In the 1989 movie When Harry Met Sally, Billy Crystal argues that you can’t have great intimacy with a guy named Sheldon. In fact you can’t have great politics either. Senator Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse is at it again. A bill is being drafted that would allow for toll roads to be built by private companies on state-owned land. The bill sponsored by Sen. Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse, would allow a private partner to finance and construct the road and then operate it as a concession. I think this is a dumb idea. Anytime government supports private enterprise IE: Real Salt Lake’s new stadium, or the Delta Center being funded by government, I think we are wasting money. Do we really think that Sandy and Salt Lake County is going to be enhanced by building a $30 million dollar stadium for a soccer team that sucked so bad that it made BYU’s 6-6 football season seem successful?

The real problem with toll roads is that Utahan’s and a buck aren’t easily parted. Just ask any service industry employee (those who work on tips). Utah roads are not crowded enough for people to start paying a toll to avoid traffic. I didn’t pay the toll when I lived in hell-a-crowded Orange County, CA so why would I do it in “I drive like $h!t Utah? Don’t get me wrong there is a traffic problem in Utah. Poor design, poor execution and poor planning have made road rage in Utah as common as green jello or funeral potatoes at LDS church events. The road that Killpack would like built is a western extension of the Legacy Highway. It is a road that I support and should be built to relieve traffic and to support the growth of the west side especially in the Saratoga Springs/Eagle Mountain areas. These are areas that are growing at an extremely fast pace. East/West corridors are horrible in Utah County and Salt Lake County. Just drive the Bang-wanker (Bangater Highway a few times and you can see the frustration of northwest/southeast travel. (Sidenote: we can route internet traffic at the speed of light to a billion people world wide but we cannot time the damn lights on The Bangater Highway?) The other fear I have is our good buddy Sheldon was one of the idiots who gave into the Sierra Club lawsuits for the northern Legacy Highway. This “compromise” has set an ugly precedent. We now will get to deal with these “eco” terrorists every time we want to lay down a piece of asphalt. What organization is going to tell us what we can do next? Isn’t it bad enough I have a homeowners association that tells me what kind of damn Christmas lights I can hang up and when they can be installed and removed?

Sheldon is the same bozo who recently hiked our vehicle fees to buy land for transportation (I bet this will buy land for these privately held toll roads), who remained silent during the recent raping of customers by Questar Gas. (I have forgotten to thank these dinks for the 500 percent [$29 to $156] increase from my October to November gas bill.) and who has been actively pursuing GPS/GIS data to tax us by the mile because gas taxes aren’t bringing in enough revenue because of more fuel efficient cars.

Maybe I should run for a cushy government legislator job? Too bad I have opinions and peccadilloes that prevent me from running. Besides I would be too tempted to sell out to all those lobbyists and end up looking like Orin Hollywood Hatch.

Purchase When Harry Met Sally at Amazon.com

Website of the Day:

Savemyass.com
Save My Ass is a personal assistant that helps you make your girlfriend or wife happy by sending her flowers on your behalf, on a regular but semi-random basis.

So what makes this site so ingenious?
#1 Girls seem to enjoy flowers more than anything on the planet. Flowers have that magical ability to change your significant others mood like nothing else. The site provides a simple method of getting the zero back into hero mode again.

#2 The business model is creative. Imagine creating a business that adapts well with the web. Millions of people already order flowers online. People are comfortable with the business model. This business automatically asks for a repeat sale every to every customer every 4-6 weeks for 12 months. That is 10-12 sales requests per customer per year. Repeat business is the most profitable. It takes less effort to convince a previous customer to buy again. I am sure this site is 100% automated thus reducing costs and its available 24/7/365 with little overhead.

This is a great business example of finding a niche, a man’s need to repent to his woman. It takes a process men already hate to do, buying flowers and creates a fast and easy way to solve the problem through e-commerce. It generates its own method of sustaining business with low cost measures to bring back repeat customers by offering a service to reorder flowers every so often. Genius! It is simply genius.

So BYU didn’t lose by as much as I had predicted. I still think CAL handed BYU its head on a platter despite big numbers put up by John Beck. As I was perusing the local papers I seem to be rereading the same description of BYU football. The phrase is “greatly improved BYU Football team”. I just don’t see it. Going from 5-6 to 6-6 just isn’t a great improvement especially looking at the weak teams BYU played. The one stat I see that greatly improved was points. BYU average points per game was up over 10 per game and BYU did have a running game. How odd is that a BYU running game? I thought in the past BYU had running plays to rest receivers. However the good is far outweighed by the bad. BYU’s opponents average points per game also went up. Almost all defensive stats are worse than last year. I often thought that the defense was Homophobic in the way they wouldn’t tackle. Ewe gross touching other male football players!!! One newspaper described BYU’s defense as “cardboard cutouts”. I think BYU could take the Las Vegas bowls game film and teach its defense how to tackle with it. CAL gave BYU a seminar on tackling.

