Sunday, January 31, 2016

Saturday, January 30, 2016

Democratic Presidential Primary

Democrats are down to 3 candidates to become their 2016 Presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley.   Any 3 of them would be better than any of the candidates that the Republicans are fielding.  As for which of the three I will vote for in the Presidential primary, I'm honestly still a bit conflicted.

Hillary Clinton seems to be the most qualified of any of the candidates (from either party) to become the next President of the United States.  She's highly educated, she has spent 8 years in the White House already (she know first hand the pressures of that office), she spent 8 years as a United States Senator, and she spent 5 years as the United States Secretary of State.  On the downside, her favorability ratings are fairly low and her ties to Wall Street are a bit concerning.  The demonization she has faced from the right over the years has been non-stop, whether criticisms of her are true or not (mostly not), they have taken a toll.

I've been a huge Bernie Sanders fan for years, I agree with him on most of the issues and I do think that we need a revolution to shake things up and get us back on the right path and that Bernie is probably the best candidate to do that.  Bernie has been campaigning for single payer healthcare, campaign finance reform, climate change legislation, sentencing reform, voting rights, drug legalization, affordable college, saving Social Security, and many other issues that I feel very strongly about.  He's also railed against income inequality, Citizens United, unfair trade deals, and the Oligarchs.  Those are all issues that today's Democrats value, Hillary Clinton seems by many to still be stuck in the 1990's.  Times change.  I could see some disaffected anti-establishment Republican voters supporting Sanders too once they hear his message and are faced with having Donald Trump as their candidate.  On the downside, there may be some concerns over how he'd handle the military and foreign policy in what has become some very dangerous times.  You also have to know that many Republicans would love to bludgeon him with the "Socialist" label.  Lastly, you have to ask how he would get any of his legislation passed in a time of such extreme partisan gridlock.

Martin O'Malley honestly would probably make the best Democratic candidate.  He's got legislative experience as Mayor of Baltimore and as Governor of Maryland.  He has a track record of success.  He passed same sex marriage legislation, gun control legislation, eliminated the death penalty and reduced crime in his time as Governor of Maryland.  He hasn't excited anyone though and he's not really someone who people would be racing out to the polling stations to vote for and that's probably too bad because he's a worthy candidate.

In summary, I will be voting for whichever of these 3 candidates is left standing come November.


Friday, January 29, 2016

Thursday, January 28, 2016

POTpourri

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Xenia Deli

She's easy on the eyes.

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

AZ Tidbits

Monday, January 25, 2016

Sunday, January 24, 2016

NFC Championship Game

Panthers 49, Cardinals 15

The Cardinals season came to a close today with a crushing 49-15 loss to the Panthers in the NFC Championship game.  The Panthers were clearly the better team in this game, it was a thorough thrashing, they deserve a trip to Super Bowl 50.   It was a fun season of watching the Cardinals though, at least up until this point, they were a highly entertaining bunch, so not all was lost.

Observations:

Saturday, January 23, 2016

Friday, January 22, 2016

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Benghazi Questions

With the opening of the movie "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi" over the weekend there have been a lot of Benghazi questions floating around the media once again.  Well, I have questions too, perhaps someone can help me out.

  1. Is it possible that Republicans fixation on Benghazi could perhaps have something to do with the fact that Hillary Clinton is running for President?  
  2. Haven't 7 Benghazi probes already cleared Hillary Clinton of any wrongdoing? 
  3. When Republicans voted to cut funding for embassy security, did it not occur to them that perhaps they were increasing the odds of an embassy attack? 
  4. Why no outcry and call for a special investigation by Republicans when there were 13 embassy attacks and 60 deaths under the watch of George W. Bush?  
  5. Why no outcry and call for a special investigation by Republicans when thousands of Americans died in the attacks of 9/11?  
  6. Why no outcry and call for a special investigation by Republicans when it was learned that George W Bush and Dick Cheney had lied us into a war in Iraq that cost thousands of lives (on both sides of the conflict) and cost billions of dollars?  
  7. Why no outcry and call for a special investigation by Republicans when 261 Americans were killed in a terrorist bombings in Beirut under Ronald Reagan's watch?  

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Monday, January 18, 2016

Republican Economics

From what I can tell, Republicans answer to improving the economy has three basic tenants: 1) tax reform, 2) spending cuts, 3) deregulation.   In theory, they say this will unleash the chains that are slowing economic growth.

Let's take a closer look.

Tax Reform - In Republican parlance, this means tax cuts, more specifically tax cuts for the rich.  It doesn't matter that tax cuts to the rich have not worked in the past, it's part of their DNA and it's easy to sell.  In reality, going back to the huge tax cuts of Ronald Reagan, all they have done is explode the debt and increase income inequality.  There is evidence upon evidence upon evidence proving the fallacy that tax cuts to the rich will trickle down to everyone else yet they keep peddling this non-sense.  Fact is, Bill Clinton raised taxes and the economy improved, Barack Obama raised taxes and the economy improved, California & Minnesota raised taxes and their states thrived.  Do we really need more tax cuts for the rich?

