It's the End of the World as We Know It; I Don't Feel Fine

Fuck you Wilbur and Travelocity. You suck. Your workers were about as helpful as a rock. I may not be coming back from Texas. Ever. WHERE THE HELL IS MY EMAIL?!?!?!?!?!

Now I just hit my ulnar nerve, “funny bone.”

My blog is distorted.

At some point God got pissed at me. If he thinks I’m gonna back down, he’s wrong. I will fight to my death…which must not be too far off considering the way my day is going.

In a related story, I still hate Grey’s Anatomy.

Wha, Wha, Wha, What?

Here’s a fun game. Who said what?

Each name may be used once, more than once or not at all.

Tom Izzo
Jeff Zillgitt
Mike Davis
Rich Gallen
Stephen Colbert
Rasheed Wallace
Jon Cooley
Rip Hamilton
George W. Bush
John Snow
Scott Skiles

1. "I'm not going to start the game by cracking a cat in the skull if I don't get elbowed first.”

2. "In the second half, we probably outplayed them in every facet of the game. ... We just didn't execute in the last three minutes."

3. “He came to Bdubs and ordered Grey Goose. He can go f**k himself.”

4. "If there was a failure, we failed to recognize there might be a public reaction.”

5. “Anyone who likes NASCAR has never touched a vagina.”

6. "They literally complain about every call all night long. They are having a great year doing it. I'm not sure what that says."

7. "The younger staffs of these folks are convincing their bosses that if you really want to be president of the United States some day, you've got to get in with the crowd on Comedy Central.”

8. From Torino ... arrivederci.

Ohio State Moves Closer to Big Ten Title; MSU Out of Race

Michigan State had a chance to stay in the hunt for the Big Ten title. But that chance is gone now.

The Ohio State University outplayed the Spartans in the final ten minutes of the second half and walked away from the Jack Breslin Student Event Center with a 79-68 win.

Terrance Dials verified tonight that he is that best post-player in the Big Ten with a double-double performance, 19 points and 11 rebounds.

The Spartans are not a deep team and it showed late in the game as Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown could not find their legs to get solid jump shots.

The OSU did receive some favorable calls, a loose-ball foul on Dials that was not called, a push-off, both of which lead to six points on two threes. On the other side Paul Davis was called for a loose-ball foul and a push-off on Ager that negated a jump shot that brought MSU within two points late in the game.

The officiating didn’t matter. The Buckeyes outscored the Spartans 12-2 in the final three minutes, again illustrating Michigan State’s lack of depth off the bench as fatigue set in the Spartans starters.

MSU travels to Bloomington to play Indiana. Michigan State has only won at Indiana a couple of times since the mid-seventies. Things may only get worse for the Spartans.

Michigan State will at best be a five seed in the NCAA tournament. They will not get to play the first two games at the Palace of Auburn Hills and will probably be sent west into the Oakland bracket. MSU falls to 19-8 after starting the season 12-2, including 1-3 in their last four games. Not an impressive resume as the Spartans enter post-season play.

The OSU will play the University of Michigan at home and then close against two of the weakest teams in the Big Ten, Northwestern and Purdue.

Thad Mata’s team played an extremely weak non-conference schedule that included Florida A & M, Norfolk State, Belmont and Gardner Webb. Games like that will inflate a teams record, hence the Buckeyes getting to 20 wins this season. However, the OSU is a very good basketball team and showed it tonight in an impressive performance.

It was nice to see Thad Mata show some sportsmanship and shake hands with Tom Izzo after the game. When MSU escaped Value City Arena with a 62-59 victory earlier in the year Mata walked straight into the locker-room without shaking hands with any Spartan coach or player. Classy.

The NCAA will be ruling on previous violations by the Buckeye’s men’s basketball team soon. The OSU is accused of paying players from the former Yugoslavia to play at the OSU, professors taking exams and doing homework for certain players and paying for trips to Hawaii. This may be the last time the Buckeyes reach the tournament for some time.

