File: What Is He Thinking?

Maruice Clarett is admitting that he exaggerated the value of items stolen from his car. The Ohio State tailback is already under NCAA investigation for violating his amateur status by receiving compensation. It would appear that the ownership of the stolen car is under question. OK, fine.

But what I don't get is his admission that he "inflated" the value of the stolen goods. Just what the blazes is Mo thinking? If he is trying to wiggle out of the NCAA's investigation by devaluing the stolen goods so that he could conceivably have bought them on his own, then he's just throwing himself into the proverbial fire by admitting that he falsified a police report.

Duh.

VeggieTales Dead?

Old news, but I just got wind that Big Idea just lost an 11 million dollar judgment which may force it to sell out or close up shop. It appears that the distribution company Lyrick Studios of "Barney" and "The Wiggles" fame, sued because Big Idea's move to Warner Brothers was for "more money". Big Idea is also suffering from expanding too big, too fast.

The former Christian owner of Lyrick--with whom Big Idea initially formed an alliance--sold the company before passing away. Big Idea couldn't or wouldn't work with the new owners because "Lyrick's owner and mission statement changed" (see article).

Also, according to Vischer:

"We got ourselves upside down financially when everything was working wonderfully. When things were doing so well, I thought that was God wanting us to expand, so we grew like crazy. Now I think it was more me having all these great ideas in my head and being so excited that I wanted to do them all at once."

Tongue in cheek, I SHOULD have known that Barney was the anti-Christ.

More seriously, it seems to me that the new owners do not have compatible philosophies with Big Idea. Is this the end of Bob and Larry as we know them? Are they, soon destined to be hawking cereal or starring in sex-ed films courtesy of a media conglomerate?

I also am reminded of Paul's admonition to "not be yoked with unbelievers". Certainly, if the split is due to philosophical differences, then the lawsuit substantiates the truth behind the Apostle's point.

Read the story and see what you think. "I provide, you decide".

Rikke got engaged!!!

Ok, this isn't a "serious" blog, but got an email from her today that she and Bryan are now engaged. While you readers all might have already known that, I just found out.

Congrats to both of you and look forward to welcoming you to the "club"!!!!!!!

Another Tribute to Bill Bright - try 2

At Townhome.com, Chuck Colson writes a moving tribute to Bill, especially noting his attitude when facing his long and unpleasent death. A good read.

Babe better than Bonds? Yes, but...

Alright, Rob. You leave me no choice but to respond. First off:

1. Bonds does not have a loud mouth. Pro wrestlesrs have a loud mouths. Bonds, like Charles Barkley, has an honest mouth. Is he cantankerous. Yes. Is he a phony? Absolutely not. Who would you rather have on your team, Jeff Kent or Barry Bonds? Giants teammates all liked Bonds more than Kent.

2. Ruth was hitting home runs when it wasn't cool to hit homers. Ruth changed the game into an exciting game with triples, steals, and hit and runs to a game dominated by the home run. Ruth revolutionized the game and he should be given full credit for that.

3. If you want to look at the total package, Babe Ruth was an all-star level pitcher for the Red Sox in the 1910s. Combined that with his offense, it is clear that Ruth is the greatest player in baseball history, bar none.

However, forget that. Who is the superior hitter? By all reasonable accounts, it boils down to: Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Honus Wagner and Barry Bonds. Forget Pete Rose - all he did was hit singles.

If you look at the total package - hitting for average, ability to get on base, slugging percentage, you have to consider Bonds as high as any of the others, except for maybe Williams. Williams, missed five prime seasons to military service, three in World War II and two more during the Korean War.

Here's the problem with Babe Ruth - he didn't play against all the best players. Why? There were no blacks in baseball from the late 1800s until 1947 when Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut. You had great Negro League pitchers that were banned from baseball. How do you think Barry would've done if you take out all the non-white players? So I would penalize Ruth for that. Bonds is playing against the best baseball players in the world.

Ruth hit 714 home runs, Bonds currently has 646. Bonds will probably surpass Mays by the end of this season. Speedwise, Bonds has stolen 500 bases. Mays has stolen 338. Ruth stole 123 but was caught 117 times.

Let's take a look at this stat called OPS+. This is on-base percentage plus slugging percentage (the best single stat to measure a player's productivity) compared to one's peers. An OPS+ of 100 means the player was league average. Ruth's OPS+ is 207, again against inferior competition. Williams' OPS+ is 190. Bonds' career OPS+, coming into this season is 177, fourth all time behind Ruth, Williams and Lou Gehrig. Gehrig's OPS+ is 179 and with Bonds', again being baseball's most productive hitter, will probably jump into the low 180s over his career. Again, this is adjusted for era and ballpark so this value is normalized whether it was in an era of high or low offense. (In case you're interested, Aaron is at 155, Mays is at 156, Rogers Hornsby is at 175, and Honus Wagner (a shortstop) is at 150. Frank Thomas is at 163 and Manny Ramirez is at 157).

There is a myth that Ruth played in an era of low offense. That is patently untrue. The dead ball era ended in 1919 and from then on, the AL was a very high offense era.

