Political junkies- and I consider myself one of them- sometimes forget that most people who vote- even most who vote in the primaries- aren't political junkies. They don't vote based on position papers or where the candidates stand on every issue. They support the candidate's theme and personality. The voters of both parties sent a message with the candidates they supported:

The Democrats: We're sick and tired. The last eight years have been a disaster, with the ugliness and the fear-mongering. We want a clean break- someone who has no stink of the past. Barack Obama's a clean slate, a chance to start over from the past. Unlike W's talk of fear, Obama preaches Hope. That's what America wants.

The Republicans: George W isn't popular, and deserves his approval ratings. But the world is still a dangerous place. We need someone responsible in charge. We don't agree with John McCain on everything- but in crunch time, he's the man we want in a crisis. And he's the man America wants in a crisis.

The President of the United States is both leader of the country and Commander-in-Chief. Obama is running on the former, McCain on the latter.

My own $0.11 is that the election is Barack's to lose. If enough people believe he is capable of being Commander-in-Chief, he'll win- the American Public do want a change from the past. But if enough people don't believe he has the experience or ability to be a strong Commander-in-Chief in these times, they'll vote with McCain.

I honestly think this is the key issue of the election- do you believe Barack Obama will be a strong Commander-in-Chief? McCain can only go so far proving that he's not George W, and I think the time is long past for anyone to argue that W has not done a bad job. But a large majority of Americans still believe that the world is a dangerous place, and the question is whether to turn the country over to a man with only two years in the Senate.

If I had to put money on it? Barack will convince the American public. I'm not backing away from my 'Republicans will get clobbered' prediction. Senator Obama is a fantastic speaker. More importantly, I think he gives off the impression that he is calm and rational- and that the American Public will believe that he will do well when a crisis happens.

We shall see...

Congratulations to the Boston Celtics on beating the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Eastern Conference Semi-Finals...

It's frustrating, being a Cleveland Sports Fan. Cleveland has had franchises in the big three sports (NFL, NBA, MLB) for as long as I've been alive. In those years, none of their teams have won a championship.

They've been close. So very, very close. But it's always something that prevents them from getting over the top.

This isn't like rooting for Cubs- rooting for a franchise that makes so many bad decisions that you end up giving up all hope. The Cavs and Indians have made a lot of smart decisions, and even when the moves don't work out, I understand where they are coming from (hell, I applauded the Larry Hughes signing- who would have guessed that he'd be perpetually injured AND not able to work within Mike Brown's system?). The Browns don't have as good of a track record, but they have been improving lately.

I'm not giving up on any of the teams. But I admit it's frustrating to see other cities enjoy championships. We're long overdue for it to be our turn.

As a loyal member of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy (membership # TK-421), I just want to say...

... we're going to get our asses kicked in November.

I'm talking on levels comparable to 1964.

The worst part is that it isn't because they stuck to their principles and turned out to be wrong; if this was only about Iraq then (I believe) we could justify our decisions and at least go down fighting.

But now I really am starting to believe that the GOP doesn't WANT to win; they aren't even trying.

They aren't sticking to their principles; they aren't defending their positions; instead of giving people reasons TO vote for them, they are trying to find some magic phrase that will take down Obama.

It's a shame- John McCain is a great American, and while I don't agree with him on a lot of issues, he'd make a fine President. But he's going to lose this election- but not as badly as the rest of the party.

When you lose a district that George W Bush carried by 25 points four years ago- you're in trouble.

One small story but one that really sticks out in my mind today: We are in the middle of a war. We're on the verge of a recession. The dollar is weak. And what is one of our leading GOP leaders spending time and money talking about?

The New England Patriots

It's an unserious issue for an unserious man representing an unserious party.

lurkerwithout doesn't have anything to fear this year. We couldn't scare a fly. We're going to get killed. And we deserve it.

Pick a day, any day...

According to that link, the #1 song the day I was born as "A Horse With No Name" by America. I always wondered why I had a soft spot for that song (and hated the version in the movie "Air America")

Here's a thread to ask me any questions about me. I'll try to answer any of them to the best of my ability.

And yes, I am arrogant enough to think that people out on the internet are curious about me.

So I've turned 36 on Tuesday.

