SC6

Cartoon of the Week...

2012-01-22T18:54:00.000-05:00

As you probably know, we are making the move back to SC tomorrow, so we are a bit short on time today, so we're just posting one cartoon, and skipping the Founders Quote. Forgive us... It was hard to tell, but Congress actually went back into session after their Holiday Recess, but they got right back to work.... Or did they? We didn't notice either...

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SC6 Gives You More Bad Super Bowl Picks ...

2012-01-22T11:03:00.000-05:00

The 49ers Alex Smith Tries to Reach the Elite Air of Super Bowl QB..

    Just like the GOP Primary, it's down to four.. There's no doubt who we're rooting for, but it sure hasn't helped our picks. Not that we have a great history of playoff picks anyway. Just like last year, we're 3-5 and searching for magic pixie dust. After thinking, we're going to be honest with ourselves, and just pick em... Onto the games!

Baltimore at New England
     It's a pretty interesting matchup. The Ravens are a great road team, with a tough D and running game that often wins playoff games. On the other hand, The Patriots have an offense that even the Ravens might not be able to stop. Tom Brady is a big game QB (duh!).

    The key we guess is how well the Pats D holds up against the Ravens. They stopped Tim Tebow, but Joe Flacco is a much better QB , though not super. They'll need to stretch the defense, and Torrey Smith, who is often invisible, needs a breakout game. But, the ability to put up 30 points, even against New England, is a tall order. Why 30? Because you CAN'T stop the Patriots offense.

   Ray Lewis is out of his aging skill set here. Unless the Ravens can figure out how to double team Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez and Wes Welker at the same time, someone will be open - and Brady will find him.
Patriots 31-20.

New York at San Francisco
   So, can my G-Men make it to their 5th Super Bowl, or do the 49ers return to former glory? We like history backing up today's guesses, and we have had plenty to justify the Giants improbable run... The Giants are hit or miss. they field plenty of good teams, but if they make it to the NFC Championship, they make it to the Super Bowl. Also, we go back to 1990, when the Giants took on a favored 49er team in San Francisco, and won 15-13 on 5 Matt Bahr field goals. Yeah, that one sticks out...

   The 49er D-line scares the crap out of us, but the rest has it's spots to exploit. Face it, the Niners didn't stop the Saints, they just ended up with the ball last. Alex Smith has been playing up to his potential (or is it over his head), but here's what the Giants need to do: double team Vernon Davis - all game. The 49er receivers are not good, so taking Davis out, and neutralizing Frank Gore will make it tough for Smith to do much.

    Eli Manning has been awesome this year, thanks to his best receiver duo ever in Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz.. It will be erratic, because he won't have much time often, but he will get his chances. They'll run a little, pass a little, and do just enough. We've been picking against them on purpose, but we believe now. One last stat: the QB pictured on our picks has been 0-7, which we have done deliberately. Malocchio !!!
Giants 23-20.

    And now, the Patriots can try to have their Super Bowl 42 revenge...

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Gingrich Newters South Carolina ...

2012-01-22T10:34:00.000-05:00

We Go Inside the Numbers, And See If This Is a Trend Or a Hiccup..

    Like we said, it's gonna be a long race... Yesterday, South Carolina gave Mitt Romney a gigantic bitchslap, and handed Newt Gingrich a convincing win in it's GOP Primary. How dramatic was the comeback? On Monday, Romney led 30-22.... It ended with Gingrich winning 40-28. So, Romney did lose a couple voters, but essentially Gingrich got all the undecideds, nearly doubling his output..

   How did it happen? Mainly, Gingrich kicked the crap out of Romney in the two debates, but there are a few stats from the voters that make us wonder what they were thinking. In short, SC was set up for Gingrich to win, much like New Hampshire was made for Romney... Before we get critical, let's go over the good points. What made us happiest is that endorsements essentially don't mean squat... Personally, we don't care who Nikki Haley, Curtis Loftis or any of our local Senators or Reps voted. We make up our own minds, and it appears they did. Good for you!

    What did they say? A few things, and not all made sense... The telling stat was that 48% now viewed Gingrich as the most electable. How so? Much has been made of the debates this week, and that's the point. No longer is policy or platform the key to electability - it's the ability to stand behind the podium, next to Barack Obama, and tear him to shreds in a debate. Yeah, Gingrich threw red meat to the voters here by attacking the media, but you can't accuse the media of bias in a General Election debate. Still Gingrich can debate better than Romney..

    Electability is a good point, but we found a couple things confusing. For starters, voters viewed Gingrich as the 'True Conservative', with Romney dead last in that category, when the truth is Gingrich has plenty of moderate legislation and votes in his closet. However, it's not what you are, it's what you are viewed to be. Strangest of all was Gingrich's strength with Evangelicals. Again, he thumped Romney and even Santorum, who earlier got the endorsement of a coalition of a national group earlier this week. It's seems a bit hypocritical for devout religious people to vote for a guy who's been married three times, and admitted to adultery, but they see it as foregiveness... If they were looking for the most Christian-like candidate, any of the other three would be better, but they looked past that, and patted themselves on the back for being so forgiving.. How do we know this? Only 2% of voters said Gingrich had the best moral character...

      No matter the thought process, the best part is that voters thought for themselves, and ignored the white noise of all the ads, endorsements and chicken bog speeches. It's on to Florida now, and it will not be as easy for Gingrich there.. Northern Florida is a lot like South Carolina, but Southern Florida is New York South, where Romney will do better. Rick Santorum even has a shot to do well, but with the delegates being awarded all to the winner, both he and Ron Paul may skip it... As we know, then days is a lot of time, so we'll just wait and see what happens.

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It's P-Day In South Carolina !

2012-01-21T13:49:00.000-05:00

We Finally Hit the Polls In the Palmetto State ...

     We're going to be a lot different than other blogs about today's South Carolina GOP Primary. We are not going to mention any of the candidates here... Why? Because when it comes down to it, today isn't about any of the candidates - it's about us, the voters and citizens of South Carolina.

     For most of us in the SCGOP, we've been preparing and working for today for over a year... Whoever we choose today will be a lot closer to the nomination in Tampa this Summer. Is it the guarantee lots of us here like to think it is? We're not sure it'll play out like every other time since 1980, but we'll see...

     Basically, the pride should not be taken in who wins or loses today, but for those who have worked so hard for their favorite candidate - and maybe more so to those who aren't involved in the party, but tolerate all the robocalls, commercials, and signs, and vote anyway. All of you are the real winners today. What we ask for today is to see what happens, then go back to normal life, let it all play out, support whoever is the nominee, and prepare to take on Barack Obama in November...

    So, get out the umbrella and vote today! That's all we ask, and you owe it to your country to do so. If you already have voted, thanks!

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SC6 Looks into the South Carolina Primary Tea Leaves. Again!

2012-01-20T11:17:00.000-05:00

Newt Gingrich May Not Do Goal Posts For Paper Football Correctly, But He May Have Enough Room To Sneak In a Win...

We're finally here... One day left, then South Carolina will direct a clearer path for the Republican nomination. Will it decide who wins? No way... Will the winner of the GOP Primary be the nominee? Maybe, but it will be a long time before it is decided... We very well could be going to the convention unsure of who it is. But, we go step by step here. We're at the plate tomorrow - then everyone will evacuate The Palmetto State for another 4 years like someone poisoned the Barbecue!

    We've been pretty good at reading the tea leaves so far, thanks to some pretty accurate polling. So, we're not clairvoyant - we just see the wave right before it crashes. It's pretty easy. We had lots of questions going into today, where we wanted to see how the dominoes fell. It didn't look good for Mitt Romney, who was left banking on the ABC piece on Newt Gingrich's wife to have some credibility, and to clear the air on his taxes. Neither happened...

    First off, Romney looked defensive and stuttery when addressing his taxes, which he has a habit of doing often. If nominated, he better get that damned stuttering crap fixed, or Barack Obama will wax him in the debates... As for Gingrich, the ABC piece looked like a hatchet job, and Republicans have actually come to his defense, strengthening his position on the old issue. He also was much better at addressing the tougher battle than Romney had. In short, the waves are crashing in South Carolina - and Mitt Romney is going under tomorrow..

    Romney has essentially held serve on his supporters, but all of the undecideds are falling Newt's way. The 'podium vs. podium' question as to who would debate Barack Obama better is pretty clear. Does it mean he's more electable? Not necessarily, given Gingrich's baggage, but we're not there yet.   The fight for third has been pretty dull.. Ron Paul is not turning any heads, and Rick Santorum has not gotten the evangelical vote that he banked on. It seems odd that he can't beat a Mormon, a guy married three times, and a Libertarian, but apparently the voters are not placing that as a primary requirement...

Gingrich 39%, Romney 35%, Paul 15%, Santorum 11%.

    So, we will go onto Florida from here... Does this make Gingrich the man to beat? Not yet, not by a longshot. South Carolina was where he set his flag, and Florida will cost a boatload of money to run with Romney - money he doesn't have right now.. Northern Florida may go for Newt and Santorum, but South Florida, aka New York's Sixth County, is nothing like here. Totally different turf... The string of South Carolina picking presidents may come to an end this year, but we'll see...

    We'd like to thank you for checking in here during the Primary. No doubt we have some new readers, as our hit count has almost doubled since Iowa. Hopefully, you'll stick around for more on the campaign, and the General Election. We don't sugar coat or give partisan, agenda-driven advice..... We call it like we see it. And, we have plenty of pics of hot women to keep you interested!

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Today's Founders Quote: For the Common Good

2012-01-20T10:34:00.000-05:00

"Government is instituted for the common good; for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people; and not for profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of men."
- John Adams, Thoughts on Government, 1776.

There was another part that we didn't quite agree with, so we cut it down a bit. It's our blog - we're allowed. Your local lobbyist will disagree, but government has lost sight of who they legislate for - the whole of society. When they work for the overwhelming majority of the citizens, it is better overall. When they specialize benefits to a select few, at the cost of the majority, then things go wrong - generally because those type of benefits come at an exponentially higher cost. Whoa, too many big words there....

One big word that doesn't give us headaches is Francoise - as in Francoise Bourdahl. She benefits all!

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The South Carolina Primary Becomes a Battle ...

2012-01-19T11:32:00.000-05:00

Two Days to Go, And The Race Is Like a Mosh Pit.... With One or More of the Candidates Waiting to Unexpectedly Get Kicked Square in the Face.

     Flux... That's the best term we can think of to describe what's going on in South Carolina right now.  Normally, with 48 hours to go, things are a bit more organized, with the campaigns having done all they can, and just focused on voter turnout. Not the case at all here. We haven't seen a race where there are so many variables left to decide a race. Sure, there are plenty of races that are within the margin of error, but we have no less than FIVE issues that potentially could turn the Primary result on Saturday.... and none of them include the stupid weather. Here they are:

Santorum Won Iowa?
    Suddenly, we are hearing that Rick Santorum may have actually won Iowa - but they're calling his 34 vote lead, with 8 missing counties (Nice Job, morons!) a TIE???? While we doubt it will bump Santorum any, the cache that Mitt Romney had of two wins, and possibly going 3-0, is suddenly a possible 1-1-1. Not quite the mandate now, is it. Romney's inevitability is gone...

Perry's Out
      Rick Perry is boring us with his dropout speech as we write this. No, 4.4% is usually not make or break, but Perry is endorsing Newt Gingrich. Will they all go to him? We doubt it.. South Carolinians are not blind sheep - they make up their own minds. The vote will split, but Perry being out does hurt Mitt Romney even more....

One More Debate
     Tonight, the SRLC has the final South Carolina debate. Mitt Romney gets another chance to set people straight on his finances, taxes and business practices, and Newt Gingrich has one last opportunity to show himself at his best. Rick Santorum is trailing pretty far off, and Ron Paul has been pretty quiet as well. Both need to impress in the worst way, or this will quickly become a two-man race. If it does, Gingrich gains again....

Gingrich's Wife on ABC
     Welcome to Mitt Romney's best hope... It's not good when you're depending on your opponent's ex-wife to drop an Atom Bomb on him, but Romney's done about as well as he can here. We're hearing that she will say he wanted them to become swingers (uhhhh, no thanks, Newt). Thta might get some of the Ron Paul voters to switch, but the big issue on whatever comes out is what the voters actually think about the charges. If she comes off as an angry jilted ex-wife, it may do nothing, or galvanize Newt's support. We're not so sure about that....

Undecided Voters
     Like Iowa and New Hampshire, South Carolina has a ton of undecideds. I have my lab rat voters in reserve, both of whom voted for Obama in 2008, but are going Republican in 2012. One seems set on Gingrich. The other is still undecided, but views Mitt Romney as an elitist prick - unofficially. Roughly one-third of the voters are still deciding, but Gingrich seems to be gaining... But it all could end fast (see previous variable).

    So, who are we picking? Well, we're not guessing just yet. Why? Because 24 hours is a long time when it comes to races like this. We'll get a much better idea of how it'll play out tomorrow, and we'll tell you then! It's a messy pit in there right now..... better stay out unless you have a sturdy pair of Doc Martens on!

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Rick Perry's Ship Drops Sail ....

2012-01-19T10:32:00.000-05:00

You're Dismissed , Governor ..

     The big news today was Rick Perry's impending announcement that he is ending his presidential campaign. And now, there are four... More importantly, Perry is encouraging his supporters - all 4.4% of them - to vote for Newt Gingrich. It doesn't sound like much, but that is within the margin of error between Gingrich and Mitt Romney. Otherwise, we probably wouldn't care....

    It was a wild ride for Perry. Viewed as a frontrunner immediately, Perry quickly fell precipitously over the 5 months of his campaign. Yes, there were tons of verbal gaffes along the way which helped to do him in, but there was a bigger problem: Perry obviously didn't think the whole thing through. This wa clear during the economic debate where Perry did not have a plan prepared, but promised to have it by week's end. Fail...

    Other factors did Perry in. 2012 is all about putting up a candidate who can beat Barack Obama. Nominating the Governor of Texas who seemed like a good ole boy that talked big would be too reminiscent of 2000 and 2004. Lots of Republicans (and most independents and centrist Democrats) are done with George W. Bush, and they weren't about to put a Bush-like clone. Maybe it's us, but we're sick of hearing how things are done 'Texas-style'... Texas has become the new New York - the people who talk shit all day, and annoy the hell out of the rest of the country.

    In the end, Perry failed because he flat out wasn't Presidential. We think he got talked into running, and wasn't ready for the details involved.   In the end, he started sounding like a hater. Many candidates become something they're not during their last cries, but Republicans don't envy people for making money. He'll probably look at that last week, and realize he didn't help himself long term. If there's a next time, hopefully he'll learn.

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The Day Republicans Start Envying Wealth ....

2012-01-18T14:09:00.000-05:00

The GOP Field's Demand For Romney to Release Tax Return Shows People Will Do ANYTHING to Get Elected...

     Typical to any election that get closer to a possible inevitability, the nearer Mitt Romney gets to being the clear cut leader of the GOP Nomination, the less his opponents seem to be..... well, Republicans. First, Newt Gingrich tries to blow a missle through Romney about Bain Capital.. Now, everyone suddenly wants Romney to release his tax returns.. Today. Our question is this: what the hell happened to the Republican Party?

     Clearly, it's a case of class envy. Sure, we often envy those who have what we would like, but it's pretty sad to see candidates, particularly Republicans, try to use class envy for their own benefit. That's all it is.. Any Republican who is demanding that Romney show his tax return is only doing it to get elected.  Everyone knows that Romney is very rich. Maybe even less than some people think.. His current net worth is somewhere in the $200 million range, which is certainly in the 1%, but all the voters know that. People aren't voting for Mitt Romney because he can relate to being an Average Joe.. It's beccause the guy understands business, and has run a state government pretty successfully as well. Sometimes, that's what it takes....

     Truth is, no one needs Mitt Romney's tax return. All his financial info is available on the FEC website. It's required by them for any candidate for Federal office. We've filled one out ourselves. It's not fully detailed, but it gives an overall view of what he has, and that's enough. Why does he not have a return ready? Mainly because it's not due til April, and when you owe taxes, you pay at the last minute...Much was made of his disclosure that he paid about 15% in taxes last year. Doesn't sound like much, but that's because Romney's not even working, he's campaigning. The 15% is based on capital gains from his investments. If you want it higher, then be prepared to pay more in taxes yourself, because Cap Gains is a flat tax....

    Class warfare never works, especially in the GOP. Seeing something like this from fellow Republicans is repulsive. Part of the party platform is letting the government interfere as little as possible, to allow any man to reach his/her potential with no limits. Well, apparently there are some candidates that think there is such a thing as too well off... unless it's them , of course.   No one likes losing, but better to lose honorably than the scorched earth game played by some of these guys...

    It seems that the one thing that has given South Carolina Primary it's distinction has somehow turned into a curse. By having chosen the GOP nominee every year since 1980, all the candidates see this primary as all or nothing. That is, if they win, it somehow is an automatic bye to the nomination. if they lose, it is all over by history. The truth is, the future is never written by the past. 2012 will go the full term, and it would not surprise us to see none of the candidates clinch the nomination. Therefore, it would go to the floor of the convention in Tampa. It wouldn't surprise us at all. So, all this ridiculousness of asking for Tax Returns today is a waste. We've got a long way to go. Too bad it's only more time for the candidates to destroy each other...

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We Uncover Rick Perry's Verbal Gaffes ..

2012-01-18T10:42:00.000-05:00

AAAAARRRRGGGHHH !!!! And Now Perry Can Debate Again !

    For the last couple months, Republicans everywhere were wondering why Rick Perry was having such trouble at the debates earlier this year. Heck, we even diagnosed him as having ADD. But rather than being unable to focus, it seems we may have finally found out the cause: Corn Dog-Itis...

    According to sources that will remain imaginary, Perry was at a Town Hall meeting in Barnwell, South Carolina, when he suddenly began to gag - kinda like that scene in Alien , where that thing popped out through the guy's chest. But, rather than that happening, Perry gagged out an entire Corn Dog he ate at the Iowa State Fair months earlier....

   Witnesses said it was surreal... 'Perry must have swallowed that dang thing whole, 'cause that's the way it came out - stick and all!', quoted one witness. With the obctruction cleared, Perry seems to have regained the ability to speak and debate without Brain Farting anymore. The damage may have already been done, but at least he can finish strong....

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C'mon Tim, You Know Who You're Voting For...

2012-01-17T14:06:00.000-05:00

SC Congressional Kingmaker is Among the Undecided ???

     You might notice by now that we haven't commented on last night's SCGOP Debate in Myrtle Beach. Well, the reason for that is we were driving somewhere in New Jersey when they started, and they were over by the time we made it back to Yankeeville. We don't comment on things we haven't seen, which is why you should trust us implicitly on EVERYTHING we say!

     We did catch some of the recap today on Fox, and one guest was 1st District Congressman and our buddy, Tim Scott. He was on this morning, commenting on the outcome, and he stated something that made us giggle: he said he has not made up his mind who he is voting or, and will not endorse any candidate. Yes, the man who has doen more to allow SC voters to see the field hasn't chosen one yet.. Or has he?

    We've know Tim for almost a decade now, when he was on County Council, and we were running for Congress. Here's our opinion: Tim does think things through before making a decision, but he does not vacillate or change from them once he does decide, and we can't picture him making a last second decision. He knows who he's voting for, but playing Kingmaker isn't his gig. Getting credit for bringing the players here is much better than picking the winner for today...

   So, the big question is who is Scott voting for? The answer is...... we have no idea! Sorry. We'd guess it would be one of the Gingrich/Santorum/Perry triumvurite, but none is a clear choice. He hasn't worked with any of them, and we could see reasons for him to not choose all of them. We don't think it's going to be Mitt Romney or Ron Paul. The others have no clear favorite, so why back a loser, only to have eventual nominee remember that you DIDN'T back him. It's a smart move, just like Jim DeMint is doing.

   See, you can NEVER believe what your Congressman tells you!

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Learning the Obvious: SuperPACs Are Superbad ...

2012-01-17T13:39:00.000-05:00

This Past Year's Lesson: If Something Is Called 'Super', It Isn't..

   If this is any indication, this year's Super Bowl is going to be one of those Buffalo-Denver circa 1990-esque games.. Why? Because if we have learned anything from the past year, it's that the term 'Super' has been way overblown - almost to the point of being a term of sarcasm...

   We're learning a lot during the primaries here. A lot about the candidates, and the whole process, but what we also need to look at is what works, and what doesn't. We heard a lot of grumbling about it when the Supreme Court OK'd it, but we're really seeing the nightmare now. To us, there is no doubt about it: SuperPAC's suck...

   Hell, we didn't even like PAC's that much. We've already hated individuals or corporations overinfluence on candidates or an election, but at least PAC's had limits. SuperPAC's are like PAC's on steroids... And we're already seeing the worst of it. Our trip to South Carolina showed us instantly the worst of the system as it exists. Most of the ads that we saw were negative, and under the guise of a SuperPAC - a faceless, nameless barrage of slamming with no trail for the average voter to waste their time tracing. It's sickening...

   Look at Newt Gingrich. Yes, he has staff in South Carolina, but if not for the one guy in Las Vegas, of all places, Gingrich would be dead.. His supporters no doubt view this guy as a savior, but on person shouldn't have that much influence on an election, especially with the dubious attack ads leveled on Mitt Romney. Now, they all have SuperPAC's backing them. They go on rogue missions, with supposedly no communication or guidance from the campaign. Great idea, folks.. One rich guy without any restriction goes fully-cocked on an assault mission via TV to distort and destroy whatever they disagree with. Sounds like democracy to us...

