tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87763617809268991462024-03-12T21:16:14.573-04:00Scenic City ShenanigansViewing the world from Southeast TennesseeVolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-21609979517458785732009-11-03T14:56:00.001-05:002009-11-03T14:58:35.355-05:00Seriously. WTF is a '72 Hyundai Cataleer??Allow D-Roc and Kaine of the Ying Yang Twins to explain it to you in their episode of "Cribs". Translated especially for you!<br />
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Warning: Subtitles not safe for work. Actual language not safe for your intelligence.<br />
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<object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/uCRc4Dn84jc&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/uCRc4Dn84jc&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-31076304417778370282009-11-03T11:02:00.002-05:002009-11-03T14:59:01.217-05:00Funny or Frightening?Each time I look at this picture I laugh, and then I get scared for what is likely to happen if this legislation passes. He are are two interesting stories that don't seem to mean much to Obama for whatever reason. As long as his bill passes....<br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/11/02/sources-house-health-totals-trillion/">The planned health bill, <em>as of right now</em>, has increased in tax payer cost to 1.2 trillion</a>. That's 300<em> billion </em>dollars more tha <strike>lucifer</strike> <strike>satan</strike> <strike>beezlebub</strike> Nancy Pelosi claimed it would be.<br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/11/02/house-republicans-new-bureaucracies-health-care/">The planned health bill also will create 111 new bureaucracies</a>. That's 111 more than the thousands too many this country already has.<br />
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And the picture:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SvBTokvqQFI/AAAAAAAAAZY/HT8KyW4ZBrg/s1600-h/Obamacare.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SvBTokvqQFI/AAAAAAAAAZY/HT8KyW4ZBrg/s320/Obamacare.bmp" vr="true" /></a><br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-38513192477379975762009-11-03T10:19:00.001-05:002009-11-03T14:59:23.861-05:00VB's 10/30/2009 Winner - The Results ShowEverybody has an off week or two. After two consecutive losing weeks, I think I just turned the corner. No more losing weeks!! Also, I do believe Lane Kiffin is changing the long-held "don't bet on Tennessee when they are favored" rule. That's nice because I always enjoy betting, and winning, on the Vols when they're favored. Here we go!<br />
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Overall Record - 14 and 16<br />
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Pick One - Tennessee -6 vs South Carolina - Tennessee 31 South Carolina 13. I called for a double digit win by Tennessee and I was very right! WINNER<br />
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Pick Two - Arkansas -36.5 vs Eastern Michigan - Arkansas 63 Eastern Michigan 27. I don't know which is worse, Arkansas's defense or half-point spreads. LOSER<br />
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Pick Three - Georgia Tech -12 at Vanderbilt - Georgia Tech 56 Vandy 31. No defense whatsoever in this game. Vandy may just beat somebody this season if they can find some defenders. WINNER<br />
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Pick Four - LSU -36 vs Tulane - LSU 42 Tulane 0. This was an easy one to call. WINNER<br />
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Pick Five - Oregon +3 vs USC - Oregon 47 USC 20. I'm still dumbfounded that Oregon was an underdog in this one. They are by far the hottest team around right now. WINNER<br />
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Pick Six - Iowa -17.5 vs Indiana - Iowa 42 Indiana 24 - Probably the last time I pick Iowa as a favorite. I still can't believe they came back in the 4th not only to win, but to cover as well. WINNER<br />
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Pick Seven - Georgia +14.5 vs Florida - Florida 41 Georgia 17. Meh. They couldn't both lose, so at least somebody got embarressed. LOSER<br />
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Pick Eight - Michigan State -4 at Minnesota - Minnesota 42 Michigan State 34. I hate the Big Ten. LOSER<br />
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Pick Nine - UCONN -7.5 vs Rutgers - Rutgers 28 UCONN 24. Impressive win by Rutgers. Sucks to be UCONN right now. LOSER<br />
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Pick Ten - Houston -7 vs. Southern Mississippi - Houston 50 Southern Miss 43. I knew Houston's offense would play, I didn't know their defense wouldn't. PUSH<br />
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This Week - 5-4-1<br />
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Overall - 19-20-1<br />
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Next week will be up Friday with more winners!VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-27093794424917472802009-10-31T12:19:00.001-04:002009-10-31T13:58:34.833-04:00Ranking The SEC Traditions - Round Two, the University of ArkansasHere comes round two in my rankings. Round one saw <a href="http://sceniccityshenanigans.blogspot.com/2009/10/ranking-sec-traditions-up-first.html">Alabama come out with a 65</a>, and up next on the alphabetical list is Arkansas.<br />
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Here's how I started this series, and Arky's ratings are after the jump.<br />
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I've been meaning to do my own version of this for a while now. Everytime I attend or watch a Tennessee game, I am pleased to take in the traditions of other schools as the pagentry surrounding the football game itself is one of the biggest draws for the SEC. Every school has unique traditions of their own, and many traditions are shared, just in different ways or formats.<br />
<br />
So, I'm gonna take on the daunting task of ranking them as impartially as my Orange blood will allow. I won't be including Tennessee's since they would obviously be number one coming from me.<br />
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Here are the categories. They are worth 10 points a piece, and the rankings will be total team score with a maximum of 100. I'll rank one school at a time as my own time permits, and then do a final tally and compilation once everyone has been ranked.<br />
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Categories are:<br />
<br />
1. Stadium - General beauty, capacity, perceived loudness, and any nicknames or traditions therein.<br />
2. Fans - Type of fans and loyalty primarily influence this ranking.<br />
3. Mascot - Intimidation factors heavily in this one. Live mascots get bonus points.<br />
4. Uniforms - Are they hideous or not?<br />
5. Tailgating - Does it exist? How much fun is it? This one may be difficult for me since I've never been to an away game.<br />
6. Fight songs - Speaks for itself really<br />
7. Post-game traditions after a win - What happens after the home team wins?<br />
8. All-time greats - Who were some of the great players from the school's history?<br />
9. Team nickname - This is based on orginality and intimidation as well as my own personal feelings.<br />
10. All-time program success - How often do they and have they won?<br />
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So, with that out there, here the rankings, in my opinion as a Tennessee fan, and in alphabetical order: <br />
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<strong><em>University of Arkansas</em></strong><br />
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<a href="http://image.cdnl3.xosnetwork.com/pics29/400/PD/PDDSNFFWTRQTTLW.20051109162536.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://image.cdnl3.xosnetwork.com/pics29/400/PD/PDDSNFFWTRQTTLW.20051109162536.jpg" vr="true" width="320" /></a>1. Stadium - Arkansas plays football at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The "Razorback" part of the name helps, but we'll get to that in a bit. The stadium itself has a capacity of 76,000 and doesn't have a rep for being all that loud, but they <em>do </em>call their jumbotron the "PigScreen", which I like. Subtract points for playing some "home" games each season in War Memorial Stadium 190 miles away. Asthetics are nice, and I like the classic horseshoe shape. <strong><em>Stadium Rating - 7</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">2. Fans - I liken the Arkansas fans to Tennessee fans in that we have our redneck fans like every school in the South, but mostly we're just "normal" people. Arkansas fans that I know generally have a decent knowledge of the college game and other teams in the conference, and are generally cordial to other fans. Loyalty is good with the school even in the face of an average history of success. <strong><em>Fans Rating - 6</em></strong><br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5c/BigRedSooie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5c/BigRedSooie.jpg" vr="true" width="320" /></a>3. Mascot - The Razorback. If you think that's just a pig, you need to do some research. I