The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

Ever known someone who just didn't seem to like you from the start? You have no idea what you said or did to bother them, but they just have a certain attitude about them around you that they don't contain around others? I've run into this with someone. It kind of reached a peak last week, but looking back on things, I have to say it's been rolling in this direction for quite some time. The crazy thing is, I don't see him act this way around anyone else. It is entirely possible that he does, but if so, I haven't been aware of it. He just likes to pick fights and sometimes over the silliest of things. He'll also make comments which signify a certain disapproval of me. For most of 2009 and 2010 I was ill and due to my symptoms, was unable to drive. After I was able to walk a bit again, I was able to get a ride out to a pub on a Friday or Saturday during the weekends. It was nice. It kept me sane, as I was stuck inside the house for the week, unable to move...

After watching President Obama's State of the Union Address and hearing Republican Mitch Daniels' rebuttal, I have to say, I think the Republicans better think of a different strategy if they want to capture the White House in November's election. President Obama, for the most part, was illustrating that there's reason for hope and optimism in this country. All things considering, it was a rather positive speech, which I have to believe is how he will campaign in the run-up to the election. Daniels, meanwhile, painted a picture of doom and gloom for this country. It was a "Vote-for-us-or-face-Armageddon" type of picture. Let's see here...which strategy, which outlook will be more attractive to voters? One of hope and optimism or one of doom and gloom? If Republicans continue with this negative strategy, Obama and the Democrats will likely be sitting pretty come November.

I think I'm done trying to predict the Republican nominee for the upcoming presidential election. Mitt Romney has been the steadiest according to polls. However, there has seemingly been an anti-Romney candidate getting hot with the pollsters to see if there can be any long-term traction with that candidate. We had Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich again, with Ron Paul probably being the second steadiest candidate in terms of poll numbers, next to Romney. Santorum won the Iowa Caucus, but has since faded into a distant 3rd, behind Romney and Gingrich. Romney won the New Hampshire Primary quite convincingly and it was said that if he won the South Carolina Primary, he'd likely be the Republican nominee. Newt Gingrich had other plans and beat Romney by 12%. Gingrich rode the hot streak nationally and in Florida, where the next primary is to be held. Romney went from a huge lead in the sunshine state to 5-10% deficit to ma...

In light of Mitt Romney's tax returns being released and Jon Stewart presenting a segment on "The Daily Show" regarding this bit of news, I read many conservatives talk about how much of a hypocrite Stewart is, because he is a millionaire and is just like Romney in that regard. While it's true that Stewart does make a lot of money, he also pays 35% taxes as opposed to Romney's 13.9%. Stewart also has stated he agrees with the proposed tax hike on the wealthiest in this country from 35% to 39.6%. In addition to this, Stewart is not running for president. Romney is currently unemployed, raked in $47 million only to pay 13.9% in taxes and is running for the highest office in the land. Stewart is a comedian who makes a great deal of money, pays 35% in taxes and is not running for political office of any kind. There's quite a difference there... Nice try, though...

I appreciate apologies if they're sincere and genuine. I don't much care for them if I know the person is just doing it to please another person as opposed to actually meaning what they say. I got into a political debate with an owner of a bar on Friday night and after he angrily called me a socialist, I kind of laughed and left. He sent a couple half-hearted apologies via e-mail shortly after the situation. His wife sent a more sincere apology on his behalf via text. He then sent another e-mail yesterday and I think this one bugged me more than anything. I'll explain why after posting the e-mail: "Craig, I apologize that I offended you. I thought we were friendly enough to disagree. I do get worked up about politics especially when drinking. I concede your point about Reagan although it is here nor there. We have a president who campaigned talking about redistribution of wealth, he is openly hostile to successful people. And chastises people for being wealthy. I hav...

Yeah, so that was fun. On Friday night, I went to a pub I frequent. It's a neighborhood dive bar. Pretty much everyone there knows each other. I kind of like that, as opposed to a meat-market bar. Toward the very end of the evening, one of the two owners there seemed insistent on talking about politics. He's tried engaging me in such discussions before and while I will listen and give feedback, I don't make my opinions known. I know he and I don't see eye-to-eye on much and I know he can lose his cool very quickly if another's opinion conflicts with his own. So, I've steered clear of doing that in the past, by just trying to play the peace-keeper, let all viewpoints be known without letting my own opinion be known. This was again the case on Friday night. He talked about the Republican field and started with Newt Gingrich. I gave my opinion that I felt (and polls backed me up on this) that he was the less electable of the two, between he and Mitt Romney. I the...

Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, released his tax returns today. It was revealed that he paid a 13.9% tax rate in 2010 and expect that to be 15.4% for 2011. As this rate is lower than most wage-earning Americans, I'm not thinking this is going to help Romney's chances. Now, it should be noted that Romney contributed $7 million in charity over those two years, which represents more than 15% of his income. However, the majority of that money went to the Mormon church, which won't help him with the Evangelicals. I think this was a double-whammy for Romney. No wonder he didn't want to release his tax returns. The 13.9 and 15.4% won't help him with the middle- and lower-classes, regardless of their party affiliation. Then the hefty donations to the Mormon church won't aid him with the religious right. I've long said that Mitt Romney is the Republicans' best chance at winning back the White House in this year's coming election, but even ...

The NHL champ Boston Bruins went to the White House yesterday to meet and be honored by the president, Barack Obama. MVP goaltender, Tim Thomas, was a no-show due to politics. He's a devout member of the Tea Party and released this statement regarding his absence, "I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People," the message read. "This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. "Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL. "This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT" I thought abo...

I've heard several Tim Tebow enthusiasts compare their quarterback to Michael Vick. I'm here to say that's a pretty ridiculous comparison to make. The two did seem to run the ball themselves to set up the pass early in their careers, however, the efficiency at which they executed differed. Now, it's difficult to give a 100% precise overview of the two quarterbacks, because in their first two years in the league, Tebow started 14 games, but played in 23, while Vick started in 17 and played in 23. Looking further down the line, Vick played in most every game for the Eagles 3 seasons ago, but didn't start at all. So, the numbers may be a bit skewed for the two players, but I'll do the best I can to present a reasonably accurate picture of how the two quarterbacks stack up against one another. Record wise, the two were very similar in their first two years in the league. Tebow finished 9-7 (1-1 in the playoffs) and Vick went 9-7-1 (1-1 in the playoffs). Overall,...

Upon reading about Mitt Romney receiving almost $375,000 in speaking fees in 2010-2011 and saying it "wasn't that much," many people, Democrats especially, pointed to that gaffe as a prime example of Romney not being in touch with the layperson. I read a few articles pertaining to this and some member comments below the writing. When a conservative chimed in, his or her words generally sounded like this - "Romney is just a success. Why do liberals want to punish success? This jealousy astounds me." I find this funny, yet sad, because the majority of people who utter such things aren't very well off themselves. However, they firmly believe in the American dream and if you work hard enough, you will be rewarded like Mitt Romney. However, this isn't always the case. Some people are born into wealth. Others catch a lucky break. Some have great connections. Others do work very hard for what they earn. In any case, it's ridiculous to claim that Democra...

At seemingly every sporting event in this country, the game is preceded by a singing of the National Anthem. I've often times wondered, especially in baseball (162 game season), if players and/or coaches either get sick of hearing the song or if they learn to just drown it out and focus on what they need to do that day to help their team win. I guess my question is - is it too much? When something is spoken too frequently, it begins to lose meaning. The word, the phrase, may have been magical at the start, but with each and every repetition within a short duration of time, that magic slowly starts to fade. Often times the magic of the holidays is because a group of people get together for the first time in a while. That's what makes that day (those days) stand out from the rest. If every day were like that, Christmas (or another major holiday) would be just like any other day. The word "love" can begin to lose significance if spoken too frequently, especially if t...

It really is a shame to see anyone pass along and in Joe Paterno's case, to pass on as he did. When the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal broke in November of 2011, Paterno was fired not long after the stories broke and his record-breaking numbers as the head football coach of Penn State will forever battle the before-mentioned scandal when it comes to how the sports world and world at large remembers JoPa. It was confirmed yesterday late morning that Joe Paterno had passed away and I found it quite interesting to listen to sports writers, anchors and analysts respond to the news. Ever since the Sandusky scandal broke and Paterno was fired, many of these individuals adamantly spoke out against Paterno, saying he should have done more, that he did the bare minimum and if they had been in his shoes, they wouldn't have even hesitated to have done more to protect the children who had already been harmed and those who may have potentially suffered a similar fate. Almost all of them...