I think mostly Bronco Mendenhall’s mind-numbing repetitive media quotes of “we are greatly improved” and “I am so thankful for the opportunities we have” have preconditioned the local media into thinking BYU has greatly improved.

Since wasting $50 million on a practice facility BYU has gone 15-20. That’s only $3,333,333 per win. What a great investment?

I believe the BYU deserves to go to a bowl game about as much as Saddam Hussein deserves leniency. BYU went 6-5 this year and that was against some pathetic teams. You can recap BYU’s “success” from my 11-7-2005 post.

Some how going 6-5 including beating a nobody Division IIA school is considered a successful season. BYU’s 1-A wins came against teams with a combined record of 22-28, and their losses came against teams with a combined record of 32-18. (These numbers do not count BYU's games against those opponents.) If BYU hadn’t played Eastern Illinois they would be at home watching bowl games on TV. While I will give BYU credit for a turn around season compared to the Gary Crowton Gloom and Doom years, I just don’t believe that they have improved that much.

Every local media outlet focuses on BYU’s turn around season and how great they are but I just don’t see it. Tonight BYU I think will be humbled by another loss. I think the real travesty of justice is the fact that bowl games have become more about money than about finding the best teams. The Las Vegas Bowl was on the brink of becoming a non-sanctioned bowl due to lack of attendance (read as a footnote in college football history). BYU was seen as the “savior” due to its broad fan base. BYU delivered its fans and saved the Las Vegas Bowl. Some how getting the #2 pick of the Mountain West Conference and the #4 pick of the Pac 10 is supposed to get me the fan all hot and bothered. I think its more like watching the Houston Texans battle the San Francisco 49ers for the Heisman winning Reggie Bush in next years draft. Watching teams ranked 34th and 49th play just doesn’t excite me.

I think its pathetic to see all the money that is poured into this trip for BYU. The money the bowl games gives both schools is insane. Some how I think it is a waste to give these “student” athletes a free week vacation but yet BYU continues to rip students off in the bookstore, parking, and student housing (see more below). Why not make the bowl games donate scholarships to the schools. The average Joe Student gets nothing from the bowl games. It’s all just big business. And really I am fine with College being a business except when the “business” is owned by my church. I am 99.999% sure God could careless if BYU has a football team. BYU continues to support LDS values on one hand and then violates them on the other. I am pretty sure “no man can serve two masters”.

I believe Cal will beat BYU by 20+ and BYU will be faced to recognize what a crappy season they had, and that the Las Vegas Bowl used them like a two-bit whore.

More on how BYU sticks it to its students…
BYU Bookstore:
The bookstore has implemented rules to limit students’ ability to purchase textbooks via alternative sources by not releasing required class books until the first day of class. This means no buying used, no buying online and no buying anywhere but BYU Bookstore.

Parking:
BYU continues to remove parking from campus. It also has shrunk its Free UTA service. It also has raised parking pass prices to the stratosphere but they haven't reduced the number sold.

Student Housing
In one of the most student-unfriendly moves of all time BYU has allowed/sponsored city ordinances that make it so that BYU students who are forced into BYU approved housing now have to live with in two miles of BYU (map). This might not sound like a big deal except for the fact that in the last 6 years significant housing has been built in Provo lowering the price of housing. Now with this new rule housing will become tight again inflating prices. For example in the mid 90’s a 3-bedroom Provo apartment was $1200 a month since students rent beds (two per room at $200) instead of apartments. In the last few years the same 3-bedroom apartment has been available for $800 due to increased supply. Large complex owners have successfully lobbied BYU and Provo to lower demand to boost profits. Can you say Money Changers at the Temple?

“Workers at a DaimlerChrysler plant in Kokomo, Indiana, should drive a Chrysler model or they may find their car in Indianapolis, 50 miles away. That's because a rule limits parking space for non-Chrysler cars. Violators will be towed.” Can a company do that? Workplace horrors compiled.

Ebay:You are bidding on a picture of some guy's girlfriend. Current bid only $31 and “SERIOUS BIDDERS ONLY, PLEASE!”

In a bizarre attempt to “Make a Mockery” Saddam says he's been beaten and tortured. The irony here is off the charts. I think Saddam may have read Johnny Cochran’s book "How to beat the rap even when you are guilty" too closely.

Here comes a new warning on those damn commercials: Study: Impotence Can Warn of Heart Disease. Or maybe these men just weren’t in good enough shape to do this type of activity? Pharmaceutical companies are to blame for increase in heart disease. On the other hand this just might lead to a new and interesting way to test for Male Heart Disease. Use your own imagination for the test.

Last week I saw a news report on a site that you can email your past indiscretions about your Sexually Transmitted Disease. I had to check this out, as it just may well be a fun and useful site www.inspotla.org. After a few minutes on the site, I have decided that this just might be the website of the year for 2005. The message you can send goes something like this.

