Some advice for the FCC

Yesterday an official from the FCC announced that cable and satellite programmers need to "clean up their act" in regards to the type of television programming that is viewed by American citizens. One of the recommendations is to enact "ala carte" programming so that people can choose what types of programs are coming into their homes. So for example, if I want to see CNN, ESPN and Lifetime, I would be charged a fee for each of those networks by the cable company. They believe that the high cost of cable and satellite television would decrease if this "ala carte" option were made available.

Sounds pretty good huh? Lower prices for cable and satellite services?

Keep this in mind. If "ala carte" pricing goes into place, the biggest impact will be to those channels which do not see the largest viewing audiences. The cable and satellite providers could decide to eliminate channels due to the fact that they are not requested as much by most subscribers in the ala carte process. What we will be left with is fewer channels and less programming opportunities. Basically, the exact things we all had prior to introduction of cable or satellite TV to society.

And what about the parental locking feature available on the remote? Or the V-Chip? If you do not want Johnny or Suzie to watch particular shows that you deem objectionable, you already have the option of blocking that programming out based on the new television rating system that is in place.
It takes less than five seconds to lock the programming down.

To be honest, there are probably more television networks on cable/satellite than are really necessary. However, I want to have the option of discovering those new channels myself without having to jump through hoops to access them.

Christmas preparations

After waiting patiently........ok well.........maybe not so patiently........I have finally decorated my humble little home for Christmas. It took all of 35 minutes to achieve this feat but it has been accomplished!

I even managed to go out on Friday and do a little Christmas shopping. Albeit it was in the afternoon after the crazed maniacs had gone home or just simply dropped dead from exhaustion. Did you see the news clips from some of their adventures? Yep.....tis the season to trample people at Wal-Mart. Egads! My companion and I failed to see any of these rabid shoppers at the stores.
We did run into a variety of screaming children. Why they decided to break out into screams I do not know, but apparently it is something for which their parents are accustomed. I can't even imagine what my parents would have done had I reached those type of decibel levels!

I must say that I am now ready for some "Christmasy" type of weather. Perhaps even a light snow flurry or two. Just enough so it looks and feels like Christmas time instead of a chilly October day in Florida. Hopefully I am not jinxing us into a December blizzard like we had last year!

Happy Shopping!

Bengals

After a valiant effort by my hometown football team - the Cincinnati Bengals - they lost to the Indy Colts 45-37. Peyton Manning's arm was as golden as usual and he is clearly setting the bar for the rest of the teams in the NFL. Nice try Cincinnati.........you had nothing to lose.

Special thanks to my friend in Boston who left me a very sad, sad, pitiful message on my voicemail. Yes yes........she wanted to gloat about the Bengals loss to the all-powerful Colts.

Now let's see........I do believe the Patsies played the Colts at home already this year. Hmmm......I think they lost by 19 points that day. So tell me this...........what looks more pitiful, the Bengals (aka. Bungles - who haven't seen a Superbowl since 1989) losing to the Colts by 8 or the defending Superbowl Champion Patriots losing to the Colts by 19.

I dunno................this is a tough one...........

My addiction

They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. Ok.....here goes.



I am addicted to QVC.

Yessss yessss.....I know what you are saying. How could anyone have such an addiction? Well....it started a few years ago in November when I was recovering from having my wisdom teeth pulled. The recovery process took a bit longer than anticipated. What more could I do? I certainly couldn't go out in public with my bruised, puffy face and eating anything more than pudding wasn't an option.

So I turned to the television and discovered holiday shopping on QVC.

Now at first.....I was like anyone else. Who cares about shopping via the television? Who needs it? Well.......a little idle time with nothing better to do will make anyone go over the edge. I made one purchase........then another...........and then one more. I bought some dandy, off-the-wall items for everyone on my Christmas list that year. It was fabulous!

Ok.....another admission. I have turned other people on to watching and shopping on QVC. I know...I know........I have shared this addiction with others. I am guilty! However, they had fun! No harm no foul! They bought fun stuff!

This weekend will be a shopper's dream on QVC! Just take a little peek...........no harm in just looking..............

Right?

Bits-n-Pieces

Ahhhh yes...........I am still here! A few interesting and ok.........downright odd.......items from the local news and beyond.

- First and foremost, the Bengals (7-2) look forward to taking on the undefeated Colts (9-0) this weekend at Paul Brown Stadium. While I would be estatically happy if the Bengals would take down the mighty Colts, I don't think it is going to happen. Peyton is on a roll with a golden arm. My prediction - Colts 27 - Bengals 20.