Post-bowl games, here is a rundown of how I rank the six major conferences. First off, I'll run down the conference standings. ACC 1. Virginia Tech (11-3) 2. Clemson (10-4) 3. Florida State (9-4) 4. Georgia Tech (8-5) 4. North Carolina State (8-5) 4. Virginia (8-5) 7. North Carolina (7-6) 8. Miami (Florida) (6-6) 9. Wake Forest (6-7) 10. Boston College (4-8) 11. Duke (3-9) 12. Maryland (2-10) Big XII 1. Oklahoma State (12-1) 2. Baylor (10-3) 2. Kansas State (10-3) 2. Oklahoma (10-3) 5. Missouri (8-5) 5. Texas (8-5) 7. Texas A&M (7-6) 8. Iowa State (6-7) 9. Texas Tech (5-7) 10. Kansas (2-10) Big East 1. Cincinnati (10-3) 1. West Virginia (10-3) 3. Rutgers (9-4) 4. Louisville (7-6) 5. Pittsburgh (6-7) 6. Connecticut (5-7) 6. South Florida (5-7) 6. Syracuse (5-7) Big Ten 1. Michigan (11-2) 2. Michigan State (11-3) 2. Wisconsin (11-3) 4. Nebraska (9-4) 4. Penn State (9-4) 6. Illinois (7-6) 6. Iowa (7-6) 6. Purdue (7-6) 9. Northwestern ...

I started playing Facebook's version of Scrabble about 3 months ago and must admit that I'm addicted. I figured there were probably online sites to aid players in cheating. This seems to be the case in just about every game, unfortunately. There were a couple opponents I had who I'd regularly beat by 150-200 points at least. I commended them for trying but was a combined 31-0 against these two individuals. Then, all of a sudden, they finally learned how to play and went from consistently losing by 200 points to coming within a few, if not winning. Due to the sudden drastic improvement and also the strange words they were playing, I started to get a little suspicious. When I confronted them both, they both admitted they started using a scrabble dictionary along with an online site known as word cheats, where you can give the program all of your letters and it will relay to you all of the possible words you can form with said letters. Naturally, this kind of bugged me. I ca...

Since I've found the Tim Tebow-hype to be so ridiculous, especially via ESPN, I thought I'd come up with a dialogue between ESPN and God, regarding who else but Tim Tebow. God: "What do you come here for?" ESPN: "To talk about Tim Tebow, sir." God: "Okay. Go ahead." ESPN: "Is it true that he's your son?" God: "You're all my children. Although, I admit that I do like some of you more than others." ESPN: "...and Tebow?" God: "He's a fine young man with a good heart." ESPN: "Is it true that you intervened in all of those comebacks the Broncos had this year?" God: "No, what do you think I am?" ESPN: "God... ...but what about the 316 yards he threw for against the Steelers in the playoffs? His favorite passage is John 3:16. That can't be a coincidence." God: "What about the 60 yards he threw for against the Chiefs, completing just 6 of 22 pas...

I am by no means a Republican, far from it. I'd probably refer to myself as a liberal independent, who tends to vote for the Democratic candidates. However, in saying that, I still feel bad for moderate to liberal Republicans in the House, Senate and/or those running for the oval office. After the GOP sold themselves to the Evangelical community and conservative radio along with Fox News hit the airwaves the party has become progressively more conservative (progressively more conservative sounds wrong, yet makes me chuckle, so I'll stick with it). Look back through the history of the Republican Party - Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, etc. These presidents would not have fit in with the Republican Party of today. It humors me to hear so many high-powered members of the party claim that Ronald Reagan was the greatest president in the history of this country and treat him like their role model, because if they look at his policies, what he d...

It cracks me up how so many people claim that they don't have any drama in their lives and that if you have any drama, to head elsewhere. I see this on Facebook profiles and profiles just about everywhere, from social networking sites to dating sites and beyond. Most everyone doesn't care for drama. Some I think do, but the majority do not. At the same time, I find it laughable when people honestly believe that there is no drama present in their lives and want others to believe this as well, even going so far as to say if these others contain any drama in their lives, to have nothing to do with them. Sure, we can deny drama all we want, but it's there. If a person is alive, he or she will experience drama. Some experience more drama than others, this is very true. But we all still experience drama at some level or another. Go to school? There will be drama. Work? There will be drama. Have family? Friends? A boyfriend or girlfriend? A husband or wife? Kids? Guess what? t...

