Getting in just under the wire for these. Hopefully, I’ll be home in time for the early games both days. I’m taking Girlie Bear to the movies this afternoon and I’m working tomorrow morning.

So here we go:

Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans – This one is a tough one, so it should be an enjoyable game to watch. The Titans have a great offense, and the Ravens have a great defense. I see the Ravens winning this one.

San Diego Chargers and the Pittsburgh Steelers – Steelers. Totally sentimental pick, but I have gut feeling about this one.

Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants – I like the Giants, but I think Philadelphia is peaking at just the right time. Philadelphia wins this one.

Arizona Cardinals and the Carolina Panthers – Carolina, but not for any good reason other than the Cardinals don’t do so well on the road.

Hopefully, I’ll do better than 2 and 2 like I did last weekend.

A man in New York is asking for either the return of the kidney he donated to his soon-to-be ex-wife or $1.5 million.

Good to see someone standing up against injustice like that.

Wonder if I can go back to court with my ex’s to get my dignity back?

I spent my last two years of high school in the Bay Area, and I went through military language training at Monterey. The politics and social problems of California are great, and they all seem to be victim issues.

I saw this link on the Agitator’s blog, and it just reminds me why I’ve only returned to the Bay Area a handful of times since I left.

Here are the facts: Last week, a young man was shot by a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police officer, apparently after the young man was lieing on his stomach with his hands behind his back. The investigation is underway as to whether or not it was due to a negligent discharge or if it was intentional.

Yesterday, a protest was staged at the station where this all occured. You can’t get a speeding ticket in the Bay Area without someone having a protest, but I think this one was pretty legit. Somebody got shot, and there’s a controversy as to whether or not it was necessary. It started off peacefully, but eventually degenerated into a mob that went through the streets, breaking windows, knocking around cars, and setting fires.

The area that this all happened in isn’t exactly a war zone, but you can see the war zone from there. So the people who live and work in that neighborhood aren’t rich people who can just absorb the cost of the damage. So the people of Oakland who feel they have a grievance are taking out their anger, justified or not, out on the very people they live and work with.

The people who were part of the mob didn’t seem to care who they hurt. They broke the windows of a Lexus and of a small business. Their attitude was that they were justified in what they did because they’re tired of black and Latino people being shot by the police.

I don’t get the connection myself. If you’re mad at the police and the government,why are you breaking windows and smashing cars of private citizens, especially ones in your own neighborhood?

Why didn’t any of these property owners try to defend their stores, homes, and cars? Even if you don’t have a gun, a baseball bat or a tire iron is usually enough to get a disorganized mob to move on to something easier to destroy. The people who were interviewed for the story just seemed to want to sit by and cry about it. Another thing about Bay Area people I’ve never understood. They don’t seem to want to stand up for themselves, and love to cry about how the evil government didn’t protect them.

And of course, some of the hippies from Berkeley had to come down and help out with their screeching of slogans, waving of banners, and distributing of literature. I had to deal with these loonies a few times when I was at Monterey. They would demonstrate in front of the Presidio and Fort Ord about how we were destroying the world by being in the Army. It was kind of fun to watch them sit and chant and beat drums while the MP’s waved people through the main gate during one of the many cold foggy/rainy days we had that year.

I’ve decided to just write California, at least the Bay Area, off. I still have family and friends there, and I urge them to leave every time I talk to them. No amount of charm, easy living, good food, and beautiful country is worth having to put up with nuts like this.

H/T to Laurel at Politics, Guns, and Beer

A young man in Bakersfield CA was walking down the street with a young lady. The young lady was walking her small dog. Said ankle biter is jumped on by a pit bull. Young lady tries to defend ankle biter, pit bull attacks young lady.

Young man does not run away. He does not freeze. He jumps on the back of the pit bull and puts it in a choke hold he learned at jiu jitzu class. His actions prevent further injury to the young lady and he restrains the dog until the authorities get there to take control of it.

And the ankle biter survived.

Pure balls.

To stay calm enough to apply something he learned in a class against an animal he’s never even practiced fighting is amazing for anyone, much less a boy who’s 5 years too young to shave.

Good on ya, son!

H/T to Blackfive on this one.

HBO is going to air a new movie called “Taking Chance” about a Marine officer who escorts the body of a young Marine who died in Iraq to his hometown.

