Jake Plummer is #1!

Did you see Jake Plummer (Quarterback for the Denver Broncos) flip the bird on Sunday? He flipped it behind his hat at a fan for swearing at him. This happened after he was off the field, with his helmet off. He did not even look at the guy. Unfortunately, the cameras were fixed on the back of his head. Why? We will get to the actual finger soon, but I am more concerned about the circumstances.
From a production point of view, it was Kismet. It was magical. The timing: impeccable. Coming out of commercial, the directors yells out "Camera 2, get me the back of Jake Plummer's head."
And at that moment a presumably drunk fan presumably shouted obsenities at the quarterback, who just threw an interception) and he acted as if scratching the back of his head- flipping him the bird. I swear, the director and producer who run the game's cameras must have spit out his Red Bull on the screen in jubilation! Why was that the shot? Perhaps we could have seen the tired old shot with a lone, majestic Elk in the Rockies (which does not exist, it's a mechanical one). Or maybe the beautiful skyline of Denver (under a brown haze). Nope let's get a poorly lit shot of a quarterback with his hat on. Brilliant!
As to the finger itself. This puritanical attitude in America has just about, no wait- there it is, I am completely pissed off! First, he did not yell at him, gget aggressive in any way. He did not cuss. He did not threaten physical harm. Nope, he showed one finger. Pick one. It's 'a' finger, just like the others. We all know what it means right? But, that is the beauty of it. It is subtle, non-threatening and truth be told, kinda funny.
I mean, some people have long Ethiopian fingers, some clasp their thumb tightly inside, some people leave their thumb to portrude out. It is a funny gesture and it isone that can diffuse a situation. To call that obscene is to be completely out of touch with the world, country, age, generation and time we are living in.
Do you ever wonder why there isn't full audio on a football field? It is because Men talk dirty. We cuss, we cajole, we joke and we taunt. Male atheletes REALLY talk dirty. They say things like: "Did you tell your daughter she was good last? Well, I did" SET, HIKE! Sorry, but that is what goes on. So, to say these guys need to hold themselves to higher standard and they are professionals, is simply put, ridiculous. That is not the game. That is not the society we live in and it is not the nature of professional sport.

So, to Jake and to you: I show you my best finger and say You are Number 1.
Have a nice day.

Are You Scared?

Here we are, 3+ years from 9/11 and the "war on terror" is going strong. Are you scared? You are supposed to be. They are coming. They have made plans to attack. Osama has appeared on Al Jazeera and said there will be "another Manhattan" regardless of the president elect. But, our government (Bush Admin.) is, quote: "doing everything we can, moving heaven and earth, to prevent another attack against our citizens." Bullshit. Bullshit and you know it.
Now, you have heard these all before, but maybe this time it will stick:
The Facts:

1. (CBS) Sept. 11 or not, U.S. Customs can still inspect just 2 percent of the 6 million cargo containers entering the U.S. annually, making seaports and the final destinations of the containers all across America vulnerable to terror.

2. Not only are our U.S. Nuclear sites (Nevada, Washintgton State, Colorado) unguarded. The U.S. military has consistently left Last year they laid off 14,000 of them.

4. As of today, we do not have a Homeland Security Chief Cabinet level administrator. As of today, we do not have bomb checking machines at the check in lines of airports. As of today, we DO NOT check the cargo that goes on the underside of planes. But you and I have to take our shoes off and old ladies are being strip searched.

5. States do not have the resources to fight a biochemical attack within 7 days time. A major attack of that kind would kill 100,000 plus.

6. States do not have the manpower Firefighters/Police officers, nor the money to respond to an attack. Unless you live in Washington, NY or California. They simply do not have the budget for security.

7. We just, after 3 years and much fighting, passed an intelligence reform bill. We still have not instituted all the changes of the 9/11 commision. The investigation into why it happened and who dropped the ball is ongoing. Seriously? We still don't know why all the problems and lies happened? Then we cannot prevent it.

So, I am willing to bet you are not scared. Unless, you have children and live in the south and are a married woman. I am willing to wager you have not thought about a terrorist act on U.S. soil today at all. Did you know our Terror Alert Level is Elevated? That means there is intent and intelligence that we may be attacked. That is yellow in case you don't know.

My point here is: Your governement is not doing "Everything it Can, " nor is it "moving heaven and earth," they have done very little. Door on Cockpits. That's what we got. Doors on Cockpits. All that ensures is that the plane can be legally shot down. We are not safer, Bush has not done his job, congress is slow as ever and the men and women on the front lines here and in Iraq do not have the Funding, Tools, Armor, Weaponry or resources to safeguard this or any other country. We are losing.

Happy Christmas shopping!