   No, we don't like cronyism, which is exactly what it is. We're trying to make government smaller, but instead, the elections are being taken away from the little guy, and thrown wholly into the hands of a few guys with cash....and agendas. It sucks.... It's too late to change anything this year, so be prepared for the worst election season EVER. But, SuperPAC's need to be ended. It won't be easy, since it's already been OK'd by the Supreme Court. But, something being legal doesn't make it right. Congress has to wipe the SuperPAC out, and say to the SCOTUS 'Thanks for the clarification, but we're better off without it'. Things can be fixed, but Congress has to have the will to do it... Will they? Don't hold your breath.

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Huntsman's 'Ticket to Ride' Doesn't Get Him Far...

2012-01-15T23:29:00.000-05:00

On the One Hand, I Could Get Up to Five Percent... On the Other Hand..... Aww, Fuggit! Huntsman Bows Out..

    Like counting down the last hours of a very sick friend, we saw this coming for a while - especially after New Hampshire. Like we said, our endorsement - along with The State Newspaper - is the Kiss of Death. According to numerous sources, former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman will end his campaign tomorrow, and ask his supporters to vote for Mitt Romney...

    As far as the Primary on Saturday goes, it shouldn't mean much. Romney may pull in the lower 30's now, instead of the upper 20's. It's one less candidate that would likely have been gone in a week.... but at least it is one less candidate. We're thinking the conservative triumvurite of Santorum, Gingrich and Perry may lose a member, but that's far from set in stone. We'll see....

    Huntsman had the right resume for the job, but there are only so many cards to punch for more than the first few primaries.... and Huntsman's 'Ticket to Ride' was invalid, which is why we never recommend using any Beatles songs for reference... It's all moot now. Romney has his side of the field cleared... Now, we wait for the right side to make up it's mind. It's gonna be a long ride.

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On the SC Trail... Rick Santorum Comes to Flotown

2012-01-15T22:22:00.000-05:00

Sorry, We Didn't Go For Any Close Ups... But Trust Us, He Was There...

    With time and resources being so short this week, it looked like we would completely miss out on the South Carolina Primary visits. Luckily, ONE candidate took the time to visit Florence: Rick Santorum. The former Pennsylvania Senator stopped by Percy & Willie's on David McLeod Blvd for a couple hours to give his message, and hopefully pick up a few votes. The retail politics might have helped a bit...

    It was a pretty decent crowd of maybe 150 or so - big enough to make noise, but small enough to get a good look at Santorum. For those of you who have never seen a candidate in person, you are missing out.  Getting to see a candidate unfiltered gives you almost all the information you need to choose - or not choose - one. For us, it confirmed a small piece or two that separates a vote or no vote. For others there, he was saying a lot of what they wanted to hear...

    Santorum and South Carolina are a pretty good match.  He makes no qualms about his faith, and even though some Protestants confuse Catholicism with Voodoo, there was plenty of middle ground. Judging by the initial reactions, not everyone there was an automatic supporter.  They came because Santorum was there, and they were feeling him out. For us, we didn't hear what we like to hear... like actual platforms and plans.

     Call it a character flaw, but we are nuts and bolts people. When you talk for an hour, and do not use a single number, we can't see how you will act as President. In a way, it was the conservative version of Barack Obama - lots of emotion and broad strokes. We like details. Lots of details. Santorum didn't get into any specifics until he took questions. Maybe he preferred to do it that way, but what if no one asked what you wanted... or asked any questions at all? The best way to make your points is to do it yourself.

    We're not here to bury Santorum. He's a very nice guy, he is not at all the kook Ron Paul or Rick Perry are. He is more realistic in what can and cannot be done. We just think there are better candidates out there. His message will do well in South Carolina, and he could end up the 'Conservative Alternative' that the party is still sifting through. He may even be the eventual nominee, and if he is, we'll vote for him.  But we ain't there yet....

    Above all, the cool thing was that one of the candidates actually set foot in my town, and spent a couple hours here. Retail politics worked well for him in Iowa, and if no one else bothers to stop by, he will benefit from it again. Six days to go, and unfortunately, we are packing up for the week to play one last show, and pack up for the final move. Just like the candidates, and the media throng following them all around...

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On the SC Trail... McDonnell: Just Pick a Gov !!

2012-01-15T14:35:00.000-05:00

Virginia Governor Doesn't Pick One Presidential Candidate... He Picks Three !

    We apologize for not giving you more of the South Carolina Primary here this week. We drove down Friday, and had family business to take care of yesterday. We'll get out locally today for whatever we can, but tomorrow, it's back on the road up North for a week. Still, we're trying to give you a story or two that you might not read elsewhere...

   Honestly, the Pee Dee has not been a hotbed of activity for the GOP candidates this week from all accounts.. They're traveling up and down I-26 and 77, but that little run up I-20 or 501 seems past their abilities. So, sometimes they have their friends do some of the work for them. Last night, Rep. Tim Scott had another forum, with Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell in attendance at Broadway at the Beach. Thought the cold didn't help the shagging, the politics was plenty hot.  Like many Republicans unwilling to stick their neck out, McDonnell was uncommittal to any candidate... sort of.

   No, he didn't pick one - he picked three. But at least, there was a clear theory behind it. McDonnell said either Mitt Romney, Jon Huntsman or Rick Perry would be good choices for President. What is the common theme? They are/were all Governors.  Since states HAVE to balance their budgets annually, no matter what the fiscal climate, they are uniquely qualified to address the budget deficits and make the tough choices needed. Not a bad idea, considering that any Congressman or Senator from the past decade has some level of responsibility for today's fiscal mess..

    We could live with McDonnell's assertion, although we don't think very much of his lack of conviction, but he has a good reason. McDonnell may be hunting down a VP nomination from the winner, and you could certainly choose worse than him, not to mention the electoral perks. Virginia governors only serve one term, so McDonnell's gig will end soon anyway. Add to that the Cavalier State's position as a state in play, and he could be a major player. Barack Obama mentions various states in certain terms, to help his cause. They are usually Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida... and Virginia.

     Like they say, Governors govern. Well, most of them. An outsider could be just what DC needs, but cracking the local club isn't easy. Still, having some experience would be nice...

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Today's Founders Quote: To Act With Vigor and Effect

2012-01-15T12:43:00.001-05:00

"Men, to act with vigour and effect, must have time to mature measures, and judgment and experience, as to the best method of applying them. They must not be hurried on to their conclusions by the passions, or the fears of the multitude. They must deliberate, as well as resolve."

- Joseph Story, 1833.

Story makes a great point that we don't think enough about - taking time to think... Too often, we succumb to pressure. That we need to do this today, or the world would collapse.. From off the top of our head, we can think of four or five occasions in the past few years where we've been told the world would end if we didn't pass legislation today. By both sides... Our answer? Bulllshit.

It's easy. Plan ahead, take the time to think everything through, and good legislation will follow. And don't get caught up in the political aspects of each bill.. Not getting caught up in Welsh hottie Danielle Lineker isn't so easy....

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Cartoon of the Week.... Or Two.

2012-01-15T12:24:00.000-05:00

Yes folks, we are blogging from Southern Soil... We're back at our old blogging spot on the coffee table in our home in Flotown. Finally, SOMEONE is coming to Florence this week, when Rick Santorum visits Percy and Willie's. We might take a peek before the Giants/Packers game. We might even drag my brother there, who cares nothing about politics...

Good week for the cartoonists... Lots of things to pick from, and the quality of the art was pretty detailed as well. We decided to go with two. First, we liked this one, because it's nice to see politicians take credit for job creation, when government plays little to no role in it...

And we decided to stay away from politics... It may not seem much like it the last couple days, but it's been a pretty mild winter. It hasn't even snowed in Yankeeville, thanks to either of two things: La Nina is keeping it dry, or it's because I'm leaving...

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SC6 Makes It's NFL Divisional Round Picks...

2012-01-12T08:56:00.000-05:00

Will Tim Tebow Need a Little Divine Intervention Against Tom Brady and the Patriots This Weekend?

     So, you want to do well in your NFL picks? It's easy... Just pick the opposite of us. We did pretty crappy last week, going 1-3. Who knew home field would be such an advantage? Time for a little comeback here.. Time is short, as we prepare for our trip home, so we'll just get it out of the way..

New Orleans at San Francisco
    No, Drew Brees is not nearly as good on the road as in the Superdome, but he's still pretty good. Alex Smith has done nice work for the 49ers this year, but there is definitely a dropoff. The big question is can the Saints stop the Niner pass rush? We think so.. Also, the 49er D looked awfully average against a downright awful Rams squad. Frank Gore needs to come up big, but too many weapons. Saints 27-20.

Denver at New England
     You think they'll let Tim Tebow throw a little this time??? Problem is, it's gonna be kinda windy, which means those not too accurate throws will be all over the place - adn a couple will end up in the Pats' secondary's hands. Tom Brady is like the Postal Service - Through Wind, Rain or Snow - except that Brady actually delivers. A recent issue has been New England taking about 2 quarters to get it's act together, but they'll be OK.   Patriots 31-16.

Houston at Baltimore
     How much better do the Texans look with Andre Johnson in the game? Also, Arian Foster is an animal.  But, so is Ray Rice. Joe Flacco is a pretty good big game QB, and the Ravens at home? 8-0. TJ Yates is in for a long day against a stout Ravens' pass rush. Ravens 20-13.

New York Giants at Green Bay
      Remember when the Giants played a previously unbeaten team, lost 38-35, and realized that they were playoff worthy... then they beat the Packers in Lambeau? Ahh, it sounds a lot like 2007, but it isn't. Note to Brett Favre fans: Aaron Rodgers is SO MUCH better than Favre ever was. Rodgers is a checkdown machine, and the Pack has more weapons than they did last year. The Giants D is peaking at just the right time, but the only thing that'll slow down the Pack is the weather. Packers 27-17.

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Mitt Romney Goes Two for Two ....

2012-01-10T22:25:00.000-05:00

Guy Smiley Wins the Granite State ....

       Our night was ruined... After being up til 300AM last week while we waited for a couple idiots to find their caucus tallies in Iowa, we were prepared to watch the New Hampshire for a couple hours. Not quite... At exactly 8:01, Fox called the Primary for Mitt Romney. So, what will we do for the rest of the night? We'll blog about it.....

      Compared to Iowa, New Hampshire was a bit of a yawner. When the real race is for second and fourth, that'll happen... Basically, Mitt Romney held serve. The real surprise was last week. When you're expected to win, and you pull off a 13 point win, it's not very exciting. But, like Jim Valvano used to call it, you survive and advance. The good news for Romney is that the entire field will advance onto South Carolina, so survive and advance is more like divide and conquer..

       What does Romney have going for him? Right now, it's all about electability.. 51% of those who voted for him said that was why. In short, if they think you can win tomorrow, then you will win today. In a surprise to everyone but us, Ron Paul and his Co-Ed Army took advantage of the Live Free or Die independents to a solid second place finish over Jon Huntsman. We're still not sure if Paul can hold the mantle of the Conservative alternative to Romney, but he isn't going anywhere with the most solid showing by the rest of the field...

      As for the rest of the pack, we're not too enthused about their showings. Huntsman's third is respectable, but he really needed a second here, and South Carolina has not been too welcoming for him so far.  He's got a long way to go. Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich are fighting it out at 10% - whoopdie frickin' doo.... Gingrich is almost in free fall mode, and Santorum underperformed what he was polling at, which means once voters in New Hampshire took a good look, they changed their minds at the polls.   Between the two, Santorum appears to be in better shape - but one of the two, and Rick Perry, needs to get out to compete with Romney and Paul.

       So, it's onto South Carolina now... What will it bring? We'll wait until some new polls come out, and more importantly, what we see when we get on Palmetto State soil. We wished we could spend more time there during the Primary, but the schedule sucks, but we'll show what we see while we're down there.. See ya there!

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Budweiser Goes Down...

2012-01-10T10:27:00.000-05:00

If the Girls Came With the Skunky Beer, We Might Drink It...

At long last, the data to back up what we long thought was verified yesterday.... No one is drinking Budweiser anymore. Well, not no one, but less and less. According to sales data, Budweiser fell to the Number Three most popular beer, behind Bud Light, and now Coors Light, aka Pisswater... The other confirmation? Americans have NO TASTE in beer...

We always found the Bud ads calling other beers 'skunky' made us laugh, because Budweiser is the skunkiest beer out there. No amount of slick advertising got us to drink it. No hot chicks, talking frogs, George Clooney voiceovers or Clydesdales worked. The commercials were great during the Super Bowl, but we'll take a Rolling Rock , Blue Moon or Sam Adams over a Bud any day...

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It's Time For the Granite State to Choose ...

2012-01-10T10:10:00.000-05:00

Ahh, The Bridges of Franconia Notch... On the Other Side Is South Carolina - But Who Will Make It There ??

    We've made it onto Round Two of the Presidential Primaries/Caucuses. the bad news is we're in New Hampshire, where it's not a very close race. The good news is we've got South Carolina on deck, where the field gets cleared, it's gets even uglier - and we finally have a clear cut leader. We can't wait....

    No doubt, the race today is for second place, or to us, third place. This is Mitt Romney's state to lose, and he didn't fall flat on his face. New Hampshire is an interesting state - lots of independents on all sides, and they all get to vote. The splits for those independents and undecideds are falling all ways. Romney wins the electability votes, Ron Paul takes the hardcore vote, Jon Huntsman gets a share of the undecideds, and Rick Santorum gets the Tea Party slice. No clear winner on that section...

   So, who is trending up and down? Santorum and Huntsman are going up, but not much. Paul has been going up as well, though not much either. Romney is stuck in neutral as usual. That leaves us with the slippers: Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry. Perry is in deep, deep trouble. We really thought he was quitting after Iowa, but he is hoping for an SC miracle. It ain't coming.... Newt is sliding in New Hampshire as well, but he has a much better chance in the Palmetto State.  No, a fourth and a fifth isn't exactly the recipe for victory, but he'll recover some on the 21st. Probably just not enough....

   The main headline from New Hampshire? Romney wins pretty handily, Paul makes his push as the possible runner up, Huntsman shows well, but not enough to cause critical mass. South Carolina is going to kill his campaign. Santorum does OK, but not enough to be the clear alternate to Mitt Romney. Gingrich trails, and can't wait to get to South Carolina. Perry is a no-show, but goes onto SC as well. After South Carolina, Huntsman and Perry are both gone....

Romney 37%, Paul 22%, Huntsman 17%, Santorum 13%, Gingrich 9%, Perry 2%.

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Another One Bites the Dust in SC7 ....

2012-01-10T09:25:00.000-05:00

Debbie Harwell Ends Her Congressional Bid ....

      Guess that post on the ever-shrinking GOP field in the upcoming 7th Congressional district was a bit premature, because we've lost another one... This time, it was Debbie Harwell. Honestly, we were familiar with the name (who in the Pee Dee wouldn't), but didn't know her from a hole in the wall, so our initial reaction was 'exactly who is she?'. But after checking her resume, she had the type of contacts that generally do well in a congressional race.

     Newspaper editor, PR rep for about every public project the Grand Strand was shooting for, who seeming was attached to every branch and politician like a Deer Tick. And, of course, she's a Harwell by marriage.. Unfortunately, it was the marriage that got in the way of a political career, when her husband fell seriously ill over the holidays. While we applaud her for scuttling a run to aid her husband, we wonder why people run for office when they're married to a 79 yr old man... Yes, it's hypercritical of us, but these things happen.

     For those of you who live in the Pee Dee, this may have been a good thing. In Harwell's resignation announcement, she mentioned continuing to fight for what is best for the people of the Grand Strand.. and the rest of the District. Later, her campaign manager corrected that she meant the Pee Dee as well.  For those of us who worry about the Grand Strand dominating the seat, the fears appear real, and we may have just dodged a bullet...

     With all the news that's been going on with the GOP field here, we're beginning to wonder how well thought out these candidacies were, and the amount (or lack) of dedication these people had. One thing for sure: the smaller the field gets, the better chance former Lt. Governor Andre Bauer has of taking this. We have misgivings about Andre as the Congressman, only due to his lack of experience in the District, but the Strand hasn't put up a serious candidate. As for the Pee Dee, it appears no one wants to run. Sad... Will there be a last minute candidate entering the race, now that the field is shrinking? Maybe. At this rate, no one will be left by February.....

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We Give Up On Doubting Tim Tebow ....

2012-01-09T16:56:00.000-05:00

     That's it... The White Flag of surrender has been raised. For every logical reason we had to explain why Tim Tebow was winning games without divine intervention, yesterday's win over the Pittsburgh Steelers convinced us that God is helping Tim Tebow. We have no official proof, but why fight it anymore?

    Yeah, the Steelers weren't at 100%, but the Denver Broncos defense sure didn't make it as easy for SuperTim to win in the normal 17-13 fashion. Yeah, they played too much of an upfront defense for Tebow NOT to hit the big pass over and over again. But, it was HOW he did it that made up believers - pun intended...

    With regulation over, and all the momentum on Pittsburgh's side. Denver won the coin toss. No sooner than my friends and I were discussing the new playoff overtime rules, it happened - the entire defense was on the line again, Tebow hit Demaryius Thomas on a crossing route, and like Moses parting the Red Sea, a straight run down the sideline to the End Zone. One play. 80 yards. Game Over. 29-23 Denver...

    Yeah, these things happen, but for those of you who need more proof, we have a stat or two for you: Tebow's total passing yards? How about 316? And divide it by the ten completions, it again comes to 31.6 yards per completion. That Rainbow-afro'ed dude from all the games in 70's and 80's is jumping up and down, yelling 'I TOLD YOU SO !!!'. And we can't blame him....

     Of course, the real challenge is next week, when Tebow and God battle the perceived God of Passing, Tom Brady... It should be interesting.

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So, How Long Before She Gets a Record Deal?

2012-01-09T16:31:00.000-05:00

Beyonce and Jay-Z's Superbaby Is Finally Here !!!

     Congrats go out to Beyonce and Jay-Z on the birth of their first child this weekend. They named her Blue Ivy. We're not sure where the Blue came from, but Ivy supposedly is a variation on the Number 4 - 4 in Roman Numerals is 'IV'. It's also a '$' if you accidentally keep the cap lock button on, which we just found out. Pretty ironic, don't you think? It turns out both parents were born on the 4th, they were married on the 4th. There was another example, but we didn't care to remember it. So, in perfect timing, she was born on..... the 7th. Oh well, even the super rich and famous don't get everything they want.

     From what we read, Jay-Z has already released a rap song about her, and we have no doubts that there will be a Blue Ivy line of kid's clothes out in the near future.... In a way, as pampered as that kid is going to be, we kinda feel a little sorry for her. Every paparazzi worldwide will be trying to take pictures of her, and by the time she's 8, they'll be looking for an album from her. God help if she can't sing or rap like Mommy or Daddy - or both.

    Somehow, I doubt any of them are worried about any of this. After all, she's got a nursery that's 400 square ft bigger than my whole house.. You always hope people like these raise their kids to be well-grounded, but that's almost impossible. Beyonce and Jay-Z aren't normal - and we don't allow them to be, because we put them on pedestals so that they can't even go to a 7-Eleven... Best of Luck, and let us know where to send the gift. Hey, everyone could use a Wal-Mart gift card....

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So Much For Being the Candidate of the Young ...

2012-01-08T13:57:00.000-05:00

Hey Kid, Come Back When You're Old Enough to Vote !

    Time for one of those campaign stories you won't hear from most of the 'Hard News' blogs.. We were going to use this as part of a 'True Presidential Candidate Stories' series, but we couldn't wait. We may work on that other idea anyway... We'll see.

     Ron Paul has a reputation for attracting a ton of young people to the Republican Party. We're still not sure how much of a Republican he actually is, but since he keeps running as one, we'll take his word for it. Anyway, Paul may have been an OB/GYN, and he does a great job of getting idealistic, if not realistic, kids to work for his campaign. However, we got a piece of news that makes us think that Paul has a problem with kids between the time of conception and their 18th birthday - like that time when they ask 'stupid questions'...

    We saw a story on Fox News, where they had a 9-year old kid from New Hampshire, who has been on the road with the candidates for months. His job? Basically to ask each of them the same question: 'Which superhero do you think best represents you?'.   Yeah, on the surface, it is a dumb question, especially if it were coming from Carl Cameron or David Gregory. But hey, it's a 9 yr old - superheroes are all he knows. Does anyone actually expect him to ask about Auditing the Fed or the NLRB??

    Well, the kid managed to see all the candidates at one point or another, and he did well. All of the candidates answered his question and thanked him for being involved in the political process. He didn't name a favorite, but he did mention the one he didn't like - Ron Paul. It turns out Paul ignored him - as the kid said, 'He seemed to be more interested in what the adults were asking' - and went on his way.

    Our guess is either Paul didn't give a shit, didn't know jack about comic books... or our best thought is that since there is no Superhero whose aim is to End the Fed, Eliminate Income Taxes, become centrist with no world involvement, or return all power to the states, he was unable to choose one. We'll give him the benefit of the doubt.  Very little benefit.....

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When Winning Yesterday Turns Into Losing Tomorrow....

2012-01-08T13:34:00.000-05:00

Don't Know This Lady? You Will Soon, But You Didn't Need To.

