I didn't want to do it, but...

I didn’t want to post another video of cop stupidity. I don’t want to be overly cynical of police authority in this country. That said I could probably post a different video like this everyday.

In this video Oklahoma State Troopers pulled over an ambulance taking a woman to the hospital. What developed was caught on video. Maurice White Jr. (the man who received a choke hold from a brave police officer) got out of the ambulance when the patrol car pulled them over because he saw a woman in the front seat of the patrol car and he thought she was in need of medical attention…I mean why else would you pull over an ambulance?

If you know some police officers or have some in your family…show them this video and let them know that the public is growing tired of this.

Midweek Dangly Bits

Tonight I'll be with Dave from the Dave and Steve Show We'll discuss ever so briefly how corporations overthink advertising and I'll be using Pepsi as an example. I'm sure there are about two of you that care but I'll try not to bore you too terribly.

Thanks for all the emails pointing out the angrier tone of my last few posts...all of them were positive...don't understand why you all want me angry all the time...but I'll do my best.

More to come.

Pepsi Throwback

I didn’t expect much honestly.

Up until the last 10 years or so I preferred Pepsi over any other cola.  It was no contest really.  I took the Pepsi challenge back when I was in elementary school and it became very obvious that there was a huge difference between the two major colas. 

The “other” cola was all over the place too.  I found their advertising to be pompous and the quality of their fizzy syrup to be average at best.  Obviously many other people did since “they” tried to change their formula for no known reason…only to come up with a worse flavor.

But I noticed that the quality of the Pepsi product in the 90’s went down the toilet.  Especially here in the Pacific Northwest.  About six years ago I did have some Pepsis that I bought in Denver, Colorado that were in with some I brought with me from Seattle.  The taste between the cans was noticeable and confirmed what I suspected all along.  The Seattle area bottler (which at time was Alpac Corporation…may still be..dunno) was using bathwater to make their Pepsi.  It sucked.  So, I stopped drinking it.

So does Pepsi Throwback remind me of the taste I loved as a kid?  Totally!  Smoother, better, and no bathwater aftertaste.  I like it.

Verdict:  It doesn’t suck

Predictably, Pepsi continues their stupidity by making this quality product available for a few months…then gone for good…and back I will go to drinking beer.

A good year for my Congressman

I wrote a few years ago about my experience with Congressman Jay Inslee and his staff. I had nothing bad to say about him except what should be obvious to anyone. Congress supports special interest, and not the individual unless you're good for a photo op.

That said my congressman has had a pretty good year in my view. He has voted against bailouts at every opportunity and recently co-sponsored a bill to change a law to enable the Federal Reserve to be audited.

Bravo Jay Inslee! I may not write-in my cat against you in 2010. No disrepect however to Chairman Meow.

Cops are awesome aren't they?

YouTube is now providing video proof of stories we’ve been hearing from people throughout the years.  Police using force for no reason, breaking people’s right, temporarily detaining people for no legal reason. 

Last month an El Paso news reporter was arrested for covering an accident scene where off-duty military personnel rescued a man from a tipped over semi-truck.  Even after agreeing to leave the scene the cop still had to lose control of the situation. 

A couple of weeks ago a pastor driving through New Mexico was tazered, dragged from his car and beaten up simply because he would not consent to have his car searched on the freeway.  Border Patrol and Highway Police perform these searches of vehicles to catch illegal aliens and drug trafficking.  Their justification for their actions was that the pastor was considered suspicious because he wouldn’t let them search him without a warrant.

Now a man in a Seattle theater was mistaken for a suspect in a stabbing incident that happened in a nearby convenience store.  The policeman came after the man who tried to get away from him and the cop body checked him against a wall head first.  The innocent victim in the case is in a coma.

King County Police did a preliminary investigation and their findings are that the policeman used force within their policies and did not commit any crime.  Their report questions why the man was trying to get away from the policeman in the first place…

…I don’t know…maybe because the cop could use life threatening force against an innocent person without any fear of going to jail or even losing his career…maybe that had something to do with it.

The clown who put the man in the hospital while he clings to life is on paid administrative duty where he gets to do his important law enforcement from a desk.

I know some will argue that there are good police out there but I’m going to have to ask the question that begs to be asked:

Where are they when this stuff happens?  Why aren’t they speaking out against rogue cops.  For every 100 videos out there of police doing stupid things like this a good cop could get killed because the public becomes more fearful of these clowns with a badge on their state-approved costume.