find that the Razorback mascot is one of the coolest in sports, and is also the only "pig" based mascot in all of college football. The have four (four!) mascots including Big Red, Sue E. (great name for a female mascot), Pork Chop, and the inflatable Boss Hog. The actual mascot "uniforms" are pretty awesome as well. Best of all though, and what gives Arkansas a perfect 10 in the mascot category, is the existence of the live mascot, Tusk. <br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/01/TuskMascot2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/01/TuskMascot2.JPG" vr="true" width="320" /></a><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><em>Mascot Rating - 10</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">4. Uniforms - I also like the Arky uniform as well. I find their use of the Cardinal color is the most appealing derivitive of the color red in the league along with the Ole Miss red. The "running hog" on the helmets is also very cool, and the use of Cardinal pants goes a long way, especially when they balance it with the all-white road uni. <strong><em>Uniform Rating - 9</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">5. Tailgating - Arkansas has a decent tailgate tradition going it seems. There is an area called "The Garden" that is supposedly similar to "The Grove" at Ole Miss. You'll find great bbq, but also some good Tex-Mex in and around the tailgates. The congenial nature of the average razorback fan also helps this score out. <strong><em>Tailgating Rating - 5</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">6. Fight Song - The Arkansas fight song is quite catchy and scores points for that as well as having that "classic fight song" sound to it. There words consist of your average "fight, fight, fight" type lyrics, but, again, the classics are classic for a reason. Give it a listen, and notice how fierce the logo is!<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4nQCqcNR-co&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4nQCqcNR-co&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><em>Fight Song Rating - 5</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">7. Post-Game Traditions - After a home win, the coaches and team will usually gather in an area of the stadium and lead the fans in singing the fight song. While a great tradition, it is not all that original, so the score is somewhat low. <strong><em>Post-Game Tradition - 3</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">8. All-Time Greats - Arkansas has produced 12 members of the College Football Hall of Fame, and 45 All-Americans. There have certainly been some great players and coaches at Arkansas, but nobody in particular really stands out. <strong><em>All-Time Greats Rating - 4</em></strong><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">9. Team Nickname - The Razorbacks. If they were just pigs, it wouldn't be that big of a deal. But, the Razorback is one fierce, feral pig and not to be trifled with. Their live mascot is a Russian Boar that weighs in at 400 pounds. The logo they use is fierce and intimidating. All around great name for a team. <strong><em>Team</em></strong> <strong><em>Nickname Rating - 10</em></strong>.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">10. All-Time Success - Arky doesn't have all that much to scream about in terms of historical success. They have a National Championship from 1964, and 13 South<em>west</em> Conference championships. The sole National Championship is almost par for the league. They joined the SEC in 1992 and have been blown out in all three of their SEC Championship Game appearances. <strong><em>All-Time Success Rating - 4</em></strong>.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><em><strong>Overall Score for the University of Arkansas - 63</strong></em><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Up next, Auburn University.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><em>Disclaimer - I know you think your school deserves 10's at eveything, but these are my rankings and I call them how I see them. We all think our own school is the best at everything, but, if I completely left any traditions out, by all means let me know. Also, it's likely no school will have a 90+ score, or maybe even 80+, so just chill. It's all in fun!</em><br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-71720556662873936052009-10-30T14:08:00.001-04:002009-10-30T14:09:10.227-04:00VB's Winners - 10/30/2009A one game improvement is still an improvement!! At least I'll keep telling myself that. I do feel good about some games this week, so my percentage should jump up some. As always, you can gamble with free money and keep what you win over at <a href="http://www.centsports.com/?opcode=425153">CentSports</a>. Let's check 'em out!<br />
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Last Week - 4 and 6<br />
Overall - 14 and 16<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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Pick One - Tennessee -6 vs South Carolina - This pick goes against everything I've said thus far, but SoCar is overrated and Tennessee is gonna come away with a double digit victory.<br />
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Pick Two - Arkansas -36.5 vs Eastern Michigan - Big spread, but even bigger victory for Arky. This one has 62-3 written all over it.<br />
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Pick Three - Georgia Tech -12 at Vanderbilt - Vandy gave SoCar everything they had and still lost by 4. Tech is gonna spank 'em.<br />
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Pick Four - LSU -36 vs Tulane - Easy cover here. Another 50+ to 3 type game.<br />
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Pick Five - Oregon +3 vs USC - Big game, big pick, but Oregon is the hottest team around right now and playing at home. Take the points. I think Oregon will win outright.<br />
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Pick Six - Iowa -17.5 vs Indiana - Hoosiers don't stand a chance in this one. Iowa by 24+ I do believe.<br />
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Pick Seven - Georgia +14.5 vs Florida - This is the pick I'm least confident in, but that's a big spread and it's a neutral field. That half-point might make this one a winner.<br />
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Pick Eight - Michigan State -4 at Minnesota - Minnesota showed how bad they really are last week. Take State in this one.<br />
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Pick Nine - UCONN -7.5 vs Rutgers - Shouldn't be a problem for UCONN to cover this, even after what's happened to them lately.<br />
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Pick Ten - Houston -7 vs. Southern Mississippi - Houston's offense is just too much. They should cover easily.<br />
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There we have it. Ten college games and all ten are winners!! At least that's what <em>I </em>think......VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-89950947509920018842009-10-30T11:18:00.001-04:002009-10-30T11:21:08.829-04:00Ranking The SEC Traditions - Up First, the University of AlabamaI've been meaning to do my own version of this for a while now. Everytime I attend or watch a Tennessee game, I am pleased to take in the traditions of other schools as the pagentry surrounding the football game itself is one of the biggest draws for the SEC. Every school has unique traditions of their own, and many traditions are shared, just in different ways or formats.<br />
<br />
So, I'm gonna take on the daunting task of ranking them as impartially as my Orange blood will allow. I won't be including Tennessee's since they would obviously be number one coming from me.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://norcalvol.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/neyland-stadium-at-night-what-a-beautiful-sight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://norcalvol.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/neyland-stadium-at-night-what-a-beautiful-sight.jpg" vr="true" width="400" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>Home of the best traditions in college football. Obviously.</em><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Here are the categories. They are worth 10 points a piece, and the rankings will be total team score with a maximum of 100. I'll rank one school at a time as my own time permits, and then do a final tally and compilation once everyone has been ranked.<br />
<br />
Categories are:<br />
<br />
1. Stadium - General beauty, capacity, perceived loudness, and any nicknames or traditions therein.<br />
2. Fans - Type of fans and loyalty primarily influence this ranking.<br />
3. Mascot - Intimidation factors heavily in this one. Live mascots get bonus points.<br />
4. Uniforms - Are they hideous or not?<br />
5. Tailgating - Does it exist? How much fun is it? This one may be difficult for me since I've never been to an away game.<br />
6. Fight songs - Speaks for itself really<br />
7. Post-game traditions after a win - What happens after the home team wins?<br />
8. All-time greats - Who were some of the great players from the school's history?<br />