Vote for the Quote Results

Thank you for all the suggestions and the votes.

I’m very busy right now between studying for my lab exam tomorrow, my pediatric exam on Friday and reading ophthalmology cases.

The Norm quote got four votes and Jon’s write-in Steve Martin quote received three. I like both, but the Norm quote was my favorite and it did get one more vote. Thus, my quote will be Norm MacDonald’s, “Laughter is the best medicine. Unless you’re diabetic. Then insulin is the best medicine.”

Thanks again. I will take a leave of absence (get the play on words…I’m stupid) until all my exams have passed and my life is a wee less crazy than it normally is.

Vote for the Quote

I would like you to help me help you, but I’m really not helping you, you’re just helping me. I think that was a run-on sentence. Whatever.

Every year the College of Osteopathic Medicine graduating class receives a yearbook that encompasses our four years of medical school. Each graduate is allotted one page. This page contains a formal picture, four pictures of one’s choice (I have my four picked already) and a quote.

I need help with my quote. I don’t want anything too serious, because there are going to be about 125 people with quotes along the lines of, “If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life,” or “I like helping people.”

To me these quotes are absolutely ridiculous. The only reason why anyone goes to medical school is to help individuals and make the world a better place. A quote like that is too obvious and borders on being insincere.

You see, people also go to med school for the pay, power and prestige that await them as doctors. However, you won’t see a quote like that in this yearbook. Everyone wants to sound sincere and thoughtful, but often that’s not true of their actually personality. They are all good people, just not necessarily as noble as their quote would try to make them appear.

With that being said, I want my quote to be funny or lighthearted. I love medicine. I know everyone I know knows that. I also know everyone I know knows how hard I work and how much I like school and learning. I don’t need a quote to confirm my desire to learn or practice medicine.

So could ya’ll help me pick a quote. I have chosen six finalists. If you think of a good quote not listed, you can suggest that too. If you prefer to vote anonymously, you can do that also. Thank you. Voting will end next Monday (2/20/06).

Thanks again.

1. Laughter is the best medicine. Unless you’re diabetic. Then insulin is the best medicine." Norm MacDonald

2. I am so smart! I am so smart! S-M-R-T! I mean S-M-A-R-T... Homer J. Simpson

3. I have never let my schooling interfere with my education. Mark Twain

4. You have your uvulus muscle, connects to your upper dorsimus. It's boring, but it's part of my life. Ron Burgundy

5. Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice?" Jack Handy

6. Maybe in order to understand mankind we have to look at that word itself. MANKIND. Basically, it's made up of two separate words "mank" and "ind." What do these words mean? It's a mystery and that's why so is mankind. Jack Handy

Spartans Lose Again; Home Court Advantage Out of Control

I won’t stop writing about this. I know no one else really cares, but I do. I love basketball and I hate to see it played by officials and not the players.

Going into this season I though the Michigan State Spartans were an over-rated team, but still had the potential to make a deep run in the tournament.

The Spartans are awful on the road in the Big Ten, and dropped to 2-5 with another lackluster performance against the Iowa Hawkeyes. MSU played well in stretches, but allowed Iowa to go on a 20-6 run in the first half and a 14-4 run in the second half.

Tom Izzo and his team deserved to lose the last two games. They played with less energy than Minnesota on Saturday and had poor execution and shot selection against the Hawkeyes.

MSU is now 18-7 and has lost two straight for the second time this year in the Big Ten. Even if State wins out they will be 11-5; their worst finish in the Big Ten since 2001-2002 season.

Now that I am done bashing my alma mater it’s time to bash the officials in the Big Ten. These officials make the game about them, whether it is missed or blatantly incorrect calls or over-acting on change of possessions. Take a look at these numbers. They are ridiculous.

The top seven teams in the Big Ten are 31-5 at home. At the Breslin Student Event Center MSU has out-shot its opponents from the free throw line 63/73 to 25/38. However, on the road MSU has been out-shot at the charity stripe 108/159 to 79/111.