These are the AL team runs per game from 1920 to 1935, the main part of Ruth's career:
4.76, 5.12, 4.75, 4.78, 4.98, 5.20, 4.73, 4.92, 4.76, 5.01, 5.41 (1930), 5.14, 5.23, 5.00, 5.13, 5.09.

There are the NL team runs per game from 1987 to 2002, the balance of Bonds' career:
4.52, 3.88, 3.94, 4.20, 4.10, 3.88, 4.49, 4.62, 4.63, 4.68, 4.60, 4.60, 5.00, 5.00 (2001), 4.70, 4.45

Let's put them in table form, from highest to lowest:

Babe   Bonds

5.41   5.00

5.23   5.00

5.20   4.70

5.14   4.68

5.13   4.63

5.12   4.62

5.09   4.60

5.01   4.60

5.00   4.52

4.98   4.49

4.92   4.45

4.78   4.20

4.76   4.10

4.76   3.94

4.75   3.88

4.73

It really isn't close. Bonds is playing in a much more difficult offensive era, to the tune of at least a half-run per game. Consider that Yankee Stadium has that short porch in RF and Pac Bell Park (and Candlestick) is the second most difficult park to score in in the NL, it's clear that Bonds has an advantage. RCF in Pac Bell is 421 feet away.

Do I think Ruth is still a better hitter? Yes. But it's really hard to evaluate players while they're still active so let's just enjoy Bonds' Ruthian feats as he marches toward Mays, Ruth, and Aaron. Will he break 755? I wouldn't doubt it. He's 39 years old and he's still far and away the best offensive player in baseball (well ahead of Albert Pujols). Don't let the batting average and RBIs fool you. It's hard to drive in runs when you're being walked 150 times a year. If Barry walked as often as Pujols, Barry would have 110 RBI by now.

California has a budget - does this mean Gray will survive???

The Assembly has passed a budget for the current year. Its the same one as the Senate which is balanced only if you don't know what the definition of is is.

By this time next year, Calif will be looking at another record deficit and it will be harder to borrow the money necessary. This year we are borrowing lots of money (and our credit rating is almost junk status) and we have a 4 billion tax increase. The car tax which Davis tripled (by calling it a fee instead of a tax) is now blessed by the Legislator so is legal.

Read the article at SFGate.com.

Bonds or Ruth?

Is Barry Bonds better than Babe Ruth? Not many think so. I tend to agree. Although Babe Ruth may have his HR record eclipsed by another before this decade is over, there is no real comparison between Ruth and the players of today--including Bonds.

Bonds is playing during an era where offense is the name of the game. Ruth played at a time when the home run was rare; he outhomered whole TEAMS. For Bonds to perform an equivalent feat, he would have to had hit 70 HRs at this point in the season to beat even the banjo hitting Dodgers. At the end of it all, he would have to end up somewhere north of 120 when the playoffs start.

Ruth is still king.

I find the comparison between Hammerin' Hank and the Babe more compelling. Bonds, as good as he is, is difficult to root for because of his loud mouth.

Bob Hope Passes Away

Another great entertainment figure passes on. Two months after his 100th birthday, the legendary comedian is gone. CNN has a good rundown of his career.

I respected most the work he did taking care of American servicemen and women through his many tours.

French Gaming

Funny bit today over at Lilek's on the French computer game industry.

It got me to thinking about French versions of some popular games:

Half-Life. An interdimensional gateway opens up, and thousands of murderous creatures from another world spill through. Your mission: help them establish their own parallel society in your country.

Doom: An interdimensional gateway opens up, and the minions of Hell itself enter a Martian moonbase. Your mission: nothing! Lucky you, they invaded in August, and that’s your month at the beach.

Grand Theft Auto: You steal Deux Cheveaux and attempt to escape from the police at speeds up to 30 MPH

Medal of Honor: WW2. This was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the Resistance. At its peak it had 400,000 members who logged on and did nothing. Then someone named “Yank44” signed on, and the system crashed when all 400,000 members attempted to remove the picture of Marshal Petain from the wall of their cottage.

Becareful what you wish for

Well, the Republicans got their wish. Gray Davis is being recalled. And true he will most likely lose.

However, now what???

If Davis wins the recall election (50% plus one vote no on the recall) he stays Governor and the Republicans will eat crow for a long time. "A democrate with only 20% approval rating from all California's can beat the entire Republican party trying to vote him out".

If Davis loses the recall election (which is likely I admit), then what? If the Democrats do not place anyone on the ballot (as they claim) because they are all backing Davis, and a Republican becomes Governor, then they get the fun of trying to fix a 38 billion (38,000,000,000.00) deficit (which works out to almost $700 per person in the State (given a population of 55 million).

The Republicans will be blamed for any tax increase and cut in service and this is likely to hurt them in the 2004 election.

I think it would have been better to be a strong opposition and like they did in the State Senate, get (force) the Democrats to agree to budget cuts instead of tax increases (with the exception of the car tax which is part of the Senate plan) and then bash the Democrates for the next 18 months about their mismanagement of the State.

But that is academic now since the recall election is a fact.

It will be interesting to see what happens but be careful what you wish for in politics or anything else, you just might get it.

