I have just a few things to get off my chest...
- Why do hypocrisy and politics go hand in hand? Even those "political outsiders" who claim to be different are every bit as hypocritical as the so-called "establishment politicians".
- Case in Point #1 - Missouri governor Eric Greitens ran as an outsider who wanted to clean up the ethics (or lack thereof) in Jefferson City. His campaign talked about making state government "open and accountable," while his campaign was largely supported by faceless, "dark money" donors that he refused to disclose. Even as governor, he has continued to tap into funds from these dark money sources and steadfastly refused to disclose where the money is coming from. So much for openness and accountability.
- Case in Point #2 - Donald Trump ravaged Obama a few years back about staying out of Syria, only to, in turn, bomb Syria within his first 90 days in office. Whether you thought bombing Syria was the right call or not is irrelevant. (For the record, I'm a non-interventionist and think we should stop playing international police officer.) The point is he is doing exactly what he told Obama he shouldn't do, which is about as hypocritical as you can get.
- Any discussion of improving security on the Metrolink should start with installing a turnstile system that only allows paying customers to access the train platform. I've ridden public transit in New York, Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia and every single one of those systems forced someone to swipe a ticket or card and go through a locked turnstile to access the trains. I understand that Metrolink was designed to be an "open system" but that clearly isn't working very well. Some of the Metro stations will be difficult to enclose, but the underground stations downtown and in the Central West End would be easy to secure. Rather than using the recent tax increase to expand Metrolink, they should instead use those funds to secure and improve the existing system.
- Why do some people seem to get their kicks out of stirring the pot and making trouble for other people? I have to frequently deal with those individuals in my job and it never ceases to amaze me. What happened to these folks to where they gain pleasure out of making other people miserable?
- Why do some people put forth more effort to avoid doing work than if they actually showed up and did their jobs?
- Few things make me angrier than a murder-suicide. If you're going to kill yourself, just do it. Don't bring other innocent people into it by harming or killing them as well.
- The "Murphy's Law" of home ownership has reared it's ugly head in our household lately. Within the past few weeks, our dishwasher required repairs for a broken heating coil, our washer started acting up during the rinse and spin cycles and now our air conditioner bit the dust, requiring a HVAC system replacement. And, of course, this all happened within weeks of us buying a new car and getting the kids a trampoline. Sometimes, I think my wife and I feel like Tom Hanks and Shelly Long in "The Money Pit." Here's hoping that nothing else breaks anytime soon.
- As if the Toyota Prius wasn't already ugly enough, Toyota has made their flagship hybrid car even UGLIER.
- Why can't auto companies make hybrids and electric cars that look, you know, normal? The always have to have some weird, futuristic vibe going on.
- Speaking of ugly electric cars, have you seen the BMW i3? The first time I saw one, I had to do a double take and ask myself "Is that thing really a BMW?" Apparently so.
- Baylor fans will note that I made the i3 even uglier by posting a picture of one that is burnt orange. :)
- By the way, no offense to any of you who own a Prius or an i3. To each their own. I'm sure there are things I like that you think are ugly, too. It's those differences that make the world go around.
- Bruce Boudreau, head coach of the Minnesota Wild, made a fool of himself a few days ago. Following his team's 1st round elimination to the Blues in 5 games, Boudreau said that the Blues "weren't the better team". Part of me understands what he meant - the Wild had significantly more shots on goal and significantly more possession time in the series. However, they also only ever had the lead ONCE in the 5 game series and that was in Game 4, the one game they won. They never even had a single lead in the other 4 games. Whether you felt your team was better or not, you might want to keep that to yourself when your team lost all 3 of their homes, lost 4 out of 5 games and only ever had the lead in one game. Of course, Bruce is probably just salty that he got knocked in the 1st round for the 2nd year in a row, both times as the higher seeded team.
- Speaking of the Wild, I still think that's a stupid name for a team - though their logo is pretty clever. The worst is when the crowd cheers "Let's go wild!" I don't know....it just seems goofy. It's too bad they couldn't have reclaimed the old Minnesota North Stars moniker, which was cool and geographically distinct and appropriate. But to think that ownership chose "Wild" over "Blue Ox" baffles me. Come on, Minnesota and Paul Bunyan, people!
- Here is the Wild's logo, by the way....just in case you were wondering.
- You know what? I think I just came up with the idea for my next blog - best and worst sports team names and logos!
Thanks for reading!
