Hello!
Just to keep you all updated, a few days ago I had my first shift as a Supervisor at my work. It was quite enjoyable, pretty quiet for the most part. I have another supervisor shift coming up in a few more days, just before Christmas, then two or three more before we get too far into January. By that time, i should know for sure whether or not I got the position of Part-Time Afternoon-Shift supervisor.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Work Issues
Well!
And hello to all my faithful readers, family and friends (and strangers?)!
So, I found out last night at work about my job-advancement opportunities. I had a meeting with my boss, wherein he appointed me to the On-Call Supervisor Position, starting December 17th.
As well, he told me he hopes I will apply for the Part-Time Evening Supervisor Position, which begins January 6th or 7th, as that is mine as well if I want it (which i do, and I told him I will be applying for it).
So...that makes me a Supervisor! Wow.
About 7 months ago, I was "a great Operator, but you have No Management Potential" , and today I am "hired!"
That is an amazing turnaround, and I have hard work to thank for it, as well as a gracious and good God.
As far as how this benefits me, besides getting a ton more of things to learn and be responsible for at my work, I also start at a higher wage when I am a Supervisor (about $1.35/hour higher), until my 6-months probation is over, and then I will get a Supervisor pay raise. Also, after probation ends, I get a slightly better benefits package.
Cool!
And hello to all my faithful readers, family and friends (and strangers?)!
So, I found out last night at work about my job-advancement opportunities. I had a meeting with my boss, wherein he appointed me to the On-Call Supervisor Position, starting December 17th.
As well, he told me he hopes I will apply for the Part-Time Evening Supervisor Position, which begins January 6th or 7th, as that is mine as well if I want it (which i do, and I told him I will be applying for it).
So...that makes me a Supervisor! Wow.
About 7 months ago, I was "a great Operator, but you have No Management Potential" , and today I am "hired!"
That is an amazing turnaround, and I have hard work to thank for it, as well as a gracious and good God.
As far as how this benefits me, besides getting a ton more of things to learn and be responsible for at my work, I also start at a higher wage when I am a Supervisor (about $1.35/hour higher), until my 6-months probation is over, and then I will get a Supervisor pay raise. Also, after probation ends, I get a slightly better benefits package.
Cool!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Quikk Notez
So, my Dad is out of the Emergency Room, now, and back at home, where Mom says he is slowly recovering.
If that wasn't enough excitement at this time of year, night before last my cat had a seizure on my lap, I thought she was dying. She is only 13 or so years old, not THAT old for a cat, but now in the last year she has had a seizure, and has stopped breathing at least once that I am aware of.
Makes you stop and wonder, sometimes. The absurdity of life...I mean, just how fragile we are, just a breath blowing in the wind...
On other notes, get to spend a few days with my inlaws, as they are blessing us with their company. Staying with us for two or three nights, for now.
Slainte!
If that wasn't enough excitement at this time of year, night before last my cat had a seizure on my lap, I thought she was dying. She is only 13 or so years old, not THAT old for a cat, but now in the last year she has had a seizure, and has stopped breathing at least once that I am aware of.
Makes you stop and wonder, sometimes. The absurdity of life...I mean, just how fragile we are, just a breath blowing in the wind...
On other notes, get to spend a few days with my inlaws, as they are blessing us with their company. Staying with us for two or three nights, for now.
Slainte!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
New?
Hey there!
If you came here looking to find my latest posting, then you shouldn't be here, you should be here http://scripturalirishironing.blogspot.com/2007/12/listen.html instead!
However, that beng said, I should probably post something here, as well. I mean, you're here anyways, right?
Okay, so what is new with me?
Well, unfortunately, Dad has been in the hospital for a couple (?) days now. Mom has been keeping me updated via email as to how he is doing, and he is hoping to come home tomorrow (or today, I guess). It is strange, sometimes. I oftentimes forget that something that I take for granted can be deadly. The flu is a big inconvenience that nobody particularly likes, but when you are relatively young and in relatively good shape, you tend to forget that for those who are more advanced in years than you, something like a flu bug can be much much more than a mere inconvenience.
Anyways, it sounds like Dad will make a full recovery, and soon be back home.
At work, I recently applied for the soon-to-be-vacant position of On-Call Supervisor, and have reason to believe that I will be hired in that stead. This position begins December 17th. Also, I plan on applying for the position of Part-Time Afternoons/Evenings Supervisor, which is supposed to become available in early January. Again, I have been given reason to believe that when this position becomes available, I should be getting it. I am thankful that those at my work believe in my ability to perform in these roles, and I owe God everything for helping me to gain favour in my workplace. As for whether or not I truly do get either of these positions, only time will tell. "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched!" But I will keep you all informed!
Slainte!
If you came here looking to find my latest posting, then you shouldn't be here, you should be here http://scripturalirishironing.blogspot.com/2007/12/listen.html instead!
However, that beng said, I should probably post something here, as well. I mean, you're here anyways, right?
Okay, so what is new with me?
Well, unfortunately, Dad has been in the hospital for a couple (?) days now. Mom has been keeping me updated via email as to how he is doing, and he is hoping to come home tomorrow (or today, I guess). It is strange, sometimes. I oftentimes forget that something that I take for granted can be deadly. The flu is a big inconvenience that nobody particularly likes, but when you are relatively young and in relatively good shape, you tend to forget that for those who are more advanced in years than you, something like a flu bug can be much much more than a mere inconvenience.
Anyways, it sounds like Dad will make a full recovery, and soon be back home.
At work, I recently applied for the soon-to-be-vacant position of On-Call Supervisor, and have reason to believe that I will be hired in that stead. This position begins December 17th. Also, I plan on applying for the position of Part-Time Afternoons/Evenings Supervisor, which is supposed to become available in early January. Again, I have been given reason to believe that when this position becomes available, I should be getting it. I am thankful that those at my work believe in my ability to perform in these roles, and I owe God everything for helping me to gain favour in my workplace. As for whether or not I truly do get either of these positions, only time will tell. "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched!" But I will keep you all informed!
Slainte!
Saturday, December 1, 2007
WEATHER...
1. OUR Weather…
I just walked home from work. It is 12:23am Saturday morning/Friday night. It is minus 10 degrees outside. Cold walk, but invigorating.
I was listening to the weather tonight. The experts are all predicting the worst/harshest winter we will have seen in 15 years or so (Gee…how does that work, what with this Global Warming we have been hearing so much about?). Locally, Saturday night is expected to see 10 centimetres of snow, with more snow falling on Sunday. Monday morning the temperature will start to go up, with freezing rain and nasty driving conditions expected, and Tuesday will be even warmer with more rain. This is supposed to be the worst storm of the season, and it is coming right for us. Expect all the passes through the mountains to be closed up tight!
2. THE Weather…
I was also listening tonight to the weather forecast on CTV News, Canada-wide. They had on a man who was a Historical Meteorologist. Basically put, he looks at weather in the context of history. He stated that there is no Global Warming happening. This fellow says (sorry, I missed his name) that the Southern Hemisphere has been cooling for over 20 years, and the Northern Hemisphere has been steadily cooling since 1998 (I think he forgot to mention that the 1998 “facts” about high temperatures were actually “made up” fallacies, not fact at all). He basically went on to say that Global Warming isn’t really happening, and that a large number (and growing) of scientists know this for a fact, and that we here in Canada should be far more concerned with Global Cooling – we live in a Northern Country, and even a one degree rise in Earth’s temperatures would mean that we would no longer be able to grow enough food here to feed ourselves.
Hmph. So much for the Warming then. If you haven't figured it out by now, people, the Global Warming doesn't exist, it is a lie. Global Warming is NOT about the weather, it is about a bully (the UN) working hand in hand with unscrupulous companies to take your freedoms away from you and to enslave you forever.
I just walked home from work. It is 12:23am Saturday morning/Friday night. It is minus 10 degrees outside. Cold walk, but invigorating.
I was listening to the weather tonight. The experts are all predicting the worst/harshest winter we will have seen in 15 years or so (Gee…how does that work, what with this Global Warming we have been hearing so much about?). Locally, Saturday night is expected to see 10 centimetres of snow, with more snow falling on Sunday. Monday morning the temperature will start to go up, with freezing rain and nasty driving conditions expected, and Tuesday will be even warmer with more rain. This is supposed to be the worst storm of the season, and it is coming right for us. Expect all the passes through the mountains to be closed up tight!
2. THE Weather…
I was also listening tonight to the weather forecast on CTV News, Canada-wide. They had on a man who was a Historical Meteorologist. Basically put, he looks at weather in the context of history. He stated that there is no Global Warming happening. This fellow says (sorry, I missed his name) that the Southern Hemisphere has been cooling for over 20 years, and the Northern Hemisphere has been steadily cooling since 1998 (I think he forgot to mention that the 1998 “facts” about high temperatures were actually “made up” fallacies, not fact at all). He basically went on to say that Global Warming isn’t really happening, and that a large number (and growing) of scientists know this for a fact, and that we here in Canada should be far more concerned with Global Cooling – we live in a Northern Country, and even a one degree rise in Earth’s temperatures would mean that we would no longer be able to grow enough food here to feed ourselves.
Hmph. So much for the Warming then. If you haven't figured it out by now, people, the Global Warming doesn't exist, it is a lie. Global Warming is NOT about the weather, it is about a bully (the UN) working hand in hand with unscrupulous companies to take your freedoms away from you and to enslave you forever.
Monday, November 19, 2007
The Great Global Warming Scam Part 3
Yes, it is my third blog in a row, dedicated to a subject that threatens to overwhelm everybody on the planet Earth if people do not wake up and take back your freedom before it is too late!
This Is A Must Read!
_________________________________________________
UN: We're all gonna die… again
NOVEMBER 19, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM
BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: Did you see the paper today, you know, the Earth, one third of all animal and plant species is going to be dead. The planet is dying and we're running out of time and Al Gore and the IPCC have come out with a new report. This is the same science that they used last time. This is just an update of the report that they've already issued over and over that, this is it; final warning; running out of time.
London Times, or is it the Telegraph, today says that the only solution is taxes. That's it. Taxes. Wow. Is that a frightening thing, global taxes. Let me tell you what global warming is. The Earth is getting warmer. The Earth has always gotten warmer and then it has gotten warmer and then it has gotten colder. For instance, "Time" magazine wrote in 1924 about global warming -- I'm sorry, global cooling. And then in '39 it was global warming. And then in '74 it was global cooling and then it's warming again. The "New York Times" did the same thing, 1924, stories all about global cooling. 1935, global warming. 1975, global cooling. Today it's warming again. It happens over and over and over again, but they have so captured the imagination and the fear of people that we're all going to be wiped off the face of the planet and it is a lie! It is a lie! But don't take my word for it. I'm going to give you just the phrases from the environmentalists that should open your mind and open up your eyes and be able to arm you with being able to save the open-minded people that are left, the ones that have been duped, the ones who don't know. They are all good intentioned but they are being useful idiots. Let me give you some of them.
This comes from Canada's former environmental minister, Christine Stewart. Quote: “Climate change provides the greatest chance to bring about justice and equality in the world.”
Excuse me? Climate change is the greatest chance to bring justice and equality in the world? How is that, Christine Stewart? Quote, same person. This is the former environmentalist of Canada. Quote: “No matter if the science is all phoney, there is still collateral environmental benefits to global warming policies.”
Quote, Stephen Schneider: “To capture the public imagination, we have to offer up some scary scenarios, make simplified dramatic statements and little mention of any doubts one might have. Each of us has to decide the right balance between being effective and being honest. “
Who is Stephen Schneider? He was the lead UN IPCC report author and climate alarmist. In 2007 he is still a major role. In fact, Stu, correct me. I don't want to get this one wrong. Still the lead guy in this latest?
STU: He was a lead author, yeah. This is also one of the guys who authored one of the original reports that started the global cooling scare of the Seventies, still one of the lead guys.
GLENN: Dave Foreman, founder of Earth First: “Phasing out the human race will solve every problem on Earth, social and environmental.” Jacques Chirac: “Kyoto is the first component of an authentic global governance.” Prince Philip, World Wildlife Federation, which, World Wildlife, WWF, that's why it's WWE, these guys. Prince Philip: “If I were reincarnated, I would come back, return to the Earth as a killer virus to lower human population levels.” This comes from George Monbiot, environmental author last year: “Every time someone dies as a result of floods in Bangladesh airline executives should be dragged out of office and concerned.” Helen Cox, Union of Concerned Scientists, “Free enterprise really means rich people get richer. They have freedom to exploit and psychologically rape their fellow human beings in the process. Capitalism is destroying the Earth. Every time you turn on an electric outlet, you are making another brainless baby.” Michael Oppenheimer, Environmental Defense Fund: “The only hope for the world is to make sure there is not another United States. We cannot let other countries have the same number of cars, the amount of industrialization we have in the U.S. we must stop third world countries right where they are.”
This is the goal of the environmental movement, to stop America, to stop development, to stop the Third World, to redistribute the wealth, to take your money and give it to an organization that can better decide how it should be distributed. It is the global movement for justice and equality. Now, that's not what your neighbor thinks that has the, you know, Go Green and, you know, the Prius or whatever. That's not what they think, but that's the truth and at some point Americans have got to unite and stand with the truth. There is no dismissing these comments.
By the way, you want these comments? These are just a few of them in the first chapter, the only chapter about global warming, but the first chapter of (my newest book) "An Inconvenient Book." You've got to spread this news because gang, no pun intended, they are turning up the heat. They know that the time to strike is now, the time to get these treaties through are now. I don't care if it's a Republican or Democrat. The Republicans are starting to go down this road because so many Americans have been co-opted into this lie that the Republicans are going to have absolutely no spine and they're going to go right along with it. This is a plot from the far, far left, and you have no idea. Do we have the audio of (Democratic presidential candidate) John Edwards from this weekend where he said this is going to cause great pain, higher energy prices, higher gas prices, higher food prices, we're going to pay higher taxes but we've got to do it and there may be more on the horizon that we don't even know but we've got to do it. You have no concept of what is right around the corner, and what is right around the corner is the loss of sovereignty. It is about the destruction of the United States of America.
And then one piece that doesn't fit. I'm going to do a commercial here and then we're going to come back and I'm going to tell you about Hugo Chavez and what he's up to. Something isn't right. He's selling all of his oil for refineries and all of his oil interests, pipelines and everything else in the United States. He's selling them to us. Why? He's also taking all of the surpluses and he's selling them to China. What does Chavez know that we don't know? You might see this story buried in the middle of the paper and you'll see it as good news for U.S. gas companies: Marathon buying new refineries from Chavez. Why, at this time, when this is the time to buy, not to sell, is he selling all of his interests here in the United States?
END TRANSCRIPT
This Is A Must Read!
_________________________________________________
UN: We're all gonna die… again
NOVEMBER 19, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM
BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: Did you see the paper today, you know, the Earth, one third of all animal and plant species is going to be dead. The planet is dying and we're running out of time and Al Gore and the IPCC have come out with a new report. This is the same science that they used last time. This is just an update of the report that they've already issued over and over that, this is it; final warning; running out of time.
London Times, or is it the Telegraph, today says that the only solution is taxes. That's it. Taxes. Wow. Is that a frightening thing, global taxes. Let me tell you what global warming is. The Earth is getting warmer. The Earth has always gotten warmer and then it has gotten warmer and then it has gotten colder. For instance, "Time" magazine wrote in 1924 about global warming -- I'm sorry, global cooling. And then in '39 it was global warming. And then in '74 it was global cooling and then it's warming again. The "New York Times" did the same thing, 1924, stories all about global cooling. 1935, global warming. 1975, global cooling. Today it's warming again. It happens over and over and over again, but they have so captured the imagination and the fear of people that we're all going to be wiped off the face of the planet and it is a lie! It is a lie! But don't take my word for it. I'm going to give you just the phrases from the environmentalists that should open your mind and open up your eyes and be able to arm you with being able to save the open-minded people that are left, the ones that have been duped, the ones who don't know. They are all good intentioned but they are being useful idiots. Let me give you some of them.
This comes from Canada's former environmental minister, Christine Stewart. Quote: “Climate change provides the greatest chance to bring about justice and equality in the world.”
Excuse me? Climate change is the greatest chance to bring justice and equality in the world? How is that, Christine Stewart? Quote, same person. This is the former environmentalist of Canada. Quote: “No matter if the science is all phoney, there is still collateral environmental benefits to global warming policies.”
Quote, Stephen Schneider: “To capture the public imagination, we have to offer up some scary scenarios, make simplified dramatic statements and little mention of any doubts one might have. Each of us has to decide the right balance between being effective and being honest. “
Who is Stephen Schneider? He was the lead UN IPCC report author and climate alarmist. In 2007 he is still a major role. In fact, Stu, correct me. I don't want to get this one wrong. Still the lead guy in this latest?
