Always Jason

Today I was working and therefore could not watch the Yankees/Red Sox game on TV. So I tuned in the radio at work.

Great. I can listen and stay up on the action. Up until about the 5th inning. Then KLZ (I’m naming names here) decided that they would switch to the Nebraska/Missouri college football game (like people in Denver care about Nebraska).

Now I understand they may have contractual obligations to air the Nebraska game – but if you are going to stop broadcasting an event in the middle of the game, don’t start!

And why is no other station iin Denver broadcasting the baseball playoffs then? Sheesh.

Once upon a time, one could tune in a webcast of baseball games. Now MLB makes you pay for it. The NFL does the same thing. If I’m gonna pay, you better at least give me pictures. Why do you pay for a webcast but the same advertising pays for the radio broadcast to a local market?

Rush Limbaugh admitted to being addicted to pain killers today.

Is what Rush did wrong? Yes. Does it make him a hypocrit? No.

See, the difference between this and other national figures is that Rush admitted, not denied his problem. We did not hear him say, “I am not addicted to prescription drugs” or even “Well, that depends on what the meaning of ‘addicted’ is”.

On a personal level, I can relate to Rush having to live with chronic pain. Three years ago I was hospitalized for Pancreatic Necrosis – life threatening and very painful ailment. I was prescribed the pain killer Dilauded by IV. After weeks on the drug I became addicted without even realizing it. When the IV was taken off I went through physical withdrawal symptoms.

That doesn’t mean the pain was gone though. For the next few months, I still had great pain from the ongoing condition. Mentally, it becomes very depressing waking up after weeks of pain knowing that it will still be there for the forseeable future.

Thankfully, my wife watched out for me. When I went back to the hospital for another surgery, she made sure that I had limited access to Dilauded as well as monitoring the amount of other pain killers (Percoset) I was given.

Rush Limbaugh has sought help. Of course the political vultures are circling. They are saying that because Rush is not perfect he should not be a political commentator. That is a formula for the destruction of civilization.

When critics say that imperfect people (which we all are) cannot say we should aspire to living to a high standard, then the critics are advocating no standards.

10 years ago today, I was (honorably) discharged from the United States Marine Corps. Whew, 10 years go by quick. My memories of those four years on active duty are as vivid as if they were yesterday.

Humping (hiking for you civilian types) on Camp Pendleton during basic training. Getting “bent”….a lot. Singing the Marine Corps Hymn on the steps of the base Chapel the weekend before graduation.

Partying at the Days Inn in Pensacola, Florida where I attended “A” school. Also, giving the company mascot, Sam, a bath (the smelliest dog…ever.)

….Getting to Guam, working in the communications center – spending Christmas on the ops floor. Drinking rum and Coke in the beer garden in front of the barracks with “Woody”, Mike, “Ding Dong”, and Navy guys like Lee and “Opie” while smart people like “Chief” watched us make idiots of ourselves. Going to the Dallas Club and The Citizen with “Gabby”. Woody low crawling down the hallway (rough night). My friends throwing the biggest party for me when I left the island.

…Getting to Cherry Piont, NC shortly after Gabby. Realizing I hadn’t escaped the humidity. Spending Christmas alone in the barracks (that one sucked). Playing Super Nintendo Hockey and drinking with “Burl” until we couldn’t see the TV screen. Watching Gabby fall asleep after two beers. Driving to Greenville to see Hootie and the Blowfish at The Attic. Dragging a very drunk Rick up to his apartment: “Q-E-D is Q-E-D”. Yes Rick, it is.
And discovering the funniest joke ever:
Rick goes into a bar.
He comes out
…and doesn’t have a ride home.

Sorry Rick.

Those guys are still the best.

Semper Fi

On July 1st of this year. Jonathan Russell took a gun to where he was employed and killed three people before killing himself after shooting at police.

The employer, Modine Manufacturing settled worker’s compensation claims for the family of the victims. Now for the sick part.

The murderer’s mother, Nina Tichelkamp-Russell, has filed a claim to get compensated for her son’s death since he died at his place of work.

