from red to blue

By now the dust has settled after Senator Arlen Specter, the Senator from Pennsylvania switched from the Republican Party to the Democrats. It’s clear that Specter made the switch in order to save his political skin after being alienated by the Republicans because of his support for the President’s stimulus bill. He knew that he was in serious jeopardy of losing his seat in the upcoming 2010 mid term elections because the Republicans were throwing their weight and financial support behind a more conservative challenger. What else is a desperate politician to do, I ask?

It’s not as if I wasn’t thrilled with the change. If nothing else, it was great to see the blubbering bobbleheads from The Right try to wrestle with the fact that one of their party’s most loyal and respected members dived head first from the plank of their sinking ship. And how delicious was it to hear Specter’s  indictment of his former party?

“Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans.”

The Democrats and The President welcomed Specter with open arms because now instead of another moderate Republican they’ll have to deal with, they’ll be getting a very conservative Democrat. He’s up on the war, he’s down on the EFCA, he’s a fiscal tightwad, and is anti-choice to boot. Hopefully, the Dems will not see the 60 fillibuster-proof vote forest for them there trees.

If the Democrats are smart, they will use Specter like he’s using them. Moderate Republicans are becoming the polar bears of the political world. If they provide a welcome solace from The Right, getting their agenda passed will be much easier than they ever realized.

let the racket do the talking

When a Williams-less Fed Cup team was scheduled to play the Czech Republic, they weren’t given much of a chance, but credit new Captain Mary Joe Fernandez and some gusty play from Fed Cup rookies Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Alexa Glatch for securing the win.

It came down to the doubles decider. The Americans were down match point in the second set, but lo and behold they managed to fight back and ran away with the match in the third set.  With all the crazy goings on with the women’s tour and impending lawsuit from former Fed Cup Captain Zina Garrison, the US team managed to do something they haven’t done in several years: Make it to a Fed Cup Final.

Congrats and Go USA!!

This could get boring but it totally isn’t. Not when we’re talking about the Human Highlight Reel of Tennis. Rafael Nadal won his 5th consecutive Barcelona Open title Sunday over compatriot David Ferrer. Another week, another clay court title. But focus for a minute on the history this man is making each and every week. Since 2005, Nadal has only lost 2 matches on clay. He’s only 22 and already has 35 singles titles. Next week he competes in Rome for his 4th title in 5 years. In-freaking-credible.

Nadal stated that these are the best moments in his career and he just wants to enjoy them. Let’s follow his lead and celebrate.

if it weren’t for bad luck, i wouldn’t have no luck at all

Sometimes when it rains, it pours.

The ousted Governor of Illinois (man, it feels good to write that) was brought up for arraignment this week for federal racketeering and fraud. However, the really bad news was that a judge denied Rod Blagojevich’s request to participate in the reality show, “I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!” How broken up must Blago be that he can’t frolic in the jungles of a country that has no extradition treaty with the United States. You know it’s all one big conspiracy to keep him from staying famous. We should all be ashamed.

RNC Chairman Michael Steele will have to put away his crystal ball because his soothsaying skills are a bit lacking. Steele predicted that Jim Tedesco would win New York’s 20th district race against Democratic challenger Scott Murphy. In fact, many in the RNC’s inner circle implied that Steele’s hold on the chairmanship depended on Tedesco winning. Well, Tedesco lost and what really bites is that the 20th district is heavily Republican. The tea leaves are reading that the Republicans might have a difficult time during the 2010 elections and MC Steele Moe Dee might not be around to see it happen.

Some people take rejection better than others. Terrance Howard is one of those folks who can’t accept, “no”. After being left out of the Ironman sequel, Howard is bellyaching to anyone who will lend an ear. So confident that he’s totally irreplaceable, he doesn’t think the movie will be the same without him.  He says, “Warner Brothers made a mistake!”. Why? Because they weren’t willing to pay him what he wanted. In these tough economic times, it’s kind of hard to sympathize with an overpaid Hollywood actor with an over sized ego. Terrance needs to learn to let go. I’m sure Hustle & Flow 2 will be coming to a theater soon near you.

prosecution complex

To prosecute or not to prosecute, that is the question that the Obama administration is facing this week.  I’m pretty confused by the answers to tell the truth.  While on the campaign trail, then Senator Obama did not show the slightest interest in broaching the subject in depth concerning the CIA torturing enemy combatants. He simply said he wanted to look forward. He hadn’t changed his answer much by the time he was elected and it looked as if his administration was going to fall in lockstep with his philosophy. Cheif  of Staff Rahm Emmanuel told George Stephanopulos that President Obama wasn’t the least bit interested in pursuing Bush Administration officials who devised and allowed torture tactics.

