Young voters have been in the news of late.  Barack Obama has been getting a lot of credit for being a “Change Agent” as well as someone inspirational to younger Americans.  According to the polls in SC he destroyed Hillary in the 18-28 voting range.  They also stated that there was record turn out, but no one has stated the age range of the record turn out.  The media seems to be making Barack the young JFK guy, and all others Richard Nixon.  Sure Barack is a hell of a lot cooler, he’s less of a robot, and he is the perfect PR move for America.  But what really bothers me is the fact that he isn’t the voice of younger people. 

Most Gen X or Millenials seem to gravitate towards a Soft Libertarian platform.  Maybe not as strict as some, but they hold down the basic principals.  Some exceptions may be

 (some sort of universal health care for emergency room visits only, maybe some sort of government funding for Doctors so they can run their own private practice and not have to pay back student loans so people can afford a doctors visit, and environmental protection.) 

Basically let the government get involved when it’s absolutely unfair or ridiculous.  Most people want a balanced budget, better infrastructure, a strong dollar, low unemployment, and an end to corporatism, and lobbyist run agenda.     

Basically Gen X and Millenials are sick of the Boomer generation.  It's funny, this generation wants to accept responsibility, and take care of themselves, while Boomers want hand outs.  Just look on the internet, people like Ron Paul are destroying every other candidate, yet the votes aren’t showing up at the polls.  That’s because most people who vote (boomers and older) are still relying on network news for their info, unlike younger people who peruse the net.  And although younger voter numbers are on the rise, they’re still considerably smaller then the core constituency in each party.   

The good news is boomers will die, the bad news is it may take some time for younger people to vote.  I’m not saying that Ron Paul is 100% right, but he is already straightening out his party and creating a younger base, something I’m really not seeing from the Dems.  With Obama I see more of a celebrity following, one that is based on the “ I voted for him, so I can say I voted for him” vote.  The real passion with younger voters is in the Ron Paul campaign. 

Mark my words, if the Democrats win this election, it will be almost impossible for them to win the 2012-16 election. The House and Senate will be up for grabs as well.  The Republican Party may be getting a facelift.  I’m hoping it’s less Neo-con, and more progression.

Besides the war, the cost of living is the most important issue facing the U.S today.  With some common sense economic policy I’m hoping that this will be resolved without giveaways or fake interest rate deductions that only lead to more inflation.   

If its Obama vs anyone else but Ron Paul, hell yeah I’d vote for Barack.  Let me be the first to say that I will only vote for Barack because of style.  I think that he would be a great symbol, but a symbol is all he will be.  On the other hand Ron Paul has ignited a wing of the GOP that hasn’t been heard in a while, and it’s going to be interesting to see what the party looks like in 5 years. 

One thing is for sure, the Democrats will still be fighting, while the Republicans will regroup, and reform into a well oiled machine.  Lets hope the GOP changes for the better. 

Just think of the last few GOP presidents.  Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush, G.W. Bush!  I think it's time for an overhaul.

Nigger Guy!

In case you don't understand the title, search South Park episode "with Apologies To Jesse Jackson - Episode 1101"

I know everything is fair game in politics, but the New Republic is not only producing a smear piece, their also about 3 months behind on the story.  Today I was watching Tucker on MSNBC, and he interviewed some douche from The New Republic who said he had uncovered the history of Ron Paul.  Of course he was talking about some news letter that someone wrote using Ron Pauls name.  Ron Paul himself has apologized and has not wavered in his stance that he had nothing to do with them.  I’m not going to defend everything Paul says, because he does say some strange things, but I stand by his constitutional principals. I head about this Ron Paul News Letter a while back on the radio where Paul address it and even then I guess I was behind on the story.  However I was very happy with the explanation.  Basically someone sent out a news letter using his name, he didn’t always read those news letters, and some stupid racists, and perceived racists shit got out.   