Dems Draw Line

"George Bush has left us less safe and less secure than we were four years ago."

--Rep. Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.), July 22

Gephardt, a voice of the Democratic party, has laid down a yardstick by which we are to measure the President. Are we less safe and secure now than in 1999? In 1999, the towers were still standing and the bull market was at it's peak. But were we really safer than?

I submit that the perception we were safer four years ago is because our perceptions couldn't fathom the truth. We didn't think that Saddam would aid and albeit known terrorists. We didn't think that Anthrax was something we needed to worry about. We didn't think that terrorists could conspire to hijack and crash FOUR airliners into midtown Manhattan. Our minds were not experienced to comprehend these sorts of things occuring in America. We couldn't handle the truth.

In the time since 2001, we have increased our intelligence, military and domestic security resources. The Presiedent also realizes that the solution is not just more checkpoints at airports, but a transformation of a difficult international situation. I have no reason to believe that the President is not making progress in these areas. Winning a war does not come overnight; patience, persistence and intestinal fortitude must rule of the day.

Yes, I feel less safe and secure, but that's because now I know the truth of the matter.

The Liberal Mindset

Here's a link that collects some of the liberal reaction to the death of Saddam's sons. Reactions go from charges of conspiracy and stupidity to outright vicisousness. Somehow, given a choice, one guy would choose Uday and Quesay over President Bush:

It's sad, really, that as despicable as they are, Saddam's family seems to be the lesser of two evils when you compare them to the wretched little bastard occupying the White House and destroying America in the process...

The French barely mention the deaths as reported by Merde in France's July 23rd post.

Andrew Sullivan's blog pointed this it out, which (of course) led to some rabbit trails to other interesting blogs, such as Merde in France and Dissidant Frogman. Will have to investigate at some point.

Bill Bright Passes Away July 19th

Found out today that the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ and author of the "Four Spiritual Laws" tracts, Bill Bright, passed away. He was 81.

Davis Recall now a fact. But the question of who will replace him remains

Yesterday, the California Secretary of State announced that 110% of the required signatures needed had been collected and therefore the recall election of Grey Davis is now a fact. The Lt Governor now has 60 to 90 days to schedule an election date. This is supposed to be announced at 10am on Thursday morning.

There are two readings of the California Constitution regarding what happens next.
1. The ballot will have two parts:
A) Should the Governor be recalled? Yes or No
B) Mark the name of the person on the ballot who should replace Davis. If 50% plus one vote say YES, then who ever receives the highest amount of votes would be the new Governor.

2. The ballot will only have one part:
A) Should the Governor be recalled? Yes or No
If 50% plus one vote say YES, then the Governor is recalled and the Lt. Governor will become Governor because when the Governor is unable to fulfill his duties the Lt. Governor takes over for him. Since a recall that succeeds will make the Governor unable to fulfill his duties, the Lt. Governor has said he might be the new Governor instead of putting any other names on the ballot.

It will be interesting to see what happens this morning, starting in about 10 to 15 minutes.

Sports and life

"I always turn to the sports page first. The sports page records people's accomplishments; the front page nothing but man's failures." Former Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren.

Normally, this is the case. Stories of the Lakers, UCLA, Yankees, Canadiens, the 49ers or Tiger Woods winning another championship. Not anymore. Looking at ESPN.com's front page today, there are stories of:

• The continuing investigation surrounding missing Baylor basketball player Patrick Dennehy;
  
• A Congressional hearing on the effects of ephedra in the aftermath of the death of Baltimore Oriole pitcher Steve Bechler and many other Americans after taking supplements containing the questionable substance;
  
• An increased number of brothels for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens; and
  
• The continuing saga of Kobe Bryant.
  

Welcome to the wide world of sports in the 21st century.

Saddam's Sons Killed

U.S. military finds Saddam's two sons and in a 4 hour firefight, they are killed along with others.

Mixed feelings here for I never want to celebrate the death of another human. On the other hand, we should remember that it was Odai [Uday] who routinely jailed and tortured Olympic athletes for not performing up to expectations, among other infractions. Let us hope that this is another step in the continuing war to a free, peaceful and just Iraq--if not the Middle East as a whole.

Playing politics with the CA budget??? You don't say

Several democrats got caught with their hands in the cookie jar on Monday. The Assembly members in question were having a “frank” discussion about how lengthening the budget crisis could help them next year when they try to pass a voter amendment to the CA Constitution lowing the vote needed to pass a budget or raise taxes from 2/3 to 55%.

That members of the Assembly were talking strategy on how to gain political advantage is not news. That they want to use the current budget crisis and lengthen it and complain that not having a budget is hurting California (which it is) is sheer hypocrisy. The LA Times and the San Francisco Chronicle have stories on it.

Remember this next year when they (the democrats) want to make it easier to raise our taxes that they (the democrats) also looked at ways to prolong the budget crisis for their own political advantage.

