Political correctness, and cowardly businesses, have really gotten out of control.
There's a black hockey player named Subban. (Is it okay for me to point out he's black? The rest of the story depends on people knowing that he's black...)
He scored a winning goal, and a photographer took a picture of it, and apparently wrote the caption.
All the other players were white, surrounding Subban in the middle. The caption said that Subban was "the dark guy in the middle."
And the Canucks are beside themselves, apologizing that such a caption should never have been written, let alone published.
And I'm like, what on earth is the big deal?
If you've got all white guys in a photograph, and they're all unknown, you identify them by their numbers, sure. But if you've got all white guys, and one black guy, isn't it ridiculous to say, "Subban is the guy to the left of number 64," (if Subban's number wasn't visible, which it wasn't.)'
What on earth is wrong with saying "Subban is the black guy in the middle"?
Perhaps it's that he was called "dark" rather than "black" that caused the Canucks to start apologizing all over the place, but geez, that's hardly bad, either.
The fact that a major sports franchise like the Canucks feels it needs to apologize and grovel for something that is just common sense is very scary.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Friday, September 19, 2014
Scotland votes to stay in the UK
How much time and money was wasted, I wonder, by people campaigning to have Scotland leave the UK.
What does Scotland have to be unhappy about, and couldn't it have been fixed by spending the "let's form our own country" campaign money on whatever was causing the problems?
Politicians are politicians the world over. Scots politicians (I think the Scottish want to be called "the Scots," not "the Scottish") want the power that would come with ruling in their own government, whether than sharing the role with English politicians, I guess...
But just think of the expense that would have arisen if some of those Scots folk had got their own way... elections for new members of Parliament, would they have dumped the monarchy or started up their own? would people need passports to travel from England to Scotland - of course there'd be opportunities for income such as selling Scottish passports and Scottish stamps...
That's one thing I missed on my last trip to Europe, many years ago now.
I used to love getting my passport stamped as you went through customs... I was on a bus tour through Europe and never once had my passport stamped as we went through Germany, Czech (but not Slovaki) and some other countries I don't remember, and which I can't check by looking at my old passport because it was never stamped by them!
What does Scotland have to be unhappy about, and couldn't it have been fixed by spending the "let's form our own country" campaign money on whatever was causing the problems?
Politicians are politicians the world over. Scots politicians (I think the Scottish want to be called "the Scots," not "the Scottish") want the power that would come with ruling in their own government, whether than sharing the role with English politicians, I guess...
But just think of the expense that would have arisen if some of those Scots folk had got their own way... elections for new members of Parliament, would they have dumped the monarchy or started up their own? would people need passports to travel from England to Scotland - of course there'd be opportunities for income such as selling Scottish passports and Scottish stamps...
That's one thing I missed on my last trip to Europe, many years ago now.
I used to love getting my passport stamped as you went through customs... I was on a bus tour through Europe and never once had my passport stamped as we went through Germany, Czech (but not Slovaki) and some other countries I don't remember, and which I can't check by looking at my old passport because it was never stamped by them!
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Minnesota Vikings and anyone else under attack: Stop Apologizing and Just Do It
Adrian Peterson, running back for the Minnesota Vikings, apparently used a tree branch to discipline his 4-year-old son and hit him pretty hard, and was arrested in Texas under charges of child endangerment.
Peterson says he did nothing more than discipline his son the way he had been disciplined.
The courts say he went to far.
Now, I'm not saying that Peterson wasn't out of line to hit his son with a "switch" or "tree branch" - but who can trust courts these days? Parents can't discipline their kids by just spanking them, either, which is why there are a lot of awful kids out there.
So just because a court says it was child abuse, I don't know if the guy needs to be arrested and go to trial for it. Just tell him - look, you can't use a switch on your kid, so don't do it again.
But here's the thing that's got me riled up.
The Vikings deactivated Peterson for one week.
