Destroying the American Dream...One Speech at a Time

The American Dream...a good job, a nice house, and a nice car that you can load the whole family into and go for a drive. Well, with a speech earlier this week, President Obama took one more step toward destroying the American Dream by mandating higher mileage standards for automakers. The premise of the law is that the automakers have to have an average fleet gas mileage of 39 mpg by 2016. To do this, automakers will have to manufacture a lot of smaller cars, meaning the SUV's, Mini-vans, and big cars will be harder for the average American to buy.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not against higher gas mileage. In fact, I'm all for it. But, I am against the federal government mandating a standard that is going to fundamentally change the market. If people want to buy a car that gets 10 mpg, they should be free to do that. If people want to buy a car that gets 50 mpg, they should be free to do that. The point is, this country is supposed to be free, so let us keep our freedom to buy the car we want!

It's obvious Americans don't want to buy the current vehicles that get higher mileage...if they did, there would be fewer SUV's on the road and many more Honda Civics. We Americans like our big cars...like I said, it's part of the American dream...a dream that Barack Obama apparently wants to destroy...one speech at a time.

TV Series Review: Smallville Season 8

Season 8 of "Smallville" had a lot of good episodes, but it had a few that weren't so good, including the season finale. Overall, I rate this season 4 stars, but it could have been 5 if not for a few really bad episodes. Apparently there is going to be a Season 9...I'm not sure how much longer this show can go on. Hopefully Season 9 will be the last.

In Season 8, Clark begins working at the Daily Planet, and is starting to become Superman...though right now he's called "The Red Blue Blur" because that's all anyone ever sees during his heroic acts. The best thing about Season 8 is that Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk) is gone...except for 5 episodes, which were the worst 5, with the possible exception of the season finale, which was very disappointing.

The villain this season is Doomsday, played by Sam Witwer, who was new to the show. Overall, I think the show did a good job with Doomsday. I would have liked to see more battles and less drama in the show, but I understand the demographic for the show is not 31 year old men. However, I'm a superhero nerd, so I don't believe there are any superhero shows I wouldn't watch.

One thing I really liked from this season is that the Justice League is starting to form. We see Green Arrow, Black Canary and the Flash this season. In past seasons we've also met Cyborg. It's slowly coming together.

I sort of look forward to season 9, but I hope that's the last. If you are a "Smallville" fan, you have to find a way to watch this season. If you aren't, then it's ok if you miss it.

Praying for the Mickelsons

I was saddened yesterday when I read that Amy Mickelson has breast cancer and will begin treatment within 2 weeks. For those of you who don't know, Amy Mickelson is the wife of Phil Mickelson, the #2 ranked golfer in the world and my favorite player. Amy is one of the most visible wives on the PGA Tour, and is very active in Phil's charity work. The Mickelson family is one that is familiar to all golf fans, as they are always seen embracing Phil in victory and in defeat.

I'm not sure why, but I've always admired Phil Mickelson. Sure, he has a world class golf game, but it's more than that. He's shown a human side that we don't often see from our favorite athletes (yes, golfers are athletes). In 1999, Mickelson finished 2nd in the US Open. That week, Amy was due to go into labor at any moment. Phil carried a pager with him and was set to leave, no matter what, to see the birth of his first child. Now, I think a lot of parents would do that, but how many major sports athletes would give up a chance at something they had dreamed about their whole life?

Over the years, I've watched Phil win and lose, and, win or lose, he always demonstrates class on and off the course. In fact, I've seen so much of Phil and Amy that I almost feel like I know them...I watch a lot of golf. Amy, Phil and their kids will be in my prayers over the next few months as they battle Amy's cancer together, and hopefully, if you read this, you will remember to pray for them as well.

TV Series Review: 24, Season 7

Jack Bauer is back with a vengeance in "24" Season 7. After a couple of lackluster seasons, or days since the entire season encompasses 1, 24 hour period, Day 7 gets back to what made seasons 1, 2 and 4 so good. There were so many plot twists and so much good action that I'm sad this season is over, and look forward to next season.

On Day 7, we have a new President, Allison Taylor (played by Chery Jones), but many of our old favorites our back, including Chloe O'Brien, Bill Buchanon and Aaron Pierce. There are some surprise appearances as well. Jon Voight was the top guest star this season, appearing in several episodes as Jonas Hodges.

Once again, our nation is in peril, and Jack Bauer, with the help of FBI agent Renee Walker is the only one who can save us all. The really nice part of this season is it was broken up into about 4 different 6 hours segments. So, near the end of a 6 hour block, 1 drama would wind down, and then another would start back up. But, it was done in a believable way (at least as believable as "24" gets), because each successive conflict was related to the previous one.

The one downer of the season was the return of Kim Bauer, Jack's Daughter. She's always a drain on the show, and typically ends up getting taken hostage or put in some sort of danger to force Jack to have to doing something crazy.

Overall though, I was very pleased with Day 7 of "24". Two thumbs way up and a 5 star rating. If you are a fan or "24", I think you'll really enjoy this season.