Mark Murphy still has one job left to do

IN Announcing the Packers had officially traded Brett Favre to the New York Jets, Mark Murphy, CEO and President of the Green Bay Packers, made the following statement:

..."Moving forward, we are dedicated to delivering a successful 2008 season for all Packers fans."

I have a simple suggestion for Mr. Murphy, if you truly want to have a successful 2008 season, your first order of business upon completion of this trade would be to terminate the employment of Mr. Ted Thompson. Were it not for his inept handling of this entire saga, you would not have had to deal with any of this.

To place this decision solely in the lap of Favre is a bit of a reach. Not that he does not share part of the blame, Ted Thompson made it clear from the start that he did not want Favre on the team and he would stop at nothing to ensure Favre did not return.

Mr. Murphy, you do seem like an honorable gentleman, and I trust that you have the Packers best interest at heart, however if you fail to take action on Thompsons' share in this mess, I will lose faith in your ability to maintain the high standards the Packers require.

Its over

Well the marriage between Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers is over; all we are waiting on now, is the signing of the divorce papers.

Favre left Green Bay at approximately 12 noon today flying back to Hattiesburg to await a trade decision. Word has it that the Jets and Bucs are now in a bidding war.

Thanks Teddy, you took the greatest player in Green Bay history and ran him out of town on a rail. I bet your proud.

Mike McCarthy Press Conference a Waste

I listened to the Mike McCarthy press conference tonight on the status of Brett Favre and I have to say that it was a complete waste of time, and he provided no additional insight as to the mechanisms of what has transpired.

Mike did a great job imitating Ted Thompson, with his song and dance. When asked a direct question as to why number 4 was not the starting quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, he dodged, he ducked, he spun to the left and juked to the right; McCarthy did everything but answer the question.

My question for him would have been, why did you and the Packer organization feel it necessary to play this out in public? The answer would have been the same - a dodge, a duck, a juke, a spin, you name it; everything but the truth.

I said it before and I will say it again, this never should have been about Favre, and the entire Packer organization has been badly damaged from this sad episode and if heads do not roll over it, the Packers will lose fans.

This should never have been about Favre

The situation in Green Bay has become such an embarrasment, that the club felt it was necessary to bring in an outside PR representative, Ari Fleischer.

Now, I happen to like Ari, and have a great deal of respect for him; however, his job right now is untenable. The relationship that the Packers have with their fans, has been tarnished and in some cases, downright broken. Good luck Ari, you are going to need it!

This whole drama from the start was supposed to be about what is best for the team, what is best for the organization. If Thompson and McCarthy no longer had confidence in Favre getting the job done, or if they did not believe that he would be 100% commited to the team, part ways. That should have happened a long time ago; but it did not and the reason it did not was Thompson allowed his ego to get in his way.

Granted, Favre is not larger than the game and he certainly is not better than the entire organization but let us look at what transpired here.

Favre in June contacts the Packers and indicates a possible desire to play again. At that point, the Packers only had one decision to make - is it in our best interest to entertain this? If not, they had two options: 1. trade Favre, or 2. give him his outright release. Thompson flat ruled the latter out. Keep in mind that at this point, Favre is still listed as retired; which means that the Packers have no marketing deal with him, are receiving absolutely no financial or good will benefit from him and frankly I doubt that Thompson really cared about that. Favre was gone, and that was all that mattered to him.

At this point, if the Packers had released Favre, they would be in no worse position than they are now; and frankly, the public would have given them a lot of credit for doing what was "honorable". You no longer want the player, so you allow him to go somewhere else. The PR would have been quite beneficial to the organization, an organization that has always stood up for what was honorable. The problem with this approach was it meant giving Favre what he wanted, and its been obvious for a long time that Thompson was not about to allow some snot nosed, 38 year old punk tell him how to run the operations.

What happened since has been a media nightmare, a disaster for the club, a tarnishing of a brilliant career, and a general manager stomping his feet like a two year old.

Football is a business, its not about egos, its not about whose right or wrong, its about winning PERIOD! I am sure that after seeing the season that Favre had last year, not that prior success can guarantee a Super Bowl win, Favre provided the Packers with the best opportunity for a winning season. Thompson keeps talking about what he is doing is the best thing for the club, well I have to tell ya, right now I do not believe a word from Thompson.