9. Team nickname - This is based on orginality and intimidation as well as my own personal feelings.<br />
10. All-time program success - How often do they and have they won?<br />
<br />
So, with that out there, here the rankings, <em>in my opinion as a Tennessee fan, </em>and in alphabetical order:<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<strong><em>University of Alabama</em></strong><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://whyevolutionistrue.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/fb-stadium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="http://whyevolutionistrue.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/fb-stadium.jpg" vr="true" width="320" /></a><br />
</div>1. Bryant-Denny Stadium - Kind of a rough start for Bama. The stadium is somewhat bland, but it does gain some symmetry from the circular ramps on either side. Current capacity is in the 93,000 range with an expansion underway to bring it up to 100,000. The stadium doesn't have a rep for being all that loud, but acoustics probably play in to that. <strong><em>Stadium Rating - 4</em></strong><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">2. Fans - Alabama fans generally have a reputation as being a little rednecky in a trailer park kind of way, and very, very "deep south-ish". About the best way I can put that. What they lack in common sense, non-redneckness, and teeth, they more than make up for it with their fierce loyalty. Overall knowledge of football in general and other teams is pretty limited given their crimson-colored glasses and devotion to Bama. That devotion goes a long way for their score though. <strong><em>Fan Rating - 8</em></strong><br />
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3. Mascot - An elephant. Not bad actually. I like elephants, and their logo is actually pretty fierce:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.mkrob.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Bama-Logo2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.mkrob.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Bama-Logo2.jpg" vr="true" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">However, they have no live mascot, which would have given them a 20 out of 10, and their gameday mascot is a rather goofy looking thing named "Big Al"<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://michaelgass.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/07bigal1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://michaelgass.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/07bigal1.jpg" vr="true" width="320" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This takes away from the intimidation factor and lowers their score a bit. <strong><em>Mascot Rating - 7</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">4. Uniforms - One of the classics of college football. Crimson unis with numbers on the helmets. That's it. If it wasn't for this uniform's place among the classics, the score would be terrible given the overall plain look. Color is good though. <strong><em>Uniform Rating - 7</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">5. Tailgating - Every school has tailgating in some format. Some are known for it, some only make an attempt as an excuse to chug copious amounts of alcohol prior to gametime. Bama seems to be more of the later type. There's rumors of good barbeque at Dreamland, but that's not really a tailgate. <strong><em>Tailgate Rating - 3</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">6. Fight Songs - I'll admit, "Yea Alabama" is quite catchy and one of the more classic fight songs, but the words could use some updating as I'm not sure Bama is looking towards the Rose Bowl each year anymore. Have a look and listen:<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z3bL6K3QAao&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z3bL6K3QAao&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Other than the words, the song would receive a fairly high grade. As it is, <strong><em>Fight Song Rating - 7</em></strong><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">7. Post-Game Traditions - This is one I only know of one thing Bama does. They sing/chant a tune/bunch-of-non-sensical-words in the form of "Rammer Jammer". This is basically a chant consisting of a bunch of words and sounds thrown together that only serves a purpose in order to get them to the ending line of "we just beat the hell out of you". Classy <em>and</em> topical. Especially when they win by a last second FG or something. <strong><em>Post-Game Tradition Rating - 3</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">8. All-Time Greats - Easily a high scoring spot for Bama. Just in the College Football Hall of Fame alone you have: Paul "Bear" Bryant, Harry Gilmer, Bart Starr, Johnny Mack Brown, Johnny Cain, John Hannah, Frank Howard, Pooley Hubert, Lee Roy Jordan, Dixie Howell, Don Hutson, Vaughn Mancha, Johnny Musso, Joe Namath, Ozzie Newsome, Billy Neighbors, Fred Sington, Wallace Wade, Don Whitmire. On top of those, they have produced 96 All-Americans. <strong><em>All-Time Greats Rating - 10</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">9. Team Nickname - The Crimson Tide. Not all that intimidating and it inspires fans to wear old Tide detergent boxes and toilet paper rolls on their heads during games. It is a classic and unique, however, and was mentioned in the Steely Dan song, "Deacon Blues". <strong><em>Team Nickname Rating - 6</em></strong><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">10. All-Time Success - It doesn't get much better than the success Alabama football has had down through the years. Alabama <em>claims </em>12 National Championships, but the legitimate number is more likely in the area of 4-5 given the back-dating they used to count some of those. I mean, a team with 2 losses isn't National Champs when there are undefeateds out there, no matter what the Dothan Times says. Add to that 21 SEC titles and 32 bowl wins though, and you've got the most successful team in the SEC. <strong><em>All-Time Success Rating - 10</em></strong><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><strong><em>Overall Score for the University of Alabama - 65</em></strong><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Up next, the University of Arkansas.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><em>Disclaimer - I know you think your school deserves 10's at eveything, but these are my rankings and I call them how I see them. We all think our own school is the best at everything, but, if I completely left any traditions out, by all means let me know. Also, it's likely no school will have a 90+ score, or maybe even 80+, so just chill. It's all in fun!</em><br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-48931214801851987842009-10-30T09:48:00.000-04:002009-10-30T09:48:35.447-04:00Intermission - A Few Of My Favorite SitesI'm working up the first installment of a series ranking the various traditions of SEC schools, but in the meantime I thought I would share just a few sites I visit for a good laugh. If you enjoy the misfortune or idiocy of others, check these out. Be warned though, you may be there a while....<br />
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1. <a href="http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/">People of Walmart</a> - If you don't already know about this one, you might be one of the people in the pictures. This site documents the "humanity" of WalMart. Enjoy<br />
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2. <a href="http://thereifixedit.com/">There I Fixed It</a> - This site documents great moments in duct-tape-engineering. Quite hilarious.<br />
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3. <a href="http://www.textsfromlastnight.com/">Texts From Last Night</a> - A site I just recently discovered, but an instant classic for sure. This site documents all kinds of the weird, hilarious, and crazy text messages that are sent late at night and then submitted. The texts are then ranked for a "good night", or a "bad night". For instance:<br />
<blockquote>(505): Thank you for holding my vodka while the police let me ride their horse.</blockquote>I call that a good night!<br />
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Enjoy these sites while I work on my tradition rankings and get my picks ready to go up this afternoon.VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-33765640988553552302009-10-27T11:42:00.000-04:002009-10-27T11:42:26.076-04:00Today's "US Government Making It Rain With Your Tax Dollars" MomentThanks to a tip from <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/users/golfballs03">golfballs03</a>, a certain <a href="https://www.safelinkwireless.com/EnrollmentPublic/Home.aspx">website</a> will provide "income-eligible customers" with a government sponsored cell phone. Allow me to clarify "income-eligible" as likely referring to welfare-addicted bums. Now, before I'm crucified for that statement, let me state that I am aware some people on welfare/unemployment/disability have a legitimate reason and won't be there for long, but most people will be because of laziness and that's a fact. So, now Obama is gonna give you a ballin' cell phone so you're sure to make it to your job interviews right? <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2009/06/large_michelle-obama-homeless-cell-phone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2009/06/large_michelle-obama-homeless-cell-phone.jpg" vr="true" width="320" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>This guy is in line at a community kitchen. Seriously.</em><br />