Enjoy the video below of what the King County Police calls a “Tragic accident”.  Don’t feel bad for the victim though…after all…no law was broken.

Make no mistake

Your president is full of shit.

Libertarian Purity Tests

It's amazing that a group so small and so ineffective in politics in our country would still be so aggressive about checking the purity of those of us who use the "L" word.

Senator Lindsey Graham from South Carolina knows what a libertarian is...as he proudly proclaims to his dwindling number of GOP supporters that he is not one.

I'd rather build coalitions. Try to achieve a bi-partisan libertarian reality. Allow both sides of the aisle downgrade their own particular brand of intervention.

Democrats give up a department
Republicans give up a defense contract
Democrats give up foreign aid to Palestine
Republicans give up foreign aid to Israel

Wouldn't it be nice to see a balanced, bi-partisan approach to collectively pulling this country's head out of its ass?

Yeah, I know. I can dream can't I?

The Hiatus is over!

Sorry about the delay in posts. I've had a bunch of stuff to say and very little time to say it in. Was working 7 days a week for the last two weeks...but I'm back now....so let's get started.

Rant #1 - Hey look you dumbass Paleo-Conservative/libertarian nutjobs who believe in every big conspiracy brewing out there...how can I talk to people about anything freedom-related if all they know about is you? To get someone's ear on something I have to first explain that I don't believe in your dumb conspiracies, that I'm not a gun nut ready to move to my fortress compound in Montana and that I believe that 9/11 was pretty much just a small group of guys with box cutters who had a lot of patience and planning. Maybe you could all just shut up for awhile and let the grown-ups talk for a bit?

Rant #2 - Pepsi Throwback? In plastic bottles? Are you kidding me? I'm going to try it still and I promise to bore you with the details.

Rant #3 - Hey guess what? I don't consent to be searched. You want to see what I'm carrying then go convince a judge you jerk-wads. The 4th Amendment is the most ignored right and the least protected.

Rant #4 - Secession. I do believe it is the inherant right of any free state to break off and do what it wants...if its citizens choose to do so. It would be nice if these states would start by cutting off the flow of federal money to their states to really drive home their points. It's one thing to want to be indpendent, but can they try it without going after my money first?

Rant #5 - I listen to the news talk about our debt and they're concerned about the amount of money we're borrowing to pay for the spending of the Obama administration. They still don't get it. They should be worrying about the spending on the money we CAN'T borrow. This latest spending spree has the fewest amount of treasury bills supporting it than any other spending package in US history. This is a much larger danger to our country and our money.

Rant #6 - You anti-war people who voted for Obama were used...and I told you so. The war in Iraq continues...and if it escalates we will delay our plans to dwindle down troop presence there. Afghanistan continues and will be escalated under the leadership of your savior. Congratulations voting for a man that throws good money after bad while sending your sons and daughters off to war. Morons.

Atlas Shrugged Revisited

I’ll throw a bone to my Objectivist fans:

US Labor Department reported 539,000 jobs lost.

Government employment increased during this same period by 66,000 jobs.

If you’re scoring at home:

There are fewer producers.

There are more takers.

Good Parenting Update

I wrote last year about my buddy Warren who took his son to South Africa for two weeks and I promised to follow up on this.

They had a great time and from what I can tell it was a life-changing experience for his son.  I’m happy to report that among all the normal troubles that a boy his age would have, he is engaged in school and still getting terrific grades.

I’m also happy to report that they were not eaten by lions, which as I wrote earlier, would’ve put a bit of a downer on what should’ve been a more uplifting story. 

I want to invite you to read his blog entries and see his incredible photography from their trip to South Africa.  I’m glad that there are parents like Warren in the world.

Reaction to the Georgia College Slayings

What?  You hadn't heard that a group of college kids in Georgia were killed by two gunman that burst into an apartment where they were gathered?  Of course you didn't...because it never happened.  Here's why.

Jack Kemp - RIP

UPDATE - Now with more vowels!
Sorry to hear Jack Kemp passed away over the weekend. I liked him...sometimes.

When listening to Kemp talk I was always agreeing and disagreeing with him, often while he was in the same sentence. Every time Kemp spoke about financial matters and taxation policies it was if he was putting Mustard and Raspberry Jam on a hot dog. You can imagine liking all three, just not together. Here are examples of Kemp's great internal conflicts:

Supply-side economics - Kemp long discussed the need to lower tax marginal rates to raise receipts. He understood like a few politicians that there are certain taxes, that when lowered,can actually raise revenue. I've not understood though why an advocate for less government intervention would want more revenue fueling it.