I thought it was stupid - let the legal process play out first. It's not like he punched a woman so hard he knocked her unconscious, or went driving while drunk where he could have killed somebody.
But they did it.
Then, they reactivated him and said they'd let the legal process play itself out.
Did they not expect the firestorm that would erupt? Why not stand by your guns and defend your position.
Instead they fold, again, and now have deactivated him again.
Did they really not think that people would be upset if they reactivated him? Were they really unprepared for that "firestorm"?
Are they really going to let "the mob" dictate to them how they're going to run their business and who their on-field personnel are going to be?
Why not just let Peterson play one week... and if half the stadium was empty on Sunday then they'd know they'd have to deactivate him again...
But I would have been very surprised if the staidum hadn't been sold out.
Although perhaps people who wanted to go to the game would have had to wade through protesters...
It is getting scary, though, how businesses are spineless these days.
And clueless.
Again, I'm not condoning what Peterson did, but it's not as if he beat the kid into a coma or anything of that nature. Surely the guy just made a mistake and can be told, "Don't do it again." Making a court case out of it is ridiculous.
But at least people today can't say that other people care more about dogs than little children (ie the firestorm that erupted when Michael Vick was let back into football after serving his time.)
Peterson says he did nothing more than discipline his son the way he had been disciplined.
The courts say he went to far.
Now, I'm not saying that Peterson wasn't out of line to hit his son with a "switch" or "tree branch" - but who can trust courts these days? Parents can't discipline their kids by just spanking them, either, which is why there are a lot of awful kids out there.
So just because a court says it was child abuse, I don't know if the guy needs to be arrested and go to trial for it. Just tell him - look, you can't use a switch on your kid, so don't do it again.
But here's the thing that's got me riled up.
The Vikings deactivated Peterson for one week.
I thought it was stupid - let the legal process play out first. It's not like he punched a woman so hard he knocked her unconscious, or went driving while drunk where he could have killed somebody.
But they did it.
Then, they reactivated him and said they'd let the legal process play itself out.
Did they not expect the firestorm that would erupt? Why not stand by your guns and defend your position.
Instead they fold, again, and now have deactivated him again.
Did they really not think that people would be upset if they reactivated him? Were they really unprepared for that "firestorm"?
Are they really going to let "the mob" dictate to them how they're going to run their business and who their on-field personnel are going to be?
Why not just let Peterson play one week... and if half the stadium was empty on Sunday then they'd know they'd have to deactivate him again...
But I would have been very surprised if the staidum hadn't been sold out.
Although perhaps people who wanted to go to the game would have had to wade through protesters...
It is getting scary, though, how businesses are spineless these days.
And clueless.
Again, I'm not condoning what Peterson did, but it's not as if he beat the kid into a coma or anything of that nature. Surely the guy just made a mistake and can be told, "Don't do it again." Making a court case out of it is ridiculous.
But at least people today can't say that other people care more about dogs than little children (ie the firestorm that erupted when Michael Vick was let back into football after serving his time.)
Friday, September 5, 2014
The Times Magazine cover: The Tragedy of Ferguson
I haven't read this issue yet, but I find the cover extremely interesting.
It shows a man, *kneeling on the ground*, with his arms up.
The implication being that "the gentle giant" was kneeling on the ground with his hands up when he was shot by the police officer.
Was this the case?
No.
When you've got a 6 ft 4 guy coming at you, disobeying orders to stop and get on the ground, then you shoot him, regardless of whether or not he has his hands up. Because if he gets close enough, he grabs you, overpowers you, and takes your gun.
But Time seems to want people to think that "the gentle giant," was in fact defenseless.
A far cry from 20 years or so ago, when it....or was it Newsweek? deliberately darkened O. J. Simpson's skin color, when they put him on the cover after being arrested for his wife's murder, to make him seem more menacing.
Now they seem to have gone in the opposite direction - all blacks accosted by police are innocent and being harassed, and all white cops kill them without compunction or a second thought.