It's not really a milestone- not like 18 (voting) or 21 (drinking) or even 25 (when the insurance companies finally decide you're an adult). On the other hand, the life expectancy for Americans is about 75 years, so in many ways I am close to middle-aged. Not that I feel that way.

When I was 17, I read a book that encouraged me to start writing down all of my personal goals- big or small. I did- came up with about 45 or 50. I think it helped me- it focused my attention, gave me something to shoot for. My biggest fear was to become Walter Mitty- a person who had big dreams and never tried to do any of them. Writing out my goals helped me take some steps towards them.

Some of the goals I've accomplished (gotten married, purchased a house), some I've done to a degree (attempted stand-up comedy, though not as a career; acted in a play, though not in a major role). Others I haven't done yet (written a book; run for political office).

I can live with not doing all of my goals. I can even live with not trying all of my goals. But I want to attempt most of them, to put in the time and effort and try to see what I want... even if it's to discover that it's not what I really want. I've always been a 'kitchen sink' person- if I have five goals I want to do in my life, and I can only do 2 of them, it seems like I missed out. If I have 500 goals, and I only do 200 of them... that's still 200 things I wanted to do in my life. 200 things I looked forward to doing, 200 things I've tried and tested and been happy to experience.

I think I need to take stock of my life- find what goals the 36 year old wants to do with the next part of his life that the 17 year old didn't want to do or think about doing. I'm going to take some time and list some of those goals here- maybe by writing them down, it can encourage me to work on them.

Goals:
Get Healthier- specifically, lose more weight. There's a history of heart trouble in my family, and I'm too heavy at 225 pounds. Unfortunately for me, cake is tasty. But I need to find a way to change my eating habits. Besides, if I get in better shape I might be able to finally beat my brothers in basketball.

Play in the World Series of Poker- I've become addicted to poker recently. Right now I've been thinking about trying to bribe myself- get to 190 pounds and I'll enter the World Series of Poker (the biggest event in Poker). Not sure if I'm willing to commit to it yet.

Learn an Instrument- actually, this was on my first list. And I did it- I can play the acoustic guitar. Just not very well. And I learned that while I like the guitar, I don't love it enough to really work at it. My old college roommate is playing drums in a Middle Eastern musical group, and it's fascinating to watch him perform.

Become a parent and raise a family- This one scares me more than any other. I can take care of myself reasonably well, but I have no idea if I can take care of another person. It's on hold for now- we're not in the right place to become parents. But I hope to be ready someday.

Stand-Up Comedy- This was a big goal of mine when I was 17. And I have gone on open-mic nights. I wouldn't mind doing so again, but there never seems enough time. I don't know if I'll ever make the time to commit to really improving. Which may be OK. Even the occasional open-mic nights give me a chance to tell jokes and make people laugh, which is what I really want. Fame and fortune would be nice, but I'm not willing to do what it takes to make a career out of comedy.

Write a book- I probably have 6 chapters on six different books written, but have never seriously pursued it. And with the internet out there, I think it's become vastly more difficult to make a living as a writer- there's too many outlets for people wanting to read a fictional world . I'd still like to pick one of those books work on it, and get it published.

That's a big problem of mine- commitment. There's so much to do, and never seem to have enough time to do it. And I'd like to give valid excuses, but quite frankly there I times I'd rather play World of Warcraft than work on my goals. I guess part of the reason I'm writing this on Livejournal is to help push me to pick one of them and really work on it.

Get my PE- The PE is my professional engineer’s license. It’s not required for engineers, but it’s a nice sign of where I’m at career-wise. Plus, my company gives a bonus for getting it.

Work towards a solution for alternative energy- Everyone wants to leave the world a better place then they found it. My career has been in the power generation field, so it's something I know pretty well. I'd love to help get the world operating on cheap renewable energy, for several reasons- economics, security, and even environmental. I see a lot of solutions proposed by environmentalists as the equivalent of draining the ocean with a thimble- if people really want to reduce emissions, develop a way for solar, wind, or fusion power to run as much of society as possible.

Learn Judo- Because I've always wanted to, that's why.

OK, that's nine items. Give me enough time, I could come up with a lot more. But what I should do is pick out a few of the goals and really concentrate on them, at least until I've reached a set goal or decided that I no longer wish to pursue it. And when that happens, start on another goal.

And I'd better get working- I'm almost middle-aged now.