- That's right. You heard it hear first. You no longer have to give up your favorite brew to a begging pooch. Happy Tail Ale is here! http://www.beerfordogs.com

- Dubya's approval rating is continuing to sink. Down 37%. I guess some folks are finally beginning to wake up.

- As for the State of Ohio, they have the distinct honor of having one of the worst Governors in the history of mankind. Gov. Bob Taft's approval rating is 15%. Yes......in case you didn't know.....he is a Republican too.

- Supreme Court nominee Alito will have to wait until January for the hearings to begin on his nomination. YAY! This gives Sandra Day a few more critical decisions on the bench. Hopefully the hearings will end the Alito confirmation process but I am not optimistic.

- Much to the dismay of a few close friends.....I am eager to begin decorating my house for Christmas! I have restrained myself quite nicely..........waiting patiently for the day after Thanksgiving. My neighbors across the street, however, have had their Christmas tree up for 3 days. Proudly displayed in the front window of their home no less. Ho ho ho hmmmmmmmmmm.........

TA TA!

"The man" has a plan - Egads

It has been announced today that President Bush will outline his plan for a possible Flu pandemic. Yes..........he apparently has a plan in lieu of the outbreaks around the world.

Does anyone else see the irony in this?

A new nominee

Yesterday, a new Supreme Court nominee was announced by the President. Of course, as expected, Dubya bowed to the Conservative Christian coalitions and nominated the most conservative judge he could find in the U.S. - Samuel Alito.

Talks of a filibuster are already being discussed in the media but don't expect it to begin any time soon. With the holiday break coming up for Congress, it may not be possible to start or end the hearings before January 2006. So we have a little time to analyze this judge more thoroughly and I expect the denouncing of this court appointee to grow in volume.

I am not optimistic that our Democratic representatives can stop this nominee from taking the position on the Supreme Court - filibuster or no filibuster. The Republicans are ready to "bust" the filibuster with a law that would outlaw their use forever. Since they have control of both houses, this could be disastrous and end the filibuster before it begins.

I can only hope that we do not lose any more Supreme Court judges during Dubya's tenure in office. If that happens, we will certainly see a domination of conservative judges on the court. This could dramatically change life as we know it for years to come.

Let the nominations begin! (again)

Well............hear hear.........Harriet Miers has withdrawn from the Supreme Court nomination circus today. In her note to Dubya, she claimed that in stepping out of the way she is protecting private conversations between her and the President and doing what's best for the country. She feels that it is weighing his Presidency down.

Harriet honey........he didn't need your help for that.

I digress.......some Senators believe that her departure can be blamed on the "radical right wing of the Republican Party" killing her nomination. EGADS! Can you imagine? A wing of the Republican party killing anything that Dubya wants to push through!

Anyway..........please step aside and let the next nomination through..............

Good ol' Dick

Well well........it seems that Dick Cheney has been busy behind the scenes for the last two years and not connected to hospital machines as I have thought. He is now the primary focus of the investigation into the leaking of the CIA agent's name - Valerie Plame. Sources say that he was the one who "leaked" the name to Lewis Libby - his aide.

When all is said and done I believe we are going to see a couple of good ol' boys take the fall for those in the Executive Branch of this administration. There is no doubt that they all knew the ramifications when releasing her name to the public and knew exactly who to place in the forefront when the "manure" started flying.

News sources say that the investigation and the grand jury indictments will revisit the lack of reasoning behind going into Iraq in the first place thus drowning "Dubya's" popularity poll even more. Pffftttttttttt!

Please tell me its time to launch the Presidential campaign!

Elevator results

Since my last post, I have tested the New Yorker's elevator "express" myth over a five day period. Now you can call it a coincidence if you would like, but in the last five days of using the elevator to leave the building, I haven't stopped at a single floor. Today I shall begin testing the elevator without pressing the destination floor and the close door button at the same time.

While this may appear that I am taking this all too seriously, I can assure you that I am. Try it for yourself the next time you are in a hurry and need to take the elevator. I will convert you too!

New Yorker elevator advice

Yesterday I had the rare opportunity to just spend the day in a couple bookstores. I managed to get caught up on some reading and feed my addiction to Caramel Cafe Mochas and Caramel Fraps.

As I was reading through the latest version of the New Yorker, I came across an article on elevators and how to "rig" them to become express elevators. Absolutely invaluable information to have since I work on the 11th floor of my office building. Someone is always trying to disrupt my end of the day departure or my quick run to the local sandwich shop.

