Random Thoughts

So, I drove up from Effingham this afternoon and listened to talk radio. One of the stations I manage is a news/talk station and we run a program called "The Weekend With Mike McConnel" each Saturday from 11-2. Awesome show. I try to never miss it. He streams, so click on his picture next weekend to get to the website and listen to his show. Awesome.
Anyway, there were several things that came up on his show and other programs that I listened to that I have been thinking about.

Immigration
Reagan messed up. I don't say that often, so enjoy it while it lasts. In the 80's he did what Bush is deciding to do now. Grant amnesty. With 11 million illegal immigrants in our country, that is pretty much all you can do. Many people say "Send 'em all back and tell them to get to the back of the line." These people are idiots. Are you going to be the one footing the bill for 11 million moving trucks? No. Should they be here? No. Did they break the law? Hell yes. However, we need to admit that we made a mistake, give them all an opportunity to apply for citizenship within the next year and get voting rights in 10 years. Everyone will take classes on American History and how to speak English.
Where Reagan messed up is by granting amnesty and then doing nothing about the boarders. A wall isn't going to do crap. That will only slow everyone down about 30 seconds. Even as a kid I learned how to jump a damn fence! Armed guards are the only solution. Restrictions and more importantly, repercussions on companies that hire illegal immigrants and pay them 26 cents a day will also work. If we grant amnesty once again and STILL do nothing about the boarder, we will be in the same boat 10 or 15 years from now.

Fuel
Less than 20% of our fuel comes from the Middle East. Don't let anyone tell you anything different. And this whole "blood for oil" crap about the war in Iraq is being shouted by those with empty skulls. If anyone should be fighting the war, it should be France who had a sweet deal with Iraq goin'. And England (as of this weekend) is now paying $6.75 per gallon due to their heavy dependence on Middle East fuel. But, majority of that is tax. And that tax goes to fund their national health care. So, is it a good trade off there? I haven't made up my mind yet.
The question now becomes, how do we get ourselves off of our dependence on oil? Hybrid cars are a good start, but we need more. Ethanol? Not that feasible. Hydrogen? A pipe dream.
Go bio-diesel. This is fuel from things like soybeans and French fry grease. There are even studies being done on some elements of garbage to see if they can be turned into fuel. (Remember Mr. Fusion from Back To The Future?) This is a proven route to take and the biggest expense will be to build the infrastructure. If the government is serious about something to do - they should help with this.
I wonder when they will pick a pony, because it seems that they think that all of these options are solutions and aren't fully behind anything. Makes me wonder if it is all talk. Anyway, a good book to read is "Biodiesel America" by Josh Tickell. (Tick-L) I interviewed him on the air and am currently reading his book. It is a good read. Find out more about him and his book by clicking on the soy beans to the right.

Diet Pills
These don't work. I hear these commercials for Trim Spa, Calotren, Metabolife and others. What a waste. First of all, these are not evaluated by the FDA. Ever wonder why? They prevent you from feeling hungry. That seem safe to ANYONE?! If your body is in need of nutrients, don't you think you'd like to know? When you have a specific craving - whether it be chocolate or chicken, there is a nutrient within that food item that your body is needing right now. Why ignore this?
All these pills say that you should use them with diet and exercise and most recommend that you drink 8 glasses of water a day. Wanna know why you loose weight? You are working out, eating right - and probably better portions and drinking a lot of water. You drink 8 glasses of water a day WITHOUT these pills and do nothing else different with your life, you will loose weight. Your body will say "With all this water coming in, I don't need to hold all this water weight. Might as well get rid of it." And boom, you go down a few inches in the waist and take off as much as 5-8 pounds.
Amazing, isn't it? The best thing to do is don't eat until you are full, eat until you are satisfied, drink water often and exercise a bit.

Dallas
Never caught the TV show. Apparently it was big in the 80's. Like the 24 or Lost of today. They have decided to make a movie out of the TV show. You can learn about the movie by clicking on the TV poster on the left. Is Hollywood completely out of ideas? We have been getting TV shows made into movies for the past few years, comic books made into movies (these have been good for the most part - as long as Ben Afleck and/or Jennifer Garner stays away from the set) and remakes of movies that have already been made.
What's the deal? The formula is getting a little dry. Oh, and why the hell do we have J-Lo staring in this new movie?! Is the movie industry hoping that our short-term memories are shot and won't remember Gigli?! She shouldn't be allowed to work ever again. If you are looking for a hot woman, go with Eva Longoria. This would have been a good transitional piece for her. But, no. They had to go mess it up with J-Lo.

Sports
The Bears are looking to trade away a great running back for a draft choice. What a shocker. We finally have some talent on the offensive side of the ball and we trade it away for a draft choice. It is the same formula. We have become the training ground for the NFL. Once you have made it through the Chicago boot-camp, we send you off to a city where you will be picked up and soon be wearing a Super Bowl ring.
The Cubs lost to the Cards today - AWESOME! Washington lost to the Cavs - also AWESOME. (I hate Washington ever since they ruined the last few moments of Jordan on the court) we just need the Bulls and the Sox to win tonight for 4 great games today. I know the Bulls don't have a shot of going all the way, but they deserve to be in the play-offs. And the analysis that I've seen puts them winning tonight vs. the Heat. I'm looking forward to that game.

Well, I think that's everything. I've typed a great deal in the past few days. It is either feast or famine with this blog. I even have a few other things written that I'll release between now and Monday.

Enjoy your weekend.