     We've said this over and over again... Congress sweats the small stuff too much, and that all they concern themselves with is what is on today's docket. To us, if they paid more attention to the larger issues, and settled on the lesser issues, DC would be a more harmonious and positive place. What do we mean? Well, things happen today that, like Doc Brown would explain in 'Back to the Future', create an alternate reality for everyone. In short, denying something today gives people other options that, in the end, hurt you more than if you would have given them the first gig...

     Need an example? We have a great one that is playing out as we speak... So, have you figured out who the lady in the picture is yet? For those of you who answered Elizabeth Warren, congrats! For you of you who drew a blank, there is a good chance you'll hear about her in November.   Warren is a professor at Harvard University. She is a well-respected consumer finance expert who we first saw on a documentary film about the credit card scams that were rampant in the mid and late 2000's.  Anyone who saw what was going on back then can't say that $39 charges for being a day late was fair...

      Warren made a lot of sense, and she ended up playing a major role in defending consumers. It gets a little fuzzy here.. She basically came up with the good parts of Dodd-Frank, which limited the changes banks can charge on credit card accounts. It helped keep people who teetered on their debt from going off the cliff.  She also was instrumental in creating what is now the Consumer Finance Protectio Bureau. Now, we are not advocates of creating government agencies for everything. In a perfect world, Congress should be able to write legislation to do the same thing. Also, the scope of the bureau has not been clearly defined, but that's not the focus of today's dicussion, so we'll avoid that today. However, thanks to lobbyists, Congress is not a place where a simple cap on charges can be passed...

    Back to our point. Thanks in large part to that inability, the CFPB was created, and nearly all advisors to Barack Obama had one recommended person to run the bureau - Elizabeth Warren. Republicans fought tooth and nail against Warren, so Obama backed off nominating her, and instead chose Richard Cordray. You may have heard about this lately.... So, instead of being a basically no-name bureaucrat at a small government agency, Warren was recruited for something else - the US Senate in Massachusetts.

    Yep, she is the prime challenger to Scott Brown for the Democrats to gain back Ted Kennedy's old seat - and from all polls, she is handily kicking Brown's ass.  Partly due to it being Massachusetts, partly due to her credentials, and partly due to Brown being unable to do anything he wanted to, but Brown is in serious trouble.  Warren wasn't even looking for a Senate seat. Decent candidates often don't - only people with overblown senses of self actually LOOK at themselves as Senators.   She'd be sitting behind a desk in Washington, playing with numbers all day.   Instead, the GOP went to war over nothing to very little, and now she likely will be taking back a very important seat in the Senate for the next six years.... That's how it goes in life.

     It reminds us of an old story about a Cuban pitcher back in the early 50's... he tried out for a few teams, but none of them would sign him, so he went home, and went into politics instead. His name? Fidel Castro.   At the time, we're sure he would have much rather been a pitcher, but when that door closed, all the other options opened up his mind for him. Same thing with Warren. On the whole, the GOP has gained nothing by the obstructionism in this case. Measuring what they will lose will be easy. Next time, they may realize keeping the happy mouse in his box is a better outcome..

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Post 3300, Founders Quote: Fidelity to the Objects

2012-01-08T12:12:00.000-05:00

"A good government implies two things; first, fidelity to the objects of the government; secondly, a knowledge of the means, by which those objects can be best attained."

- Joseph Story, 1833.

Pretty basic, but basics are often the most correct way to look at things. Keep a focus on what areas the Federal Government should address, and then find the best way to approach fixing those needs... It used to be we fought over only the second part, but now both seem to be at odds... There is no argument that French beauty Laetitia Casta is smoking. Her nickname is P.G.E - Proof God Exists. Amen !!!

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Cartoon of the Week ... Still on Sale !

2012-01-08T12:02:00.000-05:00

It's the New Year, and with it is the start of Tax Season. Rather than pay inventory tax on all our left over political cartoons, we're extending our Buy One, Get One Free sale .... Oh yeah.... and it's 2012. Maybe out tax bill won't matter, since Earth may be coming to an end, but we'll stay optimistic.

And of course, it's election year. There will be plenty of stuff to shovel.. It just probably won't be white! Promises, promises..

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Today's Founders Quote: The Age of Experiments

2012-01-06T19:12:00.000-05:00

"This I hope will be the age of experiments in government, and that their basis will be founded in principles of honesty, not of mere force."

-Thomas Jefferson, to John Adams, 1796.

It's hard to believe nowadays that a republic would be viewed as an experiment.... but then again, everything was ruled by a King or Dictator. Luckily, we've done pretty well with it the past 236 years. Try not to mess with it, people. However, feel free to mess with Jana Miartusova... Look at that tummy! Bounce a quarter of that thing, and you'll never find it..

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7th District Candidates Are Losing Their Focus On the Prize

2012-01-06T18:46:00.000-05:00

For a Couple Would-Be Congressmembers, That One Thing Was 'Get Arrested' and 'Get Pregnant'...

    Sometimes, people don't think about things fully before doing things. We speak from experience on this.. When we ran for Congress in 2004, we had no staff, no money... All we had was an idea, and a reliable car. Times change, but from what it looks like this week, the unfocused thought process hasn't....

    When you run for public office, staying disciplined is a primary trait. Why? Because once you get there, it takes the same focus and ability to block out the lobbyists, single-issue groups and idiot fellow members of Congress to be a great legislator. Simply put, if you can't stay disciplined when running for office, you won't be disciplined once you get there. To us, it sure looks like two people running for the new 7th District seat failed.. One worse than the other...

    The Grand Prize goes to Thad Viers, who was arrested to allegedly stalking and harrassing his ex-girlfriend since their June breakup. We've never met Viers, but from all the bad press he's gotten over the past five years, we're surprised that he even decided to try and run for Congress. Sorry Thad, but we like to put good people in office, and this third or fourth strike pretty much cements that you have some personal problems to hash out before running for anything ever again. No means no. After a good-hearted try to make up, if they still want nothing to do with you, it's time to move on...

     The second one we are going to try to tip-toe through, because it's going to make us look like a bunch of sexist pigs..  According to a couple posts from her on Facebook, Mande Wilkes is pregnant. No, this is not a voluntary misstep like Viers.  Then again, if you don't want to have kids, there are a few pretty foolproof methods to employ. Sometimes, God manages to beat you anyway!

     No, being pregnant is not an automatic disqualifier for office. Wilkes doesn't have to sit in bed for the next nine months, and lots of women have kids while in office. However, the timing for her could not be worse. Assuming she's been pregnant for a month, she would be unable to campaign from July, and deliver around mid-September. Generally, women will take a good 6-8 weeks after birth to recover. That takes us right up to Election Day. Game Over...

    We're just stating facts of how a campaign goes, and doing both will be impossible. Wilkes is very young, and she will have a great reason to have for NOT running in 2012 - much better than Viers. Not to give her any blame on this, but it's pretty apparent this was a surprise. No one runs for Congress one day, then gets pregnant the next. It's a tough break, but by Election Day, she will care less that she didn't run. Children do that to you...

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2012 Football Playoffs: SC6 Gives It's Picks

2012-01-06T12:52:00.000-05:00

Matt Stafford Was a Fantasy Stud For Us, But Can He Beat Drew Brees and the Saints On the Road?

    Since we'e in the prognosticating mood this week, it's time for one of our favorite times of the year - the NFL Playoffs! Time to sit back, grab a cold one, order a pizza, and enjoy the games.. Although judging by the last cholesterol report I got, I might need to skip the pizza..

    Last year, we did not fair well, especially on Saturday. This year, there has been a lot of parity, where it seems that no lead is safe, and any team can be beaten - unless you're 15-1... But, we see some pretty easy matchups in Round One, so let's just get to the picks...

Cincinnati vs. Houston
     Perhaps harder to pick than some games, neither team is on a particular roll.. The Bengals backed into the playoffs, and the Texans have lost their last three games. The Texans are banged up, with TJ Yates missing almost all of last week. But, they do have Andre Johnson back, though they only had less than 1 game together all year. The Bengals haven't lost to anyone they should have, but they didn't beat anyone they shouldn't have either. One of them was to Texas, but they had them beat, and let Yates get back in. The Bengals are healthier, and like a few first round games, the division winner is actually the weaker team. Bengals 24-20.

Detroit vs. New Orleans
    OK, the first team to 50 points wins... or do they? If you like offense, have we got a game for you! Neither team plays D very well, and Matt Satfford and Drew Brees are at the top of their games right now. The Lions have a knack for coming back from huge leads, so no lead is safe - but New Orleans never lets off the gas pedal. The game is in the Superdome, where the Saints are almost unbeatable, but mainly the Saints secondary is better, and they have more weapons. Shut down Calvin Johnson, and give the ball to Darren Sproles enough, and it's a win. Saints 45-35.

Atlanta vs New York Giants
     Yay, my G-Men made it into the playoffs, which is more than I thought they would... Luckily, the NFC East was pretty weak. Eli Manning is on a nice roll, and the D-line has finally found a pass rush. Sounds good, right? Well, the problem is Atlanta is built for New York. They're actually a better team than the Number One seed team from last year. They can run or pass, and Matt Ryan knows that he needs to start winning playoff games, not just get there. The real star will be Michael Turner, who will bowling ball his way to over 100 yards, and a TD or two.. Falcons 27-21.

Pittsburgh vs. Denver
    For those of you who don't think the 80 points we're predicting in New Orleans is Football, we give you the antithesis... To us, this game is a no-brainer. But, Ben Roethlisberger is still hobbling, and Rashard Mendenhall is out. Denver's D will help keep them in the game, but the sad part for Bronco fans is that the NFL has figured out Tim Tebow. The miracles will cease, unless he learns how to drop back and pass, or roll right... Not this week. It'll be ugly, like a lot of Pittsburgh's wins this year. Steelers 17-6.

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Jon Huntsman Gets The Kiss of Death - Our Endorsement!

2012-01-06T11:32:00.000-05:00

No, We Don't Pick Winners.. We Just Pick the Best Guy

     OK, all of you can stop laughing now. We've been watching the race and listening to the candidates intently. Maybe we have a little bit different perspective because most of the time, we listened on POTUS radio. We don't see the size of the crowds, or which media outlets were there - we just got to hear the messages. No, we don't go for the sexy endorsement, we just choose who we think would do the best job. To us, that's Jon Huntsman...

    Why? There's a few reasons. He has by far the most well-rounded resume to be able to handle all aspects of being President. More importantly, while many candidates have said they will do certain things when President, but done others while in office, Huntsman has talked the talk, and walked the walk. He had the top job growth in Utah as Governor in the US. How? By implementing what we consider to be the easiest way to create job - the Flat Tax. It would be slightly different on the National Level, but he's the only one who's actually DONE IT.

    He has that rare combination of expertise in both National and Global affairs... Numerous posts for both parties in various capacities. While most Republicans discarded Huntsman from the start because he worked for Barack Obama, here is our take.....which is smarter than theirs. Which way can you do more NOW to fix things that you might disagree with? Wait four years in a useless capacity, or do you take the opportunity to fix those things NOW, from the inside? Easy answer for us. We think Judd Gregg missed a golden opportunity to save America when he turned down the Cabinet job Obama offered in 2009.

    Now, the big question is can Jon Huntsman beat Barack Obama? Maybe, but we'll tell you one thing: Huntsman can duel head to head with Obama in a debate. Why? Because he has such a grasp on the issues, and is very smooth in conveying that message. There is no searching for an answer, becuase he already knows in depth about whatever subject comes along - not in catch phrases, but in detail. Oh, and he can speak without stepping on his own words, unlike a few of the other guys..

     It's true, we don't have a good track records for choosing winners, but that's not what we've ever gone for with endorsements. We ignore all the BS the Kool-Aid drinking camps spew out, and we go with our brain, limited though it be... You don't have to agree, and that's fine. Not many agreed with us when we chose Rudy 4 years ago. Huntsman may not even make it South Carolina if he places badly in New Hampshire. That's fine, we have a secondary choice in reserve. But for now, we're going with Jon Huntsman. Get past your biases that we worked for Obama, and that he's a Mormon. Big deal. The guy can do the job, and the Obama Administration is scared to death of debating him...

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OK, We Just Missed It ....

2012-01-04T11:29:00.001-05:00

Rick Santorum Moves to the Front, Michele Bachmann Is Out and Rick Perry Out Soon Also?

    For once, we didn't actually do that bad with the prognostications. OK, we lost out on picking the Iowa Caucus on a handful or votes in at 300AM. BTW, nice job by that idiot precinct captain who forgot to send in or lost the votes. Luckily, both the Santorum and Romney camps confirmed the vote totals, or we'd still not know who won. Not that it mattered too much. It is just a caucus, not a general election. There is no doubt who won last night... Mitt Romney is in a lot of trouble... The good news for America is that Rick Santorum showed that retail politics still works. Perry spent $359 per vote, Romney $49 per vote. Santorum? How about 73 cents??? We shit you not. You can't do that nationally, but it gives hope for more local candidates...

   The whole battle has been Mitt Romney vs ABM (anyone but Mitt)... That being the case, with five other 'real conservatives' going up against Romney, he should have won the caucus pretty handily. That didn't happen. Eight votes. That's it. How tight was it? The margin was 7 times less than those who voted for Herman Cain. It was 40 times less than those who voted 'No Preference'... Romney is perpetually stuck at 25%, so once the extra flies in the race start dropping, Santorum - if he sticks - can easily pass him.

   Like most Iowa caucuses, they served their primary purpose of weeding out the wannabes. That's how it goes: Iowa knocks people out, New Hampshire does the opposite of Iowa, and South Carolina rights the GOP ship.... Michele Bachmann is jumping out of the race as we speak, which she should..She was supposed to be flying to South Carolina, but we're assuming her credit card bounced... Her assertion that she is the only one who can beat Obama is ridiculous, and her platform speeches were more like pep rallies. Bon Voyage! Rick Perry is likely to do the same, though he has more money. He's on his way back to Texas, where we assume he'll grab a podium in Austin and announce he's quitting too. Next time, maybe he'll realize he's not running for President of Texas. The US is getting sick of hearing 'How We Do It in Texas'....

    Now, it's onto New Hampshire. All six are going (yes, Jon Huntsman is still in the race). It's a no-win situation for Romney. Like a 45 point football favorite, he is expected to win, and big. A ten point win will be considered a loss. Luckily, most of the field is staying, and they will still split the conservative vote. Ron Paul will pull in Independents, who are allowed to vote. Jon Huntsman did very much like Santorum in Iowa. He's set his flag there, but will it be enough? We think Newt Gingrich is on a vendetta at this point, and much like an Al-Qaeda bomber, his job is to be the Bad Cop, and take out Romney... It will cost him votes, but those votes, and those of Perry and Bachmann, will go 75% Santorum's way. We'll find out soon, once the polls start coming out....

     For once, New Hampshire will be more interesting than it was the last time around. Mitt Romney has a real fight on it's hands. South Carolina will give the race more guidance, and it will knock out a few more candidates - but it will go well past it. Like Santorum said, 'GAME ON'....

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Doing All They Can To Lose ?

2012-01-03T15:20:00.000-05:00

Romney's New Logo Gives Us That Fresh, Just-Brushed Kind of Feeling... Ahh, Minty Victory?

      We're not sure exactly when it was intorduced, but only in the last day or two did we notice that Team Romney has a new logo.... Maybe all the signs in Iowa were retreads from 2008, but the new ones just caught our attention.... and they suck. Bigtime....

      We can't take credit for noticing that it looks like AquaFresh toothpaste coming from the tube, but it's dead-on. We imagine there was a staffer who's job it was to update the Romney brand. There he was, in some hotel bathroom, brushing his teeth - and 'genius' struck! Or not....

      The logo was the least of Romney's worries. It looked fine on a sign, unlike say, Gingrich, who was almost forced to put 'Newt' on his... 'R' is a good looking, strong letter. Now it's 'Omney' with toothpaste spooge to it's left - or maybe a sideways waving French flag. There's a good way to get America on your side....

      There's a great saying: If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The Romney campaign may not be taking America by storm, but he's in front of a pack of competitors where EVERY one has had their shot - and couldn't pass him for more than a week.... Will it ruin the campaign? We doubt it, but doing stupid things, or looking stupid can. Ask Rick Perry.... That reminds us - we need to floss right now.

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Caucus Day Is Here.. Now, We Io-Wait .

2012-01-03T11:28:00.000-05:00

Who's Gonna Take It Tonight? We'll Take a Guess..

     Thank God, it's finally over ! All the talk, the debates, the polling and the unrealistic expectations are finished. In just a few hours, the Iowa Caucuses will take place.... We will at long last have a winner, and the rest of America will gte their chance.

     Really, in the whole political scheme of things, Iowa is small potatoes. There will be over 2000 delegates awarded in the Primary/Caucus season. Iowa will give out 20 of them... Winning Iowa will not make or break any campaign - well, maybe one or two.  It'll be just a small notch in the belt, but it does give the winning campaign a little cache'. Need an example? Who won the Nebraska primary in 2008. We rest our case....

    So, who will win it? We believe in a couple things... The media always is a few days behind whatever is happening, and secondly, you go with the mover. Close to 40% of those planning to vote say they are not solid in their selection, though only 7% say they are undecided. A bit contradictory, but there is as much fluidity as any caucus ever.. To us, that is Rick Santorum. Call it luck, call it no one else being left, or call it brilliant strategy, but Santorum's timing is perfect. If he has people at the caucuses aggressively pushing for him tonight, he can take it - barely.

   Mitt Romney has a good organization, as does Ron Paul, but both have maxed out, and Romney really still has not moved as the Tea Party/ Christian Conservatives seem to lack the monogamy in their politics as they preach in their lives otherwise. Just an observation.. Overall, it will be as tight as they say it will. Basically, it's a three way tie in the low to mid 20's for all three. For number four, Rick Perry has better organization that Newt Gingrich, and his people will deliver a decent 4th place. Michele Bachmann will be in serious trouble after a 6th place finish - just six months after winning the Straw Poll. She talked the talk, but there have been no solid plans that made anyone see her as a solid candidate...

Santorum 24%, Romney 23%, Paul 22%, Perry 13%, Gingrich 9%, Bachmann 7%, Huntsman 2%...

    Yeah, it'll be a wash, where even the winner only gets five delegates. they usually say there are only three tickets from Iowa, but don't be surprised if all seven stay in for now.... So, where do they go from here? It'll sound strange, but Santorum, Romney and Paul should visit New Hampshire for a day or two, then get to South Carolina ASAP... Romney has it locked up, with Paul a pretty decent second. Santorum could sneak in third, but who's looking for third place finishes? As usual, The Palmetto State will be a major player in determining the GOP candidate.... as it should be.

    What about the rest? Perry and Gingrich need to go to New Hampshire. Gingrich got close to Romney when he peaked, so to hold serve on second is a big deal for him. Perry has the cash and organization to possibly steal a second, which for him would be a big deal. Bachmann also needs to go to South Carolina, which she fully intends to do. I'm still getting e-mails daily from her, so even though everyone else sees the writing on the wall, she's still in denial. Jon Huntsman has put all his chits in New Hampshire. He's running a pretty distant 4th, and we're pretty sure it ends there....

    We'll see how it goes, but it all starts tonight. Let's get it on !

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Today's Founders Quote: More or Less Perfect

2012-01-01T19:26:00.000-05:00

"Human government is more or less perfect as it approaches nearer or diverges farther from the imitation of this perfect plan of divine and moral government."
- John Adams, 1770.

No, there is no such thing as a perfect government, but the closer we get to a moral one, the more perfect it seems to be. We have a long way to go nowadays, but it does give us something to shoot for.... One thing that's just about perfect? Amber Heard.. We'd aim for that anytime!

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Cartoon of the Week ....

2012-01-01T18:49:00.000-05:00

Just like all people involved in politics, the cartoonists mostly took the week off. Most of them were New Years Day related. We thought this was perhaps the best one. No doubt John Boehner had plenty to cry about - and couldn't wait to see 2011 end!

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The Virginia GOP Needs to Get It's Sh*t Together

2011-12-31T17:38:00.000-05:00

This Isn't a Virginia GOP Meeting, But With It Asking Members to Sign a 'Loyalty Oath', It Might As Well Be....

Up until today, we had a clear choice as far as which state were the biggest bunch of morons in the Republican Primary states: Florida. Not being satified with being fifth in the Primary order AND having the National Convention, AND being a key prize in the General Election, they decided to try and jump everyone.. Of course, it didn't work, and they'll probably end up being more important in the position they're still in. In essence, we saved Florida from themselves..

However, Virginia appears to be trying to wrestle that award away from the Sunshine State... fast! Most of us have heard that Virginia requires all candidates to have 10,000 signatures turned in to be on the Primary ballot. The absentee ballots are already being printed, and there are only 2 names on it - Mitt Romney and Ron Paul. The AG has stepped in to try and change the rule to allow any candidate that has qualified for matching funds to be on the ballot. Sounds fair to us, but something else is making us more nervous and angry with how Virginia does business...

What is it? How about a loyalty oath? You heard right. This came up with us recently in Florence, when a couple GOP diehards were nearly kicked out by the local party for supporting a Democrat in a DA race last year. For those of us who hold office in the party, the rule is pretty clear - you cannot openly support a Democrat in a General Election against a Republican, or you can lose your title. Unfortunately, what Virginia wants to do is worse. Much, much worse...

