Today, the family and I went to play at a local park, which had flooded the last 2 summers. The park sits on a little creek, which occasionally flash floods. After the last flood, the city installed new playground equipment, and let me tell you...it may be the coolest playground equipment in history.
The main playground equipment has 1 gigantic slide and several smaller slides off its 3 levels. It also has 2 climbing walls, and several tubes and such to crawl through. There is also a smaller set of equipment for littler kids. And, there are 2 swing sets. The kids played for over 90 minutes and had a blast.
This is a rare case when I am happy with the use of my tax dollars. This makes 3 things that I'm happy to pay taxes for:
1) Roads...the Interstate System is genius
2) Military Funding
3) Playground Equipment and parks in general (municipal golf courses count as parks, don't they?)
I guess I'll have to change my favorite saying from "The only things the government does well is build roads and blow things up" to "The only things the government does well is build roads, blow things up, and build playground equipment."
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
The Best Movie Ever!!!
A running joke at work, to my coworkers at least, is that I think "Batman Begins" is the best movie ever. I just really enjoyed that movie...so much that I call it the best movie ever. That is until Wednesday of this week, when I realized that the new "Star Trek" had become the new best movie ever!!!
I bought "Star Trek" on Saturday and have watched it 3 times since then. I plan on watching it again tonight with a friend. I love the new direction that J.J. Abrahms has taken the "Star Trek" franchise. Of course, I'm not a Trekkie, so I wasn't offended by the changes. I just love the new look of the Enterprise interior...not nearly as "clean" as in prior movies and TV series. I love the camera work, the action, and I like the new actors playing the old characters. I especially like Chris Pine as James T. Kirk, Simon Pegg as Montgomery Scott and Karl Urban as Bones. Also, Zachary Quinto is a pretty good Spok. It's just a great film.
For those who think I'm fickle, changing my favorite all the time, I kept "Batman Begins" for nearly 5 years. Prior to "Batman Begins", "Braveheart" was my all time favorite for 9 years. So, it takes a lot to move to the top of my list.
If you haven't watched "Star Trek" yet, you have to check it out. This is a must, must, must see.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
I hope everyone has a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Here's a short list of the things I'm thankful for this year:
1) My family
2) My friends
3) My church
4) My job
5) My health
Right now, #5 seems a bit dodgy. I came down with a cold on Tuesday, and I'm still fighting it today. My wife has been battling hers since Saturday. All of our Thanksgiving plans have pretty much fallen through because of this cold. So, it will be a very low key Thanksgiving at our house. Pretty sure we'll just eat and watch football. Go Broncos!
I hope everyone has a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Here's a short list of the things I'm thankful for this year:
1) My family
2) My friends
3) My church
4) My job
5) My health
Right now, #5 seems a bit dodgy. I came down with a cold on Tuesday, and I'm still fighting it today. My wife has been battling hers since Saturday. All of our Thanksgiving plans have pretty much fallen through because of this cold. So, it will be a very low key Thanksgiving at our house. Pretty sure we'll just eat and watch football. Go Broncos!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Playoffs!
My Alma mater, the South Dakota State Jackrabbits, are going to the playoffs! In only their 6th year as a Division 1 College Program, the Jackrabbits finished 8-3, getting 2nd place in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, and securing a spot in the 16 team playoffs. The Jacks play in the Football Championship Subdivision of Division 1 (i.e. slightly smaller schools).
This is only the 2nd time in program history that the Jackrabbits have made the playoffs. The last time, was in 1979. That's why this success is so great...this team has been bad to mediocre for a long time. In fact, it sort of defies explanation. The Jacks have gone from a middle of the road Division II team to a top tier Division 1 FCS team, in only 6 years!
If you can't tell, I'm very excited! The only slight bummer in this situation is that their first round match up is against 11-0 Montana. The Grizzlies are the #1 team in the country. They also happen to be the team in the playoff field that is closest in proximity, geographically, to the Jackrabbits. In the FCS subdivision, they try to help teams keep travel costs down by having them play as close to home as possible, regardless of seed. So, the Jacks get the #1 team in the country.
But, on any given Saturday, any college football team can beat any other team. Here's hoping this coming Saturday is that day for the Jackrabbits. But, no matter the result, it's been a great season!
This is only the 2nd time in program history that the Jackrabbits have made the playoffs. The last time, was in 1979. That's why this success is so great...this team has been bad to mediocre for a long time. In fact, it sort of defies explanation. The Jacks have gone from a middle of the road Division II team to a top tier Division 1 FCS team, in only 6 years!
If you can't tell, I'm very excited! The only slight bummer in this situation is that their first round match up is against 11-0 Montana. The Grizzlies are the #1 team in the country. They also happen to be the team in the playoff field that is closest in proximity, geographically, to the Jackrabbits. In the FCS subdivision, they try to help teams keep travel costs down by having them play as close to home as possible, regardless of seed. So, the Jacks get the #1 team in the country.
