Well, the morons at Cable One here in Fargo are at it again. They finally decided that having two Fox stations was a bit redundant so, after 4 months, they decided to replace KMSP. (For those of you not from Fargo and thus are unfamiliar with the situation, KMSP in Minneapolis used to be our UPN affiliate until last September when they switched to Fox. Since then, Cable One hasn’t replaced the 2nd Fox station so we’ve had two, with KMSP being blacked out most of the time. According to Cable One, we were supposed to get a new UPN affiliate by the end of September, 2002.) Instead of replacing it with another UPN affiliate, they decided to put on The Hallmark Channel. The Hallmark Channel? I got to looking at their website and the only show on there that remotely appeals to me is Hogan’s Heroes.
If you know me, you know how much I absolutely HATE Cable One. It has to be the absolute worst cable system in this country. I often say the only advantage to living in Grand Forks would be the cable system. Cable One blocks out the Wild hockey games on Fox Sports (although it looks like they may have stopped that in an effort to suck up to the citizens of Fargo). They say they keep giving us new channels. Indeed, in the last year or so, we’ve gotten Fox News and the Food Network. But in order to put these “new” channels on, they’ve taken off two others, E! and Tech TV. Recently, they also spent time “auditioning” new networks to the people of Fargo such as The Golf Channel, ESPN Classic, and the Home and Garden Channel. They spent approximately two months showing different networks to everyone, and in turn, we were supposed to vote for our favorite. They wound up putting on The Outdoors Channel. Have you ever seen this network? It’s a bunch of gold prospectors looking for what wasn’t found in the late 19th century. That’s about it!
Cable One’s contract is up next year and it appears as though they’re trying to suck up to the people of Fargo so they don’t loose their contract with the city. I mentioned before the Wild hockey games. Now they’ve “fixed” the problem of having two Fox stations. I know the city commission has sent out surveys to many cable subscribers asking if they are happy with their current service. My dad nearly started salivating when he got a survey; he hates Cable One just about as much as I do. If you live in Fargo, write a letter to the city commission telling them NOT to renew Cable One’s contract. If you live in a city that also has Cable One, and your service is as bad as it is here, I’d like to hear from you, so please email me and I may pass it on to the appropriate people in the commission.
It’s also New Years Eve! As I write, it is about 11:10 pm here. New York just dropped the ball in Times Square. I’d like to take a chance to wish all of you a great 2003. With war looming in the Middle East and a major standoff now with North Korea, it may be a tough year. But just remember, no matter how bad it may get, it will pass. Throughout history, mankind has suffered through very difficult times, but times have always improved. If events occur that lead us into hard times, we need to band together and help one another out to get through those times. Always remember the light at the end of the tunnel. Happy 2003!
Merry Christmas! I’m going to keep this upbeat today since it is Christmas. It’s that time of year when most people get that good feeling of peace and love. Even if you aren’t a Christian, Christmas seems to be the biggest holiday of the year for most. I did one rant earlier on what Christmas really is, so I’m not going to reiterate my belief on that subject. While we don’t actually know on what day Jesus was born, we celebrate today as His birthday. This is the time of year for all of us to put aside petty differences and be with friends and family, after all, Jesus said to “love your enemy as well.” If any of you reading this today have had some problems recently with family or good friends, set it aside and give them a call. We spend but a short time on this sphere we call earth. Make good friends and keep them. Spend time with your family. If you can’t be with your family or friends, at least give them a call, or send an e-mail (letters seem so 20th Century…..). Even if you put more stock in Santa Claus rather than Jesus, you can still celebrate. Enjoy the time you have. Don’t waste it on worthless arguments that have no way of ending well.
My Christmas has been a bit unusual. This is the first year that my entire family hasn’t been able to get together on Christmas Eve at my Grandparents. My sister was married this last summer, so she’s spending this Christmas with his family. Fortunately they came up last weekend so we had a smaller Christmas last Saturday. We also had our normal Christmas last night (which meant another big meal. Mmmmmm……). It is always good to get together with family and have an enjoyable evening. I wish you all the very best this holiday season. I certainly hope you get to spend some time with your family and friends. Merry Christmas and God Bless.