Certainly the home team will play with more energy and more aggression, but teams can win on the road too. MSU is a fast break and attack the hoop team. The rest of the Big Ten are slow down, time possession teams. It is hard to imagine that the latter style of play would get more foul calls than the former.

The disparity in fouls is not only against/for MSU. Indiana out-shot U of M 16/25 to 4/5 earlier in the season. They out-shot Wisconsin 15/23 to 8/16 recently. In three of Iowa’s wins at home, they have out-shot opponents 29/47 to 51/69. However, their trip to MSU, they lost the free point battle 16/18 to 7/12.

The Spartans have been out-played in the last two games. They deserved to lose. However, home court advantage in the Big Ten has gotten out of control. Let the players decide the game.

Study Break Thoughts

I have nothing to write about, except having nothing to write about. It’s break time from studying and I figured I’d write a little.

Carlos Arroyo is not a great basketball player and he kinda looks like a goof-ball.

Vice President, Dick Cheney, shot someone today while hunting in Texas. It was probably an accident and if it wasn’t I’m sure his defense will be he was protecting nature from those who oppose nature’s freedom.

My apartment is cold. I have the heat really high, but it’s still cold.

I love digital cable. So many channels.

I study really slowly. It takes me forever to get through a chapter in my pediatrics book.

I got new running shoes. My legs have been destroyed over the years. I’m hoping these new shoes alleviate some of that pain.

Dwayne Wade must have awful coordination, or he is not very athletic. He spends more time on the floor than he does standing. And if someone touches him he goes flying into the fourth row seats.

Last week I wrote about how I thought the Big Ten would shake out. Whoa, was I wrong. Iowa looks strong, like I thought, but Michigan State played their way out of any chance of competing for the title. And U of M looks like a JV team, going 1-3 after their victory over MSU. Indiana is out of it. Illinois is out of it and Wisconsin is essentially done. The Spartans get to face OSU, Illinois, U of M and Wisconsin at home. They have to go to Iowa and Indiana. If State plays the way they did Saturday at Minnesota, they’ll be lucky to go 4-2 in that stretch.

Nobody will go see the Matador with me.

Grey’s Anatomy is the most ridiculous medical television show out right now and that’s including the overwhelmingly preposterous Fox show, House, MD.

Does anyone know of any good new rock ‘n’ roll bands? I would like to listen to something new. I hear the Arctic Monkey’s are good and the Subways are as well. Both are UK bands.

Thirteen days till Dallas.

Impeachment Odds

I don’t know anything about gambling. Maybe I could ask Janet Jones.

What will it take to get President Bush impeached? He’s got a couple of people upset with him and it’s not just those pesky liberals. Arlen Specter wants wiretaps for the White House and several other Republicans want an investigation of the administration’s surveillance plan.

So here are the four things that might bring President Bush down. I give them my impeachment odds (IO).

1. Domestic spying – I give this the best odds. People are not very happy. IO = 5:4
2. The Valerie Plame leak – Could this be like a mafia scenario and everyone rats everyone else out to save their self? That would be funny to me. Ole Scooter said he leaked the name only because his “superiors” told him to. Geez, who could that be? I’ll give you a hint, his name rhymes with evil and he loves to lie. IO = 5:2
3. Hurricane Katrina response – Apparently the White House knew about the levee the night it broke, but didn’t respond. Oppsy daisy. IO = 7:2
4. The Iraq War – another ex-CIA official stated the intelligence was manipulated. IO = 10:1

The “superior” in number two of course was Dick Cheney. I guess his name really doesn’t rhyme with evil, but he does love to lie and he is evil.

President Bush won’t get impeached, but people wanted to impeach President Clinton for getting a hummer from a White House Intern. Clinton shouldn’t have done that, but a BJ is not in the same class as spying on the American public, leaking a name of a spy to divert attention from a poorly designed war, ignoring a natural disaster and lying to the American public about the Iraqi threat.