STU: He was a lead author, yeah. This is also one of the guys who authored one of the original reports that started the global cooling scare of the Seventies, still one of the lead guys.
GLENN: Dave Foreman, founder of Earth First: “Phasing out the human race will solve every problem on Earth, social and environmental.” Jacques Chirac: “Kyoto is the first component of an authentic global governance.” Prince Philip, World Wildlife Federation, which, World Wildlife, WWF, that's why it's WWE, these guys. Prince Philip: “If I were reincarnated, I would come back, return to the Earth as a killer virus to lower human population levels.” This comes from George Monbiot, environmental author last year: “Every time someone dies as a result of floods in Bangladesh airline executives should be dragged out of office and concerned.” Helen Cox, Union of Concerned Scientists, “Free enterprise really means rich people get richer. They have freedom to exploit and psychologically rape their fellow human beings in the process. Capitalism is destroying the Earth. Every time you turn on an electric outlet, you are making another brainless baby.” Michael Oppenheimer, Environmental Defense Fund: “The only hope for the world is to make sure there is not another United States. We cannot let other countries have the same number of cars, the amount of industrialization we have in the U.S. we must stop third world countries right where they are.”
This is the goal of the environmental movement, to stop America, to stop development, to stop the Third World, to redistribute the wealth, to take your money and give it to an organization that can better decide how it should be distributed. It is the global movement for justice and equality. Now, that's not what your neighbor thinks that has the, you know, Go Green and, you know, the Prius or whatever. That's not what they think, but that's the truth and at some point Americans have got to unite and stand with the truth. There is no dismissing these comments.
By the way, you want these comments? These are just a few of them in the first chapter, the only chapter about global warming, but the first chapter of (my newest book) "An Inconvenient Book." You've got to spread this news because gang, no pun intended, they are turning up the heat. They know that the time to strike is now, the time to get these treaties through are now. I don't care if it's a Republican or Democrat. The Republicans are starting to go down this road because so many Americans have been co-opted into this lie that the Republicans are going to have absolutely no spine and they're going to go right along with it. This is a plot from the far, far left, and you have no idea. Do we have the audio of (Democratic presidential candidate) John Edwards from this weekend where he said this is going to cause great pain, higher energy prices, higher gas prices, higher food prices, we're going to pay higher taxes but we've got to do it and there may be more on the horizon that we don't even know but we've got to do it. You have no concept of what is right around the corner, and what is right around the corner is the loss of sovereignty. It is about the destruction of the United States of America.
And then one piece that doesn't fit. I'm going to do a commercial here and then we're going to come back and I'm going to tell you about Hugo Chavez and what he's up to. Something isn't right. He's selling all of his oil for refineries and all of his oil interests, pipelines and everything else in the United States. He's selling them to us. Why? He's also taking all of the surpluses and he's selling them to China. What does Chavez know that we don't know? You might see this story buried in the middle of the paper and you'll see it as good news for U.S. gas companies: Marathon buying new refineries from Chavez. Why, at this time, when this is the time to buy, not to sell, is he selling all of his interests here in the United States?
END TRANSCRIPT
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
G. S. Explanation
This is a transcript from the Glenn Beck Radio Program. An interview with The Weather Channel founder, and noted Meteorologist, Jphn Coleman, who goes on to explain what I previously posted on my blogsite, his rant/letter proclaiming Gloabal Warming as the world's biggest scam. Read on...
_________________________________________
John Coleman Interview
NOVEMBER 12, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: John Coleman was pumping his gas last Friday in San Diego and he happens to be listening to this program and he hears me read a letter. It's one of the most honest, most frank, most shocking letters I have heard. It's from the guy who started the Weather Channel. He was moved. He said, wow. I mean, I read the whole letter. That's great. John Coleman is the guy who wrote the letter. He is the guy who started the Weather Channel and he's with us now. Hi, John, how are you?
COLEMAN: It's good to talk to you. It's great to be on your program. I, too, have made a quest for truth. After all, I've been a TV meteorologist for 55 years. So when I started hearing about this global warming thing, about seven, eight years ago, I decided I better really study up on this and understand what was going on so I could be expert for my viewers.
GLENN: Yeah.
COLEMAN: And what I found was that there isn't any significant global warming going on. There isn't any significant connection between man's pollution and any global warming. The frenzy is totally manufactured. The global warming crisis is as phony as a $2 bill and it's time to put it to test.
GLENN: Are you -- I mean, I understand politicians. I even understand General Electric. While I'm disgusted by the lust for money and they are willing to embrace anything just for the lust of money, I've got to tell you, science and scientists are probably the worst on this. I mean, the whole --
COLEMAN: Trust me, Glenn, the field of meteorology and climatology, the Earth sciences, the people who really should be putting this to the test have truly caved in on it. And that is shocking to me. Here are people who live by the truth and somehow they have let their personal and environmental agendas and political agendas get in the way of peer review which should have put a stop to this early on. It's back to itself now to where there's this huge cabal of scientists, environmentalists, politicians and business people who have created this -- and media people who have created this incredible global frenzy, 20,000 people went out and protest in Australia global warming over the weekend. This is incredible how out of control this has become.
GLENN: John, give me the reason. I mean, scientists should have learned from, I mean, science was locked into --
COLEMAN: Look, here's the deal. So you decide you are going to be a research scientist in meteorology and you spent 10 years on university campuses obtaining your degrees and getting your position. Now you do a study of climate shift and let's say that the results of your study is you find that man's pollution is having little impact on the climate and that the climate is not changing much. You've wasted your life because that study doesn't mean anything. It's not news. It's not earth-shattering. It doesn't cause any -- it's not a call to action. If you do a study, you've got to come up with dramatic results in order for your study to be noticed, to be published, to be quoted in the press in order to receive awards, in order to get research grants, more money and obtain a position at a higher institution.
GLENN: Well, are you saying that they are just --
COLEMAN: So these scientists, I'm afraid, let their career decisions influence the results of their -- it is very clear, it is very clear that the science and the basic cornerstone research study on global warming was manipulated. It was "massaged." They did whatever they had to do to the numbers they had to come out with this famous hockey stick graph that showed temperatures suddenly escalating over the last 30 years. And that should have been stopped by peer review but instead the other scientists seemed to accept it because it helped them with their environmental and political agendas and it helped get the money flowing into their research grants. So this research and that research all flowed off of it and now we have this whole industry of global warming research funded by billions of dollars with thousands of scientists paying their mortgages, getting their awards, traveling to meetings and, you know, we're about to get the big IPCC final report in the next few weeks. They are all meeting starting today in Valencia, Spain, and it's just way out of control.
GLENN: Well, I know that they are talking now about Time magazine Man of the Year is probably going to be Al Gore.
COLEMAN: Al Gore, this is an amazing thing. A politician -- believe me, this global warming shouldn't be about politics, it shouldn't be about environmentalism. It's not about religion. That's something you believe in. It's science, the science of meteorology. Here's a politician who has gotten an Emmy, an Oscar and Nobel Prize.
GLENN: He also got a Grammy.
COLEMAN: And has made an incredible fortune, by the way, by global warming.
GLENN: I put a chart in my book on the chapter on global warming that I find absolutely amazing and I'm not a scientist but when you look into the other things that could be causing the Earth to go up in temperature other than just, you know, this is the way it works, you look at the solar activity and you compare that with the temperature rise and fall and it is staggering. Do you think there's anything to solar activity and global warming?
COLEMAN: I have to study more, but Rhodes Fairbridge of Columbia University who is a giant in astronomy has just come out with a whole new dissertation on how the major planet's orbit around the sun create a gravitational pull on the sun that intensifies or diminishes the solar output and creates solar cycles and the solar system that have great impact on our climate on Earth. This is the latest on this, and I have to study and read the whole paper before I know if I truly accept it. But the point is that we have a lot of research that have shown sun cycles as being a basic reason for climate change and to -- let's flip the coin. How about manmade activity? Well, we talk about our big greenhouse gas, our carbon dioxide. And if you take 100,000 molecules of air, of our atmosphere, 100,000 of them, only 38 of them are going to be carbon dioxide. I mean, it's a trace gas. And to have the future of the planet hinge on that seems very farfetched.
GLENN: How do you feel when Heidi Cullen, who is on the network you started, the Weather Channel, says, and I quote, " if a meteorologist can't speak to the fundamental science of climate change, then maybe the AMS (American Meteorological Society ?) shouldn't give them the seal of approval? "
COLEMAN: Well, she has a right to make her statement and the Weather Channel has a right to do whatever it wishes to do. We have freedom of speech and freedom of position, and I have a right to take my position. That's fine.
GLENN: But not really. She's basically saying you should lose --
COLEMAN: Now, I would be horrified if the AMS took her suggestion to heart, but I don't think it would. But, you know, the AMS is political like any other organization.
GLENN: Have you had much of a response from your -- I mean, it's the -- it is the strongest worded letter I have read that just cuts right to the heart of global warming being a scam.
COLEMAN: Glenn, I've had amazing outpouring.
GLENN: Good or bad?
COLEMAN: Just to my surprise. When this was published on Icecap, Icecap.us which is the skeptical website on global warming, my e-mail address was posted and I have received hundreds of e-mails, and they are running more than 10 to 1 supportive of my position, and they come from almost all college-educated people, many of them scientists, a great many of whom can't speak out because of their positions. They have heard from TV weatherman and scientists and research organizations who, because of their positions are absolutely muzzled because, you know, they've got to pay the mortgage.
GLENN: Yeah.
COLEMAN: And so they can't say anything publicly but they can -- they say thank you, thank you, for speaking for us, who cannot speak.
GLENN: When you see something like NBC doing green week, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Electric --
COLEMAN: This is really what put me over the top.
GLENN: Is it?
COLEMAN: I have been posting material on global warming on my site, but this particular rant, I will call it, letter as it were, this blog, whatever you want to call it, this came when I watched the pregame show of the NFL football a week ago by candlelight.
GLENN: Yeah, yeah.
COLEMAN: I said, this is it, we're over the edge, we've gone over the top. This is beyond any belief and, of course, on your television affiliate network --
GLENN: Oh, yeah, I know. The planet's in peril.
COLEMAN: "Planet in Peril" is driving me to extraction. Between those two and all of everything that was part of it, that was kind of the end.
GLENN: Well, I appreciate your candidness, John, and we'll follow your story because, you know, I'm waiting to see how they discredit you or, you know, what happens in the future.
COLEMAN: Well, it doesn't make a great deal of difference. I'm an old guy who's got his retirement set. And by the way, I'm a very happy guy. I don't go around angry.
GLENN: Right.
COLEMAN: My wife is good and so, you know, if suddenly my professional life ended, I've got a very fine life. I'm not worried about it.
GLENN: Well, if they take your AMS, we'll give you a seal of approval.
COLEMAN: I resigned from the AMS many years ago.
GLENN: Really?
COLEMAN: I didn't want to be a political meteorologist anymore. When they took the seal of approval away from my friend Tom Skilling -- do you know who Tom Skilling is?
GLENN: No.
COLEMAN: He's the weatherman on WGN in Chicago. He's on cable all over the country, the best paid weatherman in the nation. They took his seal of approval away from him because the station he was on with in Milwaukee put a puppet on with him. He didn't have a choice about it. He's one of the best meteorologists on TV on the face of the Earth and a wonderful man and I said, come on, guys. But his competitor across town ran the AMS program and took the seal away from him.
GLENN: Damn those puppets. John, I appreciate it, man. Best of luck to you and thanks for speaking out, sir. You'll join us tonight for television.
COLEMAN: My pleasure.
GLENN: Thanks a lot.
END TRANSCRIPT
_______________________________
And there you have it. The Truth about Global Warming...it doesn't exist. It's a SCAM. As the Bible talks about, people will have itching ears in the End Times, always willing to exchange the Truth for a lie.
_________________________________________
John Coleman Interview
NOVEMBER 12, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: John Coleman was pumping his gas last Friday in San Diego and he happens to be listening to this program and he hears me read a letter. It's one of the most honest, most frank, most shocking letters I have heard. It's from the guy who started the Weather Channel. He was moved. He said, wow. I mean, I read the whole letter. That's great. John Coleman is the guy who wrote the letter. He is the guy who started the Weather Channel and he's with us now. Hi, John, how are you?
COLEMAN: It's good to talk to you. It's great to be on your program. I, too, have made a quest for truth. After all, I've been a TV meteorologist for 55 years. So when I started hearing about this global warming thing, about seven, eight years ago, I decided I better really study up on this and understand what was going on so I could be expert for my viewers.
GLENN: Yeah.
COLEMAN: And what I found was that there isn't any significant global warming going on. There isn't any significant connection between man's pollution and any global warming. The frenzy is totally manufactured. The global warming crisis is as phony as a $2 bill and it's time to put it to test.
GLENN: Are you -- I mean, I understand politicians. I even understand General Electric. While I'm disgusted by the lust for money and they are willing to embrace anything just for the lust of money, I've got to tell you, science and scientists are probably the worst on this. I mean, the whole --
COLEMAN: Trust me, Glenn, the field of meteorology and climatology, the Earth sciences, the people who really should be putting this to the test have truly caved in on it. And that is shocking to me. Here are people who live by the truth and somehow they have let their personal and environmental agendas and political agendas get in the way of peer review which should have put a stop to this early on. It's back to itself now to where there's this huge cabal of scientists, environmentalists, politicians and business people who have created this -- and media people who have created this incredible global frenzy, 20,000 people went out and protest in Australia global warming over the weekend. This is incredible how out of control this has become.
GLENN: John, give me the reason. I mean, scientists should have learned from, I mean, science was locked into --
COLEMAN: Look, here's the deal. So you decide you are going to be a research scientist in meteorology and you spent 10 years on university campuses obtaining your degrees and getting your position. Now you do a study of climate shift and let's say that the results of your study is you find that man's pollution is having little impact on the climate and that the climate is not changing much. You've wasted your life because that study doesn't mean anything. It's not news. It's not earth-shattering. It doesn't cause any -- it's not a call to action. If you do a study, you've got to come up with dramatic results in order for your study to be noticed, to be published, to be quoted in the press in order to receive awards, in order to get research grants, more money and obtain a position at a higher institution.
GLENN: Well, are you saying that they are just --
COLEMAN: So these scientists, I'm afraid, let their career decisions influence the results of their -- it is very clear, it is very clear that the science and the basic cornerstone research study on global warming was manipulated. It was "massaged." They did whatever they had to do to the numbers they had to come out with this famous hockey stick graph that showed temperatures suddenly escalating over the last 30 years. And that should have been stopped by peer review but instead the other scientists seemed to accept it because it helped them with their environmental and political agendas and it helped get the money flowing into their research grants. So this research and that research all flowed off of it and now we have this whole industry of global warming research funded by billions of dollars with thousands of scientists paying their mortgages, getting their awards, traveling to meetings and, you know, we're about to get the big IPCC final report in the next few weeks. They are all meeting starting today in Valencia, Spain, and it's just way out of control.
GLENN: Well, I know that they are talking now about Time magazine Man of the Year is probably going to be Al Gore.
COLEMAN: Al Gore, this is an amazing thing. A politician -- believe me, this global warming shouldn't be about politics, it shouldn't be about environmentalism. It's not about religion. That's something you believe in. It's science, the science of meteorology. Here's a politician who has gotten an Emmy, an Oscar and Nobel Prize.
GLENN: He also got a Grammy.
COLEMAN: And has made an incredible fortune, by the way, by global warming.
GLENN: I put a chart in my book on the chapter on global warming that I find absolutely amazing and I'm not a scientist but when you look into the other things that could be causing the Earth to go up in temperature other than just, you know, this is the way it works, you look at the solar activity and you compare that with the temperature rise and fall and it is staggering. Do you think there's anything to solar activity and global warming?
COLEMAN: I have to study more, but Rhodes Fairbridge of Columbia University who is a giant in astronomy has just come out with a whole new dissertation on how the major planet's orbit around the sun create a gravitational pull on the sun that intensifies or diminishes the solar output and creates solar cycles and the solar system that have great impact on our climate on Earth. This is the latest on this, and I have to study and read the whole paper before I know if I truly accept it. But the point is that we have a lot of research that have shown sun cycles as being a basic reason for climate change and to -- let's flip the coin. How about manmade activity? Well, we talk about our big greenhouse gas, our carbon dioxide. And if you take 100,000 molecules of air, of our atmosphere, 100,000 of them, only 38 of them are going to be carbon dioxide. I mean, it's a trace gas. And to have the future of the planet hinge on that seems very farfetched.