OK, so Battlestar Galactica's fourth and final season begins tonight. I won't be watching it, but I'll be reading it with the eye of a man driving by a ten-car pileup on the highway.

( spoilers ahead )

Time for Crimsonjoe to publicly get his baseball picks wrong for the year!

AL East:
1) Boston Red Sox- Beckett's injury will hurt, and the team is old at key positions. But they still have good to great players at every position, and are the World Series Champions
2) New York Yankees- the Yankees are rebuilding, especially with a young pitching staff. But I think the staff needs one more year to develop.
3) Toronto Blue Jays- still a few steps behind Boston and New York. In the NL, they'd be in the playoff hunt
4) Tampa Bay Rays- some great young talent and but have not shown they know how to use it.
5) Baltimore Orioles- the Bedard trade will pay off- down the road. Not so much for 2008

AL Central:
1) Cleveland Indians- I'm showing my bias here, but the Indians did not play over their heads last year.
2) Detroit Tigers- everyone's favorite pick. I'm going aginst them because they are OLD- Magglio Ordonez is 34, Sheffield and Ivan Rodriguez are 36. The pitchers are young, and it's possible Dontrelle Willis can bounce back. If everything goes right for them, they win 110+ games and win the series. But too many things can go wrong for me to pick them
3) Minnesota Twins- yeah, they lost Santana. But they still have Mauer, and Morneau, and Farancisco Liriano. I doubt they can crack the top 2, but don't count them out
4) Kansas City Royals- lots of good young players.
5) Chicago White Sox- lots of old, formerly good players

AL West:
1) Seattle Mariners- I wasn't going to pick them until my friend pointed out their starting five. Really good starting staff- the best in baseball, in fact. Medicre hitting, but no one else in the division is that much better than them
2) Oakland Athletics- on paper, they have no business finishing anywhere but last. But I've seen them pull out miracles before, and refuse to count them out.
3) Anaheim Angels- They won the division. But they are old, and their best player (Vlad) is injury-prone. Too many things can go wrong
4) Texas Rangers- I like this team. In fact, in the NL they could contend for a playoff spot. But they're a little short here

MVP: Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians
CY Young Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners
ALDS: Boston over Detroit; Cleveland over Seattle.
ALCS: Cleveland over Boston

NL East:
1) New York Mets- In terms of talent, I think they are the only team in the NL that could compete for a playoff spot in the American League. The NL is their's to lsoe
2) Philadelphia Phillies- some great frontline talent- but not enough depths or pitching
3) Atlanta Braves- they'd win the NL Central or West, IMHO. But the NL East has the majority of the National League talent
4) Washington National- I don't think they are a good team. I just think...
5) Floria Marlins- ... if the sports gods believe in karma, Florida won't win anything for 100 years.

NL Central:
1) Milwaukee Brewers- So much young talent that I think they'll put it together this year
2) Chicago Cubs- they still haven't learned how to take a walk, and now they've lost their top pitchers. Zambrano is great, but after that it's a veteran team trying for one more year of glory
3) St. Louis Cardinals- another old team, but enough veterans to make it work
4) Cincinnati Reds- Great hitting; horrible pitching
5) Houston Astros- some good players but a lot of holes
6) Pittsburgh Pirates- give them a couple of years

NL West:
1) San Diego Padres- really, on paper any of the top four teams can finish in any order. I just like the Padres a little more thanks to better pitching
2) Colorado Rockies- great performance last year, but I expect a few players to tail off this year. Really like them next year, though.
3) LA Dodgers- old team. Lots of veterans. Expensive team. Can't see them in the playoffs.
4) Arizona Diamondbacks- OK, I have NO idea how they did it last year. They had the best record in the National League, despite allowing more runs than they scored. I don't think that's ever happened before. This team was luckier than any team in the history of baseball- and I don't see it holding up.
5) San Francisco Giants- it's tough to be a bad team. It's worse to be a bad old team. But it REALLY sucks when you're a bad, old team that has little help in the farm system. Put them last for the next 3-4 years.

MVP: David Wright, New York Mets
CY Young Johann Santana, New York Mets
ALDS: New York Mets over Milwaukee; Philadelphia over San Diego
ALCS: New York Mets over Philadelphia

World Series:: Cleveland Indians over New York Mets, 4 games to 2

Not so much on the issues of the day but on the Presidential Race itself:

1- The Democratic Nomination has really turned into a dogfight? Michael Barone projects that by the convention Barack Obama will have more delegates but Hilary Clinton will have more actual votes in the primary, which means both sides would have a reason to argue that their candidate should be the nominee.