This is Not Survivor

Boy, to read the news on Iraq you would think that America is embroiled in another Vietnam. There is little coverage of the progress that the new government is making or the transformation of Iraqi life. Rather, stories of losses and pictures of military occupation cover the front page of the LA Times; good news is treated with scepticism. Sullivan has it right:

We are still at war over there against the Baathists and much of the current criticism of the occupation as a whole is ultimately designed to weaken domestic support for the vital task in front of us. That's what the anti-war left and right are now trying to do. They now desperately need the U.S. to lose the post-war. It's time for those of us who supported the liberation of Iraq to fight back against this potentially catastrophic gambit. For the U.S. to give up now, to withdraw, or to show any vacillation in the face of great progress in the Middle East, would indeed make matters far worse than if we had never intervened in the first place. We have an obligation to make it work. If some Democrats continue to argue that we should cut our losses, they are simply not ready for government.

There is a lack of support for the people of Iraq because 2004 is election year. The left hates Bush with a passion, to the point that they are willing to turn Iraq over to civil war and chaos to win the White House. It's been three months, is it fair to say that the entire enterprise is a defeat? The United States took two years before it came up with the Constitution after winning the War of Independence. Birthing a democracy is not a reality TV show.

More on the Tour de France

I'll be honest. I follow professional road cycling more than almost any sport except for baseball and basketball. And I'm sick and tired of Americans thinking that le Tour is the only bicycle race in the world. Lance Armstrong is NOT the best cyclist in the world. For those that have followed the race, the Italian national champion, Paolo Bettini is the most consistent cyclist in the world. Armstrong is the best stage-race rider in the world. But he has not won a big single day race since he won the 1996 classic Fleche Wallonne.

But this another example of Americans thinking that the Tour is the only race in the world. And unfortunately, Armstrong, and his team sponsors of U.S. Postal Service (a serious waste of sponsorship money if you ask me even though they've done great things for American and European cycling) have focused on the Tour because it is the only race Americans care about.

So watching the Tour for the last 18 years and following professional road cycling very closely for the last 10 years since the proliferation of the Internet (and a great cycling news site, it's a real shame the world does not see more of Lance Armstrong. He's taken a lot of heat the last three years for basically ending his cycling season after the Tour. The season goes on until mid to late October, culminating in the World Championships (this year in Hamilton, Ontario) and the Vuelta a Espana (the Spanish version of the grand tour). This has come to bear with Armstrong repeatedly promising to help teammate and former Vuelta chamption, Roberto Heras and ride in support for him in the Vuelta. But, to no one's surprise, Armstrong has gone back on his word. And it may be for the best because he doesn't have the type of personality anymore that he will ride in support of a teammate.

But there a lot of unwritten rules in cycling and while I would say some of it is sportsmanship, I will put it bluntly in the language of a sport Americans are more familiar with. In baseball, people remember when you throw at them. It could be 10 years in the future, ballplayers remember. But in baseball, it's usually personal between the pitcher and batter. In cycling, you don't just aggravate one rider, you aggravate the entire professional peloton. And they remember. If Armstrong attacked Jan Ullrich after he fell off the road of the Col de Peyresourde in 2001 or attacked in 2000 after Ullrich punctured at the foot of another mountain, the Plateau de Beille, Ullrich would remember as well as all the other cyclists in the peloton. In bike races, when someone pulls off to answer the call of nature, people remember for years if you try to launch an attack to gain time.

Cycling is a sport with all sorts of problems. Just today, there's an article on ESPN.com's Page 2 saying among other things that cycling is boring. Hey, I think football can be pretty boring. What's a sport that has 5-10 seconds of action, then you stand around for 30 seconds before the next play. In a huddle. What are they, girls going to the bathroom? Anyway, cycling has been plagued with drug scandals, deaths, and financial difficulties since 1998 when during the Tour, systematic doping on the former Festina team was discovered. Now, there's almost a presumption of drug use when you see these riders go faster up these mountains (imagine biking up to Big Bear but the road being about 50% steeper) than most of us go downhill.

Cycling is a sport that I know aggravates Americans. Results are often fixed in terms of finishing order. In the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Ullrich won the gold medal in a group that included current 3rd place in the Tour, Kazakh Alexandre Vinokourov and fellow German Andreas Kloden. Even though they were competing for two different countries, when we saw the successful breakaway, it was all but predetermined that Ullrich would be allowed to win. Why? All three riders were on the German Telekom (now T-Mobile) team. So you don't want to piss off your teammate in a big race. But most riders accept that. Why? Because cycling is a team sport and while one person gets the individual glory, the team shares the prizes and the success. There was an F-1 race last year where a team owner had the top two cars in one race and ordered that the leader of that race cede the victory to his teammate because that would ensure his teammate a better shot at the F-1 series championship. Americans were outraged. Europeans lauded it as great teamwork and sacrifice. Americans are all about the individual. Just look at Kobe Bryant's desire to play elsewhere to see how he would do on his own.

As for this year's Tour, I'm happy to see Ullrich flash the form he had in 1997 when he won. He is definitely the most naturally gifted cyclist in the European peloton (and has a very impressive palmares compared to Armstrong) and it's good to see him put it back together. The final time trial on Saturday will be one for the ages.