GLENN: How do you feel when Heidi Cullen, who is on the network you started, the Weather Channel, says, and I quote, " if a meteorologist can't speak to the fundamental science of climate change, then maybe the AMS (American Meteorological Society ?) shouldn't give them the seal of approval? "
COLEMAN: Well, she has a right to make her statement and the Weather Channel has a right to do whatever it wishes to do. We have freedom of speech and freedom of position, and I have a right to take my position. That's fine.
GLENN: But not really. She's basically saying you should lose --
COLEMAN: Now, I would be horrified if the AMS took her suggestion to heart, but I don't think it would. But, you know, the AMS is political like any other organization.
GLENN: Have you had much of a response from your -- I mean, it's the -- it is the strongest worded letter I have read that just cuts right to the heart of global warming being a scam.
COLEMAN: Glenn, I've had amazing outpouring.
GLENN: Good or bad?
COLEMAN: Just to my surprise. When this was published on Icecap, Icecap.us which is the skeptical website on global warming, my e-mail address was posted and I have received hundreds of e-mails, and they are running more than 10 to 1 supportive of my position, and they come from almost all college-educated people, many of them scientists, a great many of whom can't speak out because of their positions. They have heard from TV weatherman and scientists and research organizations who, because of their positions are absolutely muzzled because, you know, they've got to pay the mortgage.
GLENN: Yeah.
COLEMAN: And so they can't say anything publicly but they can -- they say thank you, thank you, for speaking for us, who cannot speak.
GLENN: When you see something like NBC doing green week, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Electric --
COLEMAN: This is really what put me over the top.
GLENN: Is it?
COLEMAN: I have been posting material on global warming on my site, but this particular rant, I will call it, letter as it were, this blog, whatever you want to call it, this came when I watched the pregame show of the NFL football a week ago by candlelight.
GLENN: Yeah, yeah.
COLEMAN: I said, this is it, we're over the edge, we've gone over the top. This is beyond any belief and, of course, on your television affiliate network --
GLENN: Oh, yeah, I know. The planet's in peril.
COLEMAN: "Planet in Peril" is driving me to extraction. Between those two and all of everything that was part of it, that was kind of the end.
GLENN: Well, I appreciate your candidness, John, and we'll follow your story because, you know, I'm waiting to see how they discredit you or, you know, what happens in the future.
COLEMAN: Well, it doesn't make a great deal of difference. I'm an old guy who's got his retirement set. And by the way, I'm a very happy guy. I don't go around angry.
GLENN: Right.
COLEMAN: My wife is good and so, you know, if suddenly my professional life ended, I've got a very fine life. I'm not worried about it.
GLENN: Well, if they take your AMS, we'll give you a seal of approval.
COLEMAN: I resigned from the AMS many years ago.
GLENN: Really?
COLEMAN: I didn't want to be a political meteorologist anymore. When they took the seal of approval away from my friend Tom Skilling -- do you know who Tom Skilling is?
GLENN: No.
COLEMAN: He's the weatherman on WGN in Chicago. He's on cable all over the country, the best paid weatherman in the nation. They took his seal of approval away from him because the station he was on with in Milwaukee put a puppet on with him. He didn't have a choice about it. He's one of the best meteorologists on TV on the face of the Earth and a wonderful man and I said, come on, guys. But his competitor across town ran the AMS program and took the seal away from him.
GLENN: Damn those puppets. John, I appreciate it, man. Best of luck to you and thanks for speaking out, sir. You'll join us tonight for television.
COLEMAN: My pleasure.
GLENN: Thanks a lot.
END TRANSCRIPT
_______________________________
And there you have it. The Truth about Global Warming...it doesn't exist. It's a SCAM. As the Bible talks about, people will have itching ears in the End Times, always willing to exchange the Truth for a lie.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Global Scam
___________________________
Here it is, folks. What follows is an important read. And my thoughts will follow.
This is a typed excert from the Glenn Beck radio program...
Global Warming... a scam?
NOVEMBER 09, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: I also have to spend a few minutes on this. The Weather Channel founder, the guy who founded the Weather Channel, he's a meteorologist. He's just not some businessman who went, hey, we can make money on the weather. He's the Weather Channel founder. He wrote, "Global warming is the greatest scam in history." I want to read this letter to you. His name is John Coleman. He said,
"It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create an illusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the “research” to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims. Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.
Environmental extremists, notable politicians among them, then teamed up with movie, media and other liberal, environmentalist journalists to create this wild “scientific” scenario of the civilization threatening environmental consequences from Global Warming unless we adhere to their radical agenda. Now their ridiculous manipulated science has been accepted as fact and become a cornerstone issue for CNN, CBS, NBC, the Democratic Political Party, the Governor of California, school teachers and, in many cases, well informed but very gullible environmentally conscientious citizens. Only one reporter at ABC has been allowed to counter the Global Warming frenzy with one 15 minutes documentary segment.
I do not oppose environmentalism. I do not oppose the political positions of either party. However, Global Warming, i.e. Climate Change, is not about environmentalism or politics. It is not a religion. It is not something you “believe in.” It is science; the science of meteorology. This is my field of lifelong expertise. And I am telling you Global Warming is a nonevent, a manufactured crisis and a total scam. I say this knowing you probably won’t believe me, a mere TV weatherman, challenging a Nobel Prize, Academy Award and Emmy Award winning former Vice President of United States. So be it.
I have read dozens of scientific papers. I have talked with numerous scientists. I have studied. I have thought about it. I know I am correct. There is no run away climate change. The impact of humans on climate is not catastrophic. Our planet is not in peril. I am incensed by the incredible media glamour, the politically correct silliness and rude dismissal of counter arguments by the high priest of Global Warming.
As the temperature rises, polar ice cap melting, coastal flooding and super storm pattern all fail to occur as predicted everyone will come to realize we have been duped.
The sky is not falling. All natural cycles, drifts in climate are as much, if not more responsible for any climate changes underway. I strongly believe that the next 20 years are equally as likely to see a cooling trend as they are to see a warming trend."
That again is from John Coleman, the founder of the Weather Channel. But he's, I'm sure, "in (bed) with big oil, or he's an idiot, or he's just naive, or he is just trying to further someone else's agenda. Let's believe all the environmentalists. Yet there's no question that global warming -- that the globe has warmed in the last 100 years. The problem is the warmest date on record in the last 100 years was 1934. 1934 was the warmest year in America. 1934. If it's warming, shouldn't it have been warmer? They said it (the warmest year in the last century) was 1998 but, unfortunately, that's not true. One of the gold standard from NASA for Al Gore got that one wrong, later had to correct it (That's right, some guys at NASA who supported Al Gore actually made that fact up for him, but it was discovered that it was a fraudulent "fact"). Wouldn't it be getting warmer now? How's that possible?
___________________________________________
The answer to the question, of course, is simple...The people of this planet are being lied to. There is no catastrophic global warming. The stuff that gets blamed on global warming, has nothing to do with it. Mankind is not causing the earth to get any warmer, nor is mankind able to, by his efforts, cool the earth. It...is...all...lies. They want to take your freedom from you, your liberties, your wealth. Who? Well, start your search for the culprits by looking straight at the UN, and you'll be "getting warmer" as the environmentalists like to say!
Here it is, folks. What follows is an important read. And my thoughts will follow.
This is a typed excert from the Glenn Beck radio program...
Global Warming... a scam?
NOVEMBER 09, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: I also have to spend a few minutes on this. The Weather Channel founder, the guy who founded the Weather Channel, he's a meteorologist. He's just not some businessman who went, hey, we can make money on the weather. He's the Weather Channel founder. He wrote, "Global warming is the greatest scam in history." I want to read this letter to you. His name is John Coleman. He said,
"It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data to create an illusion of rapid global warming. Other scientists of the same environmental whacko type jumped into the circle to support and broaden the “research” to further enhance the totally slanted, bogus global warming claims. Their friends in government steered huge research grants their way to keep the movement going. Soon they claimed to be a consensus.
Environmental extremists, notable politicians among them, then teamed up with movie, media and other liberal, environmentalist journalists to create this wild “scientific” scenario of the civilization threatening environmental consequences from Global Warming unless we adhere to their radical agenda. Now their ridiculous manipulated science has been accepted as fact and become a cornerstone issue for CNN, CBS, NBC, the Democratic Political Party, the Governor of California, school teachers and, in many cases, well informed but very gullible environmentally conscientious citizens. Only one reporter at ABC has been allowed to counter the Global Warming frenzy with one 15 minutes documentary segment.
I do not oppose environmentalism. I do not oppose the political positions of either party. However, Global Warming, i.e. Climate Change, is not about environmentalism or politics. It is not a religion. It is not something you “believe in.” It is science; the science of meteorology. This is my field of lifelong expertise. And I am telling you Global Warming is a nonevent, a manufactured crisis and a total scam. I say this knowing you probably won’t believe me, a mere TV weatherman, challenging a Nobel Prize, Academy Award and Emmy Award winning former Vice President of United States. So be it.
I have read dozens of scientific papers. I have talked with numerous scientists. I have studied. I have thought about it. I know I am correct. There is no run away climate change. The impact of humans on climate is not catastrophic. Our planet is not in peril. I am incensed by the incredible media glamour, the politically correct silliness and rude dismissal of counter arguments by the high priest of Global Warming.
As the temperature rises, polar ice cap melting, coastal flooding and super storm pattern all fail to occur as predicted everyone will come to realize we have been duped.
The sky is not falling. All natural cycles, drifts in climate are as much, if not more responsible for any climate changes underway. I strongly believe that the next 20 years are equally as likely to see a cooling trend as they are to see a warming trend."
That again is from John Coleman, the founder of the Weather Channel. But he's, I'm sure, "in (bed) with big oil, or he's an idiot, or he's just naive, or he is just trying to further someone else's agenda. Let's believe all the environmentalists. Yet there's no question that global warming -- that the globe has warmed in the last 100 years. The problem is the warmest date on record in the last 100 years was 1934. 1934 was the warmest year in America. 1934. If it's warming, shouldn't it have been warmer? They said it (the warmest year in the last century) was 1998 but, unfortunately, that's not true. One of the gold standard from NASA for Al Gore got that one wrong, later had to correct it (That's right, some guys at NASA who supported Al Gore actually made that fact up for him, but it was discovered that it was a fraudulent "fact"). Wouldn't it be getting warmer now? How's that possible?
___________________________________________
The answer to the question, of course, is simple...The people of this planet are being lied to. There is no catastrophic global warming. The stuff that gets blamed on global warming, has nothing to do with it. Mankind is not causing the earth to get any warmer, nor is mankind able to, by his efforts, cool the earth. It...is...all...lies. They want to take your freedom from you, your liberties, your wealth. Who? Well, start your search for the culprits by looking straight at the UN, and you'll be "getting warmer" as the environmentalists like to say!
Monday, November 5, 2007
Our Neighbours To The South
I am getting more and more worried about America. The USA, protector of the free world, is no more. It is no wonder that our Canadian Conservative Government wants to increase spending to our army! Who will protect us now?!?
US economists say that over the next two years, they expect the American dollar to drop another 40-50%. That is devasting news. See, the worst thing about the low American dollar, is what it really means on the worldwide stage. Why is it (the US dollar) low? Because no other countries want to invest in America. The US has always been the top country for foreign investors, because it was so stable and so good. Now, the top investment country is evil communist China!
In order to prop up their own economy, the US Government has done stuff lately, like with the interest rates and loans and stuff. But, to do what they need to do to keep the bottom from falling out of their own country, they had to fudge the figures. See, they have to declare what the rate of inflation is in order to mess with interest rates and stuff, so the US government declared that the rate of inflation is .08%, or some stupid number like that. The problem now is, every other country in the world sees that that is a bold-faced lie, and it makes other countries even less likely to invest in America; basically, they (the politicians) are hastening the crash that is coming.
Think about it. Why is America not mentioned in the Bible? Because they will not be a major power in the end times. Why not? Because they are being destroyed by their enemies, right now. China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, and other hateful countries, have been working hard over the years at destroying America from within. They have succeeeded! Between wars, the death tolls of soldiers, liberal/democrat uprisings, bad policies, inneffective court systems, a United Nations controlled by Arab countries, and now economic collapse, America is finished.
God help us all.
He must. And He will. Because, in the end, America cannot save the people of this world. Our Only Saviour will be Jesus Christ. That is the way it must be. As Christians, we will reach out for Him even more than we do now, because we will have nowhere else to turn. The rest of the world, they'll reach for a saviour too - the Man of (false) Peace, the AntiChrist.
US economists say that over the next two years, they expect the American dollar to drop another 40-50%. That is devasting news. See, the worst thing about the low American dollar, is what it really means on the worldwide stage. Why is it (the US dollar) low? Because no other countries want to invest in America. The US has always been the top country for foreign investors, because it was so stable and so good. Now, the top investment country is evil communist China!
In order to prop up their own economy, the US Government has done stuff lately, like with the interest rates and loans and stuff. But, to do what they need to do to keep the bottom from falling out of their own country, they had to fudge the figures. See, they have to declare what the rate of inflation is in order to mess with interest rates and stuff, so the US government declared that the rate of inflation is .08%, or some stupid number like that. The problem now is, every other country in the world sees that that is a bold-faced lie, and it makes other countries even less likely to invest in America; basically, they (the politicians) are hastening the crash that is coming.
Think about it. Why is America not mentioned in the Bible? Because they will not be a major power in the end times. Why not? Because they are being destroyed by their enemies, right now. China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, and other hateful countries, have been working hard over the years at destroying America from within. They have succeeeded! Between wars, the death tolls of soldiers, liberal/democrat uprisings, bad policies, inneffective court systems, a United Nations controlled by Arab countries, and now economic collapse, America is finished.
God help us all.
He must. And He will. Because, in the end, America cannot save the people of this world. Our Only Saviour will be Jesus Christ. That is the way it must be. As Christians, we will reach out for Him even more than we do now, because we will have nowhere else to turn. The rest of the world, they'll reach for a saviour too - the Man of (false) Peace, the AntiChrist.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Update
Just a quick (?) update, as I have not been posting for a while.
It is October 31st. You know, that pagan holiday. Tomorrow, were I Catholic, would be All Saints' Day. That means it is November 1st tomorrow. Fall is moving right along. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees around here, and the vast majority of them have landed in my yard. Good thing C has been diligent in bagging them all up (most likely due to her being paid per bag). Winter will soon be here. It has turned cold the last two weeks or so, even dropping belong zero on occasion. Frost on the car windows and such. Very beautiful time of year.
The wife and C have started reading together, a book on forgiveness that I bought for the wife a while back. I think that is a very good thing, they are reading chapters together at night, discussing them, and then praying together and working at allowing forgiveness to reign in their lives. It is such a blessing when God begins a new work (or continues an older work) in those you love.
K came to visit a few weeks ago, and the visit went pretty good. The girls fought a lot, as girls will do, but it was enjoyable in spite of that. K seems to be doing well in school, and her reading skills are quite impressive. C has begun to put more effort into her school-work as well, and we are happy and pleased that her effort level has increased, as it creates less stress at home and gives her better marks that she can be rpoud of (and us too).
Not much else to say right now. But I will be back to blog more when I have something on my mind to say! Count on it!
It is October 31st. You know, that pagan holiday. Tomorrow, were I Catholic, would be All Saints' Day. That means it is November 1st tomorrow. Fall is moving right along. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees around here, and the vast majority of them have landed in my yard. Good thing C has been diligent in bagging them all up (most likely due to her being paid per bag). Winter will soon be here. It has turned cold the last two weeks or so, even dropping belong zero on occasion. Frost on the car windows and such. Very beautiful time of year.
The wife and C have started reading together, a book on forgiveness that I bought for the wife a while back. I think that is a very good thing, they are reading chapters together at night, discussing them, and then praying together and working at allowing forgiveness to reign in their lives. It is such a blessing when God begins a new work (or continues an older work) in those you love.
K came to visit a few weeks ago, and the visit went pretty good. The girls fought a lot, as girls will do, but it was enjoyable in spite of that. K seems to be doing well in school, and her reading skills are quite impressive. C has begun to put more effort into her school-work as well, and we are happy and pleased that her effort level has increased, as it creates less stress at home and gives her better marks that she can be rpoud of (and us too).
Not much else to say right now. But I will be back to blog more when I have something on my mind to say! Count on it!
Saturday, October 13, 2007
The World As I See It
Still think that Israel won't attack Iran and it's nuke reactors if the US doesn't do it first?
Then you need to read this article!
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/14/washington/14weapons.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
Then you need to read this article!
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/14/washington/14weapons.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Glenn Beck quotes
Here I present some quotes and things from Glenn Beck, host of the Headline News program (The Glenn Beck Show), and host of the number three rated radio program across America.
Enjoy!