This really could turn into a perfect storm of a disaster for the party- two candidates almost perfectly equal in terms on support. As a Republican, I'm glad it's not happening to my party.

2- One reason the fighting has gotten so vicious, in my never-humble opinion, is that the issues separating the two are very small. If there were significant differences between the two the debate between the candidates could argued on policy grounds. Instead, because they agree on the issues so much, they argue personality and tactics- and that strikes me as grounds for causing problems down the road, when both sides would need to reconcile to win the Presidency.

3- The Democratic Nomination Process needs to be changed. The 'Superdelegates' and proportional representation aren't the sole cause of the nomination being so close, but they've been significant helpers. Instead of arguing for voters, they've been fighting for unelected superdelegates.

The worst-case scenario for the Democrats is for one side (doesn't matter which one) to win but the other side to believe that the election was 'stolen' from their candidate.

I know a lot of Republicans who don't like Senator McCain as their candidate, but none of them believe he didn't win the nomination fairly. It'll be much easier to bring them back into the fold than bringing (for instance) Obama voters to support Hilary Clinton if they think Hilary stole the election from the rightful candidate.

4- My guess? In the end, assuming there are no significant surprises in the voting, I think the superdelegates will back Sen. Obama. They'll argue that Obama has more delegates, which was the purpose of the primaries and caucuses. A significant portion will publicly announce before the convention, hoping to avoid a second vote by getting enough superdelegates behind Obama to put him over the top.

There's another reason to back Obama... my gut feeling is that it'll be easier to keep Hilary's supporters to back Obama than Obama's supporters to back Hilary. I may be wrong on that, but if I were a Democratic Superdelegate I'd be worried that if I didn't support Obama I'd lose his voters for a generation.

Just my $0.11... I could, as always, be wrong.

Wrestlemania is happening on Mach 30th. I'll make my predictions, based on both what I would like to happen, and what I expect to happen.

Triple Threat Match for the WWE Championship: John Cena vs. HHH vs. Randy Orton
What I'd like to happen:
Not really sure, to be honest. I'm not a big Randy Orton fan, and HHH and Cena have had massive title reigns. The guy who I really wanted to see win the belt was Jeff Hardy, but his drug suspension killed that chance. I'd have Orton retain, just because no one expects it.

What I expect to happen:
Believe it or not, it's been four years since HHH won at Wrestlemania. Yet every year, people expect him to walk out of Wrestlemania with the WWE Championship.

This year, I think it'll happen. There's a huge potential program with HHH and Cena, but I think it works better with Cena as the challenger. HHH pins Orton to win the belt.


World Heavyweight Champion Edge vs. Undertaker
What I'd like to happen:
Unlike Orton, Edge is, in my mind, a franchise player for the WWE. I'd have him be the one to end Undertaker's streak, keep the title, and be the heel champion to the RAW face champion

What I expect to happen:
Undertaker doesn't lose at Wrestlemania. Here he'll win the belt.


Floyd "Money" Mayweather vs. Big Show
What I'd like to happen:
The Big Show looks in great shape, and I'd like to see a huge push for the guy. Have him beat Mayweather and look like a monster doing so. Expect the crowd to treat Big Show as the biggest babyface on the show.

What I expect to happen:
Something controversial where both men walk out trying to look stronger. My guess is that Big Show pins Mayweather, then afterwards Mayweather knocks Big Show Out and his group does a verbal ten count.


Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (Career Threatening Match)
What I'd like to happen:
Flair, in trouble the whole match, turns heel when someone (CM Punk?) comes down to ringside to help him win. Setting up a Michaels-Punk feud and giving Punk the rub of being trained by the dirtiest player in the game.

What I expect to happen:
While being the guy to retire Flair would normally be a big push, Michaels doesn't need it. Still, I think this may be Flair's final match, and I expect him and Michaels to pull out all the stops in a classic that ends with Michaels winning and Flair walking away to cheers.


Money in the Bank Ladder Match
What I'd like to happen:
They announce a surprise eighth contestant- Matt Hardy. Hardy wins the title shot, challenges Edge for the Smackdown Title at Sumemrslam, and either wins the title or renews his feud with MVP for the US title.