I guess we as American citizens have a choice: peace, prosperity and blowjobs or war, poverty and no blowjobs. I like the first choice.

Diet and Cardiovascular Disease: Is There A Relationship?

The New York Times reported today that a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) stated dietary changes had no effect on the prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

This finding would (to steal Marx’s reference of Hegel) turn modern medicine on its head.

It is not uncommon for the media to incorrectly interpret and report findings found in medical journals. Medical literature is complicated and statistical analyses are often above even the most intelligent individual’s grasp. So it is unfair to blame the media’s shortcomings in reporting studies in medicine. However, the misinterpretation of studies almost always leads to the public becoming misinformed on a medical topic and questioning their physician’s knowledge.

Unfortunately, the New York Times was a recent victim of a medical study misunderstanding. In order to avoid any confusion among the five readers of this blog, one of whom is my dad who has documented coronary heart disease (CHD) – so listen up dad – I will do my best to explain this study.

As the New York Times reported, the current study was done by the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) and followed 48,835 females, between the ages of 50 and 70 years old, for 8.1 years. There were two treatment groups, one of which – the intervention group – received dietary modifications that included reductions in total fat (below 20% of energy expenditure) and high fruit, vegetable and grain intake. The other group – the control group – did not participate in this diet. The study was randomized, controlled and double blind. The authors concluded the intervention group did not have a statistically significant reduction in the primary end-points, fatal and non-fatal CHD, fatal and non-fatal cerebrovascular accidents (CVA) and cumulative CVD (both CVA and CHD), when compared to the control group.

As the late Mr. English used to say, “I agree with everything you just said, but there’s more.”

The first issue with this report is that it was done on post-menopausal women and the primary initiative of this study was to see if the low fat/high grain, vegetable, and fruit diet would decrease the risk of colorectal cancer and breast cancer (which the authors stated it did not reduce the risk). Thus, it is difficult to assess the validity of these results because the primary objective was not the prevention of CVD.

Secondly, the authors stated one significant limitation was the generalizability of these results beyond the sample studied. The women in this study had higher income, education and lower smoking rates than that of the general population. And because this study was limited to women, it is unclear whether these results are applicable to men.

Thirdly, as the authors also stated, eight years may not be long enough to expect significant reductions in CVD. Atherosclerosis (ATH), the formation of thrombogenic plaques on the walls of arteries, begins as early in life as 18 years old. Individuals could have had significant ATH, without history of cardiovascular events, i.e., myocardial infarction, and thus, they may be out of the window for dietary modification to have any significant effects on future CVD. That is, when the study began they were already headed down a path of CVD and dietary modification would only have a minor benefit anyway. If the diet had been started earlier, before the age of 50, perhaps around 18 years old, the diet may have had more significant effects.

Moreover, as Anderson and Appel illustrated in their review of this article, there has been a significant change in the paradigm of dietary risk factors in CVD since the WHI began in 1991. For instance, the literature now suggests modifying fat intake to protect against CVD. This study simple decreased total fat and some types of fats may be protective against CVD.

Finally, to fully asses the effect of diet on CVD, studies should include diets directed against known CVD risk factors, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes and weight as well as diets high in fish and fish oils. Anderson and Appel stated, “…the trial did not test current dietary guidelines for CVD prevention, none of which includes reducing total fat intake as a means to prevent CVD,” (pg. 695).

Although this study (which was a very well done study) concluded low fat/high fruit, vegetable and grain diets do not reduce the risk of CVD, this should not be thought of as support against healthy diets to control CVD. To fully reduce the risk of CVD individuals should stop abusing tobacco, regularly participate in physical activity and eat a diet consistent with the updated food pyramid.

As an interesting side-note, the authors of this study did find that increased carbohydrate intake had no long-term effects on LDL (bad cholesterol), glucose or insulin and thus did not increase the risk for CVD. This finding, along with several others similar to it, illustrated that the popular Atkins Diet is not effective in reducing the risk of CVD.