I went to Wal-Mart again tonight to buy a couple of little flashlights (long story and it doesn’t have to do with this rant). It was probably 11:30pm when I was there, and I would have to say that half of the people were wearing snowmobile jackets. Is there some conspiracy against me? Come on, 11:30 at night, of all the people in Wal-Mart, half of them had Polaris and Ski-Doo jackets on? Like I said before, you aren’t “cool.” You look silly. I just wanted to make mention of it since little else is going on right now. Happy Holidays.
I was listening to the Sean Hannity Show this afternoon and he read an email that he received the other day from Kenneth Wangler, a listener of the show. I found it very interesting, here is the text:
“The Truth About Taxes”
Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand.
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for dinner.
The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men-the poorest-would pay nothing;
The fifth would pay $1:
The sixth would pay $3;
The seventh $7;
The eighth $12;
The ninth $18.
The tenth man-the richest-would pay $59.
That's what they decided to do. The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement-until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
"Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20."
So now dinner for the ten only cost $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes.
So the first four men were unaffected. They would still eat for free. But what about the other six-the paying customers?
How could they divvy up the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?"
The six men realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would end up being *paid* to eat their meal.
So the restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so the fifth man paid nothing, the sixth pitched in $2, the seventh paid $5, the eighth paid $9, the ninth paid $12, leaving the tenth man with a bill of $52 instead of his earlier $59.
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free.
But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
"I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man.
He pointed to the tenth. "But he got $7!"
"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got seven times more than me!"
"That's true!" shouted the seventh man.
"Why should he get $7 back when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!"
"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night he didn't show up for dinner, so the nine sat down and ate without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They were $52 short!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college instructors, is how the tax system works.
The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction.
Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table anymore.
Unfortunately, Liberals cannot grasp this straight-forward logic!
--Kenneth Wangler
I thought this was an excellent representation of our tax system. Think about this example. Is it fair to give tax cuts to only a handful of people? Is it not fair to give the majority of the tax cuts to those that pay the majority of taxes? I ask that you all consider this seriously, and put yourself in the shoes of “the tenth man” referred to in the story.
There is a movement in some states in this Country, including neighboring Minnesota, to require that drivers’ licenses of temporary residents of this Country expire the same day their Visa expires. There is a group in Minnesota right now suing the state over this new requirement saying that it is unconstitutional. Exactly how is this unconstitutional? Just because you don’t like a law doesn’t mean it is unconstitutional. Frankly, it should be illegal for drivers’ licenses to be valid longer than someone’s Visa is valid because it would aid in breaking immigration laws. It hampers police in their efforts to enforce existing laws. Essentially, the people bringing up the lawsuit are admitting their plans to overstay their Visas. If you were to obey the laws of the United States, you would have to be back to your home country by the time your Visa expires.
This brings up another interesting point, there are some people that don’t seem to be able to distinguish between legal and illegal immigration. Mexico’s Vicente Fox and most of the Democratic Party are among those people. According to some, if you want illegal immigrants deported, you are a racist because you don’t want diversity. Do I believe Illegals here should have absolutely no rights? No. But I do believe they should not be able to draw financial aid of any kind, and they certainly shouldn’t be able to pay the reduced tuition to state colleges as they currently do in California (Gray Davis, you !@#$! Moron!). Some lawmakers seem to want Illegals here; it tends to boost their polling numbers. Why, I don’t know, since illegal immigrants aren’t supposed to be able to vote. This is absolutely ridiculous.
