Friday, December 31, 2010

Auld Lang Syne




Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?

CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !
and surely I’ll buy mine !
And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS
We two have run about the slopes,
and picked the daisies fine ;
But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS
We two have paddled in the stream,
from morning sun till dine† ;
But seas between us broad have roared
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS
And there’s a hand my trusty friend !
And give us a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.



HAPPY NEW YEAR

Thursday, December 30, 2010

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!


The New Year Holiday Weekend is just about upon us. High school basketball, movies (True Grit), Chinese takeout by the fire, and lots and lots of college bowl games on TV. That, and staying up late and sleeping in in the morning is the way to celebrate the New Year.

For those of you who are missing my political posts just wait till after the BCS Championship when Congress comes back into session and our President gets back from Hawaii. When does the 2012 Presidential campaign start ! One year to the Iowa caucus.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Christmas to New Year


The work week between Christmas and New Year is a strange time of the year. It's not a holiday but it's not really a normal work week. School is out for most students from kindergarten through graduate school. Many people have the week off. This year even the President is in Hawaii. It's also very slow at work for those who have to work except maybe those in retail sales.

For me , I like the time because I get to rest up from all the activities leading up to Christmas and this year our son is home from graduate school. We get to watch a few video movies, a college bowl game on TV and take in a high school basketball game or two. I look froward to a quiet night on New Years Eve. Maybe an early movie (The new True Grit ?) and Chinese food by the fire in the living room. I will try to make it up for Dick Clark's countdown to midnight on TV with that Brian CORRECTION Ryan what ever his name is. New Years Day is FOOTBALL all day.... college bowl games with lots of chips and pop. This year after New Years Day the countdown to the BCS Bowl will add another week to the Holiday Season. Go Ducks !

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Home for Christmas



One of the best parts of Christmas is having everyone at home. Both kids are now home and my sister is arriving tonight. Our family tradition is to have a large family meal Christmas Eve and then to open Christmas presents. On Christmas day the entire family likes to go to a movie (I am campaigning for the new "True Grit") and then look at Christmas lights around town. This Christmas we are very fortunate and lucky.

Christmas Humor


I agree with Bill O'Reilly that people and businesses are getting too reticent to say the words "MERRY CHRISTMAS" due to political correctness; but, I do find the satirical humor in this picture. In that spirit say "Merry Christmas" or be a "pinhead".

Merry Christmas !

Bubble Christmas Lights


I love Christmas lights and I particularly love Bubble Christmas Lights. When I was a little kid in the early 1950's one of my favorite things to do at Christmas was watch the bubble lights on our Christmas tree ... "bubble". Gradually as the 1950's led to the 1960's the bubble lights would burn out one by one. By the late 1960's we had a metallic tree with a color wheel shining on it. What where we thinking? Sometime in the 1980's I had a yearning for a return to the bubble lights of my youth. I searched and searched and they were very difficult to find. I finally found a string at a "Christmas Store" and we have been stringing it on our fireplace mantel for the last 20 or so years.. This year I put them on our tree and it really takes me back to my youth and they look great. We even went down to the store and bought more. They are now very easy to find. Some of them would not 'bubble" so I went "on line" and found out if you let them warm up and then unscrew them and shake them upside down they will start to bubble and it worked. Now I have 15 or so bubble lights on our tree and they are all bubbling. Merry Christmas

Christmas 1941



This is a re post of the story of the best Christmas card I ever received......

This morning I was reading Winston Churchill's book "The Gathering Storm" and I remembered a Christmas card our daughter sent us in 2006. I searched for the card and found it placed inside of William Manchester's biography of Churchill on a shelf in our dinning room. The card is my favorite all time Christmas card and for Christmas I put it out on the self next to my Winston Churchill statute. I wrote about it on this blog in 2006 as follows:

This year our daughter, who lives in Washington DC, sent us one of the best Christmas cards we have ever received. It is a painting of "The White House Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.... December 1941." The card was produced by the White House Historical Association. The painting on the front of the card is of Christmas Eve 1941 just weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entry into World War II. The Christmas trees is shown in front of the White House and on the portico speaking to the crowd is FDR and Winston Churchill. Churchill had come to Washington DC to coordinate the war effort with FDR and was staying with Roosevelt at the White House.

There is a lot of detail of Churchill's visit in the new book "Franklin and Winston, an Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship" by Jon Meacham managing editor of Newsweek and is a very good read. An interesting passage from the book:

The prime minister's hours kept Roosevelt up later than he was accustomed to. Churchill would wander into the President's bedroom at any hour if he had something to talk over..... The late-night conversations were fueled by war and drink... Winston... ate and thoroughly enjoyed, more food than any two men or three diplomats;and he consumed brandy and Scotch with a grace and enthusiasm that left us all open mouthed in awe....