The person who was representing The New Republic also went on to say that Ron Paul speaks in code for “Neo Confederates” only racists who hate blacks would understand.  This is where he lost all creditability; even Tucker was sarcastic and brushed off the comment  with a confused look.  The New Republic will also be posting these articles tomorrow on their site http://www.tnr.com

If Ron Paul was in the top tier as far as media coverage this story would have legs, they’ve been trying to pin the racist card on this guy from day 1.  Especially after Paul correctly informed Tim Russert on Meet the Press about Lincoln.  If Ron Paul pulls an upset in New Hampshire he’s going to be bombarded with racist allegations.  It would be a wet dream for the media for the week, small white Racist verses a Barack Obama.  No one will align themselves with a perceived racists, especially with the over sensitivity that the media has regarding blacks. 

 Why try and break this piece now?  Well John McCain has a lot riding on the granite state, and they both share the independent votes.  Lets face it the Media likes John McCain.  He gives them tons of access, why ruin a good thing.  If he becomes president he may still allow access, after all he always has.  Even the Daily Show has him on, and I have to admit, I liked McCain until he sold his soul to George W Bush and the religious right.  I thought he got a raw deal in 2000.

It’s one thing to dodge sex and drug allegations, but racist stuff will hurt, how many people will want to align themselves with some one with a perceived racist?  Espically if Barack wins the nomination?  So many people will vote for Barack just because they want to be on the right side of history, and on the winning team. 

Think about it in 20 years if Barack becomes president, (this goes for all Republican candidates) would you want to be the one who voted for the white guy?  That’s like saying you don’t agree with what MLK did, or Ghandi for that matter.  Most people will want to vote for the first black guy, not the old white establishment. 

Maybe this election is more about change in so many different ways.  We will see how the future of Ron Pauls candidacy pans out.  What I’m hoping for is a movement more then a presidency; I can handle Barack Obama as president. Although his actual record is pretty weak, he may offer something else.  He will become the new face of America, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing when trying to regain world reputation.  That being said, I hope Ron Paul’s followers will start a movement towards traditional Republican policy, and I’m not talking about Reganomics. 

I’m not counting Paul out, but if he does win, it opens up a whole new can of worms. 

Seriously I dropped $20 on a Ron Paul t-shirt and wear it proudly, If the shitty media tries to pin the racist card on him, that means I have to get in endless arguments over that crap every time I wear it to work, and I really like that shirt! 

This is basically the head line news story for all three of the cable news networks were basically about bickering, speculation, and he said-she said.  All the while a “low tier” candidate raises 6.4 million dollars in 24 hours.  Now I fully understand the Dolphins winning as being the big story, but to me this is huge!  I’m talking large font, above the fold, or at least the lead in the “politics” section huge.  I’m excited to see what Paul can do on Meet the Press.  I’m sure there’s going to be the typical

“Don’t racists, and commies support your campaign?” questions, but I really hope he gets a chance to discuss his platform.

Win or lose I think Paul has energized a movement.  The people that wouldn’t vote in the last presidential election are now 4 years older and a little more pissed.  I’m 30 years old and haven’t missed an election, I know people who have never voted and are in the same age range who are going to vote this year.  It’s time for Gen X and Millennial’s to start shaping this country, instead of whiny boomers.

One more point, the media is reporting that Ron Paul said he wouldn’t run as an independent.  You have to listen to how he answers it, he says he has no plans on running.  I’ve seen about 5 interviews where he answers the question the same way, I could be wrong.   I don’t know every word he’s said, but the option has to be open with all the money he’s getting.  If he doesn’t get the Republican Nomination, then lets bring back the Bull Moose Party. 

Oh yeah for the record I actually know someone who wont vote for Obama because of his name! 

Like most of you I was kinda excited about a Republican Candidate that said no to his party. After all he broke the 11th commandment. And after doing that he received a first class ticket out of GOP relevance. Just when I started liking Ron Paul, I read this article http://www.mercurynews.com/politics/ci_6374886

I guess he's the same old conservative we all though he was before the GOP debate where he basically made Rudy look like the douche he was.

This guy had the concrete balls to say the following to a group of grad students who are neck deep in student loans

"Why should people who don't go to college support your education?"

Ouch!

Then at the the same time, in front of Google employees he said that he was against net neutrality!

He still got applause!

Of course he took to the classic GOP standby and said the following about immigration

"I don't think you can solve that problem as long as you have a welfare state."

then he gets away with this dandy

"I think the Second Amendment might have prevented 9/11."

Did he just say that? Yes, and he received applause!

