What's The Score?
by Byron Painter
Thoughts for all to ponder while I wonder how many Rams fans will go to LONDON
for the next three years to watch a HOME game...
--Two black U of I trustees voted against Tim Beckman because the university did
not work hard enough to hire a black coach. So we should hire someone BECAUSE
they are black, which to me only denigrates the hire? Beckman, by the way, has hired a
black defensive coordinator. I sure wish someone would ask these two for comments
on that.
Oh yeah, the Illini DID offer the head coaching job to a black coach, Kevin Sumlin,
but he turned down the offer and became coach at Texas A&M. Could this mean that, if
Bruce Weber is shown the door at the end of this season (which I do not favor at this
point, though more frustrating losses like at Penn State and at home vs. Wisky could tip
the balance), that Mike Thomas will basically be FORCED by the Board of Trustees to
hire a black guy? I could give a damn what color the Illini coach is, I want the guy to win
and win cleanly (that is a shot at you, Bruce Pearl and Kelvin Sampson).
--While Peyton Manning is seen as the better quarterback of the Manning brothers,
little brother Eli is proving that he MIGHT be the better QB come postseason time, after
once again taking the Giants to the Super Bowl, with some help from 49ers punt
returner Kyle Williams.
And guess who the G-Men get in the Super Bowl: the hated Fighting Bill Belichicks,
who got lucky in their own right as the Ravens’ usually reliable kicker, Billy Cundiff,
chunked a 32-yarder in the waning moments that would have tied the game.
--In the latest ridiculousness from the political correctness world, kids that will be
attending a new high school in Utah voted to have Cougars as their nickname. After all,
a cougar is an animal, right? It is, but some do-gooders (administration and parents)
said the term is denigrating to women, because a cougar woman is one who goes after
younger men. Hello, you morons, that term is NEW while cougars have been around
for, oh, A LONG TIME. The Mormon university in Utah, Brigham Young, uses Cougars
as their moniker, but this high school cannot?
Wonder what nickname is next? The Bullets and Bee Bees I am sure could offend
somebody. That glorifies violence, right? What about Tornadoes and Storm, if there are
people hurt (or worse) in those events? I do not even need to bring up Trojans, right?
Where are the animal rights people with the Hawks, Cardinals, Tigers, et al? See how
ridiculous this is?
--The Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins visited the White House Monday, but
one of the best players, goalie Tim Thomas, did not attend as a political statement.
While I agree with Thomas’ political sentiment, this is still the PRESIDENT of the United
States. Even if I did not like the person in the Oval Office, you should RESPECT the
OFFICE at least. Bad move by Thomas.
--I have not watched much of any Republican presidential debate, admittedly,
though I have seen the highlights (lowlights) of all of them. As someone who has
moderated debates on a much smaller scale, you always hope to not become part of
the story, though CNN’s John King did the other night with his question to Newt
Gingrich about the allegations of his second ex-wife. Newt, as has been his custom in
debates, attacked the moderator and the press in general for focusing on those issues,
and the people in attendance roared in approval. This debate performance surely did
not hurt Newt as he rolled to a win in the South Carolina primary Saturday (ABC News
debated on holding the story in the first place before the Drudge Report leaked it; it ran
before the primary and now basically has been forgotten — poetic justice if you ask me).
This country has always been forgiving, when politicians admit they screwed up
(Bill Clinton, though it took him a while, for example). I often have thought that Richard
Nixon could have survived Watergate if he had just admitted it from the beginning,
though this was before the 24-hour news cycle. Newt has been very open about his
personal failings, which is the way he should be handling them. Not that Newt’s
personal history is stellar, because it is not, but NO Democrat should attack it, IF they
defended President Clinton years ago.
Still, in this economy, when the real unemployment rate is 15-16 percent, that is the
FIRST question in a debate, Mr. King? Seriously? Food stamp usage is way up (Newt
basically got accused of racism by bringing that up), the economy is stagnating and gas
and food prices are continuing to rise, and the first question is about an affair? This
country is in dire straits financially, but some members of the media are instead
focused on the wedge issues. ANY South Carolina debate should have started with a
question about the fight between the administration and Boeing wanting to build a plant
there, but the National Labor Relations Board fought it because SC is a non-union state.
--Why not the huge uproar that Warren Buffett only pays a 15 percent tax rate while
Mitt Romney gets whacked for it? Investment income is taxed lower to ENCOURAGE
investment. Maybe the president should propose INCREASING the capital gains tax
rate this year? And where was the uproar over all the millions President Clinton made
giving speeches after he left office? Romney made under $400,000 on them, but he
gets drilled.
Not sure why Romney feels apprehensive about defending his work at Bain
Capital; you know the Dems, if Romney is the nominee, will send out people who lost
their jobs because of Bain; of course, it is OBVIOUS that the Republicans could
respond with the millions of people who have lost their jobs since Obama took over.
Romney seems almost apologetic for his wealth, but he has done more for this country
economically than the current Oval Office occupant, by a long shot. I am tired of the
attacks on capitalism in this country (Republicans included). This is (used to be?) the
greatest country in the world, and our capitalistic system is a huge reason why.
by Byron Painter
Thoughts for all to ponder while I wonder how many Rams fans will go to LONDON
for the next three years to watch a HOME game...
