What About This

Apparently the father of the man that tried to blow up a plane gave warning that his son was a dangerous jihadist. I'll wager that the father is himself now in danger from these savages. Has anyone thought of that?

Again

You mean to tell me a Mohammedan has been implicated in trying to kill innocents? Shocking!!

Celebrity Does Not Make One Special

I do a little bartending (and cab driving) in the Houston area and it being the large city that it is and I, being damn good at my job (Toot!, Toot!), have worked my fair share of events that cater to the celebrity crowd. I have had some good experiences and bad. Just because one finds themselves in the public eye, does not mean that they are any better (and often worse)than anyone else. I will name names here so read on brother.

A few years ago the NBA All Star game came to town along with all of the broohaha associated with it. I worked a number of the events including the rookie game, a private party or two and the gigantic NBA after party. I actually did not work the All Star Game as I was assigned to the party afterward. Here are some recollections of the event.

The after party was extremely busy with literally thousands of people at the event and everyone doing there level best to get drunk as hell. This truly reminded me of the Tom Cruise movie "Cocktail." It was that insane. At one point some guy broke in front of other people in line and informed my that "Steve Francis and his crew wanted a bottle of Cristal. His "crew?" I was not aware that Steve Francis was a river boat captain. To be honest, this occurred a few years ago and the guy might have used the term "posse." If so I would imagine that the only posse this thug belonged to was not going to mount up and chase bad guys anytime soon. Perhaps his posse was more adept at hunting bimbos in the club (with a bottle full of bub, look mami I got the X if you into takin drugs). You get the picture? Another thing I remember is the MC kept hollering "Jamie Fox is in the house" over and over. It was earsplitting. One thing I did notice was Magic Johnson standing in line in my partners station just like everyone else. An NBA Hall of Fame player who had the class and decency to wait his turn just like regular folk. He is from the old school no doubt. Contrast that with Steve Francis' representative demanding Cristal. Anyway it was my distinct pleasure to tell him that the Cristal was sold only at a booth completely across the venue.

At another NBA game I was assigned to the suite that Yao Ming's parents had for the night. They seemed like very reserved and nice people. But there were some things going on there that I found really disturbing. Now there was nobody being rude or demanding, quite the contrary, everyone was exceedingly polite. Here is where it begins to get a bit disturbing. There were some businessmen and hangers on obviously from Red China along with some oily, perpetually smiling, little guys who were obviously agents of the government (PRC). There is after all a Red Chinese consulate on Montrose Street in Houston. Here is where it gets really problematic (for me as an American) - There were quite a few other Americans (obviously business types looking to score something or other) who were scraping and bowing to our guests from the Peoples Republic. There was one guy who apparently had some kind of basketball shoe to sell and was lobbying to have them made in China. He was bowing to these government types so low that I was afraid he would end up with one's joint in his mouth. I doubt that would have bothered him much come to think of it. Well I did my job professionally, politely and competently but I did not bow to anyone. As an American I will bow to no man. Especially not in my own country. I am really very surprised that I was not given some kind of heads up from Toyota Center management that I was supposed to bow or something. I would have refused the job and gone home. Hmmmm. Why does our President find the need to kowtow and bow to Mohammedans and others when he is overseas? We don't bowto anyone! Period! It is our culture.