Common sense will tell you and so will our founding fathers that you cannot erase religion and God and have this country stand. Our founding fathers are extraordinarily clear on that. Common sense will tell you the same.
First of all, we should all be down on our knees in praying for the troops. We should all be down praying for an end to this war. We should all be down on our knees every day praying for the President and praying for members of congress. My family prays for the President and members of congress, our leaders in all parties, our leaders all around the world. My family prays for President Tom. How do you not pray for everyone? How do you not pray for your enemies? How do you not understand that we all need guidance from God? What has happened to our country?
We are Americans. We are not Democrats. We are not Republicans. We are Americans. We are a good and decent people. We are a people with God at the forefront. We are a people that we don't pray for God to smite our political enemies. If you believe the President is wrong as I have believed the President is wrong on more than a handful of really big issues, those are the days I pray for the President even more: God, please humble him; please, Lord, make sure, drive him to his knees, please; let him do your will, not anybody else's will; your will; please, Lord, find a way into the hearts of Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi; please, Lord, find a way for those two to be able to meet with George Bush and find a way to secure the blessings of this country; please, Lord, please let us reconnect with you, let us reconnect with each other.We are in trouble, people. Am I alone? I don't think so. I don't think so but, boy, when I see a poll that says 20% of Democrats say it would be better for the world if America would lose a war, I don't understand it. I don't understand America, I guess. It's a day to hear from Democrats.
The following is an interview conducted by Glenn Beck with Pastor John Hagee...
Pastor John Hagee Speaks Out OCTOBER 09, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM,BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: Hello, sir, how are you?
PASTOR HAGEE: I'm fine, Glenn, how are you today?
GLENN: I'm very good. So where do we start with your controversial views on Iran?
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, you first begin with the principle that there's a right and there is a wrong. There's an evil and there's a righteous. There's a light and there's a darkness. You cannot continue to walk in this American political fog and come to definitions of right and wrong. We have to recognize that Iran is a threat to Western civilization. Iran is deadly serious about acquiring nuclear weapons. Ahmadinejad has pledged to share those weapons with terrorist organizations around the world. The statements this man is making, they are not statements off the cuff. They are statements that he has made from prepared speeches, which means it was the thought process of his innermost being. He's saying that Israel should be wiped off the map, he's saying that Israel will disappear in a sudden storm, and that means a nuclear storm, he said I can see the day God willing, that God being Allah, when there will be no more Israel and no more America. Very clearly this man intends to attack Israel first, he wants to create a nuclear Holocaust and then he wants to bring that sight to the streets of America.
GLENN: You had several meetings with fairly prominent individuals. You've met with Benjamin Netanyahu. Have you had enough conversations with these people to tell them that you believe that we're living in the end times, and what is their reaction?
PASTOR HAGEE: Yes, Benjamin Netanyahu sat in my office and we have talked about the geopolitical circumstances of the Middle East. Benjamin Netanyahu sat just across my desk and told me that when he was prime minister, he had to give photographic proof to the United States intelligence agencies to convince them that Russia was in Iran helping them produce long-range missiles. Now, those long-range missiles would have the ability to hit London, New York, and Jerusalem, and right now Israel. Iran is trying to get their hands on nuclear weapons and if they can put nuclear warheads on these missiles, can you imagine, Glenn, a world where London, New York, and Jerusalem have been hit by a nuclear missile on the same day. That's the nightmare scenario that Ahmadinejad is trying to put together and he's dangerously close to doing it.
GLENN: Everyone will say that Iran is a third world country, it doesn't have this kind of power, it doesn't have the control that we say. He is just thumping his chest and he's just a guy who's using religion to whip everybody up in his own region and hold onto his power, that he doesn't have -- he is not a threat because he just doesn't have the power to get it done.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's a serious mistake and it's totally wrong. He does have the power, he does have the wealth, he does have the assistance. The Russians have been helping him for years. The intelligence agencies of Israel know that he's dangerously close to having nuclear capability. He does have a following of at least 200 million people. There are 1.3 or .4 billion Islamics and all authorities say that 15 to 20% of these people feel that they have a mandate from God to kill Christians and Jews. That means he has 200 million people following him who would be willing to strap a bomb on and to walk into the place where you're eating or to walk into a school or to a university or to a church or to a synagogue and blow everybody up in there and think that they have done God a favor. This man does have the motive, the ability, and the theology to drive him to do it. He believes that if he starts the third world war, the twelfth Imam will suddenly and mysteriously appear. I understand they don't know where he is now and they don't know who he is. But if they start this world war, he will appear and lead them to victory and produce a global Sharia, which is an Islamic law that rules the world.
GLENN: All right. So what makes you believe -- by the way, we're talking to Pastor John Hagee. What makes you believe that we're living in the end times? No man will know.
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, the Bible says no man knows the day, nor the hour. That's a 24-hour period of time. So that means no one can set the date that Jesus Christ is coming back to Earth. But the Bible says that as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the coming of the son of man. The days of Noah were these: That God told Noah that a flood was coming, that he was to build the ark and that when he built the ark, the animals would get on it, he would put his family of eight people on that ark and God would shut the door.
Now, as it was in the days of Noah, whenever Noah got that ark built, which took him over 100 years, and the animals were on by the assistance of God himself, his family was on and the Bible says and God shut the door. When you're Noah, you've built the ark, the animals are on, your family's on and God has shut the door, you know it's time for the rain to start. You don't know exactly what day it's going to start, but you know it's very, very near. And the Bible gives a series of prophetic signs in the Bible that will be a very clear indicator of the terminal generation that is on the face of the Earth.
GLENN: You know I'm playing devil's advocate here, so to speak. You know, people have been saying the end is near forever, forever. I mean, even the apostles thought he was coming back pretty quickly.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's true.
GLENN: So what makes you say that this is, this is it, this is the scenario?
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, the thing that makes me say that is the Bible signs that were given. This is the only generation that has ever lived on the face of the Earth where all of these phenomenons line up like lights leading an airplane to a landing strip. There's thirst of knowledge explosion of Daniel 12. Daniel said -- God's saying to Daniel, shut up the book, the book that Daniel is writing, until the time of the end. That's a very important phrase, "Until the time of the end," when knowledge shall be greatly increased. Now, that phrase literally translates there will be a knowledge explosion. We are the generation that has had that knowledge explosion. From the Garden of Eden until the 12th century, men rode on horseback just as King David and Julius Caesar and George Washington to found this nation. And then came the automobile and then came jets and then came a man on the moon. Consider communication. From the Garden of Eden until the 12th century, men communicated principally the same way, beatings of drums, mirrors from mountains to mountains. But then came the telegraph and then the television and now we have the ability, with satellite television, to communicate to people all over the Earth anywhere on the Earth because the knowledge explosion has happened. From the Garden of Eden to the 12th century and medical science, nothing changed. But now medical science has become so advanced that we've had to redefine death because we have the ability to keep people alive with machines and stimulants. So we are, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that generation that has had the knowledge explosion. So that's signal number one.
GLENN: Do you believe, do you believe that the Army of the Mahdi, which is basically the Army of the twelfth Imam if you are Shia and you believe as President Tom does, do you believe that the Army of the Mahdi and President Ahmadinejad are fighting a battle for the literal antichrist?
PASTOR HAGEE: You have asked a question that is really the hot button question in Christian theology right now because when the antichrist comes to the Earth, he's going to do three things. One, he's going to come as a prince of peace, he's going to establish a one world government, and he's going to establish a one world religion and now there are many religious believers, religious theologians who believe that perhaps that one world religion that he's talking about is Islam because one of the things that happens in the tribulation period, and the tribulation period is the seven-year period that happens on the Earth when there's such devastation that happens on the planet is that anyone who does not receive the faith of the antichrist is beheaded, and beheading is the methodology of execution of Islam.
GLENN: So you didn't really answer the question. You don't have to, but you didn't really answer the question. All right. Well, pastor, I appreciate it. Are you surprised at how few people are paying attention to things that are seemingly so clear when Ahmadinejad got up in front of the UN and now has moved to the front of his speeches what used to be at the last: Oh, Allah, give me the strength to hasten the return of the promised one.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's who he's talking about.
GLENN: Yeah, I know that's who he's talking about. And are you surprised how few people are paying attention to this or taking him seriously and how the media is just completely dismissing his religiosity?
PASTOR HAGEE: I am surprised that that's happening in America, and here's the problem. If you admit there is a problem, you have to then solve the problem, and it's just so much more convenient for political leaders, for media leaders to talk about the problem rather than confess there is a problem because if you say there is a problem, you have to solve the problem. And then if you say there's a problem, people become disturbed, but let me tell you something. If we let this man do what he wishes to do, we will see the day that he will put missiles that have nuclear warheads and he will start a world war that will literally destabilize Western civilization and the day. He has the power, he has the knowledge, he has the willingness. 9/11, 9/11 proved that radical Islam has the willingness to attack us. They just didn't have the power. But if Ahmadinejad gets his hands on nuclear power, they will then have the willingness and the power to take us down.
GLENN: Are you advocating going in with troops and taking him out?
PASTOR HAGEE: I think that the United States should put everything on the table and quit talking about the problem and solve the problem. Everyone says that Iran is killing one third of our people in the field of combat in Iraq. That's an act of war. That gives us the license to go in, to take action without dancing with the United Nations for the rest of our lives, but no one in Washington seems willing to do that. I'll assure you whatever it takes, forces on the ground, a military preemptive strike to destroy his nuclear capacity to produce nuclear weapons. If we don't do it, Israel will have to do it because Israel knows they are number one on his hit list and they have the muscle to back him down.
GLENN: Are you under attack? I've got to believe you are. Can you talk a little bit about the strange situation that you must find yourself in where you are under attack for saying, you know, quote/unquote hateful things when you are talking about an individual who has said what he has said and yet there would be those in this country that would label you a religious zealot that would be dangerous?
PASTOR HAGEE: Yes. The same thing happened when Hitler was in Germany, and Hitler was saying we're going to kill the Jews. There were a handful of people who rose up and resisted Hitler and predominantly the majority of the German people resisted. Martin Niemoller was a Lutheran pastor who resisted Hitler aggressively. Hitler put him in prison and the final days of Hitler's administration had Martin Niemoller killed because Martin Niemoller spotted him for who he was, labeled him and everything he said about him came exactly true. History is repeating itself. We are, in fact, reliving 1938. Iran is Germany. Ahmadinejad is Hitler. When Hitler was talking about killing the Jews, no one was listening, and especially the Christians of Europe were strangely silent, the Christians of the world were strangely silent. Here we are in the 21st century. We have another Hitler. He has the ability, he has the power, he has the motive. He wants to put together nuclear weapons to have a nuclear Holocaust in Israel, and this time we have organized a national organization called Christians United for Israel for the purpose of standing up and speaking for Israel and the Jewish people. We're not going to do this two times in a row. We are not going to have another Holocaust, not on our watch. There are millions of Christians in this country who are ready to scream on any given day that Israel is threatened and in a serious way.
GLENN: Pastor John Hagee, I appreciate your time, sir. We're going to spend some more time with you later in the television show, spend a full hour with you. I want to get into a little bit of what you talked to me about last night, that America does not exist in the end times, in the Bible as it is laid out and you said that's because we won't play any significant role. And we'll get more into that later on in the week on the TV show. Pastor, thank you very much. I appreciate it, sir.
PASTOR HAGEE: Thank you, Glenn. I look forward to seeing you Friday.
END TRANSCRIPT
See it yourself at ...
http://www.glennbeck.com/news/10092007a.shtml
Enjoy!
Common sense will tell you and so will our founding fathers that you cannot erase religion and God and have this country stand. Our founding fathers are extraordinarily clear on that. Common sense will tell you the same.
First of all, we should all be down on our knees in praying for the troops. We should all be down praying for an end to this war. We should all be down on our knees every day praying for the President and praying for members of congress. My family prays for the President and members of congress, our leaders in all parties, our leaders all around the world. My family prays for President Tom. How do you not pray for everyone? How do you not pray for your enemies? How do you not understand that we all need guidance from God? What has happened to our country?
We are Americans. We are not Democrats. We are not Republicans. We are Americans. We are a good and decent people. We are a people with God at the forefront. We are a people that we don't pray for God to smite our political enemies. If you believe the President is wrong as I have believed the President is wrong on more than a handful of really big issues, those are the days I pray for the President even more: God, please humble him; please, Lord, make sure, drive him to his knees, please; let him do your will, not anybody else's will; your will; please, Lord, find a way into the hearts of Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi; please, Lord, find a way for those two to be able to meet with George Bush and find a way to secure the blessings of this country; please, Lord, please let us reconnect with you, let us reconnect with each other.We are in trouble, people. Am I alone? I don't think so. I don't think so but, boy, when I see a poll that says 20% of Democrats say it would be better for the world if America would lose a war, I don't understand it. I don't understand America, I guess. It's a day to hear from Democrats.
The following is an interview conducted by Glenn Beck with Pastor John Hagee...
Pastor John Hagee Speaks Out OCTOBER 09, 2007
GLENN BECK PROGRAM,BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
GLENN: Hello, sir, how are you?
PASTOR HAGEE: I'm fine, Glenn, how are you today?
GLENN: I'm very good. So where do we start with your controversial views on Iran?
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, you first begin with the principle that there's a right and there is a wrong. There's an evil and there's a righteous. There's a light and there's a darkness. You cannot continue to walk in this American political fog and come to definitions of right and wrong. We have to recognize that Iran is a threat to Western civilization. Iran is deadly serious about acquiring nuclear weapons. Ahmadinejad has pledged to share those weapons with terrorist organizations around the world. The statements this man is making, they are not statements off the cuff. They are statements that he has made from prepared speeches, which means it was the thought process of his innermost being. He's saying that Israel should be wiped off the map, he's saying that Israel will disappear in a sudden storm, and that means a nuclear storm, he said I can see the day God willing, that God being Allah, when there will be no more Israel and no more America. Very clearly this man intends to attack Israel first, he wants to create a nuclear Holocaust and then he wants to bring that sight to the streets of America.
GLENN: You had several meetings with fairly prominent individuals. You've met with Benjamin Netanyahu. Have you had enough conversations with these people to tell them that you believe that we're living in the end times, and what is their reaction?
PASTOR HAGEE: Yes, Benjamin Netanyahu sat in my office and we have talked about the geopolitical circumstances of the Middle East. Benjamin Netanyahu sat just across my desk and told me that when he was prime minister, he had to give photographic proof to the United States intelligence agencies to convince them that Russia was in Iran helping them produce long-range missiles. Now, those long-range missiles would have the ability to hit London, New York, and Jerusalem, and right now Israel. Iran is trying to get their hands on nuclear weapons and if they can put nuclear warheads on these missiles, can you imagine, Glenn, a world where London, New York, and Jerusalem have been hit by a nuclear missile on the same day. That's the nightmare scenario that Ahmadinejad is trying to put together and he's dangerously close to doing it.
GLENN: Everyone will say that Iran is a third world country, it doesn't have this kind of power, it doesn't have the control that we say. He is just thumping his chest and he's just a guy who's using religion to whip everybody up in his own region and hold onto his power, that he doesn't have -- he is not a threat because he just doesn't have the power to get it done.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's a serious mistake and it's totally wrong. He does have the power, he does have the wealth, he does have the assistance. The Russians have been helping him for years. The intelligence agencies of Israel know that he's dangerously close to having nuclear capability. He does have a following of at least 200 million people. There are 1.3 or .4 billion Islamics and all authorities say that 15 to 20% of these people feel that they have a mandate from God to kill Christians and Jews. That means he has 200 million people following him who would be willing to strap a bomb on and to walk into the place where you're eating or to walk into a school or to a university or to a church or to a synagogue and blow everybody up in there and think that they have done God a favor. This man does have the motive, the ability, and the theology to drive him to do it. He believes that if he starts the third world war, the twelfth Imam will suddenly and mysteriously appear. I understand they don't know where he is now and they don't know who he is. But if they start this world war, he will appear and lead them to victory and produce a global Sharia, which is an Islamic law that rules the world.
GLENN: All right. So what makes you believe -- by the way, we're talking to Pastor John Hagee. What makes you believe that we're living in the end times? No man will know.
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, the Bible says no man knows the day, nor the hour. That's a 24-hour period of time. So that means no one can set the date that Jesus Christ is coming back to Earth. But the Bible says that as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the coming of the son of man. The days of Noah were these: That God told Noah that a flood was coming, that he was to build the ark and that when he built the ark, the animals would get on it, he would put his family of eight people on that ark and God would shut the door.