Thompson allowed his ego to get in the way of better judgement and for that he should be terminated. He made this fight and fiasco about Favre, and it should have been about business, and if Mark Murphy is not smart enough to see that, he needs to be fired as well.

What in the hell? - 40 cents?

I am sorry, but on the heels of Exxon/Mobil showing the largest profit by an oil company in the history of the U.S., I find it offensive that they can justify a 40 cent a gallon increase in price when the price per barrel is still dropping.

40 cents a gallon? Come on, there is no way that Road Ranger or any of the other local suppliers can show any justification for this. I spoke with Road Ranger this morning to inquire how they could possibly justify such a large increase and of course I received the usual diatribe of "Well its a complicated formula, no one person sets the price..." blah blah blah

I will tell you what it is......its Bull spit pure and simple and its GREED.

I have no problem with companies making a profit and typically I want the government to stay out of private industry; however, oil is not a typical commodity in that our entire system is based on the use of oil and petro related products. This allows a very small number of companies to control a very large segment of society and that my friends is never a good thing.

If Road Ranger or any other company wants to explain this to me, I am all ears.

Oh, and so far today price per barrell is down over $2.00 a barrel.

So the blogging community should be ignored

On 1450 WFMB this morning, Anne with an "E" 's father made the comment that the blogging community should be ignored because we are too small to matter.

I have news for Anne with an "E" 's father, the blogging community, and I am not referring to the quips that are found on the online version of the State Journal Register, is far more knowledgeable on the issues than you are yourself. The difference between the blogging community Anne with an "E" 's father and you is simple - we do not spend every waking moment playing kiss ass with the politcians.

When they are right, we applaud them, when they are wrong - we point it out. Sometimes we get a bit obnoxious, but that just counter balances the sappy feel good pat everyone on the back crap that is heard on your radio program day in and day out.

By the way, is it not time for another one of your company paid junkets to Las Vegas?

Happy Trails Anne with an "E" 's father!

Green Bay Cannot Win

The boxing match of the Green Bay Packers versus their HOF quarterback, Brett Favre is a fight the team cannot win. No matter what Ted Thompson and Mark Murphy do it is a losing battle that only gets worse with each passing day.

If they release Favre, they get nothing in return for his value, which right now is considerable, although with every other NFL team knowing the Packers are in a lurch can afford to wait, thus drive down the price. In addition, if they release him, they run the risk of Favre signing with the Vikings which would immediately make them a Super Bowl contender. Thompson has ruled this out.

If the Packers bring him back as the starting quarterback or even allow him to compete for the position, they will have dissed the heir apparent, Aaron Rodgers. Thompson and McCarthy have made the huge mistake of promising the starting position to Rodgers without thinking of all the possibilities and have dug themselves into a hole here that all be rules this option out.

The Pack can offer him up for a trade, which they have apparently done, but that is a huge risk...one from the perspective of destroying completely the relationship that the Packers and Favre have spent 17 years developing. In addition, putting him up for a fire sale draws little money; not to mention that Favre has the right to refuse any trade.

If they decide to allow Favre to return but only as a backup they will be spending a fortune for a QB they have all but said they do not want. To relegate a HOF quarterback to the sidelines wearing a ball cap and carrying a clipboard will put a tremendous amount of pressure on Rodgers that would not be fair.

Thompson has created a mess. Favre has his share of blame in this, but the bottom line here is, Thompson is the General Manager and its his job to solve this issues. He first said Favre would have to compete for his job, then he can't. He is welcome back, then he isn't. We want you Brett, well actually we don't.

There is still plenty of juice left in Favres' tank and to relegate him to the sidelines is not good for the Packers and is not good for the NFL. Obviously if Favre stayed retired things would be easier for everyone, but that is not going to happen. Training camp is going to be a circus, moreso than it already is and the Packers are hanging a lot of future on a three year unproven QB while forcing their HOF QB to leave. That does not speak well of the management of the team.

Rodgers is deserving of a starting position, but it very well may be that he and the Packers are just not the right fit here. It is time to consider other options.....Favre is coming back. With the fax requesting reinstatement having been delivered to the NFL, that question is no longer a question......and thus other options.

I think the Packers would be better off trading Aaron Rodgers and allowing Favre to return. In addition, for creating this mess, Thompson deserves no less than his immediate termination.

The current circus will only get worse the longer it goes; no matter what, its a fight the Packers have already lost.

Ted Thompson miscalculated

General Manager Ted Thompson of the Green Bay Packers has really dug himself a hole. A hole that right now appears to be a mile deep and dropping fast.

