Latest poll reveals ethics concerns about the current Administration.

According to a recent Washington Post-ABC poll, 55% of Americans believe the recent indictment of "Scooter" Libby indicates wider problems in the current administration, while 41% think it's an isolated incident, and 4% either had no opinion or did not answer. The margin of error in the poll is plus or minus 4 percentage points. I can really understand why the 4% don't have an opinion yet, though if it's just because they're too lazy, then fuck 'em. I can see not wanting to form an opinion until all of the data is in. I can respect that as an intellectually-honest choice. However, this was the most powerful chief of staff for a vice-president in the nation's history, and he served under the most powerful vice-president in the nation's history. If the allegations are true, I can't see how this could be seen as anything other than a symptom of a wider problem within this administration.

Mr. Libby may be innocent of the crimes of which he has been accused. In the United States, as a matter of constitutional law and over two centuries of precedents, all accused are considered innocent until proven guilty. If he is found innocent, I believe he should receive a public apology. However, if he is guilty, I believe he should face the maximum punishment allowed by law. The leak of the identity of a CIA operative is a very serious thing and may have very serious national security implications for years to come. How likely is a foreign agent to speak to a CIA operative with the knowledge that some petty bastard may blow the cover of the person to whom they report? I'm not sure, but I would wager that the probability is diminished now. Also, how likely is a citizen of the United States to choose to become a CIA operative in light of this scandal? Again, I'm not sure, but I would wager that the probability is diminished, perhaps substantially.

There are plenty of other ways to do political damage to an Ambassador or other government official you dislike. That type of thing has been going on for as long as governments have existed, and certainly occurred under past administrations. This, however, went far beyond the pale. It is my deepest regret that perjury has not been adequately prosecuted under past administrations.

And then there were FIVE, and other Division I-A football musings...

The five in question is the number of undefeated teams in NCAA Division I-A football. Fourth-ranked Georgia fell from their number in a 14-10 loss to 14th-ranked archrival Florida.

In the rest of the undefeateds, after a first half scare, #2 Texas went on to rout Oklahoma State 47-28. #8 UCLA overcame a near-upset by Stanford by tying the game up in the last minute and forcing overtime, winning with a final score of 30-27. #1 USC easily destroyed Washington State 55-13. #5 Alabama easily demolished Utah State 35-3. And finally, #3 Virginia Tech handily beat #13 Boston College 30-10.

Also, in a game very close to my heart, #23 Tennessee lost yet again to an SEC rival, slipping to 3-4 and all but killing any bowl hopes this year. Unlike their three previous defeats, this comes not to a top-10 team, but to unranked South Carolina by a score of 16-15. My heart is all atwitter at that news.

Georgia still controls their own fate in the SEC East, while the picture is slightly more muddled in the SEC West. Alabama has three conference games left on its regular schedule, with the first being next week against Mississippi State. If Alabama wins out, the question becomes moot, but if Alabama defeats LSU, and Auburn defeats Alabama, it could be the Tigers of Auburn representing the SEC West in the championship game, not the Alabama Crimson Tide. All in all, there's still plenty of great football to be played and watched. So buy up your tortilla chips and salsa and a hearty supply of cold beer, and enjoy.

University of Alabama football-Week 8

Damn, I'm glad I got home early enough to catch the last few minutes of the first half. I wish I'd've been at Bryant-Denny Stadium yesterday afternoon. The final score was 6-3, with the Tide maintaining a perfect record of 7-0, but the scoreboard does no justice to what was happening on the field. It was games like yesterday's that shows exactly why the Southeastern Conference is the best conference in all of Division I-A football. This was not a game that was won by yards, but by inches. Tennessee played an excellent game, and against most other opponents, that would've been good enough, but the game was really decided on just two plays. The first play came in the third quarter, when 'Bama punted from deep inside their own territory. Tennessee's Lucas Taylor fumbled a punt around midfield and 'Bama recovered, eventually leading to the first points in the game at the close of the third quarter.

Tennessee tied things up with a field goal of their own with 11:52 to go in the fourth quarter, a play set up by a kickoff return to the Tennessee 46. The brutal fight continued until, with 5:08 left in the game, Tennessee looked to score on an excellent short pass on 3rd and Goal from the 'Bama 15. Tennessee's Cory Anderson was a scant yard or two from the end zone when 'Bama's Roman Harper got his helmet on the ball and popped it out like a cork. The ball rolled out of the end zone for a touchback and giving 'Bama the ball on their own 20. From there, a 43-yard pass to DJ Hall on 3rd and 8 and excellent time management led to the Tide's kicker, Jamie Christiansen, scoring a game-winning field goal for the second week in a row.

Tennessee falls to 3-3 (1-3 in the SEC), ending their season for all intents and purposes. The only reason they're in the top 25 is the fact that their three losses came to Top 10 teams (Florida, who had been ranked in the top 10 at the time of their meeting; Georgia, who is currently undefeated and ranked 4th in the nation, and 'Bama, also undefeated and currently ranked 5th in the nation). They face 57th-ranked South Carolina for yet another in-conference game next week, to be followed the next week by a battle against the 9th-ranked Notre Dame. The only importance of any games in Tennessee's future is to see if they can eke out a bid in a minor bowl. Their major bowl hopes died this week, and because of that, I'm very, very happy.