Signs that the Apocalypse Is Not Yet Upon Us

In what has become (for this blogger) a tense and riveting Tour de France, Lance Armstrong increased his lead today by over 45 seconds, in spite of a fall during stage 15. Armstrong has not appeared to be as strong as in year's past, so this is going to be a compelling race to the end. What I find heartwarming are the actions taken by Armstrong's competitors during the fall:

[Jan] Ullrich had to swerve to avoid the crash. He waited with other riders while Armstrong and Mayo got back on their bikes and caught up.

"Jan is a good guy, he's an honorable guy," Armstrong said. "He probably didn't forget that when he crashed in 2001, in what appeared to be a serious crash, I told everyone: 'We can't race until he gets back up.' As we say in English: 'What goes around comes around,' and so I appreciate him doing that."

At the beginning of the stage, Ullrich trailed Armstrong by a mere 15 seconds and he and the rest of the peloton could have surged ahead for the stage win yesterday, but they chose not to. With all of the negative press stemming from professional athletic these days, it a good feeling to hear that such things as honor and sportsmanship still exist and mean something.

I'm rooting for Lance, but if Jan wins, then I will not be terribly displeased.

When the game doesn't go your way, just change the rules

In Nevada, new taxes can only be passed when 2/3 of the legislature vote for the measure. However, the governor didn't like this because it is almost impossible to pass new taxes so he sued saying the state constitution guaranteed funding for education took precedence over the 2/3 voting requirement for new taxes. Never mind both are part of the constitution, one part is more important then the other.

The Nevada Supreme Court agreed saying the 2/3 majority was only a procedure while the funding for education was a basic requirement.

Personally this logic escapes me as both are procedural in nature (government will fund education and government can only raise taxes with a 2/3 majority).

However, since the court ruled that a state constitution isn’t the highest law in the state, but the court is, California is looking at this and seeing if they can set aside the current 2/3 majority to pass new taxes or a budget.

The current budget deadlock has happened because a new budget must pass the legislature by a vote of 2/3 and no new taxes can be imposed without a 2/3 majority. Since the Republicans hold just over 1/3 of the seats in the Assembly, and they say NO NEW TAXES, and the Democrats say they must have new taxes, there is an impasse.

So now there is a new movement afoot to change the constitution so new taxes and a new budget can be passed with only a 55% majority instead of the current 2/3 majority. At least this process is putting it to a vote of the people of California, but it would still be scary if it passed. Look at recent history. Under Prop 13, local bond issues could only be passed with a 60% majority vote and therefore most didn’t pass and we saved ourselves a lot of debt. However, a few years ago, the rules were changed to allow bond measures to pass for schools with only a 55% majority. Now it is much easier to pass bond measures and the debt of the districts (and the property taxes that pay for these bonds) is going up.

An opinion piece in the Eureka Times says lowering the voting requirement of budgets and taxes from 2/3 to 55% is not a good idea because while it may help the democrats in the short term, it may make life hard for them in the long term. While that may be true, I’m personally more worried about our lives becoming harder because the tax burden can be raised too easily by those who want to spend our money without thinking what it could do to our state’s economy.

Christian Excellence in the Market

In a review of the latest Harry Potter book by J. K. Rowling, Christian scholar and all around nice guy, Scott, takes issue with the quality of the "Left Behind" series:

Because it's a Christian book series, I'm hesitant to call it a "waste of money" but it's also sad that a Christian book fails to measure up even to a children's series written by a mediumly-experienced author. I guess I just don't want to be disappointed reading a good idea served up in a mediocre form. It's like listening to a poor sermon.

A lot of not very good products appear (and disappear) in the Christian marketplace. Often you will see Christ oriented products that are direct rip offs of existing ideas or trends. A perusal of the local Christian bookstores, music racks or mail order catelogs reveal a bleak picture: products intended only for the Christian mass market that lack innovation or even basic production values.

More than anything, those products are nothing to brag about, certainly nothing fit to pass on to unbelieving friends and family. The desire to serve Christ is commendable, but I desire ingenuity and excellence. This is why Big Idea Productions (maker of Veggie Tales and 3-2-1 Penguins) stands out to me--their execution and ideas are good, resulting in products that stand on their own, even outside a Christian context.

Demand and support excellence. Exhort those that that are not.

Iran Admits to Killing Canadian-Iranian Reporter

As if arresting journalists isn't enough, the government has taken to killing them to enforce their silence. Zahra Kazemi's crime? "...[T]aking photographs of protesters outside Evin prison in northern Tehran who were demanding the release of relatives locked up during last month's wave of anti-regime protests" (AFP).

Cheese Surrendering Eating Monkeys

Mark Steyn finds America full of cheese-surrendering eating monkeys. Funny stuff:

Personally, I want it all: semi-automatics and Brie, guns and butter - and all the other dairy products that big-government federal regulation has destroyed the taste of. The French may be surrender monkeys on the battlefield, but they don't throw their hands up and flee in terror just 'cause the Camembert's a bit ripe. It's the Americans who insist, oh, no, the only way to deal with this sliver of Roquefort is to set up a rigorous ongoing inspections regime.