This woman certainly did not care that her son was a murderer who ruined families. Its should be shameful that this woman believes her murdering son is a quick way to make a buck.

I heard about this on the radio so did a quick Google search to find out if people really believe it. They do.

Apparently the sky is falling because there is supposedly a hidden swastika in the Department of Homeland Security logo.

Someone had to work really hard to “highlight” the swastika in the logo. Its obvious that someone created the swastika in the logo rather than merely highlighting it.

Its amazing what some Chicken Littles are willing to believe.

Timothy Treadwell, a founder of a Grizzly Bear protection group, and his companion were killed Monday after being mauled by bears.

Man, first Roy Horn (of Siegfried & Roy fame) is attacked by one of his tigers and now Timothy Treadwell. Its enough to make you think that large, wild, predator animals aren’t safe to handle. Who’da thought?

Rush Limbaugh is in the hot seat for making supposedly racists comments about Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb.

Now Presidential candidates Wesley Clark and Howard Dean say that Rush Limbaugh should be fired for “hateful and ignorant speech.” The NAACP says it was “bigoted and ignorant”.

Thankfully the NAACP is not the voice of all “people of color” as they want to believe. Just because the lefties say it was racist doesn’t make it so. Now they want someone fired over what they claim is racist.

Isn’t that a dangerous precedent? That’s a very disturbing thought. Losing your job because someone else decides you made a racist comment.

Actually what I find most alarming is that Presidential candidates are calling for punishment of someone’s speech. Doesn’t that show how much they value our rights? Their stance seems to contradict other statements they have made. Wesley Clark has said he is “concerned about the effect of the war on terrorism on civil liberties” and Howard Dean claims that President Bush has “a reckless disregard for our civil liberties” because of the Patriot Act.

I guess their civil liberties are important but Rush Limbaugh’s aren’t.

American Public: Hello?

Direct Marketing Association: Hi, we’re using property and services you pay for to try and sell you things you don’t want.

AP: I thought I told you I don’t want you to call me anymore.

DMA: Sure you do. A federal judge even said so today. Didn’t you read the news? We’re just using our, um, freedom of speech – yeah that’s a good one. We’ll go with that.

AP: No, I’m sure I don’t want you to call me anymore.

DMA: Now you are just being un-American. You don’t want to put millions of people out of jobs or prohibit our freedom of speech (or stop us from ripping you off)?

AP: What was that last one?

DMA: Nothing….um, uh just saying its our God given right to call people who have already told us they don’t want to be hassled during dinner.

AP: I don’t think it is. I mean if you already know I don’t want to be called, how is that violating your freedom? I’m not saying you can’t call people. Only people who have gone through a due process to say they do not want sales calls at home.

DMA: Because it doesn’t allow us to rip you off

AP: What was that?

DMA: I mean, how do you know you don’t want our product if you haven’t heard what it is?

AP: I know I don’t want salespeople to call me. Besides, I pay for my telephone service. What give you the right to hijack it? I don’t go to your house and commandeer your pickup to deliver goods you probably don’t want to buy do I?

DMA: No you don’t…but now that you mention it that’s a good idea.

AP: What?

DMA: Nevermind….just have the keys for your truck ready when I stop by tomorrow, I have something I need to pickup to bring over.

AP: Wait, I don’t want you to use my truck.

DMA: Sorry, its a free speech issue. See you then.

AP: but…..

(dial tone…boooooop)

Rightguard has a deodorant out with a gimmick called the powerstripe. The powerstripe is a section in the middle of the deodorant that gives extra “protection”.

So, if the powerstripe works better than regular deodorant, why don’t they make the whole stick out of the powerstripe stuff?

Really, they are saying that non-powerstripe stuff doesn’t work as well as the powerstripe. So why do they put the other stuff in there?

Presenters at the Emmy awards don’t get paid for their appearances on the show. It’s good to see these people so appreciate their peers, they are willing forego a paycheck for their work.

Don’t despair for them though. As a small token of gratitude, the presenters at this year’s Emmy awards will receive a gift basket worth $30,000.

Wow, $30,000 worth of products for the effort they make in reading introductions like, “And the award for outstanding chimpanzee in an animated documentary goes to…”