But, on any given Saturday, any college football team can beat any other team. Here's hoping this coming Saturday is that day for the Jackrabbits. But, no matter the result, it's been a great season!
It's Not Just the Rich...Another Health Care Rant!
I saw this article on MSNBC today about the Senate's Health Care Bill. I read MSNBC sometimes to read how the far left thinks. I know, you are probably getting sick of my health care rants. But it's my blog, and sometimes I use it to vent.
Anyway, apparently, the Senate bill not only taxes the rich, but it also taxes "Cadillac" health plans. The Senate defines a "Cadillac" plan as any plan where the premium is over $8500 for an individual or $23,000 for a family. In the article, they cite the case of a teacher, who makes $46,000 a year. Her plan is a so-called Cadillac plan, which means that any premium paid, over $8,500, will result in a 40% tax. According to the article, this tax will be paid by the insurance provider.
So, what does this mean? There won't be any more "Cadillac" plans. People like this teacher, who is underpaid at $46,000 a year, but rewarded somewhat with a good health plan, get screwed. Now, I know a good liberal teacher who will say that's ok with him, but I'm sure this won't be ok with a lot of people who like their health coverage the way it is.
This article exposes a couple of lies we've been fed by the Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama:
1) This plan will be paid for by taxes on the rich. Well, not entirely...it's also going to be paid by taxing the health plans of many middle class Americans (i.e. the middle class gets screwed).
2) If we like our current health plan, we can keep it. Well, that's not true if the new Government abomination...I mean Bill, causes the insurance company providing a person's benefits to reduce benefits or cancel it all together. Then, it's not technically the same plan we liked and wanted to keep.
Look, let's see this for what it is. This isn't a real attempt to reduce health care costs and get benefits to more people. There are simpler ways to do that, and both parties could get on board with those simpler methods. This is the first step in the process of getting us to a single payer plan, favored by all the big liberals. My prediction is, that if the Republicans and Blue Dogs can't stop this, we will have a single payer, national health care plan by 2028.
And what will a national health care plan mean? It will mean crappier care for most, while providing better care for only a very few. It will mean that every election will be a single issue election, and the party that can promise the best health care goodies will win. And which party is the best at offering goodies...why the Democrats of course.
To me, that's the reason for this whole thing. The Democrats know that a national health care plan will mean long term power for their party. Sure, they may lose some ground in the next few elections. Sadly though, the Republicans won't dare repeal this mess, because the Democrats would demonize them for doing so. No new government programs ever get repealed...they just go on and on and on. Eventually, the Democrats will promise enough health care goodies to win their power back, and it will be theirs for the long run. And with that power, they will finally be able to push America to the Socialist, border-line Communist society they want us to be.
Anyway, apparently, the Senate bill not only taxes the rich, but it also taxes "Cadillac" health plans. The Senate defines a "Cadillac" plan as any plan where the premium is over $8500 for an individual or $23,000 for a family. In the article, they cite the case of a teacher, who makes $46,000 a year. Her plan is a so-called Cadillac plan, which means that any premium paid, over $8,500, will result in a 40% tax. According to the article, this tax will be paid by the insurance provider.
So, what does this mean? There won't be any more "Cadillac" plans. People like this teacher, who is underpaid at $46,000 a year, but rewarded somewhat with a good health plan, get screwed. Now, I know a good liberal teacher who will say that's ok with him, but I'm sure this won't be ok with a lot of people who like their health coverage the way it is.
This article exposes a couple of lies we've been fed by the Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama:
1) This plan will be paid for by taxes on the rich. Well, not entirely...it's also going to be paid by taxing the health plans of many middle class Americans (i.e. the middle class gets screwed).
2) If we like our current health plan, we can keep it. Well, that's not true if the new Government abomination...I mean Bill, causes the insurance company providing a person's benefits to reduce benefits or cancel it all together. Then, it's not technically the same plan we liked and wanted to keep.
Look, let's see this for what it is. This isn't a real attempt to reduce health care costs and get benefits to more people. There are simpler ways to do that, and both parties could get on board with those simpler methods. This is the first step in the process of getting us to a single payer plan, favored by all the big liberals. My prediction is, that if the Republicans and Blue Dogs can't stop this, we will have a single payer, national health care plan by 2028.
And what will a national health care plan mean? It will mean crappier care for most, while providing better care for only a very few. It will mean that every election will be a single issue election, and the party that can promise the best health care goodies will win. And which party is the best at offering goodies...why the Democrats of course.
To me, that's the reason for this whole thing. The Democrats know that a national health care plan will mean long term power for their party. Sure, they may lose some ground in the next few elections. Sadly though, the Republicans won't dare repeal this mess, because the Democrats would demonize them for doing so. No new government programs ever get repealed...they just go on and on and on. Eventually, the Democrats will promise enough health care goodies to win their power back, and it will be theirs for the long run. And with that power, they will finally be able to push America to the Socialist, border-line Communist society they want us to be.
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