Who Speaks for the Young?
Idiots, it seems to me. Last night's Democratic Presidential debate was, among other things, a demonstration of why young people are not taken seriously in the political sphere. The debate was a "Rock the Vote" forum sponsored by that organization and CNN. It was hosted by the prematurely gray and yet eternaly youthful Anderson Cooper. The candidates, all of whom showed except Dick Gephardt, were peppered by a barage of questions from the studio audience, which was comprised of 20 and 30-somethings. The questions included such though-provoking fodder as: "Have you ever smoked pot?", "Which of your fellow Democratic oppenents would you like to party with?", and "Would you have pulled Pedro Martinez out of Game 7?" (asked of Massachusetts Senator John Kerry.) They were also asked "PC or Mac?" Cross of Gold it ain't.

Now, those that know me know that I'm not devoid of fun. I'm not against having a good time, relaxing and not taking things too seriously. However, politics is serious. At the heart of it, politics is the mechanism that distributes our shared, yet finite resources. It is, to borrow a phrase from Laswell, the process that decides who gets what, where, when and how. Politics is serious. And yet, year after year, young voters have failed to rise to the challenge. We have failed to act as an intelligent and informed cog in the great machine of democracy. (Too much?). Many years ago, before cable television and Hot Pockets, when young people wanted to participate in the process they came to it with reverence and respect and acted accordingly. They put on suits and ties, shaved their hippie beards and paid attention. At last night's debate we saw the opposite. Several candidates wore open collars. Clark and Kucinich wore black turtlenecks and blazers. Look, this ain't Dobie Gillis and you're not Maynard Grebs. You're presidential candidates. And for the sake of everyone involved, you should act like it. And young voters need to act more like voters and less like young people.

It gets worse. The failure of young people to show up intellectually last night was overshadowed by the failure of the Democratic contenders to hold a debate of any real consequence. In addition to spending time on the friviolities of youth, the Democrats spent their time attacking Dean. Dean's comment that he wants to be the candidate of "guys in the South with confederate flags on their trucks," had many candidates, desperate for black votes frothing at the mouth. What Dean said is not racist or even biggotted in the least. Dean wants to attract poor, white uneducated Southern voters to once again vote Democratic.

While you would be hard-pressed to find someone who thinks the Democrats can re-capture the whole of the South, there is no question that the Democrats need the South to win. Both Carter and Clinton (the only Democrats to capture the White House in the last twenty-three years) managed Souther votes. Al Gore's failure in 2000 can be traced to his inability to capture several Southern and Southern-like states that have in the past voted Democratic. (This includes states like West Virginia, and Gore's home state of Tennessee and Clinton's home state of Arkansas.)

While none of the candidates wanted to admit it, they all knew Dean was right. Dean wasn't suggesting that Democrats pander to racist interests, but rather that Democrats seek to bring back into the fold poor white Southerners, particularly men, who have traditionally shared the economic priorities of the Democratic Party. If the Democratic candidate, be it Dean or somebody else, fails to capture the "pickup vote" they will have no hope of winning in November.

After that, I don't have the energy to rail against the Skins today. Note Boswell's article about how Snyder may never get it and this piece about the Redskins' coaching staff being among the league's youngest.

Finally, in college news, the Big East picked up some heavy basketball teams to add to their depleated league, including Louisville, Cincinnati and Marquette. Conference-USA, in the meantime, has picked up Rice, SMU and Tulsa from the WAC and Marshall and Central Florida from the MAC. This doesn't appear to be the end of the shifting, so keep your eyes peeled.

Peace & Love,
Tony

You gotta fight, for your right...to blog
CBS is having second thoughts about their Reagan biopic. It looks like pressure from the RNC is making the network consider showing the already completed four hour minseries starring James Brolin (Babs' hubby) as Reagan and Judy Davis (who apparently turned in a dreadfully over-acted performance)as Nancy on Showtime or not at all. The Republicans want a disclaimer to scroll on the bottom of the screen every ten minutes stating that the show is fictional representation of the Reagans. I think CBS should show the damn thing, and if the Republicans insist on a disclaimer it should read: WARNING: The show you are about to watch is a network made-for-TV miniseries. Like all programs on this genre it is terrible, and should only be watched if you are a lonley, sexually-frustrated dried up old hag.