There’s something I need to tell you.
I found out that I have an STD. You should get checked if you haven’t recently. www.inspotla.org.

Your Message Goes Here

I guess when care to send the very best, a STD, sending an email is the best means to inform everyone that they may have an unexpected present. I guess it cuts down on the swearing, impersonal phone calls or even that awkward face-to-face meeting that come with such a revelation. But wait it gets better you can even send it anonymously. My favorite card for the anonymous notification is: “Who? What? When? Where? It doesn’t matter. I got an STD; you might have it too.“

I have decided that instead of spending money on Christmas, I mean Holiday cards I will send all my friends and family one of these. In fact it is such a good idea I am sending an anonymous one to all the girls I have met, dated or even just drooled over especially if they have a byu.edu email address. I can’t wait to see what happens with these Holiday Gift emails. This could very well be the tool of the season.

On a trip to Washington DC, I got a chance to visit the Library of Congress. During my tour, the tour guide mentioned that they had a Braille version of Playboy. I asked to see it being the smart aleck that I am but she insisted it was unavailable at that time. Years past and I forgot about my trip until today when it was brought back to my memory by this article about Playboy in Braille in the Banterist.. (This link is safe NO PORN but includes photos of the issue, which is only raised dots.) It is nice to see good ole Hugh Heffner getting in on novelty marketing, producing something so absurd that the press will surely pick it up and give you free advertising.

When you know after a few trips to the Wal-Mart down the street that when “we have a code 387 south entrance” is screamed over the intercom it means a shoplifter has just left the building. (I have only been to this Wal-Mart three times and everytime before 8 am)

When you are the only white person in the Wal-Mart in a state where 90% of the population is white.

When the checker speaks Spanish to you and wears a pin that says I speak English.

Wal-Mart smells like Curry.

The Salvation Army Santa is inside the building before the check out and has an armed guard.

Over the counter cold medicine is in a locked cage and you have to show ID to get from the pharmacist. And the pharmacist asks why you need it even though your voice sounds like Yoda. And then get IDed again at the check out.

Your place of employment has more cameras than NBC.

You get ID’ed when using a debit card with a pin number.

These are all things I have noticed in the last month while working in the lovely Welfare Valley City.

Tis the Season for Wackos
Being a religious person I sometimes think that the commercialization of Christmas has gone too far but never did I think to have a murderous Santa display.

I nearly wet my pants when a friend of mine sent me this.
Man dates Gal on Internet for six months – and it turns out she’s his mother! Some quotes from the news article: "The conversations even got a little racy a couple of times. But I really started to fall for her, because there seemed to be a sensitive side that you don't see in many girls. She sent me poems she had written and told me about her dreams and desires, and it was really very romantic."

Signs you shouldn’t be a thief: You smash through a door that has a note that reads Please Use Other Door.

If your lawyer describes his testicles, you get a new trial. Of course it’s in Florida.

The Golden State Warriors suck so bad their season ticket promo features Star Players from their opponents. My favorite was the Shaq Paq.

That's Not Your Husband, It's a Mannequin! Is this a sign of how bad our mental healthcare really is?

Microsoft's CEO will have to shop for his Xbox. Steve Ballmer said, "Thanks to the wonders of Sarbanes-Oxley, management does not get a free Xbox 360," BOO HOO!!!

Buy him a ticket
Here is the response from a fellow reader in the Salt Lake Tribune to Thursday's RW Rasband letter.

Buy Him a Ticket
R.W. Rasband (Forum, Dec. 8) complains that “only the wealthiest, wine-and-cheese Salt Lake east bench liberals” will be able to go to Maureen Dowd's $95 per-ticket book signing at Sundance. I feel your pain, R.W. I'm as liberal as the next fella, but I'm not going either because I can't stand Maureen Dowd's writing. I've never been able to finish a single column without gagging, and I wouldn't go to see her for free. But clearly, Mr. Rasband wants to go. I'm willing to kick in $20. Any of you other wine-and-cheese types willing to help buy him a ticket? Michael P. Greer Sandy Salt Lake Tribune

Can I Quote You on That?
I am an assembler of quotes. It takes less time with the advent of the computer. Here are a few that I have found in the last year...

"The less confident you are, the more serious you have to act." -- Tara Ploughman

"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." -- Philip K. Dick

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject." -- Winston Churchill

"I don't make jokes. I just watch the Government and report the facts." -- Will Rogers

"Americans spend an average of four hours a day watching TV, an hour of that enduring ads. That adds up to an astounding 10% of total leisure time; at current rates, a typical viewer fritters away three years of his life getting bombarded with commercials." -- Scott Woolley, Forbes

"There's no business like show business, but there are several businesses like accounting." -- David Letterman

"When choosing between two evils I always like to take the one I've never tried before." -- Mae West

"We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us happy is something to be enthusiastic about." -- Albert Einstein

“Fig Newton: The force required to accelerate a fig 39.37 inches per sec.”--J. Hart