Spending Cuts - Republicans love talking about the debt and the deficit, they especially love blaming them on Democrats and their free spending ways.  Fact is, the debt exploded under Ronald Reagan and George W Bush, and went down under Bill Clinton.  While the debt has increased under Barack Obama, the deficit has decreased dramatically.  I know it's easy to blame Obama for the current debt, but that's lazy thinking, he inherited a mess (including 2 unfunded wars) and has faced unprecedented obstruction in his attempt to address those issues.  Back to spending cuts, all you have to do is look to Europe to see how all of their austerity measures have failed to improved the economies of the countries there.  You don't cut spending to stimulate the economy, you increase spending, you get money flowing.  Infrastructure spending is a great example, don't think for a second that an infrastructure spending bill wouldn't have created thousands of jobs and stimulated growth (at low interest rates to boot).

Deregulation - Republicans like to argue that U.S. businesses are overburdened by undue regulations that stymie growth and innovation.  That may be true but unfortunately an economy without regulation is also an economy ripe for abuse.  Didn't we learn anything from the recent economic calamity?   You can directly trace the recent recession (near depression) to the deregulation of the financial industry.  Lack of regulation allowed Duke Energy to contaminate the drinking water in North Carolina.  Lack of regulation allows oil companies to leak oil near everywhere.  Do you really want to live in a world where there are no checks and balances on the food we eat or the water we drink?   Deregulation benefits nobody but the conglomerates that propose them.

So in conclusion, please keep the above in mind if you are voting Republican due to economic issues.  Also, keep note that the economy historically has done better under a Democratic administrations.


Sunday, January 17, 2016

Labor Participation Rate

David Parkman explains this right wing talking point quite well.

Saturday, January 16, 2016

Cardinals 26, Packers 20

The Cardinals knocked off the Packers 26-20 in OT tonight in the NFC Divisional playoffs.  They will now take on the winner of tomorrow's Panthers/Seahawks game for the NFC Championship and a trip to Super Bowl 50.  It was a less than impressive performance by the Cardinals though, they will have to play better than that next week if they want to move ahead to the Super Bowl.  That being said, this was a great game, it will no doubt be remembered by football fans for a long time to come.

Observations:


Hillary Clinton Iraq Vote

I keep hearing Hillary Clinton critics hitting her over her vote for the Iraq War.  I'm not concerned about that vote though and here's why:
  • The Iraq War was a Bush/Cheney fiasco, they are the ones who brought it up to a vote, they are the one who fabricated the evidence to support it, they are the ones who should own it, not those who were lied into supporting it.  
  • Do you really think that there would have even been a war in Iraq in the first place had Al Gore not had the 2000 Presidential election stolen from him?  No Democrat would have pushed for it. 
  • The vote wasn't actually a vote to go to war in Iraq, it was a vote on the 'authorization for use of military force".  I know it's a fine line, but hear me out.  The idea of the vote wasn't to unilaterally and preemptively take us into a war in Iraq, it was to show bipartisan support that they could then take to the U.N. to gain broad international support.  That support would then be used as a tool towards more diplomacy.  It was Bush/Cheney who then ran with the resolution though and took us into war instead of slow walking a war of last resort that would have had more international support had it gotten to that point.   

Friday, January 15, 2016

Hillary Clinton Job Interview

Well done Jimmy Fallon.

Thursday, January 14, 2016

POTpourri

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

AZ Tidbits

Monday, January 11, 2016

New Hillary Clinton Ad

I like it, highly effective.

Sunday, January 10, 2016

Seahawks 10, Vikings 9

NFC WILDCARD PLAYOFFS

The Vikings let one slip out their grasp today, falling 10-9 to the Seahawks in Minneapolis.  They were leading 9-0 late into the 3rd quarter before the wheels fell off.  Great players make great plays though and Russell Wilson did just that to swing the momentum.  Add in an Adrian Peterson fumble.  Then Blair Walsh missed a chip shot 27 yard field goal in the closing seconds.  Why do Viking playoff appearances always seem to end this way?   Heartbreaker.

Observations:

Arina by Said Energizer

This video leaves me speechless!

Saturday, January 9, 2016

2016 All MN NCAA Basketball Team

Here's my All-Minnesota NCAA Basketball teams for 2016.  With the defections of Tyus Jones and Rashad Vaughn to the NBA, it may be the weakest All-Minnesota team in quite a while.  There are really no big men to speak of.  I also added Reggie Lynch, Marcus Marshall & Siyana Chambers even though none is even playing this year.  The pipeline is really looking nice though, the state is producing some real good basketball talent, the future of Minnesota basketball appears bright.

