Accountability vs. College Athletics

Yesterday, BYU suspended its starting Center of the men's basketball team for the remainder of the season citing an unspecified Honor Code violation. With just two conference games remaining before the conference tourney and then the NCAA Tournament, the 3rd ranked Cougars could not have had this happen at a worse time. Without their starting Center, many observers doubt BYU's ability to go deep into the NCAA's.

When news of the suspension broke the sports message boards became inflammed with hatred towards BYU and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The intolerance, misinformation and pure, disgusting hatred being written simply turned my stomach. To say I was appalled or aghast doesn't even come close. Instead of commenting on the basketball ramifications for BYU, this was turned into an anti-Mormon rant that thousands of people fell into.Well, I didn't read too many posts because of the vitriol being vomited by these supposed sports fans.

I wrote the following response to the Deseret News:

"No one should judge Davies about his Honor Code violation. These athletes are under intense pressure and scrutiny. Non-athletic students would likely fold under the same circumstances.
Also, no one should jump all over BYU for this development. Brandon Davies agreed to abide by the rules when he accepted his scholarship. He infracted the rules, and is being held accountable. It's a tough lesson to learn; but an incredibly valuable one.
Too bad most basketball fans [clearly] have no grasp on the concept of personal accountability. Otherwise, the sports boards yesterday wouldn't have been filled with ridicule and hostility towards BYU and the LDS Church for the decision to suspend Davies just before the start of the NCAA Touney."

There is a lot of money, national prestige and recruiting power on the line for BYU. This move could very well damage their ability to draw national recruits and national TV exposure in the coming years. In enforcing the University Honor Code, BYU has risen above the detritus of the naysayers and is standing by its commitment to prepare its students for a life of success on every level. Sometimes, that preparation comes in terms of mistakes and lessons learned.

We all make mistakes; but no one is above reproach, nor below the ability to learn from a mistake and then rise above that mistake and become a better person for what they have learned. Davies will, if he learns properly, rise out of this dark hour and become a better man not just for his potential career, but for the rest of his life, in all its various aspects.

Truancy Laws Gone Too Far

In Provo, UT a law is being considered that would criminalize truant youth and children should they be caught off campus or away from their schooling during school hours. This law would also require adults to call the city police to report violators. The intent behind the considered law is to confront the growing gang issue in this central Utah city.
All of the reader responses prior to my submission were filled with shock; and many feared the repercussions pertaining to home schooled children and youth, and how ridiculous it would be to arrest six year-olds and give them a police record just for being on the city streets during school hours. Some of the respondents even went into a 'Police State, Socialism' rant that was entirely counterproductive to any serious discussion. Yesterday I wrote the following response to the article in the Deseret News:

"First of all, the city is looking for ways to fight increasing gang activity. This idea isn't the smartest, I'll give you that; but to jump way ahead and feign horror at children being arrested is not only foolish, it's downright ridiculous.
Instead of being offended at the "potential" of this proposal, why don't you form community meetings to brainstorm legitimate ideas to address the issue, present them to the school board (leaving the city govt out of the discussion), then both sides work to find viable solutions.
The answer to this lies not in legislation, but in a cooperative effort between the community and the school district. It seems, after all, that most parents are feeling like their voice is lost--and it has somewhat, because they now complain loudly but never step up and start grassroot efforts to challenge school officials, city leaders etc. So stop complaining and step up! Become a leader who enacts change!
And JMT (a respondent on this board), please leave your "1984" scare tactics out and present an intelligent, thoughtful discussion that goes beyond an 'I'm right, you're wrong' mentality that only seeks to instill fear and remove rational thought. "

Of the eighteen responses after mine, not a single one commented on the merits of my proposal; instead continuing the fear-mongering that all of the earlier posts had provided. Since there was no rational thought amongst the lot, I decided to write another response today.

"RE: JMT "Two kids fighting over a remote; the wishbone from Thanksgiving turkey; candy at Christmas; who saw Lagoon first; playing fetch with the dog; Grandpas attention, etc..."

This type of thinking is irresponsible. It seeks only to create fear and suspicion.
Please, leave the addressing of community and national issues to the adults because clearly, individuals such as this only want to make us afraid without offering any sort of leadership that might help us all to climb off of the slippery slope this nation now finds itself upon.