Alabama jumps to 7-0 (5-0 in the SEC), continuing their hopes for a national title and further illustrating why the BCS is a bad idea. Two of the top five teams in the nation are in the SEC, in different regions of the conference, and if things continue as they are, they will have to face each other for the conference title. One will emerge victorious, while the other will probably still get a strong bowl bid. Either way, if the winner is undefeated, there's still a good chance that they will be cheated out of the national title race for a second year in a row. The next two games are against the 105th-ranked Utah State and the 82nd-ranked Mississippi State, leading up to the vastly important games against LSU and the regular season ender against Auburn at the Iron Bowl. From there, they'll probably face Georgia at the SEC Championship Game, assuming things continue on their current course. At this point, the main thing that is certain is that there's still one hell of a lot of good football to come. Roll Tide Roll!!!

Fuck the revisionist French:

France, in what can only be described as an act of hypocrisy and revisionism on a scale not seen since Japan removed references to various war-crimes committed by their nation during World War II, has enacted a law to re-cast their colonialist days in a positive light. Yeah, that's a great way to rekindle more friendly relations with Algeria, who ousted them after a brutal eight-year civil war. If Bush were to have attempted something like that, they'd've been all over it like flies on shit. Here's a note to any Frogs who may have stumbled onto this site: Your nation is good at making food. You're no Italy, but you're far from being slouches yourself. I suggest that you stick to making wine, cheese, bread, and other delectable things, and leave more weighty matters to those nations who actually have a clue.

Which Historic General am I?

King Edward I You scored 64 Wisdom, 73 Tactics, 59 Guts, and 56 Ruthlessness!

Or rather, King Edward the Longshanks if you've seen Braveheart. You, like Edward, are incredibly smart and shrewd, but you win at any costs.... William Wallace died at his hands after a fierce Scottish rebellion against his reign. Despite his reputation though, Longshanks had the best interests of his people at heart. But God help you if you got on his bad side.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 58% on Unorthodox You scored higher than 57% on Tactics You scored higher than 66% on Guts You scored higher than 79% on Ruthlessness

Link: The Which Historic General Are You Test written by dasnyds on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

Yeah, baby!!! I fucking HATED Mel Gibson in Braveheart.

Now proposing the Million Naked Men and Women March:

I was reading about how Louis Farrakhan, the paranoid hatemonger in chief of the Nation of Islam, had organized a far worse attended sequel to his Million Man March about a decade ago. There was a time when people such as he would have been given a goblin outfit or a red armband with the reverse of a Jainist symbol on it, and renounced as the racist scum he is.

However, I liked the idea of a million people gathering for one purpose. Therefore, I propose the Million Naked Men and Women March. I would love to see a million people march on the National Mall wearing nothing beyond their facial expressions, jewelry, and maybe some cheap sandals or flip-flops. To prevent massive identity theft, I would suggest that the participants leave their valuables and any clothing they want to keep in a safe location, such as their hotel rooms, and perhaps just wear cheap robes until they near the beginning area of the march.

Anyone who wishes to take this idea and run with it is welcome to it. I ask no more than a mention of my blog when advancing this idea. Is this absurdist humor? Perhaps, but it would also serve an additional purpose of at least being interesting.

Question about new blog name:

I've been giving this a bit of thought for a while, and I have come to the realization that the name of this blog could be better. Given the fact that I am such a cantankerous, cynical, foul-mouthed, and occasionally insightful youngish guy, here are a few of the names that I've thought of:

1) Chaotic Fred's Twisted Playground
2) Friederich Engels In Hell
3) One Pissed-Off Unorthodox Libertarian
4) Random Libertarian Heterodoxy and Other Musings
5) I'm Fucked Up, You're Fucked Up, and We're All Just Fucked.
6) no change
7) (readers' suggestions)

Regardless what name this blog may be in the future, the website address will remain unchanged for now. Any changes will be announced well ahead of time. I welcome your feedback, and if you like what I have to say, bring a friend. But be warned: I'm a graduate of the Howard Stern and Crossfire schools of debate. My one regret about that tutelage is that I never got flashed or had a porn star strip on my radio show. Wait... I don't even HAVE a radio show. Goddamn it!!! :P

Former-Secretary Bennett, could you be an even bigger son of a bitch?

Well, just when you think William Bennett couldn't be any dumber, he said in front of 4500 people and members of the news media, “I do know that it’s true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could, if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down.” He later defended his comments by saying that he was, to use fewer words, using it as a straw man to argue against. Holy shit. That sounds like something Senator Byrd or David Duke would say. I mean, what the unholy FUCK was he thinking when he said that? It's one thing to be a racist asshole and bigoted idiot, but it's another thing to say that in front of that many people and defend your comments. As the old adage goes, it's better to be thought an idiot and be silent, than to speak and remove all doubt. I know what I want to give him for Christmas: A muzzle, and a one-way trip to Compton.