Flat tax - Kemp felt a flat tax on wages and earnings was more fair. He said it should be somewhere between 17-25%. I've never understood why someone who advocated for personal liberty would concede that one-fourth of my productive energy should belong to someone else.

When he defended Reagan, he was really defending himself. Reagan expanded the role of government in our lives...it's a sad truth. The most shameful elements of Reagan's time in office were orchestrated by the likes of Kemp and a few others.

Kemp as head of HUD recommended that it be closed. Bravo.

Kemp was not afraid to speak in front of minorities, in particular African-Americans. I wish he would have been a little less smug while doing it though.

Kemp also played for the San Diego Chargers. I've never liked the Chargers much.

He had local ties to my area and I had on one occasion back in the early 90's shook hands with Jack Kemp. I'm sure he talked about shaking my hand quite a bit in his private life.

Count your pennies

I've been working on some major projects and haven't blogged this week. Sorry. Come back next week...I'll blog your face off.

From the Mouths of Babes

Our country somehow expects a great deal from our beauty queens. We want them beautiful, elegant, poised, and able to solve the world's problems with a few sentences when pressed for answers.

Miss California recently was asked by Perez Hilton if she thinks that more states should follow Vermont's lead and legalize same-sex marriage.

Her answer is as follows:

Well, I think it’s great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage...and you know what, in my country, in my family I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman.

No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised and that’s how I think it should be - between a man and a woman. Thank you very much.

Later Hilton called Miss California a "dumb bitch" on his blog.

I guess what I'm wondering is: Why ask the question if there is only one right answer?

You don't have to like her answer but she was at least respectful to people who disagree with her and she gave her reason (albeit a weak one) why she can't agree with same-sex marriage.

Who cares what Miss California has to say on the subject anyway? Who cares about Perez Hilton? What I do care about is that we can disagree with each other without name calling.

After all, we're talking about the important position of Miss USA here. If we cannot protect the integrity of this important institution...how can we ever hope to solve the problems of marriage?

Anvil! The Story of Anvil

I love documentaries.  I even like documentaries that are trying to convince me of some stupid worldview.  No matter if it’s one I largely don’t agree with (Bowling for Columbine) or one I really agree with (From Freedom to Fascism) I take them with a grain of salt because a documentary is designed to take a subject and fill your head with reasons to agree or disagree with it.  Generally a documentary is not all that objective.

Last night I saw Anvil! The Story of Anvil. I loved it.

Here is the trailer:

When I first saw the trailer I thought it was another Spinal Tap rip-off but one thing stood out to me…I actually remembered Anvil. I saw this movie last Saturday night in Seattle’s University District and really enjoyed it.  You don’t have to be into Heavy Metal music to love this movie.  This is just an interesting way of telling the story of underdogs who refuse to give up…against all odds.

I’ll be giving a more complete review of this movie with Dave on the Dave and Steve Show this week.

A Special Message to Barack Obama

I asked my son if he could talk to the president...what would he say? Below is a message to the president from Rory.

Mr. President, I'm going to poop on the potty so I can have some chocolate and get my Thomas train back.

There you are Mr. President. The future generations have spoken.

Mad as Hell

Daniel Hannan - Member of European Parliament

I heard this speech the day after he gave it and was impressed.  Its popularity since has given me more reason to share it. 

Giving Back

I hate this expression and I hear it all the time.

I heard on the radio a guy who owned a couple of businesses talk about his sponsoring of Boys and Girls clubs and that he liked the chance to “give back to the community.”

So I wonder exactly what this guy exactly “takes” from the community that he is obligated to “give back.”  From the news report I could gather this:

• He employs 36 people in the community where they enjoy reliable employment with benefits.
• He provides a service in the community that I have used myself.
• He seems to perform the service well enough that people return as customers.

Is this productive energy that he uses that directly impacts those who are connected with him as employees or customers a clever form of stealing from the community?

How come I never hear politicians discuss tax rebates or tax rate reduction as “giving back” to the community?  That WOULD be accurate as their goal is always to take from the productive efforts of people and give it to the unproductive elements of our society.

The expression pisses me off and I beg you…if you hear someone use this expression…stop them.  Grab them by their fat heads and knock some sense into them.  If you do, you will have given society the greatest gift of all.  Trust me.

Oh, and hope you had a Happy Easter.

Pirates back in the news...they never really left.