Mother's Day cards

Just a little venting here. Am I the only one who thinks greeting cards these days are utterlly lame and stupid? A couple days ago, Taryn and I must have spent about 20 minutes trying to pick out Mother's Day cards. It wasn't that there were so many good choices that took so long, but rather because we had to wade through all the cards with pop-ups and bad jokes that involved seeing yourself in a mirror. No joke, one card had SIX additional fold-out pages. SIX!!!!! I almost counted that as my "book to read" for May. My suggestion ... no more cards. Honestly, do we really need some Mr. Deeds wannabe to butcher how we say "Happy Mother's Day" or "Happy Birthday" for us?? I think not.

"An Inconvenient Truth"

Al Gore's new movie, An Inconvenient Truth, has premiered at the Sundance film festival and is scheduled to be released in select theaters later this month. Not surprising, it's received immense praise from Hollywood and mainstream media who are ever ready to latch on to the latest liberal cause (feel free to substitute the word 'agenda' for 'cause').

Funny how the media and liberals (which, in many cases, are synonymous) jump at every turn to criticize President Bush for "scaring" people on the terrorism issue, yet alarmism and doom are the foundation for much of liberal thought on a wide variety of issues. They excel at creating victims and making people look at themselves as such. Victims of racism (the immigration debate is headed there), victims of the economy (whether it's good or bad), victims in the education debate, victims in labor/work issues - they thrive on creating victims. And now victims of global warming. Global warming is the ideal issue because they don't have to focus on special interest groups. Now, if you live on earth, you too can be a victim.

Please understand that this issue is not something that I feel we can just discard and not worry about. And I also believe in the principle of conservation and respect for the earth God has given us to inhabit. But much of the fanfare for this movie comes from the same people who champion Michael Moore as an icon of truth and accuracy. I don't believe in the inflated claims that An Inconvenient Truth allegedly puts forth, namely that the earth as we know it will be in chaos in 10 years if their ridiculous cut-back proposals aren't met. I also believe that the entire issue of global warming is still open to debate, which is a far cry from the consensus group-think you hear about, read about, and could well imagine based on Google searches on the issue.

I've included links to a few articles on this. Richard Lindzen is a professor of atmospheric science at MIT. Check out this article he wrote for the Wall Street Journal. Here's another good article from Tom Bethell. For a much more detailed scientific approach, check out this essay. Links to different sections of the argument are on the left-hand side of the site. The page I've linked to also includes a select list of scientists who oppose this alleged consensus on global warming. One of the best parts of this essay is that it directly addresses the weakness of connecting recent hurricane activity to global warming, as does Richard Lindzen's article. For more info on qualified scientists who disagree with the imminent global warming doom, do an internet search for Dr. Frederick Seitz and The Oregon Petition.

And just for fun, here's a list of some documented lies Al Gore told during his campaign for President. I must admit, I enjoy the irony in the title of his movie.

Articles links:
http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110008220
http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=8177
http://www.aetherometry.com/global_warming/gw_index.html

NFL Draft

Ok, I have to admit it. I like the NFL draft. Not in the insane way where I have to be glued to the set for every pick of every round (including all FIVE HOURS of the 1st round), but I like to check back every 20-30 minutes or so to see what's happened. In case you didn't hear (just kidding, of course) the Texans took Mario Williams out of N.C. State instead of Reggie Bush. The Houston front office may not want him, but I hope I get Bush on my fantasy team next year. That guy's a freak of nature with the football in his hands. I just listened to an interview with Charlie Casserly (Texan's GM) on espn. He was talking about Barry Sanders being the best RB in the league during his career and how the Lions only won 1 playoff game with him. True, but the Lions supporting cast was never any good around Sanders, except for Herman Moore. Houston has a pretty good QB in Carr, a top WR in Andre Johnson and another pretty good back in Domanick Davis. Not to mention that regardless of how the Lions did, Sanders put people in the seats. Bush would immediately make them a better team and bring the fans out next year. Williams won't.

My hometown Jacksonville Jaguars did alright in the draft getting a big target at TE. From an offensive production standpoint, anyone's an upgrade on Kyle Brady. The thing I liked best was that they took a couple guys from my old school, Ed White HS, in Demetrice Webb (7th round) and Jamaal Fudge (free agent). Always good to see the hometown guys get picked up and great to see the Commanders get some love.

Finally, a couple other things that will keep me coming back for more draft coverage in years to come. One, Chris Berman being at a loss for words. It's pretty much the only day of the year we get to see it. The other is Mel Kiper getting all that face time. This guy is a robot in front of the camera. Did you see his ESPN Mobile Phone commercial leading up to the draft?? Couldn't they have given him a few more takes to try to find a little personality?? Watching him try to take himself seriously for that long on live camera is priceless. Only Al Gore could rival him for "Most Boring Man on the Planet". But like I said, I hope to see more of it for years to come.