“I like to play blackjack. I'm not addicted to gambling, I'm addicted to sitting in a semi-circle.”--Mitch Hedberg

"The prospect of a long day at the beach makes me panic. There is no harder work I can think of than taking myself off to somewhere pleasant, where I am forced to stay for hours and 'have fun'."--Phillip Lopate

“Normal is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work and driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for - in order to get to the job you need to pay for the clothes and the car, and the house you leave vacant all day so you can afford to live in it.” --Ellen Goodman

"The only man who is really free is the one who can turn down an invitation to dinner without giving an excuse."--Jules Renard

“Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.”--Phyllis Diller

“Be sincere; be brief; be seated.”--Franklin D. Roosevelt

"Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men."--Martin Luther King Jr.

"There's no secret about success. Did you ever know a successful man who didn't tell you about it?"--Kin Hubbard

"A person has three choices in life. You can swim against the tide and get exhausted, or you can tread water and let the tide sweep you away, or you can swim with the tide, and let it take you where it wants you to go. "--Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider, Northern Exposure, Northern Lights, 1993

"There used to be a real me, but I had it surgically removed."--Peter Sellers

"There's no easy way out. If there were, I would have bought it. And believe me, it would be one of my favorite things! "--Oprah Winfrey

"Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through snow."--Jeff Valdez

"He who builds a better mousetrap these days runs into material shortages, patent-infringement suits, work stoppages, collusive bidding, discount discrimination--and taxes."--H. E. Martz

"Democracy substitutes election by the incompetent many for appointment by the corrupt few."--George Bernard Shaw

“We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?” -_Jean Cocteau

“When companies ship Styrofoam what do they pack it in?”--Steven Wright

“Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends”--Walt Disney

“The fragrance always remains on the hand that gives the rose.”--Gandhi

“You cant live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”--John Wooden

“Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success.”--Dale Carnegie

“Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.”--George S. Patton

“A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.”--Mark Twain

“All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure.”--Mark Twain

“Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more.”--Mark Twain

“Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”--Mark Twain

“A lot of people are afraid of heights. Not me, I am afraid of widths.”--Steven Wright

“Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect.”--Steven Wright

“I busted a mirror and got seven years bad luck, but my lawyer thinks he can get me five.”--Steven Wright

“I poured spot remover on my dog. Now he s gone.”--Steven Wright

“What we’ve gone through in the last several years has caused some people to question; Can we trust Microsoft?”--Steve Ballmer

“The hardest thing to understand in the world is the income tax.”--Albert Einstein

“We don’t have a monopoly. We have market share. There’s a difference.”--Steve Ballmer

“Weather forecast for tonight: dark.”--George Carlin

“Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.”--Yogi Berra

“Computers make it easier to do a lot of things, but most of the things they make it easier to do don't need to be done.”--Andy Rooney

“A bookstore is one of the only pieces of evidence we have that people are still thinking.”--Jerry Seinfeld

“Men want the same thing from women and their underwear: support, comfort, and freedom.”--Jerry Seinfeld
“There must be some kind of way out of here said the joker to the thief.”--Bob Dylan

“He who does not read good books has no advantage over he who cannot read them.”--Mark Twain

“Read the best books first, or you may not have a chance to read them at all.”--Henry David Thoreau

“Treat your customers like they own you, because they do.”--Mark Cuban

"There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot."--Steven Wright

"Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds."--Franklin D. Roosevelt

"It's choice - not chance - that determines your destiny."--Jean Nidetch

"Home computers are being called upon to perform many new functions, including the consumption of homework formerly eaten by the dog."--Doug Larson

"In all large corporations, there is a pervasive fear that someone, somewhere is having fun with a computer on company time. Networks help alleviate that fear."--John C. Dvorak

"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."--Rich Cook

"If the automobile had followed the same development cycle as the computer, a Rolls-Royce would today cost $100, get a million miles per gallon, and explode once a year, killing everyone inside."--Robert X. Cringely

"That is the saving grace of humor, if you fail no one is laughing at you."--A. Whitney Brown

"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."--Mark Twain

"Honesty may be the best policy, but it's important to remember that apparently, by elimination, dishonesty is the second-best policy."--George Carlin

"Its never just a game when you're winning."--George Carlin

"Human beings are the only creatures that allow their children to come back home."--Bill Cosby

"I base my fashion taste on what doesn't itch."--Gilda Radner

"Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for."--Will Rogers

"I'm not a real movie star. I've still got the same wife I started out with twenty-eight years ago."--Will Rogers

"The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf has."--Will Rogers

"Making duplicate copies and computer printouts of things no one wanted even one of in the first place is giving America a new sense of purpose."--Andy Rooney

"The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's a 90% probability you'll get it wrong."--Andy Rooney

"I want to find a voracious, small-minded predator and name it after the IRS."--Robert Bakker (This man is quite entertaining, I heard him speak at Sundance)

Random Link Friday
The Top Politically (in)Correct Words for 2005
My favorite being: “Deferred Success as a euphemism for the word fail. The Professional Association of Teachers in the UK considered a proposal to replace any notion of failure with deferred success in order to bolster students self-esteem.” And we wonder why people are becoming whimpering sheep.

