Jim's Thought of the Day

Was there truly nothing going on in the world today? Isn't Iran having some sort of problem? Isn't North Korea an atomic threat? Aren't we in a pretty deep recession?

Why then must I turn on the news and hear about Obama's swatting of a fly? And why wasn't the next part of that story how PETA was going to ask for the imprisonment of Obama after such a heinous act against a living creature?

Ah, whatever. I guess you got the same thing when you came to my blog today - looking for some great update and instead were left reading about a fly. It's a sign of the times....

Well here we are - post number 30. Time we discuss something good since the rest of what I've posted about has been on the negative side of the news.

President Obama feels it's not a good idea to get terribly involved in the electoral matters of Iran. Guess what - I agree! And thus, I think he's doing the right thing! April fools? Ha - NO!

So Iran holds it's elections and claims of fraud abound. Communication networks are blocked, broadcasting of the 'goings ons' are shut down, and Ahmadinejad calls for protests against the protestors. The Guardian Council says it will now recount a few of the districts to see if claims of corruption are well founded. Amidst all this, how can we stand idly by?

Iran is a mess. It's been a mess, and more and more people are realizing it. They have democratic processes, however horribly they were held. Yet the charades that are going on now, and the revolutionary protests that are occurring are all pointing more and more to the corruption that has overcome the country and the need for a truly representative government. For the US to now come in and impose some sort of holier than thou guidelines to Iran's diplomatic processes would actually hurt the possible revolution that may occur. I don't believe any help is needed to show that Iran is corrupt. When all that is getting out of the country is Twitter and other select few technologies, it's clear the current administration in Iran is oppressing it's people in a way that they simply don't want to put up with anymore.

Obama thinks it best not to meddle, and he couldn't be more correct. Let the situation work itself out and let the country of Iran determine it's own future and we'll probably be pleasantly surprised at the outcome. Don't ignore the situation by any means as we know Ahmadinejad is fully capable of something ridiculously stupid, but don't put our fingers in their kool-aid.

Perhaps the same idea would have worked with Wall Street and GM? Keep it positive Jim, keep it positive.

I hate to do it, but I have to post about the NBA Finals. Let me start off by saying I'm not a big fan of basketball. Having said that I watched every game in the playoffs. Every game but one - last night's final final game. And why did I watch the bulk of them? THERE'S NO FOOTBALL ON!

So, why do I post about the NBA then? Because I got so fed up in the 4th game of hearing about how Kobe Bryant is the greatest player who's ever lived. He's still playing! There's two teams playing! He's not yet won more titles than anyone else! But even more annoying than hearing that phrase, constantly, is hearing absolutely nothing negative about the guy.

Is Bryant good? Yes. Are the Lakers good? Yes. But when he takes a dump does it have to be perfect? When he throws an air ball, does it have to be planned? When he cheats on his wife, was it meant to be? Ok, last one was a stretch, but seriously now. The guy fouls someone - "Great Foul!". The guy takes a foul - "Great Foul!" The guy makes a shot uncontested - "Great Shot!" The guy trips - "Great Trip!" It just doesn't end.

I watch UFC alot, and I hear the same thing about Anderson Silva, and it drives me up a wall - "Greatest pound for pound fighter!" He'll get beat, I assure you of it. But to call these people the greatest ever, when their careers have a lot of time left, is just annoying. I know it happens in more than just these two sports, but never have I seen a guy make mistakes and get praised for it.

So - I didn't watch last night and I'm thankful for it. Maybe I should have gone and rioted with all the "Laker's Supporters" last night though, because finally the 9 month sport will go into remission for a couple months!