Of counsels and Supreme Court Justices:

I woke up this morning to yet another "Why the hell did I vote for that asshole?" moment. Yes, I know I'm late. I was busy reading fanfiction last night and missed the news until this morning's newspaper. Miers is somehow supposed to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor? Holy everlasting FUCK! What were you thinking, Chimpie? Were you thinking? I don't claim to be a legal expert or possess anything other than a curious, intelligent, and often odd mind, but I don't think it's too much to ask a nominee for Justice on the nation's highest court to have at least SOME experience in the federal judiciary. I'd've taken a lowly circuit court judge, but I would've really preferred an appellate court judge. Is it too much to ask that a Supreme Court Justice hear several years of cases before his or her elevation? Is it too much to ask for said nominee to have written opinions on significant cases, and for those opinions to be a part of public record? Jesus. Hell, the Democratic Party doesn't need to do much in 2006. Between Bush, Delay, and Frist, all the Democratic Party will need is to moderate their message a bit and run on a "Not Them" ticket. Even Pelosi, Dean, Kennedy, and Byrd haven't been able to cause as much damage to their party as Bush alone has caused to the Republican Party. Toss Delay and Frist into the mix, and you have a truly toxic situation. To Bush's credit, Roberts was a good nomination, though I would've preferred he be offered an Associate Justice position instead of going straight to the Chief Justice's chair. I think that seat is better suited to a sitting member of the Supreme Court. However, precedent is split pretty evenly on that issue. Miers, though... It's as though Dave Letterman retired from the Late Show and CBS, in their finite wisdom, chose Carrot Top to take over the reins. I seriously wonder if President Bush is allergic to good press, much like his father before him. I sincerely hope the United States Senate shows the good sense to let out a collective "What the FUCK?" and demand a qualified candidate.

Can I get a GODDAMN IT from the crowd?!

First, at the top of the screen, you may notice my new Adults Only warning in the area immediately under the blog name. That is because of the foul language that is liable to spew forth from my keyboard. With that said, enjoy the show.

I saw where this son of a bitch was heading years ago. I knew he was going to do it, and I knew that kind of demagoguery only has one purpose: To end up as the executive of a state or nation. Yesterday, Roy Moore announced his candidacy for Governor of the State of Alabama, though as far as I'm concerned, it was merely a formality. I've ranted about him before, around the time I started this blog. In a speech one newspaper referred to as a cross between George Wallace and any Southern Republican gubernatorial candidate, he announced his candidacy. I was just thinking the other day, "Hmmm, we weren't embarassed and became fodder for mockery enough when that old bastard was in office, god damn his soul, why not have someone who's an even bigger asshole in the seat he once held?" Well fuck me blind. Why does this shit have to happen to my state? What? Ivan, Dennis, and Katrina weren't enough, you cunt? You had to join the list of disasters? I never imagined four years ago that there would actually be a candidate bad enough for me to vote for Don Siegelman again. He was a shitstain and a blight on the state during his one term. But I forgot all about Roy Moore. If forced to choose between the two in a general election, which I sincerely hope I don't have to do, I will bend over, relax, and cast my ballot for Don Siegelman. So again, I ask: Can I get a GODDAMN IT from the crowd?!

Urban's lads got beat down by the Tide:

For three years, the 'Bama faithful have been waiting for Coach Mike Shula to produce a signature win. For the first two of those years, they met with nothing other than heartbreak. But this season, they came into their game against the Florida Gators with a 4-0 record and atop the SEC West, and were ranked 15th in the nation in Division I-A football. They came to this game knowing they were facing a Florida team that was also undefeated and ranked 5th in the nation in Division I-A. Florida's quarterback, Leak, was closing in on Danny Wuerffel's record for most consecutive passes thrown without an interception, and the Gators had been nothing less than dominant in each of their four wins, while the Crimson Tide, though similarly undefeated, had some hiccups in their performances.

The titans clashed yesterday, and Shula walked away with his signature win at long last. 'Bama scored twice in its first four plays and 1:33 of possession, getting out to a very early 14-0 lead. By halftime, the Crimson Tide was up 24-3 and did not let go. With a final score of 31-3, Coach Shula became the first coach to keep a team coached by Urban Meyer out of the end zone, and the first coach to keep a Florida team out of the end zone since 1992.

Though Tyrone Prothro is out for the rest of the season with a broken tibia and fibula, and that will leave them wanting at the wide receiver position, it was, in line with 'Bama tradition dating all they way back to the Bear, the defense that was an extremely important part of this victory. This humble blogger wishes Mr. Prothro well and thanks him for an amazing season. And to NFL scouts, take a look at this remarkable young man. He's worth your time. This is at least as true of 'Bama quarterback Brodie Croyle, who now owns the 'Bama record for most career touchdown passes.