That night they spoke to the crowd in front of the White House and to the nation on the radio. Jon Meacham described the night as follows:

There was a vast crowd, the voices drifted across the keen night air, the carols--old and yet for ever new--were sung in an atmosphere mellowed by the lights and the shadows... the voices of the President and the Prime Minister rang out with a message of hope and courage...Roosevelt introduced Churchill as "My associate, my old and good friend"

Churchill said:

I spend this anniversary and festival far from home....Here in the midst of war, raging and roaring over all the lands and seas, creeping nearer to our hearts and homes, here, amid all the tumult,we have tonight the peace of the spirit in each cottage home and every generous heart. Therefore we may cast aside for this night at least the cares and dangers which beset us, and make for the children an evening of happiness in a world of storm. Here, then for one night only, each home through out the English-speaking world should be a brightly-lighted island of happiness and peace.... Let the children have their night of fun and laughter... before we turn to the stern tasks and formidable year that lie before us. Resolve that by our sacrifice and daring these children shall not be robbed of their inheritance or denied their right to live in a free and decent world


According to Meacham, Eleanor Roosevelt had been worried that FDR would have a bad Christmas because it was the first Christmas after his mothers death but the influx of guests and increasing work made it practically impossible for him to think too much about any personal sorrow.

Churchill had heart palpitations during the ceremony and Churchill was sad to be apart from his wife Clementine at Christmas.

After that momentous night a Christmas Tree would not be lit again on the White House grounds for the duration of the war.

The Christmas Card out daughter sent us is one I will aways treasure....... If you look closely you will See FDR and Churchill. Thanks, Marry Christmas.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Where do we get such men !


Click on the link for a Denver Post story about an Oregon Duck fan from Yakima Washington serving in Afghanistan.

So this is what I want for Christmas: that Keith's knee heals, and he makes it through all his deployments, and marries that pretty dental hygienist, and talks her into moving with him to that bucolic valley apple farm near Yakima, and settles down to a long, boring, contented life critiquing quarterback choices and telling stories, when asked, about the years he spent in a bowl-shaped Afghan valley, his days walking patrols, his nights watching every star in the universe twinkle into view in the dark, wild sky. Please, Santa?



Read more: Colorado Voices: My wish for a soldier - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_16912025#ixzz18raKHINF
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: http://www.denverpost.com/termsofuse

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Lest We forget this Christmas Season


As we celebrate Christmas we should not forget those who have given their lives in defense of freedom and those who who are now in combat against the forces of evil and darkness around the world.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Home for the Holidays


Last Tuesday we went out to the Jackson County International Airport to pick up our son who is home for the holidays from Kentucky. Tonight we will pick up our daughter who is flying in from Washington DC. I love the trips to the airport this time of year and the best part of Christmas is having both kids home.

Last weekend, with my son's help, we put up our outdoor lights along with a light up Santa next to a big green "O" in lights for Oregon. Santa is waiving green and yellow pom poms. We also added two large Oregon Duck flags to the outside decorations in honor of Oregon's appearance in the BCS Championship Game. This year the Holidays will stretch to January 10, 2011 the date of the game. Christmas, New Year and the BCS Championship. What a great Holiday season. Merry Christmas and Go Ducks!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

SHOUT for the DUCKS & "Animal House"




Otis Day and the Knights of the Movie "Animal House" are scheduled to perform at 5:00 p.m.,on January 9th, at the University of Oregon Pep Rally in Scottsdale, Arizona. This is the day before Oregon plays in the National Championship in nearby Glendale Arizona .

This past season at Oregon's home football games, the Shout soundtrack was played along with clips from the movie on Autzen Stadiums big screen to get the crowd engaged.

Did I say the movie "Animal House" was filmed at the University of Oregon and is one of my favorite comedy's of all time? How perfect.

"THIS IS GOING TO BE GREAT !"


Monday, December 13, 2010

Christmas Music


Time to take a brake from Oregon Duck Football and their going to the National Championship for Christmas. I LOVE CHRISTMAS! It's one of the greatest traditions of Western Civilisation.

One of things I love about Christmas is Christmas music. Every year after Christmas I lament that I didn't listen to more Christmas music before the big day. For the last few years in December we have been listening to Christmas CD's in our car on the way to work. My favorite songs in no particular order are:

Pop Christmas Music:

"White Christmas", by Bing Crosby from the movie "White Christmas"(1954) and "Holiday Inn"(1942)

"I'll Be Home for Christmas" by Bing Crosby

"Little Drummer Boy" by Bing Crosby and David Bowie

"Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas",by Judy Garland from the movie "Meet Me in St Louis"(1944)

"The Christmas Song" by Nat King Cole

"It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" by Andy Williams

"Aspenglow", by John Denver

"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" by Gene Autry

"Frosty the Snow Man" by Gene Autry

"(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays" by Perry Como

"Silent Night" sung by the troops at every Bob Hope Christmas show at the end with the cast and crew.

"I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" by 13 year old Jimmy Boyd

Traditional Christian Christmas Music:. (I am not religious but this is beautiful music that everyone can enjoy.)

"O Come All Ye Faithful"

"Away In A Manger"

"It Came Upon A Midnight Clear"

"Joy To The World"

Old English Christmas "Sing Along" Songs:

"Deck The Halls"

"We Wish You A Merry Christmas"

"Jingle Bells",

Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 10, 2010

"Take a trip inside an Oregon football fan’s troubled mind".