What I expect to happen:
Not really sure, to be honest. CM Punk is my favorite wrestler in the group, but I don't think he's being given a big push. I wouldn't be surprised to see Sheldon Benjamin win it, then challenge the winning of the ECW title within the next month. Benjamin's been in every MiTB match, and this could be a reward for him.


SmackDown vs. Raw: Batista vs. Umaga
What I'd like to happen:
A double-turn... Umaga is beating Batista cleanly in the match, and Batista cheats (maybe gets help from Snitsky or the Great Khali) to steal the win. Umaga then heads to Smackdown to continue their feud.

What I expect to happen:
Batista wins a hard-fought battle between the two. No turn.


24-Man Battle Royal - Winner faces ECW Champion
What I'd like to happen:
I like Jamie Noble- great wrestler, great character- and coule easily see him as ECW Champion.

What I expect to happen:
I suspect it comes down to two men- either Kane (his last hurrah) or Colin Delany (as the underdog). Either way, I think Chavo loses the title.


Finlay vs. JBL - Belfast Brawl
What I'd like to happen:
This could be the match of the night. Both Finlay and JBL can brawl with the best, and a street fight match could bring out the best in both. I'm not sure who'll win- probably Finlay, as JBL can take the loss better.

What I expect to happen:
Finaly wins a vicious, vicious battle. Keep Hornswoggle away and this will be a great match.


BunnyMania Lumberjack Match: Candice & Maria vs. The Glamazon & Melina
What I'd like to happen:
Beth Phoenix is the best wrestler, and (IMHO) Melina is the best looking of the four. So I'd prefer that side to win.

What I expect to happen:
Never bet against the one actually appearing in Playboy. Maria pins Melina

I have not followed NCAA basketball all year. However, I'm an American guy who likes to gamble, therefore I'm in a NCAA tournament. Two, actually- but I sent in the same picks for both sets. I offer nothing but pure guesswork:

Sweet 16:
East: North Carolina, George Mason, Louisville, Tennessee
Midwest: Kansas, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, Gonzaga
South: Memphis, Pitt, Marquette, Texas
West: UCLA, Connecticut, Xavier, Duke

Final 4:
East: North Carolina over Tennessee
Midwest: Kansas over Wisconsin
South: Memphis over Texas
West: UCLA over Duke

Championship:
Memphis over North Carolina

Yep- I went with all four #1 seeds. Cowardly? Maybe. But any sleeper picks I liked had matchup problem.

I'm putting this Sunday at 4:00PM as the time when I can declare that my picks were bothced beyond hope.

I've been trying to come up with questions I would like the remaining serious Presidential candidates to answer, without the typical political evasions. Here are the four I've come up with:

1. Under what conditions would you approve of withdrawing our troops from Iraq? Under what conditions would you recommend keeping soldiers in Iraq?

2. What do you recommend we do to improve the strength of the dollar?

3. Do you believe the United States is a color-blind nation? If not, what specifically needs to be done to become a nation where racism isn't a prevalent issue?

4. Name three candidates you would nominate to the Supreme Court if there was an opening, today.

I'll throw it out to anyone reading this blog- what question would you really like the candidates to answer seriously.

Barack Obama's pastor, Jeremiah Wright, has been in the news lately. He has gone to Libya with Louis Farrakhan, preached that people should say "God Damned America" instead of "God Bless America", and said that 9/11 was America's 'Chickens coming home to roost'. He's apparently been a big influence on Senator Obama, as he's been Obama's pastor for over 20 years, and the title of Senator Obama's book, The Audacity of Hope, comes from one of Reverend Wright's sermons. What Rev. Wright preaches seems a far cry from what Senator Obama says as a politician.

So does it matter that the Sen. Obama's preacher is outrageous, and says and believes things that most Americans don't?

I want to say 'no'. We all have people in our lives that- family members, friends, religious figures- that have an impact on us, but that also have beliefs we don't agree with. It's very possible that Senator Obama follows Rev. Wright as a religious leader but doesn't agree with his political beliefs.

But here's the potential problem: Senator Obama is, in many ways, a blank slate. He's only been in the Senate a couple of years. We don't have a long track record of his votes like we do for most Presidential candidates.

