesus Christ. Sure, that's an aspect of it but, anyone who knows me, I'm not really all that interested in religiousness. Don't get me wrong, I rather enjoy some of the mythology of the holiday but I far, far prefer the sentiments underlying the religiousness. The idea of caring for those less fortunate, loving thy neighbor, opening your heart and celebrating with those you love and love you.

Too much of this season is shouted, too much of this season is getting elbowed while jockeying for the last widget on display at Target or, worse, Wal-Mart. Too much of this season isn't about the season but is an almost zombie-fied response to the marketing barrage. I look in the shopping carts of people at Target and see, literally, nothing of real value, just a ton of plastic crap that fills up the space under the tree while leaving the space in the receiver's heart empty.

I would ten times rather get one really thoughtful present than a dozen pieces of shit that mean nothing to me. It really and truly IS the thought that counts. I wouldn't say no to a Wii but that's because it would be an awesome and fun thing for my whole family to enjoy.

I'm not immune to it but I try to apply y same critical eye and thought to everything I see and hear. I loathe the commercials exhorting people to spend thousands and thousands of dollars on new cars or ridiculous watches. As if piling on debt is proof that you care about someone. If you really care about someone and want to demonstrate that tomorrow morning, then take some of your time and make them something they will love.

Enjoy your Christmas regardless. And, if you've got little ones, I hope their lit up eyes as they shred open presents fills your heart with love and joy. I know I enjoy the heck out of it and sometimes I catch myself thinking just how far my life has come. My children are a prime source of my joy (and frustration if you really want some honesty) and giving them presents at Christmas is fun for them and for me and my wife too.

Labels: christmas, crassmas, spirit

Scentimental - when a certain smell evokes a vivid memory.

I'm having a distinct sense of having coined this one already. But searches come up empty.

More new words at the Fictionarium.

Labels: nwotd

You know what would be a cool gift for a geek?

A box of chocolates shaped like a keyboard with individual chocolates for each key and a chocolate bar for the space bar.

That would be awesome.

Labels: geek, gifts

Taken at the lighting of the blue whale at the Long Marine Lab a week or two ago. These are some really neat remote controlled cars with some tech called CoolNeon making the wireframe sharks. The boys, as could be expected, went wild for them. As did pretty much every other kid.

We got there a little late and only got a few minutes of wild shouting and chasing the sharks before the owner/builder took them home. But it was good fun while it lasted even amid Grady getting accidentally knocked to the ground, he screamed for about ten seconds and then ran off to chase the sharks some more laughing loudly along the way.

Labels: remote control, Sharks, video

Yapkin - what an overly talkative person uses to clean their mouth while eating. Or, what gets shoved in someone's mouth during a kidnapping to keep them from yapping.

Head over to the Fictionarium for more.

Labels: nwotd

I officially went on winter break yesterday. Unofficially I went on winter break on Thursday because I called in sick because of an acute lack of sleep and the fact that I'm fighting a sinus infection or something that packs my head full of snot every night. It probably isn't an infection but it certainly does a bang up job of ruining my sleep.

The only thing breaking here is me.

When does life ease the fuck up and get a little easier? What can I do to facilitate the process because I'm so thoroughly sick and tired of battling through each and every day and still falling further and further behind.

I know I should look up at all the good things in my life but sometimes you just want to get right down and wallow in the filth and bitch and moan for a little while even if it does no good.

Of course, I can't be completely open and honest here because the real life repercussions would make my life suck even more. And that would be a difficult feat these days. And I'm not quite stupid enough to intentionally make myself more miserable than I already am.

But I'll probably get a rash of shit even for posting this.

Labels: break, kvetching

Flawless is how Barack Obama's campaign has been described. I don't think it was flawless, I think they left themselves open on many issues and didn't hit back hard enough on some of the smear attacks.

But yes, he did run an outstanding campaign.

And he has shown excellent judgment throughout. Which makes his selection of a complete douchebag like Rick Warren to give the inauguration prayer very peculiar. Warren has compared gays to pedophiles, he was a major backer of Prop 8 and is known as an inflammatory speaker bordering on hate speech.

I don't get it, many other people don't get it. Maybe Obama's trying to drive down the interest in his inauguration. Maybe he's offended by the thought of people paying $20,000 or more to attend it so he's tossing a little ugliness in it.