Now for what you all came to see. What else could I possibly blog about today? Skins, baby, Skins. The team you love to hate. Everyone witnessed the shame that was the Dallas game. It goes without saying that this team is beyond terrible. They're miserable. They're lock-yourself-in-your-closet-and-cry-yourself-to-sleep bad. And they've been that way since Daniel Snyder took over. In fact, as Kornheisner notes in today's Washington Post, you can trace the Skins downward spiral to the day Norv Turner was fired with a 7-6 record. And yet now, it's somehow worse. Now there is an apparently very talented and undoubtedly tough quarterback who may never live up to his NFL potential because of the Balboa-esque beatings he continues to suffer each and every week. He left Sunday's game twice because of injuries, but like Rocky, he kept getting back up off the mat, eager for more punishment. However, for the Redskisn, unlike the Stallion, there will be NO happy ending. The Redskins will never be competitive while Daniel Snyder calls the shots. As long as this over-indulged billionaire is at the helm the team will continue to be run the way a fourteen year-old kid might run it. Big names, flashy pass plays and no victories. There is no chemistry, no discipline and no accountability on that team. And for me, there is no hope.

Kornheiser has some interesting things to say about this whole sad situation. Note that he mentions Lamar Hunt and Art Rooney as examples of owners who sign the paychecks and shut-up. Snyder should take note. That ownership philosophy has led to nothing except a pretty consistent record of competitivness and class.

Finally, check out this scientific examination of the Orndoff Principle from ESPN.com.

Peace & Love,
Tony

Corporal Hook
Guys, is it better to cut of your hand or your whole arm? Anyway. This is a egregious waste of space as far as a blog post goes, but I am tired of seeing all of your misanthropic politcal and sportical ranting on here. So I need my say.

What the fuck is up with Indian Summer...haven't we done enough to those poor bastards...now we are blaming them for this Autumnal mindfuck (thanks, Tbor)...I'm serious...it's got the rats all up in a lather (or maybe that one that jumped out of the garbage can and scared me was rabid)...either way, I want the 40 degree pissing ice rain. Then, I'll be happy.

By the way...before you bitch to me about it...yes, I did call off work today. My hand is more swollen and I slept like shit be/c of the pain. This is not good. This is what'll happen to me...I'll get that fucking job and have to pay the great Screw for it with my hand. Fair, no?

Anyhoo.

I think that the ol' ballcoach is a drug addict...only someone with a seroius drug problem can be that inept.

Draper

You Can Keep Cashing Those Checks, Though
Ballcoach sez:"I'm not going to get on my players any more this season. We are what we are."

Wilbon savages the Ballcoach in a piece that details all the ways Spurrier is simply being outcoached:

Everybody in the NFL knows what to do against the Fun 'n' Gun. Parcells and his defensive coaches even threw false fronts at Ramsey, hoping he'd audible, then jumped into something else as the snap clock ran down. They're accustomed to seeing that flanker screen to Laveranues Coles. Veteran defenders say there's no "hot read" for Ramsey to go to when he needs to, which is like a pilot having no ejector seat.

I think I've figured out the Skins' problem: they've become inside the Beltway - they play like government employees.

Marc

A Good Policy
From a post on Samizdata:

My personal rule is that if stopping someone from commiting some act doesn't justify shooting them, said act should not be illegal. Why? Because making an act illegal is agreeing to shoot someone who does it.

Marc

Steve Forbes Must Be Dancing On His Yacht
Woo-hoo! The flat tax has been implemented in Iraq! I love it.

Marc

What Could Be More Exciting Than The Savage Ballet That Is Pro Football?
Only two games tomorrow, jerks:

The Jags come to town to take on the AFC North-leading Ravens (zing) at 1 on CBS, while Fox will bring us Skins at Cowboys at 4.

Hey, Draper, I've got a big sack of candy for you, so don't eat anything today. Oh, right...

Marc

Don't worry, Marc & I have it all figured out
Hopefully this post will make sense, but it may not. My printer is going nuts. I attempted to print out the Cato Institute report Marc posted, but it made the printer crash. Then I had to restart my computer and re-print. That worked for a few pages and then a page got stuck. Now, the printer is just running paper through and printing a line of nonsense marks along the tops of some but not all pages. It's very loud and distracting. But I think it's over.