They want ALL voters in the GOP Primary in March to sign a loyalty oath, stating that they intend to vote for the Republican candidate - no matter who it is - in the General Election. To us, it's damn near Facism... It appears that party members think all voters take their politics as seriously as they do, but they don't... Not even close. Loyalty oaths from people you don't know doesn't go over well the next time around. Voting is a fundamental right that too few of us do, and making them sign loyalty oaths make the GOP look like a bunch of Nazis...

What if you don't sign it, or sign it and reneg later? They say nothing. OK then, so then WHY HAVE IT ????? Honestly, we don't believe it. All the data is on Voter Vault. If you sign it, and then it shows you going non-partisan, there WILL be retribution. The info will be used to fuel personal vendettas by weeding out those who they disagree with. Maybe it's all to make sure the party is full of 'Good Republicans'. You know: Pure. Clean. Sound familiar? That stuff might work in Eastern Europe in the 1970's, but it's just about the most Un-American thing we can think of doing in a Primary... Perhaps they should consider changing their present flag to a Hammer & Sickle - or a Swastika.

Hopefully, the Virginia GOP will think twice before instituting this ridiculous 'voluntary requirement'. If not, then our guess is that the Cavalier State will go blue in November out of spite from moderates and independents - the ones who actually determine winners and losers in tight states. People always pick on the backwardness of South Carolina, but to us, it sure seems like there are a couple states doing their best to 'outdo' us. We think they've succeeded... You want people to vote Republican? Verify they can vote, and LET THEM VOTE. Period... It'll make the General Election a lot easier. Trust us.

SC6's 2011 Year In Review

2011-12-31T15:01:00.000-05:00

      Well, another year has come and gone... 2011 was another wild one, both for us and the country.. For us, we came into it in a steady a position as we had in years. We had our bills under control, were making decent money, and moved into a new apartment. We were in much better shape than our country, but it appears that instead of the country catching up, we've been dragged down to it's level. Let's review the big stories, and see how we got there...

January
     Two of the bigger stories were at the start of the year: The start of the Arab Spring in Egypt, and Gabrielle Giffords shooting in Arizona. Egypt was the bigger story, becuase it's affected millions of lives.. We said goodbye to the DHS color coding risk system.. In the GOP, we got a new leader in Reince Preibus - so long Michael Steele! Locally, Flotown got a new Chair with Bill Pickle. For us, it snowed, snowed.... and then snowed some more. The apartment had a bad time too, when a water pipe froze, and flooded me out for a few days. Blogwise, SC6 gave it's readers a couple treats, by introducing it's Civil War Rewind series, and letting you see Adele before everyone else...

February
    Kind of a slow month all around, mainly because Congress went on vacation without passing a budget - again! Your tax return took a break as well, when the IRS announced they would hold returns for an additional 2 weeks.... The War on Unions took center stage in February in Ohio and Wisconsin. As usual, both sides went too far, and we had to everyone out. In football, the Packers returned to glory by beating the Steelers. Bobby still hasn't recovered... It also stopped snowing - finally!

March
      The Arab Spring marched west into Libya, where Moammar Qaddafi took on US-backed rebels. The big story was the Japan Earthquake-Tsunami-Nuclear near meltdown at the Fukashima plant. Luckily, it was less than it could have been. It was slightly less than Charlie Sheen's meltdown. Wonder if he's missing that $1.8 million per episode now. Porn Star money runs out quick. Speaking of money, our friend Ken Ard came under ethics scrutiny for using campaign funds to reimburse various expenses.   We had our won problems, when we found out that Sam Adams seasonal White Ale was rationed - and it didn't taste quite as good as we remembered..

April
    The big story was our return to SC. Too bad we spent the whole time cutting grass and moving my Dad.... The 2012 presidential race was still ice cold, but Donald Trump made it a bit interesting by flirting with running. Bill Connor did decide to run, but it was so late, many questioned if he gave it much thought...Up here, a missing prostitute at a beach community started a massive police search - and they found 10 people! She wasn't one of them, but they eventually found her a quarter mile away... Haven't found the killer yet either. Those $100k cops are worth every penny!

May
    Like a shot out of nowhere, Osama bin Laden was killed - in Pakistan. Lots of SC news, as the NLRB tries to block Boeing's 787 Dreamliner plant in Chucktown.. SCGOP elects Chad Connelly as it's new Chairman, but locally, city councilmen Buddy Brand and Glynn Willis get threatened by their own over a smoking ban vote.. We were still rolling along, as we were kinda dating 2 people at the same time. What could be better? The Oprah Winfrey Show ended. Life was good..

June
    Top story? One word: Weinergate..... The presidential race sped up a lot... Sarah Palin did a nice job of teasing the GOP, but in the end, Caribou Barbie passed. Newt Gingrich lost his entire staff, and was declared dead - or so we thought. Joe Wilson flexed his GOP muscle - or tried - and endorsed Tim Pawlenty for 2012... More powerful were Carolina's arms and bats, as they won their second straight NCAA Baseball title. The Boston Bruins won the Stanley Cup... and we have no idea who won in the NBA. OK, it was Dallas, but who cares?

July
      It was a month of highs and lows... We were peaking as we celebrated our birthday by watching Derek Jeter get hit Number 3000 - our first Yankee game in 31 years! Michele Bachmann topped out as well, winning the Ames Straw Poll - and she hasn't done much since. But the big winner was the Pee Dee, as it won the 7th Congressional District, finally getting out from under Jim Clyburn's grasp. Plenty of losers though.. NASA ran it's last Space Shuttle mission, Amy Winehouse died, and the prosecution blew Casey Anthony's case so bad, she got off..

August
     Disasters abound... DC has a major earthquake, followed by Hurricane Irene. Neither was too huge, but we did lose power for 3 days..   More lasting was the early implosion of Tim Pawlenty. In hindsight, maybe he should have hung around for his shot at Flavor of the Month... Meanwhile, I lose two teeth, buy a Harley, and start spending money like it's water.. Too bad there is no time or space to learn to drive the bike! Almost as sad is our ability to forecast the Primaries then: Iowa- Bachmann, Perry, Paul, Romney. NH- Romney, Perry, Bachmann, Paul. SC- Perry, Bachmann, Paul, Romney. Nice call...

September
     Summer's over, and I am working my ass off: 12 hrs a day, 5-6 days a week... The campaigns go back to work too. Rick Perry gets in, then suddenly forgets how to speak. Perry falls, and Herman Cain 999's his way into the top tier. Washington starts off the Fall Session by pushing budget cuts to a 12 person Hall of Shame - The 'Supercommittee'... Bill Clinton goes Vegan.

October
     Busy, busy, busy.. I finally come to SC, and this time, I see everyone I wanted to! Nice trip.. Chris Christie flirts with running for President, but passes, and endorses Mitt Romney. Florida suddenly tries to jump spots in line, and fucks up the entire Caucus/Primary schedule, moving everything up an entire month... The Occupy Wall Street/Michael Moore Fan Club movement starts.. Everything dies in October: Moammar Qaddafi, Steve Jobs, the NBA, and Obama's American Jobs Act. Three outta four ain't bad... But, we have a Cardinals' World Series win to celebrate, and Lindsay Lohan gets nude for Playboy - three years too late!

November
     Two months before Iowa, and Herman Cain falls under the weight of a billion sexual harrassment charges. In his place, Newt Gingrich rises from the dead... Faced with an important job, the StuporCommittee dies without any budget cuts.. The only good news from DC is the Supreme Court accepting to rule on the validity of Obamacare. To us, sports dominated the news in November, as Tony Stewart breaks Jimmie Johnson's stranglehold of the NASCAR Nextel Cup, Penn State crumbles, Tebowing becomes all the rage.... and Carolina thumps Clemson in football. Moye is still wearing black...

December
    The month starts off badly, as I get the pink slip from my job of the past 2 years from my new manager. We decide South Carolina will be the best place for operations for 2012.... A more fortunate ending was the US troop presence in Iraq. Kim Jong Il dies, and bipartisanism and common sense die in Congress, as they almost blow the Payroll Tax extension. With Iowa weeks away, all torpedoes are aimed squarely on Newt Gingrich's side, and he drops, while Ron Paul and Rick Santorum move up. Thankfully, the year ends...

We have no idea where we will be , or what we will be doing by the end of 2012. We thought the game plan was there, and we achieved what we set out to do... but others had different plans. At 43, it's a bad place to be, but we would like to be done with the car biz... It'll be interesting to see what happens. Whatever it is, you'll see it here....

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Has Nancy Pelosi Had It With DC ?

2011-12-29T19:25:00.000-05:00

Say WHAT, Woman?? If Pelosi Retires, The Ex-Whipper Can Kiss His Special Title Goodbye...

      The big news out of nowhere today was BigGovernment.com's claim from Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's daughter that she has pretty much had enough of DC politics. We could only be so lucky, but you never know...

      Alexandra Pelosi, an Emmy Award-winning short filmmaker, told them via phone that San Fran Nan, who is getting up there in years at 71, is tired, wants to quit, but only hangs on for the sake of her campaign's financial supporters. Maybe it's all true. All we'll say to Alexandra is 'from your mouth to God's ear' honey!

    Who knows. A lot of the old dead wood that blames the newer members for today's gridlocked Congress - but caused all the problems that got us here - are retiring. It's not easy going from Majority Leader back to Minority Leader, and Pelosi's finding that out quick. Maybe if there were a chance for the Democrats of retaking the House, she'd stay. It ain't looking good, so she may done. If so, someone in South Carolina may be out of a gig....

    Remember our Congressman soon Not-To-Be, Jim Clyburn? Well, his Special Advisor to the Leader was a made up job especially for Clyburn by Pelosi herself. Pelosi and Steny Hoyer are not good friends, and our guess is since Clyburn sided with Pelosi, Hoyer will find another Democrat to be his Minority Whip in 2013... In short, Clyburn will soon be another Congressman, with no power whatsoever. He doesn't Chair a committee, so our guess is if Pelosi goes, there is a slight possibility that Clyburn may retire earlier than he planned. We doubt it, but if Pelosi is not Leader in 2013, we fully expect a 2014 Clyburn retirement to the Golf Course.....

     For now, the only one who really knows is Pelosi, who is still on Christmas vacation in her $10,000 a night suite in Hawaii. She can't wait long to make up her mind.   We'll see.. But it does give us some hope.

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Chavez: US Is Giving South America Leaders Cancer?

2011-12-29T18:55:00.002-05:00

SQUAWK !!!! This Guy I'm Sitting On Is Crazy !!!!

     Remember last week, when we lamented Kim Jong Il's passing, because we had no idea what crazy leaders would take his place? One of the guys we mentioned to take his place was Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez. Well, it looks like he must read our blog, because he's making an all-out effort to slip into the open space...

     Yep, Chavez put out some funny stuff this week, when he suggested that the US might be poisoning South American leaders with cancer.... Yes, we are so afraid of Banana Republics apparently, that we're slipping them all a toxic mickey. What makes Chavez so convinced of this? Well, of all the South American nations, three leaders have cancer. You and I call it a coincidence - he calls it a conspiracy....

     Is he right? Maybe.... However, I don't think there is a general hatred of Venezuela, Argentina and Peru (the 3 cancer-stricken leaders countries), so I realy doubt it. But, it sure does spur Chavez in Top Shelf territory for Kook Dictator. Funny, we thought he at least wait for the body to get cold, but he just couldn't wait!

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Why Congress Can't Relate to You.... Especially in These Tougher Times

2011-12-29T18:23:00.000-05:00

Word Is, This T-Shirt Is Issued to Every New Congressman... But It Could Be a Rumor.

     For those of you who sometimes feel like Washington doesn't have any idea what it's like for the rest of us in the real world, you're not alone... It's not in your head. We have numbers to back up what you're always wondered - is my Congressman so used to the High Life (not Miller High Life) that they have lost all track of what it's like for real people? The answer appears to be yes....

     There are two stats that give you an idea of the discrepancy. First there is the overall net worth. The net worth of the average Congressman is $725,000 - not including real estate worth. The average American's is $20,500, so for starters, you Congressman has 35 TIMES as much in the bank. Perhaps that's why living paycheck to paycheck is a lost concept....

     The bad (or worse) news is that the gap is getting worse. You see, the fastest rising group in Net Worth is..... Congress! We shit you not... The average American's Net Worth has flatlined since the 2008 recession began. Congress' net worth, on the other hand, has risen by 15%, even outpacing the top tier of the wealthy (8%). In short, it appears that even Congress is envious of the rich - and their doing their best to at least get themselves closer to the Upper Crust.

    No surprise to us... Think about it. Where is the point that all tax hikes seem to start at? $250,000... What does a Congressman make? About $170,000... Who needs lobbyists? Congress is already their own best advocates. This is likely a rare case where we don't have many solutions... They set the laws, so short of a Congressional toilet flush, we're not sure how to fix it. Maybe also not making it impossible for an average Joe to run would give them some perspective as well.. Good Luck!

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We Lose Another Media Buddy....

2011-12-29T17:01:00.000-05:00

Jackie Torok of the Morning News Leaves For Greener Pastures

    The good part about being in Florence is the ability to reach the local media. When I came to New York, my friends were kind of stunned that I knew almost every TV and Newspaper manager, editor and anchor on a semi-personal basis. It's pretty unbelievable in Yankeeville, but in Flotown, it's no big deal. It's helped me a lot in politics, but times change.... and sometimes, the faces do too.

    No, rarely is the Pee Dee the goal for a reporter or editor. So, it's common for a lot of turnover. So, when you have someone who is willing to stick around for a long time, you appreciate them.

    Though we can never say that the Florence Morning News agreed with everything we thought, they very often printed whatever I had to say. Why? Because I was usually right but also because I knew how to write a letter to the editor. It's pretty easy... 180 words or less means 180 words or less, and I usually had some type of solution. Blogging is the same way...

    Jackie Torok has been the City Editor for FMN for as long as I can remember. Though I didn't work too much with her at the paper, I came to appreciate her more through Facebook. She was not afraid to express her frustrations with the job, and the idiots that come across an editors way. We like people who don't hide their feelings. Of course, a lifetime Cleveland Browns fan should be used to frustration!

    Unfortunately, Jackie will be taking her talents, along with her Browns, Tar Heels swag, and her cats up the road to Fayettenam... She will be missed, but I'm sure we'll still be seeing her on Facebook. Since we're coming back to Florence, we'll have to make friends with all sorts of new people at FMN, but maybe she could put in a word for us. Godspeed, Jackie!

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Today's Founders Quote: Your Pecuniary Consideration

2011-12-27T20:58:00.000-05:00

"No pecuniary consideration is more urgent, than the regular redemption and discharge of the public debt: on none can delay be more injurious, or an economy of time more valuable."

- George Washington, 1793.

GW is right. When you snooze, you lose..... Public debt over time can take any country down - even the United States - if not held in check. $200 billion annually per year just to pay the INTEREST should give you an idea of it. Another thing that we wouldn't delay on either would be Amber Evans... We need her plastic surgeon's number...

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Cartoon of the Week....

2011-12-27T20:32:00.000-05:00

Lots of Christmas-related cartoons out there this week. Some worse than others, so we're picking this Christmas Story inspired pole licker 'toon... Anyone have some hot water ????

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Your Taxes Could Be a Lot Worse, South Carolina !

2011-12-27T18:38:00.000-05:00

For Once, 'Number Two' Is a Good Thing.....

    We in South Carolina like to complain about things sometimes: how much our roads suck, how bad our schools are, Clemson basketball, etc.... It's not unusual for us to at the top or bottom of a list. Whether we are on the top ot bottom depends on if it's a 'Best' or 'Worst' list. Well now, we have a good ranking that even some still wouldn't agree with....

     According to a Kiplinger's ranking, South Carolina is the second best state for taxes. They took a survey of all taxes paid: property, income, sales and inheritance taxes. The good news? The Palmetto State came only behind Mississippi... The bad news for me? New York is the third worst, trailing fellow Northeast tax hellholes New Jersey and Connecticut.

    We know there are plenty of people in SC who think they still pay too much in taxes... While we never will see it as an excuse to raise taxes to 'be in line' with everyone else, our advice to those who bitch is it could be worse... MUCH, MUCH worse. An excellent exmple is property taxes. My house in Flotown is about $500 per year. Pretty sweet. For an equivalent house in Long Island it would be $7-10k a year. For that difference in taxes at today's rate, people could buy a house worth $200,000 more. For the extra $6 a pack for cigarettes , smokers could buy a car. Ridiculous...

    Thanks to things like taxation, it's no wonder there is correlation between income per state, and quality of life. For taxpayers in SC, the living is pretty good....

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Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T09:45:00.000-05:00

     We were all set to post about how Christmas is a bit of a drag on us mentally... It's not easy spending the holidays with friends and their relatives, wives and kids. Christmas is not a single adult's holiday. Honestly, we do better during the rest of the year, when there are no special occasions....

   Then we got a text from a friend of ours up here. We saw a Facebook post that made us think maybe her Dad was sick, but unfortunately, her Dad had passed away Thursday.. Everything is back into perspective, and we're feeling a bit less sorry for ourselves.

   Hoping your Christmas is merry and that you're spending it with those you love...

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Happy Festivus !!

2011-12-23T17:40:00.000-05:00

Feats Of Strength and Other Traditions Abound !

It's December 23rd, and the holiday season rolls on. Hanukkah is in full swing, and Christmas and Kwanzaa are around the corner. But first, it's one of our favorite holiday traditions - Festivus !!

Here's our hope that you and yours are gathered under the aluminum pole tree, enjoying your chocolate cake with M&M's on it, while airing your grievances...

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Hey, They Tried to Screw It Up, But.....

2011-12-23T16:02:00.000-05:00

John Boehner Would Like To Pound a Couple Reps With That Gavel, But He Might Not Have It For Long...

    Merry Christmas! Congress finally decided to give you a Christmas present.. Actually, it was nothing at all, because you already had it. Thats the funniest part (or is it saddest) of all of this. DC just went to war, and the end result to you will be nothing at all. Your payroll tax just went from 4.2% to...... 4.2%. For all of two months. Then it all starts over again.

    For all the perceived winners and losers in the Payroll Tax deal, the real truth is there are no winners... There might be a few losers though. Republicans don't look too good right now, for all the wrong reasons. They honestly had the higher groun on this one by wanting to go a full year on this. The House Democrats' plan was the same according to Nancy Pelosi. But the Senate is where all good legislation goes to die, or get watered down by compromise. Compromise is often a good thing, but when the starting point is th right thing, then compromise ruins it...

    Honestly, we'll never understand what made the Senate decide to only push a tax extension only two months. The arguments were all sound: businesses need a clearly defined plan to be able to forecast hiring, and two months is no where near that. Six times longer is a big difference. January is when companies make their decisions for the year, now that has been pushed back at least another til March.... 2012 may be down the economic drain.

    The bad guys suddenly became John Boehner and the Tea Party Republicans. Though the TP's may be more to blame, Boehner is the one who may pay more than anyone.  Fox had a TP congressman from Louisiana on today, and they grilled him pretty hard on the topic. The best question was 'if this was such a roadblock, and you're against a 2 month extension, why are you not here?' he basically said they left it up to Boehner to express their views. Essentially, he passed the buck and said 'It's not my job'. Nice...

    In short, Boehner got screwed by both the Senate and the House Republicans. The poor bastard was trying to cut some type of deal, and if it weren't for Pelosi coming up with the unanimous consent solution, we may very well be coming up with the extra 2% each week.. It was all politics. Even President Obama got in on it, asking Americans to tell him what $40/week means to them. A bit of an overestimate, becuase $40/week only applies to the top earning rate of $100k plus. People at that level blow $40/week on coffee and cigarettes..

     Nope, Americans should feel like they just got something extra in their Christmas stocking, because nothing new was there. This was not a tax cut, it was an extension. A more correct feeling is to feel like you just got mugged, and the mugger was about to shoot you, when his pistol got jammed. Luckily, the gun was just aimed at your wallet... We guess the bets way to look at it is that for once, DC didn't eff up your life..... but God knows they tried! Can't lose 'em all now....

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Don't Worry Charleston, We're Sure It's Not On Purpose

2011-12-22T09:40:00.000-05:00

On the Heels of Boeing, News That the Port of Chucktown Won't Have Needed Expansion 'Til 2024 !!

   If people in Charleston are begging to feel like the Federal Government has put a gigantic bullseye on their backs, we don't blame them. First, it was the NLRB almost inexplicably trying to scuttle Boeing's 787 Dreamliner plant. Then this week, new comes that the Port of Charleston is about to become outdated, and another arm of DC is dragging it out again...

   Here is the problem: The Panama Canal was recently deepened to allow larger ships to pass through, so to accomodate that, ALL seaports on the East Coast need to become deepwater ports as well, or else they cannot service this cargo. The Port of Charleston is on board to do this, but the Army Corps of Engineers needs to do an feasibility evaluation, which they said could take up to 8 years to complete. Dredging would then take 2 more years. Yes, it takes 1/4 the time to DO the work than to EVALUATE it. Such is life in Washington....

   Now, you may be criticizing the bigwigs at the Port of Charleston for being behind the times and lacking vision, but they do have a legitimate answer for it: they already HAD a study done just a few years ago, when the last round of improvements were done by the Corps... Seems reasonable to us. Really, how much changes in a couple years?