Anyway, one of the tricks is to press the Close Door button at the same time as you press the button of the destination floor. I have tried it twice today - once at 12:15pm and once at 1:25pm. Both times I reached the 1st floor without a stop.

Coincidence? Maybe so, but I am going to keep a mental note of my attempts to gauge if this really works.

If nothing else it breaks up the monotony of a busy work day and gives me a chance to "beat the system".

Qualified nominations vs. a Posse

I recently listened to an editorial comment about recent Bush nominations within our federal agencies. They outlined a variety of "cronies" that Bush has nominated to various departments within our government. While the list was broad, I have decided to focus in on the top three of late: Mike Brown, Harriet Miers and Julie Myers.

Let's start with Julie Myers and work back.

The nomination of Julie Myers as the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security in charge of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency was just approved by the Senate this week. At 36, she is a well connected "young" lawyer with little or no management or immigration experience to lead an agency that staffs 20000 people with a budget of $4 billion a year.

The nomination of Harriet Miers is still being viewed with skepticism and criticism by many players in Washington. No judicial bench experience and no guidance on how she would rule on key issues that are brought to the Supreme Court. Dubya says that he knows her character and her judicial viewpoints and that is good enough for him. Well, maybe this is why we have not heard from the religious conservatives that sleep in Dubya's back pocket.

As for Mike Brown, former leader of FEMA, he gained this high office position at the nomination of Dubya as well. Little experience working large scale disasters and a "juiced up" resume has landed him out on the streets and thousands of people struggling in the deep south.

Unfortunately, the President of the United States can appoint and nominate anyone he or she likes in regards to our federal agencies. It is unfortunate that because of party lines the Republican led House and Senate continue to approve these nominations just because Dubya said so.

Maybe it is time for a split ticket to lead this country. Perhaps we would receive more qualified individuals instead of one person's hometown posse of friends.

Harriet Miers

Well..........the conservatives (Ann Coulter's and the like) are absolutely foaming at the mouth that Bush would make such a dumb decision as to name someone with no judicial experience to the Supreme Court. This is quite surprising since they usually sing his praises. The fact is no one knows which way she will go and this makes her a threat.

I think she is a dead ringer for Faye Dunaway in "Mommie Dearest" myself.

Around the leagues

Wow................what a weekend in sports! Let's catch up, shall we?

• The Boston Red Sox clinched a playoff position in the American League after beating the Yankees yesterday 10-1. Of course the Yankees are in the playoffs as well and we will certainly face them again in the race to the World Series.
• The Bengals won again! They defeated the Houston Texans 16-10. A win is a win.........sometimes they aren't pretty wins but until they start scoring PW's or PL's (pretty losses) it all counts! The Bengals are one of four teams that remain undefeated. They are in good company with the Colts, Redskins and the Bucs.

Just a minute - I am picking a suitable music score for the next sports update. Hmmm...let's see.......circus music or a funeral march?

• The Patsies were manhandled at home yesterday by the San Diego Chargers. Final score 41-17. This ends the Patsies 21 game winning streak at home. I don't even think "manhandled" is quite the word for this loss. This team is suffering because they do not have any suitable bench players to fill in for their injured reserve. They have simply counted on their starters to lead the team and it is now paying them back in buckets. It is a matter of time before Tom Brady goes down himself and his backup will be forced to enter the game. (Who is his replacement anyway?) At that point, the season will be over. Mr. "I am a changed man" Corey Dillon is not adding anything substantial to the running game and seems to wallowing again in his own discontent. He ran for 63 years yesterday and that is his season high so far this year. The Patsies better make a few changes because the 4-0 Colts will be coming to town on 11/7 and this team is eager to collect on some past losses - especially in Foxborough.

Hurricane madness

Thanks to our representatives in Congress we now get to sit through the fingerpointing in regards to the lapse in judgment surrounding the Hurricane Katrina disaster. Again, I don't want to extend the fingerpointing at this point but I can't help it.

Hello government officials in the State of Louisiana - you are the primary caretakers of the folks in your state. You are the primary caretakers of the initial disaster recovery plan in your cities and towns. The Federal Government provides additional assistance on top of what you have already provided to your constituents. They do not assume control over every single emergency in every town and city in the U.S. This is why we have individually governed states with their own constitutions and government agencies. Federal money was allocated to you for disaster recovery planning and somehow the money was misplaced.

As for FEMA, you are guilty for not providing the additional services soon enough. Lapse of judgment at the top or beaucratic red-tape?

