A Response to a Pro-Porker

The last thing in the world I expected when I posted "Pork vs. Kids?" yesterday was to hear someone come out in defense of pork spending.

Thank you Rodak. Frequently I argue against pork, yet it often seems like a strawman argument, since no one ever argues against me.

Let the debate begin!

Rodak: Those who should be held up for scorn are those who would kill all discretionary spending, across the board, for an indefinite, but surely long, period of time.

Personally, I would kill ALL discretionary spending FOREVER.

Rodak: Senators are elected at the state level, and it is their job to bring home federal money ("pork") that will help to create jobs and generate tax revenues for their home states. Why would any responsible senator vote for a bill that would effectively prevent him from doing his job?
Even the much-riduculed Woodstock Museum would be a good thing for job seekers in upstate New York. Nothing gets reported on in Cleveland without pictures being shown of the Rock and Roll Museum.

Jobs paid for by federal funds are a mirage. They last as long as the funding is there or the project is running. What kind of jobs are we talking about? Construction work? Museum work?

Speaking of museums, what happens if the museum is unprofitable (i.e. not enough people visit it)? Then you either have to support it with public funds, or it closes. That is what is known as a "make work" program.

Think about it: If all we had in this country were government-funded jobs, what would that do to our economy? The government would be paying everyone, and all tax receipts would be coming from government payouts. Moving money from the government's left hand to the right hand does NOTHING to build the economy.

Museums like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are the exception, not the rule. It should also be noted it was funded by the city of Cleveland, not the federal government. Why can't the state of New York fund their own Woodstock museum? Or if it is so important, why can't the "Woodstock generation" fund their own museum?

For that matter, why can't the state of Alaska fund their own "bridge to nowhere"? Alaska has had a budget surplus for years much bigger than the funding they were requesting from the federal government.

The truth is that pork handouts are a spoils system based on seniority. Just keep re-electing the same senator over and over again, and you too can feed at the federal trough. As soon as your senator dies or retires, you're screwed.

Pork is NOT about helping people. It IS about getting senators (and congressmen) re-elected. And you think this is MORE important than children receiving healthcare? Or Social Security funding for that matter, since these wonderful senators have no problem robbing the Social Security "trust fund" in order to pay for these pork projects?

The Baby Boomers will get their Woodstock Museum. They won't be able to visit it on their reduced Social Security payments, and their grandchildren won't get healthcare, but at least their senators will get re-elected.

Pork vs. Kids? Pork wins in Senate

A great story from the Washington Post's Dana Milbank:

The United States Senate yesterday was confronted with a stark choice: health care for children, or pet projects for lawmakers' home states.

The final tally?

Pet Projects 68, Kids 26.

...It was, Coburn's many opponents grumbled, a political stunt. But, as stunts go, this one was particularly revealing. The Oklahoma physician, a foe of the unhealthy cut of congressional pork known as "earmarks," proposed an amendment to a major health spending bill that said no lawmakers' pet projects would be funded until "all children in the U.S. under the age of 18 years are insured by a private or public health insurance plan."

I think most of us agree that health insurance for children, whether provided publicly or privately, should be a higher priority than legislative pork. This is why this vote is "particularly revealing".

Here is how the votes went (a "yea" vote was to table this amendment, a "nay" vote was to add the amendment to the "2008 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act"):