Without that track record to watch, we can only go by the clues we have. He's a fantastic speaker- but what that means should he be elected is an open question. And from that viewpoint, who influences him takes on a bigger importance in the minds of the viewers. Probably bigger than it should.

It's like watching a baseball prospect without seeing his minor league batting record. He might have a fantastic swing, but that doesn't mean that he can hit a major league fastball. And unless you have that track record to look at, you go by whatever clues you have. Rev. Wright is a clue as to what Senator Obama might say and do as President. We'll see how much influence that has on the voters.

William F Buckley, Jr. passed away today.

Ever read something, then say to yourself, "I've always thought this, but never had the words to say it until just now!"

That was me when I first saw National Review. It might be hard to believe today, in the age of Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, and 8,000 cable channels. But back in the 1970's, there were a few news outlets- ABC, CBS, NBC, Newsweek, Time. And they were just as biased in their views as Fox News is today- only there wasn't any obvious alternative- at least, nothing I could spot.

So (as a future member of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy), you can imagine my joy at discovering the National Review. It took the conventional wisdom that I heard almost daily and turned it upside down- and it made sense to me. It was like discovering a secret society.

William Buckley founded National Review. He did so in the 1950's, when the Conservative Movement was dead. Big Government was "in"- everyone said so.

And one man had the nerve and the chutzpah and the intelligence to not only disagree, but challenge those assumptions.

He was a fascinating man- sailed the oceans, wrote several books (both political and fiction), hosted "Firing Line". Even ran for Mayor of New York City.

He was also, in my humble opinion, the greatest philosopher of the 20th Century. There were plenty of big ideas during the 20th Century- Communism and Fascism among others. But he created a movement that wasn't violent, that worked on ideas, challenged the status quo, and still is active today.

Someone give God a dictionary- WFB is on his way to heaven!

Thank you, sir.

Bold the ones you've seen.

Wings
The Broadway Melody
All Quiet on the Western Front
Cimarron
Grand Hotel
Cavalcade
It Happened One Night
Mutiny on the Bounty
The Great Ziegfeld
The Life of Emile Zola
You Can’t Take It with You
Gone With the Wind
Rebecca
How Green Was My Valley
Mrs. Miniver
Casablanca
Going My Way
The Lost Weekend
The Best Years of Our Lives
Gentleman’s Agreement
Hamlet
All the King’s Men
All About Eve
An American in Paris
The Greatest Show on Earth
From Here to Eternity
On the Waterfront
Marty
Around the World in 80 Days
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Gigi
Ben Hur
The Apartment
West Side Story
Lawrence of Arabia
Tom Jones
My Fair Lady
The Sound of Music
A Man for All Seasons
In the Heat of the Night
Oliver!
Midnight Cowboy (half credit-stopped halfway through)
Patton
The French Connection
The Godfather
The Sting
The Godfather Part II
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Rocky
Annie Hall
The Deer Hunter
Kramer v. Kramer
Ordinary People
Chariots of Fire
Gandhi
Terms of Endearment
Amadeus
Out of Africa
Platoon
The Last Emperor
Rain Man
Driving Miss Daisy
Dances with Wolves
The Silence of the Lambs
Unforgiven
Schindler’s List
Forrest Gump
Braveheart
The English Patient
Titanic
Shakespeare in Love
American Beauty
Gladiator
A Beautiful Mind
Chicago(half credit-stopped halfway through)
Lord of the Rings III
Million Dollar Baby
Crash
The Departed
No Country for Old Men

Ohio's Primary comes up the first week of March. I have three ways of voting for the Presidential Primary.

I'm a Hardcore Conservative, so I should be voting in the Republican Primary. Unfortunately, that Primary seems to be wrapped up long before then (unless Governor Huckabee makes a remarkable comeback, which I doubt. Then again, I've doubted him before). it looks like Senator McCain is the Republican nominee, and I'm glad to support him. But he doesn't need my vote in the Primary.

So should I vote in the Democratic Primary instead? And if so, for who?

I don't know if I should. Jim Geraghty put it best: "As for the temptation to vote in the Democratic primary, I’m a right-leaning guy. I don’t mess in the other guy’s primaries, I don’t want him to mess in mine."

On the other hand, two thoughts:

1- I don't want Senator Clinton to become President. I have hopes that Senator Obama will be a better President.