Click on the title for a link to a wonderful column by a duck fan published in Willamette Week. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom. Today I sent a link to my wife and she said I could have written it..... I wish I had. Just a sample of the column:

Whatever your fixation, it helps get you through the day, connects you to others who share your itch and helps separate you from the hoi polloi who aren’t smart/witty/handsome/athletic/well-read enough to recognize you’re part of a super-special community of fellow travelers.

My passion? Ducks football. Has been for 38 years.

On the outside, I’m a normal guy. ....


From my own experience I remember when my kids were young and we were camping on the southern Oregon coast with my parents on Labor Day weekend.There was no radio reception at the campground of the Ducks game so I left the family at the camp ground and drove 30 to 50 miles to Coos Bay to pick up the game on the radio.

Earlier when I was in the Army at Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood Missouri I was allowed to buy a Sunday newspaper and first thing I would do was go to the sports page to see how the ducks had done on Saturday.

Or how I would always listen to the Ducks on a transistor radio when I worked my Saturday job at a variety store in Coos Bay as a stock boy in high school and dreamed of going to college and watching my Ducks !

And now my Ducks are playing in the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.

A friend of mine sent me a link to the above article with the words "We are not alone"

Monday, December 06, 2010

Everyone was watching the Ducks on Saturday in the Civil War Game


Wiley Wickre in Washington D.C. gets ready for the "Civil War" game between Oregon and Oregon State. I wonder who he was for !

Sunday, December 05, 2010

Jerry Allen, Radio Voice of the Ducks, Reacts to 2010 Civil War Victory



Jerry, as his voice breaks in emotion, express for all of us "old time" Duck fans what this all means to us...... after all the years of, at best mediocrity, the Ducks have done what only we could imagine in our wildest dreams.

I can still remember in the early 70's as Oregon QB Norval Turner ..... we called him "Norval Turnover"...... fumbled yet another ball and as we all groaned in frustration..... a fan stood and turned to the crowd around him and said "you knew it would be like this!" and we all had to agree. The annual humiliations at at the hands of U$C,UCLA and of course the hated Huskies of Washington.The gradual improvement of the program under coaches Rich Brooks, Mike Bellotti, AD Bill Byrne,and the help of our favorite uncle, Phil Knight. Bill Byrne's buying us into the Independence Bowl in Shreveport in 1989 ... those of us who attended almost got frost bite ! The days when you could bring an umbrella to Autzen and no one minded because the stadium had lots of extra room as the rain poured. But we kept coming and soon there were more of us fans and then more and then a full Autzen Stadium which became the loudest Stadium in the Nation. Yes, we heard all of that in Jerry's voice. We love you.

Now on to the National Championship..... Let's Go Ducks......Win the Day!

Saturday, December 04, 2010

Oregon Ducks to BCS National Championship


It's a great day to be a Duck. Oregon beat Oregon State in the "Civil War" game 37 to 20 to go to the BCS National Championship against Auburn in Glendale Arizona.

I never thought I would live to see this day.



Go Ducks... Win the Day!

CIVIL WAR....... GAME DAY !



would you be willin' to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one more chance, just one more chance, to come back to Recer Stadium to BEAT THE BEAVERS !

LET'S GO DUCKS ...... WIN THE DAY!

Friday, December 03, 2010

Video: A message from the Duck!



While you are waiting for the Civil War game to start:

Vote for The Duck for Mascot of the Year at www.capitalonebowl.com.

GO DUCKS! Win the Day!

At the Precipice Of Immortality


The Civil War game tomorrow could be the beginning of the biggest events in the state of Oregon since the Portland Trailblazers won the NBA championship in 1977. These sort of sports events don't come along very often, particularly in the state of Oregon. As Bob Rikert of the Oregon writes:

if the Ducks get by the Beavers tomorrow, they'll have done something no other Duck team has done, or maybe ever will.


Enjoy it now fans. Enjoy it right, now.


Go Ducks....... Win the Day!!!!

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Time Goes So Slowly



It's only Wednesday and I can't wait for the "Civil War" game to start between Oregon and Oregon State on Saturday.

This game has been weighing heavily on my mind for at least three weeks. I believe the Oregon Ducks have across the board superior talent. On the other hand, the Oregon State Beavers have often beaten Oregon Duck teams due to more desire. Most of Oregon's players are from out of state and sometimes we have lost to the Beavers because of complacency and failure to realize how much the Beavers want the game. That could be the case on Saturday. Oregon State teams often come out like rabid dogs and play their hearts out.I respect them for that!I have been told that this Oregon Duck team has more of a "blue collar" ethic, than past teams, and they will need it on Saturday. The last two years we have spoiled Oregon States bid to the Rose Bowl by beating them and they will be out for revenge. This year if they lose there will be no Bowl Game for them. If we lose we go to the Rose Bowl and if we win we go the the National Championship Game. The Beavers would feel on top of the world if they could deny us that chance for a National Title. It would be their greatest game in history and they would remind us of that fact for the next 100 years ! We have only one mission and that is to beat the Beavers. The Vegas gamblers have Oregon favored but I don't believe it. Oregon players can NOT be overconfident!!!!!
Going to their stadium is like going to Hel*. I have been to many other stadiums and their fans are the WORST I have witnessed. We need to jump on them early and put a figurative stake in their heart early.



