Thursday, April 01, 2004
Random Missive
A lot going on as we head into the weekend, here are some random and not so random thoughts:
George Bush (the elder or H if you please....but not senior, for W is no junior) complained this week about some of the criticism his son has received about the way things have gone in Iraq. He said, it is "deeply offensive and contemptible" to hear "elites and intellectuals on the campaign trail" dismiss progress in Iraq since last year's overthrow of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Yes, Mr. Former President, who wants to hear thoughts from the intellectuals in society? All these crazy folks with their well read opinions and educated comments... let's leave that to ill-informed fundamentalists who would no more question their leaders than be caught dead book learning anything other than the bible...and even then only with their pastor's supervision.... oh yeah, one more thing, Bush was decrying the attempted influence those "elites and intellectuals" might have on the election. Meanwhile he was busy giving this speech, in support of his son, to the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association annual convention. They, I'm sure, didn't pay him a dime for his appearance... nor would they harbor any thoughts of giving money to his son's campaign in the hopes they might gain favor for their particular interests.
There's been a great deal of hue and cry about teenagers entering the respective drafts of the NBA and NFL, bypassing college or leaving early in the hopes of pursuing their dreams of professional success. There's good reason for fearing for those kids who choose to take that route in those two sports. Neither has a minor league. This means you either succeed on the pro level or you're stuck with a whole lot of dreams and a job at the local Dairy Queen telling people how close you came to fulfilling them. It's hard to tell a young kid that unlike any other 18 year old he can't go out into the world of his chosen profession and try to make a living, but at the same time, isn't that risk of failure too great to give up the comforts of a college degree (no matter how much it wasn't truly earned) and the four years of physical and mental maturation that takes place there? The point of this brief ramble is this... Saturday, Major League Soccer opens their season as the San Jose Earthquakes take on D.C. United. Starting for United, Freddy Adu... age: 14. He's supposed to be the most talented played this country has ever produced (even though he was technically produced in Ghana). European clubs have been chasing him since he was 10 years old. Does he have the skill to play professionally at 14? Yes. Is he mentally ready? Some say yes, but we'll find out Saturday. Honestly I'm not really sure where my opinion falls on this kid. I do know this, he's graduating from High School this year, so he's no dumb athlete. After reading a bunch about him, I suspect he'll succeed, but my concern isn't really him, but what about those who follow after him?
Finally, Thursday was April Fools. I'm sure all across the country many a fine prank was perpetrated. I was asked if I played any jokes. I did not. I feel kinda stupid doing jokes on a day designated to play jokes. I feel much more satisfied punking someone on March 15th and then saying, "Dude, it's the Ides.... what did you expect?"
(Kudos to Howard Stern for pulling off a great April Fools joke...perfectly appropriate considering what he's going through right now. Copy this link to check it out... http://story.news.yahoo.com/newstmpl=story&cid=638&ncid=762&e=3&u=/nm/20040401/en_nm/media_stern_dc )
Coming up, thoughts on gay marriage, the broadcast industry, liberal radio and maybe I'll start telling you what to watch on TV and what music you should be listening to.
George Bush (the elder or H if you please....but not senior, for W is no junior) complained this week about some of the criticism his son has received about the way things have gone in Iraq. He said, it is "deeply offensive and contemptible" to hear "elites and intellectuals on the campaign trail" dismiss progress in Iraq since last year's overthrow of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Yes, Mr. Former President, who wants to hear thoughts from the intellectuals in society? All these crazy folks with their well read opinions and educated comments... let's leave that to ill-informed fundamentalists who would no more question their leaders than be caught dead book learning anything other than the bible...and even then only with their pastor's supervision.... oh yeah, one more thing, Bush was decrying the attempted influence those "elites and intellectuals" might have on the election. Meanwhile he was busy giving this speech, in support of his son, to the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association annual convention. They, I'm sure, didn't pay him a dime for his appearance... nor would they harbor any thoughts of giving money to his son's campaign in the hopes they might gain favor for their particular interests.
There's been a great deal of hue and cry about teenagers entering the respective drafts of the NBA and NFL, bypassing college or leaving early in the hopes of pursuing their dreams of professional success. There's good reason for fearing for those kids who choose to take that route in those two sports. Neither has a minor league. This means you either succeed on the pro level or you're stuck with a whole lot of dreams and a job at the local Dairy Queen telling people how close you came to fulfilling them. It's hard to tell a young kid that unlike any other 18 year old he can't go out into the world of his chosen profession and try to make a living, but at the same time, isn't that risk of failure too great to give up the comforts of a college degree (no matter how much it wasn't truly earned) and the four years of physical and mental maturation that takes place there? The point of this brief ramble is this... Saturday, Major League Soccer opens their season as the San Jose Earthquakes take on D.C. United. Starting for United, Freddy Adu... age: 14. He's supposed to be the most talented played this country has ever produced (even though he was technically produced in Ghana). European clubs have been chasing him since he was 10 years old. Does he have the skill to play professionally at 14? Yes. Is he mentally ready? Some say yes, but we'll find out Saturday. Honestly I'm not really sure where my opinion falls on this kid. I do know this, he's graduating from High School this year, so he's no dumb athlete. After reading a bunch about him, I suspect he'll succeed, but my concern isn't really him, but what about those who follow after him?
Finally, Thursday was April Fools. I'm sure all across the country many a fine prank was perpetrated. I was asked if I played any jokes. I did not. I feel kinda stupid doing jokes on a day designated to play jokes. I feel much more satisfied punking someone on March 15th and then saying, "Dude, it's the Ides.... what did you expect?"
(Kudos to Howard Stern for pulling off a great April Fools joke...perfectly appropriate considering what he's going through right now. Copy this link to check it out... http://story.news.yahoo.com/newstmpl=story&cid=638&ncid=762&e=3&u=/nm/20040401/en_nm/media_stern_dc )
Coming up, thoughts on gay marriage, the broadcast industry, liberal radio and maybe I'll start telling you what to watch on TV and what music you should be listening to.
