A-Rod Opts Out

Hey, Alex Rodriguez, what do you want? It couldn't be money - since you're walking away from $25.2 Million a year to play for the Yankees. Yeah, he had a good year, leading the majors in HRs and RBIs. Could it be that his agent told him that he could get more $$$ elsewhere?

This, friends, is what's wrong with this country. True baseball fans are sucked dry to pay obscene salaries to players like A-Rod who pack up and seek greener pastures at their first opportunity. I watch a lot of baseball on TV. The beer that I drink does not sponsor any MLB team. Aside from my basic satellite TV package, I do not subscribe to any pay TV Channel that directly contributes to the pro sports money madness. And it is madness! Here's an example: The Indianapolis Colts are hosting the New England Patiots this Sunday at the Hoosier, er, RCA Dome. The game is sold out. With more than a week until the game, bad seats were selling on the street for $500! $500? What the hell's wrong with us? You could buy a damn TV for less than that!(or pay a couple of month's heating bills.) These scalped tickets will not be purchased by wealthy people. Wealthy people already have their season tickets. These scalped tickets will be bought by people who will eventually get their very own front row seat......in bankruptcy court. The irony is that a guy like A-Rod can go to any professional game as a non-paying guest!

If the Yankees don't have to pay A-Bomb, er, A-Rod his $25,2 Million next year, maybe they cudda offered Joe Torre a few bucks more? BTW, look for Torre to be talking with the Dodgers.

Britney's Mom: "I could Write A Book!"

I'm not making this up. Britney Spears' mother, Lynne, is writing a book on, of all things, parenting. It's due out on (and I'm not making this up, either) Mother's Day! Having no shame runs in the family. It's another case where a Hollywood celeb is writing a book after never having read one.

Shut Up & Grow Up!

I'm watching the local TV news, this morning, and I see a story about smoking on college campuses. Two girls (they looked like girls) were complaining about having to walk through cigarette smoke on campus. Ah! Obviously this is a campus problem worthy of TV News! Obviously we have licked the unprotected sex problem, drug abuse problem, high tuition problem, and of course the insert your own problem with "higher education" here. Yes, unwanted cigarette smoke can be a problem. It stinks. Not as badly as some bodily odors, but, yes, it stinks. Are we all in agreement, so far? Good! Now, let's proceed to the problem which results from the solution of eliminating unwanted cigarette somoke found in the open air. To ban outdoor cigarette smoking from the Vincennes University campus you must take away the right to smoke our of doors. Taking away citizens' rights...is this the American way? Smoking is a legal, adult custom (or habit) which was given to us by the Native Americans, centuries ago. But, if you are in college, you probably already know that.

You know, there are certain dangerous things that General Tom avoids. I avoid walking through bad neighborhoods after dark - especially on payday. Mrs. General Tom & I have decided against Baghdad as a destination for our anniversary trip, this year. You see, college students, as you grow wiser, your common sense grows too! If cigarette smoke bothers you, you should avoid it. While you are at it, you may also want to grow up, stop whinning, get a job and become a productive member of society. I hear Phillip Morris is hiring...

PETA's Rep

I wasn't going to mention the recent fiasco which has been referred to as Pamela Anderson's wedding. Here's what she's been telling us: That she is in love with a mystery man who is a professional poker player.
That she lost more than $100,000 to the guy in a card came and that she slept with him to settle the debt.
(Isn't love beautiful?)
Then we find out that Pammy has taken out a marriage license.
Logically, this means that she is goig to get married.
She denies this.
She gets married.
Word is "leaked" that she is 2 months pregnant.
(Isn't love beautiful?)
She says that her unexpected pregnancy was fate.
Then word is leaked that she really isn't pregnant.

I mentioned that I wasn't going to mention this. It's obviously a case of a spaced out Hollywood Celeb who will say and do anything to get noticed. I was thinking about the PETA folks. If they are any smarter than Miss Pammy, wouldn't they distance themselves from her. After all, she's made enough stupid decisions....should we decide that her decision to not eat meat is another wacky decision. Don't get me wrong, I don't think the woman's stupid. She has been enormously successful using very little talent. Maybe if she lived in the real world, her bad decisions would, like, maybe, hurt her? (Shutup General Tom and click on the picture.)

Stengel Lives!

The Chicago Cubs are in the playoffs. For the New York Mets, the season was a game or two too long. That's OK. Each team had a good regular season. There's a common thread between the two teams. Both Willie Randolph, manager of the Mets and Lou Pinella, manager of the Cubs played under the direction and, er, guidance of Billy Martin. Martin was a gifted manager who was the prize pupil of none other than Casey Stengel. That's right! If there could be anything like royalty among baseball managers, this would be it! If I could speak with any person, living or dead, Casey would be in the top 10. If you ever heard the ol' perfessor speak, chances are that I wouldn't be doing much talking.

So, that's it. Just an observation. The more things change, the more things stay the same. As I watched either the Cubs or Mets this season, I saw many nuances in the managers' decisions that reminded me of when I saw Stengel at Yankee Stadium. Casey Stengel lives - in Cooperstown, in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium and in the minds of the men who played for the men who played for him.

Indiana State University Football

I'm waiting for this to get national attention!
After all, we deserve it!
Indiana State University recently fired their football coach. Under the direction of Coach Lou West, the Sycamores were 1 and 25. That sole win was tainted as Coach West used an inelegible player. That's right, ISU cheated when they won their one game in the past 26! This is not meant to be a slam on Coach West, even though It could be and should be, as I could easily have amassed a similar won - loss record - probably without cheating. The real purpose of this post is to ask the question, "What the hell was ISU thinking when they hired this guy?" While the local media is asking why Coach West didn't do better? I'm asking why ISU's atheletic department didn't do better - when they went searching for a coach.

Custody Score: Kevin 2, Britney 0

Britney Spears loses custody of her kids! Shocker? Shouldn't be.
When you act like a high profile slut, you pay the price. I'm guessing that judges have access to the tabloids and the internet where they can see late night pics of Britney, three sheets to the wind, no underwear and her private parts on display. To me, that's the worst part. OK, it's late, you're drunk. Were you drunk when you decided not to wear any panties...and your dress only goes down to....is that a dress? Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm no prude. I won't get specific, but I've done some crazy things. But, I was never a target of an army of papparazzi. If I were, I would have conducted myself differently. So should you, Brit.
Bottom line, here, is that as you mature, or as time elapses from your date of birth, most people take on additional responsibility. You know, like having kids, and actually raising them. We normal people do it all the time on a relatively limited income. Being a multi millionaire is supposed to make it easier!
I've said many times in this blog that it is amazing how money cannot buy class. And we're talking about tens of millions of dollars of net worth - and poor ol' Brit can't muster up enough dignity to win custory of her two boys?
There's another matter. It's legal trouble. In September, our Miss Brit left the scene of a fender bender. The word is that she had no valid drivers' license.
Let's stop here. How much does it cost to hire a driver in California? They say that when a celebrity dies, it comes in "threes." Well to remain current, when a celebrity goes to jail..... There's been Paris, then Nicole, and now (maybe) Britney.

Congratulations, Britney - I'm glad for you that your little song is doing well. In less than ten years you'll be the answer to a trivia question.