Tired of crappy words and phrases used by the media and government?
Take a look at Lake Superior State University 2005 List of Banished Words Some examples include words I am sick of like:
BLUE STATES/RED STATES
FLIP FLOP/FLIP FLOPPER/FLIP FLOPPING
AND I APPROVE THIS MESSAGE
ENEMY COMBATANT
ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION

Being a recovering Sports Junkie, this made me laugh
Baseball Knowledge will Not Help You Pick Up Girls.

Or

Kids Letters from Terrorist Camp

BayRaider is a site totally devoted to the weird sold on Ebay.

Did you know that FANTASTIC 4 ELECTRONIC THING HANDS is one of this Christmas’ Most Dangerous Toys? It is according to WATCH (World Against Toys Causing Harm) cited for HAZARD: POTENTIAL FOR BLUNT IMPACT INJURIES! I sleep .000598677474% better knowing that my “future” child will be kept safer than I was from dangerous toys.

The documentation of a family by one photo per year.

Do dogs laugh?

Wow I didn’t know knitting was this popular! It is the web stats for this site

Stars Looking Bad in HDTV: Silly Talk or Serious Issue?.

Fun with Letters to the Editor:

Sundance liberals

I see that catty New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd is having a book signing Saturday in Utah, but it's not at some bookstore. It's at the Sundance resort and they are charging $95 a person to get in.
This pretty much ensures that only the wealthiest, wine-and-cheese, Salt Lake east bench liberals will want to go. Remember this little fact the next time you hear Dowd or Robert Redford sound off about economic fairness and the underdog.

R.W. Rasband
Heber City
LINK

Response Letters I would like to see…

Dear Mr. Rasband,

Although I run my businesses like Joe McCarthy, You and I both know that liberal money is the only money that spends. I gotta keep the Republican riff-raff out of Sundance. Its cheaper than seeing the Rolling Stones at that conservative Larry Miller place of propaganda besides $95 also gets you a book an autograph and some hoity-toity food.

Thanks
Bob

'T' stands for many things

I want to share how I feel about the American Atheist Inc. filing a lawsuit against the Utah Highway Patrol because of its monuments honoring fallen troopers. The "t" is not only a symbol for the cross but is also one of the lowercase letters of the English alphabet. The symbol "t" can stand for trooper, thankful, true and thoughts. Certainly, American Atheist Inc. and thinking judges can't protest separation of alphabet and state.
Merlin Ross
Sandy
LINK

This letter is well said. American Atheists should crawl back under their rock.

'Work and Glory' is real gift

My gratitude goes to Gerald Lund, Larry H. Miller and others for the wonderful movie "The Work and the Glory." The acting was flawless. I can hardly wait for the next segment.

The movie was superb, but was given only two-and-a-half stars by the paper's movie critic, Jeff Vice. Could it be that Vice — who gives good ratings to many R-rated movies, can't attain the heights one reaches while watching such a beautiful film — heights where the stars are numberless? I reached up, and grabbed four for that glorious work.
Anne Smart-Pearce
Salt Lake City
LINK

Dear Ann
Larry Miller has only made three mistakes that I know of.

1. Resigning Greg Ostertag to a seven-year deal.
2. Signing Carlos “Retired” Boozer
3. Spending any money on the creation of Mormon Movies.

Sorry…
Amanda Hugandkiss

Larry’s Secretary

BIG WHITE TEETH...

Today, I was looking through my web site stats… and I stumbled upon http://www.osmond.com. Being the curious sort I thought I would check out their site.

Some Highlights:
If you are a little bit country or a little bit rock and roll
In the spring of 2006 the Donny and Marie Show will be available on DVD.

Donny’s Response to Plastic Surgery…
“I wouldn't rule it out. :) Just let me know when I need it. Although, I think I'll just grow old as gracefully as I possibly can.” http://www.donny.com/info/faq

If all the Records, DVD’s and CD’s aren’t enough for your type of fan there is always the Osmond Network: yes the Osmonds want to be your ISP.

Osmonds - Second Generation… This left me speechless.. I burned all my Color Me Bad CD’s and I am now strictly Osmond Second Generation

Jay now has his traditional Holiday Greeting online.

And Don’t Forget to Purchase Your Donny and Marie Millennium CD Greatest Hits

Do you ever wonder how successful people became successful?
I do all the time…I am positive that it drives my wife nuts. I don’t watch a lot of mindless TV; I like to watch shows that will teach me something. I watch TLC, Discovery Channel and other “nerd” channels instead of much of the mindless junk that broadcast networks produce to numb America. I like watching shows on business both entrepreneurial and marketing. I love learning how people have stumbled upon business ideas and successes by complete accident or by what I call planned luck; working until succesful. My parents always spouted the phrase: Work will win when wishy washy won't. It wasn't until later in life I realized what they meant.