What is a Douche Bag?

I was talking to Jeni on the phone last night and called the new Lou and Harry’s crowd douche bags.

Then I decided to Google douche bags.

Here’s what came up:

The top five links were:
JohnKerryIsADoucheBagButIVotedForHimAnyway.com
(I voted for him too. And yes, he is a douche.)

IWR Photo Bush Cartoon - The King of the Douche Bags
(Very true)

Rock And Roll Confidential | Your Band Sucks
(Rob Thomas look out!)

The Sardonic Sideshow » Douche Bag Awards
(And douche bag of the year…five time champion George W. Bush!)

Douche - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Wikipedia defines douche as A douche (IPA /du:_/) is a device used to introduce a stream of water into the body for medical or "sanitary" reasons, or the stream of water itself. The word comes from French where its principal meaning is a shower; this is therefore a false friend for speakers of American English. The word can refer to the rinsing of any body cavity but usually applies to the vagina. A douche bag is a piece of equipment for douching: a bag for holding the water or fluid used in douching (the word can also be used as a verb). (See below for slang uses.)

The terms douchebag, d-bag, douche nozzle, bagadouche, and douche for short are also popular derogatory terms of insult or ridicule in North America. Such a person can also be said to be guilty of douchebaggery, or could also be described as being douchey. These terms can mean a variety of different insults, and have become popular in the comedic media:
1. Someone who is annoying, bossy or embarrassing.
2. Someone who is stupid, intellectually challenged or mentally deranged but less than clinically insane.
3. Someone who is unintelligently lying or scamming.
4. Someone who is arrogant, elitist or snobby.
5. Someone whom you don't like.
6. Someone who is socially inept.

The word douchebag was used in a skit for Saturday Night Live in 1980.)

The top image was this (totally awesome):


How do you use the term douche bag? What's your favorite douche bag term, i.e., bagadouche or douche nozzle? I like them all.

Big Ten Mid-Terms

Super Bowl, Schoomper Bowl.

Although it was nice to see Detroit so vibrant and it was fun hanging out with Jacob (sorry I didn’t call earlier and sorry about the plumbing), Nicole, Emily, Chris, DJ and Jeni at the worst, coldest and most expensive bar ever, it’s February and getting to the prime of college basketball season.

The teams in the Big Ten reached the halfway mark of their conference schedule and games are getting tighter and tighter. Wisconsin has lost three straight and maybe their chance at a conference title. Penn State pulled off an amazing upset last night snapping the Illini’s 33 game home winning streak. And the once cool Hawkeyes now look like a legitimate title contender.

Here are my mid-term reports on the deep and talented Big Ten Conference.