I first read the story several years ago, and it’s a tear jerker. It brought back memories of the times I’ve been on burial detail, and it’s an excellent read.

If you have HBO, I’d highly suggest you watch this, even if the acting, etc. is bad. This is a story that needs to be learned by more people.

Today, in 1994, Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed like a baby seal by associates of her rival Tonya Harding for the Olympic ice skating team.

Nancy went on to medal in the winter Olympics and tour as the star of an ice extraveganza.

Tonya went on to embarrass herself and her country at the Olympics, become quite the trailer queen, and became a female boxer.

Not sure who suffered more, Nancy or us having to go through that whole over-exposed drama.

So, police in New York have arrested a father and son for stealing granite tombstones.

Everyone, including me, is puzzled as to the motivation for stealing something like a tombstone. But with a little imagination, maybe we can get to the bottom of this.

Top 5 excuses for stealing tombstones:

5. Trying to save money on materials for the new countertops that Ma wants in the kitchen.
4. Putting in a new sidewalk, and ran out of pavers.
3. Reinforcing their zombie-proof shelter with something the zombies will recognize.
2. Needed to weight down the back of their truck for the winter so they wouldn’t spin out and go into the ditch
1. Trying to get to hell on a scholarship.

Well, I was 2 and 2 this weekend in the wildcard games. Not too good. Glad I’m not actually putting money on these things.

I’ll have my picks for this weekend up soon.

I know several people who are given company cars as part of their job. Most are in sales or customer service in one form or another. They use the cars as part of their day to day work, and then take them home and use them as a second family vehicle in the evening and on weekends. I haven’t heard anyone say that their employer objects to this.

One of these friends has to pay a small amount for his company car. His employer has fallen on hard times, and in order to recoup some cash, asked their employees with company cars to kick in a little if they wanted to use them after hours. It’s not free anymore, but it’s significantly less than a car payment, insurance, and upkeep on a personally owned vehicle.

Recently, the Louisville Metro government has run into some fiscal problems. In order to cut some expenses, non-critical personnel have been forced to take days off, some programs have either been cut back or cancelled, and the mayor has asked that police officers who take their cruiser home pay a small fee for the privilege. The fees were $100 a month if the officer was just going to take the vehicle home and use it, or $160 a month if the officer was going to use the car to work for another employer. In the past, there was no charge for either case. The mayor may be trying to use these payments as a disincentive for the police to take their cruisers home, thereby saving on wear and tear on the vehicles and possibly to save gas.

Several police officers’ children go to Girlie Bear’s school. They use their cruisers to bring their kids to school in the morning and/or pick them up in the afternoon. I guess they have been using their cruiser as a second car. I have no problem with this. The more officers who drive their cruisers around at all times means more police visibility, and hopefully that is some deterrent to crime.

I have also seen other officers use their cruisers after hours at jobs, such as pulling security at an event or directing traffic for a church. Again, no problem, and for the same reasons. If a police officer can make a few extra bucks and make my community better doing it, good for him or her.

But the police union, and apparently the rank and file officers, have rejected the new requirement for a nominal payment. From what I can see, their main objection is paying anything at all for something they’ve always had for free, and a legal argument that the mayor is changing their work environment without proper notification.

I can see both sides in this, but I tend to come down with the city on this one. Yes, the police have been able to take their cars home at no cost in the past, and they do a public service just by being seen in them, but the Mayor is asking them to help out the city and try to cut costs. $100 or $160 a month is nothing compared to a car payment, insurance, and upkeep on a Crown Victoria. And it’s not a permanent requirement. When things get better, I’m sure that the payment will be waived.

As for changing their work environment without proper notification, I have to ask if the use of a company car was part of the last police contract. If it’s not, can the union argue that this is a change of work environment or benefits?

Come on guys, help out the city here. I respect the dangerous, boring, and hard work that y’all do in every environment and weather situation that Jefferson county can throw at you, but the money has to come from somewhere. Every other department in the county has taken some pretty deep cuts, and I’d rather see a side benefit like a company car get tougher for you than things like equipment and training for police officers get cut.

Guys,

Saw this and wanted t0 pass it along. I can’t imagine a young child missing their pet over the holidays.

If you can help out, it would be great! 😉