Thomas Hobbes once wrote that "the life of man,(is) solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." Hobbes never won a "Civil War" game.... but he was dead on if you lose.

As former Oregon State football coach Dee Andros, once said about the "Civil War" "it's for the right to live in the State of Oregon."

Time goes so slowly waiting for the game.

Go Ducks! Win the Day!

Joint "Civil War" Lunch in Medford


Click on the title above for a link to the Medford Mail Tribune's news story on the joint "Civil War" lunch held here in Medford yesterday.

Monday, November 29, 2010

"Civil War" Lunch


For the second time in about 10 years there will be a JOINT "Civil War" lunch between the Oregon Club of Southern Oregon and the Oregon State fans in Southern Oregon. The clubs had joint lunches for many years but about 10 years ago there was a fight between a Duck fan and a Beaver fan over in Klamath Falls at a joint function leading up to the "Civil War" football game between the University of Oregon and Oregon State University. As a result both universities withdrew support for the joint meeting. Both groups of fans continued to have "Civil War" functions, just not joint! Well, year before last the Oregon Club of Southern Oregon on it's own approached the Beavers and their AD said no. Last year the clubs got together with the passive support of the two schools and everyone had a great time. This year we will do it again and will have a joint lunch of friendly rivalry. Last I heard there were 295 + fans scheduled for the (Correction) Medford Red Lion Inn for the lunch on Tuesday
Go Ducks beat the Beavers!


Oregon
"Mighty Oregon"

Oregon, our Alma Mater
We will guard thee on and on
Let us gather round and cheer her
Chant her glory Oregon
Roar the praises of her warriors
Sing the story Oregon
On to victory urge the heroes
Of our mighty Oregon!
Go Ducks Go!
Fight Ducks Fight!
Go!
Fight!
Win Ducks Win!

“OSU may fight to the end, but we… will… win!”

UPDATE: Email from the Oregon Club of Southern Oregon

Tomorrow Tuesday Nov. 30th is the Second Annual Civil War Lunch at the Red Lion Inn in Medford. The lunch meeting starts at 11:45 and we will begin serving food at 11:30 so be sure to arrive early to get a good seat as we expect over 300 people. The price is $15.00 per person and we do not accept credit cards so please bring cash. We have some great speakers from both Oregon and Oregon State and a lot of great drawing prizes so bring an extra five spot and join the fun!

Sunday, November 28, 2010

"CIVIL WAR WEEK FUN !!!!


Go Ducks.... beat the Beavers !

"CIVIL WAR" WEEK


Here in Oregon this is Civil War Week. The game will be on ABC TV next Saturday in Corvallis home of Oregon State. ESPN's Game Day will be there !
Someone said the "Civil War" game "is for the right to live in the State of Oregon" or at least the right to live in the State of Oregon with your head held high. This is one of college footballs oldest rivalries. The oldest west of the Mississippi. Here in Oregon, Ducks and Beavers can be found in most offices, families and neighborhoods. It's brother vs brother, neighbor vs neighbor and coworker vs coworker so it truly is a Civil War. These two teams and their fans do night like each other.

One of my favorite Civil War stories is from World War II. One of the Band of Brothers featured in the HBO mini series, Don Malarkey, is a University of Oregon alum. His studies were interrupted by World War II and he was in the paratroopers in England preparing for the D-Day landings. Eisenhower and Churchill came to view his unit before the beginning of the invasion and Ike asks Malarkey what he did before the war. He said he was a student at the University of Oregon in Eugene, and Ike asks him who won the last Oregon vs Oregon State Football game. Of course Ike played football for Army at West Point.

It is fun to walk around the tailgate parties before the game because you see Ducks and Beavers together. There is a scene in the movie Gettysburg where a confederate general tells a British Army officer who is there as an observer just before Pickett's charge that "All Virginia is here today". At each Oregon vs Oregon State Football game I like to think "all Oregon is here today."
Jon Wilner, of the San Jose Mercury news in California rates the rivalry football games in the Pac-10 and rates the "Civil War" game as the #1 rivalry game when he writes:

1. The Civil War.

These days, Oregon-Oregon State has the best combination of passion, significance and competitiveness.

The passion takes the form of hatred — much closer to the Arizona-ASU situation than a healthy dislike.

OSU looks with jealousy at its richer, more-famous, more hip neighbor and wonders what might have been if Phil Knight had gone to OSU. The Ducks hate OSU because they’ve been told to hate OSU for decades.

The games are usually high scoring, although not always close, and the home team has dominated this decade.....


Without question, Oregon and Oregon State have been the most successful natural rivals in the conference in recent years. And that makes the Civil War the league’s best rivalry.


I first learned to hate the Beavers in the late 1960's when the Beavers, regularly under coach Dee Andros,( The Great Pumpkin) beat the shi* out of Oregon Duck Teams and did it with such relish.