Regardless.......the Democrats are burning the town down trying to find someone to blame and the Republicans are distancing themselves from the situation because it was handled poorly under a Republican administration.

No one wants to take the heat but all parties should step up and assume some responsibility for this mess. There is enough blame to go around at all levels of the government.

Can we possibly squeeze one more hurricane in before November just to make things interesting?

Seven games in seven days

The Red Sox meet the Yankees in Fenway this weekend for a three game series. If the Red Sox win 2 of 3..............we are on our way to the American League Divisional Series!

However, if fate does not look favorably on the Red Sox there is one more chance. They will not only have to win but they have to depend on a few other teams in the league to help them! After seven days, if the Red Sox, Indians and Yankees all finish with identical records..........it will force a one game playoff in the Bronx with the Yankees. The winner of this game would play the Indians for a wild card spot.

Part of me is still reeling after the fact that Boston won the World Series last year. What a game! What a series! Yes it was a long time coming.........but they snubbed their noses at the "curse" and have the rings to prove it.

GO RED SOX!!

Hyponatremia

What a week it has been! It started out with a bang in the early hours of Monday morning when my mother came down with a condition called Hyponatremia or "Water Intoxication". Simply put, she drank too much water in preparation for a medical treatment that was to take place later on Monday. Too much water dilutes the body of sodium. Low levels of sodium can result in disorientation and confusion and if left untreated, it can be fatal.

Luckily, we were in a good position to get my mother to the hospital and she has been receiving the necessary treatment to bring her sodium levels back to normal. While she has regained her responsiveness to my family and has been interacting with us, she still shows signs of mental slowness and confusion. It is my hope that this will not be a residual effect that will linger even after she is released from the hospital. We are into Day 4 of her hospital stay and I guess only time will tell if her mental stamina is strengthened in the next few days.

I guess the main thing to remember is that too much of anything can be a bad thing. We have heard this saying many times but how many times have we heard it in regards to drinking water. The common communication is to "drink at least 8 glasses of water a day" or "if you are dieting, drinks lots of water".

This week has been a real eye opener..............

Between the Uprights

• YAHOOOOOOO! The Bengals beat Minnesota soundly today at home by the score of 37 - 8. Carson Palmer pulled off a marvelous performance by passing for 337 yards and throwing three touchdowns. We are now 2 - 0 for the season. Yes.....it is still early but it feels soooo good to be on the winning end!
• On the other side of the rainbow......the Carolina Panthers took down the Patsies by outscoring them by 10. Final score 27 - 17. Billy, Bobby, Teddy, Tommy......as I said.....whatevah.

Isn't it time for a Presidential election?

Surely it is time for a Fall Presidential campaign! Let's see the candidates who want to run this great country! Let's see the primary numbers from New Hampshire! Let's see Hillary Rodham-Clinton stand up and say................"Today I officially announce my candidacy for the President of the United States!"

Really Hillary...........Enough of the beating around the proverbial bush.........talking about your agenda without actually declaring your ultimate goal! We all know you want it and it is clear that you want it! Let's get this campaign started!

I had an interesting discussion with someone last night about this very thing. Upon winning the nomination, who would Hillary pick as a running mate for VP? Do we have anyone who is gutsy enough to take the VP role with her? It might be an intimidating role for anyone..............especially one of the men who may be running against Hillary in a primary situation. What man will step up and say.............ok......I will do it. She is a strong woman and would be completely satisfied running the Office of the President without a VP.

What are the choices? Lieberman? Gore? Kerry? Hmmm.....very interesting.

Do you think Hillary would be satisfied with being a VP if she were to lose the Democratic nomination? Do you think that any one of those men would have the guts to have Hillary on their ticket? I think they would be silly not to have her there with whoever won.

It is time for the changing of the guard! Hillary, your troops are ready for your campaign. They are ready to fill your campaign offices around the country!

Just say the word....................

I heard on the news this morning that donations to the Hurricane Katrina fund have far exceeded the 9/11 and the Tsunami funds of recent years. So far, contributions total $738 million dollars in the last 10 days alone - compared to 9/11 at $230 million and the Tsunmai relief at $176 million. It is outstanding to see the generosity in people's hearts during times like these.

One final note......just a good morning to my pal in Boston who is recuperating from major surgery over the weekend. Hope you are back on the road to recovery! I will go easy on you this week regarding your beloved......shall I say it.........ok...........Patriots. Never let it be said that I kicked a gal while she was down! Yikes!