So what happened to this kinda cool conservative rebel? All of a sudden he showed his true colors and tuned into a gun toting, fear mongering, they took our jobs, big business, neocon.

It's too bad too, I kind a liked the guy. he was on Bill Maher and is pretty much gaining a cult following on the net. Ok, so I guess he's DOA.

While the Republicans are still looking for their next (ugh) Ron Reagan, I'll be voting most likely for the Democrat, although I'm really looking for an Independent, or someone in the Bull Moose Party.

Wow, today I was watching the beacon of quality journalism, E! Entertainment, and I heard a quote form a “pop star” who over the last few years I’ve grown to appreciate.  Basically she has an interview in an upcoming Readers Digest and she says something to the effect of……………

“I make music because I want to… I don’t pay attention to what 100 year old record executives say is good music ”  Not a direct quote.

I mutilated the quote, but that was the jist.  It was really refreshing to hear a pop artist slam the industry.  Kelly Clarkson has taken a hit the past year, her album did below expectations, she’s had to cancel dates on tour.   But besides the fact that she was on American Idol, She kinda comes across pretty cool.  I guess I don’t feel bad for liking that song “since you’ve been gone.”  I hope she sticks to her guns and has a meaningful career, even if I don’t’ like her music, at least I know she’s genuine.  

What the F is going on in the “New NHL.”  The small market Oilers made an offer to the Sabres  for one of their best remaining players.  The problem I have with this, is that they were the same team that bitched about the process a year ago.  Thank god the Sabres put a stop to it and ponied up the cash. 

Today at a presser the Sabers basically said “ if you’re going to shop this way, don’t come shopping here”

http://sabres.nhl.com/

This isn’t the usual rich guy taking away from the poor guy.  It’s too poor guys playing against each other in an very unfair system.  The way the NHL works is that if you spend to the cap you get less revenue sharing, and in a small market like Buffalo that hurts.  NY can spend to the cap because they have more lucrative TV deals so they can make money.  In fact Tom Galisano said that the Sabres would need to make it to the second round of the playoffs next year to turn a profit.  That’s just messed up.  I think there needs to be a hard cap at 40 Million and that’s it.  In 5 years the NHL will be right back where it was two years ago.

A team like the Sabres develops and grows players and that’s why they’ve been one of the best team in the last 2 years.  In fact they’ve been to the final 4, 4 times in the last 10 years, so that says something about their constancy/sans the Adelphia bankruptcy year.

This system is basically flawed, and when a team like the Oilers know that the Sabres are banking on Vanek for their future, they come in and make a bogus offer because they know the Sabres are going to counter.  Congratulations Oilers, you just raised the rate for people going into arbitration at 5 pm today, and you basically ruined any hopes of signing any players and being competitive. 

The thing is the Sabres designed their team like the Patriots, they let older overrated players go, so they could develop a TEAM, now the new NHL is going back in time and making it difficult for the small market teams, which is basically most NHL cities.  I have no problem with UFA, what I do have a problem with is teams with RFA's upping the price just to do so, basically forcing a team to pay a crazy amount to one player when they them selves weren't going to do so.

You know when one of your favorite musical artists gets together with another “classic” artist and you think it’s going to be the dogs balls, then it turns out to be shit.  That’s how’d I feel if I was a Rangers fan right now.  The Rangers along with the Washington Redskins continue to waste money on star players instead of actually developing a farm system and filling in spots with roll players. 

I know I’m pissed, my favorite player left my favorite team, but you can’t help but get pissed.  Here’s the deal, the Sabres lost 2 huge players to 2 teams that are always over hyped every year.  I'm not sure what hurts more, losing a player, or losing him to an over hyped shit machine. If the NHL was ever on national TV then it would be the Flyers v Rangers all year long.

This year when Drury was out the Sabres continued to do great, in fact they had some pretty intense games and did fairly well.  If you asked me how I’d want a team run, either A) a team that signs big name players and maybe makes the first round (Rangers) or B) a team who develops within, and makes dicey decisions but is a contender every year (Devils), I’d take B.

I faced the facts today, my team is committed to winning in the long term while not over paying for players.  Do I think they may have insulted those players, even the “hero” Chris Drury, maybe.  Did Danny Briere get the short end?  Sure he did, he was always number 2, all people talk about is Drury’s last second game “tying” goal this year in the playoffs.  Did people forget Danny had one too?  It’s not his fault they lost in OT.  So I wasn’t surprised that Briere left. 