Iranian Protest Suppressed

The July 9th protests in front of the U.N. headquarters in Tehran were to mark the anniversary of a 1999 Iranian clash between government supporters and students. It was anticipated that parts of the general populance were to join as well. According to Reuters, the organized protest has been called off for safety reasons, but disorganized protests have turned violent. Note the actions of a repressive government recorded by Reuters:

A number of student leaders had been seized by unidentified assailants in the last weeks and their whereabouts was still unknown

Later in the article:

Witnesses said police and military units were posted outside the Tehran U.N. headquarters on Wednesday and photographers and camera crews were prevented from taking pictures of the scene.

You might want to check out what an unorganized militia supporting the government can do to a dorm room and students during this time.

Media Bias Alert

From the AP, we get an article covering a minor dispute down in Louisiana. It would appear that creation of specialty license plates in Louisiana are being suspended because of a fracas over the abortion debate.

The whole mess with license plates aside, this article is a signpost of bias pointing to the journalist or editor. Examine the first paragraph:

NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge has blocked the state from issuing specialty license plates, an offshoot of the Legislature's decision to allow an anti-abortion plate while refusing to authorize one for the pro-choice view.

Pro-choice is spin. Whenever the pro-life position is labeled "anti-abortion", the pro-abortion position is also labeled "pro-choice". The spin becomes: opposing the "pro-choice" position is anti-choice. Therefore, you are forced to think, "If I oppose pro-choice, then I am anti-choice, and so I must be un-American and some sort of Nazi." Rarely will liberal sources use the terms anti-abortion and pro-abortion together.

Tongue in cheek, I'll live with the anti-abortion label if we can call the abortionists anti-child or anti-life.

Open letter from Iraq

The blog site "Little Green Footballs" has an interesting open letter from a Major in the 4th Infantry Division. Now I can't verify that this is true, but it does sound plausable about the conditions in Iraq at this time.

Its interesting to compare news from the soldiers on the ground there from what the NY Times and other papers say, usually its very different. Like the letter says, good news doesn't sell newspapers.

Athletes as Role Models

Rob wanted me to blog about sports and stuff. So I guess it's appropriate to address the recent events surrounding the Lakers' Kobe Bryant. He has been accused of sexual assault by a 19-year-old girl from Colorado. There has been your typical canned statements from the Lakers "supporting" Bryant. I am a firm believer in the "innocent until proven guilty" credo. For example, I may think Scott Peterson killed Laci Peterson and her fetus but I don't believe he's guilty until all the evidence has been presented.

Bryant's attorney in Colorado complained about the sheriff getting an arrest warrant without the blessing of the DA. However, an arrest warrant can be issued without the consent of the DA. It's nice to have the go-ahead of the DA but so long as the police or sheriff have probable cause that a crime was committed, they can ask the judge the issue the arrest warrant. The judge makes the ultimate decision anyway - although, most of these warrants are rubber stamped without the judge actually reading the facts or statements. It still reeks of extortion or the girl wanting to get her 15 minutes of fame. I tend to not believe the charges based on what I know and what I've heard others say that know Bryant well.

However, I think the larger issue here, is that we have to be careful of how we view sports superstars because the media and the players themselves can cultivate an image that is not really them. When people talk about the good guys in sports, especially Christians, David Robinson, Michael Chang, and Derek Fisher come up. Those are guys that have had success in their sport and have a clean-cut image to boot which endears them to supporters.

But for each of those guys, lest we forget about O.J. Simpson, who was charged with domestic violence before all that other stuff happened. And the sad story of the Hall of Fame, former Minnesota Twins outfielder Kirby Puckett. We read about how great a guy he was in the Minnesota community - a generous philanthropist who always smiled and looked as if he was having fun on the field. He hustled and was the leader of two World Series winning teams. Every year, the Twins would have some sort of Kirby Puckett promotion and the Twins were guaranteed a large crowd.

However, in the last couple years, his public image started to crumble. It was discovered that he had a long-time mistress as well as other affairs. And his wife was the woman behind Puckett's community work as she carefully cultivated his image to make his a likeable public figure. And despite knowledge of her husband's infidelity, she continued to support him until Puckett's mistress blew the cover. In fact, if Puckett had not already been voted into the Hall of Fame, it is possible these exposed events would have doomed his induction.

The media creates the image behind each athlete we see. None of us know people like Bryant or Simpson or Puckett or Robinson personally. But to view them as role models without knowing who they *really* are can be dangerous. Too often, people will turn a blind eye to a star's off-the-field indiscretions so long as they produce (e.g. Jason Kidd) and remember them more for their athletic achievements instead. We really don't know any of these athletes that we watch perform on the field. And Bryant's reputation, regardless of the veracity of the charges, will take a hit for possibly placing himself in a compromising position, even if he did not do anything illegal.

So next time you hear about an athlete spending time giving back to the community or an athete asking for more money, a lot of it is the work of agents and publicists. The only difference between mainstream American sports and professional wrestling is that wrestling is fake. The image of each player or wrestler is, in many ways, still very artificial - a creation of magazine covers and publicity shots.

Byron on Board

Another soul has joined the Carpetbloggers, fresh from a visit to the Continent.

Good thing he didn't visit France, dem Frenchies woulda spit on him for being American.