</div><br />
And that's today's "US Government Making It Rain With Your Tax Dollars" moment.....VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-74949664924824391522009-10-27T11:04:00.005-04:002009-10-27T19:23:19.723-04:00Once Again, He Swings And MissesI may be a day behind on this topic, but not near as far behind as our hard working President is with his decision. Obama has now said <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/26/obama-says-rush-decision-afghanistan-strategy-troop-levels/?test=latestnews">he won't rush decision on Afghanistan strategy or troop levels</a> because he doesn't want to risk the lives of our American servicemen and women here at home until it's "absolutely necessary". Furthermore, he went on to say that:<br />
<blockquote>"Fourteen Americans gave their lives. And our prayers are with these service members, their civilian colleagues and the families who loved them," Obama said. "They were willing to risk their lives, in this case to prevent Afghanistan from again becoming a safe haven for Al Qaeda and its extremist allies."<br />
</blockquote>You're only half right there Obama. They were willing to risk their lives for the reasons you mentioned and more, but I'm pretty damn sure they weren't willing to risk their lives because they are understaffed and not supported by your administration. Helicopter crashes and accidents will happen, but as an undermanned military force stretches themselves farther and farther, they will happen at an exponentially increasing rate. So, once again I say, get off your ass Obama, stop glad-handing celebrities and fund raising, stop playing golf and basketball, and do your job before more are killed because of your "patience". That is all....VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-21844466854670347892009-10-27T09:59:00.001-04:002009-10-27T09:59:44.421-04:00VB's...ummm...Winners? 10/27/2009 - The Results ShowAs a Scottish friend of mine said after last week, "let me know when the picks are up so I can take the opposite". May not be a bad idea after two consecutive piss-poor weeks. But, my adage held true, if Tennessee is a double digit underdog, bet the house. Let's examine the carnage....<br />
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Overall - 10 and 10<br />
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Pick One - Tennessee +14.5 at Alabama - Tennessee 10 Alabama 12 - Looks like I finally got a "lock" correct, but this was an easy one. I bet there was a lot of money made at the expense of Las Vegas on this line. WINNER<br />
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Pick Two - Georgia Tech -6 at Virginia - Georgia Tech 34 Virginia 9 - Another one I felt good about. 2 for 2 so far, but it's gonna go bad fast. WINNER<br />
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Pick Three - Arkansas +6.5 at Mississippi - Arkansas 17 Mississippi 30 - Jevan Snead picked a bad time (for me) to have a good game. LOSER<br />
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Pick Four - UCLA +7.5 at Arizona - UCLA 13 Arizona 27 - Wow, UCLA really is falling apart as the season goes on. LOSER<br />
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Pick Five - West Virginia -7.5 vs. UCONN - West Virginia 28 UCONN 24 - I'm impressed by UCONN's gutsy performance. I wish they would have won outright. LOSER<br />
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Pick Six - Minnesota +17 at Ohio State - Minnesota 7 Ohio State 38 - Turns out, Minnesota <em>is</em> that bad. LOSER<br />
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Pick Seven - Duke -4.5 vs. Maryland - Duke 17 Maryland 13 - Beaten by the half-point spread! Dang it! LOSER<br />
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Pick Eight - Oregon -10 at Washington - Oregon 43 Washington 19 - Oregon is continuing it's impressive run of not punching people...errrr....winning big. WINNER<br />
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Pick Nine - Michigan +4.5 vs. Penn St. - Michigan 10 Penn State 35 - Gotta say, I didn't mind losing this one. LOSER<br />
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Pick Ten - Colts at Rams - Over 45 - Total 48 - Colts are good. WINNER<br />
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This Week - 4 and 6 - Picking at 40%<br />
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Overall - 14 and 16 - Picking at 47%<br />
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Hey Mickey!! Why don't you help me out with some soccer-I-mean-football picks!VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-92219595969973909282009-10-23T16:36:00.001-04:002009-10-23T16:39:40.168-04:00VB's Winners - 10/23/2009Well well well. Surely I can't do worse than last week. Right? There is one I'm absolutely sure of this week and that's our very own Tennessee Vols. Like I've said before, I normally don't advise betting on Tennessee unless they are double digit underdogs. Sure enough, Bama is a 14.5 point favorite over at our <a href="http://www.centsports.com/?opcode=425153">free gambling site</a>, so this is gonna be the lock this week. No way Bama covers that spread on Tennessee. So, with that one out there, here are the rest:<br />
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Last Week - 3 and 7<br />
Overall - 10 and 10<br />
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Pick One - Tennessee +14.5 at Alabama - As discussed above.<br />
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Pick Two - Georgia Tech -6 at Virginia - I feel pretty good about GT just demolishing the Cavaliers in this one.<br />
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Pick Three - Arkansas +6.5 at Mississippi - I do believe the Hogs will beat Ole Miss outright, but I'm very confident that they'll cover the spread at the very least.<br />
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Pick Four - UCLA +7.5 at Arizona - Pretty big spread here. UCLA should be able to cover nicely.<br />
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Pick Five - West Virginia -7.5 vs. UCONN - Connecticut is not gonna be able to overcome the tragedy this quickly.<br />
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Pick Six - Minnesota +17 at Ohio State - Minnesota isn't good, but they're not this bad. They'll cover.<br />
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Pick Seven - Duke -4.5 vs. Maryland - Simply put, Maryland sucks. Cutcliffe's squad will win easily.<br />
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Pick Eight - Oregon -10 at Washington - The high spread on this one is a bit scary, but Oregon is one of the hottest teams around.<br />
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Pick Nine - Michigan +4.5 vs. Penn St. - Again, I hate Michigan, but this one is an upset waiting to happen.<br />
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Pick Ten - Colts at Rams - Over 45 - The Colts may score that all by themselves this week. Definitely take the over.VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-25211141046342947492009-10-23T13:49:00.001-04:002009-10-23T13:49:42.096-04:00A Demotivational Poster is Worth a Thousand Words<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SuHseOwjCeI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/FHgdvU4cegw/s1600-h/Peace+Prize.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SuHseOwjCeI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/FHgdvU4cegw/s400/Peace+Prize.bmp" vr="true" /></a>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-10511468207010592482009-10-23T10:24:00.003-04:002009-10-23T10:27:20.348-04:00Comment Of The WeekYou know you do it. You're reading a story, sometimes about your favorite team/food/actor/whatever, and you accidentally catch yourself reading the comments section at the bottom. Unless it's a blog you frequent, odds are you'll be either slightly amused or highly annoyed/disgusted by what you find. It's the proverbial train wreck you can't turn away from.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SuG8QIUmRGI/AAAAAAAAAZI/qv2NYJK2dCc/s1600-h/brooke23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/SuG8QIUmRGI/AAAAAAAAAZI/qv2NYJK2dCc/s200/brooke23.jpg" vr="true" /></a>Well, it was the former case for me as I started in on the <a href="http://thebiglead.com/?p=25537#more-25537">Steve Phillips harrassment controversy</a>. It seems that ESPN has yet another sexual harrassment problem on it's hands. In this case, baseball personality Steve Phillips seems to have been involved with a, how shall I say, "less than attractive" member of the production staff. The story can be read at that link, but I managed to dig this gem out of the comments section:<br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Monica Lewinsky had a pretty face, at least. This thing belongs under a bridge, thinking up questions.<br />