I invite anyone who wants to come to this great land of ours to come, but come legally. This country was founded on immigration. Hardly any of us would be here if it weren’t for fairly recent immigration. Looking at my ancestry, I’m an ethnic mutt! My family has come from Ireland, England, Germany, Switzerland, France, Norway, and God knows where else. So if you wish to join me and my friends and family in the Untied States, come on over and I’ll meet you at the airport. Heck, I’ll buy you lunch! Just make sure you follow the laws that we have set up to protect everyone living in the United States. Good Night, and I’ll talk to you tomorrow.
With Christmas quickly approaching and decorations going up all over, I’ve noticed there seems to be one thing lacking in most people’s celebrations, Jesus. Okay, before you anti-Christian bigots stop reading, let me remind you of one thing, its called CHRISTmas for a reason. It isn’t a celebration of the birth of Santa Claus. Christmas started around 2000 years ago in a little town of Bethlehem (got that song stuck in your head now?), in an area that is today known as Israel. More specifically, Bethlehem today is in the Palestinian controlled area referred to as the West Bank. (Unfamiliar with why it’s called the West Bank? Israel gained control of that land in 1967 after war with neighboring Jordan. That land used to be the western part of Jordan, hence the name “West Bank.”) Anyway, getting back to Christmas, it is celebrated because it is the day that is recognized as the birth of the Christian Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Christmas is supposed to be a religious celebration. How Santa Claus and Frosty the Snowman and Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer got involved, I don’t know. But the primary celebration on December 25th should be the birth of Jesus. Is there room for Santa? Yes, but keep it all in perspective. Along with your light-up Santa and Christmas tree, put up a Nativity Scene and understand what it means. Go to Church. Even if you haven’t gone since you were six years old, find a local Church that is celebrating and join them, I’m sure they will be more than happy welcome you in. (If you live in Fargo, might I recommend my church, First Baptist. Service is on Christmas Eve around 5:30. Check the website or e-mail me for directions.) So while you’re watching “A Garfield Chirstmas” or that 24 hour marathon of A Christmas Story TNT does ever year, just remember why we have a holiday called Christmas. It is a celebration of the birth of my Savior. It is a celebration of the start of Christianity. It is a time for family to get together and eat way too much and exchange gifts. Just don’t forget how it all started 2000 years ago in that small town in Israel. Merry Christmas.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to write about tonight until just a little bit ago. I made a trip out to Wal-Mart buy a belt. What? Wal-Mart is for white trash? K-Mart is for white trash. Wal-Mart is for college students and people that need to buy laundry detergent. I’m a college student. Anyway, I first had to deal with all the morons that don’t know how to drive in this town. A little advice for out-of-town drivers that come in to Fargo, when on a main road, 10th St, University Dr., 13 Ave S, or 25th St, for example, look at the sign that says “Speed Limit,” read the number on there (usually 30, or 35), add 5 MPH to it, and go AT LEAST that fast. Nothing bothers me more than someone going 25 in a 35 zone. You are pissing people off. Especially me. Drive faster. The gas is on the right! If you live in Fargo and don’t understand how arterial roads work, give me a call, I’ll set you straight.
Now for you idiots at the store. GET OUT OF MY WAY! I know where I’m going. I want in and out as fast as possible. The smell of cheese that some of you emit is really offensive. Stop browsing. It’s just Wal-Mart. There’s nothing special there. I don’t know how anyone can browse in the pet food isle for 20 minutes without finding what they want anyway. Buy the 50 pound bag, it’s the best deal, and get out! Also, resolve any questions you have on a product before you go to the register. Don’t hold up an entire line because you couldn’t tell if the car air freshener you want to get would fit over your rear view mirror. If you bring your kids, tell them to stay in the cart, or right next to you. I nearly killed one kid that ran out in front of me tonight. I’m a large man, and I can’t stop all that easily if your little rug rat gets in my way.