Well there is a sports writer here in Houston named John Mclain and though he really does not classify as a celebrity (I guess) he thinks himself one I am sure. In 2003 I believe it was, Houston hosted the Super Bowl now more remembered for the famous "wardrobe malfunction" than the actual game (Carolina vs New England). At any rate I bartended at a few of those parties and it was "Cocktail" all over again. The last Super Bowl event was the "after party" that catered mostly to journalists and their ilk. It was pretty damn busy but kind of lame none the less. I met a real cool guy from El Paso who was a firefighter by trade and a sideline photographer in his other gig. What a cool job. I wonder how he worked his way into that one. Anyway toward the end of the evening John Mclain staggered up at the bar next to me and wanted some drink or other that the bartender was out of. He got kind of belligerent and let loose with the "do you know who I am" thing. Of course the bartender had no clue, but I did. Anyone who listens to sports talk radio can't mistake that gravelly whiskey voice. I clued the bartender in on who just left his bar (after he finally left) and the guy said something to the effect of "I don't care who he is. That guy is a f....... a..hole. " I couldn't agree more. He chalked himself up in my book to what the sports world obviously already knows he is: An Ass!! Perhaps John is just trying to live up to the image of the hard drinking sports writer. That is all well and good I suppose, but he should try to handle his liquor a little better. You are not in high school John. Knowing what I know about John, I am sure that since the Super Bowl was in Houston and he is based out of here, he probably felt that he was the Prince of the Game. Did I mention that he is might be an egomaniac?
Here is where the story of Mclain gets even funnier. Now I did not have this happen to me and did not witness it but it was told to me by some cabbie a few years back and I chose to believe it. This guy, I don't know his name unfortunately, told me that he had Mclain in his cab and he pulled the same "do you know who I am stunt." Of course Mclain was allegedly hammered at the time. If this alleged incident would have happened to me, I would have pulled over and let him out of the car be it in front of a police station or crack house. Been my pleasure to do so.

I met a good many sports celebrities during that Super Bowl and was treated nice by each and every on of them. Had a conversation with Buddy Ryan and met the then Pats kicker Adam V. Seemed like good guys. Incidentally Adam cost me 2000 bucks in another Super Bowl a couple of years back when he missed a chip shot field goal with time running out in the first half. I was in a 100 buck a square office pool and a field goal would have netted me two grand. He missed it of course. I haven't forgiven him for that yet.

I have bartended for Jesse Jackson and found him interesting. He disappeared at one point in this big mansion type place called the Parador at the intersection of Almeda and Binz in Houston and there was wild speculation on where he went. Maybe found him a hottie was the going bet. At the same party I served Rep Sheila Jackson Lee and found her rude and arrogant. That is nothing unexpected however. She wasn't at my bar long enough for me to additionally classify her as stupid but she has since proven that to be the case. She also might be an egomaniac.

The list goes on and on with celebrities of politics, screen and sports that I have served in my career as a bartender. Most seem just like regular folk but when there are exceptions they sure stand out.

I almost forgot. In my cab I once chauffeured around a woman for hours that told me she was porn star Isis Nile. I thought her full of crap, but later looked it up on the internet and there she was in all her glory. She gave me a kiss on the forehead as I finally dropped her off after a night of partying and I bet I could have got me a little of that. Would have tried if I was a single man. Just to say I did it!

Inauspicious Start

Well the first five games of the College Bowl and Championship season have decided and I am off to an inauspicious start. 2 right to 3 wrong. Fresno State was beaten by Wyoming in the New Mexico Bowl. Mount Union lost a good game to UW Whitewater in D3, and in the IAA (FCS) Champioship Game Villanova took down a good Montana squad. Incidentally, did you see the Villanova QB in action? That kid can play this game. Someone in the NFL should take a look at him, if not for QB, then for athlete. The only ones I have right so far is the St Petersburg Bowl where Schiano's Rutgers squad was victorious over UCF and the NAIA Championship was decided in favor of Sioux Falls.There are a lot of games left to be played and perhaps I will be a bit more accurate. Tonight is I believe the New Orleans Bowl.
I am not a huge NFL fan, but I do like the Saints. You can't live in Louisiana (which I did for many years) and not be a fan. I am sorry to see that they lost to the hated Cowboys, but a loss now is better than one in the playoffs. Go Saints!!

Have a nice week and enjoy the games.

Addendum
Middle Tennessee took down USM in the New Orleans Bowl the other night. This puts me at 3 and 3 for the bowl and post season action. Looking pretty good. Here shortly the Las Vegas Bowl starts with BYU and Oregon State. I kind of would like to change my prediction on the game and go with BYU, but will stand with the Beavers.