</div></blockquote>Mean? Absolutely. Hilarious? Also, absolutely. There are some other good ones in there, but this one is the..........comment of the week.VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-22879397034606235962009-10-22T09:37:00.000-04:002009-10-22T09:37:53.462-04:00Thursday Morning? Time to Vent!Remember when XM Radio came out way back when? Remember how it always branded and marketed itself as "commercial free" radio? WTF happened?!?!<br />
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On the way to work this morning, a 15 mile drive, I was treated to ads that encouraged me to cleanse my colon for FREE!!111, turn my $20,000 in credit card debt into wealth for FREE!1!!1, give me a nicotine-flavored-water-vapor-producing electronic cigarette for FREE!!!111!1, and I better make sure I listen to the Falco Artist Confidential on XM/Sirius channel 2.<br />
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Over that 15 mile drive this morning, I found one song, ONE, I was able to listen to between the 8-10 channels I usually check. That's a worse ratio than my 6 Sony Walkman FM presets back in '93. What's next? Ads synced to my iPod with the rest of my music?<br />
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Venting over, carry on.........VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-8819783435105380152009-10-20T18:05:00.000-04:002009-10-20T18:05:05.367-04:00Am I The Only One That Thinks This Is Ridiculous And A Bit Scary?The White house, re: Obama, has continued to attack Fox News this week and has now gone as far as pronouncing them an "illegitimate news organization". Seriously? Obama apparently can't take the heat and is leaning on the "<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/20/white-house-cites-opinion-shows-basis-fox-news-complaints/">White House Correspondents Association to decide whether Fox News should continue to be part of the White House pool which covers President Obama</a>." Yes, I know that is a link to a FoxNews.com article, but I wanted it to be. I <em>know </em>that Fox News is not "fair and balanced", especially in the opinion arena, but they are far more so than CNN because they actually <em>report </em>the news instead of <em>deciding what is</em> news like CNN.<br />
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A few examples.<br />
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Right now, on FoxNews.com, you can find the following news stories, not opinions, but news stories about Obama and his policies or lack thereof:<br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/20/white-house-cites-opinion-shows-basis-fox-news-complaints/">White House Cites Opinion Shows as Basis for Fox News Complaints</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/19/white-house-official-says-obama-team-controlled-media-coverage-campaign/">Top White House Official Says Obama Team 'Controlled' Media Coverage During Campaign</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/19/families-demand-military-trials-gitmo-detainees/">9/11 Families Demand Military Trials for Gitmo Detainees</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/10/20/campaign-mode-obama-raises-cash-dems/">Obama Hits Campaign Trail, Schedules Full Week of Political Stops</a><br />
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Thos four stories were pulled right from the front page in just as much time as it takes to cut and paste. Which one of those scares you the most? In light of his attempts to control the press during his campaign, it is probably his current attempt to silence a dissenting news organization that is most frightening. Who would be silenced next? The thing that scares <em>me</em> the most, however, is his plan to start campaigning with no decisions having been made yet on Iraq, Afghanistan, health care, or basically anything important. Our worthless waste-of-a-suit President thinks its a better idea to go glad-hand more celebrities instead.<br />
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Back to the point though. Those four links are all factual news stories and not opinions. Nowehere on Foxnews.com's front page will you find stories by Beck or Hannity.<br />
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Now, let's check out CNN.com:<br />
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<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/20/us.iraq.trade/index.html">Obama notes 'transition' in U.S.-Iraqi bilateral ties</a><br />
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That's it. One article I had to dig for and it's about Clinton wanting people to send their money to Iraq. Fantastic. Way to keep the world up with what our POS POTUS is doing. Wait, I guess they actually got it right. He's not doing anything, as usual, so there' nothing to report. Right? I hope not.<br />
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In today's society, we have, rightly or wrongly, become dependent on news organizations to keep us current with what our government is doing. These two primarily. If I wanted to have nothing but biased opinion shoveled at me, I would listen to NPR all day. I want to know what Obama is doing and why nothing is getting accomplished.<br />
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Moral of the story:<br />
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Obama, it's not that Fox News is being unfair, it's that you haven't done anything of note positive or worthwhile for them to factually report. Take a look in the mirror and starting working!VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-46946602882295512142009-10-19T16:32:00.000-04:002009-10-19T16:32:08.691-04:00VB's 10/16/2009 Winners - The Results ShowUmmmmmmm, ok then. I guess that's the reason I gamble with the advertisers' money and not my own. A couple things are more than obvious to me after last week. Do not bet on Auburn as a favorite unless you want them to lose. I guess I found their weakness. I also learned that the Titans are really, really, <em>really</em> bad, but I think a lot of people did as well. So, with no further stalling, let's examine the carnage.<br />
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Pick One - Georgia -8 at Vanderbilt - Georgia 34 Vandy 10. One of the few I got right this week, unfortuanately. I hate Georgia....... - WINNER<br />
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Pick Two - Virginia Tech -3 at Georgia Tech - Tech 28 Tech 23. I don't know which I was more guilty of, underrating GT, or overrating VT. - LOSER<br />
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Pick Three - Stanford +4 at Arizona - Arizona 43 Stanford 38. I had this one all game until I quit paying attention, then Arizona came back and beat Stanford as well as my pick. - LOSER<br />
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Pick Four - Auburn -14 vs. Kentucky - Kentucky 21 Auburn 14. Second week in a row I called Auburn the lock of the week, and the second week in a row they've lost. I think I figured something out 'Bama fans.... - LOSER<br />
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Pick Five - South Carolina at Alabama - Over 44 - Total 26 - Really thought 'Bama would score a lot. Oh well, looks better for the Vols this coming weekend. - LOSER<br />
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Pick Six - Washington +6.5 at Arizona State - Arizona State 24 Washington 17 - A half a point, not much else you can do about that. - LOSER<br />
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Pick Seven - UL Lafayette -7.5 at Western Kentucky - ULL 30 WKU 22 - I figured the worst team in the country wouldn't cover. - WINNER<br />
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Pick Eight - Houston -17 at Tulane - Houston 44 Tulane 16 - Houston has one nice offense. Or Tulane has a bad defense, one of the two. - WINNER<br />
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Pick Nine - Jaguars -10 vs. Rams - Jags 23 Rams 20 - I guess the Rams are turning the corner a bit. - LOSER<br />
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Pick Ten - Titans +9.5 at Patriots - Pats 59 Titans 0 - Utter humiliation. - LOSER<br />
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I can only get better this coming weekend. More on Friday!<br />
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This week - 3 and 7. Picking at 30%<br />
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All time - 10 and 10. Picking at 50%VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-51236258227328273392009-10-16T17:33:00.002-04:002009-10-17T20:57:21.848-04:00VB's Winners - 10/16/2009I'm back with my second round of picks for the weekend after going 7-3 the first go 'round. As always, these are for fun and I assume no liability for lost cars, homes, college funds, or meth labs (sorry North Georgia!). If you want to bet with free money and keep what you earn, go to <a href="http://www.centsports.com/?opcode=425153">CentSports</a> and get you a free, no-strings attached account to bet with. So, away we go!<br />
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Last week's record - 7-3<br />
All-time record - 7-3<br />
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This week's picks:<br />