 I have a problem with all this Drury hype though.  Yes he’s my favorite player, but what about his “family.”  Rumor has it the Sabres offered him about 1.5 million less.  Yet he didn’t want to move his family because they wanted to go back home, in L.A.  Chris I know you’re mysterious and the quiet noble leader, but what’s up with that?  In your defense I heard the Rangers were you favorite team growing up so I’ll give you that.  Did I mention the Blackhawks #1 pick this year was from B-Lo and his favorite team is the Sabres.

Just a side note of the future NY media coverage of the Rangers:  You thought you saw little league highlights this year wait till game 28 of the Rangers schedule next season.  This is a game of no importance, but the NY hype machine will be in full force.  The Rangers will be on a 4 game skid and they’ll over hype their shit team by showing Drury pitching in the Little League World Series.  This is usually reserved for national media or playoff hockey, but NY will bust it out early.  I’m sure theirs a billboard already up in time square.     

I’m serious when I say this, today those teams are still not as good as the Sabres.  The Sabres lost 2 great players.  Briere who had his only good years in the Sabres “system” and Drury who I firmly believe will be one of those great players who becomes a journeyman and will be good on other teams and traded about 4 more times before he’s done. 

Couple side notes:  If the Rangers win the cup this year, I’m going to Kill myself.  If the Sabres don’t sign Vanek, I’m going to start paying attention to the Bills.

I read this article and couldn't help but laugh. It's an article on msnbc.com titled Is the Internet dumbing us down? 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19196474/

Which is kinda funny because in some instances computers have made me dumb, like spell check, and other word processing devices. On the other had I've learned so much about everything online. I read twice as much and I have access to unlimited "news" that is biased like ALL news, but I have more choice, and that's what it really comes down to is choice.

From what I get out of this article is that we need to let the reporters do the reporting, and that the media today, mainly entertainment, isn't as good as it used to be. Ahh the classic over romanticizing of the past. I love the argument that tv/movie/music isn't as good as it used to be. If you can remember how good it used to be, you're officially too old. Great tv/music/movies are even more available today, it's just up to you whether or not you choose what you like, or what the large corporations tell you to like. I don't like popular music either, because I'm 30, I only listen to radio for sports talk, I'm too old! I find my music other ways. One argument I've never heard before is the "we need to pay artists so they can create"  that's that the following paragraph basically says,

"What scares Keen is that some Web 2.0 enthusiasts argue that we no longer need traditional media companies — the Internet provides artists and writers their own means of distribution and promotion. But publishers and record labels provide more than just distribution and promotion. In a sense, they’re the venture capitalists of culture, advancing money so that a writer can take years to research a great book or a band can concentrate on creating a strong body of music. Sure, there are lots of writers and bands who keep their day jobs and still create good work — but most of them wouldn’t mind an up front check and some uninterrupted time."

Whooo what a genius idea, giving people money to fuck around. If you ask most fans of music they would say that most, musicians have done their "best" stuff before they were famous. In fact I can think of a bunch of artists who sucked once they got some dough. So this point I believe is crap, and holds no merit. I could go further with this paragraph, but I wont, it's too easy.

What this book sounds like to me is someone who's afraid of losing his job, he feels threatened by the actual gray world, when he's used to black and white world. He's part of the elite who talks down to us. What he sees is the far fringes of bloggers, not the majority centrists. He also sees the fat kid who plays with the light saber on YouTube. He is right, I mean who could argue that Desperate Housewives is far and above much more classy then a 2 minute clip of some chick fights or people playing pranks.

I also like the way this article discounts Wikepedia, sure it's not that accurate and we ALL knows this! What this article unintentionally does is raise a different question. Who decides the facts? Didn't the government say we were going to war for WMD, FACT! If I look up the history of my favorite football team and I get Wikepedia, it's pretty darn accurate. Sure everyone has access to change facts, and so does every media outlet in the World, however they are controlled by a select few while the Internet is controlled by the people. Are the Pro's getting scared?  remember what you were told. Don't beleve everything you read.  Don't believe everything you hear.  Don't believe everything you watch.