Thinking again of the Saints - I guess it is better to lose a game now when it really does not matter than to lose one in the playoffs which ends the season. It is a shame it had to be to the ridiculous Cowboys. Romo is a prima donna much like Bears QB of old Jim M. Jim was a proven winner though you have to give him that.

I remember when I was in high school and living just across the lake from New Orleans going to quite a few Saints games. They usually lost, but that has been the story of the franchise. My friend Paul and Steve would go to see the game with our parents and it was always pretty cool. What was even more fun was skipping school and hanging around the French Quarter. I fondly remember telling some man that worked at the Hyatt Downtown that I was Frank Marino and the other guys with me were Mahagony Rush and we would be playing that night at the Warehouse. We promised him free tickets if he would show up. He actually seemed to buy it and hopefully he did not show up. We also used to go to the "adult" movie theatre on Canal Street to watch a little porn. I fell in love with Annette Haven and thought that Gerard Damiano was up there with George Lucas. No one bothered to check our id or anything. Same for having a few drinks in the Quarter. No id, no problem. We often topped off such excursions with a trip to Felix's Oyster House for a good Shrimp Po-Boy. I acquired a taste for good coffee at Cafe Du Monde and certainly learned to love fine Creole women. It was a simpler time then. I almost did not graduate from high school due to the proximity of the French Quarter but an education still I did acquire. Probably more valuable in many ways than some boring classes where they only talked about reality.
I remember years later, after I had gotten out of the service, driving from Central Louisiana down to New Orleans with my friend (brother) Mark, his dad, my future and ex father in law BoB (RIP) and some guy named Fred. We drove down in some giant car of Fred's and saw the game. My friend Mark had a bad toothache as I recall which he medicated with liquor. The highlight of the trip was either after or before the game we went to some bar in the Quarter where an old women rubbed on his chest. I remember feeling slightly jealous about the whole episode. I then had to drive back from New Orleans in a tropical storm that rolled in and that really was no fun. I do not remember who won the game or even who the Saints played. That is not usually the point of the Saints experience anyway. I do love New Orleans.

What Should Be Done With Those Non Conforming Smokers?