2- I'm on record saying that any Republican can beat Senator Clinton in the general election, but none of them can beat Senator Obama.

So do I vote for the Democratic candidate that would make the better President in my opinion (Obama)? The candidate I think represents the best chance to help the GOP retain the White House (Clinton)? Or stick to my own sandbox (McCain)?

I admit, it's a tough one. I know which way I'm leaning, but I'm not positive yet.

By winning Florida, John McCain becomes the frontrunner to the Republican Presidential Nomination.

(Why, yes- I am that damn good)

Senator McCain's ticked off a lot of Conservatives in the past. And I can think of some major issues that I disagree with him on: McCain-Feingold and the immigration bill last year.

But the anger from people like Rush Limbaugh and National Review is surprising me. McCain's not my perfect candidate- none of the major Republican candidates were ideal- but McCain is a war hero, a Senatorial leader, a good man, and he's been a consistent Conservative. I don't like all of his positions- but hell, I didn't like all of Geroge W.'s positions, either.

I don't know if McCain can win- in fact, I think if the Democrats are smart and nominate Obama, the Republicans will lose no matter what. But a party that can't untie around it's frontrunner is going to be killed in November.

Been busy with life lately, and haven't had time to post at all. Some various thoughts:

* Well, so much for that Patriots-Packers Super Bowl. Congratulations to the Giants for winning three road games. The Patriots have been undefeated but have looked more vunerable lately. I have no idea how the Super Bowl will go- should be a good game.

* Had to spend a week in Lynchburg, Virginia, for a problem that took four hours to solve. Such is life; at least I had time to work on my Final Fantasy XII game.

* Saw Avenue Q this weekend. Hysterically funny, though not for children. I highly recommend the soundtrack.

* I'm looking for a good web site that is a warehouse of science and technology news. Does anyone have any suggestions?

* No politics in this post- they'll be plenty of time for talk later this year.

As 2007 turns into 2008, some predictions and thoughts for the next year:

Personal:
* I lost 25 pounds last year, but have regained about 5 of those pounds over the holidays. My goal is to get below 200 pounds, and I'm about 220. Starting on the third, I'll be back on the diet full time (I'm already exercising on the elliptical every day)
* I've gotten scruffy- growing a goatee for the second time in my life. Not sure how long it'll stay. Probably will be off before March, but you never know...
* Still playing World of Warcraft. Our guild has gotten past Mulgar, but are stopped at Gruul the Dragonkiller. Having a blast, though.
* My brother gave me the controller for Guitar Hero, so expect me to be playing the game constantly. At this rate, I'll never finish Final Fantasy XII.
* I'll still be working at my stand-up comedy, at least as long as I have Monday Nights open.

Sports Predictions for 2008:
* The New England Patriots will beat the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl.
* Barring Injuries, The San Antonio Spurs will repeat as NBA Champions. I'm starting to believe that Tim Duncan may be the greatest basketball player of all time.
* The key to the Detroit Tigers will be Dontrelle Willis- if he regains his form from 3 years ago, they may be unstoppable. If he doesn't, even a great year by Miguel Cabrera won't help the Tigers get past the Cleveland Indians.
* The Indians will win the World Series in 2008.
* The Cubs won't.

Political Predictions for 2008:
* The Republican nomination will be a dogfight, probably leading to a brokered convention as five different nominees take various states. In the end, the ticket will be John McCain as President, Fred Thompson as Vice President.
* The Democratic nomination will also be a short bloodbath. By the morning of Feb. 6th, we'll know who the nominee is. If Hilary dominates the states on Feb. 5th, she'll knock out Obama and Edwards. If she doesn't dominate, Obama will have the momentum to take her out. I don't see Edwards lasting as a signifcant figure beyond the 5th.
* If the Demoncrats nominate Obama, he will win the general election. If they nominate Hilary, the Republicans will win.
* If, by October, the polls show one party clearly winning the Presidential race, the other party will end up picking up a huge number of seats in Congress (both the Senate and House), as the American Public decide they don't want either party to control everything.

Other predictions:
* The Writer's Strike will last until at least June of next year, and will end with the writers getting very little other than a face-saving gesture.
* The World Series of Poker in 2008 will be won by a 'known' poker player
* The only movie that I'll want to see in the theater is The Dark Knight


Here's wishing everyone a fantastic 2008!