--Two black U of I trustees voted against Tim Beckman because the university did
not work hard enough to hire a black coach. So we should hire someone BECAUSE
they are black, which to me only denigrates the hire? Beckman, by the way, has hired a
black defensive coordinator. I sure wish someone would ask these two for comments
on that.
Oh yeah, the Illini DID offer the head coaching job to a black coach, Kevin Sumlin,
but he turned down the offer and became coach at Texas A&M. Could this mean that, if
Bruce Weber is shown the door at the end of this season (which I do not favor at this
point, though more frustrating losses like at Penn State and at home vs. Wisky could tip
the balance), that Mike Thomas will basically be FORCED by the Board of Trustees to
hire a black guy? I could give a damn what color the Illini coach is, I want the guy to win
and win cleanly (that is a shot at you, Bruce Pearl and Kelvin Sampson).
--While Peyton Manning is seen as the better quarterback of the Manning brothers,
little brother Eli is proving that he MIGHT be the better QB come postseason time, after
once again taking the Giants to the Super Bowl, with some help from 49ers punt
returner Kyle Williams.
And guess who the G-Men get in the Super Bowl: the hated Fighting Bill Belichicks,
who got lucky in their own right as the Ravens’ usually reliable kicker, Billy Cundiff,
chunked a 32-yarder in the waning moments that would have tied the game.
--In the latest ridiculousness from the political correctness world, kids that will be
attending a new high school in Utah voted to have Cougars as their nickname. After all,
a cougar is an animal, right? It is, but some do-gooders (administration and parents)
said the term is denigrating to women, because a cougar woman is one who goes after
younger men. Hello, you morons, that term is NEW while cougars have been around
for, oh, A LONG TIME. The Mormon university in Utah, Brigham Young, uses Cougars
as their moniker, but this high school cannot?
Wonder what nickname is next? The Bullets and Bee Bees I am sure could offend
somebody. That glorifies violence, right? What about Tornadoes and Storm, if there are
people hurt (or worse) in those events? I do not even need to bring up Trojans, right?
Where are the animal rights people with the Hawks, Cardinals, Tigers, et al? See how
ridiculous this is?
--The Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins visited the White House Monday, but
one of the best players, goalie Tim Thomas, did not attend as a political statement.
While I agree with Thomas’ political sentiment, this is still the PRESIDENT of the United
States. Even if I did not like the person in the Oval Office, you should RESPECT the
OFFICE at least. Bad move by Thomas.
--I have not watched much of any Republican presidential debate, admittedly,
though I have seen the highlights (lowlights) of all of them. As someone who has
moderated debates on a much smaller scale, you always hope to not become part of
the story, though CNN’s John King did the other night with his question to Newt
Gingrich about the allegations of his second ex-wife. Newt, as has been his custom in
debates, attacked the moderator and the press in general for focusing on those issues,
and the people in attendance roared in approval. This debate performance surely did
not hurt Newt as he rolled to a win in the South Carolina primary Saturday (ABC News
debated on holding the story in the first place before the Drudge Report leaked it; it ran
before the primary and now basically has been forgotten — poetic justice if you ask me).
This country has always been forgiving, when politicians admit they screwed up
(Bill Clinton, though it took him a while, for example). I often have thought that Richard
Nixon could have survived Watergate if he had just admitted it from the beginning,
though this was before the 24-hour news cycle. Newt has been very open about his
personal failings, which is the way he should be handling them. Not that Newt’s
personal history is stellar, because it is not, but NO Democrat should attack it, IF they
defended President Clinton years ago.
Still, in this economy, when the real unemployment rate is 15-16 percent, that is the
FIRST question in a debate, Mr. King? Seriously? Food stamp usage is way up (Newt
basically got accused of racism by bringing that up), the economy is stagnating and gas
and food prices are continuing to rise, and the first question is about an affair? This
country is in dire straits financially, but some members of the media are instead
focused on the wedge issues. ANY South Carolina debate should have started with a
question about the fight between the administration and Boeing wanting to build a plant
there, but the National Labor Relations Board fought it because SC is a non-union state.
--Why not the huge uproar that Warren Buffett only pays a 15 percent tax rate while
Mitt Romney gets whacked for it? Investment income is taxed lower to ENCOURAGE
investment. Maybe the president should propose INCREASING the capital gains tax
rate this year? And where was the uproar over all the millions President Clinton made
giving speeches after he left office? Romney made under $400,000 on them, but he
gets drilled.
Not sure why Romney feels apprehensive about defending his work at Bain
Capital; you know the Dems, if Romney is the nominee, will send out people who lost
their jobs because of Bain; of course, it is OBVIOUS that the Republicans could
respond with the millions of people who have lost their jobs since Obama took over.
Romney seems almost apologetic for his wealth, but he has done more for this country
economically than the current Oval Office occupant, by a long shot. I am tired of the
attacks on capitalism in this country (Republicans included). This is (used to be?) the
greatest country in the world, and our capitalistic system is a huge reason why.
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Issue Date: Jan. 26, 2012
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