And here’s something for all of you snowmobile riders. If you have an “Arctic Cat” or “Polaris” bumper sticker on your car (or truck), I will assume you are an in-bread yokel and I will tailgate you to no end. And you are not “cool” if you wear a jacket of the same kind. You are a hick. Buy a real jacket. Go to Wal-Mart, wait, check that, Go to K-Mart (see the beginning of this rant.), give them $30, and they’ll give you a normal jacket. You people usually smell of cheese as well. I don’t care if you ride snowmobiles, it seems like fun, just don’t get so submerged into that culture where all you do is breath, eat, sleep, and wear “Arctic Cat.” Same with you NASCAR freaks out there. I love to watch NASCAR, but I don’t have a jacket with a giant “3” on the back. I don’t wear a Dale Jarrett t-shirt. I don’t have a Tony Stewart Christmas Tree ornament. I watch it because its fun to watch, and every so often, you get to see a lot of cars get all smashed up. I would love to go to a race at Daytona or Talladega, but I’m not going to camp in the infield with a Confederate Battle Flag hanging from my R.V. (pronounce that “ARR, VEE” with your best Georgia accent).
As long as I’m ranting about people is highly dislike, I’m going to mention those of you that really get in to pro wrestling. If you own a “Stone Cold Steve Austin” shirt, or a “Hulkamaniac” bandana, you take it way too seriously. It’s not real. The outcomes are predetermined. (Hold on, if you are a wrestling nut, you probably don’t know what “predetermined” means. It means they script it all out ahead of time. For example, if Hulk Hogan is wrestling Stone Cold Steve Austin, they know who’s going to win before the “match.” Get it now?) Yes, the wrestling entails some amazing physical stunts, but that’s what they are, “stunts.” Settle down. Its just a prime time soap opera with half naked dudes hitting each other.
Okay, that’s it for today. I don’t think I could possibly rant any more on the idiots I see, at least not tonight. So, until tomorrow, drive carefully, shop quickly, and stay out of my way. Have a good night!
Yesterday, perhaps in an attempt to get this off the ground, I failed to mention that it was Pearl Harbor Day. So I figured today I would take some time and thank all of those that have served in our Armed Forces throughout the years. When I was in High School, I was in JROTC so I know a lot of people that went in to the Armed Forces and I’d like to recognize some of them here. Phil Hafdahl went to the Air Force Academy and should be graduating this spring. Andrew Sharpe is currently an Army Airborne Ranger. Last I heard, he was in Georgia doing logistics. Theresa Kane went into the Navy. A couple of years ago I saw her featured on our local news. After basic training, she was assigned to the USS Cooke. After the USS Cole was bombed near Yemen, the Cooke went to assist in cleanup and helped to nurse it home. Those three graduated the same year I did. In 1998, a year before I graduated, John Hoeck graduated and went to the Naval Academy and should have graduated last spring. The class of 2000 in my old JROTC unit saw most of its members go into service of one kind or another. One that sticks out in my mind is Matt Marquardt. As far as I know, he was planning on going in to the Navy and was assigned to training as a nuclear technician. When I heard this, I got very frightened. If you know Mr. Marquardt, you know exactly what I’m talking about….. I can’t possibly recognize everyone I went to High School with that went in to the Armed Forces, for if I tried, I know I would forget many of them. So, to those of you I haven’t mentioned personally, thank you.
I also want to say something to those that oppose the positioning of the World War II memorial in Washington, D.C. If you’re unfamiliar with this debate, there are many people that don’t want to “ruin” the beauty of the Mall by putting a memorial in that area, although they agree that a WWII memorial should be built. To you, I say this: the men and women that fought in the battlefields of Europe and the Pacific, those that stayed home and built aircraft or tanks, those that lived on the farm and produced food to supply our troops and to feed the citizens of this country did no less than save the world. They deserve the highest place of honor that is possible. If you think paying honor to the “Greatest Generation” is troublesome, I don’t think you realize the sacrifices they made. I don’t think any of us, except those that were alive during that time, truly understand the sacrifices made in order to keep this world from being overrun by fascist madmen. They truly earned the title of “Greatest Generation” and they certainly deserve a memorial on the Mall in Washington, D.C.