Akaka (D-HI), Yea
Alexander (R-TN), Yea
Allard (R-CO), Nay
Barrasso (R-WY), Nay
Baucus (D-MT), Yea
Bayh (D-IN), Yea
Bennett (R-UT), Yea
Biden (D-DE), Not Voting
Bingaman (D-NM), Yea
Bond (R-MO), Yea
Boxer (D-CA), Yea
Brown (D-OH), Yea
Brownback (R-KS), Nay
Bunning (R-KY), Nay
Burr (R-NC), Nay
Byrd (D-WV), Yea
Cantwell (D-WA), Yea
Cardin (D-MD), Yea
Carper (D-DE), Yea
Casey (D-PA), Yea
Chambliss (R-GA), Nay
Clinton (D-NY), Not Voting
Coburn (R-OK), Nay
Cochran (R-MS), Yea
Coleman (R-MN), Yea
Collins (R-ME), Yea
Conrad (D-ND), Yea
Corker (R-TN), Nay
Cornyn (R-TX), Nay
Craig (R-ID), Yea
Crapo (R-ID), Nay
DeMint (R-SC), Nay
Dodd (D-CT), Not Voting
Dole (R-NC), Nay
Domenici (R-NM), Yea
Dorgan (D-ND), Yea
Durbin (D-IL), Yea
Ensign (R-NV), Nay
Enzi (R-WY), Nay
Feingold (D-WI), Nay
Feinstein (D-CA), Yea
Graham (R-SC), Nay
Grassley (R-IA), Yea
Gregg (R-NH), Yea
Hagel (R-NE), Yea
Harkin (D-IA), Yea
Hatch (R-UT), Yea
Hutchison (R-TX), Yea
Inhofe (R-OK), Nay
Inouye (D-HI), Yea
Isakson (R-GA), Nay
Johnson (D-SD), Yea
Kennedy (D-MA), Not Voting
Kerry (D-MA), Yea
Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea
Kohl (D-WI), Yea
Kyl (R-AZ), Nay
Landrieu (D-LA), Yea
Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea
Leahy (D-VT), Yea
Levin (D-MI), Yea
Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea
Lincoln (D-AR), Yea
Lott (R-MS), Nay
Lugar (R-IN), Yea
Martinez (R-FL), Nay
McCain (R-AZ), Not Voting
McCaskill (D-MO), Nay
McConnell (R-KY), Nay
Menendez (D-NJ), Yea
Mikulski (D-MD), Yea
Murkowski (R-AK), Yea
Murray (D-WA), Yea
Nelson (D-FL), Yea
Nelson (D-NE), Yea
Obama (D-IL), Not Voting
Pryor (D-AR), Yea
Reed (D-RI), Yea
Reid (D-NV), Yea
Roberts (R-KS), Yea
Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea
Salazar (D-CO), Yea
Sanders (I-VT), Yea
Schumer (D-NY), Yea
Sessions (R-AL), Nay
Shelby (R-AL), Yea
Smith (R-OR), Yea
Snowe (R-ME), Yea
Specter (R-PA), Yea
Stabenow (D-MI), Yea
Stevens (R-AK), Yea
Sununu (R-NH), Yea
Tester (D-MT), Yea
Thune (R-SD), Nay
Vitter (R-LA), Nay
Voinovich (R-OH), Yea
Warner (R-VA), Yea
Webb (D-VA), Yea
Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea
Wyden (D-OR), Yea

Clearly, anyone who voted "yea" on this should be held up for public scorn, but what about the "not voting" senators? Most of them are presidential candidates. Did they skip the vote for campaign reasons, or to NOT provide their opponents with political ammunition?

Pigskin Pick'em - Week 7 Results AND Week 8 Picks

Another two-fer Thursday, in honor of David Stefanini pulling his second weekly win of the season in week 7:

David Stefanini - 11
Robert A. George - 10
EdMcGon - 9
bl - 9
J. Mark English - 7
Bill Barker - 6

Year to date results (with weekly wins in parentheses):

David Stefanini(2) - 63
EdMcGon(1) - 58
Robert A. George(1.5) - 57
J. Mark English(1) - 52
bl(1) - 44
Bill Barker - 40
FunkyPundit(0.5) - 33
SoloD - 28
Dave O'Leary - 21
Rigel - 17
Mike - 8

Normally, this is where I brag about how great my picks will be this week. Unfortunately, I have a cold, so I really don't feel like my usual overconfident self. So here they are, my picks in red:

Indianapolis Colts at Carolina Panthers: The Colts may fall into this trap game, but I won't pick it.
Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears: The last time these two teams played in Detroit, and the Lions had to score 34 points in the fourth quarter to win. I don't expect them to do that again, especially not in Chicago.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals: This game could get ugly. The Steelers are a BIG step above the Bengals.
New York Giants at Miami Dolphins: Welcome to London. Dolphin fans, try not to leave your lunch there.
Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings: Which Eagle team will show up this week? My gut says the "bad" Eagles show up.
Cleveland Browns at St. Louis Rams: The Rams may surprise someone. And I will be wrong that week. Until then...
Oakland Raiders at Tennessee Titans: As much as I would love to make the Raider homer pick, the Titans are too good to pick against. The Raiders need to develop more before I can pick them in a game like this.
Buffalo Bills at New York Jets: This game could go either way, but neither of these teams is going anywhere this year. At least the Bills seem to be moving in a positive direction.
Houston Texans at San Diego Chargers: Expect the Chargers to be a little more motivated to win this one for fire-ravaged south California.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The battle of the two best teams in Florida. I have to lean towards the Bucs with Jeff Garcia over the Jags with Quinn Gray.
Washington Redskins at New England Patriots: The Skins are about to be skinned.
New Orleans Saints at San Francisco 49ers: I think the 49ers will find the Saints to be a little easier than their last four opponents.
Green Bay Packers at Denver Broncos: Denver's biggest weakness? Run defense. Green Bay's biggest offensive weakness? The running game. Expect Favre to throw this one away.


Pigskin Pick'em Rules:
1. Pick the straight-up winners of all this weeks NFL games (excluding any Thursday games). Picks will be accepted in the comments section of the following websites: Politics and Pigskins, Ragged Thots, and American Legends. All picks must be posted by 1 pm Eastern Time on Sunday (otherwise known as "The Barker Rule"), or by the kickoff of the first NFL Saturday game on weeks when that happens.
2. The winner gets...bragging rights! (you weren't expecting money, were you?)
3. And new for this year: I will be keeping a running tally for the season, so the person who gets the most picks correct for the whole season, including the playoffs, gets...even BIGGER bragging rights! (and still no money)

Ed's NFL Pro Bowl Ballot

It is the time of year to vote for the NFL's Pro Bowl players (you can vote over at NFL.com). Without further ado, here are my early selections for the offensive skill positions:

AFC QB: Tom Brady (Patriots), Peyton Manning (Colts), Matt Schaub (Texans)
The first two are no-brainers. After that, it comes down to David Garrard or Schaub. I took Schaub because he's been sacked less even though he's thrown it more. With Houston's history, it's hard to say Schaub's been sacked less because of better blocking.

AFC RB: Joseph Addai (Colts), Willie Parker (Steelers), LaDainian Tomlinson (Chargers)
Addai and Parker are obvious choices. LT is off to a slow start, but coming on strong. I fully expect LT will not finish the season behind Travis Henry (who will probably be suspended soon) and Lamont Jordan (who is being slowed by back problems).

I have to give an honorable mention to Ronnie Brown. But I have to see him continue to put up good performances before I give him my Pro Bowl vote.

AFC WR: Randy Moss (Pats), T.J. Houshmandzadeh (Bengals), Chad Johnson (Bengals), Braylon Edwards (Browns)
The first three are obvious.

Why Braylon Edwards? 552 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns.

AFC Fullback: Justin Griffith (Raiders)
Griffith is THE primary reason for the resurrection of the Raiders running game.

AFC TE: Antonio Gates (Chargers), Tony Gonzalez (Chiefs)
This almost doesn't require any explanation. The two most dominant tight ends in the last ten years in the NFL. They are still the two best.

NFC QB: Tony Romo (Cowboys), Jeff Garcia (Bucs), Brett Favre (Packers)
Romo is a no-brainer.

As for Garcia, I am not sure he will still be on my ballot a month from now (I predict an injury before the end of the season), but I cannot argue with how good he has been so far.

Favre is there because he has carried the Packers on his back, and looked fairly decent doing it.