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Non-gambling pick - the Yankees demolish the Angels! Finally! Now the real stuff -<br />
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<strong><em>College Football -</em></strong> <br />
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<strong>Pick One </strong>- Georgia -8 at Vanderbilt - Georgia is <em>bad</em>, but I do believe Vandy is worse after their loss to Army last week. Look for a slight rebound from the dawwwwwwwwwwgs and a covering of the 8-point spread.<br />
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<strong>Pick Two - </strong>Virginia Tech -3 at Georgia Tech - Tech is just too good not to cover the spread against Tech. Wait, what? VT beats GT handily.<br />
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<strong>Pick Three -</strong> Stanford +4 at Arizona - Stanford let me down last week, but I have a good feeling about them winning this outright.<br />
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<strong>Pick Four -</strong> Auburn -14 vs. Kentucky - Auburn at home after a loss against Kentucky? With that offense? I'm calling Auburn for the Lock of the Week again!<br />
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<strong>Pick Five -</strong> South Carolina at Alabama - Over 44 - This game has an 18 point spread, but a low over/under number. Take the over.<br />
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<strong>Pick Six -</strong> Washington +6.5 at Arizona State - I like this Washington team and I think they might win outright at ASU.<br />
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<strong>Pick Seven -</strong> UL Lafayette -7.5 at Western Kentucky - Two awful teams, but WKU is really, <em>really</em> awful. Take Lafayette and dump the points.<br />
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<strong>Pick Eight -</strong> Houston -17 at Tulane - I don't normally like such large spreads, but Houston is gonna blast Tulane, so take 'em.<br />
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<strong><em>NFL - </em></strong><br />
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<strong>Pick Nine - </strong>Jaguars -10 vs. Rams - Take the Jags, the Rams suck.<br />
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<strong>Pick Ten -</strong> Titans +9.5 at Patriots - This pick is the one I'm least confident about, but I still think it's worth taking the Titans and the points. They're due, and New England isn't that great.<br />
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That's all!! Have fun and I'll be back Monday with the results show!VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-46684557508743117772009-10-16T10:07:00.001-04:002009-10-16T10:11:09.228-04:00Today's "Funny Because It's True" MomentThe video is quite funny, but also an intelligent indictment of Obama's willingness to "negotiate" with anything and everything. This tendency of his is making a mockery of our foreign policy objectives as evidenced by the recent Russian policy change to "preemptive strikes" with nuclear weapons, their refusal to allow US inspection teams to their nuclear sites at the same time their own teams were at ours, and their blocking of any additional sactions against Iran. A country which has demonstrated their desire to manufacture nuclear weapons and destroy Israel. So, enjoy this humerous, but accurate portrayal of Obama's policy of negotiations.<br />
<object height="430" width="480"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://www.theonion.com/content/themes/common/assets/onn_embed/embedded_player.swf?image=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theonion.com%2Fcontent%2Ffiles%2Fimages%2FOBAMA_WILDFIRES_ARTICLE_10_12_09.jpg&videoid=98611&title=Obama%20To%20Enter%20Diplomatic%20Talks%20With%20Raging%20Wildfire" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed src="http://www.theonion.com/content/themes/common/assets/onn_embed/embedded_player.swf"type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowScriptAccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" width="480" height="430"flashvars="image=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theonion.com%2Fcontent%2Ffiles%2Fimages%2FOBAMA_WILDFIRES_ARTICLE_10_12_09.jpg&videoid=98611&title=Obama%20To%20Enter%20Diplomatic%20Talks%20With%20Raging%20Wildfire"></embed></object>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-44625873713887224592009-10-15T14:48:00.008-04:002009-10-18T00:36:45.631-04:00Why We Tie - America's Politically Correct WarsPrior to 1952, the United States' record was roughly 10-0 in wars fought. That includes the Civil War and could be one or two higher or lower depending on your definition of "skirmish", "conflict", and "war". Some may not count, or there might be more, but the point is there were no losses. Since 1952, including the Korean War, our record is more along the lines of 2-0-5. This record includes ties in the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom. The last two are added in direct result of the foreign policy indecision of the Obama/Biden administration. The two victories are in the "skirmish"/"conflict" category in the form of Operation Just Cause (Panama), and Operation Urgent Fury (Grenada). Why have we started failing to win with our overwhelming military might? Very simple. Modern wars, since 1952 that is, have become a <em>political</em> action rather than the <em>result</em> of failed dilpomacy.<br />
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Ask any diplomat and they'll tell you that wars begin because they have failed to properly execute their duties. Or in the case of Afghanistan and terrorism, there was no other party to exercise diplomacy with. Once diplomacy fails and war begins, the handling and prosecution of the war should rest solely with the military commanders such as it did with Douglas MacArthur, Dwight Eisenhower, George Patton, Chester Nimitz, George Marshall, JJ Pershing, William Sherman, and US Grant, among others. These Generals and Admirals from the Civil War through World War II gave little thought to the political ramifications of their actions. Unlike today. Today, Afghanistan commander General McChrystal requests more troops to succeed, and is publicly ridiculed by the Obama administration in general and our buffoon of a Vice-President, Joe Biden specifically.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdkVIGAWLI/AAAAAAAAAYI/jdnosrFpgjI/s1600-h/Joe%2520Biden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdkVIGAWLI/AAAAAAAAAYI/jdnosrFpgjI/s320/Joe%2520Biden.jpg" /></a><br />
</div>This is the man who apparently is influencing our military decisions in Afghanistan. As a result of his idiocy, and the pressure from the left to "draw-down", this country is looking directly in the face of more soldiers coming home in boxes as our troops are denied the resources they need to finish the job. When these two were elected I knew exactly what would happen. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq would turn into what the liberals have always claimed they would be, a repeat of Vietnam. Why you ask? Because these wars, like the others of the last 50-60 years, are being fought by politicians rather than our military. Each and every decision that should be made in the theatre of operations is now being made in a committee chamber thousands of miles away by people who don't know a bullet from a pencil, and have no idea how real life works.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdnRrudzsI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/PRNvxEJwPcs/s1600-h/300px-Chosin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdnRrudzsI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/PRNvxEJwPcs/s320/300px-Chosin.jpg" /></a>This is not a new phenomenon however, it's been happening since Korea. The Korean War never ended. It is still going today, just at a much reduced rate than 1952. The reason is that our troops were not allowed to decimate the North Korean military, but were forced by Washington to accede to the "treaty" marking the 38th parallel as the cease fire zone. Why? Our policticians did not want to expose or offend the Chinese government by revealing their involvment in the conflict. Had General MacArthur been allowed the support he needed, he would have had the tools to cross the Yalu River and demolish the remains of the North Korean military as well as the Chinese assitance they were receiving. Instead, Washington refused to listen to or acknowledge the reports of the Chinese military entering the war, failed to provide adequate troop strength, and the US Marines were forced to withdraw from North Korea after the Battle of Chosin Resevoir. These Marines had actually defeated the 60,000 strong Chinese force surrounding them, but were forced to retreat because of a lack of support back home. The same sad situation would repeat itself later in the Vietnam War.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdpK6y04hI/AAAAAAAAAYg/lZifhk0IbaQ/s1600-h/vietnam_war.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdpK6y04hI/AAAAAAAAAYg/lZifhk0IbaQ/s400/vietnam_war.gif" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdovphBL9I/AAAAAAAAAYY/l2q_EugGRLQ/s1600-h/history-of-vietnam0.