Now, as it was in the days of Noah, whenever Noah got that ark built, which took him over 100 years, and the animals were on by the assistance of God himself, his family was on and the Bible says and God shut the door. When you're Noah, you've built the ark, the animals are on, your family's on and God has shut the door, you know it's time for the rain to start. You don't know exactly what day it's going to start, but you know it's very, very near. And the Bible gives a series of prophetic signs in the Bible that will be a very clear indicator of the terminal generation that is on the face of the Earth.
GLENN: You know I'm playing devil's advocate here, so to speak. You know, people have been saying the end is near forever, forever. I mean, even the apostles thought he was coming back pretty quickly.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's true.
GLENN: So what makes you say that this is, this is it, this is the scenario?
PASTOR HAGEE: Well, the thing that makes me say that is the Bible signs that were given. This is the only generation that has ever lived on the face of the Earth where all of these phenomenons line up like lights leading an airplane to a landing strip. There's thirst of knowledge explosion of Daniel 12. Daniel said -- God's saying to Daniel, shut up the book, the book that Daniel is writing, until the time of the end. That's a very important phrase, "Until the time of the end," when knowledge shall be greatly increased. Now, that phrase literally translates there will be a knowledge explosion. We are the generation that has had that knowledge explosion. From the Garden of Eden until the 12th century, men rode on horseback just as King David and Julius Caesar and George Washington to found this nation. And then came the automobile and then came jets and then came a man on the moon. Consider communication. From the Garden of Eden until the 12th century, men communicated principally the same way, beatings of drums, mirrors from mountains to mountains. But then came the telegraph and then the television and now we have the ability, with satellite television, to communicate to people all over the Earth anywhere on the Earth because the knowledge explosion has happened. From the Garden of Eden to the 12th century and medical science, nothing changed. But now medical science has become so advanced that we've had to redefine death because we have the ability to keep people alive with machines and stimulants. So we are, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that generation that has had the knowledge explosion. So that's signal number one.
GLENN: Do you believe, do you believe that the Army of the Mahdi, which is basically the Army of the twelfth Imam if you are Shia and you believe as President Tom does, do you believe that the Army of the Mahdi and President Ahmadinejad are fighting a battle for the literal antichrist?
PASTOR HAGEE: You have asked a question that is really the hot button question in Christian theology right now because when the antichrist comes to the Earth, he's going to do three things. One, he's going to come as a prince of peace, he's going to establish a one world government, and he's going to establish a one world religion and now there are many religious believers, religious theologians who believe that perhaps that one world religion that he's talking about is Islam because one of the things that happens in the tribulation period, and the tribulation period is the seven-year period that happens on the Earth when there's such devastation that happens on the planet is that anyone who does not receive the faith of the antichrist is beheaded, and beheading is the methodology of execution of Islam.
GLENN: So you didn't really answer the question. You don't have to, but you didn't really answer the question. All right. Well, pastor, I appreciate it. Are you surprised at how few people are paying attention to things that are seemingly so clear when Ahmadinejad got up in front of the UN and now has moved to the front of his speeches what used to be at the last: Oh, Allah, give me the strength to hasten the return of the promised one.
PASTOR HAGEE: That's who he's talking about.
GLENN: Yeah, I know that's who he's talking about. And are you surprised how few people are paying attention to this or taking him seriously and how the media is just completely dismissing his religiosity?
PASTOR HAGEE: I am surprised that that's happening in America, and here's the problem. If you admit there is a problem, you have to then solve the problem, and it's just so much more convenient for political leaders, for media leaders to talk about the problem rather than confess there is a problem because if you say there is a problem, you have to solve the problem. And then if you say there's a problem, people become disturbed, but let me tell you something. If we let this man do what he wishes to do, we will see the day that he will put missiles that have nuclear warheads and he will start a world war that will literally destabilize Western civilization and the day. He has the power, he has the knowledge, he has the willingness. 9/11, 9/11 proved that radical Islam has the willingness to attack us. They just didn't have the power. But if Ahmadinejad gets his hands on nuclear power, they will then have the willingness and the power to take us down.
GLENN: Are you advocating going in with troops and taking him out?
PASTOR HAGEE: I think that the United States should put everything on the table and quit talking about the problem and solve the problem. Everyone says that Iran is killing one third of our people in the field of combat in Iraq. That's an act of war. That gives us the license to go in, to take action without dancing with the United Nations for the rest of our lives, but no one in Washington seems willing to do that. I'll assure you whatever it takes, forces on the ground, a military preemptive strike to destroy his nuclear capacity to produce nuclear weapons. If we don't do it, Israel will have to do it because Israel knows they are number one on his hit list and they have the muscle to back him down.
GLENN: Are you under attack? I've got to believe you are. Can you talk a little bit about the strange situation that you must find yourself in where you are under attack for saying, you know, quote/unquote hateful things when you are talking about an individual who has said what he has said and yet there would be those in this country that would label you a religious zealot that would be dangerous?
PASTOR HAGEE: Yes. The same thing happened when Hitler was in Germany, and Hitler was saying we're going to kill the Jews. There were a handful of people who rose up and resisted Hitler and predominantly the majority of the German people resisted. Martin Niemoller was a Lutheran pastor who resisted Hitler aggressively. Hitler put him in prison and the final days of Hitler's administration had Martin Niemoller killed because Martin Niemoller spotted him for who he was, labeled him and everything he said about him came exactly true. History is repeating itself. We are, in fact, reliving 1938. Iran is Germany. Ahmadinejad is Hitler. When Hitler was talking about killing the Jews, no one was listening, and especially the Christians of Europe were strangely silent, the Christians of the world were strangely silent. Here we are in the 21st century. We have another Hitler. He has the ability, he has the power, he has the motive. He wants to put together nuclear weapons to have a nuclear Holocaust in Israel, and this time we have organized a national organization called Christians United for Israel for the purpose of standing up and speaking for Israel and the Jewish people. We're not going to do this two times in a row. We are not going to have another Holocaust, not on our watch. There are millions of Christians in this country who are ready to scream on any given day that Israel is threatened and in a serious way.
GLENN: Pastor John Hagee, I appreciate your time, sir. We're going to spend some more time with you later in the television show, spend a full hour with you. I want to get into a little bit of what you talked to me about last night, that America does not exist in the end times, in the Bible as it is laid out and you said that's because we won't play any significant role. And we'll get more into that later on in the week on the TV show. Pastor, thank you very much. I appreciate it, sir.
PASTOR HAGEE: Thank you, Glenn. I look forward to seeing you Friday.
END TRANSCRIPT
See it yourself at ...
http://www.glennbeck.com/news/10092007a.shtml
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Changing Life Directions
Some random thoughts and stuff.
A few hours ago or so, I was thinking about all of the work that we put into our home renovations this past summer. As the weather turns chill and the leaves all fall to the ground, I am forced to come to a sad realization; it was all pointless.
Making a life of ease was not, is not, and will never be, brought about by what you spend your money on (or how much of it you earn, or borrow). A life worth living is a life of contentment that does not come through material possessions. It is the contentment that you get from having all your relationships in good order – your relationship with God, your relationship with your spouse, your relationship with your children, your relationship with your parents and siblings and family of origin, your relationship with your church and your community, your relationship with your friends and your neighbours and your work peers. Having those relationships in proper working alignment, starting with God and working your way down, is the path to a life of contentment.
I have come to realize that, just like my home renovations, I must also come to grips with where my time and energy has been spent (and mis-spent) over the last few years. And I know that my relationship (my fellowship) with God has really suffered as I have spent my time and energy on other distractions, and all of my other relationships have suffered as well. Just recently my wife had a heartfelt talk with (to) me, where she expressed some frustrations with me and asked me to “step up to the plate” and meet her where she needed me to meet her, especially on an emotional level.
Just a few days after that talk, the new household computer arrived. And I got pretty involved in that, let me tell you! It took me days to put it together, set it all up, transfer the information between the old computer and the new one, begin to learn to use the new computer, and install old programs on the new computer. Whew! – Just talking about it takes a lot out of me!
But here’s the thing…I got really distracted. I poured myself into the new computer, as I wanted to get it all running just right for us. And my attitude suffered greatly. I hardly slept at all for a few days. There was a few spans of time there where I focussed on God while I was working on the new computer, and that enabled me to stay in a good mood and right frame of mind for those moments. But, for the most part, I was tired and grumpy and snarly and distracted. I wasn’t fun to be around, my mind and attention were elsewhere.
I am sure by now that you can see where the story is going. At a time when my wife needed me to be connected with her, I was disconnected. When I needed to be focussed on her, I was focussed elsewhere. So, long story short, I hurt her. Bad, I think. It is hard to tell exactly, she isn’t opening up to me at all right now. She’s closed off from me. She cried herself to sleep, and would not tell me anything.
As I sit here typing this, I quite frankly am not sure what I should do. What can I do? Damage has been done. I think she has lost faith in me. I do not really blame her. I am sort of a putz when it comes to love. Too often, I am like a frightened bunny rabbit, jerking back when I should be close. I don’t really know why I am like that. And, as I told my wife recently, when my relationship with God isn’t where it needs to be, I do not like myself. Without God, I am nothing, and nothing good exists in me in and of itself.
I am slowly watching life slip out of my control. I do not like that feeling. Although I have been working harder at my relationship with God lately, I fear that it may be “too little too late.” I ignored all the signs, and refused to do what was right for far too long. Why? Why do I always pretend that I can carry my life and life’s expectations on my own shoulders and do it by myself, when I know that it is a lie?
On a side (somewhat related) note, a few days ago I was walking home from work, and I was thinking about my formative years (ages 16-21). It is truly amazing how many people I was close to in that time, who went on to become Pastors, Youth Pastors, who married Pastors, or went on to other callings in the church. God surrounded me with some really good people back then. Makes me wonder where I would have been in life if I had not had the steadying influence of some of those great people in my formative years.
And, it makes me wonder where I might be today, if I had some of those same type of people around me now. Where have all of the good and godly people gone? Why are they so hard to find nowadays? It has been so very, very long since I had a good Christian friend, other than my spouse.
Perhaps a lot of the reason that I remain closed off from others, that I jerk back when I should rush forward, is because of what I told my wife about not liking myself when my relationship with God is not good. I have low self-esteem. I do not think too highly of myself, I will probably never have that problem! I have the exact opposite one. The only time I feel good in life, truly good, is when my relationship with God is good. A casual relationship with Him is not enough for me, it doesn’t do it. It is when I lose myself in Him, that I find peace and joy and happiness. But, then I get distracted. And I veer off in a wrong direction. And I try to hold things together by myself. And, eventually, after many failures, I hit rock bottom…
…And I look up to find my Saviour there waiting for me. And He picks me back up, hands me the royal robes, gives me the biggest hug, puts His loving arm around me, and as we walk back home He talks to me about His love for me, and it is THEN that I get it. I truly get it. Distractions turn me from God; pain sets in and destroys; pride and fear keep me plodding down the road to destruction; one too many falls leads to a time where I just cannot get up anymore. And then He is there to pick me up and love me, show that that the only thing I have been missing in life, was Him.
God, I hope that is where I am right now. I really do not think that I can go on this way anymore. Let this be the bottom. I definitely feel like I have bottomed out in my life. I put all this money and work into my home, but really I am just whitewashing the tomb. There’s death inside without Christ on the throne. As long as I take the throne, death is the only outcome. But when Christ comes and sits on the throne, He brings healing waters of Life. All the work I have done, all the distractions I have allowed in, they have been more than pointless, they have been deadly. In and of themselves, they are not evil. But, placed in my life ahead of God, they are sin. I gotta get back up. I gotta get back up, and head the right way. But, you know what? I think I am gonna spend my night just sitting here, waiting on God’s presence, because I need The Giver of Life to pick me up. I cannot do it myself any longer. And I refuse to keep going down that road any more.
A few hours ago or so, I was thinking about all of the work that we put into our home renovations this past summer. As the weather turns chill and the leaves all fall to the ground, I am forced to come to a sad realization; it was all pointless.
Making a life of ease was not, is not, and will never be, brought about by what you spend your money on (or how much of it you earn, or borrow). A life worth living is a life of contentment that does not come through material possessions. It is the contentment that you get from having all your relationships in good order – your relationship with God, your relationship with your spouse, your relationship with your children, your relationship with your parents and siblings and family of origin, your relationship with your church and your community, your relationship with your friends and your neighbours and your work peers. Having those relationships in proper working alignment, starting with God and working your way down, is the path to a life of contentment.
I have come to realize that, just like my home renovations, I must also come to grips with where my time and energy has been spent (and mis-spent) over the last few years. And I know that my relationship (my fellowship) with God has really suffered as I have spent my time and energy on other distractions, and all of my other relationships have suffered as well. Just recently my wife had a heartfelt talk with (to) me, where she expressed some frustrations with me and asked me to “step up to the plate” and meet her where she needed me to meet her, especially on an emotional level.
Just a few days after that talk, the new household computer arrived. And I got pretty involved in that, let me tell you! It took me days to put it together, set it all up, transfer the information between the old computer and the new one, begin to learn to use the new computer, and install old programs on the new computer. Whew! – Just talking about it takes a lot out of me!
But here’s the thing…I got really distracted. I poured myself into the new computer, as I wanted to get it all running just right for us. And my attitude suffered greatly. I hardly slept at all for a few days. There was a few spans of time there where I focussed on God while I was working on the new computer, and that enabled me to stay in a good mood and right frame of mind for those moments. But, for the most part, I was tired and grumpy and snarly and distracted. I wasn’t fun to be around, my mind and attention were elsewhere.
I am sure by now that you can see where the story is going. At a time when my wife needed me to be connected with her, I was disconnected. When I needed to be focussed on her, I was focussed elsewhere. So, long story short, I hurt her. Bad, I think. It is hard to tell exactly, she isn’t opening up to me at all right now. She’s closed off from me. She cried herself to sleep, and would not tell me anything.
As I sit here typing this, I quite frankly am not sure what I should do. What can I do? Damage has been done. I think she has lost faith in me. I do not really blame her. I am sort of a putz when it comes to love. Too often, I am like a frightened bunny rabbit, jerking back when I should be close. I don’t really know why I am like that. And, as I told my wife recently, when my relationship with God isn’t where it needs to be, I do not like myself. Without God, I am nothing, and nothing good exists in me in and of itself.
I am slowly watching life slip out of my control. I do not like that feeling. Although I have been working harder at my relationship with God lately, I fear that it may be “too little too late.” I ignored all the signs, and refused to do what was right for far too long. Why? Why do I always pretend that I can carry my life and life’s expectations on my own shoulders and do it by myself, when I know that it is a lie?
On a side (somewhat related) note, a few days ago I was walking home from work, and I was thinking about my formative years (ages 16-21). It is truly amazing how many people I was close to in that time, who went on to become Pastors, Youth Pastors, who married Pastors, or went on to other callings in the church. God surrounded me with some really good people back then. Makes me wonder where I would have been in life if I had not had the steadying influence of some of those great people in my formative years.
And, it makes me wonder where I might be today, if I had some of those same type of people around me now. Where have all of the good and godly people gone? Why are they so hard to find nowadays? It has been so very, very long since I had a good Christian friend, other than my spouse.
Perhaps a lot of the reason that I remain closed off from others, that I jerk back when I should rush forward, is because of what I told my wife about not liking myself when my relationship with God is not good. I have low self-esteem. I do not think too highly of myself, I will probably never have that problem! I have the exact opposite one. The only time I feel good in life, truly good, is when my relationship with God is good. A casual relationship with Him is not enough for me, it doesn’t do it. It is when I lose myself in Him, that I find peace and joy and happiness. But, then I get distracted. And I veer off in a wrong direction. And I try to hold things together by myself. And, eventually, after many failures, I hit rock bottom…
…And I look up to find my Saviour there waiting for me. And He picks me back up, hands me the royal robes, gives me the biggest hug, puts His loving arm around me, and as we walk back home He talks to me about His love for me, and it is THEN that I get it. I truly get it. Distractions turn me from God; pain sets in and destroys; pride and fear keep me plodding down the road to destruction; one too many falls leads to a time where I just cannot get up anymore. And then He is there to pick me up and love me, show that that the only thing I have been missing in life, was Him.
God, I hope that is where I am right now. I really do not think that I can go on this way anymore. Let this be the bottom. I definitely feel like I have bottomed out in my life. I put all this money and work into my home, but really I am just whitewashing the tomb. There’s death inside without Christ on the throne. As long as I take the throne, death is the only outcome. But when Christ comes and sits on the throne, He brings healing waters of Life. All the work I have done, all the distractions I have allowed in, they have been more than pointless, they have been deadly. In and of themselves, they are not evil. But, placed in my life ahead of God, they are sin. I gotta get back up. I gotta get back up, and head the right way. But, you know what? I think I am gonna spend my night just sitting here, waiting on God’s presence, because I need The Giver of Life to pick me up. I cannot do it myself any longer. And I refuse to keep going down that road any more.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Down And Out
Just so you all know, my home computer is H-O-O-P-E-D.