FIRST TEAM:
C - Reggie Lynch - Minnesota - Edina, MN - SO (transfer)
PF - Reid Travis - Stanford - Minneapolis, MN - SO
SF - Joey King - Minnesota - Eagan, MN - SR
OG - J.P. Macura - Xavier - Lakeview, MN - SO
PG - Marshawn Wilson - Northern Illinois - Oakdale, MN - FR

SECOND TEAM:
C - Carson Shanks - North Dakota - Prior Lake, MN - SO
PF - Jake White - Nebraska-Omaha - Chaska, MN - SR
SF - Sanjay Lumpkin - Northwestern - Wayzata, MN - SO
OG - Marcus Marshall - Nevada - St Paul, MN - SR (transfer)
PG - Siyana Chambers - Harvard - Golden Valley, MN - JR (injury)

Previous Years: 20152014201320122011

Friday, January 8, 2016

Killer Mike

He's a pretty impressive guy.

Thursday, January 7, 2016

POTpourri

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Obama Executive Action on Guns

I fully support President Obama's executive action on guns.



It was long overdue.

Tuesday, January 5, 2016

2016 Presidential Field Update

And another one is gone.  George Pataki has called it quits on his 2016 Presidential run.  That leaves us with 15 candidates still in the running, 12 Republicans and 3 Democrats.

Here's how the remaining rank in my opinion (as far as their chances):

Democrats: 
  1. Hillary Clinton
  2. Bernie Sanders
  3. Martin O'Malley

Republicans: 
  1. Donald Trump
  2. Ted Cruz
  3. Ben Carson
  4. Marco Rubio
  5. Chris Christie
  6. Jeb Bush
  7. Rand Paul
  8. John Kasich
  9. Carly Fiorina 
  10. Mike Huckabee
  11. Rick Santorum
  12. Jim Gilmore

George Pataki just never caught on.  Like Lindsay Graham before him, the timing was just not right for Pataki.  It's too bad too for Republicans because I think he could have fared well in a general election.  The Republican anti-establishment fervor just seems too fever pitched at this point for anyone considered to be part of the establishment from making a serious run.  In a way, that's a good thing, it's a sign that Republicans are finally seeing that their party is not working in their best interests.  Of course, it also means candidates like Donald Trump.  

Monday, January 4, 2016

Xenia Deli

She even makes those panties look sexy.

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Vikings 20, Packers 13

The Vikings knocked off the Packers 20-13 tonight in Green Bay.  The Vikings finish their 2015-16 season with an 11-5 record.  The Vikings also clinched the NFC North title and a home playoff game with this victory.  This wasn't an easy one, the Vikings somehow managed to throw away a 20-3 fourth quarter lead and only clinched it on the last play of the game.  No easy task ahead for the Vikings though as they will match up with the Seahawks in the first round of the playoffs and the Seahawks are playing as well as anybody.  NFC North Champs!!!

Observation:

Seahawks 36, Cardinals 6

The Cardinals were pounded by the Seahawks 36-6 today at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.  The Cardinals conclude their 2015-16 season with a franchise best 13-3 record.  Despite the loss, the Cardinals will still be the number 2 seed in the NFC playoffs.  It was pretty much a comedy of errors for the Cardinals today, it was easily their worst performance of the season.  I'm guessing it's not the way that Bruce Arians wanted the Cardinals to head into the playoffs. Hopefully, the week off will do them good and allow them to re-group.

Observations:
  • The Cardinals played with very little intensity today. 
  • On the bright side, Carson Palmer & Larry Fitzgerald did break franchise records
  • It was the correct decision to not play Carson Palmer in the second half. 
  • I sense the Cardinals already miss Tyrann Matthieu in their secondary. 
  • At least Dwight Freeney had something to play for.  8 sacks in 11 games now
  • Drew Stanton didn't exactly light the world on fire in his playing time. 
  • Who the heck is Christine Michael?   
  • Time of Possession:  Seahawks 36:37, Cardinals 23:23
  • Turnovers:  Cardinals 3, Seahawks 0
  • Rushing Yards:  Seahawks 145, Cardinals 27
  • I'm guessing that Cam Newton edges out Carson Palmer for MVP after today. 
  • At some point you'd think the Cardinals would decide to punt away from Tyler Lockett. 
  • It seemed rather foolish for the Seahawks to play Russell Wilson in the second half
  • That was the worst loss of Bruce Arians head coaching tenure.  
  • Yep, Richard Sherman did deserve that taunting penalty. 
  • Was that a Matt Barkley sighting at the University of Phoenix Stadium? 
  • Early Cardinals draft needs:  CB, DE, LB, QB 
  • Was that Paul Goldschmidt on the field as honorary captain today?  
  • Mid 60's temperature today, perfect football weather, yet the roof was closed once again.
  • Up next?  2nd round playoff matchup in Glendale against a yet TBD team in two weeks. 

Motley Crue Final Show

It was a nice run, but the time had come.

Saturday, January 2, 2016

Cactus Bowl

West Virginia 43, Arizona State 42

The Sun Devils fell to West Virginia 43-42 tonight in the Cactus Bowl.  Arizona State finishes their season with a disappointing 6-7 record with this loss.  Very entertaining game, Arizona State just couldn't pull it off in the end.  The Sun Devils really needs to find a way to shore up its defense heading into next season.  The coaching needs to improve too.  Overall, just a very disappointing season for Arizona State.

Observations:

AZ Tidbits