When Brett Favre started talking and thinking and talking and thinking about UN-retiring, Thompson gambled that he would stay retired, making it clear that the time had moved past the Favre era and was now entering the Rodgers era; albeit, an era that is unproven and inexperienced. Thompson figured that by refusing to give Favre his outright release and playing the "We are protecting your image by keeping you on the sidelines" intimidation, it would force Favre to stay put; at home, in Mississippi drinking cold tall ones.

What he did not expect was for the future hall of famer to call him out, which is exactly what Favre did on the Greta Van Susteren show on Fox News. Favre came very close to calling Thompson a outright liar. What a mess we have in Green Bay.

Let us step back to the end of last season for a moment, Favre was going to take his yearly sabbatical and weigh his options, all the while he wanted and needed the team to let him know if he was still wanted in Title Town USA; Thompson really did not want him and made sure Favre knew it by limiting his contact with him. A player of Favre's stature deserves to hear from the GM and Thompson considered it beneath him to ask Favre to stay, frankly he was counting on Favre retiring so he could move with Rodgers, his personal pick.

Favre retired, in a tearful farewell he was all nicey to Thompson, McCarthy and the Packers, all the while po'd to no end for getting what he considered to be the boot. After a few months, Favre toyed with the idea of returning and in early July decided he definitely wanted to play. Problem now is Thompson gambled on telling Favre to stay away, he would ruin his image if he attempted to return. Miscalculation.

Favre informed the team that he either wanted his helmet or his release. Keep in mind, he was not demanding a release, just that if you are not going to use me then let me go where I can be of use. Thompson refused.

So, here we are today. Favre can force Thompson's hand by petitioning the Commissioner for reinstatement, a formality, and show up at training camp. Talk about a bold move!

I would not put it past Favre to do exactly that, force the Packers to put him on the roster or trade him.

Either way, the public relations disaster on this is immeasurable for the team and Thompson is walking around with egg on his face. A complete miscalculation that has come back home to roost on Thompson's shoulder......now the fun begins!

600 only buys a pair of earrings?

Michele Obama was recently complaining that the $600.00 stimulus check was not enough to make a difference, in fact she complained that it barely was enough to buy a pair of earrings.

$600.00 for a pair of earrings? What are the made of? Platinum? It is apparent that Michele Obama suffers from the same disease as many other Democrats.....it is the Governments job to provide for us financially, and when they do, it is not enough.....

It is apparent that Michele Obama has not had to operate in th real world lately, if she had, she would have realized that the average American would not even think of spending $600.00 on a pair of earrings.

I do not know if I should laugh or cry at her stupidity.

What is it about seeing eye / Services dogs that people don't get

I have a difficult time understanding what it is about people that they honestly and truly believe that they can refuse service to someone because of a seeing eye / service dog if they want to.

The law is clear - you cannot prohibit either of these animals from going anywhere that the general public is allowed to go. That means if you allow people access to your restaurant, then you must allow the dogs. If you have a hotel, you MUST allow the dogs in the hotel; if you allow people access to your kitchen - YOU MUST allow the dogs access to your kitchen. Period, and no you cannot refuse.

Federal law as well as state law is clear - crystal clear but I'll be dammed if it does not happen on a daily basis; and not just here in Illinois.

These dogs provide a service to their owners, without which they would not be able to function. It is not unlike a cane or a walker. I wonder if some of these people would refuse to allow those individuals in their establishment as well?

It is time that everyone realize that you cannot refuse access or accomodation and doing so, you will run the risk of severe penalties.

Tony Snow

I know that everyone will be posting both positive and negative comments about Tony Snow, so I will refrain from joining in the fray; except to say that Tony exemplified the character qualities that are missing in politics today.

Rest in Peace Tony, you will be missed.

Angel Food Cake is a racist term?

Wow,
I am amazed at how idiotic some people can be. Having nothing better to do with their inept lives, they decide to find ways to make everyone else feel as inept and useless as they do.

Case in point is Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price. Apparently at a county commissioners meeting, Commissioner Kenneth Mayfield suggested that the Central Collections department was turning into a black hole......which was using an astronomical term that has been in use and existence for over fifty years.....and I have no doubt that is exactly what he meant; apparently Price got his shorts in a knot over it and started demanding an apology.

Late he suggested that the terms "Angel Food Cake" and "Devil's Food Cake" are racist terms as well and should not be used.