If you're concerned about issues and law-making, write, call or email your elected representatives at every level! Make sure you take part in the electoral system we all enjoy. Start community efforts to enact change. Do something!--Because doing nothing but complaining gets us nowhere."

So far, I have not gotten any retort.

Super Bowl National Anthem?

Yesterday was the Super Bore--I mean, Super Bowl. My family was asked by close friends to watch the game with them, so I actually saw this yearly snooze-fest. Anyway, the National Anthem was sung this year by pop singer Christina Aguilera. When I say that the song was 'sung,' I actually mean to say that it was murdered.

First, Aguilera forgot a number of words--a total botch job. Second, in her effort to put a personal signature on the National Anthem, Aguilera absolutely murdered the melody. What I recognize as the songs' melody was nowhere to be found. Aguilera was constantly changing notes; jumping around so much that the melody, that the whole world was expecting to hear, was not included. I heard a few of the correct words, and a whole lot of musical garbage that was supposedly our National Anthem.

The message boards today are aflame with biting criticism of Aguilera. Nearly every comment and story I've read was critical of this pop diva--and rightly so. Aguilera should be embarrassed by her effort that was delivered to a world wide audience. I personally feel that she should apologize to America for the botched job.

Instead, after fleeing Dallas--the site of Super Bore 45--for her home base of La La Land, Aguilera actually defended her performance stating that she thought she did a good job.

...WOW!...

I don't know who is telling her that the performance was a thing to be proud of; but they should be fired. Missed words, missing melody and plain wrong words are never a reason to celebrate...ESPECIALLY when it is from "singing" the National Anthem of the United States.

I sure wish the Super Bore Committee and the NFL would insist on a proper and acurate rendition of the song that represents the Pride, Strength and Unity of our Nation, its People and its History.

Gee! Dubya Bushie Says "No More politics."

I read a story today on AOL in which former (good riddance!) President Gee! Dubya Bushie stated that he was done with politics of any kind. No campaigning, no fundraising, etc.
I absolutely HAD to respond! ;o)

Gee! Dubya Bushie was done with politics well before he even took (stole) the office of US President. He is an idiot of the first degree who left this country in shambles.

The Constitution is hanging by a thread because of the Patriot Act, Americans are looked at as criminals by the TSA (a bunch of F'n Nazi bastards, as one relative puts it), freedom from government oversight is very nearly a thing of the past, the country is in so much debt that China may end up owning it lock, stock and barrel, and the off-shoring of jobs absolutely devastated the economy.

And that's just the tip of the proverbial iceberg!

Gee! Dubya Bushie can keep his mouth closed. He will go down as the President who led the country to the brink of destruction when all is said and done.

We will be lucky to recapture the true spirit that the Founding Fathers wanted for the United States...*Freedom, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

(*That would be Freedom OF, not Freedom from!)

Letter to My Congressional Representatives--A Reply

I received the following reply [to my latest letter to my Congressional Reps] last week. It is from Sen. Orrin Hatch.

"Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns with airport security and your opposition to body scanners being used to enhance security at some of our nation's airports I appreciate hearing from you.

As you may be aware, threats against our nation's air transportation networks have evolved over time. In response, the screening technologies we rely on to identify and counter these threats must evolve as well. Over the next several years, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will likely face continuing challenges to address projected growth in passenger airline travel while maintaining and improving upon the efficiency and effectiveness of passenger screening operations.

One of the real benefits of improved and advanced technology will hopefully be a dramatic reduction in the extensive labor force now deployed by the TSA to secure our nation's airports. As you know, the labor and money required to secure the airports is significant and appropriate advancements to reduce this labor force and make the screening process more affordable and efficient would be a welcome step to most taxpayers.
While security is of paramount importance, individual privacy also needs to be protected. As such, the bill requires TSA to continue to protect consumers' privacy by prohibiting the transfer or retention of any body images and requiring remote screening for any personally identifying images. I will continue to support the TSA in improving their privacy protection efforts.

Rest assured. I am working day and night to implement policies that will make Utah and our great nation a peaceful, prosperous, safe and lawful place to live. i appreciate your comments and suggestions and look forward to working towards a solution to this issue that you will find acceptable and in line with your interests.