NFC RB: Adrian Peterson (Vikings), Brian Westbrook (Eagles), Edgerrin James (Cards)
If you want to know why the AFC is stronger than the NFC, look no further than the running back position.

Peterson is clearly the best of the bunch, and he is a rookie splitting carries with Chester Taylor. Peterson earned most of this consideration in one game, last week against the Bears. But that one game was enough to give him the lead among all NFL rushers.

After Peterson is where you see the major fall-off. Westbrook is invaluable to the Eagles, but he's already missed one game this year and I fully expect him to miss more.

James is having a decent year, but I can think of five AFC running backs having a better year.

NFC WR: Larry Fitzgerald (Cards), Steve Smith (Panthers), Plaxico Burress (Giants), Donald Driver (Packers)
This is the other area where the AFC clearly dominates. I would take Braylon Edwards over ANY of these guys.

NFC Fullback: none
Frankly, there are no fullbacks worthy of a Pro Bowl vote in this group.

NFC TE: Jason Witten (Cowboys)
The only tight end worthy of acknowledgment in the NFC.

Pigskin Pick'em - NFL Week 7 Picks

For all you weekend warriors out there, if you feel like skipping the NFL games this weekend to get some yardwork done, here are the final results BEFORE they happen. Well, at least a reasonable facsimile of them (my picks in red as usual):

Baltimore Ravens at Buffalo Bills: If you don't like offensive shootouts, this is the game for you. Blackbirds over Bills.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Detroit Lions: I'm not sure which Lions team will show up, but even the "good" Lions should have a hard time with the Bucs.
Tennessee Titans at Houston Texans: For football purists, AFC South matchups are always fun to watch. Along with the Monday night game, this is definitely a weekend for football purists. I'll take the Titans to win by a tiny margin.
New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins: No-brainer of the week. With the Fish trading away their best wide receiver (Chris Chambers), I think it's safe to say they will be mailing it in for the rest of the season. Unfortunately for them, the mail won't be delivered this Sunday.
Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints: So the Saints DO know how to win! That's bad news for the Falcons.
San Francisco 49ers at New York Giants: This will be a good test for the G-men.
Arizona Cardinals at Washington Redskins: The Cards go with two quarterbacks who weren't on NFL rosters a few weeks ago. Sounds like they're about to get plucked.
New York Jets at Cincinnati Bengals: The only team the Jets have beaten this year is the Dolphins. The only team the Bengals have beaten is the Ravens. I'll take the team that beat the Ravens.
Kansas City Chiefs at Oakland Raiders: Homer pick alert! Seriously though, the Chiefs are quite beatable.
Minnesota Vikings at Dallas Cowboys: Even an Adrian Peterson sighting is NOT going to save the Vikes. The Boys should be sufficiently ticked off by the spanking they took from the Pats last week.
Chicago Bears at Philadelphia Eagles: This one is just a gut feeling.
St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks: Take the Hawks to fly circles around the Lambs.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos: If the Steelers win this one, I will have a ton of respect for Mike Tomlin. I lean towards the Steelers pulling it off.
Indianapolis Colts at Jacksonville Jaguars: There are two teams I won't pick against this year, and one of them is the Colts. But I won't be surprised if the Jags pull the upset.


Pigskin Pick'em Rules:
1. Pick the straight-up winners of all this weeks NFL games (excluding any Thursday games). Picks will be accepted in the comments section of the following websites: Politics and Pigskins, Ragged Thots, and American Legends. All picks must be posted by 1 pm Eastern Time on Sunday (otherwise known as "The Barker Rule"), or by the kickoff of the first NFL Saturday game on weeks when that happens.
2. The winner gets...bragging rights! (you weren't expecting money, were you?)
3. And new for this year: I will be keeping a running tally for the season, so the person who gets the most picks correct for the whole season, including the playoffs, gets...even BIGGER bragging rights! (and still no money)

Fine "Young" Cannibal

Do Leftists eat their own? Apparently, at least one on the Left has turned on their last great president, Bill Clinton. Of all people, I was shocked to read the following from singer Neil Young (from starpulse.com):

"In this country we had a bad group of events starting with Bill Clinton and leading up to Bush. Clinton was a catalyst for a lot of this stuff because he played out on a moral stage a very bad scenario. He lied directly to the American people about something that has to do with core family values.