Before I give my take on this article, I'll give everyone a chance to read it for themselves. Here she is - http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2011/story/_/id/7474270/denver-broncos-tim-tebow-played-injuries-vs-new-england-patriots-source-says That's right, in the physical, violent, often times brutal sport known as football (to Americans anyway), Denver Broncos' quarterback Tim Tebow played hurt in Saturday night's 45-10 loss to the New England Patriots. This isn't big news. Thirteen Patriots were questionable on gameday and not because they hadn't slept great the night before or wanted to watch re-runs of "Mad About You". They were banged up. But, okay, I'll give in. Tebow has, rightly or not, become a big name in the NFL, so perhaps this story deserved mention. However, the way it was written made me chuckle. Check out some of Adam Schefter's lines: "The injuries came as the result of a hit in the pocket when Tebow was pressured...

So, I was comparing my responses to some questions with others and one of the questions was something along the lines of, "If someone you were dating admitted to having slept with 14 people, what would your reaction be? That'd be too many and you'd run out the door? It'd bother you, but wouldn't affect your feelings? It's about average? You wouldn't care one way or another?" I wrote that it was too many. I read a couple people (around my age) saying that it was about average. I got to thinking, "Seriously? Is that about average? If so, I'm way behind!" So, I did some research. This is what I do. I found this semi-recent Kinsey study revolving around sex -  http://www.iub.edu/~kinsey/resources/FAQ.html In the study, it says by the time someone is 30, a woman will, on average, have slept with 4 guys and a guy will have slept with between 6 and 8 women. So, in both cases, 14 is a bit high, on average 10 higher for women and between 6 a...

I can't believe some people buy into this nonsense. Some actually believe that the Denver Broncos went 8-5 in their final 13 games (including the playoffs) because after Tim Tebow was announced he'd be the starting quarterback for the team, God intervened and helped them be successful to bring attention to himself and his teachings. Really? Even in defeat this past weekend to the New England Patriots, some Tebow-backers are claiming it was just God's way of saying that they can't expect him to do everything. They will need to show strength in faith and character in order to move further along in the coming seasons. Again, really? Why? Why Tim Tebow? Why the Denver Broncos? There are plenty of religious players in the NFL, who take part in charities, missions, other projects to aid the less fortunate, etc. Why would God select Tebow over all the others? I'm sure there are some very devoted Christians on the Indianapolis Colts, who finished 2-14 this season and will...

Why won't the articles about Timothy Tebow end? He and the Denver Broncos' season is over. The Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints lost this weekend. We have two classic strength-in-offense vs. strength-in-defense match-ups next weekend: Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots and NY Giants vs. San Francisco. I'm definitely pulling for San Francisco in their game (really? Who honestly expected the no-name 49ers with first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh to be one game away from making the Super Bowl?) and am unsure about the other. I'd love to see a defensive slugfest between San Fran and Baltimore, yet would also enjoy seeing Tom Brady and the Patriots offense face the Niners' staunch defense. In any case, why are we still writing/talking about Tim Tebow? One Bill Williamson wrote the following article on ESPN.com this afternoon -  http://espn.go.com/blog/afcwest/post/_/id/38834/sticking-with-tebow-is-the-right-call John Elway has come forward and stated th...

The Denver Broncos' season is officially over! Hooray! I hate to say that, especially since they fell victim to the New England Patriots, my least favorite team in the league before the media became overly-obsessed with Tim Tebow. This game was over from the get go. The Patriots scored 35 points in the first half and put it in cruise control in the 2nd. Let's look at some stats, shall we? First downs? Patriots - 31 and the Broncos - 15. In 71 plays, Denver gained 252 yards (108 through the air and 144 on the ground), while New England compiled 509 yards on just 64 plays (363 through the air and 146 on the ground). Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (yeah, remember him?) completed 26 of 34 pass attempts for 363 yards (10.7 per attempt), 6 touchdowns and 1 interception for a rating of 137.6. Tim Tebow? He completed just 9 of 26 pass attempts for 136 yards (5.2 per attempt) for a rating of 52.7. He also ran the ball 5 times for 13 yards (2.6 per attempt). He lost a fumble and was ...

I engaged myself in a rather lengthy online conversation last night. It was very interesting, as it was the first time we had communicated in any manner and were extremely open with each other, which was kind of refreshing. I haven't communicated with too many people who are open and honest, especially with regard to women. With women I've generated an interest in over the past year, they've been vague, subtle, giving me more mixed messages than politicians during election season. So, like I said, it was nice having a conversation with someone who I knew wasn't beating around the bush (so to speak...) with what she was telling me. The conversation eventually wound up centering on the topic of relationships and with that sex. After talking to me about it for a while, she asked why I was so afraid of sex. I'm not. This isn't the first time I've been asked or accused of this and it likely won't be the last. I honestly think that sometimes I'm on the r...