   If it sounds like nothing, think again. If The Port becomes outdated, then all these cargo ships go to Savannah, Jacksonville, Wilmington and others all along the East Coast - and that is deadly to the entire state. Roughly 1/5 of all jobs in the Palmetto State are tied to the Port directly or indirectly. Shutting down the port would be tantamount to the naval blockade of Chucktown during the Civil War...

     Lately, we can't blame some people around town who may feel like they are being targeted by the Obama Administration unfairly. Is it true? Eh, probably not.. Even Jim Clyburn - Obama's eyes and ears in the House - knows that the Port of Charleston is imperative to South Carolina's success.  Still, it wouldn't surprise us if DC has a fatwa out on SC, with a code of silence on it. Politics is a funny game, and Chucktown may be paying the price for being so anti-Obama.... We'll see if it's still a problem next year.

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Our Best Coaching Job Ever, But It Ends Early Anyway...

2011-12-21T16:04:00.000-05:00

Crusty Lombardi Overcomes Injuries and Underperformance To Reach the Playoffs..... But Falls Short in Round One.

Through the years, we had updated you guys about a particular Autumn passion of ours: Fantasy Football. For the past 6 years or so, we've been addicted to the game. Though not the greatest player, we've been pretty steady and have relished the tag as one of those teams you hate to play....

Last year, we went a perfect 13-0 through the regular season - a feat that stunned us, because we didn't think we were that good. Much like the real game, it doesn't matter what you did in the regular season, because we got shelled in the first round. This year, we stood pretty quietly, mostly because we had a pretty crappy team. It looked good on paper on Draft Day. But, it quickly went to shit... Here were our players of note:

Andre Johnson - out last 10 of 11 games, hamstring.
Jamaal Charles - out since week 2, knee.
Reggie Wayne - No Peyton Manning, No Reggie Wayne.
Jeremy Maclin - illness, then hamstring injuries. Missed 9 games.
Matt Ryan - started 2 games, due to Matthew Stafford
Owen Daniels - started 2 games, due to Rob Gronkowski.
Kenny Britt - out since week 3, knee.
Cary Williams, Antrel Rolle, Mike Jenkins, Brandon Flowers, Asher Allen, Dmitri Patterson - CB's in a LB draft. Cut em all before opening day.
Ryan Torain, CJ Spiller - never started until week 14. cut ...

But, we did have a solid base of Stafford, Gronkowski, Mike Wallace, and in the second half, Michael Bush. Thanks to some good waiver work, we snagged Antonio Brown and Stephen Gostkowski, and turned a 3-5 team into an 8-6 finish (the only loss was by 2 points, due to a stat correction) and a number six seed. Only problem was, we drew a Round One matchup against Bobby and his team, the Tittsburgh Feelers: a strong, consistent team, and possibly the best name I ever heard...

We gave it a good try, with Stafford turning in his best game of the year, but Gronko came up a bit short, and my defensive choices were atrocious.... Crusty Lombardi came up 16 points short. Best of Luck to Bobbo in the semi's... Now, we have to figure out what to name the team next year. First it was DustingOffMyLombardi, then Dusty Lombardi, then Rusty and now Crusty. We'll work on it. Til, then, see you next season!

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Wishing We Could Piss Away Money Like This ....

2011-12-21T13:05:00.000-05:00

Is This Rihanna or Carrot Top? For $3300 A DAY, We'd Rather Not Know..

We read an interesting article from MSN this week. It was a thorough and enlightening article to give you an idea of just how out of reality many stars in Hollywood are with you. For many of us, a trip to TGI Fridays is a big night out. MSN had dozens and dozens of examples of the rich and famous spending their cash in ways that would make you puke: $400,000 Maybachs (their 2nd one), or $8 Million cars for themselves. 2200 square foot nurseries for their newborns. Literally too many to list, but we'll give you 2 examples....

First is Rihanna. Yes, that is her in the picture above, not Side Show Bob from The Simpsons. You see that absolute train wreck of a hairdo? Well, she has a 'stylist' on call that she pays - get this - $3300 a DAY. So, for what you spend on food for yourself for a year, she blows on looking like Carrot Top's twin sister...

As bad as that was, it wasn't enough to take First Prize. That went to Petra Eccelstone... Don't know her? No reason you should. She hasn't done anything, but he dad is the billionaire founder of Formula One Racing, the biggest and priciest racing circuit in the world. Well, daddy must have given her a pretty nice chunk o' change to get a head start in adulthood, because the 22 year old purchased Aaron Spelling's $85 million , 123 room mansion. That's her, and that's the house... But we're not done yet.

We suppose the girl is in some kind of rush to be an adult, because she also got married this Summer. At least the house makes sense now, because you don't want the kids growing up in an apartment or a shack on the wrong side of the tracks... like in Malibu. The wedding was in Rome, but the reception was at the house - and it was one for the record books. Costing nearly $5 million, it featured a Vera Wang wedding dress at a cost of $130,000. And the entertainment? How about Andrea Bocelli, Eric Clapton, Alicia Keys and the Black Eyed Peas. They weren't guests..... they f**king PLAYED! Quite a wedding band, don't you think? So, for what you consider a lifechanging amount of cash, she spent in one day for a party...

Yeah, we know - they're creating jobs and stimulating the economy. Sickening... Next time one of these asshole tells you who to vote for, keep this post in mind. They don't know you.... They CAN'T relate to you.

Iowa Gets Tight

2011-12-21T12:06:00.000-05:00

The Latest Real Clear Politics Poll Shows the Hawkeye State Is Anything But Real Clear...

    Imagine our surprise when we pulled this picture up to use that it came from Earl's Blog! The check is in the mail.... To no one's surprise, as we get closer to the Iowa Caucuses, the race is getting closer and closer. Once again, the leader is slipping in the polls, and every candidate's hot air balloons are running out of helium, with maybe one slight exception.

   Yeah, it's tight. So tight, that we don't expect a clear winner. According to the latest Real Clear Politics poll, Newt Gingrich is still in front - but barely. Newtie is getting 20.3% of the vote, with Ron Paul steadily climbing at 19.3%, and Mitt Romney close behind at 18.3%. Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum are below 10%, with Jon Huntsman nowhere to be found. That happens when you stop visiting. All his eggs are in New Hampshire.....

   Doesn't get much closer than that, does it? So, why is Paul making a run? That's easy: he's a Libertarian, so if you're a Right Winger in conservative Iowa, you can't do much better than Paul. We always thought it odd that Michele Bachmann was attacking Newt Gingrich to get the conservative vote, when Paul has been her main competition all along. Of course, trying to get a Ron Paul supporter to switch sides is like getting a Gamecock Fan to root for Clemson....

   Iowa is tailor made for Paul, as opposed to the rest of the United States. See 2008, under the heading of 'Huckabee'...  They's loves their Christian Conservatives up there, and the more conservative , the better. If Paul can't win in Iowa, he can't win anywhere. Honestly, he probably won't win anywhere else. South Carolina is a possibility, but we pick winners, and Paul isn't it. But, you take the primaries and caucuses one at a time, and Paul is in good shape for Round One...

   Is Newt fatigue setting in? Maybe. In terms you might not agree with, Gingrich appears to have been working up his woodie slowly - right up until he got into the room with the prostitute, and promptly shot his wad.  Call it Premature Election... In a HUGE surprise, Romney is stuck at 18-20% since 2008. Not enough to get elected, but still maybe to last until the also rans drop out, and he is left as the best choice left.  Not exciting, but it may work...

   In the end, it appears that it will be a wash, with all three equalizing each other, and then, it's onto New Hampshire, where Huntsman gets into the fray...  There is still 13 days to go, so Paul could uptrend further to claim a more clear win by maybe 5 points or so. Not a mandate at all, but a win is a win.   For now, it's pretty fuzzy..

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We're Running Out of Nutty Dictators to Pick On.

2011-12-21T11:29:00.000-05:00

N. Korean Strongman Kim Jong Il Dies, And Leaves the Family Business to His Idiot Son..

   Pardon us, as we mourn the loss of Kim Jong Il. No, we will not be crying like the stagehands apparently running around Pyongyang this week, shedding crocodile tears. Still, when you write a blog that is based on humor, you need an antagonist. If there is nothing to point the shotgun at, why bother firing???

   No, this has not been a good year for odd dictators. First, we lost Moammar Qaddafi, now comes the passing of Kim, who apparently had a heart attack on a train two days before anyone was notified. Talk about a closed society... Now it appears we have left is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hugo Chavez. Hopefully, we'll be developing some new crazy/unlethal dictators to keep us busy.

   Now, back to North Korea. Kim Jong Il was always good material. He had the look: short, weird hair, eyeglasses, and the ability to play with nuclear arms the way your six year old kid plays with power tools for the first time. Yes, there was a serious side to it, but with Kim, you knew what was coming - a scud flying off into the Sea of Japan every year or so. Unfortunately, there is new leadership, and that leads us to fear of the unknown...

    Taking over is Kim Jong Un, Il's 27 year old son. Newly minted as a 4-Star General, Un is inexperienced, unknown, and worst of all, not ready. Word is the recent ballistic missile firing was Un's work, not his father's.  North Korea is much a family-owned business. Leadership has been passed down from father to son for three generations now. The difference is Il took over for his Dad at age 52. Un is taking over at barely half that age... And much like the idiot son who gets the keys to the shop, Un is poised to run it into the ground.

    This will sound strange, but the best hope for North Korea lies in it's military.... Yep.  Power originally stood with the military - like most Communist countries - but Kim Jong Il took power over time back to the politicians. Himself mainly.  With Un in his obviously weakest position right now, this would be the time for military leaders - like REAL generals - to depose or set up Un as a puppet.  Maybe that would ease tensions between the two Koreas, but we're not secure with either of these scenarios. Maybe China could work a little magic on this, but how much will that help?

    We have no crystal ball, so we'll see how it goes. Hopefully it all remains peaceful, but we have our doubts.   For now, we'll miss Kim Jong Il, if only for the comedic value alone... Maybe Un will be featured in Team America II: World Police.

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It's Official..... We're Coming Back !

2011-12-18T21:26:00.000-05:00

Up Your Nose With a Rubber Hose!! SC6 To Become a South Carolina-Based Blog Again. You Have Been Warned..

    We're not sure how much the rumor has gone around the mill just yet. We suspect not very much. After all, it IS Christmas time. Even we realize the world does not revolvearound us, as much as we might assume it does. But, for those of you who might have been wondering since we ceased working a couple weeks ago... Yes, SC6 is coming home to Flotown, and not just for a vacation.

    You are reading correctly. After 27 months of blogging on SC politics from Yankeeville, we're ready to come home. There are a couple of job offers we have to juggle, though neither are set in stone just yet. It's a simple case of economics... We already have a nice house we've spent about $20,000 on since we left, so why sit at home in a studio apt in cold New York (and it IS getting cold), when we could enjoy a real bed in a real house in warmer weather? It's a no-brainer.

    Luckily, we are not going back into the car business, and we've made some friends in high places that see some level of intelligence in us. The only times we've ever been fired were in the car business, so even though the money was decent, the hours and instability (them , not me) have caused us to look for a new career. Going back into service would be like marrying the woman you've already divorced....five times.

    As far as the schedule, we'll be doing The Move, Part I right after New Years, where we'll set up and take care of a few things. Then we'll be going back around the 15th to New York to gather the rest of the stuff and come back around the 23rd for good.. Politically, it's going to be a nightmare - for the candidates!  We'll be in town for all the fun, following the Big Dogs, and asking questions they never wished they were asked... No, we will NOT be running for office anywhere.

     So, you have 30 days notice to evacuate if you deem it necessary. The Damn Yankee is coming back, so lock up you wife and daughters!!! See you soon!

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Enjoy That Tax Cut Before It Spoils ..

2011-12-18T18:21:00.000-05:00

If These Milk Cartons Were The Payroll Tax Cut, You'd Better Check the Expiration Date, 'Cause It's Gonna Spoil....Do Not Drink After 1/1/2013

     Yesterday , we posted about Congress 'saving' 160 million Americans on their payroll taxes by continuing the program... for a whole 2 months. The hope was that it would eventually be extended past that, or become permanent as part of an overall tax reform - like the one we proposed a couple weeks ago. According to one person, don't expect it, because DC needs that money more than you do...

     First, a clarification.  Congress did not cut taxes - they simpley avoided a tax increase. These things happen when they continue to do gimmick 'tax reform' every year, then go to war every year or two (or in this case two months)... So, don't get too excited about what was agreed to yesterday, because you already have it in your check. For you, nothing happened. The only good news was, it didn't get worse. Yet.

    Maybe the reason the cut was extended was that no one has any intention of permanently extending a cut in the most regressive tax out there. Millionaires pay the same actual amount as those who make $100,000. Why? Because the taxable cap is $110k... Making adjustments to the Payroll Tax is the easiest and fairest way to make taxes equitable, which is why it will never happen. But, we digress.

    Nope, on the Hill, a press conference was given where the person stated that any tax cut will be lucky if it lasts for one year. That person was ...... BIG SURPRISE .... Nancy Pelosi. Stunned aren't you. In the same announcement where she stated that keeping the cut will create another 600,000 jobs - which is so incorrect that we can't believe how ignorant she is - San Fran Nan said that the cut was only because the economy was so bad, they needed to help, but by next year, it should be much better. Therefore, taxpayers WON'T NEED THE MONEY in 2013. But DC does.... Stupid, stupid , stupid!

    It kind of cements the belief that lots of Democrats think that they need your money more than you do. Good Luck winning back the house next November with that thought process, Ex Madame Speaker.. Unless the gameplan is to get a longterm reform - ahem, like the one that we proposed last week - winning back the House will be an epic fail. Remember grandma, that 9% approval rating applies to the 178 Democratic members too - and you're their frigging leader!

   In case we never stated our position before we'll do it now.. The main cause of the budget deficit isn't that Americans are overtaxed - it's that DC overspends. Blame it on both the Bush and Obama Administrations, and Congress members in office for the past 10 years. But, we don't think that tax cuts need to be done at this time either. Cutting is the priority, but we do think that the tax system needs to be equitable, and it isn't right now. The middle class is getting squeezed to death from taxes at ALL levels of government, and it needs to be fixed.

    Yanking another $1000-1500 annually from earners is not what needs to be done. Eliminate the cap of payroll taxes, and drop the rate another half-point to a full point. Tax cuts for lower and middle class incomes. Social Security gets funded. Yes, higher earners will pay more, but by cutting the rate, they will be offset so that it only affects those making $150k or more with a tax they already pay most of the year. The others that don't pay it a majority of the year are making so much, they won't miss it. It's fair - and it'll never happen.  Republicans have their reasons. And Pelosi has hers....

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Today's Founders Quote: A Noble Inheritance

2011-12-18T17:26:00.000-05:00

"Let the American youth never forget, that they possess a noble inheritance, bought by the toils, and sufferings, and blood of their ancestors; and capacity, if wisely improved, and faithfully guarded, of transmitting to their latest posterity all the substantial blessings of life, the peaceful enjoyment of liberty, property, religion, and independence."
- Joseph Story, 1833.

Simply put, we owe it to those who came before us and sacrificed, to let our kids know how America got there. iPods, iPads and LED TV's didn't just come around - they were brought about by the entrepreneurial spirit and urge for freedom of our founding fathers. That continued through 230 years of people who kept pushing the envelope, and protected by those who died saving our freedom.

A good example of peaceful enjoyment can be found watching The Big Bang Theory star, Kaley Cuoco (we'll pass on any Big Bang comments here). We don't know writes that show, but they're pretty damned smart - and lucky!

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You'll Never Guess One of Newt's Favorite Movies ..

2011-12-18T12:54:00.000-05:00

Any Movie With Mike Tyson and a Naked Chinese Guy Kicking the Crap Out of Three People With a Crow Bar Gets Our OK !

     Anyone can tell you the usual new about the candidates.. Campaign stops? BO-RING !!! Endorsements? ZZZZZZ...   Behind the scenes staff changes? Please, don't make us laugh.... No, what people REALLY want to know about the candidates is personal stuff. What's your favorite song/band? Got a favorite supermodel? Boxers/briefs/freestyle?

    OK, maybe no one wants to know the last one, but a major factor for a candidate these days is likability. Which one do you want to have a beer with? So, we have a tidbit that we heard about Newt Gingrich... Newtie is a big movie fan, and one of his favorite movies is...... wait for it...... The Hangover.

    We shit you not... Maybe it's Heather Graham playing a stripper/ call girl, or Mike Tyson dropping Zach Galifianakis in one punch, or a Bengal Tiger in the bathroom, but Newt has seen the movie a lot. Not once, no twice.... but SEVEN times! That's even tice more than we've watched it. No report on his favorite line, but we think it may be the Asian guy yelling 'You Wanna F**ky Me ?????'. You want the answer to that, you ask him. We're not touching that one....

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Cartoon of the Week. The Christmas Sale Continues !

2011-12-18T12:36:00.000-05:00

It's that last week before Christmas, so we're still giving deals on all our political cartoons. Luckily, there are some decent ones in stock, so the BOGO sale is still on! First up, we picked the one where Lowe's was pretty much forced to drop it's ads from the show about Muslim-Americans that are pretty much like you and me. It's a shame that we have people around who forget that freedom of religion applies to ALL religions, not just ones that believe in Jesus. There are some bad Muslims out there, but chances are they don't live in your neighborhood. Let DHS take care of this....

Hey, remember when going into public service was considered an honorable thing? Funny part is, my parents did the same thing when I told them this when I was young too!

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Happy Birthday to the Best Blog Ever On Pee Dee Politics, Written By a Guy 700 Miles Away!

2011-12-17T14:49:00.000-05:00

We're Not Sure WHO Otis Is, But We Think We're a Winner

      Ahh, the kids grow up so fast... One day, a blog comes home from the hospital, and your life changes forever. Next thing you know, they're in kindergarten, learning to spell and write. Pretty soon, SC6 will be stealing money from our wallet, along with the keys to our car.. They'll start talking back and demanding an iPad, because all the other blogs have one. We better enjoy this time while we have it....

       Yep, on December 17, 2005, in an apartment in Charleston, SC, SC6 was born. It's gone through six years, 2 gubernatorial, one presidential and three congressional elections. 3265 posts. We never thought we'd have that much to discuss, but eventually the blog finds it legs and feel, and the material just takes care of itself...

        We've been around so long now, that even our congressional district has changed. No, we don't plan on changing the name to SC7..... We've worked too hard to earn our stripes and reputation. We may have spent a lot of time out of the loop, but we managed to stay involved and in touch. Pretty soon, that might change, and we intend to take our place back as the place SC Republicans go to get the truth on the issues.... At least as we see it. Stay tuned!

      As always, thanks to the nearly 350,000 visitors that have come by to log on since last year, especially to the crew that posts comments on a regular basis, to give us actual proof that people read us. We wish there were more, but we take the lack of comments that everything we say is right, and that you agree with us 100%. :)

      Like we've said before, when this ends, we have no idea. The thought that we someday earn the recognition of having 'The World's Oldest Blog' has crossed our minds, but even Earl's blog is older. We'll just keep writing if you keep reading. And if you stop reading? We'll probably keep writing anyway! Thanks again...

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Kicking the Can Down the Street. A Whole Two Months....

2011-12-17T14:20:00.000-05:00

Congress Passes Payroll Tax Cut .... All the Way Until February!

     In this week before Christmas, Congress did something that many of us can relate to this time of year... Much like how you leave all your holiday shopping until the last minute, and end up forgetting half of the stuff you were supposed to do, Congress did the same thing. They stayed over for a whole day and passed the continuation of the Payroll Tax Cut, along with the XL Pipeline deal - but the deal is only for two months. Feel safe? Neither do we....

     Yeah, instead of maybe spending a couple days, or - here's an idea - they started working on a long-term plan a while ago, we would actually have a permanent deal for Social Security funding and tax relief - all in one shot. No, they decided to take a task that you could check off for good, and make it like taking out the trash: something you do every week... They Kicked the Can.

    On the surface, passing this was better than doing nothing, so we'll give them a modicum of credit for that. That's about it. 160 million citizens will avoid a tax hike, and Barack Obama now has the XL Pipeline thrown on his lap, which he really needs to OK. His excuses for waiting to make a decision were weak. Now he is tied to it, or will raise taxes if he vetoes it.

    Congress got something done, though not much. They might have been able to fix three issues in one fell swoop, but it'll be back soon, unless someone in the back continues to work on it, which we doubt. It's always done last minute in DC. Before we know, some DC staffer's Blackberry will blow up with a reminder that the Payroll Tax hike is coming up - again. Our guess is that's when Congress will think about it again. Then they'll kick the can a little further. Sad....

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Today's Founders Quote: If Men Were Angels

2011-12-17T13:44:00.000-05:00

"If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, oblige it to control itself."

- James Madison, 1788.

I think we're all pretty sure that there are no angels in DC. We're not even sure there are any angels watching over Congress... Perhaps Clarence Oddbody could take a break from keeping tabs on George Bailey, and keep an eye on them... Madison is right, however. Too many laws are passed with the focus on governing the people, and not enough on governing GOVERNMENT.. We restrict the rights of citizens, but DC never seems to be reigned in...

If it were up to us, we'd restrict Katy Perry - straight to the bedroom, and you can't leave 'til we say so! Not sure Russell Brand would be cool with that, but he seems pretty easygoing.....

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Nikki Haley Pisses Off The Tea Party.. And Why It Shouldn't Matter To Anyone At All ..