So, I have ordered a new pc from Dell, it should be arriving in three weeks or so.
Until then, do not expect to hear from me in these pages.
But check back later, I look forward to blogging at you in the near future!
So, I have ordered a new pc from Dell, it should be arriving in three weeks or so.
Until then, do not expect to hear from me in these pages.
But check back later, I look forward to blogging at you in the near future!
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Whtaz Noo?
Well, thought I ought to catch up a bit on what has been happening around here...
One of my cats (Felix) has lost some weight. He is now down to about 19 lbs, and if we can get him down to 18 lbs he will be the perfect weight for his size. He looks much healthier and happier now, I am so glad for him!
My daughter K is staying with us for a few days right now. It sure is different having her here while my other daughter C is off in Alberta (where she has been since late June, and will be there for about two more weeks before she heads home) with family. It is good.
All the renos are pretty much done around here. The wife did a wonderful job painting the radiators around the home white to match the trim. Our patio door and patio screen door are going to be replaced (manufacturer's defects on both of them) relatively soon, and we should also hopefully be getting the manufacturere to cut us a cheque due to some damage to the outside of the frame. We are stilll awaiting the blinds to come in, so we can actually have window coverings on all our windows and doors, which will certainly help us to sleep better, I am sure! We also have a slight bit more work to be done on the top of our back fence, some handmade latticework from our contractor and stuff like that. Speaking of the back, we did a heck of a job on the back yard, landcaping it. We hauled in 44 bags of rock in the trunk of our car and in our little hands, it took a few days (44 bags, 40 lbs per bag, equals 1760 lbs of rock), but it looks great. When we were done with all that, R planted some flowers. We still have not used the BBQ, I was going to do so today but it is raining quite nasty right now.
My parents are moving down the street to a new building tomorrow, so R and I are going to go help them with that. We also hope to hook up with my sister and brother-in-law, who are in town from Comox (via San Antonio) for a bit. Then in the afternoon I have to drop R off at the Kelowna airport, as she is going to Alberta for one week.
...and when she gets back, that same afternoon we have our new dining room furniture arriving!
Yep, the money that we got from re-financing is now all gone. But it looks great!
That is all for now! I will post a few pictures of our back yard soon!
One of my cats (Felix) has lost some weight. He is now down to about 19 lbs, and if we can get him down to 18 lbs he will be the perfect weight for his size. He looks much healthier and happier now, I am so glad for him!
My daughter K is staying with us for a few days right now. It sure is different having her here while my other daughter C is off in Alberta (where she has been since late June, and will be there for about two more weeks before she heads home) with family. It is good.
All the renos are pretty much done around here. The wife did a wonderful job painting the radiators around the home white to match the trim. Our patio door and patio screen door are going to be replaced (manufacturer's defects on both of them) relatively soon, and we should also hopefully be getting the manufacturere to cut us a cheque due to some damage to the outside of the frame. We are stilll awaiting the blinds to come in, so we can actually have window coverings on all our windows and doors, which will certainly help us to sleep better, I am sure! We also have a slight bit more work to be done on the top of our back fence, some handmade latticework from our contractor and stuff like that. Speaking of the back, we did a heck of a job on the back yard, landcaping it. We hauled in 44 bags of rock in the trunk of our car and in our little hands, it took a few days (44 bags, 40 lbs per bag, equals 1760 lbs of rock), but it looks great. When we were done with all that, R planted some flowers. We still have not used the BBQ, I was going to do so today but it is raining quite nasty right now.
My parents are moving down the street to a new building tomorrow, so R and I are going to go help them with that. We also hope to hook up with my sister and brother-in-law, who are in town from Comox (via San Antonio) for a bit. Then in the afternoon I have to drop R off at the Kelowna airport, as she is going to Alberta for one week.
...and when she gets back, that same afternoon we have our new dining room furniture arriving!
Yep, the money that we got from re-financing is now all gone. But it looks great!
That is all for now! I will post a few pictures of our back yard soon!
Monday, June 18, 2007
Like Seasons, All Changes
Somehow, the lyrics to this song keep coming to my mind. Today, of all days, seems like the time to reprint them here.
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
An August summer night
Soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change
The world closing in
Did you ever think
That we could be so close,like brothers
The future's in the air
I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change
Chorus:
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
Walking down the street
Distant memories
Are buried in the past forever
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
The wind of change blows straight
Into the face of time
Like a stormwind that will ring
The freedom bell for peace of mind
Let your balalaika sing
What my guitar wants to say
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
Winds Of Change by The Scorpions
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
An August summer night
Soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change
The world closing in
Did you ever think
That we could be so close,like brothers
The future's in the air
I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change
Chorus:
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
Walking down the street
Distant memories
Are buried in the past forever
I follow the Moskva
Down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
The wind of change blows straight
Into the face of time
Like a stormwind that will ring
The freedom bell for peace of mind
Let your balalaika sing
What my guitar wants to say
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams
With you and me
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change
Winds Of Change by The Scorpions
Monday, June 11, 2007
aw...nuts!
Rats! Hockey season has ended for yet another long summer.
Congratulations to the 2007 Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim Ducks! Way to go, boys!
On another hockey note...
Tim Cowlishaw wrote an insightful article on the state of the NHL. Tim writes for the Dallas Mornign News, and the article (a quick and painless read) can be found here - http://www.dallasnews.
com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/hockey/stars/stories/
060607dnspocowlishaw.2cb3128.html
And here are my comments on the story, as I see it...
Here are my thoughts on Tim Cowlishaw's article:
1: Put microphones on all coaches and captains for all games.
I think this idea has merit. How much merit, i am unsure. But it cannot hurt, as long as they resist any and all broadcasting of live audio from these sources, as (a) you do not want to give away any pertinent game-plan information on live television to the other team, and (b) the last thing we need on tv is more cussing.
2: Start the season a month later.
That's a bad idea, really. The season goes too long as it is. Traditional hockey fans (ie. knowledgeable ones) want the season to start earlier, not later, so that it can be over by the first of June. Shorten training camps, start earlier, end earlier.
3: Convince the selfish Eastern Conference general managers to act in the best interests of the game and change the schedule.
I completely totally.
4: Kiss up to ESPN. Make amends.
Yeah, I would go along with that one. Sure, why not?
5: Let the skaters in shootouts go without their helmets.
Makes sense to me.
6: Eliminate the ability to ice the puck during penalty killing.
An excellent idea. I have agreed with this one for 5 or 6 years now. It is time to do it. Make a PowerPlay really mean something.
7: Adopt the 2-3-2 travel format for all series.
It makes sense. I could go either way on this one.
8: Adopt the shootout after 40 minutes of playoff overtime hockey.
No! However, other tweaking of OT I could live with. Like, say, after 20 minutes of scoreless OverTime play, go to 4 skaters aside. That should help to end things quicker. If that does not work, then after 40 minutes, go to 3 skaters aside!
9: Move the U.S. league office to Atlanta.
Dumb idea. Means nothing. So, here is a better idea...
Move the league head and corporate offices to Winnipeg. If they can't give them back the Jets, give them the prestige of having the Commish right there in their city. It is centrally located, it is in Canada, and there can be no crying about how it is unfair to have the league headquarters in (insert city name here) because it is also the home of the (insert name of team or teams here).
10: Contract to 26 teams.
This is an excellent idea. But i think 28 would be better, because it'd be easier for divvying up the divisions - simply go back to 4 divisions, 7 teams per division, two conferences. Much better plan, if i do say so myself!
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
File This!
I got this article from metaleater.com .
Effect On Legal Music Sales "Not Statistically Distinguishable From Zero"
Posted: May 09, 2007 at 13:51 (PST)
For the last few months, our colleagues at The Classic Metal Show have been spreading awareness about the CRB's (The Copyright Royalty Board) decision to substantially increase royalty fees and how the RIAA's (Recording Industry Association of America's) apparent manipulation of these rates will not only hurt artists and smaller record labels, but also put small webcasters (like The Classic Metal show) out of business due to outrageous fee hikes. In relation to this issue, several sources say that illegal downloading is the main cause of all this. However, this report posted by Ken Fisher from Ars Technica back on February 12 states otherwise:
A new study in the Journal of Political Economy by Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Koleman Strumpf has found that illegal music downloads have had no noticeable effects on the sale of music, contrary to the claims of the recording industry.
Entitled "The Effect of File Sharing on Record Sales: An Empirical Analysis", the study matched an extensive sample of music downloads to American music sales data in order to search for causality between illicit downloading and album sales. Analyzing data from the final four months of 2002, the researchers estimated that P2P affected no more than 0.7 percent of sales in that timeframe.
The study compared the logs of two OpenNAP P2P servers with sales data from Nielsen SoundScan, tracking the effects of 1.75 million songs downloads on 680 different albums sold during that same period. The study then took a surprising twist. Popular music will often have both high downloads and high sales figures, so what the researchers wanted was a way to test for effects on albums sales when file-sharing activity was increased on account of something other than US song popularity. Does the occasionally increased availability of music from Germany affect US sales?
The study looked at time periods when German students were on holiday after demonstrating that P2P use increases at these times. German users collectively are the #2 P2P suppliers, providing "about one out of every six U.S. downloads," according to the study. Yet the effects on American sales were not large enough to be statistically significant. Using this and several other methods, the study's authors could find no meaningful causality. The availability and even increased downloads of music on P2P networks did not correlate to a negative effect on music sales.
"Using detailed records of transfers of digital music files, we find that file sharing has had no statistically significant effect on purchases of the average album in our sample," the study reports. "Even our most negative point estimate implies that a one-standard-deviation increase in file sharing reduces an album's weekly sales by a mere 368 copies, an effect that is too small to be statistically distinguishable from zero."
The study reports that 803 million CDs were sold in 2002, which was a decrease of about 80 million from the previous year. The RIAA has blamed the majority of the decrease on piracy, and has maintained that argument in recent years as music sales have faltered. Yet according to the study, the impact from file sharing could not have been more than 6 million albums total in 2002, leaving 74 million unsold CDs without an excuse for sitting on shelves.
So what's the problem with music? The study echoes many of the observations you've read here at Ars. First, because the recording industry focuses on units shipped rather than sold, the decline can be attributed in part to reduced inventory. Gone are the days when Best Buy and others wanted a ton of unsold stock sitting around, so they order less CDs. The study also highlighted the growth in DVD sales during that same period as a possible explanation for why customers weren't opening their wallets: they were busy buying DVDs.
Effect On Legal Music Sales "Not Statistically Distinguishable From Zero"
Posted: May 09, 2007 at 13:51 (PST)
For the last few months, our colleagues at The Classic Metal Show have been spreading awareness about the CRB's (The Copyright Royalty Board) decision to substantially increase royalty fees and how the RIAA's (Recording Industry Association of America's) apparent manipulation of these rates will not only hurt artists and smaller record labels, but also put small webcasters (like The Classic Metal show) out of business due to outrageous fee hikes. In relation to this issue, several sources say that illegal downloading is the main cause of all this. However, this report posted by Ken Fisher from Ars Technica back on February 12 states otherwise:
A new study in the Journal of Political Economy by Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Koleman Strumpf has found that illegal music downloads have had no noticeable effects on the sale of music, contrary to the claims of the recording industry.
Entitled "The Effect of File Sharing on Record Sales: An Empirical Analysis", the study matched an extensive sample of music downloads to American music sales data in order to search for causality between illicit downloading and album sales. Analyzing data from the final four months of 2002, the researchers estimated that P2P affected no more than 0.7 percent of sales in that timeframe.
The study compared the logs of two OpenNAP P2P servers with sales data from Nielsen SoundScan, tracking the effects of 1.75 million songs downloads on 680 different albums sold during that same period. The study then took a surprising twist. Popular music will often have both high downloads and high sales figures, so what the researchers wanted was a way to test for effects on albums sales when file-sharing activity was increased on account of something other than US song popularity. Does the occasionally increased availability of music from Germany affect US sales?
The study looked at time periods when German students were on holiday after demonstrating that P2P use increases at these times. German users collectively are the #2 P2P suppliers, providing "about one out of every six U.S. downloads," according to the study. Yet the effects on American sales were not large enough to be statistically significant. Using this and several other methods, the study's authors could find no meaningful causality. The availability and even increased downloads of music on P2P networks did not correlate to a negative effect on music sales.
"Using detailed records of transfers of digital music files, we find that file sharing has had no statistically significant effect on purchases of the average album in our sample," the study reports. "Even our most negative point estimate implies that a one-standard-deviation increase in file sharing reduces an album's weekly sales by a mere 368 copies, an effect that is too small to be statistically distinguishable from zero."
The study reports that 803 million CDs were sold in 2002, which was a decrease of about 80 million from the previous year. The RIAA has blamed the majority of the decrease on piracy, and has maintained that argument in recent years as music sales have faltered. Yet according to the study, the impact from file sharing could not have been more than 6 million albums total in 2002, leaving 74 million unsold CDs without an excuse for sitting on shelves.
So what's the problem with music? The study echoes many of the observations you've read here at Ars. First, because the recording industry focuses on units shipped rather than sold, the decline can be attributed in part to reduced inventory. Gone are the days when Best Buy and others wanted a ton of unsold stock sitting around, so they order less CDs. The study also highlighted the growth in DVD sales during that same period as a possible explanation for why customers weren't opening their wallets: they were busy buying DVDs.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
testing, 1, 2...
I took this personality test today...
http://similarminds.com/cattell-16-factor.html
Here are my "results" ...
http://similarminds.com/cattell-16-factor.html
Here are my "results" ...
Cattell's 16 Factor Test Results
|
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Scars From Mars
Hey all!
Another gruesome picture of my surgery scar, taken two days ago. I took this picture, cuz it looks like my dissolving stitches have finally dissolved...
Sunday, April 1, 2007
The Right Thing
Getting Deep About The Right Thing
Sometimes, you just have to do the right thing. And that has to be enough for you. In the end, it is yourself that you have to live with, after all.
So, my boss never picked me for the promotion to Relief Supervisor. Not a shock, it was expected that he would pick the person he did, due to personal attachments to her.
Lately, as I have worked with her, more and more I find her to be not nearly competent enough in the job to be a supervisor. Hey, my boss picked her, more power to him! He was allowed to, because the choice was his and his alone. And never ONCE have i bitched and complained about that. I knew my chances were slim to land the position, but I applied because I wanted the position , and I knew that I could do it.
On the other hand, there is the person who got the job. It really irks me that I have to watch over her, when she is my boss, and do her work for her because she is incapable of doing it. She has not learned enough in her 9 months on the job...because she was never interested in it. Still isn't, really. So, it irks me. It irks me that she was picked over me, and when I work with her, I have to do her supervisor work, because she has no clue how to do it. And she doesn't really care.
That seems so unfair. It irks me, and hurts me. I take my job seriously, and this whole situation is a travesty.
In the end, though, i cannot do anything to change anything.
So, I have to do the right thing. What I WANT to do is go complain; to my boss, to my workmates, to anybody who will listen. But I don't, and I won't. Instead, groaning on the inside, I hide my true feelings, and I do her work for her. Why? Because I care about my job, and that is just the kind of person i am. Do I really want to react differently, to let this situation change my core values and sense of self? NO!!! So i pitch in and do everything I can to make things run smoothly, doubling my workload if need be at times. I do the duties to which she was assigned to do, and I was told I was not good enough to be wanted to do them. But I am the one doing them. No, it is not fair. But life isn't fair.
In the end, i am not here to please my boss, my co-workers, or anybody. I am here to do what is pleasing to my God.
Sometimes, all you can do is the right thing. And it has to be enough.
Sometimes, you just have to do the right thing. And that has to be enough for you. In the end, it is yourself that you have to live with, after all.
So, my boss never picked me for the promotion to Relief Supervisor. Not a shock, it was expected that he would pick the person he did, due to personal attachments to her.
Lately, as I have worked with her, more and more I find her to be not nearly competent enough in the job to be a supervisor. Hey, my boss picked her, more power to him! He was allowed to, because the choice was his and his alone. And never ONCE have i bitched and complained about that. I knew my chances were slim to land the position, but I applied because I wanted the position , and I knew that I could do it.
On the other hand, there is the person who got the job. It really irks me that I have to watch over her, when she is my boss, and do her work for her because she is incapable of doing it. She has not learned enough in her 9 months on the job...because she was never interested in it. Still isn't, really. So, it irks me. It irks me that she was picked over me, and when I work with her, I have to do her supervisor work, because she has no clue how to do it. And she doesn't really care.
That seems so unfair. It irks me, and hurts me. I take my job seriously, and this whole situation is a travesty.
