Wednesday, July 20, 2005

Just Checkin' In..............

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Still technically on a semi-hiatus around here, summertime and all. My home computer has officially crapped the bed so I have even less places to post online. I'm thinking of switching to a laptop, and I do get a decent discount from Dell at work so that may be my next step. If anyone has any suggestions/recommendations on Dell Laptops please drop me a line in the comments, any help is appreciated.


There's been some good news/bad news from our Tennessee Titans in the last couple of weeks as the offseason winds down and one can begin to count hours until opening day (which for you Sportsfans is Thursday, September 8th- Oakland at New England).

The bad news first: The Titans #1 Draft Pick, Adam "Pacman" Jones, has begun to display the talents and abilities of an NFL player that would make the Oakland Raiders proud. The problem is he's playing in Tennessee. The bigger problem is that the Titans have been trying to shake the bad boy image that has plagued them over the last couple of years, with a grand total of five different Titans having to spend a day or two in the courtroom on the wrong side of the bench. Pacman is young, so this isn't too unexpected, and from the sounds of things, it appears to have been a relatively minor incident. But still, christ fellas- stay the hell out of jail, is that so hard? You have your millions, get someone else to drive.

The Good news: TRAVIS FREAKING HENRY!!! I'm not quite sure how Floyd Reese pulled this one off, but the thoroughly underrated running back from Buffalo is now a Titan, and we just seriously upgraded the backfield with a powerful one-two combination between Chris Brown and Henry. Brown has yet to show he can stay healthy for a full season, but I still predict that he will one day be a pro-bowler. Having Henry is nothing but good news. Just make sure he stays out of jail.


On to politics- John Roberts is your new Supreme Court nominee. Fin asked me earlier what I think about him, and frankly I haven't read enough to say. From what I have read he sounds primarily conservative, no big surprise there. Of course the central rallying cry for/against his confirmation will be his stance towards abortion rights and whether or not he will be the vote that overturns Roe V Wade. Amazing that one vote can have such an incredible impact. This is what bothers me more than anything. SCOTUS judges are supposed to uphold the constitution by acting as a balance between the executive and legislative branches of the government. They aren't supposed to apply their personal views about society and government in a way that is against the spirit of the constitution. And unfortunately the SCOTUS seems to continually move more towards a political arm of the government rather than a place where the grownups explain to the bickering children in the legislative and executive branches that "No, stupid, that is NOT what the constitution says. THIS is what it says, and THIS is how the LAW SHOULD be interpreted. NEXT."

I'm sure there will be plenty of rational public discourse over this nominee. Just like all the rational public discourse over the other judicial nominees Bush has had so far......*cough*......ahem....

Sure did like his breakdancin' four year old though, kids got some moves....



And on a final uplifting note, a Chinese General said that "If the Americans draw their missiles and position-guided ammunition on to the target zone on China's territory, I think we will have to respond with nuclear weapons," said General Zhu Chenghu-referring to the US's pledge to support Taiwan's independence.

Oh good.

Just in case you wanted to see just how much of this is saber rattling, I direct you towards the following overview from Stephen Den Beste-(Several of the Stephen's pieces are on the reading list at the U.S. Army Command & Staff College at Leavenworth)- Invasion of Taiwan.

So, yeah, unless China has a death wish both politically and economically, I wouldn't buy that bomb shelter just yet.

I'll be back again soon folks, hope you are all enjoying the summer!

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