Smoking is a nasty, expensive, dangerous, and frankly quite offensive habit. Cigarette smoke everywhere, butts on the ground, the lingering smell, etc. etc. Uhhh! Guess what. It is also pretty enjoyable and I am poisoning the air as I type. Having a grand time too I might add. What of the effect of second hand smoke to those around me you may ask. Politically motivated crap "science" would be my response to that.
Houston, like a lot of cities, has banned smoking in all restaurants, most public places, etc. etc. That sort of pisses me off, even though I certainly understand the motive behind it. Many people understandably find the smell of smoke offensive and bothersome, but does that alone give any government (state, local, federal) the authority to arbitrarily tinker with the society and pass asinine laws and ordinances that affect a good many tax paying citizens? No! I personally do not like to look at people wearing Dallas Cowboys or Atlanta Braves gear walking around this fair city, but I do not scream for some kind of ban. Perhaps I should. I don't like to see young males walking around with pants hanging so low that you see their boxers or worse; their butt crack. I think an ordinance is in order. Now, young ladies wearing tight hip huggers and bending down to expose their butt crack is a different thing entirely. I am a fan of that!! You see, the point is that government should not be able to just make up silly laws as they go along just to please and appease a certain segment of society.
Not so long ago I was listening to Lance Zirlien, a local sports talk radio personality. He was making a case for the anti smoking ordinance that was about to be enacted in Houston. He said that he has a right to go into a restaurant, bar, etc. and not have to be subjected to the smell of smoke. Wrong Lance! You have a right to not go into any establishment within which smoking is permitted. In a sane society, the issue of smoking, yea or nay, would be determined by the management of the establishment. If they (establishment management) believe that allowing smoking is good for business, then they should have the right (yes the right) to allow smoking. Conversely they could also have a non smoking on premises policy. They could even do it the old way and have smoking and non smoking sections in their business abode. Now I like Lance, he is one of the best sports talk guys locally, but he is wrong on this subject. Incidentally a few years back Lance and John G. were broadcasting from the Shell Houston Open and unfortunately someone left a mike open and Lance broadcast "J.F.C." across the air. I am surprised that he was not canned for that. That is a huge no no in the broadcast biz. I laughed out loud in my car as I was driving to work that morning and thought of the time that I was working as a night DJ for KZMZ Radio in Louisiana. I had an intern with me who left a mike open and dropped an F bomb in conversation. The phones lit up. I was suspended for one week and lucky I did not lose my job. I wasn't too concerned as I also sold furniture at the time and the DJ work was mainly a hobby, but I was still glad that I did not get the axe. I digress. I forgive Lance for his opinion on the subject of smoking (even though he is wrong) mainly because I like him. Now if Charlie Pallilo, another local sports talk guy, had said something like that on the air, I would have had to give him a call. I believe that I would have had to tell Charlie that I find offense with his opinion on smoking and that I would respond by calling for a citywide ban on loud mouth, jock sniffing, pencil necked geeks who are usually wrong from being allowed in public places. I guess that Charlie would then have to stay in his house. Boy if "sports journalist" John Mclain had said something like that on smoking, I would call for a ban of loud mouth lushes who are always (yes always) wrong, being allowed out in society. Maybe that would shut him up. He and Pallilo would have to stay at home. Of course I jest, but again, just because you don't like something does not mean that you should be able to force government into enacting silly laws to suit you. That is populism and perhaps fascism running rampant.
I would really love to see a someone with the balls to just tell city government enough is enough and do as they like in their business. Hats off to management at the Busy Bee Cafe in Alvin (A southern suburb of Houston) for basically doing that a few years ago. They still allow smoking in what they designate a smoking area despite a ridiculous, restrictive, city ordinance. If smoking bothers you, then you don't have to eat there.
You see, the smoking issue is just a small thing. The major problem is intrusion by government entities into your daily life. Unfortunately this is just getting worse and we have only seen the tip of the iceburg. Watch and see.

We Call It A Christmas Tree

The decorated trees that people see all over the country this time of year are called Christmas Trees. Damn you if you call it anything else. Enough said!!!!

What Do You Call Such Folk?

I have (for the most part) refrained from writing about contemporary issues of any real importance during the college football season and am hesitant to pontificate on an issue right now that my "blood is up." I would much rather focus on the big game tonight pitting Oregon and Oregon State; the Civil War I believe they call it in the great NW. This one is for the Roses.I am almost just as interested in the outcome of the Arkansas State/Western Kentucky match up. Will the Hilltoppers (what a great name) pull one out of the hat to gain their first win of the season. Will the Indians, sorry I mean the Red Wolves, cap off their disappointing season with a victory. We will know tonight. I am not real interested in Tiger Woods apparently getting himself a little strange, but it is kind of funny. What does interest me is the fate of our troops in harms way in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Persian Gulf, etc. etc. I am also interested and appalled at some of the attitudes of American citizens toward those same service people. I will try to refrain from using insultingly foul language when I get to that point in my diatribe.

The President of the United States has apparently authorized a troop build up in Afghanistan, but I fear that it will not be enough. Think about it. 30,000 troops would not even begin to fill up by half a good many stadiums in major college football. That is not a lot of people. If the troops authorized are combat troops, and allowed to fight properly, then perhaps they will be able to get the job done. What job? Killing the Taliban and Al Qaeda. I did not say converting them or capturing them to be tried as "battlefield suspects." I said killing them. As many as possible by whatever means necessary. Does that bother you? Sorry. Battlefield suspects? Does that phrase bother you? I actually heard a television "journalist" calling these vermin that. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Taliban and Al Qaeda forces, along with Hamas, etc. etc. do not even qualify as legal prisoners of war in my book. What a crazy time we live in.