Mark Cuban Billionaire Extraordinaire recently reposted his personal history and how he became successful on his blog at www.blogmaverick.com.

Success & Motivation Part 1 Coming to Dallas without a job.

Success & Motivation Part 2 My first job in Dallas, lessons learned and teaching myself how to use a PC.

Success & Motivation Part 3 Fired - and ready to start MicroSolutions

Success & Motivation Part 4 Some early lessons learned

Success & Motivation - You only have to be right once

The Sport of Business - Competition in the Business world puts any sport to shame

Goals - An Interview He did with Young Money

It is interesting that Cuban has had a lot of jobs; Cuban had the sense to learn all that he could from each job whether it is it good or bad. I think a lot of people go about their job mindlessly and don’t use it to become a better employee or find a better job. People get stuck in a rut and feel they have no hope and become sheep. I have seen a lot of sheep in the workplace. My current job has lots of sheep running around ba ba ba-ing everthing. Baaing that they don’t make enough money but yet they do nothing to move up the ladder or to better their situation. Baaing that somebody else got promoted. Baaing that so and so is now rich. These sheep believe that success comes by luck and that work has no bearing on success. One thing I do know is that success and work almost always go hand in hand. I have had a lot of jobs and some were good and some were bad but I learned a lot. Since 1993 I have kept a notebook of lessons learned or ideas for running a business. Some entries include: Never make more than 10x the lowest paid employee. Provide Health Insurance for all employees. Some of the items have changed or I have realized that maybe they will or won’t work as intended or maybe I was too young to understand. Sometimes the lessons are no longer relevant. My mindset has always been when I am the boss I will do X, Y, Z. Someday I will work on my goal to write a book about my notebook. The title may be: thoughts I have had while thinking or maybe lessons learned by hard knocks.

Part 2 and 3 of Cubans autobiographical blog were the most interesting to me. He writes of becoming knowledgeable in a business area and using it to become more successful. I think it is insightful to read in his words about how he was computer illiterate and that he managed to get a job in the computer industry. Cuban learned about his products and became more knowledgeable and grew the business he worked for. Eventually he was fired for making a sale. The next step was starting his business with no money. Cuban had the basic understanding of business client relationships. Cuban knew he had to leverage his past successes for future success. It is interesting how he explains how he did it in simple terms. The other nugget I believe in his blog is his belief that if you want to succeed you need to be as knowledgeable about what you are doing. In reality Cuban says is that most people will not take the time to read books, magazines and manual on subjects but instead leave it to others to become experts. Becoming an expert through hard work is a sure method to achieve success. Mark Cuban gives a lot of insight into what it took for him to become Mark Cuban Billionaire. Cuban says unapologetically that there are no short cuts to success. I find that very interesting.

It's Christmas for Pete's Sake...

I get sick and tired of people trying to remove religious symbols from everything in American society. Mostly I am tired of the wasted tax money in entertaining these thoughts and legal actions. Religious relics are items that the fathers of our country felt should be incorporated into their new country and government. The symbols and history do nothing to promote religion other than to show that the founding fathers of America believed in a higher power.

Our founding fathers believed in God. In the Declaration of Independence they state their belief in God. The framers of our nation used God as the power and foundation for the new government.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

The Charters of Freedom speaks of a higher power often. So if you don’t believe in God how can you use rights that “the Creator” has given in the foundation of our country to fight against religious symbolisms in the government?

The latest Holiday vs Christmas battles as well as a recent lawsuit in Utah have raised my ire. Removing Christmas from all December Holiday references is ridiculous. It is not a Holiday tree or Winter Festival tree, it’s a Christmas tree. I am sure the Jews will be stoked to call their Manora a Holiday Candle Holder just to appease you Atheists. Face it, if it weren’t for Christians you wouldn’t have had a two-week break in school or a holiday were gifts are given. I don’t see too many Atheist Holidays. Maybe it is due to the fact that Atheists don’t believe in a God and thus nothing is Holy to them and thus no Holidays. Holiday is a derivative of Holy Day. Religious symbols are everywhere. Removing “In God We Trust” isn’t going to make us Freer, Richer or more Safe.

Maybe the atheists and ACLU could chase the medical community for using religious symbols after all they use one. The medical symbol of a staff and two snakes is a reference to the Bible and Moses journey into the wilderness where the children of Israel were cursed with fiery serpents and the Lord commanded Moses to make a staff for the believers to look upon to prevent death by the fiery serpents. (Numbers 21) So how is this not religious?