I don't know and, really, I don't care what his reasoning is. Rick Warren makes about as much sense to bring in as Fred Phelps.

It was bound to happen and it isn't like Warren was appointed to a cabinet position, he's just giving a prayer and then going back to his hateful little hole. But still, its tough to see a crack appearing in what has been an invincible armor.

Labels: bad choice, hate speech, obama

I have two more, very full busy days of work left before the school district goes on winter break. I have been running around nearly full time all day every day this week and am so ready for a break that I can't even begin to tell you.

Which is, of course, part of the reason why posting has been a little bit on the light side lately.

Too many tasks, not enough time makes Erik a rather frustrated boy. I better get some saddle time in this weekend or I might just go postal.

Labels: break, vacation

Popening - if the Pope were available for ribbon cutting ceremonies then they would be called Popenings.

As always, this and all the other new words are available for your perusal and enjoyment at the Fictionarium.

Labels: nwotd

Today's word of the day is thwarted.

As in, I was thwarted from a good night's sleep by the rain pounding on the house and some stuffed up sinuses.
Or, I was thwarted from sleeping until my alarm clock went off because Sullivan woke up extra early and was downstairs helping himself to some breakfast (he's two and a half years old).
Or, I was thwarted from a peaceful start to the day because Sully had an enormous and nasty shit in his diaper (which is why he was awake so early).
Or, I was thwarted from staying out of the rain and cold this morning because I'd forgotten to take the trash up last night though it was raining harder then).
Or, I was thwarted from feeling decent about humanity when I heard the news that the scumfucks at AIG are going to give huge executive bonuses on yours and my bailout money. But, instead of calling them bonuses, they are calling them, "retention payments", I wish I were making that up.
I am tempted to thwart the rest of my day and go back home and get back in bed.

Isn't the word of the day fun?

No, not really. I think I'll make up for it by saying squat out loud a few times.

Labels: bailout, raising children, thwarted

Alrighty, first off, props to Ryan Bader for showing some very solid stand up and knocking Vinny down and out with a partially blocked punch. Very impressive. And way more interesting than his last fight against Eliot Marshall.

Let's see how I did on my predictions from the other day. Overall, I called 5 of the 10 fight outcomes which is a failing grade. I got a couple of the means of victory correct but none of the rounds right. I did not hit it out of the park.

Let's check the scorecard and see how I did.
155 lbs.: Phillipe Nover (155) vs. Efrain Escudero (156)
Prediction: Nover by TKO in Round 2
Actual result: Escudero by unanimous decision.

Main card (Televised):
205 lbs.: Ryan Bader (205) vs. Vinicius Magalhães (205)
Prediction: Vinny by submission in Round 1.
Actual result: Bader by TKO (strikes) in Round 1.

185 lbs.: Wilson Gouveia (189) vs. Jason MacDonald (184)
Prediction: MacDonald by TKO (strikes) in Round 2.
Actual result: Gouveia by submission in Round 1.

170 lbs.: Kevin Burns (171) vs. Anthony Johnson (171)
Prediction: Who knows but its going to be good! But I'll go with Johnson by TKO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Johnson by TKO in Round 3.

155 lbs.: Junie Browning (156) vs. Dave Kaplan (156)
Prediction: Kaplan by KO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Browning by submission in Round 2.

Under card (May not be broadcast):
205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski (202) vs. Shane Primm (205)
Prediction: Krzysztof by TKO strikes in Round 1.
Actual result: Sosznski by submission in Round 2.

205 lbs.: Eliot Marshall (203) vs. Jules Bruchez (205)
Prediction: Marshall by submission in Round 2.
Actual result: Marshall by submission in Round 1.

205 lbs.: Kyle Kingsbury (205) vs. Tom Lawlor (204)
Prediction: Lawlor by TKO strikes in Round 2.
Actual result: Lawlor by unanimous decision.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson (156) vs. George Roop (153)
Result: Nelson by submission in Round 2.
Actual result: Nelson by split decision

155 lbs.: Rolando Delgado (155) vs. John Polakowski (152)
Prediction: Polakowski by TKO strikes in Round 3.
Actual result: Delgado by submission in Round 2.

