Who's the Real Fool?

While Sarah Palin was busy fending off reporters with infamous, often disprovable accusations, Joe Biden was able to skate through the entire election season with his provable gaffes attracting little attention.

Sarah Palin thought Africa was a country, not a continent. She didn't know the countries involved in the NAFTA agreement. Certainly you've heard these claims. Perhaps you've even heard the reports on Fox News. These claims are hearsay. You're never a complete idiot until you've been caught on tape.

Vice President-elect Joe Biden has provided an insurmountable amount of embarrassing blunders and it's doubtful that the average voter could rattle off a single one. Please, allow me to enlighten you.

While on the campaign trail in Missouri, Biden gave a respectful shout-out to State Senator Chuck Graham. "Chuck, stand up, let the people see you," Biden said. Senator Chuck Graham was unable to oblige of course, being that he is handicapped and restricted to a wheelchair. Imagine what the press would've done with that had it been Palin.

While talking to an Indian-American supporter, Biden quipped, "You can not go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent." Way to be politically correct, Mr. Biden.

According to Biden, the number one job facing the middle class...a "3 letter word, J-O-B-S." And, you thought Sarah Palin was a moron.

"Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am to be vice president of the United States of America," Biden stated at a campaign rally, "Quite frankly, it might've been a better pick then me." Perhaps so.

No politician is above error. But, let's face it...we eat what the media feeds us and, in 2008, they served up a plateful of Obama/Biden.

More Obama/Biden

It Was Only a Matter of Time

The Big Three traveled to Washington today and did something they are not accustomed to doing...they begged. UAW President, Ron Gettelfinger, was particularly amusing to watch as he squirmed in his chair, something he's had the auto industry doing for years.

Gettelfinger has lobbied to get "provisions" for auto workers, all the while sucking the life out of the industry and providing substandard labor. Unfortunately, the UAW is a few decades late in making concessions.

Hard work equals more pay.

This is the only contract that should've been signed. Salary increases should have been given on an individual basis, based on productivity. For decades, blanket increases and bonuses have been awarded to union workers as the quality of their product continued to decline. The one big mistake CEO's made was to allow these absurd contracts to be signed, year after year.

That being said, for the benefit of Michigan, this bailout must come to pass. The state, not just the auto companies, will fail if a bailout is not provided. The government provided a giveaway to Wall Street. The auto companies are only asking for a loan. To deny this request would devastate Americans. So many jobs would be lost that we would finally know what it is to suffer.

Should the Big Three be fortunate enough to be given this loan, the UAW is what really needs to be restructured. Let's face facts, the UAW needs to be eliminated.

Conservative Sports Corner

In the absence of parental guidance today, children often look to sports figures for direction. What they find is a world of corruption, deception and disgrace wrapped up in the illusion of glory and fame.

Major league sports took off in the United States in the early 1900’s and since then, athletes have been idolized by young men and women alike. The difference between then and now is that kids had the benefit of two parent homes. Morals and values were taught in the home and sports were simply a form of entertainment. With a decrease in family values and a lack of guidance at home, children are turning to actors and sports figures as idols to be emulated. Athletes continue to disappoint.

Sports figures have never possessed impeccable conduct. Since the days of Babe Ruth and Joe Jackson, scandal has existed. They are, after all, human. These days however, television and the Internet allow fans to see their idols in ways those athletes were previously able to keep private.
Over the past 15 years, the fall of America’s beloved athletes has been continuous and unrelenting. Beginning with OJ Simpson in the 1990’s, the integrity of modern athletes began a downward spiral, leaving few role models for children to revere.

Since the embarrassment of Simpson’s trial, sports fans have endured the sexual assault investigation of respected basketball player, Kobe Bryant. Though it didn’t result in his conviction, Bryant was forced to admit infidelity. Jose Canseco's book, "Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ’Roids, Smash Hits, and How Baseball Got Big," exposed not only his steroid use, but brought down many in Major League Baseball. Michael Vick’s dog fighting indictment was a shocking and disturbing story that brought further shame to professional sports.
Just last weekend, New York Giants star, Plaxico Burress allegedly brought a loaded gun into a nightclub and accidentally shot himself in the thigh.

This is only a short list of misbehavior on the part of athletes. Stories surface on a weekly basis of sports figures behaving badly.

It could be argued that athletes are only responsible for winning and their personal life should be of no consequence to their fans. However, athletes are much like politicians. Scandal and misconduct may not affect the ability to do their job, but as a public figure, they have a responsibility to the fans. Character is not only important, but imperative for people who position themselves in the public eye. Perhaps it’s even more important that athletes adhere to this ideal. Rarely does a child aspire to be just like Jennifer Granholm. Most children, specifically young boys, aspire to be their favorite sports figure.

The respectable face of sports continues to diminish with each scandal that arises. The legacy of athletes like Steve Yzerman and Luther Elliss will be overshadowed by folks like Sean Avery and Terrell Owens unless more stand up sports figures surface in the face of a society of declining morals. Most importantly, young boys need to see that real men have respect for women, animals and themselves.