A few years ago Dee, long retired, not too long before his death, came to a joint Duck/Beaver "Civil War" lunch in Medford and gave a passionate speech about the "Civil War" game that made me want to strap on a helmet and start playing right there. When Dee Andros walked into the banquet room he was wearing a god awful bright orange blazer and a black and orange striped tie. A local young TV sports reporter, who had probably just moved to this area, walked up to him and asked him if he was an Oregon State fan ..... it brought a smile to my face.

(Dee Andros was a veteran of World War II where he served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was awarded the Bronze Star and spent more than a month under heavy fire on Iwo Jima. He was present at the famed moment when Marines raised the American flag on Iwo Jima.)

In my lifetime I can remember twice when the Duck were denied a trip to the Rose Bowl because of a loss to the Beaver..... The first, was in 1964 when I was in high school and listened to the game on a transistor radio at a speech tournament I was competing in. The Beavers won and went to the Rose Bowl. The second, was in 2000 when I spent part of the game at a hospital with a dying relative.

Let's go Ducks Win the Day!

Go Ducks beat the Beavers.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

JUST WIN THE DAY!


Thanksgiving is over. Ducks just win the day and beat Arizona. Let's Go Ducks

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving


Things are unsettled for me this Thanksgiving waiting for the Arizona game on Friday and the Oregon vs Oregon State "Civil War" game a week later "However, to put it all in perspective I re post the following from last year from Newt Gingrich the History Professor:


The Civil War was raging. Three months earlier, the Battle of Gettysburg had left 50,000 Americans killed, wounded or missing. Riots were tearing apart American cities.

In the midst of this chaos, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed in October 1863 that the last Thursday of November should henceforth be set aside as a day of thanksgiving.

Lincoln acknowledged that the nation was "in the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity." But he focused instead on the nation's blessings, urging his fellow Americans to remember that "No human counsel hath devised, nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the most high God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy."

And Lincoln, too, proclaimed that all Americans set aside the day for a public expression of gratitude to God. He wrote, "It has seemed to me fit and proper that they [gifts of God] should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people."
HAPPY THANKSGIVING

How to deal with North Korea


North Korea sinks a South Koran naval ship in international waters with the death a large number of South Korean Sailors and the Free World does nothing. North Korea fires an artillery barge at a South Korean island killing civilians and South Korean Marines and the Free World does nothing. The Free World has grown anemic in their love of creature comforts and no longer has the will to defend itself. The answerer on what should be done can be found in the 1987 movie the "Untouchables" staring Keven Costner as Elliott Ness and Sean Connery has his police assistant. The movie is about the fight against Al Capone who was an evil criminal much like North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

Sean Connery to Elliott Ness:

You wanna know how to get Capone? They pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. *That's* the *Chicago* way! And that's how you get Capone. Now do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that? I'm offering you a deal. Do you want this deal?



Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Arizona and Mike Stoops


Arizona will play Oregon very tough this Friday on ESPN TV.

The following is from Bob Rickert's blog over at the Oregonian which he posted a few years year ago before Oregon played Arizona in Pac-10 football:

"We lost but at least we took out a couple of their quarterbacks." That's what Stoops said after Oregon used third string quarterback Brady Leaf to beat them anyway last year.....
His team ended Clemens' career last year and gloated about it. Then knocked out Dixon with a cheap shot to the head when it looked like he was sliding to protect himself.
Yes, Mike Stoops, the Arizona Wildcats coach is the brother of that guy at Oklahoma. Must run in the family.

Given Mike Stoops emotional temperament on the sidelines during games, Arizona AD Greg Byrne (A great guy), would be wise to have a portable defibrillator available because this guy is a candidate for a heart attack.

UPDATE: Don't believe me then read this Wall Street Journal news story by clicking on the title above for a link. One quote from the article:

"....the best part of many football games is watching a coach blow his lid over a seemingly benign incident. With that in mind, you may want to tune in to the Brothers Stoops, Mike and Bob, in this weekend's games...."


The Journal than does a analysis of last weeks games to determine which Stoops brother is the worst......guess who "wins" the "honor" !!!!!!!! Click on the title to find out !

I swear I posted my comments above yesterday before finding the Journal article today.

Oregon Ducks vs Arizona Wildcats.... It's only a Game."


If it is only a game why can't I think of anything else? It seems like a long long time till Friday in Eugene. The game will be at 4 PM PST on ESPN TV. Friday is called "Black Friday" because it is the number one shopping day of the year..... the day after Thanksgiving. I have no interest in shopping on Friday. Christmas shopping can wait! Putting up Christmas decorations can wait ! Raking leaves can wait!

Thanksgiving is always special but it will only be a brief interlude on the path to VICTORY.

The Ducks MUST win!

For the last few years I have started out each football season with the attitude "let's just go with the flow." "Let's just enjoy the journey." If the Ducks win that's good but if they lose well it's been a fun adventure. NOT ANYMORE... this season is a QUEST and the next hurdle is ARIZONA on Friday. We MUST win the day! Without saying the words we all know what is at stake. Oregon is #1 in the BCS. A loss and it will all go away. I am confident the team will be ready.... rarely has a team had more to play for.