The fight of the night, for me, was Escudero/Nover or Burns/Johnson. The Browning/Kaplan fight was okay but I don't think it should have gotten fight of the night honors.

Labels: mma, scorecard, TUF, UFC

Taking a cue from a list on the Guardian web site detailing their top twelve douchebags of the year, a third of whom I've never heard of, I thought I'd run down my bottom ten list of jerkoffs, wankers and wastes of space.

10. Bill O'Reilly - so self important that facts and truth cannot penetrate his veil of ignorant hate.
9. Fred Joyal - the 1800-Dentist guy. He just annoys the holy fuck out of me.
8. Rush Limbaugh - smarmy, divisive and completely divorced from honest discussion.
7. Madonna - she's a mean-spirited old cougar who divorced her husband to get together with A-Tool (Alex Rodriguez).
6. Alex Rodriguez - had to be guilted into spending Thanksgiving with his children. You sir, are a douchebag.
5. The Mormon Church - dropping millions of dollars to legislate intolerance, marriage intolerance with your own polygamist history. I hope the backlash teaches a painful lesson about what the separation of church and state is supposed to be about. That and what a boon having a non-profit status is. Jerks.
4. Tom Cruise - attempting to spin your jackassery into a PR positive is a smart move but I'm not buying it and I remain firmly of the mind that you are a complete prick. A wee little one at that.
3. Arnold Schwarzenegger - leaders lead, idiots quote their movie lines because that have nothing of real substance to say. You sir, are an idiot. And a truly shitty governor.
2. John McCain - never before have I seen a man so totally sell out everything he purports to stand for to try and weasel his way into the Oval Office. From selecting Sarah Palin to his campaign of lies, smears and detraction, he sold every last shred of respect and still failed miserably.
1. George W. Bush - a lame duck acting like a limp dick. Good riddance to a dismal failure. Obama Day cannot come soon enough to remove this jackass from power.

That should do it for now. Got a list of the bottom ten you want to share? Post it in the comments or post a link to your blog.

Labels: douchebaggery, jerks, list

via who found it via.

Awesome. And not just because my boys do the squat. But it is at least a little more awesome because saying the word squat out loud is an almost guaranteed smile and a laugh.

Labels: funny squat, sign

The finale of The Ultimate Fighter season 8 is tonight and so I thought I'd put up my predictions and thoughts.

Main event:
155 lbs.: Phillipe Nover (155) vs. Efrain Escudero (156)
Nover has got to be the favorite here. He's a very nice guy outside of the octagon but he becomes a crazed animal in it and he's got the skills to knock out pretty much anyone. I like both Phillipe and Efrain but I don't think Efrain is going to be able to withstand Phillipe's barrage.
Result: Nover by TKO in Round 2

Main card (Televised):
205 lbs.: Ryan Bader (205) vs. Vinicius Magalhães (205)
If Ryan Bader wins this match then he will be the limpest winner of TUF ever. He's got no stand up and no submissions, he's a wrestler. His fights are boring as hell. Vinny is a world champion brazilian jui jitsu. Either way, this is likely to be a quick fight without much action until Vinny submits Bader.
Result: Vinny by submission in Round 1.

185 lbs.: Wilson Gouveia (189) vs. Jason MacDonald (184)
Gouveia came in overweight and gives up 20% of his pay to MacDonald. He's already at a pyschological disadvantage and Jason MacDonald is an excellent all-round fighter.
Result: MacDonald by TKO (strikes) in Round 2.

170 lbs.: Kevin Burns (171) vs. Anthony Johnson (171)
This should be an explosive fight. Anthony Johnson is an electric fighter who has a tendency to overwhelm his opponents. Its also a rematch in which Johnson lost the first fight because of a bad call by the ref (he was given a TKO but replays showed he got poked in the eye before the onslaught that ended it).
Result: Who knows but its going to be good! But I'll go with Johnson by TKO strikes in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Junie Browning (156) vs. Dave Kaplan (156)
Junie Browning is a tool. He's got some good fighting skills but he's a complete ass of a human being. Dave Kaplan tried to show off his "iron" chin against Nover and got knocked the fuck out. I expect Kaplan to have a better game plan this time around and not give up his chin like an idiot. Maybe Junie shows something beyond his toolishness, maybe not. Either way, I expect Kaplan to knock him out.
Result: Kaplan by KO strikes in Round 2.