I would like to close by reiterating something that is said often, but not often enough: Freedom isn’t free. A great price has been paid by generations past to secure the freedoms we enjoy today. I believe there are many people in this country today that don’t understand what has happened in the past, and the sacrifices made by so many to defend this great country. People don’t understand the utter hell that our Veterans have gone through to defend what all of us hold dear today. If your father or grandfather fought to defend our country, tell them “thanks” this holiday season. If you yourself served to defend my freedoms, I would like to say, Thank You.
If you want another way to say thanks to our current Armed Forces, go to this website: http://www.defendamerica.mil/nmam.html and sign the card. It only takes a couple of seconds.
This is my first installment of something I'm going to do, hopefully day to day, just to blow off some steam. This isn't originally my idea. I'm stealing it from a friend of mine who used to do this all the time, making some very interesting and entertaining entries on a daily basis. But he’s in Italy right now and won’t be back until February, so by the time he comes back, I’ll have a running archive of a couple of months of me writing, so he won’t be able to complain too much. If you’re coming here looking for my deepest personal feelings and thoughts, you will be disappointed. I plan on setting this up more like an editorial board, for me, by me, so I can complain about the goings on around me, or commend the people around me for the good that they do. Frankly I’d like to say more good things on here on a daily basis, but I doubt that is going to happen. You’re going to find out that I’m quite conservative, so many of you won’t like me. But frankly, I don’t care. I feel that most people are ignorant on most subjects. If I write something on here, it’s because I’ve thought it out thoroughly and believe in it wholeheartedly. You’ll learn more about me in the near future, but for now, just enjoy reading.
Okay, time for my first rant. Right now the Student Senate at North Dakota State University (NDSU) is debating officially condemning the nickname and logo at the University of North Dakota (UND) which is the “Fighting Sioux.” Just so you know, I currently attend NDSU and used to attend UND so this debate is something I’ve given much consideration to. As a freshman at UND, I had a professor take several opportunities to give a one sided lecture on the issue as he was a vocal opponent to the nickname. This was just one of the many annoyances I had to deal with in my two years at UND. Now our own Student Senate has decided to bring the issue to our campus. I wrote a letter to the editor of The Spectrum, the NDSU student run newspaper outlining my opposition to even the discussion of this issue. Here is the text:
"After hearing the student senate is considering a mandate to denounce the nickname at the University of North Dakota, it got me thinking again why I came to NDSU. I attended UND for two years before transferring here. While there, I received an earful from both sides of the nickname debate. I was hoping by transferring to NDSU, I would be able to avoid the daily annoyances and protests. But now the student senate has decided to bring the issue here and undoubtedly will bring this heated debate to our campus.
"This is not our battle. It is the business of the University of North Dakota and those in attendance. It is not the business of North Dakota State University or Saint Cloud State University or the University of South Dakota. It is an internal issue that should be remedied by the students and alumni of UND. I fear that this decision will unleash the ugliness of this debate on our University for I have seen it first hand. While attending UND, I had professors take entire days of class to present a one sided lecture on the issue. Trust me when I say we do not want this at North Dakota State.
"If you oppose the nickname, protest outside the BSA at the next Bison/Sioux basketball game or go to Grand Forks the next time they have an anti-nickname protest and stand shoulder to shoulder with the other opponents. But do not drag the University as a whole into this issue."
It was printed on November 22, 2002. I also had another letter published three years ago on the same basic issue while I attended UND. The fact that I had two letters on the same issue published in two papers at two different schools bothered me a bit. Part of the reason I left UND was to escape the nuisance related to the nickname issue up there.
Well, I think that’s about enough of a rant for today. But this is what you can expect to see on a (hopefully) daily basis on here. And if I write something you don’t like, too bad. This is not going to be a PC forum for everyone to comment on. Like I said before, it’s a way for me to let off some steam, so I don’t want you to send me a ton of emails on the issues I talk about. Have a nice day!
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