Friday, November 19, 2010

College Football fights the "black dog"


This would be a depressing time of year without college football! My least favorite job is raking leaves in the rain and the thought of the coming of winter. The forecast this weekend is rain and snow and a yard full of leaves. Oh well, if I spend the weekend watching football on TV I will give the trees more time to lose the rest of their leaves. Better to do it once than every weekend.

Oregon now faces a $5.1 billion shortfall going into the 2011 legislative session




Oregon State Representative Dennis Richardson's newsletter;

Spending freezes and across-the-board cuts will not fill a $5 billion hole. The state simply cannot resolve a $5 billion shortfall without major structural reforms in both what services are provided and how they are provided.


I find it incredible during a recession that government in Oregon has added 4,300 public employee jobs during a period those not working for government have lost 154,000 jobs. Who pays the bills ! I guess some are tightening their belts more than others.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Ghailani Found Not Guilty on 285 of 286 Charges



The difference between Republicans and Democrats is that Republicans see the fight against radical Islam is a WAR and Democrats see it as a criminal justice matter. Well it is WAR and we just lost a battle! We need a change of leadership so we don't lose the war.

Congressman Peter King
“I am disgusted at the total miscarriage of justice today in Manhattan’s federal civilian court. In a case where Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani was facing 285 criminal counts, including hundreds of murder charges, and where Attorney General Eric Holder assured us that ‘failure is not an option,’ the jury found him guilty on only one count and acquitted him of all other counts including every murder charge.

“This tragic verdict demonstrates the absolute insanity of the Obama Administration’s decision to try al-Qaeda terrorists in civilian courts.

“This case was doomed from the beginning when the judge excluded DOJ’s key witness who admitted selling the explosives to Ghailani. Where is the justice for the more than 200 people killed and 4,000 injured in the terrorist bombings of our U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania?

“This is a tragic wake-up call to the Obama Administration to immediately abandon its ill-advised plan to try Guantanamo terrorists like the admitted 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed in federal civilian courts. We must treat them as wartime enemies and try them in military commissions at Guantanamo.

“As the next Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, I intend to hold hearings and conduct the necessary oversight on this critical homeland security issue in the 112th Congress.”




Keep America Safe just issued the following statement in response to the verdict against Ahmed Ghailani, who was found not guilty on 285 of 286 charges:

"Bad ideas have dangerous consequences. The Obama Administration recklessly insisted on a civilian trial for Ahmed Ghailani, and rolled the dice in a time of war. The Department of Justice says it’s pleased by the verdict. Ask the families of the victims if they’re pleased. And this result isn’t just embarrassing. It’s dangerous. It signals weakness in a time of war. The Ghailani trial was supposed to be a test case for future trials of 9/11 terrorists.

We urge the president: End this reckless experiment. Reverse course. Use the military commissions at Guantanamo that Congress has authorized. And, above all--accept the fact that we are at war.”
Liz Cheney, Chairman
Debra Burlingame & William Kristol, Directors

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Cal Player Fakes Injury on ESPN vs Oregon Ducks



Click on title for link to you tube video

Cal Trip Story



Last weekend I and a group of Oregon Duck fans from Southern Oregon took a charter bus trip to the Oregon vs Cal football game in Berkeley, California. My Number 1 Ducks won the Saturday night game in a squeaker 15 to 13. After the game our bus took the group back to the hotel and many of us headed to the Hotel bar/bistro for some adult beverages and dinner to celebrate. The following is my buddy's description of what happened to the two of us when we stopped by the bar's restroom:

True story.

A buddy (me) and I were at our hotel restaurant restroom in Lafayette after the game taking care of business and getting ready to have a celebratory drink and order dinner. This mind you, was last Saturday night after the Cal game.

We're standing there washing our hands talking about the game, and this voice comes from inside the freakin restroom stall telling us how impolite and arrogant Duck fans are. How the Ducks have the worst fans in the Pac10. How he can't stand them. It's a freakin Husky fan...no shi*. Really, he identified himself as a UW fan. He is doing this while sitting on the can.

We are so stunned we can't think of anything to say except mumble about what an idiot their AD is, and how he must not have lived in Seattle during the 1960's to 1980's.( when the Huskies would run up the score on the hapless Ducks)

He throws open the stall door, and flees out of the restroom without taking time to wash his hands.

We go back to our table and think of 14 different things we wish we had said if we hadn't been so taken aback by the arrogance of the S.O.*. And, believe me, our 14 things each would have been great.

But, it just goes to show you that Husky (jerks) are everywhere. I'm already looking forward to 8 in a row in Seattle next year.


And they wonder why we hate them ! We told the story to our dinner companions and then to everyone on the bus on the way back to Oregon. We weren't even playing the Huskies that weekend. Everyone in our group found it incredible that a perfect stranger siting in a bathroom stall would find it appropriate to attack Duck fans who weren't even talking about the Huskies. Incredible !

As to the game itself there were approximately 20,000 Duck fans at the game and were about 1/3 of those in attendance which was 61,000. The Cal Bear kicker went to kick a potentially game winning field goal at end zone where all the Duck fans were and blamed our noise for causing him to draw a flag for moving before the ball was hiked thus requiring him to kick it again and this time he he was wide of the uprights.