Under card (May not be broadcast):
205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski (202) vs. Shane Primm (205)
Result: Krzysztof by TKO strikes in Round 1.

205 lbs.: Eliot Marshall (203) vs. Jules Bruchez (205)
Result: Marshall by submission in Round 2.

205 lbs.: Kyle Kingsbury (205) vs. Tom Lawlor (204)
Lawlor is rocking the Evan Tanner memorial beard. He also came across as a funny, likable and good guy on the show. Kyle came across as kind of an asshole. Sorry, Kyle, but I think I'm going with Tom Lawlor in this one just because I like him better. (Note, I spared you all the full pic of Tom in his speedo. You're welcome.
Result: Lawlor by TKO strikes in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Shane Nelson (156) vs. George Roop (153)
Roop is a fighter with a big heart, he won a fight during the season with a broken hand but I tend to think Shane has a more complete game and will win this via submission.
Result: Nelson by submission in Round 2.

155 lbs.: Rolando Delgado (155) vs. John Polakowski (152)
Mr. Huggybear with Crazy Hair Polakowski was everyone's friend and is a genuinely nice, if slightly creepy and cloying, guy. Delgado took a rash of shit for his fifteen minute roundabout explanation of how he got his black belt in Brazilian jui jitsu but he took a hell of a fight to Junie Browning before losing.
Result: Polakowski by TKO strikes in Round 3.

Labels: mma, TUF, UFC

I think an awful lot of attention has been put on this proposed bailout of the Big 3 US automakers. There are several realities that should be kept in mind. The money the Big 3 are asking for is almost nothing compared to the already approved bailout of the financial markets, $34 billion compared to $700 billion is a drop in the bucket really. And there was far, far less complaining about bailing out Wall Street.

Which, in the light of Bernard L. Madoff's admission of a $50 billion dollar fraud, might be needing more than a little more attention. It might just need some clarity of what the bailout is doing, who its saving and where the hell our money is going and why. Madoff's fraud alone could have covered the full request from the Big 3 with enough left over to build a brand new auto industry that doesn't suck balls.

Which brings me back to the Big 3. Chrysler has been bailed out before, they didn't learn anything or change their practices and are so far in debt and, literally, have no chance of ever balancing their books. Giving them more money to keep going is like giving a bottle of alcohol to the dying homeless alcoholic, it might soften the inevitable but the body is withering and dying regardless. I say Chrysler is allowed to die the death it has earned for itself. GM is in a similar place, maybe not quite so dire but still dire enough that they are absolutely pleading for an immediate cash infusion to keep the factories running and producing vehicles that can't compete with the Japanese automakers. Let GM die too.

Ford is the only one of the three that isn't utterly desperate for an infusion. They can use the cushion in case the US economy continues its freefall but they should be able to survive on their own.

The problem is, in my admittedly neophytitic understanding, that there is just too much overhead on the Big 3 combined with, to be honest, sub-standard products. Chryslers suck, I'd never even consider buying one. GM cars are like bad copies of other company's cars. Ford makes a decent car and I have to admit that I love our Escape. It is the overhead that is annihilating these companies. I've been looking at numbers and, from what I've read, a worker at GM costs $69 an hour to employ and gets paid about $30 an hour. The same worker at a Toyota plant, in the US, costs $48 an hour to employ and gets paid the same about $30 an hour.

A company cannot compete with an inferior product and a nearly 50% higher per hour cost for workers. It is just not a viable business model and throwing more money at the problem is just a waste of money that could be better spent in training and assisting the workers at those dying companies.

Honestly, to hell with the piss-poor and arrogant management, engineers and designers. They caused this mess with their stupidity and, dammit, I don't see why they should be bailed out. If they'd been actually trying to make a better car then they wouldn't be in this mess. Calling the bailout a loan is a lie, the money will be gone forever, wasted on companies that are collapsing under their own weight, like a beached whale that can no longer survive even if it is dragged back into the ocean.

I must say, it feels odd to be in agreement with the Republicans on this issue.

Labels: bailout, free market, socialized risk

Man buys Bush library Web URL for $10, sells it for $35K because the web developers, Yuma Solutions, let it lapse. Oops. Not a bad way to make a chunk of money, Illuminati Karate.