This statement was made after Attorney General Eric Holder on the orders of  President Obama, declared that immunity would be granted to those who carried the torture orders out. All this generated a swell of criticism from those who wanted to see justice FINALLY  served against the Bush torture contingent. And it grew after the release of its secret memos. The critics asked, “What could be the harm in making Bush officials and the CIA answer for obvious war crimes?” They were correct. How could America be the standard bearer for justice and democracy when our government utilizes the basest of tactics in order to deal with its enemies?

Then, the Obama administration threw a curveball today. AG Holder announced that he had not ruled out hiring a special prosecutor to investigate (and hopefully indict) the architects of Bush’s torture policy. The President himself chimed in later, “I would say that that it is going to be more of a [question] for the Attorney General, within the parameters of various laws. And I do not want to prejudge that”

In other words, The Prez is going to let  Holder do his thing. President Obama also stressed that if an investigation is going to forward, the Congress should be involved-but without the partisan politics. Okay, good luck with that. Hey, I can’t offer any suggestions as to how Obama & Co. should go about this. I’m still caught up in the “will they” or “wont they” parts. Being someone who doesn’t get caught up with a bunch of details, I’m not getting much from the apparent hemming and hawing that’s going on.

I do understand the President’s reluctance at possibly having to trot out Bush, Cheney, and the rest of the crew to testify on Capitol Hill. It’s rather distasteful business but then again, so is torture. In the face of the harsh criticism and the dubious history this government, it’s time for this President to finally set things right. No matter how bad he may feel, letting these crimes go unpunished will make us all feel worse.

shook up over a handshake

In Dumb Overreaction News: The Right are literally foaming at the mouth because President Obama decided to be cordial and shake the hand of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. If you didn’t know, The Right can’t stand Hugo Chavez because he refuses to be enamoured of America and regularly calls us on the carpet for our obvious hypocrisy. Since The Right are mostly made up of hateful blowhards, their expectation is that as America’s number one representative should spread the hate worldwide. I mean it’s worked so well for us the past 8 years, right?

Seriously though, what was Obama supposed to do, grit on Chavez and give him the finger? If The Right had their way, good old fashioned home training would be overtaken by bluster and pistol rattling at every turn and venue.  I guess they fail to understand that we’re trying to get people from other countries to LIKE us again.  Since our economy is in the tank, our energy supplies nearly depleted, and our military stretched to the breaking point, America needs all the help it can get.

It’s just sad that Obama gets more love from a man who supposedly hates our country than from those who profess to love it.

who got the props?

Andy Murray, The Next Great Tennis Hype lived up a bit to expectations by reaching the semi-finals of the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters Tournament. Watching him work out his game on the clay was fascinating as he straddled the line between playing rope-a-dope and ultra aggressive styles. He ultimately came up short against Rafael Nadal 2-6, 6-7(4) even after storming back to force a tiebreak in the second set.

The thing with Murray is that he strikes me as a player who performs his best when conditions are ideal for him. Any deviation from those set conditions leaves him flusterted, distracted, and grumpy. It was evident during the first set of the semi that he was put off by the pocket of his shorts and the blisters on his hand. The good thing was that he was finally able to put it behind him and perform better in the latter part of the second set. The bad thing was that it was a little too late, and that Rafa got his groove back during the tie-break.

Things an only get better for Murray though, he seems to have a good grasp on what he needs to do be successful on clay. His game is a wondrous example of adaptability. What he needs to work work on his adapting his mind to whatever outside forces throw at him, whether it be the wind, a wonky pocket, or a clay court behemoth.

With two back to back Masters Series final appearances, it seems like the Rebirth of Slick (a/k/a Nole’s playing well again) is finally coming to pass.  Djokovic has to be feeling pretty good about himself after months of uninspiring play. Could it be that he’s finally getting used to his new Head racket? Or maybe the prospect of losing his number three ranking is spurring him on? Regardless of either one of those things, he does deserve the “Red Boat’s Most Improved Player of the Week Award”. He was far from his best but he did manage to string together some great points and harness his naturally aggressive game to get over on some pretty tough opponents-save one.

During the match with that One, he came back strong in the second set and did something that hadn’t happened since 2006-he took a set from Rafael Nadal in Monte Carlo. Pats on the back all around. Unfortunately, he couldn’t sustain that level in the third and Nadal ran away with the set and sealed the victory. After Rafa secured the second break, you could see that for Nole it was all over. With his shoulders slumped and a permanent grimace plastered on his face, Djokovic hit error after error and succumbed 3-6, 6-2, 1-6.

Let’s see if Nole can take his blue shoes and his momentum to Rome where he has a title to defend. Let’s also see if he stops with end set shutdowns as well.