"He's not a bad person; he made a mistake. but in lying he made a worse mistake. And although it was very human and people forgive him for doing that, he gave the other side, the conservative side, the aggressive side, a huge opening. If it hadn't been for what he did, Al Gore would have been president. We would have had a president who understands the environment. We would have had a smart man in there."

Neil, you're kidding right? Are you telling me that it was NOT some evil right-wing conspiracy that got Bush into the White House? It was NOT because Bush had the Supreme Court in his back pocket?

I wonder how long it will take before the rest of the Left throws Neil under his own tour bus.

Pigskin Pick'em - Week 6 Results

Last week's results:

bl - 10
David Stefanini - 9
Robert A. George - 9
SoloD - 9
EdMcGon - 7
FunkyPundit - 7
J. Mark English - 6
*Bill Barker - 1

The year-to-date results (with weekly wins in parentheses):

David Stefanini(1) - 52
EdMcGon(1) - 49
Robert A. George(1.5) - 47
J. Mark English(1) - 45
bl(1) - 35
Bill Barker - 34
FunkyPundit(0.5) - 33
SoloD - 28
Dave O'Leary - 21
Rigel - 17
Mike - 8

*Being the nice guy I am, I let Bill Barker have one this week, since he did get in the Monday night pick prior to that game.

Pigskin Pick'em - NFL Week 5 Results AND Week 6 Picks

Call it a two-fer Thursday, cause you get two posts for the price of reading one.

So I had a busy week at work and I've been lazy about posting the week 5 results.

Anyway, along with the "two-fer" theme, we had two winners last week:

Robert A. George - 11
FunkyPundit - 11
David Stefanini - 10
EdMcGon - 10
J. Mark English - 9
bl - 9
SoloD - 7
Bill Barker - 6
Rigel - 6

The overall season results (with weekly wins in parentheses):

David Stefanini(1) - 43
EdMcGon(1) - 42
J. Mark English(1) - 39
Robert A. George(1.5) - 38
Bill Barker - 33
FunkyPundit(0.5) - 26
bl - 25
Dave O'Leary - 21
SoloD - 19
Rigel - 17
Mike - 8

And now for the second part of our two-fer, all the correct picks for this week's games (otherwise known as "my picks in red"):

St. Louis Rams at Baltimore Ravens: Hard to go with Gus on the road, but it still should be close.
Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears: I know the Vikes wished they picked up a quarterback in the offseason. When Brian Griese looks better than anything you've got, you're in trouble.
Miami Dolphins at Cleveland Browns: If the Brownies take the Fish lightly, they can lose this one.
Washington Redskins at Green Bay Packers: I am not sure how good the Redskins really are, since they've had a fairly easy schedule so far.
Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars: The Jags seem to be "in the zone" now, with three straight wins. I'll take the hot team in what should be a pretty good game.
Cincinnati Bengals at Kansas City Chiefs: As bad as the Bengals are, the Chefs are worse.
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Jets: Two struggling teams trying to get their ships on course. The Eagles strike me as having just a bit more talent.
Tennessee Titans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Both of these teams have lost to the Colts, but the Titans looked a lot more impressive against the Colts.
Carolina Panthers at Arizona Cardinals: The Battle of the Backups. Carr vs. Warner. Doesn't it just get your heart pumping? I thought not.
New England Patriots at Dallas Cowboys: The overhyped game of the week. Sorry, but the Pats walk away with this one easily.
Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers: I have to make the homer pick here, but I can't go against my "first place in the AFC West" Raiders. I love the sound of that!
New Orleans Saints at Seattle Seahawks: Will the Saints show up this week? I'm not betting on it.
New York Giants at Atlanta Falcons: We know this game was scheduled for Monday night before Vick went to the dogs.