As for the library itself (which seems ironic given Bush's distaste for intellectual pursuits), it will be themed around Bush's four core governing ideals which are freedom, opportunity, individual responsibility and compassion. But, as Rachel Maddow puts it, when translated those four core tenets become surveillance, recession, corporate welfare and exclusion.

I'm sure the Bush Library will be a GOP magnet for those seeking to worship at his disGraceland Temple but the only possible way to get me in those doors would be under heavy sedation and in desperate need of a place to piss. And even then, I'd be as likely to piss on his bronze torso as anywhere else.

My memory of the Bush legaacy will be that image of drunk Jenna Bush faux humping what looks like her sister who has a beer bottle and a cigarette in her hand up there. That and animatronic Laura Bush and Dick Cheney looking like he'd rather chop everyone else in the universe into tiny pieces rather than speak to them. I was wrong, there are plenty of memories to "cherish" and, soon enough, the entire hateful, disgusting administration will be shown the door and America can start to regain its soul under Obama/Biden.

Labels: bush, disgrace, legacy

I'm not sure if they are bargain hunters stumbling upon my Wal-Mart is Pure Evil site or, as I kind of hope, they are shoppers looking to educate themselves on the ugly business practices of the world's largest company.

But there has been a steady increase in traffic to one particular post on WIPE. It is What Every American Needs To Know and it details much of what Wal-Mart has done and continues to do that is shameful and wrong.

From a few hundred hits a day to closing in on two thousand per day.

But don't forget that the blog is also a running commentary on Wal-Mart's missteps and misdeeds kept up to date with news of lawsuits and towns repelling the invading retailer.

Here is that post again here:
Excerpted, with permission, from James Hightower,"Thieves in High Places"

The owners of one of America's premiere retail corporations is comprised of five of the ten richest people in the world, all from the same family.

Their personal wealth eclipses $100 BILLION dollars. Last year the company's CEO was paid a cool $11.5 million, more than the annual salaries of 765 of his employees combined! The company's profits are over $7 BILLION annually.

In these difficult economic times how do they do it?

* This company runs ads featuring the United States flag and proclaims "We Buy American". In 2001 they moved their worldwide purchasing headquarters to China and are the largest importer of Chinese goods in the US, purchasing over $10 BILLION of Chinese-made products annually. Products made mostly by women and children working in the labor hell-holes China is famous for.
* Their average employee working in the US makes $15,000 a year, $7.22 per hour!
* These employees gross under $11,000 a year.
* The company brags that 70% of their employees are full time, but fails to disclose that they count anyone working 28 hours a week or more as full time.
* There are no health care benefits unless you have worked for the company for two years.
* With a turnover rate averaging above 50% per year, only 38% of their 1.3 million employees have health care coverage. -In California alone it's estimated that the taxpayers pay over $20 million annually to subsidize health care benefits for these employees who get none from this behemoth corporation.
* According to a report by PBS's "Now" with Bill Moyer, their managers are trained in what government social programs are available for these"employees" to take advantage of so that the company can pass on those costs to you and me. It allows them to not only keep their $7 BILLION in annual profits, but to do so by substituting benefits they refuse to provide with benefits paid for with taxpayer dollars.
* This company holds the record for the most suits filed against it by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. A lawyer from "Business Week" (not exactly the bastion for supporting Labor) said, "I have never seen this kind of blatant disregard for the law." They had to pay $750,000.00 in Arizona for blatant discrimination against the disabled! The judge was so incensed that he also order them to run commercials admitting their guilt.
* The National Labor Relations Board has issued over 40 formal complaints against the corporation in 25 different states in just the past five years. The NLRB's top lawyer believed that their labor violations, such as Illegal spying on employees, fraudulent record keeping, falsifying time cards to avoid paying overtime, threats, illegal firings for union organizing etc., were so widespread that he was looking into filing a very rare national complaint against the company. (The company contributed $2,159,330.00 to GW Bush and the GOP in 2000 and 2002. The NLRB attorney was replaced when President Bush took office.).
* Nearly 1 MILLION women are involved in the largest class-action suit every filed against a corporation. Although women make up over 65% of this corporations work force only 10% of them are manager