It’s pretty evident that the path to clay court victory is lined with fist pumps  and perfectly lined water bottles. In other words, Rafael Nadal OWNS Monte Carlo. With his win over Novak Djokovic, Nadal becomes the first man to win five consecutive Monte Carlo titles. That’s better than Gustavo Kuertan, Thomas Muster,  Guillermo Vilas, and Bjorn Borg.

Sure he didn’t play his best at times. His serve was broken more than usual. He failed to serve out the match during his semifinal with Andy Murray. But no one can deny that when he needed to, Nadal was always able to tap into his never ending reserves in order to play  his most sublime tennis. His performance during that semifinal tiebreak was a revelation and his play during the third set of the final was nothing short of outstanding.

So kudos to Murray and Djokovic for stepping it up and making things really interesting in the land of the idle rich. However, they both learned a tough lesson: Rafael Nadal OWNS Monte Carlo and all the props go to him.

Vamos!

rebels, but what’s the cause?

So the big national tea party has come and gone and all we areleft with are lingering questions and thousands of tea bags floating in the various water sources across the country. From I what I saw, a lot of white people are angry about a lot of things.  They’re angry at President Obama. They’re angry about the stimulus package that was passed. They’re angry about taxes. They’re angry that the Republicans are in the minority. They’re angry about socialism and fascism. They’re angry about guns and the encroachment of federal rule over individual freedom. They’re just mad and they wanted everyone to know about it. That’s all well in good but when that anger is manufactured and stirred by lobbyists, fundraisers, politicos, and Fox News then there’s a a problem.

See, we were supposed to believe that this was some grassroots movement created and funded by ordinary citizens instead of the likes of Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey. We’ re expected to fall for the okie doke and accept the fact that the revolution WILL be televised by Fox. I have no doubt that the anger is real. It just doesn’t make any sense. When asked why this type of protest didn’t happen when Bush was President, you only hear crickets. When pressed to explain why Obama is a Fascist/Socialist/Messianic/Rasputin, you get, “Because he is!”  Yeah, makes sense to me…or not.

Isn’t it great that we live in government that allows folks to protest over their fear and hatred of the government? Isn’t it just dandy that those very same people wailing about their taxes are protected by policemen and policewomen who are paid from tax dollars? How wonderful will it be for those in fear of our country becoming a socialist nation to look forward to medicare benefits!

So I say” Happy Fox Endorsed Newt Gingrich Approved Tea Bag Day” you rebels! Stay angry! Stay uninformed! It’s the American way.

breaking news

The Puppy is coming! The Puppy is coming!

I must be one of those shallow Internet freaks with no life because I’m totally excited about Bo’s arrival. What’s even more strange is that I’m a cat lover, but look at that face!! Who cares about tea bagging and Somali pirates, President Obama kept his promise and got his girls a doggie.

You know, maybe that’s why I’ve turned into a big bag of squee over this.  It’s all about two caring parents keeping their word and giving their children a loyal and faithful companion.

Welcome to the White House, Bo. You’re one lucky pup.

high rollin’ in monte carlo

It’s the official start to the clay season and the top men’s tennis players have all converged on the municipality of Monte Carlo to compete for the first clay master’s title of 2009. I have  more questions than predictions this time around.  Like:

• Will Rafael Nadal reassert his position as the King of Clay? Will he have enough motivation to play his best tennis in order to win the title for the 5th straight time? Has he overcome his “personal” issues?
• Will Andy Murray make his mark on the clay this season? Has he made the right adjustments to his game to handle the the competition?
• Can Novak Djokovic find his mojo? Can he make it two victories in a row over Federer if the meet in the semifinals? How much pressure is he feeling as finds himself having to hold on to his #3 ranking?
• Since Andy Roddick is taking some time off to get married, will another American player step up and act as if playing on clay is more than just a bad dream between hard court and grass?
• What will Del Portro, Simon, Tsonga, and Verdasco do? Will they continue to challenge the top 4? Will they play like they want to belong in the top 10?
• Will this year’s edition of Volandri show up and play lights out tennis and completely destroy the draw?
• Lastly, which Federer will show up? He’s about to become a father and just made Mirka an honest woman. Can he put all of those distractions aside and win the title?

So many questions and all will be answered next Sunday. As for me, I can hardly wait. Unlike the WTA with the injuries, mentally fragile players,  and  paper #1’s, one thing can be guaranteed with the men: Some great tennis is going to be played.

(pic from the Monte Carlo Master’s official site)

happy easter

Happy Easter!

May your holidays be a time of renewal and reaffirmation.

May the hope of peace flow through the hearts of men and women.

May God continue to bless all of you.