Michael Moore has predictably said that President Obama is straying from his base and that we should pull out of Muslim lands. That is predictable as I just now stated. President Obama has probably learned by now that his so called "base" is seen by the vast majority of the people in this nation as childish fools. Putting his eggs in their basket is a sure way to lose any minute hope he may have of being elected to a second term. Now that is all well and good, but what is bothersome about Moore and his ilk is this. Do they not remember people jumping to their deaths from the Twin Towers to escape being burned alive? What a choice they faced! Does Moore and his type not want revenge (yes I said it) on those responsible for their deaths and those that supported the guilty? Apparently not. I wonder what Moore's attitude would be if it was one of his loved ones that faced the choice between burning or leaping to their death. Mr. Moore you might be an idiot and you most certainly are a pussy. I knew I would have to use that word at some point. Nothing else would do.

Now we come to Chris Mathews. Did he not call West Point enemy country? He did and the evidence is readily available. Now the question remains - Did Mathews mean that the military was the enemy or just that they are perhaps the political enemy of Obama? If he only meant that the armed forces are the political enemy of the President, then he chose his words stupidly. That is not too hard to imagine as Mathews is a stupid man. If he meant that the military is the enemy of this country then he goes far beyond stupid. Either way Mr. Mathews is a fool and a pussy to boot. There's that word again.

Have you ever heard of a blog called Brilliant at Breakfast? It is a maddenly "progressive" (whatever that means) blog. Jill, the main contributor and the webmistress I believe is so liberal that it makes my eyes hurt. She is however infinitely more intelligent than either Mathews or Moore and makes a rational case for most of her arguments but she is usually so off base as to be unbelievable. (There is another contributor on her blog that calls himself "Jurassic Pork" and so far he has not posted anything concerning the troop build up. I put him in the same category as Moore, Mathews and Olbermann. He is truly a twit. Oh well, no matter.)Jill in her latest post is comparing Obama to Johnson and apparently comparing the Taliban to the Viet Cong. The inference here is of course that this is an unwinnable war and that Obama is making the same mistake that Johnson made when building up forces in the Vietnam era. There are a couple of things wrong with this scenario. The Viet Cong and NVA had never to my knowledge been responsible for attacking this nation on our home soil. Technically the Taliban has not either, but they sure supported those that did. I submit to Jill that there still is an awful lot of payback owed to those vermin. Jill has also mentioned in earlier writings that our military should not be used to kill "brown men." I assume she means Middle Eastern and Afghan Muslims. I submit to Jill that our military has not killed near enough of them yet. Jill apparently believes the war to be not winnable. I disagree. To my knowledge the Taliban have no commander as brilliant as the Vietnamese General Giap. Giap could be considered perhaps one of the premier military leaders of the second half of the twentieth century. He also had the advantage of jungle terrain to conduct operations. The two wars and the personalities involved can not really honestly be compared. Now it is true that the Soviets were not able to win in Afghanistan in the 80's. This may (or may not) be an anomaly. Soviet troops for the most part were unmotivated conscripts and American and Nato troops are motivated volunteers. Also I would submit that if there was committed political will in the Soviet Union during their "stay" in Afghanistan, then the outcome might have been different. It is also interesting that historically Russian and Soviet troops have been of no real account except when the fighting is on their soil and they have overwhelming manpower superiority. Now, no insurgency can ever be completely destroyed as long as there are those willing to fight, but it can certainly be brought down to very manageable levels with a pragmatic and quite honestly, a justifiably brutal use of military force. Now I must give Jill credit where credit is due. She may be right about the war being unwinnable considering the current political administration. Our troops must be given the tools and the green light to do what is necessary to win. If they are not, and I suspect they will not be, then I guess we should declare victory and bring everybody home. Then all those that died at the hands of the Mohammedans on 911 and the troops that have lost their lives fighting them since will have died in vain and we can all sit back and await the next 911.