In the end, though, i cannot do anything to change anything.
So, I have to do the right thing. What I WANT to do is go complain; to my boss, to my workmates, to anybody who will listen. But I don't, and I won't. Instead, groaning on the inside, I hide my true feelings, and I do her work for her. Why? Because I care about my job, and that is just the kind of person i am. Do I really want to react differently, to let this situation change my core values and sense of self? NO!!! So i pitch in and do everything I can to make things run smoothly, doubling my workload if need be at times. I do the duties to which she was assigned to do, and I was told I was not good enough to be wanted to do them. But I am the one doing them. No, it is not fair. But life isn't fair.
In the end, i am not here to please my boss, my co-workers, or anybody. I am here to do what is pleasing to my God.
Sometimes, all you can do is the right thing. And it has to be enough.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Hockey Predictionz
Here are today's NHL hockey playoff 2007 predictions.
Before this season began, I picked Nashville to beat Philadelphia in the Stanley Cup Final. Oops. Okay, so no Philly in the playoff picture...
Well then, here are my updated predictions;
In the West, Nashville will beat the Vancouver Canucks in 7 games (off of an OT goal by Paul Kariya, set up on a breakaway by Peter Forsberg) for the right to go to the Stanley Cup Final.
In the East, the Atlanta Thrashers will beat a young and exciting Pittsburgh Penguins team in 6 games, advancing to the Finals to face Nashville. Winning goal goes to center Keith Tkachuk, off a rebound of a Marian Hossa shot. Don Waddell and Bob Hartley kiss each other on both of their very wet cheeks; they look like geniuses, and they know it.
Stanley Cup Finals 2007 -
Nashville will beat Atlanta in the Finals in 6 games, to win their first ever Stanley Cup.
Winning goal scored by rookie winger Alexander Radulov, assisted by Martin Erat and Scott Hartnell (I dunno, I don't understand either, I just pick 'em - maybe it was a line change, or something?) .
Peter Forsberg will lead the Predators in playoff scoring, but Nashville defenseman Shea Weber will be the recipient of the Conn Smythe Trophy as Playoff MVP (5 goals, 11 assists, 16 points, 29 PIM, plus 16) .
Before this season began, I picked Nashville to beat Philadelphia in the Stanley Cup Final. Oops. Okay, so no Philly in the playoff picture...
Well then, here are my updated predictions;
In the West, Nashville will beat the Vancouver Canucks in 7 games (off of an OT goal by Paul Kariya, set up on a breakaway by Peter Forsberg) for the right to go to the Stanley Cup Final.
In the East, the Atlanta Thrashers will beat a young and exciting Pittsburgh Penguins team in 6 games, advancing to the Finals to face Nashville. Winning goal goes to center Keith Tkachuk, off a rebound of a Marian Hossa shot. Don Waddell and Bob Hartley kiss each other on both of their very wet cheeks; they look like geniuses, and they know it.
Stanley Cup Finals 2007 -
Nashville will beat Atlanta in the Finals in 6 games, to win their first ever Stanley Cup.
Winning goal scored by rookie winger Alexander Radulov, assisted by Martin Erat and Scott Hartnell (I dunno, I don't understand either, I just pick 'em - maybe it was a line change, or something?) .
Peter Forsberg will lead the Predators in playoff scoring, but Nashville defenseman Shea Weber will be the recipient of the Conn Smythe Trophy as Playoff MVP (5 goals, 11 assists, 16 points, 29 PIM, plus 16) .
Friday, March 23, 2007
HB Mommy
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Mommy,
Happy Birthday to you!
Sorry about the picture, Mom, but it is the newest one I have of you! Send me more!
love,
AD and R and C
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Mommy,
Happy Birthday to you!
Sorry about the picture, Mom, but it is the newest one I have of you! Send me more!
love,
AD and R and C
Monday, March 19, 2007
Intelligent Quotient
Hello.
I recently took CBC's (that is the offical federally-funded Canadian television station, for those of you who may not know) Test The Nation IQ Test.
Click on the picture below to be taken to my score...
I recently took CBC's (that is the offical federally-funded Canadian television station, for those of you who may not know) Test The Nation IQ Test.
Click on the picture below to be taken to my score...
Sunday, March 18, 2007
comics and the Irish Holy Day
Well, I am pleased to announce that this last week I was able to purc hase an E-Bay auction of 15 Alpha Fligth comics that I did not already own. This makes my quest to get all of the Alpha Flight comics much easier now, as now I only need 26 more to complete my set of Alpha Flight Volume I ( I also need approximately 16 comics in Volume II, and 12 comics in Volume III).
And, OF COURSE (big smiles all around), what I like to think of as Alpha Flight Volume IV, Omega Flight, is due to commence next month.
Anybody interested, can read much more about my love of comics, and Canadian heroes Alpha Flight, in my Alpha Flight blog at http://Canadas-own-The-Flight.blogspot.com .
Also, I really thought my St. Patrick's Day was going to suck this year. Instead of celebrating my Irish heritage in the traditional ways, I fully intended to wallow in misery. See, it is just me and the cats at my home right now, R and C are on holidays in "another province which will remain nameless to protrect the innocent" visiting family. So, there was really no point in cooking up any traditional Irish meals, and there was nobody to drink Irish whiskey with and make traditional Irish toasts. *Sigh* - yup, it wasn't going to be a good St Paddy's Day for me at all. I was going to go out and buy a big green Irish hat to wear to work that day, but I ended up having to buy a green t-shirt (I apparently do not own any) to wear, and also I ordered some comics from E-Bay (scroll up to read more about that), so I ended up not buying a hat because I figured I had spent enough money already.
So, what made my Irish Holy-Day better? Well, I got to apply for a new position at work, and will find out in two days whether or not I got it (promotion! promotion!). My boss even, if I read him correctly, seemed pleased that I applied for the job opening. Also, just moments before I got off of work, with about 15 minutes left in St. Patrick's Day, I was given a green-sprinkled shamrock-shaped shortbread cookie. *Sigh* - makes me wish I had my camera here (it is gone on vacation with the rest of the family who are not me), I almost had a tear in my eye as I gazed lovingly at the semi-yummy little thing!
So, it is amazing - my St. Paddy's Day was not at all traditional, I did not do any of the things I normally try to do on it, but yet...somehow, it was a little bit satisfying.
Slainte mhath!
And, OF COURSE (big smiles all around), what I like to think of as Alpha Flight Volume IV, Omega Flight, is due to commence next month.
Anybody interested, can read much more about my love of comics, and Canadian heroes Alpha Flight, in my Alpha Flight blog at http://Canadas-own-The-Flight.blogspot.com .
Also, I really thought my St. Patrick's Day was going to suck this year. Instead of celebrating my Irish heritage in the traditional ways, I fully intended to wallow in misery. See, it is just me and the cats at my home right now, R and C are on holidays in "another province which will remain nameless to protrect the innocent" visiting family. So, there was really no point in cooking up any traditional Irish meals, and there was nobody to drink Irish whiskey with and make traditional Irish toasts. *Sigh* - yup, it wasn't going to be a good St Paddy's Day for me at all. I was going to go out and buy a big green Irish hat to wear to work that day, but I ended up having to buy a green t-shirt (I apparently do not own any) to wear, and also I ordered some comics from E-Bay (scroll up to read more about that), so I ended up not buying a hat because I figured I had spent enough money already.
So, what made my Irish Holy-Day better? Well, I got to apply for a new position at work, and will find out in two days whether or not I got it (promotion! promotion!). My boss even, if I read him correctly, seemed pleased that I applied for the job opening. Also, just moments before I got off of work, with about 15 minutes left in St. Patrick's Day, I was given a green-sprinkled shamrock-shaped shortbread cookie. *Sigh* - makes me wish I had my camera here (it is gone on vacation with the rest of the family who are not me), I almost had a tear in my eye as I gazed lovingly at the semi-yummy little thing!
So, it is amazing - my St. Paddy's Day was not at all traditional, I did not do any of the things I normally try to do on it, but yet...somehow, it was a little bit satisfying.
Slainte mhath!
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Happy Day and all that
Happy Belated Birthday to my buddy, Pastor D!
And, Happy St. Patrick's Day, to all of you who are Irish (and the rest of you, who just wish you were)!
Today, i will be applying for a new position at work, that of On-Call Supervisor. Wish me luck!
And, Happy St. Patrick's Day, to all of you who are Irish (and the rest of you, who just wish you were)!
Today, i will be applying for a new position at work, that of On-Call Supervisor. Wish me luck!
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Monday, March 5, 2007
more NHL news
Have you seen these articles?
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=198850&hubname=nhl
and
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/article.jsp?content=20070305_102636_4128
They allege the police are looking into pressing charges against the NHLPA for tampering with its members' email accounts. Specifically, the email accounts of those NHLPA members who oppose(d) the hiring of Ted Saskin as the head of the NHLPA.
Not good, NHLPA, not good at all.
:-(
Morons...
On another note, some of you may be wondering what my thoughts are on the Oilers dealing away Ryan Smyth at the trade deadline...so here they are.
First, let's get a few of the numbers straight, shall we? In the summer of 2006, Ryan Smyth asked the Oilers for a five year deal paying him 5 million dollars a year. GM Kevin Lowe looked at the numbers, and realized that (a) Ryan Smyth was a good hockey player, asking to get payed like a superstar hockey player, and (b) because of Ryan's style of play, figured that Ryan would not be worth that kind of money at the tail end of the deal (when he would be 36 or 37 years old). So Kevin said "no."
Next, guys like Alex Tanguay of the Flames signed for 5.25 million dollars a year, and even though most people agree that Alex's contract is way out of whack and he is not worth that kind of money, Ryan's agent told Kevin Lowe that Ryan was now asking for 5.5 million dollars a year. Ryan Smyth also informed, through the media, that he would not be accepting any kind of 'home town discount.' This, in my mind, is a nice way of saying, "Kevin, i feel i have been underpayed up until now. Even though i love this city, i am willing to go through with my unrestricted free agency and leave this place, rather than take one cent less than i beleive that i am worth. Pay me what i ask for, or lose me."
The media has falsely, numerous times, reported that the Oilers and Ryan Smyth's agent were only one hundred thousand dollars apart in their contract talks when things broke down and Kevin Lowe traded Ryan Smyth to the Islanders. NOT SO! Listen to what Kevin Lowe says in his media statements, and he says that they were "far apart" in the number figures. I believe that the Oilers were offering Ryan somewhere in the neighborhood of 4.5 million dollars a year, while Ryan originally wanted 5 million and then jumped that up to 5.5 million. Over 5 years, that is a lot of money.
Also, if you want to compare players, Darcy Tucker of the Leafs is a strong comparison case for Ryan Smyth. I believe Ryan is a bit better than Darcy, but not by much, they both play similarly and mean just as much to their respective teams (Leafs and Oilers). Darcy Tucker just signed a contract worth 3 million dollars a year. Think about that. And Ryan Smyth wants almost DOUBLE that amount! Get real! Ryan, give your head a shake, and get a new agent, buddy!
As much as I love and respect Ryan Smyth, i do not believe he was justified in asking for that kind of money. Nor do i believe that he was smart to hold a gun to the head of the Oilers management with his "home town discount" remarks. You do not try to embarrass your employer, that is just stupid.
It will be interesting to see how Ryan reacts this summer, after he has had time to meditate on all of this for a while. I would welcome him back to the Oiler ranks as a free agent, but only if he slides in under what the Oilers originally wanted to pay him.
As for what the Oilers got for him...give your head a shake, people! This was a GREAT deal for the Oilers! Robert Nilsson will play in Edmonton next year, he is a skilled puckhandler and passer. Ryan O'Marra will play in Edmonton in the future, he has been favourably compared to Mike Peca, a real team player with grit and defensive acumen with a little scoring. He never quits - that sounds like a prototypical Oiler to me! Three first round draft picks for Ryan Smyth. Tell me, did anybody make a better deal at the deadline? I give you a resounding NO!
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=198850&hubname=nhl
and
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/article.jsp?content=20070305_102636_4128
They allege the police are looking into pressing charges against the NHLPA for tampering with its members' email accounts. Specifically, the email accounts of those NHLPA members who oppose(d) the hiring of Ted Saskin as the head of the NHLPA.
Not good, NHLPA, not good at all.
:-(
Morons...
On another note, some of you may be wondering what my thoughts are on the Oilers dealing away Ryan Smyth at the trade deadline...so here they are.
First, let's get a few of the numbers straight, shall we? In the summer of 2006, Ryan Smyth asked the Oilers for a five year deal paying him 5 million dollars a year. GM Kevin Lowe looked at the numbers, and realized that (a) Ryan Smyth was a good hockey player, asking to get payed like a superstar hockey player, and (b) because of Ryan's style of play, figured that Ryan would not be worth that kind of money at the tail end of the deal (when he would be 36 or 37 years old). So Kevin said "no."
Next, guys like Alex Tanguay of the Flames signed for 5.25 million dollars a year, and even though most people agree that Alex's contract is way out of whack and he is not worth that kind of money, Ryan's agent told Kevin Lowe that Ryan was now asking for 5.5 million dollars a year. Ryan Smyth also informed, through the media, that he would not be accepting any kind of 'home town discount.' This, in my mind, is a nice way of saying, "Kevin, i feel i have been underpayed up until now. Even though i love this city, i am willing to go through with my unrestricted free agency and leave this place, rather than take one cent less than i beleive that i am worth. Pay me what i ask for, or lose me."
The media has falsely, numerous times, reported that the Oilers and Ryan Smyth's agent were only one hundred thousand dollars apart in their contract talks when things broke down and Kevin Lowe traded Ryan Smyth to the Islanders. NOT SO! Listen to what Kevin Lowe says in his media statements, and he says that they were "far apart" in the number figures. I believe that the Oilers were offering Ryan somewhere in the neighborhood of 4.5 million dollars a year, while Ryan originally wanted 5 million and then jumped that up to 5.5 million. Over 5 years, that is a lot of money.
Also, if you want to compare players, Darcy Tucker of the Leafs is a strong comparison case for Ryan Smyth. I believe Ryan is a bit better than Darcy, but not by much, they both play similarly and mean just as much to their respective teams (Leafs and Oilers). Darcy Tucker just signed a contract worth 3 million dollars a year. Think about that. And Ryan Smyth wants almost DOUBLE that amount! Get real! Ryan, give your head a shake, and get a new agent, buddy!
As much as I love and respect Ryan Smyth, i do not believe he was justified in asking for that kind of money. Nor do i believe that he was smart to hold a gun to the head of the Oilers management with his "home town discount" remarks. You do not try to embarrass your employer, that is just stupid.
It will be interesting to see how Ryan reacts this summer, after he has had time to meditate on all of this for a while. I would welcome him back to the Oiler ranks as a free agent, but only if he slides in under what the Oilers originally wanted to pay him.
As for what the Oilers got for him...give your head a shake, people! This was a GREAT deal for the Oilers! Robert Nilsson will play in Edmonton next year, he is a skilled puckhandler and passer. Ryan O'Marra will play in Edmonton in the future, he has been favourably compared to Mike Peca, a real team player with grit and defensive acumen with a little scoring. He never quits - that sounds like a prototypical Oiler to me! Three first round draft picks for Ryan Smyth. Tell me, did anybody make a better deal at the deadline? I give you a resounding NO!
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Mending My Own Business
lol
"Mending" my own business - cuz i am writing to tell you quickly that i am currently resting and mending from my surgery.
I am thinking i may end up with a nasty scar out of all this - oh well.
gotta go, i am not supposed ot be sitting, so am standing up and typing - is hard on the back to do so.
I am just slowly mending. Thanks to all who are praying for me. I will be out fo action for quite a while yet, i still have lots of abdomenal swelling to deal with, and lots of bed rest.
Cheers!
"Mending" my own business - cuz i am writing to tell you quickly that i am currently resting and mending from my surgery.
I am thinking i may end up with a nasty scar out of all this - oh well.
gotta go, i am not supposed ot be sitting, so am standing up and typing - is hard on the back to do so.
I am just slowly mending. Thanks to all who are praying for me. I will be out fo action for quite a while yet, i still have lots of abdomenal swelling to deal with, and lots of bed rest.
Cheers!
Thursday, February 22, 2007
As The Scalpel Falls Part 1
Well, tomorrow is the big day!
Surgery. Yuck.
To make things worse yet, i found out i have to be at the hospital at 6 AM. Now, i live 45 minutes or so from the hospital, being in a different city. This means i will have to be up by 4:30am. Considering that i do not usually fall asleep until somewhere between 2:30 and 4:00am on a nightly basis...hm...no sleep for me, i guess.
