At this week's Master's, Tiger Woods is the talk of the tournament. Back from his 5 month hiatus due to...well you know what it's due to, Tiger is only 2 shots off the lead. Now, I never root for Tiger. I've thought he was a phony for a long time, and frankly, I felt like rooting for him was a lot like rooting for the Yankees. Tiger's going to win his share of tournaments, and I have accepted that. But this week, I find myself rooting against him more than ever, and I think I finally figured out why...golf is supposed to be hard!
I've been playing golf for 23 years, and I'm not all that good in the grand scheme of things. It's a really hard game to get good at. And here's Tiger, back from 5 months off, and he's probably going to win The Master's. That's not supposed to happen! When a player takes 5 months off, he or she is supposed to struggle for a couple of tournaments while they round back into form. Heck, even us rank amateurs are supposed to struggle. I haven't played golf since November. I'm playing today, and I expect to stink. It's just not right...it's not natural that someone should be able to do what Tiger is doing.
So, I will be on my couch Sunday, rooting the Phil Mickelson (go Phil!) or Anthony Kim (but hopefully Phil) can stop Tiger from doing something nobody should be able to do. And if Tiger wins, like I expect him to, I'll just shake my head. If I've learned anything over the past year and a half, it's that anything can happen...after all, if Barack Obama can be President based on his ability to give a speech, then the best golfer in the world winning a major golf tournament after a long layoff isn't that much of a stretch. But, I for one, hope it doesn't happen.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Interesting and Sad
The last 20 minutes of the first hour, of the Rush Limbaugh show today was very interesting. Here were the topics:
1) Rush read a study, and I can't remember the name...sorry I was in my car and couldn't write it down. Anyway, the conclusion was that there is no amount of taxation in our current tax structure that could be implemented that would allow us to pay down the debt, unless we balance the budget.
Jake's Question - what will Obama and crew do? Since we know they can't stop themselves from spending, I'm guessing they are going to invent new ways to tax the rich (see #2).
2) Rush cited a report, and the report said that 47% of the population now pays no federal income taxes.
Jake's Analysis - That's kinda scary. That means that 47% of the population really doesn't care about any of the financial issues facing our country, because they have no stake in it. These people are the people who vote for the Democrats who promise to raise taxes on the rich and give them more tax breaks. Logically, as we go forward, the amount a rich person makes will have to steadily decrease to support the rising population that doesn't pay taxes. Right now, the number Obama uses is $250,000, but pretty soon it'll be $200,000, then $150,000, and before you know it, if you pay taxes, you will be considered rich.
3) A caller from Pennsylvania talked about his situation. He is unemployed, his wife works part time as a nurse. They made $33,000 last year, and paid $900 in federal taxes. They made some money in real estate several years ago, and own their home outright, Because of this, they are able to live comfortably on his wife's income, plus what he receives from unemployment. When he filed his tax return, using the online tools the IRS recommends, he found out he was getting $2300 back from the federal government. This man received unemployment all year, and then, for all his hard work, the government gave him a $1400 year end bonus.
Jake's Analysis - Ridiculous! Our tax code was written by idiots. Scrap the income tax and go to a National Sales Tax.
4) During the ABC news break at the top of the hour, they were talking about Obama and Russia's Medvedev signing the new nuclear agreement promising the reduction of nuclear stockpiles. While running the news story, patriotic symphony music played in the background. Does anybody remember that happening when George W. Bush reduced nuclear stockpiles in an agreement with Russia during his administration? Does anybody even know that Bush reduced nuclear stockpiles?
Jake's Analysis - What media bias?
1) Rush read a study, and I can't remember the name...sorry I was in my car and couldn't write it down. Anyway, the conclusion was that there is no amount of taxation in our current tax structure that could be implemented that would allow us to pay down the debt, unless we balance the budget.
Jake's Question - what will Obama and crew do? Since we know they can't stop themselves from spending, I'm guessing they are going to invent new ways to tax the rich (see #2).
2) Rush cited a report, and the report said that 47% of the population now pays no federal income taxes.
Jake's Analysis - That's kinda scary. That means that 47% of the population really doesn't care about any of the financial issues facing our country, because they have no stake in it. These people are the people who vote for the Democrats who promise to raise taxes on the rich and give them more tax breaks. Logically, as we go forward, the amount a rich person makes will have to steadily decrease to support the rising population that doesn't pay taxes. Right now, the number Obama uses is $250,000, but pretty soon it'll be $200,000, then $150,000, and before you know it, if you pay taxes, you will be considered rich.
3) A caller from Pennsylvania talked about his situation. He is unemployed, his wife works part time as a nurse. They made $33,000 last year, and paid $900 in federal taxes. They made some money in real estate several years ago, and own their home outright, Because of this, they are able to live comfortably on his wife's income, plus what he receives from unemployment. When he filed his tax return, using the online tools the IRS recommends, he found out he was getting $2300 back from the federal government. This man received unemployment all year, and then, for all his hard work, the government gave him a $1400 year end bonus.
Jake's Analysis - Ridiculous! Our tax code was written by idiots. Scrap the income tax and go to a National Sales Tax.
4) During the ABC news break at the top of the hour, they were talking about Obama and Russia's Medvedev signing the new nuclear agreement promising the reduction of nuclear stockpiles. While running the news story, patriotic symphony music played in the background. Does anybody remember that happening when George W. Bush reduced nuclear stockpiles in an agreement with Russia during his administration? Does anybody even know that Bush reduced nuclear stockpiles?
Jake's Analysis - What media bias?
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Happy Easter!
He is Risen, Alleluia, Alleluia! Happy Easter everyone.
As a Christian, this is the holiest day of the year. Jesus Christ conquered death! It doesn't get any bigger than that. For our family, it actually started last night. We went to the Easter Vigil at our parish. Mass started at 8:30 pm and got over after 11 pm. Yes, it's long, but it's worth it. If you've never been to a Catholic Easter Vigil, you need to go at least once in your life. Even non-Catholics should go. It's quite the holy experience. We find it so uplifting that we took our 2 boys (who's normal bedtime is 8 pm) and went, and we don't regret it today, despite the fact that Nicholas woke up before 7 am.
Anyway, I pray this day finds you in celebration with family and friends. We should celebrate this day above all others. Alleluia indeed!
As a Christian, this is the holiest day of the year. Jesus Christ conquered death! It doesn't get any bigger than that. For our family, it actually started last night. We went to the Easter Vigil at our parish. Mass started at 8:30 pm and got over after 11 pm. Yes, it's long, but it's worth it. If you've never been to a Catholic Easter Vigil, you need to go at least once in your life. Even non-Catholics should go. It's quite the holy experience. We find it so uplifting that we took our 2 boys (who's normal bedtime is 8 pm) and went, and we don't regret it today, despite the fact that Nicholas woke up before 7 am.
Anyway, I pray this day finds you in celebration with family and friends. We should celebrate this day above all others. Alleluia indeed!
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