It comes as no surprise that Congress is working diligently on behalf of the elderly. They vote, and we don't. And while that may change, we are fighting an uphill battle. The elderly already see the benefit of their political participation in the form of Medicare, Social Security and prescription drug benefits. Young people need to be convinced to believe that there are benefits of voting before they actual see any. But, we are a skeptical lot; so getting anybody even near our age to believe in anything that they can't see is no easy task. It may prove a fool's errand.

ANYWAY, I don't think there's a lot of debate that something must be done to government entitlement programs if they are going to exist in any form by the time our age group is able to take advantage of them. Since poverty numbers among seniors have been dwindling (in 1959 35% of the elderly lived in poverty, compared to just 27% of the overall population. In 2001 that number was down to 10%, compared to 12% of the overall population) we need to re-examine if the elderly, as a group, should be considered as being in need of assistance. Make no mistake, poverty-stricken old people do, should and will continue to get government benefits. What we're talking about here are those citizens, who because of their age but in spite of their wealth still receive large government benefits. That practice needs to be curtailed. The government needs to cease discussion on a prescription drug benefit for seniors, and focus instead on one for poor seniors, and poor people in general. Further, Medicare must be means-tested, to prevent those wealthy seniors from getting assistance that they don't really need.

Social Security, the notorious third rail of contemporary American politics, is a program in need of drastic overhaul. Aside from the rather academic discussion of a Social Security "lockbox," serious reforms are imminent. There have been a number of reforms bandied about in the last few years. Slashing benefits, raising payroll taxes, privatizing the whole system, raising the retirement age have all been among them. The system is going to crash once Baby Boomers retire, because boomers, unlike their "greatest generation" parents had fewer children. There will be less people to pay fore more retirees.

I'm not 100% decided on any one mode of reform, although the first steps are clear. With the advances of medicine, the retirement age can easily be moved to 70. (In reality, the retirement age discussion is almost irrelevant. Whether or not the age is raised on Social Security benefits or not, our age group will likely never be able to retire.) It seems to me, however, that the nature of the failures of this system would lead one to privatization as the answer. The government could substantially reduce payroll taxes, allowing the system to continue to distribute gradually decreasing benefits to those that have paid into it. Eventually, the system will, to borrow a phrase from New Gingrich (who was actually referring to Medicare) "wither on the vine." Those workers who are not scheduled to receive any benefits will be able to invest (with the money they save on reduced payroll taxes) so that they can retire. I would support a social "safety net" for those who either don't invest or are careless with their money. The benefit would have to small enough, however, that it would encourage people to invest but large enough to allow people to live.

I think this solution would also help ease what I have heard referred to as the "investment gap." People in this country do not invest for their future, primarily because of entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. By eliminating or at the very least drastically reducing the size and scope of these programs, American workers will be forced to provide for their own future. I think the knowledge that they are responsible for themselves in their old age will also help many Americans live within their means.

Maybe I don't need that extra Hummer. Perhaps we could do without a wall-mounted plasma screen television. Honey, maybe you could play with a golf club made of less space-age material.

By doing this, however, we run the risk of stifling economic growth. If people save their money, rather than buy goods, particularly expensive consumer goods, the economy would suffer. But, and I'm no economist, I believe that the economy would eventually stabilize and adapt to the type of situation I've described.

Well, if that's not enough, here are some links related to Social Security reform:

Socail Security Reform.org: Seems to be run by the Heritage Foundation. Has a section that allows you to see what your benefits will look like based on your age and gender.
sscommonsense.org:A fairly non-partisan website examining the Socail Security reform debate.
ourfuture.org: A liberal website from the viewpoint of young Americans. Details a number of issues and problems, how increased government can help to solve almost all of them.

Peace, Love and Means-Testing,
Tony

I'll Just Kill Myself If Portugal Doesn't Win
From BadJocks.com:


Check out this irate Brazilian soccer fan throwing live chickens onto the field to protest his team's lousy performance.

Marc

Prescription Drugs Or A Cruise To Alaska?
Why not both, you old leetches? After all, your grandchildren are paying the bill.