Another thing that get's me pissed is the over use of web 2.0. I work as an Internet tech, and this stupid phrase makes no sense. It basically means that we can interact. Isn't that just a natural progression. Not sure who made it up, but I can guess it was some douche bag in the media. Let me look it up

Oh here it is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2

FACT! The guy who made up the phrase web2.0 is in fact a douche bag.

Lets not make up new slang for things that have been around since the beginning. It's the Internet, plain and simple.

Again I'm not being fair to the author of the book, but the article ticked me off. I want to discount all info in the book, but how can I when I haven’t read it? See I'm an Internet user and when I have an opinion on something I like to read/see/listen before I judge something. I highly doubt that the author of the story read the entire book as well. Maybe I'll find a bit torrent site and download the book for free then i'll give my amateur opinion.

One more thing, the asshole who wrote the book also sells it online.
http://www.amazon.com/Cult-Amateur-Internet-killing-culture/dp/0385520808

As a red blooded American I have to say that!  There's actually a song where that's the chorus

"after all that's what the Dale Earnhardt fans say"

I believe it's called the Dale Earhnardt song. 

The bigger question is this.  Does this make Dale Earnhardt Jr. gay?

In what could only be compared to Gretzky leaving to LA, this mornings not so secret announcement leaves me laughing a little bit. I'm an old school Sr. fan, I've always loved watching him drive, or what some might call crash people.  When Jeff Gordon came into the circuit, I of course was upset by his dominance, mainly because there seemed to be no answer from Sr. becasue Gordon was dominant, while Sr. was in a drought. That all ended a few years before Sr's death and it seemed that the people would finally see a bonafied Sr. vs Gordon duel. However Sr. always raced him cleanly and the two had mutual respect, and even worse friendship.

The last few years of his life Sr. received cheers, while Gordon received boos, (usually a sign that you've made it in NASCAR). Around this time I started having a lot of respect for Gordon, and I've done what most Earnhardt fans wouldn't do, stick up for the guy!  This is why I think it's fitting this week, especially with the way the Sopranos ended, that most fans got what they didn't want, a Gordon/Jr team.  Just read here at what some fans are saying http://myespn.go.com/conversation/story?id=2902693&section=wc

If you are somewhat educated, and a fan of NASCAR, two things that seldom go together, you would know that these 2 guys are friends, much the same as Sr. and Gordon were. After all it's usually the fans who create the rivalry. If you want to look deeper into it, Gordon created it because he whooped up on Earnhardt Sr, just like the Yanks did to the Sox for 80 some years. Now that the Sox are beating the Yanks the tide has turned, and no one is feeling sorry for the Yanks.

It's unfortunate that Jr. has so much pressure, he could be this generations Kyle Petty, or he could make an even bigger name for himself. I don't think he'll be Petty, his brand worth too much, but if he doesn't win on one of the top teams in NASCAR, his brand could take a hit.

It's kind of funny that Sr. fans flocked to Jr. He's actually soft spoken and a lot more funny then his dad. I would think that fans of Sr.'s would like a guy like Tony Stewart. It just shows how loyal fans are to a last name. Whether of not Jr's fans are as loyal to him now or to his team is the question we'll wait to see.  I'm not sure the move will be good or bad for NASCAR, but who really knows, professionals, and people like me have been wrong about the moves NASCAR has made for years.

Personally if there's a guy I hate in the league now it's the Bush brothers. They're dorky looking, they bitch, and they have talent. Perfect receipe for hatred. If they start winning a lot , or take out our boys then we could have something here. So Jr fans and Gordon fans lets unite and start hating those douche bags.



One thing DEI should do, and I'm praying for this. Theresa Earnhardt is a marketing genius and what she needs to do is get a girl driver next year. The only one that could possibly be more popular nationally then Jr, is Danica! If I was Theresa I'd pay what ever it took to get Danica on that team next year. If Danica wont budge then find another hot chick and put her in that car full time.  Any drag racing fans get a glimpse of Joh Force's hot daughters?  Anyone see that hot Brazilan chick who tried, but failed to qualify for the Indy 500?   Can you imagine the buzz. The good ol boys vs the chicks! The only thing that could eclipse the loss of Jr, would be a chick taking his place. Just think of the pink number 8 flying by Jr next year.