America Mourns The Death Of Ted Kennedy

The death of Senator Teddy Kennedy was not a surprise. Many of us knew he had an uphill battle to fight against a very aggressive brain tumor. The passing of Ted Kennedy has brought on much reflection not just about Ted Kennedy, but about the family of service; the Kennedy’s.  This family faced many tragedies, more than many of us could ever dream to confront.  The Kennedy’s are survivors and no matter what you think of  their politics, no one can deny the flair and the resolve that the  three brothers, John, Robert, and Teddy showed during the latter half of the twentieth century.

Ted and his brothers were not perfect, but that is certainly human nature. Yet all three brothers managed to  leave a mark on society like no other family in the history of American politics.  Ted Kennedy is said to be the most liberal of the three brothers, with Robert running a close second. President John Kennedy was more of a conservative, despite popular opinion to the contrary.

Ted Kennedy was an expert of  compromise n the Senate. Despite his politics, Ted Kennedy had gift in finding common ground with Republicans. So many Republicans have come forward to talk about Kennedy’s  capacity to bring Democrats and Republicans together in order to get bills passed.  This  was Ted Kennedy’s legacy.  The Kennedy family has given an incredible gift to the American people. Let’s not forget their legacy and their service to America.  Let’s not forget Senator Ted Kennedy.

Brett Favre Is Back, A Viking No Less! In the Packer’s Division!

Brett Favre is back! Last year it seemingly was in a land far, far  away with the New York Jets, Not  in the Packers back yard and I might add, lots of folks are steaming mad.  Primarily the Green Bay Packers.  Will the Packer have motivation…Yes. Will Brett Farve have motivation….Yes, Yes!  It will make good reality football and lots of entertainment.  Suddenly the  spotlight has shifted from Michael Vick to Brett Farve.  The NFL ratings will be up this year.

The two quarter back the Viking have  are terrible.  So a 40 year old Brett Favre is not quite a bad idea of the Viking. So you have mad people in Minnesota, namely the two quarterbacks competing for starting jobs and you have  mad Green Bay Packer, primarily because  Brett Favre is back in the same division with them.  It really makes for some interesting drama. The Michale Vick story will  move a few slots down, probably to the relief of the Philadelphia Eagles and Vick. Everyone will be talking about Brett Favre’s return for the remainder of the year.

The only question that remains is whether Vick  has enough in the tank to make an impact this year. Only time will tell.Let’ sit back and enjoy the show

President Obama’s Op Ed In New York Times

OUR nation is now engaged in a great debate about the future of health care in America. And over the past few weeks, much of the media attention has been focused on the loudest voices. What we haven’t heard are the voices of the millions upon millions of Americans who quietly struggle every day with a system that often works better for the health-insurance companies than it does for them……  “Barack Obama”

New York Times Op Ed

Pitino Needs To leave Louisville- He Is A Distraction

I have been a Louisville Cardinal basketball fan  since 1967. The Days of  Wes Unseld, Butch Beard, Mike Grosso and a host of others.  I followed the Cards when Denny Crum took them from a good  mid major program to a National power winning National Championships in 1980 and 1986.  I was there as a fan when  the Cards struggled in the 90’s and saw the Rick Pitino led Kentucky Wildcats make their mark and winning a National Championship.

They were led by the ego driven opportunist Rick Pitino.  Pitino hung the moon in Kentucky and then he hoodwinked the  Boston Celtics  who paid him millions of dollars to destroy the team.   Perhaps Pitino was a little too  fast for the slow lifestyle of Kentucky, but not fast enough for the Celtics who sent him packing.

Fast Forward to 2009, Pitno is in one of the most difficult situation in his most ambitious coaching career.  The gist of the story is Pitino had a brief relationship with the woman. Pitino said she was trying to blackmail him. Now the woman is on trial and all sorts of embarrassing information is surfacing. To me it is an embarrassment to the University of Louisville and a tribute to Denny Crum, who was literally  forced out as head Coach  so King Rick could come back to Kentucky after he   literally dismantled a dynasty, the Boston Celtics.