To all you Atheists and ACLU supporters who constantly try to screw up American Holidays by misconstruing the Constitution here are some writings and speeches by the men who wrote the document. It seems they were religious

“I have lived a long time, sir, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this, that God governs in the affairs of man. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? We have been assured in the Sacred Writings that except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it. I firmly believe this. I also believe that, without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel.”--Benjamin Franklin addressing the Constitutional Congress April 1787

We Recognize No Sovereign but God, and no King but Jesus! --John Adams April 18, 1775

"We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." –John Adams October 11, 1798

“The Law given from Sinai [The Ten Commandments] was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious code.”--John Quincy Adams. Letters to his son. p. 61

"For my own part, I sincerely esteem it [the Constitution] a system which without the finger of God, never could have been suggested and agreed upon by such a diversity of interests."--Alexander Hamilton

“It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”—Patrick Henry May 1765 Speech to the House of Burgesses

“ The doctrines of Jesus are simple, and tend to all the happiness of man.”--Thomas Jefferson
“Of all the systems of morality, ancient or modern which have come under my observation, none appears to me so pure as that of Jesus.”--Thomas Jefferson

"I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus." --Thomas Jefferson

“God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever.” Thomas Jefferson (excerpts are inscribed on the walls of the Jefferson Memorial in the nations capital) [Source: Merrill . D. Peterson, ed., Jefferson Writings, (New York: Literary Classics of the United States, Inc., 1984), Vol. IV, p. 289. From Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVIII, 1781.]

“We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We’ve staked the future of all our political institutions upon our capacity…to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.”—James Madison 1778 to the General Assembly of the State of Virginia

Baron Charles Montesquieu, wrote in 1748; “Nor is there liberty if the power of judging is not separated from legislative power and from executive power. If it [the power of judging] were joined to legislative power, the power over life and liberty of the citizens would be arbitrary, for the judge would be the legislature if it were joined to the executive power, the judge could have the force of an oppressor. All would be lost if the same … body of principal men … exercised these three powers." Madison claimed Isaiah 33:22 as the source of division of power in government. Isaiah 33:22 “For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; He will save us.”

"To the kindly influence of Christianity we owe that degree of civil freedom, and political and social happiness which mankind now enjoys. . . . Whenever the pillars of Christianity shall be overthrown, our present republican forms of government, and all blessings which flow from them, must fall with them."-- Jedediah Morse--Federalist

The name of American, which belongs to you, in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of Patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local discriminations. With slight shades of difference, you have the same religion" ...and later: "...reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle..." George Washington September 17, 1796 Farewell Address

Read more on religion and the foundation of America

This should just about kill any ability for me to run for office later in Life.

HIV/AIDS isn't the Only Deadly Disease!!!
Ok today’s rant was set off by two events. Event one: TV and newspapers proclaiming today AIDS DAY and two an email from a coworker asking for donations for HIV/AIDS charities. Today is national AIDS Day. It makes me angry that as a country and in the world so much has been made of AIDS. There are many other diseases that kill more people that don’t have cure. Diabetes is a disease that kills slowly and painfully its victims. Diabetes is partially preventable but is often due to your genetics. AIDS can be prevented in most cases. There are other serious diseases that aren’t preventable that don’t receive the press, the star treatment or the media that AIDS receives. For example Diabetes is a serious and deadly disease that receives no special recognition, no million-dollar donations to find a cure and no media attention at all. 1.5 million American’s alone will be diagnosed with Diabetes in 2005. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only between 800,000 and 900,000 people have HIV/AIDS in the USA. It makes me mad that the world makes AIDS into a huge problem and millions of dollars are wasted in research in a problem that is more about choices than with disease.

I admit and understand that AIDS is a deadly disease and is an epidemic. I know that AIDS/HIV is wiping out continents of people. I understand the seriousness. However It is estimated that 21.8 million people have died of AIDS (17.5 million adults and 4.3 million children under 15). AIDS is a tragic killer that since 1984 has been 95% preventable.

I can already hear the moans and groans about my position. No I am not a religious zealot. I am not naïve to the problem. I am not thinking over simplistically. AIDS is preventable if people understand that AIDS is the result of poor choices. Making correct choices will protect you from AIDS. I do understand that we the epidemic as large as it is today that there are those who don’t make poor choices who will still become infected with HIV/AIDS. To understand my reasoning and my beliefs we must know a few facts about AIDS.

WARNING: Some of the following may be rated R or might disgust the most prudent of readers.
How is HIV transmitted?
HIV can be transmitted from an infected person to another through:
· Blood (including menstrual blood)
· Semen
· Vaginal secretions
· Breast milk

Activities That Allow HIV Transmission
· Unprotected sexual contact

· Direct blood contact, including injection drug needles, blood transfusions, accidents in health care settings or certain blood products

· Mother to baby (before or during birth, or through breast milk)

Sexual intercourse (vaginal and anal): In the genitals and the rectum, HIV may infect the mucous membranes directly or enter through cuts and sores caused during intercourse (many of which would be unnoticed). Vaginal and anal intercourse is a high-risk practice.
Oral sex (mouth-penis, mouth-vagina): The mouth is an inhospitable environment for HIV (in semen, vaginal fluid or blood), meaning the risk of HIV transmission through the throat, gums, and oral membranes is lower than through vaginal or anal membranes. There are however, documented cases where HIV was transmitted orally, so we can't say that getting HIV-infected semen, vaginal fluid or blood in the mouth is without risk. However, oral sex is considered a low risk practice.