It's Hot and Dusty Out

With the recent rash of warm weather in Southern California, it seems apropo that we feature Dusty Baker whose comments about the ability of Latin and Black players tolerance for heat is sparking debate. According to the former Dodger, it would seem that such players are better at withstanding the sun than "lighter-skinned people".

I think that it makes a lot of sense, after all just like Dusty says, "I don't see brothers running around burnt". Something to chew on next time you're sitting in the outfield bleachers or at the beach.

It seems Dusty's comments are making waves here and there, but I think it's nothing more than a tempest in a teapot.

What will happen on Wednesday??

No, this isn’t a prediction of bad things to come in the US, but rather a question about Iran. (For anyone who doesn’t know where Iran is, it’s the next door neighbor to Iraq).

The Iranian government doesn’t like the US or our government very much (they didn’t like us under Regan, Bush 1, or Clinton either, so nothing new here), calling us the “Great Satan” and the like.

The reason the Iranian government doesn’t like the US is for two primary reasons:
1. We supported the Shah of Iran, the prior government, who lost power to the Iranian Republic
2. US Culture is a threat to the Islamic Theocracy governing there. Its hard to keep people in the mosque when MTV is on (sad but true).

Now the interesting thing about Iran at this time is its demographics. A large part if not the majority of the population is young enough that they do not know life before the 1979 Iranian Revolution. And its these younger folks who are now questioning why they can’t live in the 21st century, see Western movies or listen to rock and roll. More importantly from their perspectives (I’m guessing here but think it’s a safe bet) they are asking why they are not allowed to socialize with the opposite gender. The penalty for a girl being out in public with a male who is not her father, brother or husband is payment of a fine. Repeat offenders can be sent to jail. However, their real punishment could be death from a family member because she might hurt the family honor by not being a “good girl”.

What is happening on Wednesday, 9 July? Well there are planned large anti-government demonstrations and a general strike. Their goal is to overthrow the Iranian Government and bring in a more secular democratic government. Why are they waiting until 9 July? Well it’s the anniversary of an earlier government crackdown where a number of students were killed.

Anti-government sentiment has been growing in Iran for a while now. This year, there have been a large number of demonstrations and strikes already. And more worrying to the government, its not just the students who are protesting, but many non students as well.

To give some background on Iran and what is happening see the following links:

Tech Central Station: The Future of Iranian Nationalism by Pejman Yousefzadeh

Townhall.com: Democracy in Iran by Amir Taheri

NRO: Looking Toward July 9 by Michael Ledeen

Happy 4th

This is a cool web page, have fun. Its up and running on 3 July and hopefully will be there for a while.

No, nothing serious, but given the holiday, I think appropreate.

here

Bloggers are protected by the 1st Amendment

The blog master was threatening me with excommunication if I kept writing about California and how the government should be reorganized - this isn't a poly-sci class so back to the real world.

The 9th District Court of Appeals (this court covers California) said sites hosting blog sites are protected and are not responsible for what we write. However, we can still be sued for libel if we are foolish.

“The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the nation's largest appeals court, said that online publishers can post material generated by others without liability for its content -- unlike traditional news media, which are held responsible for such information. “

The story is here and am glad the court ruled the way it did. Lets hope the court known for being over turned the most often by the Supreme Court will not be in this ruling.

Let the blogging begin, but if/when someone writes something we don’t like, there isn’t a lot we can do, even if they attack us personally.

A proposal to fix California’s Government - Part 4

The Judiciary:
I would also reform the Judiciary branch of the government to bring it into line with its correct job. Their job is NOT to write laws but rather to see justice is carried out. If in any court case, a law is found unconstitutional, the Judge would overturn the law. However, they would not be allowed to write a remedy or new law. That is the job of the Assembly. Also, the Court would be forbidden by the constitution to find new law or rights (like single sex marriage) because that is the role of the Legislature.

Judges would still have the power to review laws to insure they are not infringing on our constitutional rights, but their power to make law would be taken away from them because that is not their function, even though many seem to think they are better legislatures then the folks in the Assembly.

A proposal to fix California’s Government - Part 3

The Assembly:
Most of the power of the State government would reside in the Assembly. We can keep it at the current number of members (80) to start. The members would not have single member districts but rather would be elected on a proportional basis. That means if the Democrats receive 54% of the popular vote in the election, they would have 54% of the seats. This would increase the power of the political party because it is only through a political party can a person be elected. The party will decide and disclose in a list who the members of the Assembly would be.

How does that work??? Example. Before the election, each party (Libertarian in this example), would list 80 people who are running for the Assembly. Lets say they receive 10% of the vote so would be entitled to seat 8 members in the Assembly. On their list, people 1 – 8 would be elected to the Assembly while 9 – 80 would not be. So we, the voters would know who we are voting for. The party will decide who will run for their slate of candidates and which position they would be listed in. So, the most senior party members would be in position 1, 2, 3 etc. Every party that receives at least 7.5% of the popular vote would have people elected to the Assembly. The part that has the most votes or can form a coalition of over 50% of the members of the Assembly, would form the government. The leader of the largest party would be Governor and all the other offices would be allocated according to how they see fit.