2011-12-17T12:22:00.000-05:00

Will's Old Girl Gives Guy Smiley the Nod... So?

     Onto some statewide political news. A major bomb was dropped on the GOP race , when SC Governor Nikki Haley, a rising star with a key early primary state, gave her official endorsement to Mitt Romney this week. By doing so, local Tea Party leaders are feeling betrayed and upset at Haley's apparent snub. At least that's how the media would like you to see it that way. OK, guys. Let's go easy here. Here is our take. First, this was no surprise. Secondly, the Tea Party should have known better. Thirdly, NO ONE should care, and we don't think they do...

     Why no surprise? Uhh, gee... Haley gave an endorsement back in 2008 when she was a state rep, and it went to?? Mitt Romney. That was with a better field than this year's kookfest and moderate alternatives. Haley didn't have much else to pick from, so yeah, it's was bound to be Romney again.

    Reading a few articles, there seems to be a lot of flak coming from Tea Party members here, who first off, weren't aware of the previous endorsement, and secondly, viewed Haley as a rebellious candidate straight from the Right Wing. In short, they decieved themselves (we won't say she duped them, it's their own fault) into thinkig Haley was a rebel. Nope. She was an elected official back then, and she still is. Anyone who thought she didn't have a little moredation in her were fooling themselves.... our apologies to Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann, who was really banking on the nod. Endorsements aren't coming to either of you.

     Now, onto our important point of this news. NONE of this matters... Not a bit. We have a question to ask, and don't be insulted.... Are you a mindless sheep? A Stepford Voter? A brainless moron who needs everyone to tell you how to do everything? We didn't think so.. Endorsements are useless, except for minimally effective press for the campaigns. Romney has piled up a ton of elected official endorsements..... and he's trailing Newt Gingrich by 20 points. Further evidence that voters are NOT mindless. They think for themselves, and the polls seem to back that up.... Not that it's necessarily right, but that's how it should be.

    Like we often say, Politics is Much Ado About Nothing... Haley's endorsement is not surprising, but it IS meaningless. It may cost her re-election in 2014 - or not. It depends on whether you think the Tea Party backing is a plus or minus. For now, it means nothing. Check the polls, and see if South Carolina changes for Romney at all. We doubt it... If it does, it'll be due to Newt Fatigue, and not an endorsement.

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The Tooth Fairy Runs For Mayor Of Florence ...

2011-12-17T11:38:00.000-05:00

OK, It's Actually Ed Robinson.... But It May As Well Be.

    The big news in local politics in the Pee Dee was the announcement that Florence City Councilman Ed Robinson will be challenging incumbent Mayor Stephen Wukela in the 2012 Democratic primary... Our main comment? Good Luck!

    We'll try to look at this objectively, because we always get hate comments from Robinson supporters, who call us racist. Not that it bothers us, but we do worry that one of these kooks will eventually burn our house down. Fortunately, the cab fare from North Florence to my block is at least $12... It just ain't worth it!

    Maybe we were being a bit callous to Robinson here, but seriously, Robinson has NO CHANCE of beating Wukela. That's why we used the Tooth Fairy, but feel free to use Santa Claus. The Easter Bunny, Leprechauns, Unicorns or any of your favorite non-existent beings... Just look at the obvious. Robinson just barely squeaked by to win his own seat last time around, with all of 400-500 votes. He'll rile up a good amount of votes in his district, but he will get slaughtered in all other areas..

    It's not just a weakness on Robinson, it's Wukela is running a position of strength right now. Yeah, Wukela 'shocked' Frank Willis in 2008, but it wasn't a real shock. Rumblings about a challenge to Willis had been around for years.  Wukela has shored up every weak spot that he had when he was elected since then.  He didn't make outlandish promises, and the ones he did promise, he fulfilled, without major tax hikes. In business, we call it underpromising and overdelivering. Aim small, miss small....

    In a way, we're surprised Robinson is taking on Wukela. From all the meetings we've seen, Wukela has been respectful of Robinson's rants at council meetings.  He's given him his time, before having to reel in Ed to stay on point at whatever the subject they are discussing is. It's ironic that Wukela - who we would guess is at least 20 years Robinson's junior - has been the adult in the room... That is the difference.

    The Florence Mayor's race in 2012 will be pretty dull. Wukela will trounce Robinson in the Primary, and has plenty of Republican support - so much that the GOP may not even field a candidate. May not, but we think a marginal candidate will run, then find out he/she can't find any financial support, because Wukela has already locked it up. Robinson, and anyone for that matter, has the right to run. But he has as much of chance of beating Wukela that I had of beating Jim Clyburn... See, we ARE objective.

     Our guess is Robinson wants to just get a forum where he gets equal time with Mayor Hickory Head. We doubt Wukela will give him the time, because if you want to look like an idiot, then debate an idiot.  The Mayor has given him plenty of time, and has worked to address Robinson's valid points. The only people who will lose, aside from Robinson, will be any GOP primary candidates that will not get votes because of the crossover votes to ensure that Wukela crushes Ed. Or Santa. Or whoever else comes down the pike, and on the ballot.

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The Norwegian Butter Battle ....

2011-12-15T13:31:00.000-05:00

Quit Smiling Elsie, and Start Squirting Some Milk!

    Time for one of THOSE stories again.. We know how you love 'em! Every good dumb story needs a funny hook. Put 'Norway' and 'Butter Frenzy' together, and you're all set...

    Yes, the streets of Oslo, Lillehammer, Trondheim and Fredrikstad are lined with Norwegians freaking out. Why? They have NO BUTTER. You heard right.. They have literally run out of butter! And this is no time for that, because Norwegian Christmas delicacies are chock full of the sweet, creamy, artery-clogging stuff... Yumpin' Yiminy !!! What's a country to do?

    Norwegians generally don't have much to be excited about. We tried to look up famous Norwegians, and there aren't much. That's because most of them are Swedish, although Anni-Frid Lyngstad IS Norwegian. Aside from that, the poet Ibsen and a couple porn stars. That's it. Bjorn Borg? Swedish. Bjork? Icelandic. Lars Ulrich? Danish , via California...All they have is their cooking, so no butter means no food, and no food means no life...

    Luckily, there is a little relief coming. Butter is being shipped from other countries (Denmark is reporting laughing their asses off at the Norwegians right now). It's going pretty fast, so those who still can't get butter are using oil, margarine and other butter substitutes. But anyone who cooks knows there is butter, or there isn't. Don't believe Fabio - we can tell it's not butter!

   Yes, it's a classic economic case of supply and demand.... Our advice is to buy some butter, put it on eBay, and sell it to the highest bidder. It's gonna be a shitty Christmas in Porsgrunn....

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Shhh..... The Iraq War Is Over.

2011-12-15T13:05:00.000-05:00

Amen, Brother ..

     Just in case it hasn't been been made aware to you, the Iraq War officially ended today. Troops are leaving. The Iraqi army is now in charge of their own destiny. If it seems that not much has been made of this, you're alone in thinking that...

     Listening to POTUS yesterday, Bill Press was noting the odd silence over the end here. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki was in DC on Monday to meet with President Obama. There was no official state ceremony to mark the event. Al-Maliki's visit was no different from any other leader of state. Odd indeed...

    The most important thing is that it IS over, and that is a good thing. Iraq needs to take care of itself, and we think the lack of an American presence will assist in calming tensions down. Not completely, of course. Shiite and Sunni hatred will always be there. Bombs will still go off, and people will die. It's gonna happen, but it should lessen. Southerners should have a good understanding of outsiders living in your home with guns...

   Was it a success? Yes, and no. Iraq is free, and Saddam Hussein is gone. It seems in hindsight that the reasons for going in were incorrect.  Whether or not it was worth 4000 American lives and $1T in spending (there's that T again), is up for debate. Most of us will never agree on that. The important thing is that it is over. Whatever errors were made in Iraq do not need to be made in Afghanistan. We are far from done in the War on Terror. I can tell you personally. I hear of phone calls from my cousin Chris, who is in the 82nd Airborne. He is still out there a lot, unable to tell us where he is, or when he will return....

    That's the only part that makes us upset a little. Barack Obama stopped by Fort Bragg this week to give a speech, but by not giving a more formal and greater marking of the end, it puts a little tarnish on the work and service of those who fought and those who died in Iraq. No, we wouldn't expect a VE or VJ Day-type of celebration, but the tepid way that Obama and Congress have marked it is disappointing...

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Newt Gingrich Loses the Gary Busey Voting Block...

2011-12-15T12:39:00.000-05:00

       The continued climb of Newt Gingrich went on a wild roller coaster this week. Just when the former Speaker of the House had some serious mojo going, he got an added boost - and then it suddenly disappeared just as fast... It seems a key GOP operative gave Gingrich his blessing, then pulled it back a day later. Who was this? Dubya Bush? Nope. Maybe John Boehner or Reince Preibus... Double nope.. No, the big push and pull back came from Gary Busey...

    Yeah, THAT Gary Busey. No, we're not sure if it was solicited or if Busey volunteered his opinion, but it got out there. Yes, the endorsement of Angelo Pappas from the Keanu Reeves/Patrick Swayze vehicle ,Point Break, certainly does carry a lot of weight in Republican circles. But, just as quickly as it came, it went. Almost as though Busey smacked his head on a curb (sorry, couldn't help it), he announced that he was pulling his endorsement. For Newt, it was nice while it lasted.

     We're not sure why the Buddy Holly Story star dropped his OK, or if he is endorsing someone else, but does it really matter? We're sure none of the other candidates are hoping for his endorsement. Just because you've been on Celebrity Rehab doesn't mean your opinion is worth our time. Did anyone swig their vote for Mike Huckabee in 2008 because Ric Flair went with him, or Barack Obama becuase Matt Damon and Ben Affleck endorsed him? Don't answer that.... they shouldn't.

     Will Newt Gingrich's ascension to GOP nominee be suddenly stemmed off becuase of the Busey switch? Who knows, but we doubt he will have anything to do with it.... You never know.

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Bowl Names Get Dumber and Dumber ....

2011-12-13T15:14:00.000-05:00

The Potato Bowl ??? Are We F**king Kidding ???? Time for Marketing 101 Again, Guys....

    It's that time of year again! No, not BOGO at Payless, or McRib being back at McDonald's... It's college bowl time. They call it Bowl Week, but it's obviously WAAAYYY longer than a week. For people my age and older, we've seen a big change in Bowl Season. The whole season ended on New Year's Day. We've gladly given that up for the BCS Championship. No, it's not perfect, but we'll take it.

    The games used to get more important as the week went on, but that's down the tubes as well. There are NO GAMES on New Year's Day... They didn't want to interfere with the NFL schedule, so the usual games are now Tuesday, when we're all back to work, followed by games on each weekday afterwards. Of course, the big game is preceded by two crap bowls in Alabama, before the BCS on January 9th... 9th!! You want to know why BCS games often suck? Because they haven't played a down for six weeks! It's like watching a first scrimmage in camp....except it's for the National Championship.

     The goofiest thing to us is the weirder and weirder bowl names.   It used to be simple: Holiday, Gator, Cotton, Sugar, Rose, Orange. No sponsor names, no dot.com's. The first one we remember is the Sun Bowl becoming the John Hancock Bowl, and the Fiesta Bowl tacked Tostitos on the name. After that, it just took off.... The bowls seemed to have lost the focus on the games or teams, and just concern the sponsorship and money.  Some bowl names are OK, but others are frigging stupid. Lets grade them all...

Gildan New Mexico Bowl - C. Hey, where is the game anyway? Lack of ingenuity in the name, and a t-shirt maker seems a dull sponsor for a spicy state like New Mexico.

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl - D+.   Horridly cliche'd name made even worse with using the term 'Famous'.... as opposed to the infamous spuds, or potatoes of no particular distinction. Nothing like adding to the joke, is there? We know, Idaho - you're proud of your potatoes..

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl - C. Nothing screams The Big Easy like a cargo company. Yeah, New Orleans has a port. But, this is one where R&L could have left it's name off. It's not like you're going to get business from this. No one cares, guys.

Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg Bowl - D.   Much like the previous one, but there are some sponsors that have names that just don't need to be on a bowl game - and Beef O Brady's is it! We've been to Florida twice, and never heard of Beef O'Brady's .... Say it ten times, and see how stupid you feel. Now you know how the announcers will feel..

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl. C+. Could you make it longer, guys? No marketing tie-in, other than the game is in San Diego. We had it at D+, but knocked it up a grade because at least Poinsettias have SOMETHING to do with Christmas.

MAACO Bowl Las Vegas - C. Vegas adds zest to anything, right? Well, this says blah to us... A auto body repair franchise says nothing Vegas to us... At least MAACO can keep the bowl franchise and put it anywhere else. How about MAACO Bowl Long Island? We have enough body shops up here...

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl - B.   Ahh, one that makes sense to us. You think Hawaii, you think vacation, right? One grade off for using the sponsor in the name, but the rest fits.

AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl, D+. Terrible, terrible, terrible... WTF is an AdvoCare V100? We don't know either. The name is like a sledgehammer. You take an All-American term like Independence, and wreck it with Neo-Tech AdvoCare V100... God awful.

Little Caesar's Pizza Bowl - B.   Any sponsor takes a grade off. Aside from that, we're cool with it. Pizza and football go well, and the game is in Detroit, home of Pan, Pan..

Belk Bowl - D.  Just when we thought the Continental Tire Bowl sucked, it gets worse. WTF does Belk have to do with football? Maybe the teams will dress in Donna Karan inspired uniforms. It's in Charlotte, so why not the Belk Queen City Bowl? That'd get at least a C. Might be our worst grade...

Military Bowl - A. Just as it should be. No sponsor, no dot.com, it's in DC, and Air Force is playing in it... Good Luck , Toledo! It's what bowls USED to be...

Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl - C. Too long, and exactly who are you guys? No doubt we'll find out during the commercial breaks...

Champs Sports Bowl - B.   A decieving B to us.. Short name helps a lot, but most people might not be familiar with the Sporting Goods retailer, as opposed to Foot Locker. But, it is an obvious good relationship..

Valero Alamo Bowl - C+. We'll give a plus just that Valero sounds like it goes with The Alamo, although it used to just be Alamo Bowl. If Alamo Rent a Car were still around, it would've been ideal, but they'd just add the Rent a Car anyway..

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl - C+. Good cross marketing, and honoring our military, but Bell Helicopter pretty much pushed their old buddy LBJ into Vietnam, and some remember that. Also, no branch of the military is in the game. Nice try...

New Era Pinstripe Bowl , B-.   Not bad, but there are some non-bowl like factors making it tough. There is too much of a baseball feel here. New Era makes ball caps, and the pinstripes are for the game site - Yankee Stadium. Enjoy the game outdoors, because it's gonna be frickin' cold...

Franklin Am. Mortgage Music City Bowl - D+. Simply put, TOO DAMN LONG... Six words! It inspires us for our ow bowl next year - The Mike Reino SC6 Republican/Conservative Blog Palmetto State Carpetbagger Bowl....Our suggestion to the FAM people - drop the 'M', and pick a shorter bowl next time.

Insight Bowl- B+. This is making something good from nothing. Nice and short, and the sponsor's name doesn't sound corporate. 'Insight' just makes it sound like this bowl knows SOMETHING the other bowls don't.  Kudo's....

Meineke Car Care of Texas Bowl - C. OK, so the Meineke dealer around the corner from my house DOESN'T give a crap about the game? Why go see him? We all are getting sick of Texas pushing Texas so much... Rick Perry is finding that out, maybe Meineke - which sounds about as Texan as Chicago deep dish pizza - will too. Drop the 'of', and call it the Meineke Texas Bowl. We know who you are.

Hyundai Sun Bowl/ AutoZone Liberty Bowl, B-.   Yeah, we're starting to get a little tired (another problem, too many bowls), so we're lumping these two together.  Good minimalist job by keeping the original name in there, without too much of yours. Down a tick for no cross reference for the sites...

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl - B.  We're torn all over the place on this one. Great cause, but it's a bit of a downer. Plus Kraft is the one making the food, so they could fight it with one hand behind it's back.   And the game is taking place in - GULP! - San Francisco. We see a football game, but expect three hours of liberal preaching on every commercial break.

Chick-Fil-A Bowl, C-.   This is a totally biased score. This is the Peach Bowl, was the Peach Bowl, and has ALWAYS been the Peach Bowl!  Chick Fil A dumped the name, and we still haven't forgiven them. Here's a suggestion: add the Peach back, and cross market Peach Tea for December with it. Yes, we have good ideas for everything....

TicketCity Bowl, B-. Kudos for shortness, but unlike Insight, TicketCity is obviously a sponsorship. Oh, and ANOTHER bowl game in Texas, one of six... Doesn't exactly make you want to go, does it?

Outback Bowl, B. Nice and short, but we wonder what Tampa has to do with Australia? At least it's short. Aside from that, we can live with it.

Capital One Bowl, B-. Much like the Outback Bowl, except we think CapOne is a more obvious sponsorship. That, and we think it should be the Gamecock Bowl, because South Carolina seems to be in it every year.

Taxslayer.com Gator Bowl, C+. It sounds cool, but again, let's wreck New Years Day by reminding you it's time to do your taxes. Yippee!! Gator Bowl - probably the best bowl game name. Taxslayer: ugh!

BBVA Compass Bowl/ GoDaddy.com Bowl - C. Two shit bowl games, with four shit teams in Alabama, with two sponsors that have nothing to do with he locations. Seriously, these games should be held on December 18th, not the days preceeding the Championship Game. Based on the irrelevance, the C is being kind....

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl/ Allstate Sugar Bowl/ Discover Orange Bowl/ AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic. B-. They're all the same: great bowl games that have been co-opted by corporate America. Damn Shame. We also miss the fact that the teams in the games aren't tied to the conferences like they used to, but by the BCS, and at-large bids. At least Notre Dame hasn't been getting unearned bids lately. But they will soon... Which leaves us with one more.

Rose Bowl - A+. It isn't the Granddaddy of them all for nothing.  No sponsor. no dot.com, no change of venue every year. Most of all, it's still the Big Ten champ versus the PAC-10 (now 12) Champ every year, unless either makes the BCS Championship. College football like it used to be. Beautiful....

Damn, that was long! Hope you enjoyed it, and add any critiques you wish.... Play ball!!

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Men, You Have Now Been Rendered Useless ...

2011-12-12T16:16:00.000-05:00

A Lover, A Friend..... And a Chocolately Treat! What Else Does a Woman Need Nowadays ??

     To the two women who read SC6 (we know of Miss June, the other one we're not sure of yet), don't ever say we didn't take care of you!   Thanks to an anonymous friend (appreciate it, Bobby! OOPS!!), we just got a copy of an SNL clip from Tina Fey's hosting appearance early in 2010. No, we never saw this one, but if we did, it would have been on a long time ago....

     We'll keep it short, and right to the point. Women don't REALLY need Men.... they just kinda keep us around in case all else fails.  Aside from a plug-in, Do It Yourself device, we found something that satisfies a woman in every other way. We give you Duncan Hines' Brownie Husband....

  www.hulu.com/watch/141546/saturday-night-live-brownie-husband

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Mande Wilkes Outfoxes the Competition On Equal Time ..

2011-12-12T12:40:00.000-05:00

    Right now, with all the hubbub of the Presidential Primary coming in January, not much attention is being paid attention to the smaller races yet. Well, maybe you're not paying attention (neither are we) , but the good candidates have been working on this for months or years. Those with an actual plan usually aren't surprised when good things happen later on. It's no accident. Planning makes better candidates, and better public servants...

   Honestly though, we're a little torn on the small space between smart and legal and sneaky... We're going to do our best to avoid judging anything here. Instead, we'll do our best to state the facts, give all sides, and let you guys decide for yourself. Maybe as a former candidate, we're jealous of a tactic that we never thought of, or could afford even if we did think of it...

    I was slightly familiar with Mande Wilkes. I often remember Will Folks ogling over her on his blog, and that she was an up and comer on the GOP scene. One day a few weeks ago, I ran into her page on Facebook, so I requested, and it was accepted. Ok'ing a blogger to see your FB page and comments may not always be a good thing, but it is what it is... Last week, I read the notes about Mande holding an event, and much to our surprise.... she was a candidate for the 7th Congressional district! That, and she hosted a show on WPDE, called On The Spot.....

     Almost immediately, the question popped into my head: How does a candidate for office manage to have a TV show without violating Equal Time laws with the Federal Election Commission? To me, it made no sense initially. Wilkes is promoting her candidacy on her website, on Facebook and there is some cross marketing between the two. The rule seems pretty simple: if you are a candidate, you cannot have air time or work for a media company , without giving all others equal time on that market, at the same rate. To our surprise, no one asked about this.. Our guess is it's from one of three possibilities: they are infinitely more familiar with FEC laws than us, they didn't know either, or they don't give a damn... We went straight to the horse herself on this, and Wilkes DID bother to check with the FEC. Long story short, Wilkes' ass is covered. We think....

     iIf you don't care, indulge us anyway, because we think it's a good nuts and bolts campaign story... We called WPDE and e-mailed Wilkes, and here is the skinny. Wilkes is not an employee of WPDE, and the show she hosts is a paid programming ad - kinda like Wayne's World, except that Mande is the schwing!! We haven't seen the show, but Wilkes states it has disclaimers left and right during the airing. On it, there is no mention of her candidacy. Of course, that doesn't mean viewers aren't aware of it.  What does the FEC have to say? Wilkes says nothing...