The only way to describe Cal's Memorial Stadium is "shabby chic." The San Andreas Fault (HAYWARD SECTION) runs under the stadium from goal to goal and you can see that parts of the cement stadium have separated due to earth movement that was kindly pointed out to us by a Cal fan. Before the game started the PA announcer gave us instructions, illustrated on the stadium big screen, on how to evacuate the place in the event of an earth quake. It reminded me of the instruction we received in school during the Cuban Missile Crisis in the event of a Russian missile attack.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Cal Football coach Jeff Tedford has no Honor


All season long Pac-10 schools playing the Oregon Ducks in football have been "feigning injury" to slow down Oregon's no huddle quick strike offense.The worst example of which was this last Saturday when the Cal Bears blatantly used this tactic in their 15 to 13 loss to the Oregon Ducks in Berkeley. The Versus TV broadcast pointed this out and even showed that the Cal Bears who were "feigning injury" were not hit during a play. Others who watched the television broadcast saw the Cal coaches signal players to fake injuries from the sidelines.

According to the NCAA Football rules 2009-2010 for Coaching Ethics:

Deliberately teaching players to violate the rules is indefensible. The coaching of feigning injury........ Such instruction is not only unfair to one’s opponent but is demoralizing to the players entrusted to a coach’s care and has no place in a game that is an integral part of an educational program.
The following are unethical practices:........

h. Feigning an injury for the purpose of gaining additional, undeserved time for one’s team. An injured player must be given full protection under the rules, but feigning injury is dishonest, unsportsmanlike and
contrary to the spirit of the rules. Such tactics cannot be tolerated among sportsmen of integrity.
(Click on the title for link to the NCAA rules.)

From Lary Brown Sports:
At least a half dozen times in the first half a Cal player faked an injury and stayed on the ground after a play in order to slow down Oregon’s offense

In the end all we have is our honor !




Seeing is believing

NOW THIS: TED MILLER OF ESPN


Cal coach Jeff Tedford was asked directly about whether his team faked injuries during the game Saturday.

"People get hurt during games, and in fast-tempo stuff, there's cramps," he said. "That's not the deal. I know that anytime anybody goes down against Oregon, they always think that's the case. But it's not the case."

Tedford is typically a straight-shooter. But not in this case. Defensive tackle Aaron Tipoti's cramp from nowhere that appeared immediately after he took a long look at the Cal sidelines is going to to earn him the Pac-10 blog's Worst Actor award.

We will be watching Arizona and Oregon State !

AND THIS FROM JOHN HUNT OF THE OREGONIAN NEWSPAPER:

However, a source within the Bears football program confirmed to The Oregonian that this indeed was "a big part'' of the defensive game plan against Oregon, although not all Cal coaches were on board with this strategy.


AND THIS FROM GREGG DOYEL OF CBS SPORTS:

I'm here to inform, you know. That's my agenda. And today, I'm informing you that Jeff Tedford is an unethical fraud, a bad leader and an all-around tiny human being....

Tedford wanted to beat Oregon so bad, he cheated. Yeah, cheated. There's a passage in the NCAA rulebook devoted to what Tedford did, and the passage frowns on it. Calls it "indefensible." When you do something that the NCAA rulebook calls "indefensible," well, that's cheating....

The NCAA rulebook is clear on the matter: Faking an injury, the rulebook says, "is dishonest, unsportsmanlike and contrary to the spirit of the rules. Such tactics cannot be tolerated among sportsmen of integrity."

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Veterans Day 2010



Our first American veterans

In the winter of 1776 George Washington kept the American Revolution alive. Gen. Washington had a long and painful summer and autumn of defeats in 1776. His American Army had been defeated across New York -- in Brooklyn, Manhattan and White Plains -- and then driven across New Jersey and forced to flee across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania. One defeat and retreat after another.

Washington's forces had dwindled until he had only about 4,000 effective soldiers left. There were another 6,000 men present, but they were so sick they were unable to go into battle.

Yet he conducted himself with honor. James Monroe, a future Precedent, described Washington during the retreat as follows:



"I saw him... at the head of a small band, or rather in its rear, for he was always near the enemy and his countenance and manner made an impression on me which I can never efface. A deportment so firm, so signified,, but yet so modest and composed, I have never seen in any other person"


Washington knew the end could be near. A majority of the citizens of the 13 former colonies were either pro British or felt the war for Independence was lost. The British were a mere 60 miles from Philadelphia. The Congress that had declared Independence only a few months before were ill or exhausted or absent. Jefferson had gone home to Virginia, John Adams was back home in Massachusetts and Ben Franklin had departed to France. At times there were not enough delegates for a quorum. Philadelphia was in a panic due to the advancing British. People in Philadelphia were getting out and taking all of the possession they could carry.

Thomas Paine who had volunteered to serve as a civilian aide to one of Washington's Generals wrote during the long retreat by the light of a campfire on a drum head:



"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman."

Faced with declining morale, rising desertions, the collapse of political will in the country at large and a sense of despair, Washington decided to gamble everything on a surprise attack on the Hussein garrison in Trenton New Jersey.. It would require a night crossing of an icy river against a formidable professional opponent.