1. Iowa – the Hawkeyes look real good and have a somewhat favorable schedule leading into their last seven conference games. They get MSU at home and revenge will certainly be factor as the Spartans smashed Iowa earlier this year. The Hawkeyes close with two games at home. At 7-2, they are the favorites to close out this year with the Big Ten title.
2. Illinois – oh the Illini let a sixteen-point lead evaporate to a scrappy Penn State team. This loss exposed Illinois for what they are, a defensive oriented team that struggles to score consistently. That’s good for eight to ten wins in the Big Ten, but it won’t get you a championship. At 6-3, Illinois closes out with three of their last four on the road, including a trip to Ann Arbor and East Lansing. The Illini will get ten wins, but that’s it.
3. Michigan – the most dangerous team in the Big Ten. They play pressure defense and feel like they do not get any respect. They pulled off a solid win, with the help of three officials, against Michigan State and then blew out Wisconsin. Those are the Wolverines two big wins. They have a make-it or break-it game against the Illini at home and close with two straight home games. U of M is 6-3; expect them to get to twelve wins and a high seed in the NCAA Tournament.
4. Indiana – the favorite team in the coaches/ESPN Top 25 poll. How the Hoosiers could stay at number eleven for so long baffles me. Indiana is banged-up…again. And again, Mike Davis will be able to save his job by stating the injury bug story. The Hoosiers have four of their last six on the road, including a rematch with the Wolverines. In the first meeting Indiana won by seven, thanks to 16/25 to 4/5 advantage at the free throw line. The Hoosiers will get to ten wins, but won’t get a title this year.
5. Ohio State – Thad always seems to have his teams playing the best at the end of the year. At Xavier he knocked off un-defeated St. Joe’s at the end of the season. Last year his Buckeyes handed Illinois their only regular season loss. Unfortunately, they won’t be able to knock-off an undefeated team this year. The Buckeyes will face U of M twice and MSU at the Breslin Student Event Center. They will play Illinois at home and Wisconsin on the road. OSU is a good team, but the second half of the Big Ten will be difficult. I like them to go 5-3 in their last eight and get ten wins in the Big Ten.
6. Wisconsin – Rick Majerus believed the Big Ten championship would go through Madison this year. As he was saying that Wisconsin lost to North Dakota State University. Since that loss Wisconsin is 1-3 and have lost six of seven. Bo Ryan is a good coach, but his team is not very good, especially when they have to leave the Kohl Center. Wisconsin is 1-5 on the road this year. That’s right out of 22 games, the Badgers have only had to travel six times. Their remaining Big Ten schedule is brutal with three of their last four on the road as they travel to Iowa City and East Lansing. The Badgers will continue to slide and go 3-4 in their last seven to end at 8-8.
7. Michigan State – the most confusing team in the Big Ten. One game they are up, the next they are down. Shannon Brown has emerged as a prime-time player, but Maurice Ager continues to struggle with consistency. However, unlike Wisconsin, who has only played six road games, the Spartans have only played nine of their 22 games at the Breslin Center (they played “home” games at Van Andel in Grand Rapids and the Palace of Auburn Hills). The Spartans will close out the season at home against Wisconsin and Illinois. They will get U of M at home. However, they still have to go to Iowa City and Bloomington. If MSU wants a Big Ten title they must win out at home and win at Iowa. State will get either eleven to thirteen wins in the Big Ten; most likely twelve.

Purdue, Northwestern, Penn State and Minnesota are a combined 9-27 and do not warrant any discussion. Sure Purdue beat Wisconsin and Penn State had a huge upset over Illinois. Outside of that, these teams just aren’t able to compete for a title this year.

So here’s how the Big Ten will end the 2005-2006 regular season.

1. Iowa: 12-4
2. MSU: 12-4
3. U of M: 12-4
4. Illinois 10-6
5. Indiana 10-6
6. OSU 10-6
7. Wisconsin 8-8

Boehner Beats Blunt

It sounds like a pothead’s political joke.

Is his name really pronounced boner? If it is, his name is totally awesome.

However, John Boehner as a person…not so sure. He handed out checks from tobacco companies to fellow GOP colleagues in the mid-nineties. And recently he has been criticized for accepting gifts from lobbying firms and special interest groups.

Isn’t that why the other jerk-off, Tom DeLay, resigned as House Majority Leader? How long before Boehner falls victim to accepting bribes and committing other unethical crimes?

Hopefully Boehner can keep things straight, erect new bills that are hard on soft money and ultimately climax in ethical ecstasy.

State of the Union Address, Part III

“There are fewer abortions in America than at any point in the last three decades, and the number of children born to teenage mothers has been falling for a dozen years in a row."
"These gains are evidence of a quiet transformation, a revolution of conscience in which a rising generation is finding that a life of personal responsibility is a life of fulfillment. Government has played a role. Wise policies such as welfare reform, drug education and support for abstinence and adoption have made a difference in the character of our country. And everyone here tonight, Democrat and Republican, has a right to be proud of this record."
"Yet many Americans, especially parents, still have deep concerns about the direction of our culture and the health of our most basic institutions. They are concerned about unethical conduct by public officials and discouraged by activist courts that try to redefine marriage. They worry about children in our society, who need direction and love; and about fellow citizens still displaced by natural disaster; and about suffering caused by treatable disease.”