     To us, the minute you say 'I'm running' , you're running - but the FEC doesn't see it that way. The moment a campaign really starts is when you raise or spend $5000. Until then, you're up to your own vices. Our first question was a local TV paid programming can't be cheap, so the $5k has to be coming up soon... Wrong again, Mister Know Nothing! Wilkes says the TV program is a separate business venture. Again, not having actually seen the show, we don't know if the business is selling her book or what it is... That being the case, whatever she is spending at WPDE, the FEC is cool with it...

    We'll give Wilkes credit... It is a shrewd game plan.  Mostly when a woman beats the guys at their own game, they call her something else. There is no denying that being on WPDE is going to assist the campaign - an ancillary benefit. Direct or indirect, Wilkes is getting help from being on TV, when no one else is... Will it propel her above the crowd? That remains to be seen.

   No, this is not a strategy that we'd go for. To us, we think selectively marketing your campaign, while still sending out promotions online that mention both the book, the show and the candidacy will backfire once someone sheds more light on it than we could. That isn't our motivation here.... We don't even know the entire field of candidates in the 7th District race yet (and we're not alone), and we don't know Mande Wilkes at all.  Never met, and Will is the only one that has ever mentioned her.  If anyone in the race were employing this tactic, we'd be asking... It's a rare opportunity for us to discuss a REAL campaign issue, not just jokingly attacking our Congressman for molesting puppies..

    It's an odd case of what is legally acceptable, and what could be hopskotching what is fair and right. What do you guys think? Are we asking about nothing, is Wilkes a marketing genius, or is she headed for due criticism?

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SC6 Civil War Rewind, Part Nine: Charleston Burns

2011-12-12T10:44:00.000-05:00

Massive Fire Does What the Union Army Couldn't... Yet.

     Welcome to the 9th installment of our marking of significant events in the Civil War - 150 years after they occured... Today, we mark an event close to many South Carolinians hearts: the Great Fire of 1861. Long a contraversial event, it left Charleston wounded for almost the duration of the War. If you've ever gone on a tour of downtown Chucktown, you'll notice that many houses were built well before the war, or a good five years after. The 1861 fire explains a lot of that...

     In late 1860, Charleston was the epicenter of rebellion. Just 11 months later, it was almost reduced to rubble - not by the Union Army, but by natural disaster. We think. No one knows for sure. The Post and Courier noted that none of the papers gave any blame on arson, but we found an article from Harper's Weekly that stated just that. Since both the Charleston Mercury and Courier newspapers were burned out, who was around to note it? There is mention of freed slaves starting it, but since we don't know, we'll pass on judgement.

    Late on December 11, 1861 three separate fires started, almost simultaneously, on King Street, Tradd Street - and by all accounts- at the Russell Sash and Blind factory on Hassell Street in the Northeast area in Charleston. Aided by winds from a nearby Nor'easter, and a dead low tide that hampered the firefighters ability to pump water, the fire quickly spread south and west...

    The devastation was pretty complete in it's path.. The mostly wooden buildings burned up like kindling . The fire cut a swath across Market and Broad Streets, where both the Circular Church and Institute Hall, where Secession was officially passed, burned to the ground. It continued on there straight to the Ashley River, where it ran out of things to burn. That, and a slight rain, and the work of residents and slaves worked to save their homes. It would seem odd now for enslaved blacks to work hard to assist their 'owners', but this was their homes as well...

     The fire caused $8 million in damage (about the price of ONE HOME on Battery Park now), and was visible to both Union and Confederate armies stationed or traveling nearby. While the North dreamed of setting fire to the birthplace of Secession, it somehow did it to itself... Of course, the Sherman and the Yankee army got their chance in early 1865, but a third of Charleston was already gone, not to be rebuilt until after the War.

     Suddenly, war and secession and states rights took a back seat to more important and basic things...like where to live , work and rebuild. Of course, it did rebuild eventually, and is today one of the greatest and most beautiful cities in America. If it weren't for the I-26 traffic, it might be perfect - but Earl is working on that! And it all happened 150 years ago today.

     See you at the next installment!

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And the Gloves Come Off In the GOP Race .....

2011-12-11T13:19:00.000-05:00

Get Up, You Sissy !!! Time Is Running Out, So The Candidates Start to Ignore Reagan's 11th Commandment..

     We're only three weeks away from the Iowa Caucus. It's funny to us that a state whose voters are so assbackwards, compared to the rest of the country, get so much of the attention every 4 years. But, it is what it is... This isn't like 1968, when Bobby Kennedy jumped into the race in MARCH... Getting off to a good start is paramount. For candidates like Michele Bachmann, doing well in Iowa is everything... Don't let her BS you. If she finished 4th, she is toast, which means...... she is toast. Let the clock begin.

     Just about all of the candidates, with the exception of Rick Perry, held back from attacking any of the other guys. But time is getting short, and the perpetual revolving door of front runners seems to have settled on Newt Gingrich. With the bullseye clearly on Newtie's back - and no time left - the knives are out in full force.

      Perry is still attacking Mitt Romney. Romney is attacking Gingrich. Gingrich is hitting Romney back. Bachmann is going after both Romney and Gingrich. Ron Paul is attacking Gingrich and Perry, although Perry's mouth does more to kill himself than any opponent does. Jon Huntsman's tree that falls in the woods eeks criticism at Gingrich and Romney. Hell, EVERYONE is going after Gingrich... Meanwhile, Rick Santorum is out there somewhere....

      Will it all work? Nope. Will any of it work? Doubtful. The truth is there are no new slings to toss at any of the candidates. Perry's assault was the exact same attack that he used four months ago. Of course, Romney made an ass of himself by betting Perry $10,000 on the truth of it. We were waiting for one of them to break out with 'My Daddy Can Beat Up Your Daddy' or 'Yo Momma So Ugly' jokes, but we weren't so lucky...

     Like most politicians, with the exception of Gingrich, they all failed to see the date coming up so fast, and their shortcomings have caught up with them. They planned last minute moves, only to find that voters are making up their minds a few weeks ahead of time. Is Gingrich the clear winner? No, but his mojo hasn't quite peaked yet, which is a good sign going into January, which it almost is.... Snuck up on you guys, didn't it? Maybe ONE MORE attack will work. Anyone have some new dirt?

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Hey, Isn't Chicago Supposed To be Obama's 'Home' ???

2011-12-11T11:55:00.000-05:00

Where Would You Rather Go For Your Christmas Vacation..... This , Or THAT???

     This is never a topic that we understood. Why? Because we're poor, and where do poor people go for Christmas? Straight to the living room, around the tree. Actually, we don't even have a tree - just presents and and empty stocking, but we know Santa will come through for us...

    The rich and powerful have options. They go on vacation for Christmas, which to us is the most effed up tradition ever. I spent New Years Eve in Florida once... Once. It was 70 degrees, which is not what the holidays are to us. Barack Obama likes to get away from DC, like everyone else. You'd think him, Michelle and the girls would celebrate 'back home' in Chicago, gathered around a warm fire, having snowball fights and enjoying the season. Uhh, nope.

    Yeah, Obama is taking 17 days off for Christmas, which is by our calculations the same number of days off we've gotten since 2001. Rather than go into the old argument about taking so long off when America is going down the shitter, we're going to focus on WHERE the Obama's go now...

    You have to feel for the city of Chicago lately. Back in 2008, Obama touted himself as a Son of the Windy City. Why not? It's where he served as a state and US Senator. They met there, and raised the kids there. Plus, there is a certain amount of toughness that comes with living in Chicago.  It definitely helped Obama's image in the election. Would Obama be President if he were Hawaii's Senator? Doubt it....

   So, it surprises us to see Obama almost abandon his Land of Lincoln trademark whenever he bolts DC.  The campaign may be based out of Chicago, but Obama definitely is not. As soon as Washington closes up, Barack is headed for the sun and sand of Hawaii - his actual home state. And what about his Summer vaca's? He's gone to Martha's Vineyard the past 2 years. It's not a coincidence - the Obama's are avoiding Chicago's freezing winters and stagnant summers like the plague. Maybe if they put a Target store near their house....

    We're not sure exactly WHY they no longer go home. Maybe they like living like gypsies, with no real home. When you know eventually you'll be leaving the White House, you know it's not home. They do have a place in Chicago, but there is about as much security there as the Clark Street garage on Valentine's Day, 1929. So, maybe you CAN'T go home again... Our guess is they're done with Illinois. It served it's purpose, and afterwards, they'll all go back to the Aloha State in a nice private compound. Don't take it personally, Chicago.... It's just business.

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Today's Founders Quote: The Way Everlastingly Happy

2011-12-11T11:14:00.000-05:00

"May the father of all mercies scatter light, and not darkness, upon our paths, and make us in all our several vocations useful here, and in His own due time and way everlastingly happy."

- George Washington, 1790.

This could be our shortest analysis ever: God Bless Us, everyone! One thing that seems heaven sent to us is model Chloe Pridham. I think Moye dated her once!

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Cartoon of the Week, Half Price For the Holidays

2011-12-11T11:01:00.000-05:00

It was a very odd week in political cartoons. Yes, they're supposed to be witty, but no one likes 'toons that are inside jokes. A couple of them had us wondering WTF they were getting at.... A Titanic parody that took us a couple minutes to realize it was Angela Merkel? Vladimir Putin judo chopping a Russian briefcase? Luckily, they got better as we went along...

Yeah, we think Donald Trump 'mediating' a debate is a bad idea... The guy is a narcissist, who thinks he knows everything, and if I were a candidate, I'd avoid him like the plague - and most are...

And why did we pick this one? Well, the motorcycle is cool, although the handlebars are WAAAAAY too short (good luck turning with those puppies), we like the scruffy facial hair and leathers. But yeah, the ladies do like the bad boys. Is there such a thing as a bad boy named Newt?

Kooky Picture of the Day..

2011-12-09T19:13:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday, I took a trip to the South Shore Mall in my old stomping ground in Bay Shore, New York. It's changed a lot. I couldn't tell you which end I was in, the old Loews Theatre is now a Sears... and apparently you can get ANYTHING you want! Not really - it was the Unisex Palace Hair Salon. We can't be the only ones to notice this, but who knows.

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Lights, Camera, PROTEST ! It's Mockupy Wall Street

2011-12-09T18:33:00.001-05:00

If This Post Doesn't Convince You That the OWS Protestors Are a Bunch of Attention Starved Media Whores, Nothing Will...

      Time to preface our post today. We didn't have a big grudge against the Occupy Wall Street protestors at first. Sure, we had them pegged as a bunch of followers who watched Michael Moore's movie, Capitalism: A Love Story, and decided to take his advice. No, we understand the '99%' and their complaints. This is America... Everyone has a right to protest. But, they don't have the right to take over public spaces, thus denying pretty much all others from using the places they took over and funked up. After that, we started viewing them as the cousin who comes to visit....then never leaves.

      Nope, in our opinion, for too long now, the message has been lost, and for too many of the OWS participants, it is now about THEM. Don't believe us? The story today might convince you.. New York has just about everything going on. One of those things is a thriving TV and movie business. Very often, entire sections of the city are closed off to film scenes. Citizens pay little attention to it, because it goes on all the time....

      One of the TV shows that films here regularly is the 'Law and Order' franchise. Long known for taking shows direct from the headlines to give the show an up to the minute feel, the 'SVU' version of the show rented out Foley Park in downtown Manhattan to film a scene that was like the OWS movement. Word of it got out, and the Occupy protestors decided that nothing would be better than having the real thing there. So, the gang left Zuccotti Park, and went up the block to Foley Park - and took over the place.

      Now, we get it.. You don't have anything else to do, so why have someone act like you, when you can do it yourself? Therein lies the problem. This is a TV SHOW SET.... not the protest, and the people there are ACTORS. This isn't real. Don't you think if the producers, directors and NBC wanted to have you guys filmed, they would have just gone to Zuccotti Park and filmed you? Apparently, they didn't.

      But, when your group is an unorganized mess of people without a clear vision or agenda, except they don't like people with money - the message is not as important as you are. They've lost their goodwill with the people, and those that are left mainly are there to be 'discovered' somehow. Trying to get their 15 minutes of fame.. The good news for the rest of us is winter has finally come - with overnight temps dropping below freezing. Even the media won't want to go outside, so once the TV cameras go, their true mettle to their 'values' will be tested. We have a feeling they will fail.

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SC6 Remembers Harry Morgan....

2011-12-08T13:33:00.000-05:00

Goodbye, Farewell and Amen, Colonel Potter !

    Yet another part of our childhood goes away... When I was a kid, M*A*S*H* was my favorite show. In high school, I had every episode on tape. This wasn't when you could buy each season at the store, or get the box set.... No, every weeknight at 700PM, I taped EVERY episode for over a year. I missed the last episode live, because I had a Boy Scout dinner to attend. I was pissed off....

    Yeah, I was a big fan... No, I wasn't a fan of Alan Alda's politics making their mark on the show, but it was still funny and touching, which is what make great TV - like life, good TV has the ability to make you laugh and cry - usually at the same time.

    Over it's 12 seasons, M*A*S*H* went through lineup changes - changes that most thought would kill the show. It's tough when a show loses main players, but good shows (especially ensemble shows) survive and can even thrive them.   BJ Hunnicutt was deeper than Trapper John McIntyre. Charles Emerson Winchester was every bit the match that Frank Burns wasn't, yet he had a heart stuck in there somewhere that came out occasionally...

     When McLean Stevenson's Henry Blake character was killed off, Harry Morgan took over as gruff Col. Sherman T. Potter. A lifelong army soldier, Potter could have been the new bad guy on the show. But instead, Morgan made the character the paternal, no nonsense yet wise and sensitive role model that real Colonels in the military actually are. On the surface, they are tough as nails, but no good officer earns their soldiers respect without caring for them. That was Sherman T. Potter in a nutshell...

     Morgan was a staple on the big screen and TV for almost 50 years. I saw a few reruns of Dragnet as a kid, but that was before my time... Like people growing up in the 30s and 40's, where Joe Louis was always Champ and FDR was always President. M*A*S*H was always on, and Morgan is forever Colonel Potter.   As he used to say "Or Revore!!" We salute you..

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Bakari Sellers Puts In His 1.6 Cents ...

2011-12-08T12:04:00.000-05:00

Sorry, But We Couldn't Find a Penny That Was Chopped In Half....

One thing about polticians that makes us laugh is their penchant for trying to change things that they have little to no control over. Case in Point: SC Representative Bakari Sellers (D-Bamberg) has proposed a 10% tax on the state's gasoline tax. On the surface, you're thinking 'Hey, that sounds pretty cool and significant.' When you put it that way, yeah it does. The again, it's like me saying that I will totally quit smoking cold turkey forever - then you find out that I've never smoked...

While not that extreme, Sellers proposal is not that far off. Why? Because SC's gas tax is on 16 cents a gallon, the 4th lowest in the US. For consumers, that means the cut is a miniscule 1.6 cents per gallon. Sellers states that the lower prices at the pump will attract North Carolinians across the border to get their gas. It gives you an idea of how clueless either Sellers could be - or just how gullible he thinks you are. Numbers don't lie, so let's do the math....

Got your calculator ready? Here we go... 1.6 cents is about 1/20 of the total price of gas, so assuming that you have a pretty fuel efficient car at 30 mpg, you would have to drive 1.5 miles ROUND TRIP or less for the tax cut to be worth the trip... That means if you live in Charlotte, you need to find a station before you even get past Carowinds.... Not exactly worth it, is it?

Secondly, SC's gas tax is already much lower than both North Carolina and Georgia, so there will be no additional gain than we already have. We're not talking about crossing the border to play Powerball and winning $160 million.... But we would be cutting funding for road improvements.

Sellers has an odd supporter in our buddy, Will Folks at FITS News. Hey, we don't disagree that lower taxes are better, but South Carolinians are far from overtaxed. If you want to see overtaxed, come on up here for a little while, where gas is $3.60 a gallon for regular, cigarettes are $10 a pack, and property taxes are $10,000 per year and up...... WAAAAY up. We support South Carolina never becoming New York, but we do need to pay for some things, and infrastructure is one of them.

Lastly, we have one final critique. We live in the real world, and a 1.6 cent tax cut would NEVER show up to consumers at the pump. You have the oil companies, refiners and retailers all taking their cut along the way. If you ever think you'd see that savings at the pump, think again.

Yes, Sellers' idea on the surface seems nice, but there are other, more necessary places to cut. Politically, it makes good press, but the kid got it wrong. The only real change we'll see is the SCDOT having it's funding cut. Maybe not a totally bad idea on the surface, but if there is extra money later, cut the budget then. No one's life will change over this plan. As Shakespeare said, it is Much Ado About Nothing... but we're not sure if Sellers ever read Shakespeare....

Congress Can't Get ANYTHING Right Sometimes..

2011-12-07T21:02:00.000-05:00

Light Up, Dammit ! LIIIIIIIIIIIGHT !!!!!!

For those of you who think that Washington DC is incapable of doing even the smallest task without screwing it up....... We give you further proof that you are correct. Yesterday, the official Capitol Christmas Tree was lit by Speaker John Boehner. Or at least it was supposed to have lit up.

Yeah, it started out OK, then on two occasions, the tree stopped lighting. the official word was that the wiring got wet and shorted. Being the untrusting conspiracy theorists that we are (or at least our readers are), we have a couple, more likely ideas of what happened. Here they are:

1. Environmentalist Kooks unplugged it before being pepper sprayed.
2. Tea Party Caucus refused to keep it lit until confirming that the tree was actually PAID FOR.
3. Barack Obama vetoed the lighting, citing that he needed until 2013 to decide if the tree was a good idea or not.
4. An Occupy DC protestor accidentally drove a tent spike thru the extention cord.
5. The power was deliberately cut off until Grover Norquist had the tree sign a promise that it would BE LIT, and ALWAYS stay lit.
6. Boehner was following directions from Mitt Romney, who kept saying, "Turn it on. No wait - shut it off! No, wait - turn it on!"

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Once We Ruin Earth, We Can Start Over.. 620 Light Years Away

2011-12-07T20:31:00.000-05:00

Scientists Discover a 'Goldilocks Planet' - Not Too Hot, Not Too Cold ... Just Too Far.

And now for some good news - sort of. Word is that NASA scientists have located a planet that is perhaps the most similar to Earth ever seen. It's in a zone with a star very similar to the Sun, and the distance from it may allow it to sustain life, but they're really not sure at this point. Hell, they don't even know if it has an atmosphere or clouds yet.

If it seems like these guys are somewhat speculating , they are. You see, the planet, called Kepler 22b, is over 620 light years away. Still, it gives us all hope. I'd comment on it further, but me and this girl are hopping in our space traveling pod, and headed for the place now, where we will be like Adam and Eve, and try to get it right this time. Don't worry - I brought along extra sodas and Twinkies for the trip....

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Marking the Day of Infamy .

2011-12-07T20:02:00.000-05:00

Pearl Harbor Day Hits It's 70th Anniversary...

We're making a quick post today to note the anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor - a day that cost the United States 12 ships, 160 planes and over 2400 American lives..

There is little to add to the event. Most people who were alive that day remember exactly where they were when they heard of the attack that launched us into World War II. The sad part is that number is dwindling with each passing day. Worst news of all is the word that the Pearl Harbor Survivors group has decided to disband - partly due to the age of the men who lived, and because there are so few of them left. Soon, Pearl Harbor will be like World War I and the Civil War, where stories are passed down from generation to generation - and exagerrated and distorted. Such is how things go...

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Today's Founders Quote: Understanding Principles

2011-12-05T12:49:00.000-05:00

"There is no part of the administration of government that requires extensive information and a thorough knowledge of the principles of political economy, so much as the business of taxation. The man who understands those principles best will be least likely to resort to oppressive expedients, or sacrifice any particular class of citizens to the procurement of revenue."

- Alexander Hamilton, 1788.

Hamilton hits the nail right on the head here, and it explains why we are having such trouble with our taxation system right now. Basically, it takes a certain skill to be able to determine fair taxation and how it affects the economy... Need a reason why the Supercommittee was doomed from Day One? Take a look at it's members, and see how many of them have ANY expertise in finance or economics... If America can make an equitable , simple tax system, then she will progress, and the divisions between classes will lessen.

Now, this is the first time we had a guy in one of our Founders Quote pics.. We kinda HAD to put Dale Earnhardt Jr here, because he was glued to his girlfriend, Amy Reimann, at the NASCAR Awards this month. We would be too - she's hot! No wonder Dale had an off year. Again...

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Kooky Picture of the Day...

2011-12-05T12:10:00.000-05:00

For those of you who think we are strange, we let you know this.... Our friends are MUCH, MUCH stranger! This was a pic from a co-worker who found this on a wet floor sign at work. The artist was another co-worker, who first did this on a similar sign at the hospital where his dying father was at... The things you think about in moments of stress, eh?

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Florence Leaders Show How It's Done....

2011-12-04T15:41:00.000-05:00

Former Rivals Leatherman, Wukela Join Forces to Fix Oakland Ave.

As we often state, DC is in gridlock. Political affiliations matter more than the idea that the person who brought it up is. The greatest idea on Earth is meaningless if the member is a 'D', and you're and 'R' or vice versa. Quite possibly the biggest reason nothing happens, partisanism to us is a four letter word - with a few extra letters for good measure.