Pigskin Pick'em Rules:
1. Pick the straight-up winners of all this weeks NFL games (excluding any Thursday games). Picks will be accepted in the comments section of the following websites: Politics and Pigskins, Ragged Thots, and American Legends. All picks must be posted by 1 pm Eastern Time on Sunday, or by the kickoff of the first NFL Saturday game on weeks when that happens.
2. The winner gets...bragging rights! (you weren't expecting money, were you?)
3. And new for this year: I will be keeping a running tally for the season, so the person who gets the most picks correct for the whole season, including the playoffs, gets...even BIGGER bragging rights! (and still no money)

Pigskin Pick'em - NFL Week 5 Picks

Once again, time for the picks (in red), this time from last week's defending champion (that's me):

Miami Dolphins at Houston Texans: I can't pick the Fish until they show me they can win.
Jacksonville Jaguars at Kansas City Chiefs: The Jags are not much better than the Chiefs, but they should be good enough to beat this Herm Edwards train wreck.
Cleveland Browns at New England Patriots: The only way the Pats lose this one is if they take the Brownies lightly.
Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints: The Saints are a tempting pick this week, but they will have to win one before I take them. They have looked pretty bad so far.
New York Jets at New York Giants: This one is a coin toss between two underachieving teams.
Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers: I have not been overly impressed with either of these teams. They have played well enough to win, but their competition so far has not been exceptional. That said, I lean towards the Steelers in this long road game for the Hawks.
Arizona Cardinals at St. Louis Rams: Kurt Warner wins one against his former team.
Atlanta Falcons at Tennessee Titans: Rumors swirling about Bobby Petrino returning to the college ranks after this season cannot be helping the Falcons team morale.
Detroit Lions at Washington Redskins: Expect the Lions to have a letdown after their big win over the Bears last week. The Skins coming off a bye week makes it even tougher for Millen's boys.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Indianapolis Colts: As beat up as the Colts are this week, I might take the Bucs to win under normal circumstances. Unfortunately, the Bucs are just as beat up. With both starting running backs (Cadillac Williams and Joseph Addai) likely to miss this game with injuries, don't be surprised if this game turns into a passing fiesta, and we know how Peyton Manning does in those.
San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos: Norv Turner vs. Mike Shanahan. 'Nuff said.
Baltimore Ravens at San Francisco 49ers: Expect Trent Dilfer to pull a "Culpepper" against the team he led to the Super Bowl.
Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers: Yawn. Am I the only one who is completely bored with Brett Favre, even when he does well?
Dallas Cowboys at Buffalo Bills: If this game were played anytime other than Monday night, I might take the Bills. But give Terrell Owens a spotlight, and he'll take it.


Pigskin Pick'em Rules:
1. Pick the straight-up winners of all this weeks NFL games (excluding any Thursday games). Picks will be accepted in the comments section of the following websites: Politics and Pigskins, Ragged Thots, and American Legends. All picks must be posted by 1 pm Eastern Time on Sunday, or by the kickoff of the first NFL Saturday game on weeks when that happens.
2. The winner gets...bragging rights! (you weren't expecting money, were you?)
3. And new for this year: I will be keeping a running tally for the season, so the person who gets the most picks correct for the whole season, including the playoffs, gets...even BIGGER bragging rights! (and still no money)

Pigskin Pick'em - NFL Week 4 Results

Look who won this week. Some guy named Ed:

EdMcGon - 8
FunkyPundit - 7
J. Mark English - 6
Bill Barker - 6
bl - 6
Rigel - 6
David Stefanini - 5
Dave O'Leary - 5
SoloD - 5
Robert A. George - 4

And that guy named Ed seems to be moving up in the YTD standings too (with number of weeks won in parentheses):

David Stefanini(1) - 33
EdMcGon(1) - 32
J. Mark English(1) - 30
Robert A. George(1) - 27
Bill Barker - 27
Dave O'Leary - 21
bl - 16
FunkyPundit - 15
SoloD - 12
Rigel - 11
Mike - 8