As Congress and our cowardly Commander-in-Chief prepare to dole out some more of our tax dollars to the nation's wealthiest citizens in the form of a presciption drug benefit, take time to read this report by the Cato Institute.

Here are a few disheartening facts (remember these when you file your tax return):

Spending on the elderly made up 35% of the federal budget in 2000. That figure will rise to 43% in 2010.

70-year-olds now consume more than 30-year-olds.

56% of the full income of the elderly comes from transfer payments from the young (you).

Median net worth of heads of household aged 65-74: $176,300. Aged 35 and under: about $15,000.

Back to work, slackers! Granny needs a new Town Car!

Marc

Fabulous!
Red - it's the new teal! Tony, if you're the clothes Queer, I guess I'm the furniture Queer - but I'll rate the new unis as well. All in all, they are pretty decent. What does this mean for the Orndoff Principle?

Raptors: 7.0
Representin' Canada is good, but it's still technically an alternate jersey, so the purple will rear its ugly head. Plus, they're named after dinosaurs.
Cavaliers: 8.5
Dope logo! Their unis have been a disaster in the post-Mark Price era, but these are pretty sharp. I like the 'wine' better as an accent color than as a main color.
Rockets: 9.5
Outstanding! Very space-age in a Jetsons kind of way. From the side, the stripes form chevrons pointing towards each other.
Magic: 6.0
Generic. They look like Kentucky or Memphis. On the plus side, they aren't offensive - just boring. I am a uniform purist in football and baseball, but in hoops I want a little zazz.
Nuggets: 7.5
Very nice color scheme, but they kept the old font. A total makeover would have been better - or just wear the rainbow throwbacks!
Suns: 9.0
I've always liked the gray stripe down the side, and it looks great with orange. If I were going to wear one of these jerseys, this would be it. Check out the snazzy website of the design firm that did the Suns' new uniforms, as well as most of the other Phoenix teams.

Hockey Preview
This is unfortunate: the new Dallas Stars alternate jersey. It's the stars of the constellation Taurus arranged over a bull's head. Barf.

Chris Creamer reports the NHL is switching to dark jerseys at home so the home teams can show off these abominations to their loyal fans.

Marc

Queer Eye for the Sports Guy
For those of you without cable, this may come as a bit of news, but the NBA is back in full swing. And while some people are tuning in to watch the games, the only contact I've had yet with the NBA has been on Sportscenter. Through my chance encounters I've noticed a number of teams that have updated or in some way changed their uniforms. Most of these changes I actually like, which is unusual. Below are the changes that I am aware of. There may be more that I'm not aware of, and if so, please let me know.

Note that both Houston and Toronto have embraced red as a new primary color. This is the opposite of a trend in the NFL, which has seen teams wear a lot of very dark, very formal blue. The Rockets uniforms, changed primarily because of the increasing popularity of Yao Ming, were designed by the same person that won an Oscar for costume design on Bram Stoker's Dracula. They are suppossed to highlight the upward motion that is unique to basketball. The Raptors, on the other hand, have changed in order to embrace the fact that they are the only team in Canada. This comes at a time when the Blue Jays seem to be eschewing their Candaian roots and are rumored to be forgoing any hint of the maple leaf on next years uniforms or logos. Whatever the reason, I'm just glad they got rid of those dreadful two-toned purple and black numbers.

Also note that the Magic have done away with any pinstripes or stars. They will wear blue on the road with the word "Orlando" above the numbers. This is an effort to show their loyalty to their town, so my guess is they're angling for a new arena. The Nuggets made a similar move on their road jersey. It's also worth noting that Toronto has put "Raptors" on their road jersey, in the hopes that they will be embraced by the whole of Canada. Cleveland and Houston kept their city's name on their road jerseys.

The Cavs (who seem to be trying to get away form this abbreviation) and the Nuggets see uniform changes as a result of highly touted rookies joining the team, Labron James and Carmello Anthony respectivly. The Cavs have gone to a wine and gold and added a C-sword logo, which I think is pretty snappy. Also, although it's hard to tell here, the Nuggets have gone the way of the old San Diego Chargers and are embracing the powder blue and yellow. Again, another change I like.