It is time for Pitino to leave and the Athletic Director should follow him out of the door. It is embarrassing to the University and the basketball program is suffering. But Louisville is being Louisville by standing by anyone who wins. The city is a basketball haven and  they love Rick Pitino. It is a shame that this man can continue to  con the entire universe and make you think you were wrong. But that’s what got him where he is today. There lies the problem and why Pitino is  in the news nearly everywhere…….Bring back Denny Crum or anyone at this point, anyone but Rick Pitino!

Mike Vick Has Work To Do On His Image

Michael Vick is back in the NFL. To some that in itself is a travesty. To others, they wish him well after he has paid his dues with a 2 year prison term for unseemly and inhumane crimes against animals. No matter where you stand on the issue it is a passionate argument on both sides. Do you reward someone with millions of  dollars after  committing such a despicable act?

The other side of the argument is even prisoners released from prison should be allowed to  make a living for themselves and their families.  Better we let them make a living and perhaps the chance of rehabilitating themselves, verses being a burden to tax payers and perhaps a liability to society in the future.

Make no mistake, Vick made a huge mistake and  his moral compass was bankrupt. But this man given his crime, appears to be remorseful and only time will tell.  Can we forgive? We should. No one is society is  perfect, all of us has fallen short of the  road to excellent values.  No living human being can say they have not made a mistake, perhaps not on the level of a Michael Vick, but nevertheless we are not perfect.

The Philadelphia Eagles agreed to go out of the limb and offer Vick a contract. Plenty of people are questioning why? It is understandable. The  Philadelphia Eagles have showed more courage in giving Vick a chance than many NFL teams.  He is without question, a tremendous football player and his talent is unquestioned. Many teams probably thought long and hard about signing Vick, but shied away from the  backlash the the Eagles coach and  ownership are sure to receive from animal rights group,  fans,  and average people who have pets of their own.  It is a slippery slope and a road less traveled for all concerned.

So it is up to Vick to prove himself; he has a lot of work to do, but that comes with the territory when you make mistakes, you must pay for them,  sometimes for a lifetime.  I wish Vick well in his quest to rehabilitate himself, there is a lot on the line for him, the Eagles, the NFL, and the many people who have stood in support of Michael Vick; Tony Dungy, Donovan McNabb and others.

This situation will play out for years to come. It up to Vick to remake himself and it want be easy.

New York Times Says President Obama’s Stimulus Is Working

The New York Times reported on its front page this morning that the jobs report suggested that the recession was ending, but the recovery will be characterized by still rising unemployment even though the unemployment rate dipped by one tenth of a percent in July.  All good news For President Barack Obama was polling rates went up to 58%.

The most hopeful jobs report since last summer suggested Friday that the  recession was ending, but the recovery will be marked by a still-rising unemployment rate and tens of thousands of job losses each month until next year.

stimulus

Right Wingers/Republicans Support Disruption In Fight For Health Care Reform

This is a small sample of the extreme violence that is being condoned by Republicans and right wingers in the fight for health care reform.

It’s getting ugly out there.

All across the country, right-wing extremists are disrupting congressional town-hall meetings with venomous attacks on President Obama’s plans for health care and clean energy.

• Last night in Tampa, Florida, a town hall meeting erupted into violence, with the police being called to break up fist fights and shoving matches.¹
• A Texas Democrat was shouted down by right-wing hecklers, many of whom admitted they didn’t even live in his district.
• One North Carolina representative announced he wouldn’t be holding any town-hall meetings, because of safety concerns.
• And in Maryland, protesters hung a Democratic congressman in effigy to oppose health-care reform.⁴

We’ve got a plan to fight back against these radical right-wingers. We’ve hired skilled grassroots organizers who are working with thousands of local volunteers to show Congress that ordinary Americans continue to support President Obama’s agenda for change.