Your Senator,
Orrin G. Hatch United States Senator"


I sincerely appreciate the Senator's response. He could very well have done as my House Rep did...which was nothing. At the very least, my US Senator knows my thoughts and concerns regarding the TSA and its obvious abuses against US citizens, and the unconstitutional measures it employs on a daily basis.

Again, I encourage each of you to make a habit of writing your Congressional Representatives; both in the House and in the Senate. If you fail to raise your voice then nothing will change, and we will continue to edge closer, as a nation, to the proverbial abyss that awaits us all if the Constitution and the Bill of Rights continue to be both ignored and trampled upon by the very men and women we send to DC to represent each one of us both individually and collectively.

Please...write, email, call, vote, speak out! If not you, then who? Who will speak your mind and voice your concerns? It is your responsibility as a citizen of the United States to raise your voice both in support of, and opposition to, the men and women who lead our great nation so that they continue to lead and guide us in a manner befitting all those who have brought us thus far. Please...Speak out!

Letter to My Congressional Representatives

I wrote the following letter to my Congressional representatives regarding the ever-growing abuses of the Civil Rights of American everywhere in the ongoing War on Terror."

"I am growing extremely concerned at the growing tide of governmental abuses against the civil liberties of Americans everywhere.

The Constitution guarantees certain freedoms and liberties to every citizen; yet with the advent of the so-called "War on Terror," Congress seems to be turning a perpetual blind eye to the infringements we are seeing every day.

The 4th Amendment guarantees freedom against unlawful search and seizure; yet the TSA is conducting these millions of times a day at our nations airports. Every US citizen that has the temerity to fly via commercial airline is suspected of being a criminal (or, having criminal intent) without a shred of evidence-- and are subjected to unwarranted searches by either body scan or physically intrusive pat downs. How is this allowed without trampling on the Constitution?

Since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on NY and DC, Americans can seemingly no longer go about their lives in anonymity due to the explosive proliferation of security cameras that appear nearly everywhere including parks, businesses, sidewalks, etc. Since when did my desire to live my life as an American citizen, unencumbered by governmental oversight, become a threat to national security so much that I am almost constantly watched or monitored by some means? Where is the Constitutionality of a seemingly evolving police state?

Then today, it was announced by the Dept. of Homeland Security, that WalMart management is going to encourage its consumers to report any suspicious behavior [by other shoppers] to the police or other law enforcement agencies. This move, endorsed by the Dept. of Homeland Security, smacks of historical totalitarian dictatorships such as the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany; and, it is reflective of the fear mongering created by the McCarthy trials of the 1950's. Citizens spying on citizens, and reporting them to police? The United States is on a dangerously slippery slope, and the Constitution is beginning to teeter on the edge.

The following are quotes by a few of our Founding Fathers regarding the very situation the United States finds itself in today...

"The time is near at hand which must determine whether Americans are to be free
men or slaves."
-George Washington

"It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon the supposition he may abuse it."
-George Washington

"Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people."
-John Adams

"Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security."
-Benjamin Franklin

"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."
-George Washington

"Even peace may be purchased at too high a price."
-Benjamin Franklin

"If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter."
-George Washington

The Founding Fathers correctly foresaw the dangers of the removal of freedoms. They perceived the very dangerous ground we now tread upon were the Constitution and Bill of Rights to be ignored or trampled under foot in the name of "security."

Please, as my Congressional Representative, I implore you to speak out against the Federal Agencies and Congressional Acts that are openly violating the freedoms of every American citizen not only in your District, but across the whole of the United States as well.

This madness that is happening in the name of "the War on Terror" has got to stop. Al Qaeda and all the other terrorist groups have already won their little war as freedoms are whiled away in the name of security. The more freedoms we lose, the greater their victory.

Please, speak out against this blatant trampling of Civil Rights. The price we will pay, as a country and a society, is far too great should the current climate be allowed to continue."

I encourage everyone reading this to write, call or email your Congressmen/women if you are as alarmed by what is happening the trampling of our Constitutionally guaranteed freedoms. Nothing will ever change if ordinary citizens stand on the sidelines and silently accept the abuses that are happening now, and have yet to transpire--which they most assuredly will based on recent history. If you think your voice is inconsequential, you are absolutely wrong! Speak up! Encourage others to speak up, too! Every voice counts! Please...Speak up!