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StdovphBL9I/AAAAAAAAAYY/l2q_EugGRLQ/s200/history-of-vietnam0.gif" /></a>The Vietnam War was another draw for our troops because of the failure of Washington to properly supply our military commanders with the tools for success. Very simply put, instead of throwing bombs at North Vietnam, our politicians preferred to throw thousands upon thousands of this country's youth into poorly supported fire bases in South Vietnam. Major actions, as indicted by the map at right, were fought for the most part in South Vietnam. There were US air raids against North Vietnam, but few and far between because our diplomats feared the reaction of China and, ultimately, the Soviet Union. Now look at the second map above and to the left. See that little pink area marked "Chinese Buffer Zone"? You guessed it. Once again, Washington was afraid of exposing Chinese involvement in <em>this </em>conflict and established a 50 kilometer zone that prohibited any US troops of going into or conducting air activities. Just one more way that our troops were hamstrung by our own government. In fact, it is my contention that the Vietnam War might not have ever occured or escalated had the US Marines on the Yalu River in Korea been provided the support they needed to finish the Chinese in 1950-1951.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">Presently, thanks to Obama and Biden, we are setting ourselves up for a repeat of both of the aforementioned conflicts. I call Desert Storm a tie because our political leadership was hestiant, and, again, afraid of offending world sensibilities by continuing into Iraq to remove Saddam Hussein. An action which would have prevented the Iraq War we are currently embrolied in. <em>Reasons for these current wars beginning aside</em>, it is clear to me, and has been for a while, that there are only three courses of action left.<br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">First, we can supply the troops with the tools, weapons, and numbers they need to be successful as quickly as possible political ramifications be damned. If we need a large influx of troops into Afghanistan to finish the job, so be it. Let's finish them off and bring every last one of our troops home. Same goes for Iraq.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">Or<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">Bring every last American home from both countries. Now. At one time leaving no one behind.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">But<br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">The third option, and the one most likely to occur given the indecision and inaction of the current administration, is to "draw-down" our troops gradually and leave the two regions to smolder pending another conflict years down the road. Furthermore, this gradual retreat would have the effect I mentioned earlier of costing more lives than an influx of troops. It is a proven fact that an inadequately supplied and supported military is only capable of sacrificing the lives of its personnel to no successful end. In other words, we'll bring 80,000 of 100,000 home, but leave the last 20,000 outgunned, outmanned, and fighting for their lives on a daily basis. Part of Obama's campiagn platform was to transfer a majority of troops from Iraq to Afghanistan, but now it looks as if neither conflict will have a sufficient amount of personnel to ensure victory.<br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">I have a pretty fair idea of what's going to happen and it doesn't look good. Just as these wars are the legacy of President Bush, how and when they end, and to what degree of success will be the legacy of Obama as much as the ineffective social welfare plans he has in store for our tax dollars.<br />
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</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-15333012258652441462009-10-14T16:48:00.002-04:002009-10-14T16:50:53.718-04:00Why We Need MOPsNo, not the floor polishing kind either. I'm talking about this bad boy:<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>Massive Ordinance Penetrator. heh.</em><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">That there is a 15 ton bomb the US Military has designed to penetrate underground facilities. The bomb will be the largest yield non-nuclear bomb in our arsenal and have the ability to penetrate up to 10,000 pounds of reinforced concrete and explode up to 200 feet below ground. We need more of these and I'll tell you why.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The MOP may be called just another part of the United States' "military-industrial complex" by some people, but I do believe spending millions of dollars on something that can destroy the <a href="http://www.fas.org/blog/ssp/2009/09/the-qom-uranium-enrichment-facility-what-and-how-do-we-know.php">uranium enrichment facility in Qom, Iran</a> is a far more worthwhile expenditure of our tax dollars than, say, the cash for clunkers program, spending $4,500 on $300 plane tickets for congresspeople, or just about any amount of the billions in foreign aid we so kindly give out each year. That kind of spending really irks me. Did you know we provide aid to both North Korea and Iran every year that amounts to billions of our tax dollars? Why waste our money when we have a terrible economy, unemployment rate through the roof, and a rising poverty level right here at home?<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Now, before you start, I am well aware that million dollar bombs don't feed people, but guess what? They do employ them. The MOP program began at Northrop Grumman and expanded to include Lockheed Martin and Boeing. Since the program had a start date back in 2004, I'm quite sure the project has helped the bottom line here at home quite well. That's what our tax dollars <em>need</em> to be doing. No, they don't have to be defense related projects, but it's a better alternative than throwing our tax dollars down the drain on countries and peoples that mean us harm as well as ineffective welfare programs here at home.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Even the aborted Comanche helicopter program did more for this country in terms of job and wealth creation than the money we throw into food stamps, disability, and aid to hostile states.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StY2zjH6LuI/AAAAAAAAAYA/X8FcqWbCxlA/s1600-h/300px-Rah-66.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StY2zjH6LuI/AAAAAAAAAYA/X8FcqWbCxlA/s320/300px-Rah-66.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>I can fly 100 mph. Sideways! Really!</em><br />
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</div><div class="" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">The $7 billion program began in 1981 and was cancelled in 2004 after just a few Comanches were actually produced. No result? Not necessarily. The program led to numerous innovations in the area of rotary flight. This included upgrades and improvements to the armoring, weapons platforms, and avionics of our entire fleet of helicopters. So, we did get something for that money after all. Which is more than I can say for most of our existing welfare programs.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Perhaps that's the bottom line in all of this. Take tax dollars, fund a public program that creates new jobs right here at home, and reap the benefits of such in more tangible means than just another large, ineffective beauracracy. Here's looking at you health care reform.<br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-19198128444312452332009-10-13T14:34:00.001-04:002009-10-13T14:35:43.688-04:00Some Tuesday Afternoon Hilarity....If you don't know about Toby Jones, you should, and that's why I'm here. These videos have been floating around for awhile now, but I just thought I should share them altogether at one time for about 6 minutes of apoplectic hilarity. Check out the first one now, and the second two after the jump. Nothing like a foot rub with your good ass bbq!! Enjoy...<br />
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<object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/N0gb9v4LI4o&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/N0gb9v4LI4o&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object><br />
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<object height="265" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WPkMUU9tUqk&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WPkMUU9tUqk&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="320" height="265"></embed></object>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-75532483979190648252009-10-12T23:07:00.002-04:002009-10-16T23:14:34.549-04:00Why Alex Rodriguez Needs to Send Selena Roberts a Thank You NoteIf you follow baseball in the least bit, you likely know what Alex Rodriguez did in the recently completed ALDS. Even if your team was eliminated at the end of the season and you hate the Yankees, you still probably know that A-Rod is responsible for the Yankees' three game sweep of the Twins. A-Rod drove in two runs with two crucial hits in the game one victory, hit the monster two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to tie game two, and then hit the home run to tie game three. The Yankees obviously went on to win both games. "So what" you say? He's the highest paid and best hitter available and <em>should</em> be doing that? Well, I won't argue with you there, but his recent history will. Until game one of the ALDS, A-Rod had not a <em>single RBI in a postseason game</em> since game 3 of the 2004 ALCS against Boston. Not one. What changed you ask? Well, I certainly don't think I'm the first to say this, but I can't believe more people aren't pointing at this lady:<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>"I'm the reason the Yankees will win the World Series!!"</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Selena Roberts. The woman that outed A-Rod's steroid use with the Texas Rangers.<br />