Sharing injection needles: An injection needle can pass blood directly from one person's bloodstream to another. It is a very efficient way to transmit a blood-borne virus. Sharing needles is considered a high-risk practice.

Mother to Child: It is possible for an HIV-infected mother to pass the virus directly before or during birth, or through breast milk. Breast milk contains HIV, and while small amounts of breast milk do not pose significant threat of infection to adults, it is a viable means of transmission to infants.

The following "bodily fluids" are NOT infectious:
· Saliva
· Tears
· Sweat
· Feces
· Urine
http://www.aids.org/info/FAQs.html

What does this mean?
This means that you are more than likely not going to become infected HIV/AIDS by blood products during Healthcare because since 1984 accurate tests have been available to check for HIV in our blood supply. Healthcare workers are still at risk. Healthcare employees maybe exposed because of people not being aware of their HIV/AIDS status and the possibility of accidental blood contamination. Healthcare workers are very well educated to the risks of HIV/AIDS. Sharing needles by drug users is a risk that is preventable. A person chooses to use drugs. It is a life style habit that can be altered to prevent AIDS.

Sexual transmission: this is also a lifestyle choice. Celibacy before marriage, monogamy after marriage will give you the ability to prevent the transmission of AIDS. Again this is a life style choice. It might not be the “in” thing to do but it will prevent you from catching a deadly disease. This argument is always countered as being a religious issue. It might be or it might not be at any point it will lower the transmission of a deadly disease. If you don’t want lung cancer you will likely be successful by not smoking. It’s the same principle. Don’t engage in risky activities and you will dramatically lower your chances of catching AIDS. For some people this is unacceptable solution. The next suggestion is to use a condom but understand that a condom is not a 100% cure. It just raises the odds against becoming infected. This is again a life style choice. It is all cause and effect. If you don’t want to be run over by a car don’t run back and forth across a freeway.

Mother-child infections are a sad by-product of engaging in risky activities. If the mother hadn’t done something to become infected, she wouldn’t be passing along the infection.
There are innocent victims of AIDS but they are far less than many other deadly diseases.

About Diabetes:
Diabetes is the lack of ability to produce insulin in the body or cells in the body become resistant to insulin. Insulin is necessary for the body to be able to use sugar. Sugar is the basic fuel for the cells in the body, and insulin takes the sugar from the blood into the cells.
There are two types of diabetes.

Type I diabetes is usually diagnosed in children and young adults, and was previously known as juvenile diabetes. In type I diabetes, the body does not produce insulin.

Type II diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, either the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin. Insulin is necessary for the body to be able to use sugar. Sugar is the basic fuel for the cells in the body, and insulin takes the sugar from the blood into the cells. When glucose builds up in the blood instead of going into cells, it can cause problems:

Diabetes can cause:

Hypoglycemia – Low blood sugar. Low blood sugars can cause black outs, loss of concessness, coma and eventual death if not taken care of.
Hyperglycemia High blood sugar is a major cause of complications
Ketoacidosis- is a serious condition where the body has dangerously high levels of ketones -- or acids that build up in the blood -- and it can lead to diabetic coma (passing out for a long time) or even death.
Heart Disease and Stroke
Kidney Disease
Eye Complications
Diabetic Neuropathy and Nerve Damage
Foot Complications
Skin ComplicationsGastroparesis and Diabetes
Learn more at http://www.diabetes.org

Diabetes is far more rampant in America than HIV/AIDS. Diabetes is caused by genetics and can be induced by lifestyle. HIV/AIDS can be prevented by a life style change Diabetes cannot. Diabetes complications can kill quickly or it can kill you part by part organ by organ.

Diabetes took 20 years to kill my grandfather. I watched as diabetes slowly took his eye site over a few years and left him 100% blind. I watched as Diabetes slowly took his ability to fight infection and lost his toes, his foot, and his legs slowly over 10 years eventually losing both legs. Eventually Diabetes caused other problems included blood clots and strokes. I witnessed a disease destroy a man in his prime through no fault of his own. Yet the World ignores a killer just as lethal as AIDS. I see no Media Frenzy, no Bono Foundation, no Elton John Foundation and in fact Diabetes has no celebrity endorser and Diabetes isn’t the only killer that goes ignored.

Comparing HIV/AIDS to Diabetes
20.8 million people alone in the US-- 7.0% of the population -- have diabetes. 41 million more have pre-diabetes.
36.1 million people world wide (34.7 million adults and 1.4 million children under 15) --have AIDS

Why not change your lifestyle and donate or campaign for other unpreventable diseases?