Republicans in Florence County often get very frustrated with both sides of the aisle. Nothing is as it seems. All Republicans are former Democrats, and most Democrats are Republicans who are afraid of losing by not getting the black vote. Yeah, it's a generalization, but it's true for the most part. The good part about it is that the nebulous and fuzzy party affiliations often make the strangest - and most constructive- of bedfellows...

Case in point. In 2006, Sen. Hugh Leatherman (R-Florence) was up for re-election against a young attorney, Stephen Wukela. No one gave Wukela much of a shot against Leatherman, but Wukela gave a good race, and showed that he had some chops to be a good candidate for the Democrats - he just was running for the wrong office. Leatherman won handily, but Wukela would soon be back when the right job came up.

Fast forward two years... Wukela takes on current Mayor Frank Willis (Republican in disguise?), and Wukela stuns Willis by a single vote. Meanwhile, Leatherman pisses off a good portion of the local GOP by talking any and all viable candidates from running, so when Wukela wins, there is NO Republican opponent. A token independent candidate runs, and Wukela rides to victory, based on his hard work, and some help from the Barack Obama wave....

Now, many candidates win and think the hard work is done, but what does a smart winner do? He shores up his weak spots, and works with the other side to build his base. Meanwhile, rather than just resting on his laurels, Leatherman recognized (along with a lot of others in town) that Wukela has done a pretty good job, and will likely cruise to re-election in 2012. So, what does each do? They find a way to make some good happen, and stick it to a common foe.

That foe, of course, is City Councilman Ed Robinson. His home base is North Florence, easily the poorest section of town. Oakland Avenue is the crown jewel of poor there: a main drag of no commerce, poor drainage and too many kids loitering in front of a gas station with more security gating than any place I've ever seen. Robinson's solution is not more cops, but a building for them to play basketball. Leatherman and Wukela have a better idea: infrastructure, and the possibility of commerce.

Wukela and Leatherman announced a major project to redo Oakland Avenue, which includes improving drainage and I'm sure some aesthetic improvements. If you've ever been to Oakland Avenue, you know there is absolutely NO commerce going on. You have to build the sewers and roadways to attract businesses there first. Yeah, kids need places to play, but their parents need places to work. That, and if your neighborhood looks better, you're more apt to show more pride in it.

Politically, it's extremely smart and shrewd. Wukela has already amassed an impressive list of staunch Republican supporters, including Kingmaker Eddie Floyd. Hickory Head will have no trouble getting re-elected, as long as he gets more than the 400 votes Robinson gets every 4 years. Meanwhile, Leatherman is Leatherman.. the job is his til he quits or dies... Meanwhile, Robinson has little response for the improvements if he does run. It might be time to just admit these guys DO care at least a little bit about fixing his neighborhood...

Thanks to bi-partisanism, North Florence will look a lot better, and have a shot at a brighter future. For it, Leatherman and Wukela will be rewarded with easy re-elections. You see, it actually works. Washington, are you listening?

If We Could Color Code Stupidity.....

2011-12-04T14:28:00.000-05:00

Uhh, We Guessing The Part of the Label That Says 'Coca-Cola' Lets You Know What the Product Is, Not the Color of the Can!

    Working in retail, we are never surprised at the mindlessness of consumers. They don't think about anything involving products they purchase, how they work, and how to operate them. If I had a dollar for everytime I had a customer ask 'can't the car just DO IT for me??' ..... well, I'd have probably about 13 dollars. That's what operators manuals are for..

   No, we don't want to have to think about anything. This is America - we want what we want, we don't want to have to learn or think- and if you can't do it, we'll find someone who can. That is, until they realize they can't, and we'll find someone else, until we finally end up back at your doorstep. Then the cycle starts all over again....

   In retail, branding is everything. Even little kids know the Golden Arches before they're two years old, and their parents are no different. God forbid if you change even the color of your product. Coca-Cola is finding that out. It's Christmas season, and the usual colors are red and green. Well, Coke is already in a red can, so they decided to make a special can, with proceeds going to the World Wildlife Fund. We'll avoid anything on that, and just stick with the can...

   Coke decided to use their famed Polar Bear motif (A Christmas staple), but instead of red, they went with a white and silver can. The problem is, comsumers are brainlocked to think that the silver can is DIET COKE, not regular Coke. Nevermind that it says COCA-COLA... People just think 'Duh, Silver Can, Diet Coke'. It wouldn't matter if the label said 'Rat Poison' in Diet Coke font, as long as the can is silver, they'd buy it. And if there's one thing we know, diet soda drinkers CAN'T STAND sugared cola! Right up to the point of the can touching their lips, people weren't noticing.. They didn't know the gun was loaded....

   Naturally, there was Diet Coke drinker outrage. So, Coke was forced to introduce new red cans for the promotion. Here is where I have a little expertise.. I worked for one of the labelmakers that makes the Coke cans. They may look similar, but for each promotion, there is a new label that must be designed, approved, printed ,shipped and affixed for the cans. It takes probably 2 months to do all of this... So now Coke and the labelmakers have ten of millions of useless labels, and the WWF may lose millions of dollars in donations - all because we don't take the time to read. Next time, maybe they'll require an eye exam at the supermarket to buy stuff....

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The Light Bulb Goes Off On the Payroll Tax

2011-12-04T13:15:00.000-05:00

You Might Think Our Payroll Tax Solution Is Goofy..... But At Least It Is Equitable ..

    One thing you have to say about us: we always try to give solutions to issues that affect America. As negative as it may seem we are, there is always a point to it. That, and we can focus on the big picture, even in the most stressful of situations. Wait, that's TWO things. Anyway, we move onto the topic....

   There we are, no more than ten minutes since being fired from our job, and we're driving home, listening to POTUS, as usual. The subject was what to do about the payroll tax.  Suddenly - like a thunderbolt - we had an idea that we think is the most fair. No, we don't think it'll ever happen, and we're sure a lot of you will hate it. But, we live in the real world, not the world of 'principles'...

    The Payroll Tax refers to the tax paid for Social Security. When it was enacted, the Dems refused to call it that, fearing that it would be viewed as defunding the Social Security Trust Fund - which it is. The Payroll Tax cut has sped up the insolvency date of the fund, so you have either of two options: cut benefits, or increase funding. You can't do nothing....

    Republicans are getting their asses kicked on this issue, because they are demanding that it be paid for. They are in a very tight spot, because by doing nothing, households will be back to paying more taxes - and these are middle to lower income households. Right now, high income earners do not give a damn about this, becuase they earn WAAAAYYY past the $110,000 cap on the tax. We talk a lot about tax fairness. Well, the Payroll Tax is perhaps the most UNFAIR and slanted tax against lower income people around. The rate is 6.2%, up to a max of that $110,000, so if you make $500,000 then your effective rate is only 1.24%... If you made a million, it's only .62% - you paid the same dollar amount as a middle class worker. Doesn't really sound equitable, does it?

    Here is our plan. Keep the payroll tax at the discounted 4.65% for everyone, but eliminate the cap. If we thought DC could do anything with Income Taxes, we'd give them a chance with it, but that's not happening.... Plus, an income tax adjustment is a general fund increase, which could give Congress a free ride to spend more overall. To us, we at least see a benefit to saving Social Security, although raiding the Trust Fund always worries us. To at least give higher earners some degree of fairness, raise the max payment 10%... If there is overfunding from the CBO, then cut the rate even further. We're fine with that.

    Republicans want it paid for, and this is the only way. The 'Job Creators' argument is flawed, and we think we did an adequate job of debunking it last week. No, there will be no job creation with any of this.  If it needs to be paid for, someone somewhere has to pay.  Hiking taxes on the middle class is the worst move possible... It's simple: the rich and mega-rich don't pay a dime for it, and they need to. All we are proposing is making the Payroll Tax a flat tax.... What is unfair about that?

    Social Security Payroll Tax is something that we all pay, so simply continuing that tax will result in everyone's check being the same all year. Higher income earners can handle the lack of change. We'd rather see a fix to income taxes, but today, this is the issue on the table. We're all ears, so if you have a better plan, we're all ears. If you want to pay for it, taxes must go up, or benefits cut.  There is no magic bullet.. If you don't like it, then find us a job, and we'll have no time to work on America's problems again!

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Today's Founders Quote: Convincing Proofs of Truth

2011-12-04T11:38:00.000-05:00

"I have lived, sir, a long time; and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?"

- Benjamin Franklin, 1787.

It surprises me to hear this one from Ben Franklin, who was very pragmatic - and quite the ladies man... But, he was about 81 at the time, and people get very reflective when they see their time coming. We tend to think that God is a lot like DC and business: God set the table for us by giving us everything needed to make a perfect world, and it's up to us to make it a reality. We either screw it up or make it happen....

One thing that we see God's hand in making is Teresa Palmer. Ladies please note: you don't need to worship the tanning salon to be hot. Yeah, we have a thing for pale chicks... Could bounce a quarter of that tummy!

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Cartoon of the Week .... Buy One , Get One Free

2011-12-04T11:23:00.000-05:00

Not a bad week in Cartoonland this week... Lots of Christmas related stuff, but not that great. Another one equating Newt Gingrich with the Wizard of Oz was interesting, but it lacked the oomph to make the cut. Instead, we stayed with topical news of the week. Another week, another Rick Perry flub... Rick, you only have to be 18 to vote, and the election is November 6th. Not it really matters for you, because we don't think you'll be in the race by then!

    Meanwhile, it IS Christmas season....and the overzealous shoppers were out once again. When you have to use pepper spray to calm people down, things are getting out of hand - unless, of course, it's a $2 waffle iron on sale!  Luckily, it wasn't pepper spray on sale. That really could have been ugly. Now we know why gun stores don't have Black Friday sales!

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SC6 Breaking News: Cain Train Comes to a Screeching Halt

2011-12-03T18:23:00.001-05:00

So Long, Pizza Man... We Hardly Knew You !

      A quick post to note the news that Herman Cain has suspended (re: quit) his campaign for President. If Cain went into this to up his name recognition, then he has certainly succeeded. Rick Santorum and Jon Huntsman haven't come even close to the juice Cain had going for a little while there..

     Unfortunately, Cain 2012 will be known for two things: 999 and Sexual Harrassment. Maybe Santorum and Huntsman are lucky.. While Cain added a different and necessary element to the race, there was no chance of him winning. 999 is ridculously slanted towards the upper income earners, he had ZERO foreign policy knowledge, and as far as the harrassment claims, there is more smoke than a High Times magazine readers convention. Do they have a convention? Anyway....

    Give hime some credit. Cain was smart enough to recognize that the past month is putting great stress and embarassment on his wife and family. They didn't ask for this, and likely knew nothing of it, but they deserve to get their own privacy back. Cain is doing the right thing. Hopefully, he won't have the stupidity to get back in...

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Good News In Unemployment.... Or Just a Hiccup?

2011-12-03T14:40:00.000-05:00

Unemployment Rate Dips to 8.6% ... We'll Drink to That!

     Once again, we are the salmon swimming against the stream... While America was stuck in the economic tank, we managed to stay employed. Now that we lost our job, America finally seems to be making a recovery. Personally, we can only hope, for our own sake, that America hits the skids once more...

    The big question right now is whether the .4% sudden drop in the jobless rate is a true sign that we have turned the corner. The answer is: we don't know yet, but we're not quite convinced. All you can do is read the numbers....

     Here's the good news: there were nearly 600,000 less unemployed in November, 2011 than in October. Yep, good news indeed. Not totally good, though... Only 278,000 found new jobs - mostly through retail jobs for the Christmas season. More than 300,000 quit searching for work last month. Yes, non-work seekers DO NOT count towards the unemployment rate. So, it wasn't as good as it might look on the surface...

    We're figuring that December will be pretty similar. Retail numbers for Black Friday and Cyber Monday were very good, so most of the temporary hires will stay on through return season and New Years. The real question is how many will stay. Often in an economic turnaround, retailers will keep some of the temps on, and unemployemnt stays the same. So, the real test will be January, and into February. If it holds at 8.6% or drops, then we might finally be getting somewhere. Businesess are still waiting for all the indicators to be there, and they're not. But maybe soon....

    Politically, it's reason for Obama to smile, but there isn't any reason to take credit, nor to think that this will win him re-election in 2012... There is a historical unemployment rate that wins or loses elections, and Obama is nowhere near it yet.. But if it drops another point by next November, it may be enough. WAAAAAAAYYYYY to early to tell. We'll see.

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We Find Ourselves In Familiar Territory..

2011-12-03T14:06:00.000-05:00

      Yep, we got laid off again this week. We saw it coming for a little while now, but it's never fun getting fired. After 25 months of consistent employment (our longest stretch since 1997-2005), we were cut loose. It's not really any fault of our own.. We made it through 4 managers during our last run, but Number Five decided to bring in his own people (3 of them), and someone had to go...

    Numberswise, it was destined to be me. I closed the department, so I came in one hour behind everyone else, which cost me about 20% of the customers. To make up for the lack of work, I would work on the walkins, which are mostly bulbs, tires and other short work that lowers the averages that bosses make their decisions on... Now, someone else's numbers will drop.

    From here, we're not sure where we will go. Maybe we'll stay in the car biz, but we sure enjoyed the last job we had out of it.. 60-65 hours a week takes it's toll on a person. We likely will stay on Long Island initially to try and find work, but if it doesn't go well, we will probably end up back in Florence. No sense paying for two places with no money. Of course, the job market in Florence sucks with a capital S... It's all up in the air right now.

   For all the people I know in politics, and it being that time of year, you'd think I'd find a gig with the SC Primary coming, but we doubt it. I'll land on my feet somewhere - I always do, right? When I know where it is, you'll be the first to know...

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SC6 Remembers Chester McGlockton

2011-12-03T12:49:00.000-05:00

          We don't always note the passing of athletes, but Chester McGlockton's dying of an apparent heart attack at 42 touched us on many levels. First off, he did play at Clemson, and he was only 2 years younger than I am. But, the most important part is that we actually met him..

       In fact, he came to my apartment once. For those of you who don't know our life history, I spent my first two years of college at East Carolina. Sophomore year was spent at a townhouse with three guys from Whiteville, NC - and their three girlfriends, all from 'Whatville' as well... So, having group parties filled with people from Bulldog country was pretty common. Whiteville was a small 2-A school in Columbus County, but they produced a nice crop of jocks: Patrick Lennon was the first overall draft pick in the 1986 baseball draft. Actually, he was a customer of mine up here. The NC tags gave them away. There also was Tommy Greene, who eventually pitched a no-hitter and made it to 1993 World Series for the Phillies. Chet, as he was called, just won the state titel, and was on his way to Clemson..

    Usually, everyone tells stories about how this guy is going to make the pros, but it their cases it was true. Chet was a mountain of a guy, even at that age. Back then, he played tight end, but it was his size and speed that would get him to the NFL. He was a 4-time Pro Bowler - one of the best at his position- and last was an assistant coach at Stanford...

    We won't get into the discussion of whether NFL players are threatening their future health by doing what they need to make it there today. For today, we'll just remember him for what he did on the field, and by all acounts of people we know well, was a great guy...

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Like 500 Lawyers at the Bottom of the Ocean...

2011-12-03T11:19:00.000-05:00

After 32 Years, Bahwny Fwank Calls it Qwits ....

      P-Luv's gonna get riled up on this one initially... No, we don't think ever attorney needs to be drowned. But we can think of a lot of congresspeople we'd like to toss off the side of a boat. Both sides... BTW, is it just us, or does Barney Frank look like one of the pigs from Angry Birds??

     Well, the big news out of DC this week was the impending retirement of Barney Frank (D-MA). One of the more colorful members of Congress, and the first openly gay member of the House, Frank has decided to call it a political career.. Why now? A press corps member on POTUS put it best. Once you become a Chairman, and you lose it, it's hard to back to being a committee member. If you think your party will take over control of the House again, you stick it out, and try to get your old job back. If not, you retire.  Lots of House members quit every term, but this is a pretty good sign that the Dems don't think they will take it back next year...

     Frank is one of the more interesting members in DC. Like most people, he's not all bad, but in the end, he is a pretty good example of what s wrong with Washington.  Frank was one of the more honest members of the House, in that at least he told you what he thought, even if it were wrong. And he actually was pretty funny, speech impediments aside. We also appreciate his work for protecting consumers. No, Dodd-Frank is far from perfect. Is it as bad as Republicans say it is? Probably not. like most legislation, it's somewhere in between....

    But, we're not crying for Frank leaving, for a couple reasons.  First, we think he was a bit classless at his announcement. We heard a good portion of it, and we think he spent way too much time attacking Newt Gingrich.  If Newt were at he bottom of the GOP polls, would he be on him so much? We doubt it... He also mentioned that now, he could say what he felt instead of being so nice..   ?????? Oh yeah... there's the question of him taking so much campaign money from Wall Street while Chair of the Finance Committee. Fox watching the henhouse again...

    Frank reminisced about the Good Old Days, when he first got to Congress in 1981. He said they used to work together, and hang out with each other. True, but let's ask a pretty valid question: If it was that way when you got there, and now you're in charge, don't you think you should take some responsibility for the breakdown? Not if you're a politician, and in the end, that's what Barney Frank is. No better, no worse. The sad part is, there are plenty more of him there, and possibly even more hardliners who never heard of the word compromise. It almost makes us wish they took the 'D' or 'R' away when they re on TV, so we could just take each of them at face value.

     The good news is eventually, they all go away. We just hope they are replaced with new and improved parts. For those of you not familiar with Angry Birds, this is what we're talking about....

C'mon now... You know we're right!

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SC6 Music Pick: Lady Antebellum, 'I Run To You'

2011-11-27T16:25:00.000-05:00

SC6 Goes Country ????

Well, not totally. But, the big news in Flotown last night was the appearance of one of the hottest acts in Country Music at the Civic Center. For those of us used to seeing the Baptist Convention or WWE Wrestling on the banner, it was a refreshing change.

Though we are not big fans of the genre, we have plenty of friends who are, and someone special got a nice little Christmas present from us yesterday! Yes, there are some perks for being friends with us.... Sometimes. So, in appreciation of Lady A's visit to the Pee Dee, we are playing 'I Run To You'. Shoot, even we know this one. Enjoy, and we'll see you next week.....

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs38lKxmtI4

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GOP Opens Itself Up For a Lot of Criticism ...

2011-11-27T15:44:00.000-05:00

It All Depends On Which Way The Sign is Pointed...

      As a centrist (or shall we call it a realistic) Republican, I often find myself shaking my head or getting my butt critiqued by people for what I would call the unrealistic sidde of my party. You know them - the ones jumping all over Newt Gingrich's Illegal Immigration stance, and getting nothing done for signing no new tax pledges.   While calling it principled may be one thing, it's that refusal to bend that is slowly wrecking our country. Principles are nice, but let me ask you: If you are anti-capita punishment, do you not shoot the guy who broke into your house and has a gun at your wife's head. Just an example...

    Back to reality... Watching Fox News Sunday, like I usually do, Chris Wallace all but admitted that the GOP is shootig itself in the foot this week. He's right... Immigration is a tough nut to crack. We can try to keep illegals from crossing the border, but it's a limited effectiveness, along with monitoring businesses who hire them.  Michele Bachmann may be trying to rile up the right wing/Tea Party faction of the party, but there are two truths: first the Tea Party DOESN'T run the GOP, or make up the majority of it. Secondly, Bachmann hasn't put forth a single realistic planon any issue since she got in the race... She's grasping at straws, and if she wants to turn the steering wheel as far right as it will go, let her - but don't give her the time of day, because she's hurting the party...

     The real killer of issues this week is the upcoming ending of the Payroll Tax Cut.  Barack Obama is licking his chops over this one, because he has the Republicans in Congress bent over the trash can. The cut was a $20 per week cut on just about everybody in America. You might remember it a couple years ago. Well, it had a window - and that window ends at year's end. You'd think that a party opposed to raising taxes, which ending a cut does, would have an easy time on this one. Uhhh........ No.

     Of course, Republicans want two things: the tax cuts to be paid for, and for it to not hurt upper income earners - those who 'create' jobs. OK, for those of you who haven't gotten this on the first 244 times I explained how jobs are created, I'll do it again.... Here we go.

     Much as we'd like to think so, business owners do not just hire new employees because they personally have more money in the bank. Dickens may have forgotten to mention this, but Ebenezer Scrooge dies eventually.  he's not around anymore. Business owners hire more people because the demand for products necessitates hiring more people to make those goods and services. If they make more money without having to hire more people, they are entitled and God Bless them... Saying more people will be hired because the upper crust has more available cash is inherently disengenuous. Not a lie, just incorrect.

     How do jobs get created then? By giving CONSUMERS more money to spend and buy products, which creates demand. Rich people's extra income basically goes into the bank, middle class extra income goes back into the economy. It's that simple, and it's time the GOP stopped believing the bullshit that their donors tell them. For now, extend the cuts. Long term, end all the tax breaks for everybody, and install a three-tier Flat Tax, so everyone pays taxes, with one standard deduction at the Poverty Line. It's almost too simple....

    Wallace had Jon Kyl, fresh off his Stupor Committee victory - OOPS! We mean embarrassment - on the show, and Kyl looked like a MegaRich apologist... Luckily, he's leaving.  He could have used this period to do the right thing without re-election worries, but he didn't. We hope the rest of the party isn't going this way... If we become a bunch of 'principled', unrealistic morons, then we will get our asses kicked next year - Obama or not.

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