Abortions are down. That is good news. However, the infant mortality is still inexcusably high. In 2002 the US had 7.00 deaths/ 1,000 births. That ranks the US 36th, behind such developed countries as Cuba and Taiwan. The infant mortality rate is even higher for minorities, with African Americans having had 14.1 deaths/ 1,000 births in 2000 (I was unable to find the 2002 statistics). Why don’t these numbers outrage the religious right and “protect-the-sanctity-of-life” folks? Infant mortality is a good measure of the health and well being of a population. More attention should be paid to this instead of only discussing abortions.

http://www.geographyiq.com/ranking/ranking_Infant_Mortality_Rate_aall.htm
www.cdc.gov

“Yet the destination of history is determined by human action, and every great movement of history comes to a point of choosing. Lincoln could have accepted peace at the cost of disunity and continued slavery. Martin Luther King could have stopped at Birmingham or at Selma and achieved only half a victory over segregation. The United States could have accepted the permanent division of Europe and been complicit in the oppression of others.”

I cannot believe President Bush has the audacity to mention his name in the same breath as these great leaders. Abraham Lincoln abhorred the inhumane practice of slavery and out of necessity engaged in a war to save the Union. Martin Luther King marched for civil rights and the end to oppression against minorities, 100 years after the Civil War was supposed have really made, “ever man created equal.” President Bush has violated civil liberties, waged an unjust war by lying to the world and divided the country into ultra conservative moralists and liberal activists who erode at good and morality. President Bush is not a leader like Lincoln or King. He is not a person of the moral integrity of those two men. He is not in the same stratosphere as those men as far as intellect and thoughtfulness are concerned. President Bush is a simplistic, narrow-minded ideologue, which will do anything, including lie, to advance an agenda that is not encompassing and good for everyone, but rather limited to a select number of extreme conservatives who desire nothing more than power and prestige.

President Bush didn’t tell any outrageous lies this year. However, his entire address was entrenched with contradictory statements (when compared to his actions) about freedom and honoring the soldiers who have perished in the Iraqi war, inaccurate statements about health care and vague definitions on how to “advance freedom” and secure “peace.”

Thank God, the American public only has to hear two more of these outrageous speeches by President George W. Bush.

State of the Union Address, Part II

“We now know that two of the hijackers in the United States placed telephone calls to Al Qaeda operatives overseas. But we did not know about their plans until it was too late. So to prevent another attack, based on authority given to me by the Constitution and by statute, I have authorized a terrorist-surveillance program to aggressively pursue the international communications of suspected Al Qaeda operatives and affiliates to and from America.”

In no way do these actions hinder the “advancement of freedom.” President Bush can supercede the law, because he wants to protect America. Again, memos entitled, “bin Laden Determined to Attack Within the United States” is not concrete. Abusing civil liberties is the only way to ensure freedom.

“Keeping America competitive requires affordable health care. Our government has a responsibility to help provide health care for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility.”

Really? Over 45 million Americans are un-insured; most of them are of lower socioeconomic status. Million more Americans are under-insured. How exactly is the government meeting the health care responsibility? Saying it does not make it so. I love vague statements!

“Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we have a serious problem. America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world.”

I’m not addicted to oil. I’d gladly drive a hybrid…if I could afford one. I hate paying 2.34/gallon. I hate reading about Exxon-Mobile having record setting profits in the fourth-quarter, while I struggle to pay rent and bills with my financial aid (I still love you financial aid, don’t be mad at me). What happened to all the research for hybrid cars President Bush touted a couple of State of the Union addresses ago? American politicians, namely everyone in your cabinet, are addicted to oil. I don’t think most Americans would be averse to alternative forms of energy.

“So tonight, I announce the Advanced Energy Initiative, a 22 percent increase in clean-energy research at the Department of Energy to push for breakthroughs in two vital areas. To change how we power our homes and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission coal-fired plants, revolutionary solar and wind technologies and clean, safe nuclear energy.”