Well, this is all i will be blogging on this subject until after i get home (hopefully without my doctor's watch somewhere inside my body!)...
Surgery. Yuck.
To make things worse yet, i found out i have to be at the hospital at 6 AM. Now, i live 45 minutes or so from the hospital, being in a different city. This means i will have to be up by 4:30am. Considering that i do not usually fall asleep until somewhere between 2:30 and 4:00am on a nightly basis...hm...no sleep for me, i guess.
Well, this is all i will be blogging on this subject until after i get home (hopefully without my doctor's watch somewhere inside my body!)...
Monday, February 19, 2007
hockey article of interest
(Re-printed without permission) :-O
Silent Treatment
February 19th, 2007
Jim Kelley
(for Sportsnet.ca)
Amid the buzz of who might be traded where, the real issues affecting the NHL go unnoticed.
Here are a few thoughts jotted in a notebook while watching NASCAR roar past the National Hockey League via the Daytona 500; the PGA tour capture a massive share of attention with Phil Mickelson blowing another chance to shed his "Never On Sunday" image; and the National Basketball Association showcase an All-Star "competition" that still manages to capture your wandering eye even though it's very much like
the NHL's silly showcase (that you can't find without television's answer to a digital microscope).
I mention all this as the collective hockey media is gearing up to run endless hours of televised, print and internet speculation about trade rumors that may or may not come to pass during the three-days of general managers meetings in Florida ... while the real issues of the NHL are virtually ignored.
Some examples:
Bogus Issue No. 1: Some teams will be buyers at the February 27 deadline, and some will be sellers.
No kidding! Is there something new here? Have we not heard or read or seen this every year since the NHL established a deadline. Look, this isn't the issue. The issue is whether or not the GMs will suggest to the powers that be in the NHL (Gary Bettman, Bill Daly and Colin Campbell) will make any real and/or relevant suggestions regarding what is necessary to move the game forward.
The general consensus seems to be that the changes imposed after the lockout are enough for now and the old saw about "don't fix it if it ain't broken" applies. How can that be? Fans across North America are looking at the new NHL with a very large ho hum. Ratings are static in Canada. Ratings are non-existent in the United States. The league claims attendance is on the rise but it doesn't release paid attendance figures, or even the value of those paid attendance figures. The league has those numbers; but nobody in media unearths them or holds the league accountable for not providing them. Meanwhile, we see thousands of empty seats in arenas from Boston to Chicago to Los Angeles and a great many cities in between.
While the talk is endless about whether or not Nashville overpaid for Peter Forsberg or Edmonton is signaling they are sellers after the dumping of Marc-Andre Bergeron, nothing is being said or written about the demise of the NHL on both broadcast TV and cable in the United States. The rise of NASCAR to a place of mega-prominence on ESPN (once the home of hockey in the US) was witnessed Sunday when ESPN opened with 15 minutes of coverage of the Daytona 500 Sunday night. A whole 15 minutes of coverage for an event it didn't have the rights for. Hockey coverage was non-existent except for the crawler at the bottom of the screen.
Bogus Issue No. 2: The endless debate regarding scheduling changes and whether or not the GMs will take a stand during their meetings.
Hello? The GMs can stand on their heads on the 19th tee or hook each other off the deck of the "Looking for the Big One" charter boat and it won't matter.
Changing the schedule, or even recommending changing the schedule, to address divisional or conference play isn't their domain. It wasn't their domain when the met in Toronto earlier this winter and it won't be during these meetings.
This just in: the general managers don't control the scheduling, the owners do. The general managers do not reshape the way the game is played these days, the competition committee does.
The real issue that needs to be addressed is what the heck has happened to the competition committee? They don't seem to be meeting; they don't appear to be addressing anything. They appear as immobilized as Brendan Shanahan (one of their
members) was while being wheeled off the Madison Square Garden ice over the weekend, the victim of a head-on-head hit.
Look around, concussions are still a major problem for the NHL. What's being done? Knee-on-knee hits seem to be on the rise. What's being done? The coach of the Eastern Conference at the All-Star game, Lindy Ruff, charges that hooking, holding and obstruction are making their way back into the game. He gets about one day of coverage and then it's back to who might be traded.
These are serious issues in the game today. So is the fact that Campbell has unilaterally changed the rules about physical contact and seems to have turned a blind eye to the seriousness of serious intent to injure, ignoring some incidents that scream for supplemental discipline while holding to a three-game-no-matter what standard for the few instances he does rule on. How is it that one man holds so much power to determine the shape and course of the game?
Isn't that worth writing about or asking about? Isn't that more important than a national debate on the value of Ryan Smyth's contract?
Meanwhile ESPN Sunday spent about five minutes after its Daytona report on the NBA All-Star game with a promise to come back to it later in the show. Still no mention of the NHL, or even the fact the GMs are meeting. Coverage moves to Phil Mickelson's melt down on the 72nd hole (shades of the US open revisited) and a lengthy segment on pitchers and catchers reporting to baseball spring training. Finish up with an endless chat with Lou Pinella about the joys of managing a baseball team in Chicago, an event that hasn't happened yet.
The NHL and NHLPA need to be looking at their "partnership" agreement. How close can the two sides be when there is an ongoing federal investigation (According to a report in Sports Business Journal) into whether or not labour laws were violated regarding contractual side agreements between the league and the Players' Association? Or what about the fact these letters were not revealed to the players who ratified the agreement? The CBA issues between the Players' Association and the league and the players and their leadership are huge yet go virtually unreported.
Bogus Issue No. 3: The length of pregame ceremonies honoring former players, teams or events and how maybe the Toronto Maple Leafs got it right (as if honoring a 40-year drought by bring back it's last championship team really matters).
Okay, maybe it matters to visiting teams that Steve Yzerman's goodbye took 80 minutes or that Mike Vernon's number retirement dragged on. That being said, what about some dialogue on the bogus system that gives teams a point for losing in overtime or a shootout? Anybody find it interesting that goalies, everyone's consensus choice as the most valuable players in the game, are being run at every
opportunity and it's not an accident, it's a coaching tactic?
Anyone notice that Wayne Gretzky has flip-flopped on the need for fighting in hockey and how that might open the door for more of it in the game? Does anyone have a lick of interest about revising the instigator rule or "no-touch" icing or the fact that goaltenders really haven't given up much of anything in regards the size of their equipment or that some coaches and GMs are arguing for a lessening of "soft"
penalties, an affront to the still-new officiating standards if there ever was one?
Doesn't seem like it.
Hockey has issues, but we in media rarely seem interested. In the race to be first to report the hot rumour or denigrate Sidney Crosby, or be funny, different or sexy, we've managed to overlook the fact that the game is still struggling to come back from a horrific labour dispute, one that is only now showing the extent of the damage it did to the game.
In the race to rack a GM in either the buyer or seller category we've neglected to ask whether or not he has a viable idea for fine tuning the game. In the hustle to identify a hair-thin report of a possible new commissioner have we even bothered to take an in-depth look at the accomplishments and/or failures of the current commissioner?
The consensus say hockey is a hard sell, especially in the States, because far too few people play it; but how many sports fans have ever piloted an automobile around a packed race course at 200 miles per hour with a competitor sitting right on his bumper? How many of us have actually jammed a basketball home from above the rim or had to putt-to-win on 18 with the eyes of millions questioning whether or not we're
going to choke?
Hockey has just as much right as any other major sport to be in the eye of the entertainment world. The fact that it isn't is the question that needs to be addressed. The ways to make hockey happen need to continue to be discussed.
That it isn't happening now is part of the reason why it took until thirty one minutes into the show before ESPN showed about 30 seconds of hockey, profiling the Pittsburgh Penguins-Washington Capitals showcase of young talent and another 15 before other game highlights are shown, other game scores announced. It's why NBC has the games virtually for free and can't get people to watch. It's why the sport we know and love is dropping like a rock in terms of major audience appeal.
Silent Treatment
February 19th, 2007
Jim Kelley
(for Sportsnet.ca)
Amid the buzz of who might be traded where, the real issues affecting the NHL go unnoticed.
Here are a few thoughts jotted in a notebook while watching NASCAR roar past the National Hockey League via the Daytona 500; the PGA tour capture a massive share of attention with Phil Mickelson blowing another chance to shed his "Never On Sunday" image; and the National Basketball Association showcase an All-Star "competition" that still manages to capture your wandering eye even though it's very much like
the NHL's silly showcase (that you can't find without television's answer to a digital microscope).
I mention all this as the collective hockey media is gearing up to run endless hours of televised, print and internet speculation about trade rumors that may or may not come to pass during the three-days of general managers meetings in Florida ... while the real issues of the NHL are virtually ignored.
Some examples:
Bogus Issue No. 1: Some teams will be buyers at the February 27 deadline, and some will be sellers.
No kidding! Is there something new here? Have we not heard or read or seen this every year since the NHL established a deadline. Look, this isn't the issue. The issue is whether or not the GMs will suggest to the powers that be in the NHL (Gary Bettman, Bill Daly and Colin Campbell) will make any real and/or relevant suggestions regarding what is necessary to move the game forward.
The general consensus seems to be that the changes imposed after the lockout are enough for now and the old saw about "don't fix it if it ain't broken" applies. How can that be? Fans across North America are looking at the new NHL with a very large ho hum. Ratings are static in Canada. Ratings are non-existent in the United States. The league claims attendance is on the rise but it doesn't release paid attendance figures, or even the value of those paid attendance figures. The league has those numbers; but nobody in media unearths them or holds the league accountable for not providing them. Meanwhile, we see thousands of empty seats in arenas from Boston to Chicago to Los Angeles and a great many cities in between.
While the talk is endless about whether or not Nashville overpaid for Peter Forsberg or Edmonton is signaling they are sellers after the dumping of Marc-Andre Bergeron, nothing is being said or written about the demise of the NHL on both broadcast TV and cable in the United States. The rise of NASCAR to a place of mega-prominence on ESPN (once the home of hockey in the US) was witnessed Sunday when ESPN opened with 15 minutes of coverage of the Daytona 500 Sunday night. A whole 15 minutes of coverage for an event it didn't have the rights for. Hockey coverage was non-existent except for the crawler at the bottom of the screen.
Bogus Issue No. 2: The endless debate regarding scheduling changes and whether or not the GMs will take a stand during their meetings.
Hello? The GMs can stand on their heads on the 19th tee or hook each other off the deck of the "Looking for the Big One" charter boat and it won't matter.
Changing the schedule, or even recommending changing the schedule, to address divisional or conference play isn't their domain. It wasn't their domain when the met in Toronto earlier this winter and it won't be during these meetings.
This just in: the general managers don't control the scheduling, the owners do. The general managers do not reshape the way the game is played these days, the competition committee does.
The real issue that needs to be addressed is what the heck has happened to the competition committee? They don't seem to be meeting; they don't appear to be addressing anything. They appear as immobilized as Brendan Shanahan (one of their
members) was while being wheeled off the Madison Square Garden ice over the weekend, the victim of a head-on-head hit.
Look around, concussions are still a major problem for the NHL. What's being done? Knee-on-knee hits seem to be on the rise. What's being done? The coach of the Eastern Conference at the All-Star game, Lindy Ruff, charges that hooking, holding and obstruction are making their way back into the game. He gets about one day of coverage and then it's back to who might be traded.
These are serious issues in the game today. So is the fact that Campbell has unilaterally changed the rules about physical contact and seems to have turned a blind eye to the seriousness of serious intent to injure, ignoring some incidents that scream for supplemental discipline while holding to a three-game-no-matter what standard for the few instances he does rule on. How is it that one man holds so much power to determine the shape and course of the game?
Isn't that worth writing about or asking about? Isn't that more important than a national debate on the value of Ryan Smyth's contract?
Meanwhile ESPN Sunday spent about five minutes after its Daytona report on the NBA All-Star game with a promise to come back to it later in the show. Still no mention of the NHL, or even the fact the GMs are meeting. Coverage moves to Phil Mickelson's melt down on the 72nd hole (shades of the US open revisited) and a lengthy segment on pitchers and catchers reporting to baseball spring training. Finish up with an endless chat with Lou Pinella about the joys of managing a baseball team in Chicago, an event that hasn't happened yet.
The NHL and NHLPA need to be looking at their "partnership" agreement. How close can the two sides be when there is an ongoing federal investigation (According to a report in Sports Business Journal) into whether or not labour laws were violated regarding contractual side agreements between the league and the Players' Association? Or what about the fact these letters were not revealed to the players who ratified the agreement? The CBA issues between the Players' Association and the league and the players and their leadership are huge yet go virtually unreported.
Bogus Issue No. 3: The length of pregame ceremonies honoring former players, teams or events and how maybe the Toronto Maple Leafs got it right (as if honoring a 40-year drought by bring back it's last championship team really matters).
Okay, maybe it matters to visiting teams that Steve Yzerman's goodbye took 80 minutes or that Mike Vernon's number retirement dragged on. That being said, what about some dialogue on the bogus system that gives teams a point for losing in overtime or a shootout? Anybody find it interesting that goalies, everyone's consensus choice as the most valuable players in the game, are being run at every
opportunity and it's not an accident, it's a coaching tactic?
Anyone notice that Wayne Gretzky has flip-flopped on the need for fighting in hockey and how that might open the door for more of it in the game? Does anyone have a lick of interest about revising the instigator rule or "no-touch" icing or the fact that goaltenders really haven't given up much of anything in regards the size of their equipment or that some coaches and GMs are arguing for a lessening of "soft"
penalties, an affront to the still-new officiating standards if there ever was one?
Doesn't seem like it.
Hockey has issues, but we in media rarely seem interested. In the race to be first to report the hot rumour or denigrate Sidney Crosby, or be funny, different or sexy, we've managed to overlook the fact that the game is still struggling to come back from a horrific labour dispute, one that is only now showing the extent of the damage it did to the game.
In the race to rack a GM in either the buyer or seller category we've neglected to ask whether or not he has a viable idea for fine tuning the game. In the hustle to identify a hair-thin report of a possible new commissioner have we even bothered to take an in-depth look at the accomplishments and/or failures of the current commissioner?
The consensus say hockey is a hard sell, especially in the States, because far too few people play it; but how many sports fans have ever piloted an automobile around a packed race course at 200 miles per hour with a competitor sitting right on his bumper? How many of us have actually jammed a basketball home from above the rim or had to putt-to-win on 18 with the eyes of millions questioning whether or not we're
going to choke?
Hockey has just as much right as any other major sport to be in the eye of the entertainment world. The fact that it isn't is the question that needs to be addressed. The ways to make hockey happen need to continue to be discussed.
That it isn't happening now is part of the reason why it took until thirty one minutes into the show before ESPN showed about 30 seconds of hockey, profiling the Pittsburgh Penguins-Washington Capitals showcase of young talent and another 15 before other game highlights are shown, other game scores announced. It's why NBC has the games virtually for free and can't get people to watch. It's why the sport we know and love is dropping like a rock in terms of major audience appeal.
Friday, February 16, 2007
The Knife Cuts Both Ways
"I'm so vein, I bet I think this song is about me,
I'm so vein, I bet I think this song is about me..."
Sorry, had to do it.
Well, I just got the news today - gotta go under the knife next week. Friday the 23rd, that is the big day. Off to KGH for what should be a simple, in-and-out procedure, whereby the top of my head is cut off and sewn onto the bottom of my left foot...Just Kidding! Actually, it is just a procedure to fix some vein problem I apparently have (I can just see the specialist now, gazing all teary-eyed at a glossy full-page magazine photo of the new set of golf clubs that he is about to place an order for...) in my groin-al area somewhere.
But enough with the gory details, and enough with the useless chatter.
Tat-ta!
I'm so vein, I bet I think this song is about me..."
Sorry, had to do it.
Well, I just got the news today - gotta go under the knife next week. Friday the 23rd, that is the big day. Off to KGH for what should be a simple, in-and-out procedure, whereby the top of my head is cut off and sewn onto the bottom of my left foot...Just Kidding! Actually, it is just a procedure to fix some vein problem I apparently have (I can just see the specialist now, gazing all teary-eyed at a glossy full-page magazine photo of the new set of golf clubs that he is about to place an order for...) in my groin-al area somewhere.
But enough with the gory details, and enough with the useless chatter.
Tat-ta!
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Holiday
Just wanted to wish all of my loved ones a Happy St Valentine's Day!
However, I do NOT want to be that guy who puts up the stereotypical picture of a heart...the holidays are WAY too commercialized, I do not want to be a part of that stuff.
So, i chose this picture instead.
Go raibh míle maith agat!
However, I do NOT want to be that guy who puts up the stereotypical picture of a heart...the holidays are WAY too commercialized, I do not want to be a part of that stuff.
So, i chose this picture instead.
Go raibh míle maith agat!
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