Really? I think Price needs to go to his bedroom and check the status of those shorts, they seems to be cutting off the blood flow to his brain.

So here's to John Wiley Price - I am going to bake a nice fluffy Angel Food Cake and take it to the office today. Oh, and I will have a sign next to it that says "In honor of John Wiley Price".

Obama Moving to the center

Despite the fact that Obama is the most liberal member of the United States Senate, he knows that he will not win if he stays to the left. History will prove that point.

John F. Kennedy moved to the center in the 1960 general election.

James Carter moved to the centeer in the 1976 general election.

and let us not forget the biggest liar of them all, Bill Clinton moved to the center in the 1992 general election.

Obama knows that a majority of the voters are middle class white voters and they are suspect of his liberal leanings, and so we are starting to see him move ever so slightly. Keep in mind though, that movement is strictly for political purposes and should he win the election, they will go out the window faster than the Bush Playbook.

Pleasant Nursey - No customer service

A situation materialized recently with Pleasant Nursey in Springfield that actually shocked me. I know that customer service is really just given lip service at most businessses, but this is one that takes the cake.

A customer, someone who has shopped there no numerous occasions takes a sample of their lawn into the nursey, presumably to have it identified and irradicated from the lawn. The customer explains to the clerk that they are there with a sample and would like someone to identify it, and tell them how to get rid of it.

The clerk graciously calls one of the guys in the back, and explains the issue. What does this "expert" do? Tells the customer that they are eating their lunch and they will have to wait. Now, if that is not bad enough; when the customer calls one of the owners, they are told basically to take their business elsewhere since they were not willing to wait. The owner attempted to compare themselves to a Dr.'s office, which in my opinion is the lamest excuse I have ever seen a business owner use in justifying their laziness in taking care of a paying customer.

I am sorry if I happen to be the first person to explain it to Pleasant Nursery, but you are not on the same level with a Dr.'s office, and furthermore; when you are waiting on a Dr. it is not because they are stuffing their face.

Pleasant Nursery has made it clear to not only the customer, but with me in a phone call to verify the authenticity of the information, that they do not give a damn about customer service. I think it is time for Frank to retire.....because it is obvious that customer service is no longer important to him.

By the way Frank.....that customer you told to take their business elsewhere? They took that business to Chatham Road and gave them the business - to fix the lawn and to redo the landscaping in the front and back yards. I believe the estimate was somewhere in the range of $5,000.00.

I guess you really lost this one eh Frank?

Obama in trouble before general election starts

Obama is in trouble, serious trouble and the general election campaign has not even started. This trouble could be the start of the unraveling of his campaign, it could mark the end to his run from a nobody in Illinois to a potential President.

The trouble you ask? Hillary Clinton. Yes, I know; through the orchestrated mechinations of the DNC, he has moved beyond the number of delegates required to be the Democratic Party's Presidential Nominee. Yes, Hillary is conceding that he beat her. That is all true.

Hillary is still trouble. If Obama selects her as his running mate, HE WILL become second fiddle to the Clintons and their constant grab for power and attention. Do not think for one second that Bill Clinton will keep his mouth shut or that he will consider Obama as the President....Obama will be a distraction that Bill has to tolerate but nothing more.

If he does not select her, he loses a vast majority of Hillary's voters whom without, he cannot and will not beat John McCain.

Damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. Obama is egotistical though and considers himself the "smartest man" alive. He believes that he can win this election just by bashing Bush and touting change....without having to be specific. Actually I hope he tries that....because he will lose.....

Obama - nobody should be suprised

I am amazed that everyone seems to be suprised with the latest episode of the Rev. Michael Pfleger and his hate speech at Obama's church. Obama has spent his career in politics at the far left edge of society.

He has never been an agent of change, in the Illinois Assembly he was one of the most liberal members and his hate towards those that do not agree with his politics has been evident for years; the problem is the PRESS HAS IGNORED THE RECORD.

I can only hope that more of this happens so the American people actually see him for what his is....an Agent of Hate, not change.

Durbin staff blows it again

After receiving the inept email from Durbins office, I decided to call his Springfield office and express my disappointment that they responded to my letter without so much as reading it.

I was directed to call Washington, since they are the ones that respond to all legislative questions. Ok, no problem; I look up the number and call Washington.