I've included the following pics so that you could see the new uniforms compared to the old. Also, note the Phoenix Suns' new alternate uniforms, which are orange and silver with the letters "PHX" above the number.

A couple of the teams listed above changed their logo as well, including the Raptors going to a claw for their secondary logo and the Cavaliers new C-sword, which is reflected in the new uniform. However, the Rockets really improved their whole look by changing their logo to this snappy little number.

Well, that's all the logo talk for now, tommorrow: Hockey

Piece & Love,
Tony

A Blog a Day Keeps the Doctor Away
I began preparing for this blog earlier this morning, but I got interupted by a group of Seniors who had arrived for their tour of the building. I had a group and was surprised to find them pleasant, bright, inquisitive and altogether enjoyable

Wow, what a blog explosion the last couple of days. I'm totally knocked off my blog. It's hard to believe, but there has been glowing praise of Donna Brazille on this blog for two days in a row. But your right Marc, she seems intelligent when she doesn't have to spin for Al Bore.

Although President Bush is going to take credit for the economy growing so fast last quarter, I'm attributing it to the fact that Jason got his refund check last quarter. He's possibly singularly responsible for the jump in consumer purchasing. ZING I think the Democrats still have a fight here, because we have yet to see sustained growth since 9-11. Further, it seems that this recovery is occuring without a great many jobs being created, keeping the unemployment number at about 6%. If this number doesn't improve, and it very well might, people are still going to consider this a weak economy. These numbers won't matter as much to people if they or their neighbors or family continue to be unable to find work. As a matter of fact, Marc, maybe you could blame the whole Discovery Store fiasco on this "jobless recovery." ZING

In straight eye for the queer guy news, Lay-Z-Boy has just released a new line of furntiure designed by and aimed at the hipster crowd. I'm not sure why any of us will care about this, although I'm fairly certain that we will.

The National Institutes of Health is facing criticism about certain studies they've been conducting that D.C.-based church groups find "smarmy." The article lists several studies they've conducted, some of which sound outlandish, to say the least. The real question is, as I see it: Since these studies are conducted and funded by the government, does the public have the right to evaluate them based not only on scientifc value but their own sense of morality and cultural values? Or, since our form of government is a republic, and not a pure democracy, and the NIH members are appointed by elected officials but not elected themselves, can the NIH, overseen by members of the executive and legislative branch, conduct research as it sees fit under the law? It's a sticky situation, I think, but I would have to lean toward the latter answer.

Charles Krauthammer weighed in on the Greg Easterbrook affair, basically saying that there is some real anti-Semitism in this world and to leave this guy alone.

I had decided to refrain from Redskins related bloggery, but since Marc brought it up, here goes. I'm worried about this Russell character, but Wilbon has hope. And, for the time being, so will I.

The Times-News is reporting that a drunk drive caused about 1800 people to lose power the other day. The most interesting part of this is that I think I know the guy who did it. The driver was identified as Thaddeus Terrance Carolan, 26. If this is the right Thad, he graduated from Walsh one or two years ahead of Draper, Joe and I. Further, if this is the Thad I'm thinking of, I took American History with him in High School. Jason, Joe: Do you think this is "our" Thad? I mean, how many Thads can there be in Allegany County?

Jason asked me to post the HTML code for getting words to scroll. I can't figure out how to post code, so just check the source code on my Rod Roddy post.

Peace & Love,
Tony

Skins Win, Ramsey Gang-raped
Good news, T-Bone - the Skins signed Darrell Russell! Here are the details of his crimes:

Russell tested positive for the designer drug Ecstasy in 2001, and he began that season serving a four-game suspension, but the sanction then was elevated to an indefinite one. While under league suspension, Russell was charged with drugging a woman with GHB, the so-called "date rape drug," and videotaping two friends allegedly raping her. But all 25 counts in that case were dropped in Sept. 2002 for lack of evidence.

Marc

Donna Brazile: Not As Stupid As She Looks
You know, when she's not on someone's payroll, she can say some pretty intelligent things. Brazile said this about the Democrats on Iraq:

There's a huge credibility gap our party has on national security--not because we don't have enough military medals, but because we have no plan of action.

Marc