(Never mind that a white cop shooting a black individual is very rare... how many riots have we had over this - two in the last few years, the Trayvon Martin case and this one? And how many blacks have been killed by blacks in Chicago.... in the last week? Where's the outrage and the call for change over that, Mr. Obama, Mr. Sharpton, Mr. Jackson, and UN?)
It shows a man, *kneeling on the ground*, with his arms up.
The implication being that "the gentle giant" was kneeling on the ground with his hands up when he was shot by the police officer.
Was this the case?
No.
When you've got a 6 ft 4 guy coming at you, disobeying orders to stop and get on the ground, then you shoot him, regardless of whether or not he has his hands up. Because if he gets close enough, he grabs you, overpowers you, and takes your gun.
But Time seems to want people to think that "the gentle giant," was in fact defenseless.
A far cry from 20 years or so ago, when it....or was it Newsweek? deliberately darkened O. J. Simpson's skin color, when they put him on the cover after being arrested for his wife's murder, to make him seem more menacing.
Now they seem to have gone in the opposite direction - all blacks accosted by police are innocent and being harassed, and all white cops kill them without compunction or a second thought.
(Never mind that a white cop shooting a black individual is very rare... how many riots have we had over this - two in the last few years, the Trayvon Martin case and this one? And how many blacks have been killed by blacks in Chicago.... in the last week? Where's the outrage and the call for change over that, Mr. Obama, Mr. Sharpton, Mr. Jackson, and UN?)
Thursday, September 4, 2014
OT - IndieGoGo Campaign - The Speaker Pod
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/introducing-the-speaker-pod
I'd like to invite all my readers to check out an IndieGoGo campaign for the Speaker Pod. You can read some of the details below, but please check out the URL to see ALL the details, and view a video that shows how the Speaker Pod works - you'll be able to hear the difference in the audio as soon as you put a smartphone or MP3 player on the Speaker Pod.
Never heard of crowdfunding? Basically, there are several sites where people with an idea go, to request backers to help them produce that idea.
You aren't donating anything - you are a backer, and for your pledge you receive rewards - including a Speaker Pod or two.
I'm helping a friend with this, so please check it out if you like listening to music on your smartphone, or if you just like helping small entrepreneurs realize a dream.
I'd like to invite all my readers to check out an IndieGoGo campaign for the Speaker Pod. You can read some of the details below, but please check out the URL to see ALL the details, and view a video that shows how the Speaker Pod works - you'll be able to hear the difference in the audio as soon as you put a smartphone or MP3 player on the Speaker Pod.
Never heard of crowdfunding? Basically, there are several sites where people with an idea go, to request backers to help them produce that idea.
You aren't donating anything - you are a backer, and for your pledge you receive rewards - including a Speaker Pod or two.
I'm helping a friend with this, so please check it out if you like listening to music on your smartphone, or if you just like helping small entrepreneurs realize a dream.
If you love to listen to music wherever you go and are tired of carrying cables around, the Speaker Pod is for you! Join the Pod People!
Speaker Pod represents big sound in a small package. With its innovative acoustic mechanism, Speaker Pod delivers sound that is crisp, clear, and full-bodied. Sound emanates from your phone's speakers and envelops your ears, with no need for wires, cables or Bluetooth!
Our Speaker Pods, which come in snazzy green or basic black, have a starting cost of just $24!
Unlike our first iteration of this technology - the Boom Bx - Speaker Pod is powered by a rechargeable battery. Not having to buy batteries equals a savings cost to the consumer, and is of course a benefit to the environment. All the user has to do is use a mini USB (included) to charge their Speaker Pod.
The Speaker Pod has a simple on/off switch, which is much better than a push button when it comes to quality. (We discovered this with our Boom Bx, which had a push button. We quickly learned that an on/off switch is much more reliable.)
Simply turn the Speaker Pod on. Then, turn on your smartphone or MP3 player and start playing music. Place this device on the Speaker Pod, and immediately the music, crisp, and clear, will soar out into the room.
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