Death Penalty is Murder

I never could understand how two wrongs make a right.  Remember when you were a kid and some other kid did something stupid – and you did the same thing.  Your mother probably said something like “if Johnny jumps off a bridge, I guess you would jump off the bridge too.”  Well, it turns out old mom was pretty smart.

Think about it.  The police are supposed to stamp out corruption – not be corrupt.  You wouldn’t expect firemen set fires.   How many people would go to a doctor if he purposely made the patient sicker?  All of these are obviously absurd scenarios.   

Yet, our states and national government make it illegal to murder someone, but have no problem committing murder themselves.  Yes, I am talking about the death penalty.  Why does the government feel they should be exempt from this crime?  Maybe it’s because of religious views, in which case I'm glad I am an atheist.  Maybe it’s because it makes you feel safer – even though there is no evidence that the death penalty serves as a deterrent to murder.  No, I just think people like the idea of revenge. 

My problem is that we sometimes get it wrong.  Innocent people on death row have been cleared by DNA in recent years.  There’s no telling how many innocent people were killed before this technology.  Georgia recently executed a man who had seven of his nine witnesses recant their testimony.  After a while, it appears expediency is more important than due process and mercy.

When I am King, I’ll eliminate the death penalty in all 50 states and the federal government.  Two wrongs don’t make a right.  Murder is murder.

Golf: A Great Journey

As most of you know, I really love golf.  However, I sometimes have a hard time explaining why.  God knows (Golf God) it’s a game that gives great pleasure and sorrow -- sometimes in the same round.  So what’s the great attraction?

I use to think it was the challenge.  You have to master so many skills and you have to do everything yourself.  I use to play basketball (my first love).  When I was having a bad shooting night, I simply worked harder on my defense and rebounding.  I also had the good sense to pass the ball to someone who was having a good shooting night.  In golf, there’s no one to pass the ball to.  If you suck hitting bunker shots, there’s no sub to take your place.

But, as much as the challenge is great, I think the golf journey is why I love golf so much.  You start on a sharp learning curve and find out it never ends.  As you start to improve your swing, you realize how much better it could be.  You try to hit it farther, hit more fairways with your driver, hit more greens in regulation, take fewer putts, etc.  Even the pros are never satisfied. 

Recently I had a great time playing golf with my son.  He’s just starting to take up golf and he really loves it.  Seeing him play reminded me of my journey.  Every mistake he made, I’ve made a hundred times early in my journey.  Now he’s on his own journey and I hope he has as much fun as I’ve had. My journey has lasted 47 years and I hope it last a few more years.  You see, I still have a lot of things to work on.  Good luck son. 

Princess Of Seattle

My wife and I just finished visiting our daughter in Seattle, Washington.  Although we were only there four days, I learned a lot about Seattle. The following are some of my observations. 

• Seattle seems to be a very young city.  I felt like the oldest fart on the block.  Maybe that’s because the down town section is extremely hilly and only the hardiest souls can survive there. (Your dumb ass King brought new shoes on the trip)
• Young people all seem to be ready for anything.  You almost never see a young person with out a back pack.  I just wonder what’s in those back packs.
• It seems like every young person is in love with their I-Phone.  My daughter made me a believer with her demonstration of the bus app.  However, I am not sure the King is smart enough to learn how to use it.
• My daughter is a real celebrity.  First, a total stranger stops her on the street and asks if she’s the “Boob Quake Girl?” and later our underground tour guide confessed she was a big fan of her blog.  She even asked for an autograph.  No one has ever asked for The King’s autograph.

After I left, I was convinced that my daughter has found the perfect home.  When I am King I am making my daughter Princess of Seattle.

Man Up with God

On August 23, I made a post entitled "Golf In Utopia".  I wrote about a golf book  that had some potential, but spent too much time pushing Jesus down my throat.  When I wrote a review about this book on Amazon.com, I received the following comment .....Why would anyone be "offended" by reading about being born again and accepting Jesus Christ as your savior. How weak are you? Your religion of liberalism perpetuates your weakness. Man up! 

This comment doesn't surprise me.  Christians have never been too tolerant of others.  But, they have been great at slaughtering people in the name of God.  Before you push your conservative bull shit beliefs on others, you might want to learn how to love thy neighbor (especially the ones who are different).

Election Reform

It's early September and we are starting the presidential election debates.  The actual election is a year from November.  Our election is a case of overkill.  Why do we start so damn early?  Money.  People want to know where they should put their influence money, so they need some time to figure out who deserves their bribes.  I mean, think about it.  What are you learning about Republican candidates that you don't already know?  First, they hate Obama.  Second, they hate Obama, etc. But, not one of them has done anything to improve the life of everyday working people.  But, did I mention -- They Hate Obama???

When I am King, I am going to make some procedural changes.  First we are going to have one national primary that will be held over the 4th of July weekend.  Talk about a patriotic duty.  Prior to the primary, all  campaign ads on TV will be limited to the midnight to 6:00 am time slot. Second, after the primary election, each presidential candidate will be limited to two hours of campaigning on TV per day.  Each candidate can decide which shows he or she wants preempted - talk about pressure decisions.  If you take off "The Good Wife" or "CSI", I am definitely voting for the other guy.  The election will span the whole first week of November and anyone who votes gets $100 off any taxes they owe.  That should get the turnout over 50% for a change.

Now I know some of you are thinking this won't be enough time to get the message out.  Bull shit.  I'll help you both out right now. Republicans, your message is "We Hate Obama".  President Obama, your message is "They Really Fucking Hate Me!"

 Now that I've helped save you all this time, how about you both get your asses moving on fixing this shitty economy.