The Republican Party: Liars, Hypocrites & Jack Asses

The following was written in response to an article which stated that the supposed Republican ban on Congressional earmarks--appropriations targeted for a home state project or interest --was officially over as Arizona Senator John Kyl (R), the #2 ranking Republican in the Senate, earmarked $200M into a larger bill that was subsequently passed by the Senate.


"What a bunch of hypocrites.

Saying exactly what they need in order to get elected, the Jack Ass party pulls the ol' snake charmer's move at their earliest opportunity, and screws a gullible public out of $200M...again.

They continue to show the country that Republican campaign promises are nothing more than illusions and ruses utilized to swell public sentiment into a tide for change that, in reality, is nothing more than a continued ebb and flow of greed, deceit, power grabbing and lies that only strengthen a supposedly dead spoils system that is stronger than at any point in history.

Liars...Jack Asses.

And the voters of the United States can only blame themselves for the continuing degradation of of the political landscape because the voters continue to fall under the spell of these snake charmers who openly parade as true champions of the will if the people; yet who, over the course of the last 16 years, show time and again their true colors as the master public manipulators they truly are.

"Elect meeee. I'm a Republican. I care about you. I'll crush those sinful democratsss and lead thisss country to greatnessss. Elect meeee...blah, blah, blah..."

Until the voters wake up and refuse the charms of the Republican party, nothing in Congress will change for the better, and the widening chasm of political ideology will grow ever further away from the middle.

In the meantime, earmarks will drain the Treasury and the relentless Republican propaganda attacks will continue unabated; Corporations will gain ever-increasing control of Congress [and other positions of political power], and the HeeHaw party will relentlessly blame all the woes of our once great country on the Democratic party; thereby hypocritizing themselves even further.

What a bunch of Liars and Jack Asses."

No START Treaty?--My Response

(The following is my response to a story today stating that House Republicans will block any attempt by President Obama to ratify the START Treaty with Russia--aimed at reducing nuclear weapon stockpiles on both sides.

The Republican leaders are claiming that the lame-duck session (around the upcoming holidays) doesn't have enough time to sort out the terms of the treaty. In reality, this is just a taste of the political grandstanding that will occur when the Republican party controls the US House of Representatives in late January [following the recent mid-term elections].

Congress has had the terms of the START Treaty for more than eight months and has failed to even address the issue with any urgency. Now, they are using it against the President in order to gain political power throughout DC ahead of the shift in power within the House.)

"Just another pathetic display by the Republicans to show voters that THEY are now in control--again. A party of Jackasses--at least they got the party logo spot on!

So long as the new policy Republican party further widens the political ideology gap away from Democrats (and even the Moderates, too!), Congressional lawmaking will grind to a complete halt, and national policies and programs will all suffer for the cry-baby tantrum these whiners and demagogues are throwing.

What an embarrassment our democracy has become to the world. Party fighting and in-fighting is raging out of control; the uncooperative air in Congress is beyond anything this country has ever witnessed; and it seems that the sole purpose of the Republican party is to attack the President and destroy any hope of bipartisan cooperation that might help the country to move forward.

'To hell with the country, so long as we (the Republicans) are in power! We'll crucify the President, severely damage our tender relations with Russia by NOT passing the START treaty, undo everything the President has implemented, destroy the environment, plunder every natural resource available, allow the destruction of aquifers that are inconveniently near natural gas deposits, and decimate the hopes of 56 MILLION Americans for getting any sort of health coverage! Beyond that, we really don't have a plan; we just want to destroy the credibility of our President, and decimate his effectiveness simply because he's (gasp!)...... a Democrat.'

If you really paid attention to the just concluded election process, that pretty much sums up the goals of the Hee-Haw party. If you don't see it, then you either don't want to, or are completely blind to the hateful, divisive party rhetoric they've been spewing now for the last 14+ years.

Yeah...great plan....Jackasses.

(And by the way--for all you naysayers, I'm a registered Independent, and have always voted for whomever I believe is best suited for office. My ballots reflect votes for Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, etc. I do not favor one party over the other.)"