I hope President Bush is telling the truth here. I like this idea. This is the second point that I am in agreement with President Bush.

State of the Union Address, Part I

I will give my response to the State of the Union address in two parts. It's too long for just one post.

Last night I was studying for my pediatrics shelf-exam. I took a break to watch some of the Pistons v. Nets basketball game (damn Nets) and then watch Scrubs at 9.00 PM.

Alas, Scrubs was not shown. Instead, the President gave his State of the Union address. So, instead of an hour of good and thoughtful medical comedy, I had to listen to President Bush lie for over an hour.

President Bush is an accomplished liar. From his days as CEO of Harken and insider trading to his time spent in the Alabama Air National Guard, George W. Bush has been able to dupe millions and millions of people.

In every State of the Union address he has given, he has had a couple of great lies. The best of course was the imminent threat of Iraq to the United States due to Iraq’s mass stockpiles of WMD’s.

So, what lies would President Bush conjure in his latest State of the Union? Would he lie about getting a blowjob? Nah, that could get a man impeached. Instead of just making things up, he provided contradictory statements that further validate this man as one of the worst Presidents the United States has ever seen.

“In a complex and challenging time, the road of isolationism and protectionism may seem broad and inviting, yet it ends in danger and decline.”

Great point. I actually agree with this statement. Isolationism is not a practical policy. Taken out of context, I like where President Bush is going with this.

“Abroad, our nation is committed to a historic long-term goal. We seek the end of tyranny in our world. Some dismiss that goal as misguided idealism.”

That is, tyranny that is profitable to US interests. We don’t care all that much about all the dictators in Africa, the genocide in Darfur or even abuses of civil liberties at home. Do not confuse US pre-emptive war and neo-con foreign policy with “misguided idealism”.

“Far from being a hopeless dream, the advance of freedom is the great story of our time.”

Spying on Americans and the Patriot Act do not count in the fight for freedom. I love the use of vague terms like freedom, tyranny and evil. What does he mean by this? If I were to tell a patient they had heart disease, but never defined what it meant, how could I establish an efficacious treatment plan? However, if one uses vague terms it allows for a little wiggle room when things go wrong. So President Bush is just buying time, because deep down he knows he is full of bull-sh*t.

“Terrorists like bin Laden are serious about mass murder, and all of us must take their declared intentions seriously.”

That is after September 11th, 2001. You see memos beforehand, entitled “bin Laden Determined to Attack Within the United States”, were not important. Now we know he is serious.

“There is no peace in retreat. And there is no honor in retreat.”

This isn’t GI Joe. If the world had not been lied to about this war, retreating would not be an issue. There is no honor in lying and there is no honor in waging an unprovoked war.

“Marine Staff Sgt. Dan Clay was killed last month fighting in Fallujah. He left behind a letter to his family but his words could just as well be addressed to every American. Here’s what Dan wrote: "I know what honor is. It has been an honor to protect and serve all of you. I faced death with the secure knowledge that you would not have to. Never falter. Don't hesitate to honor and support those of us who had the honor of protecting that which is worth protecting."
Staff Sgt. Dan Clay's wife, Lisa, and his mom and dad, Sara Jo and Bud, are with us this evening. Welcome. Our nation is grateful to the fallen, who live in the memory of our country. We're grateful to all who volunteer to wear our nation's uniform, and as we honor our brave troops, let us never forget the sacrifices of America's military families.”

Except Cindy Sheehan…you bitch. How dare you mourn the loss of your son and question Bush’s motives as a leader. He should have you arrested…

This was my favorite part of the speech. I hope everyone can see the doublethink applied here. We should honor the troops who have lost their lives, yet we should not honor those who have lost loved ones who question President Bush’s agenda. Earlier Bush stated only rational and peaceful debate should be used when discussing the war...as long as one’s thoughts do not disagree with his, then he'll have you arrested.