Why would this bring more accountability to the government? Well, look at our current situation, everybody is mad at the Governor and the Assembly isn’t thought of too highly as a whole, but people still like their individual Assembly person. So when they run for re-election next year, most of them will be re-elected and we will still have the same problems in Sacramento. However, if we had a proportional system of Government, then its easier to vote the rascals out and put in a new party who can try something.

In our current situation, the Greens, Libertarians, Republican’s etc. would be hammering the Democrats over the state budget (or lack there of) and in the next election, the voters would be more likely to vote for ANYBODY other then the Democrats so they would suffer and a new group would take power. As it is now, because of the way the districts are drawn, the next election will not change the Assembly too much.

This would also force the parties to come up with specific and identifiable policies they can sell to the voters and so giving the voters reasons to vote for them. Voting for a 3rd party would no longer be a waste and people would feel their vote will count more.

The next main objection is this system of Government would lead to more instability, where small parties would hold the balance of power like in Israel. In Israel the small religious parties that want to turn the country into a Jewish theocracy are often brought into the ruling coalition to gain 50% of their parliament. But Israel’s problem of the micro parties can be avoided because in this model each party must receive 7.5% of the vote before they receive any seats. In Israel the rule is 1%.

In addition to the objection above, is the charge it would be easier for the Nazi or Communist parties to gain power. Well my answer to that is if they can get enough people to vote for them, they should be allowed into the Assembly and all the citizens can see what they want to do. The shock of some extreme party getting in might also help convince the voters their vote does matter so they have a vested interest in the government and they need to vote.

A proposal to fix California’s Government - Part 2

Because this has gotten a lot longer then I originally thought it would, I'm breaking this up into more parts. Part 2 will be about the Senate under my new system, part 3 the Assebly and part 4 the Judiciary

Last time I made the following statement:

“We should move the ENTIRE Executive branch of the government into the Assembly, make the assembly elected by proportional representation and change the districts in the Senate so they represent one county each.”

Instead of going on and explaining how this new system would work and solve all our (California’s) problems, I gave a tutorial on the current governmental system in California.

While I DO NOT think any system of government can magically solve all the problems faced by the residence of this state, the current system is not working. (Note, the new fiscal year started today (July 1) and the Assembly adjourned for the July 4 holiday on 30 June WITHOUT passing a budget for the State.)

New Governmental System:

The Senate:
The Senate would consist of 58 members who would be elected from and represent one of the counties in the state. If a new county is formed or two merge together, then the number of senators would be adjusted accordingly.

The purpose of the Senate would be to represent the COUNTY’S interest in the government and not a political party. For example, the senator from Los Angeles would be expected to fight to make El Toro into an airport and not a park while the senator from Orange County would have to balance the differences between north county residences (who want an airport) and south county (who want a park instead).

The Senate would not be able to start any bills but rather would only vote on an up or down, no amendments allowed on all bills passed by the Assembly. If they veto a bill, it would go back to the Assembly where the veto could be over ridden with a 60% vote of the Assembly. If the Senate does not take action on a bill in 20 days, it automatically becomes law. If a Senator wants to have a law made, they have to ask someone in the Assembly to introduce the bill and it must pass the Assembly then pass the Senate before it becomes law.

The Senate by nature does not have much power or authority. Their job is to slow down legislation so it can be looked at and to represent their county’s interest in the capital. They would be the main lobbiest for their respective county. By having the Senate representing the counties, it would help insure that all areas of the state are represented and the rural areas won't be over looked as easily as they are now because the urban areas have more voters.

A History Lesson on the Arming of Iraq

And lest we forget history and just in case we were concerned that America was responsible for the arming of Iraq, a fellow scribbled out back in 2002 summary of the Iraqi armory during GW I. From what I can tell, the majority of the weapons procured before 1990 originated from Soviet block.

These sorts of information tidbits continue to solidify the belief that the French, German and Russian opposition to trade sancations and military action against Saddam was for the euros and rubles.

I did a search on the web and found an interesting history of the Iraqi nuclear weaponization program that was started in the "early 1970s". To get to a workable bomb, a key scientist named Khidhir Hamza wrote in 1998 that "the manipulation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was key" to the Iraqi nuclear weaponization.

According to Hamza, the Iraqi weapons program involved:

The diversion of a reactor built by the French
Use of a fuel manufacturing facility built by the Italians
The training of 400 Iraqi scientists in France and Italy
German nationals involved in efforts to refine bomb grade nuclear material

The scientist concludes that the IAEA of 1990 was woefully inadequate to police nuclear proliferation and concludes on a the IAEA's ability to adapt:

But if the old IAEA safeguards culture prevails, the new system will not be a match for a determined and untiring Saddam or other proliferators.

It is beyond me how people during the 1970s didn't understand the ramifications of the answers to the question: "Why would the second most oil rich nation in the world need a nuclear program?".

He ends with this quote (remember, this was written in 1998):

The nuclear weapons group is still in place; the expertise is still there; and Saddam Hussein and his colleagues are well practiced in the arts of deception.

What more needs to be said about the effectiveness of weapons inspections? Inspections without teeth are the security blanket of fools: you feel warm, but it is nothing but a placebo.