After explaining the issue in great detail, the staffer (who for now shall remain nameless) had the audacity to actually say this and I quote "Sir, maybe next time you should word your subject line better". Excuse me!?

I responsed with "Excuse me? I should do what?" He repeated it again......I was absolutely in shock.....my response was "So this is my fault? It is my fault that your office failed to even read the message, you just ASSUMED from the subject line that you knew what I was talking about? How about the next time YOU ACTUALLY READ THE LETTER!!!!!"

All I got was they are busy and do not have time to argue about this matter.

Too busy to read my letter and believes I should be more careful in how I word the subject line......I have a suggestion for Mr. Durbin - HIRE SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY GIVES A DAMN ABOUT THE CONSTITUENCY.....

Durbin Staff member screws up

One of the staffers of Senator Richard Durbin blew it big time with an email they sent to me recently.

Let me set the stage for you. I wrote Durbin's office expressing concern about Senate Bill 2913 Orphan Works Act of 2008. They responsed and here is the meat of their response:

Thank you for contacting me concerning SB 2913. I appreciate hearing from you.

This issue is under the jurisdiction of state and local government. As a federal official, I do not have an official role in this matter and do not have the opportunity to introduce or vote on bills before the Illinois General Assembly. However, I appreciate knowing your concerns.

Now, I have seen some staffers really make some dumb mistakes, but not being aware of pending legislation is absoolutely unforgivable.......I actually was laughing so hard I was crying. Whoever CW is, since that is the initials used in the response, needs to pay more attention to the legislation that is before the Senate and take their time in responding to constituent correspondence.

Between Doctors, Lawyers, and Politicians whose the smartest?

I have been pondering this question for months now. One would have to have been locked in a casket for the past twenty years to have missed the marvelous advances that medicine has seen and the people that have brought them to us. Indeed they are smart.

Lawyers, they have the skills to weave through thousands of pages of evidence and transcripts; disecting this information and presenting it to a panel of twelve ordinary people in a manner that they can understand. They have the ability to cite case after case off the top of their head and not miss a beat. Indeed they are smart.

Politicians - are they as smart? Smarter? Ten years ago I would have laughed at such a question and said that anyone stupid enough to ask that question is a certifiable idiot. I was wrong. We have all heard people like Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Hillary George W. Bush called stupid, idiots, dumb - and anyone that uses such a term is wrong.

These are some of the smartest people alive. I can hear the laughter so I will explain; and I will use George Bush as my example (and not for any particular reason).

So let us examine the record of why people call him stupid.

His speech leaves much to be desired.....true, but does poor speech patterns indicate a level of inferior aptitude ? Winston Churchill had a speech impediment but I seriously doubt that anyone would call him an idiot or stupid. Sir John Hicks, an enconomist also had serious problems with his speech, yet no one would remotely consider him stupid or an idiot. So speech certainly is not the problem.

Some will claim that his policies are the reason he is an idiot. Well, he was able to convince enough members of the U.S. House and Senate to implement them and that is not something that is easily done. Scratch that argument.

The first reason I would call him one of the smartest people alive is simply - HE GOT ELECTED. Now, you may call the American people stupid, and that is your choice, but again you would be wrong. If anybody could do it, we would have had a plumber as President or a stripper as Governor.

Some will say that it was not him that won the election but those in charge of his campaign.....well ok, if I concede that I have to ask the question - WHO HIRED THEM?

You cannot have your cake and eat it too, and if you are going to call him stupid, or Bill Clinton, or any other successful politician you must also call every single person they hired and who voted for them stupid as well and doing that makes you look like the idiot.

So whose the smartest? I will leave that for you to decide, but calling politicians stupid really only shows your own ignorance.

Obama - running on what?

Barack Obama's entire campaign has been about change. Every stop its preached as though it is a sermon. It is included in ever press release. Talking points ensure that "change" is used anytime the name Obama is used.

What we do not hear is what that change is. What exactly is he going to change? What was his record in the Illinois Senate? I do not hear him talking about what he has done since he was elected as U.S. Senator and is that because he has no record to run on?

Barack Obama for all his talk about change, is the least qualified candidat; George Ryan, a convicted criminal that got his just desserts, is far more qualified than Barack will ever be. If I had a choice (and I almost do not) between Barack and Hillary, I would vote for Hillary with no reservation, which is not to say that I am endorsing her, I personally believe that between the two, she poses the least danger to this country.

Then again, I am still a Fred Thompson fan....