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When Selena Roberts wrote her article outing A-Rod for failing a steroid test in 2003, I believe she did him a huge favor. Shortly thereafter, A-Rod was at the center of a media firestorm. He went on television with Peter Gammons to apologize and then again with his teammates behind him at the start of Spring Training.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StPqppIARRI/AAAAAAAAAXw/K8WG5QmbLx4/s1600-h/alex-rodriguez-press-conference.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/StPqppIARRI/AAAAAAAAAXw/K8WG5QmbLx4/s320/alex-rodriguez-press-conference.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>"I'm sorry guys!! Really!"</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Now, here is how it helped A-Rod this season. It is well documented that A-Rod has always been a perfectionist and very self-aware of how he is perceived within baseball, by the media, and by the fans. HIs entire life and career has been almost scripted in an attempt to be the perfect ball player, spokesman, role model, whatever. During the slumps and on the field struggles he has experienced in the past as a Yankee, it was theorized that they were a result of the "fakeness" of A-Rod, that he tried so hard to put up a front and be the player/person he thought he should be, that it was hurting his game. In steps Selena Roberts.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">After his steroid admission, A-Rod had hip sugery and basically faded to the background white noise of sports media. While A-Rod recovered, the newest high paid Yankees in Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia, and AJ Burnett tried to carve out their spot on the team, and as productive players. But, most importantly, when A-Rod came back, the veil was gone and the scripted existence was no loinger necessary. A-Rod had a flaw and it was exposed. Now everyone knew he wasn't perfect, and he knew we knew. I believe much of A-Rod's success this past season and thus far in the playoffs is in direct relation to the fact he no longer had to put up the front. There was no more pressure on A-Rod to be anything other than a baseball player. Thanks to Selena Roberts, A-Rod can drop everything else and just play ball. Just as should have done from the start. <br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">When the article first came out in February of this year, I wasn't all that surprised at the revelations about A-Rod's steroid use. I was, however, angry that his name was the only out of 104 alleged names on this mystery list that was released. It was just another attack on the Yankees organization in my opinion. Now, I'm grateful that the scandal broke and that it broke last offseason. A-Rod can now go be the ballplayer that we all know he can be and lead the Yankees to number 27. If and when that happens, just imagine how much more pressure is off of A-Rod, and what he might accomplish in the future.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Go Yankees!<br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-34959332311385687532009-10-12T16:36:00.002-04:002009-10-12T16:42:26.390-04:00VB's 10/09/2009 Winners - The Results ShowLast Friday, I gave you my <a href="http://sceniccityshenanigans.blogspot.com/2009/10/vbs-winners-10092009.html#more">picks for the weekend</a>, I don't think I did terrible, but I wasn't perfect either. Especially with my "LOCK OF THE WEEK!!!!111111". Thanks to this guy:<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>"I am resigning to accept the soon-to-be-vacant head coach position at the University of Arkansas. Wait. What?"</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Arkansas' upset and total demolishing of Auburn came as quite a shock, but I really didn't care too much as I only saw that score flash up in Neyland while I watched Tennessee smash the puppies and seal one of my picks. So, here we go:<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Pick One - Auburn -3 at Arkansas - Arkansas 44 - Auburn 23. I was way wrong here along with most of the country. LOSER <br />
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Pick Two - Tennessee -1 vs. Georgia - Tennessee 45 - Georgia 19. So, so, so satisfyingly right with this one. WINNER<br />
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Pick Three - Alabama -5 at Mississippi - Alabama 22 - Mississippi - 3. Probably should have been the pick of the week. WINNER<br />
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Pick Four - Utah -8 at Colorado State - Utah 24 - Colorado State 17. One point. One tiny point, but, what the hell do I know about the Mountain West anyway? LOSER<br />
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Pick Five - Stanford at Oregon State - Oregon State 38 - Stanford 28. Very surprised at this outcome. I thought Stanford would run away with this one. LOSER<br />
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Pick Six - Georgia Tech +3 at Florida State - Georgia Tech 49 - FSU 44. Another pick I felt very good about. WINNER<br />
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Pick Seven - Michigan +8 at Iowa - Iowa 30 - Michigan 28. I was exactly right with the pick and the final prediction of a close win for the Hawkeyes. WINNER<br />
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Pick Eight - Washington +3.5 vs. Arizona - Washington 36 - Arizona 33. Again, picked an outright win for Washington and they did not disappoint. WINNER<br />
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Pick Nine - Colts -4 at Titans - Colts 31 - Titans 9 - I hate this, but the Titans didn't stand a chance. WINNER<br />
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Pick Ten - Broncos +3.5 vs. Patriots - Broncos 20 - Patriots 17. I picked the outright win for the Broncos, but if you took the points you were still in good shape. WINNER.<br />
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Bonus One - Colts at Titans - Under 46 - Final Total - 40 - RIGHT<br />
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Bonus Two - Patriots at Broncos - Over 41 - Final Total - 37 - WRONG<br />
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So, there you have it. Pretty good if I say so myself. I won't count the bonus picks because they are just for fun after all. Like all of these actually. Until this Friday!<br />
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This week I'm - 7 and 3, picking at 70%<br />
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Overall I'm - 7 and 3, picking at 70%VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-32480336795709931702009-10-12T11:41:00.001-04:002009-10-12T11:49:37.599-04:00Ahhhhhhh, That Felt GoodWhat a game, what a day, what a weekend. Got up early Saturday, made it Knoxville, and saw Tennessee demolish Georgia. Fantastic game, I hate Georgia, the Vols beat the hell out of them, and I got to talk smack to Georgia fans. Great stuff. I provided <a href="http://www.rockytoptalk.com/">Rocky Top Talk</a> with a <a href="http://www.rockytoptalk.com/2009/10/11/1080351/still-undefeated-in-neyland-stadium">wrap-up and photo essay</a> yesterday, so go check it out if you like at the second link.<br />
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Also took in another fantastic Yankees game last night. Once again, A-Rod came through and provided the spark, home runs, and RBI's the Yanks needed to put the Twins away. He's a changed ballplayer this postseason and I have a theory why I'll get to this afternoon.....VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776361780926899146.post-30795161510973693672009-10-09T20:55:00.000-04:002009-10-09T20:55:34.651-04:00It's Finally The Weekend - clap, clap --- clap, clap, clap....And I'm off to Neyland early in the morning to watch Tennessee pound the widdle puppies from down south. Go Vols, Go Yankees, Go Titans. Everybody have fun and I'll see you Monday!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/Ss_bWSNB6uI/AAAAAAAAAS0/TGvNFCTkmEM/s1600-h/Neyland+Stadium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img $r="true" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_SELZH9rJGZ4/Ss_bWSNB6uI/AAAAAAAAAS0/TGvNFCTkmEM/s400/Neyland+Stadium.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>This is where I'll be!</em><br />
</div>VolBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05413936745540182052noreply@blogger.com0