But the most telling sign of Washington's mood as he embarked on the mission was his choice of a password. His men said "victory or death" to identify themselves.


That night crossing,is immortalized in the painting above of Washington's standing in the boat as Marblehead Fishermen rowed him across the ice-strewn river. It started December 25, 1776 when all of the men were gathered at the point of embankment by 3:00 p.m. and the loading of the boats began at nightfall. Washington and a party of Virginia troops crossed over first to secure a landing site. The original plan called for the entire army to be disembarked on the New Jersey side of the Delaware by midnight, but it was not until 3:00 a.m. on December 26 that the army completed the crossing and it took another hour to get the troops organized for an attack. A hail and sleet storm had broken out early in the crossing, winds were strong and the river was full of ice floes.

As soon as the army was ready, Washington ordered it split into two columns, one under the command of himself and General Greene, the second under General Sullivan. The Sullivan column would take River Road from Bear Tavern to Trenton while Washington's column would follow Pennington Road, a parallel route that lay a few miles inland from the river. Only three Americans were killed and six wounded, while 22 Hessian's were killed with 98 wounded. The Americans were able to capture 1,000 prisoners and seize muskets, powder, and artillery

In two weeks, Washington had gone from defeated, hopeless bungler to victorious American hero and personification of the American Cause.

Much of the above information is from David McCullough's book "1776". I recommend it highly.

UPDATE; CLICK ON THE TITLE ABOVE for a wonderful story about a current hero and soon to be veteran who is also a Oregon Duck fan.

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

I Do Miss George W. Bush


In the last few days I have been watching several interview with former President George W. Bush. After two years out of the limelight he has been out promoting his new book. I forgot how much I like him. He is a good and decent person who made the right choice going into Afghanistan and Iraq. I can't think of another contemporary leader who would have made those decisions.

In 1964, William F. Buckley had this to say about General Douglas MacArthur:

"MacArthur was the last of the great Americans. it isn't at all certain that America is capable of producing another man of MacArthur's cast. Such men spring from the loins of nations in whose blood courage runs: and we are grown anemic. That is why so many have spoken of an age that would die with MacArthur. An age when, occasionally, heroes arose, acknowledging as their imperative the Duty, Honor, and Country which MacArthur cherished, but which the nation that rejected him has no stomach for, preferring the adulterated substitutes of the Age of Modulation, approved by the Pure Food and Drug Act and adorned by the seal of Good Housekeeping magazine
Before 9/11 I had my doubts about George W. Bush but his actions after that day prove that this country can still produce such men!

Monday, November 08, 2010

Washington Week Postscript


Want to know why I hate the Huskies so much..... well their Athletic Director just gave us another reason that will last long after this season is over. He was interviewed on Husky Radio at the game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene and this is what he said:

Mahler to Woodward:
“What do you make of this place? When you come down here, you see the new baseball field, you see the brand new turf, you see the atmosphere. And don’t know if motivation is the word but obviously this is kind of where Washington wants to be, ranked #1 in the country and have all eyes on them.”

AD Woodward:
“Sure, it’s not really where we want to be Softy, because it’s an embarrassment what their academic institution is, and what’s happened to them as far as their state funding has gone. In my mind it’s a wonderful athletic facility but they’ve watched it at the expense of the university go really down.
“The athletic facility is impressive. The fans at Oregon should get down on their hands and knees at night to Phil Knight and pray to him because this is an incredible facility he’s built.“


He tried to clarify the statement today but it didn't work. The man is a clear example of an arrogant Husky JERK that we have known for way too long.

Oregon beat his team 53 to 16

UPDATE:

After a very weak "if I offended anyone" type apology yesterday the Washington AD Scott Woodward was ordered by the University of Washington President to PERSONALLY apologise to the Oregon AD and the Oregon President for his comments.

Last week a sports reporter for the Oregonian wrote that the rivalry between Oregon and Washington was for old timers like me. Well, thanks to Mr Woodward I think we can keep it going for another 50 years. The old grudge about the 1948 Rose Bowl was getting a little old anyway. I really HATE those guys!

Fox News Reporting: The Right, All Along. The Rise, Fall & Future of Conservatism


Goldwater, Reagan & Buckley


Saw this wonderful documentary last night. It's six part series and the first one was last night covering the conservative movement from the end of World War II up through the Goldwater campaign in 1964. It was like the history of my early political life and education. As a "movement" Conservative I have tried to explain to my now adult children what it was like being a political Conservative in the 1950's and 60's and now they can see it for themselves in this documentary. It covers the beginnings of National Review, Nixon and the Alger Hiss case and the "Draft Goldwater" movement. It tells of the influence of Ayn Rand, and the books "Road to Serfdom", "Witness","God and Man at Yale" and "Conscience of a Conservative." There are parts of an interview with William F Buckley, a year before he died, and lots of familiar talking heads that take me back to those years. The 1960 and 1964 Republican Conventions and so much more. The narration by Brit Hume of Fox News sets just the right tone. Click on the title above to pre order the entire series from Amazon.com