2018 Winners and Losers

Losers first.

Bill Belichick has blown two huge games (and then Brady blows a third).  First, by stubbornly refusing to play Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl 52, he literally blew the game.  Butler is the one player who very likely could have made a critical defensive difference in a game decided by the razor’s edge.  Belichick has gotten to a point where his personal style and whims outweigh the concerns of the team.  And not only has this outpouring of arrogance been a detriment to the Pats; but he has apparently taken to sleeping at the wheel on occasion.  The coaching foobahs that allowed the Miami Miracle were rather obvious to anyone paying attention.  Has he forgotten how to coach?  I don’t think one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time forgets to how to coach.  I think that perhaps he has just lost his focus.  I suppose Bill figures they can win most of the time simply by showing up.  Good luck with that.

Theresa Mary May, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, and Vladimir Putin.   May is attempting to engineer her own personal Brexit.  Macron is hiding from the public and listening to violin music while Paris burns.  Merkel is overseeing the meltdown of what she arrogantly refers to as Europe’s premier economy.  Putin continues to play war games and joust with Trump; obviously still unaware that he is dealing with a different breed of American cat that will not cower beneath the couch.  All except Putin are headed for premature extinction.  In Putin’s case, I fear that his continued frustration from being outpaced may result in his miscalculation of some desperate measure.  All of these foreign leaders have chosen the path of very public dispute with President Trump.  How is that working out for them?  Do you suppose that in the case of this European trio, it has anything to do with their painfully and tragically flawed Progressive (think LIBERAL) governing principles?

  

Bill and Hillary Clinton.  How pathetic have the Clintons become when long-time groupie Maureen Dowd turns on them?  Her recent piece about Curtains for the Clintons is beyond humiliating for the ex-power couple.  The Clinton quest for power through greed is legendary; but in recent years, it has taken a turn for the pitiful.  It is also sad to view the early stages of Reluctant Presidential Withdrawal (RPW) from Obama and see the next chapter of this public shriveling occurring.  Please…Bill, Hillary, Barack…just go away.  Is it just me, or do we just see this disturbing syndrome from Democrat Presidents?

Moderates of any size or shape.  How maddening it must be for any common sense Republican or Democrat to live, work, and simply exist in the crazy world of WDC these days?  Between Trumpian Chaos and Democratic Resist lies a gulf so wide that it must be impossible to occupy it without some sense of absolute isolation and futility.  It has become a wasteland of irrelevance, anonymous sputtering, and a maze of interstate highways with no road signs.  What used to be known as the Silent Majority can best be described these days as the Muted Minority.  It seems that both national Parties have been hijacked by their more extreme characters and the occasional pragmatism of past years has been rendered both ineffectual and politically incorrect.  Our political environment is now dominated by a Forty Percent Discipline on either side of the aisle that would vote for a 120 pound Doberman if he, or she, were running on their ticket.

College Football Playoff (CFP) Selection Committee.  Is it Oklahoma, Georgia, or UCF?  Can a two-loss season be better than a one-loss season be better than an undefeated season?  Gosh…who knows?  I can tell you this for certain…these guys don’t.  Stop the maddening arbitrariness of the college playoffs; either expand to eight or do the right thing and establish a playoff… http://centerlineright.blogspot.com/2018/11/college-football-foolishness-redux.html

Where are the winners?

Let us start with business, both small and large.  Corporate America must be privately celebrating their new-found environment of less government influence and interference, increased consumer enablement, and unfortunately, continued public obliviousness about corporate greed, corruption, and monolithic ambition.  The loosening of regulatory shackles has indeed freed up our domestic economy to expand and grow; but it has also emboldened the dark side of Corporate America to allow its ugly, unbridled lust for profit to peek from around the curtain.  And in the case of the tech firms, they have moved alarmingly into the areas of privacy and influence as well as profit.  As Spiderman’s grandpa told him…With great power comes great responsibility; or to put it another way…If you are going to make filthy high profits, at least practice ethical business and personnel policies.   Trump has no doubt unleashed the great private enterprise machine of America; but at what cost will prosperity grow across our great land?

SCOTUS.  The Supreme Court of the United States is now positioned to enter an extended period of respect and common sense rulings while wearing a fresh face of dignity.  We appear to have a majority of SCOTUS membership that respects and reveres the Constitution.  And while that adherence to original content and intent will no doubt be refreshing, hopefully it will be intelligently balanced by the moderating influence of Roberts and Kavanaugh.  With our nation’s governance spinning wildly into chaos and extreme ideology, it is comforting to think that at least one of our three legs of democracy is setting up to be reliable and steady for the foreseeable future. 

Strip shopping centers.  As marvelously impressive as they are from an engineering and marketing standpoint, there is something that is eerily decadent about the mega malls.  The overwhelming power of raw consumerism and the mesmerizing aura of effective mass merchandising is mind-numbing; not to mention the oftentimes unsavory habits of the self unaware shopping public.  It is somehow refreshing to see the trend of stores moving from the huge commercial conglomerations that are malls out to the strip shopping centers that are more frequently popping up in communities all across America.  Not only does it lower the startup costs involved for an enterprising small business, but it also adds flavor and diversity to our urban and suburban landscapes.  I like it.  It is also fascinating to watch how the vacated and monolithic mega mall structures are being re-purposed by colleges, government, and other enterprising entities.  Cultural evolution is sure something, ain’t it?

Streaming.  One single word that will undoubtedly transform an entire industry.  In rural (very rural) Kentucky, I can get up to 25 FREE television stations with HD quality pictures as long as I provide a decent antenna setup.  I can supplement this with a cable or satellite provider to get broader and more current programming; but I will pay dearly for that service and I will likely only view a small fraction of the programming offerings I pay for on a monthly basis.  On the other hand, streaming allows me the freedom to watch what I want, when I want, and where I want to; paying only for the special selections I occasionally choose or by taking advantage of the generous free content available.  The only impediment to streaming taking over the television universe is the not-yet-completed establishment of affordable and reliable internet service all across our country.  That is now happening a bit more every day and the potential freedoms that this access offers to rural America are incredible.  I anticipate with relish that ever closer day when I can tell my satellite provider about that shady place where they can store my TV viewing package that they are so proud of.  When you get the chance, do all you can to encourage and support the expansion of inexpensive and reliable internet service to all areas of our nation.  It is one of the most liberating advents of the modern world and can dramatically expand the horizons of those who wish to utilize it fully.

We are.  For all the madness that surrounds us on a daily basis; the world continues to spin and exist.  Oh, the times they are a changing; that much is certain.  And even though the jury is still out on whether or not that change is predominately positive; the fact is that the world (we) remains.  For every callous deed, there is a magnanimous gesture.  For every arrogance, there is a compensating humility.  For every stupid action, there is an intelligent response.  It is true that many times, the balancing movement is quiet, unassuming, and simply hard to recognize; but it is there nonetheless.  For all of the political and social upheaval we have experienced in recent decades, our nation remains stubbornly steadfast.  From Rush Limbaugh to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, from the Kremlin to WDC, from the frozen arctic to the sizzling deserts, from the daily triumphs of glorious victories to the all too often tragedies of personal defeats, from the narrow visages of ideologues to the all too rare visions of statesmen, from the regimented lifestyles of many world citizens to the absolute personal freedoms of American residents.  We have survived Clinton…and Obama…and we will survive Trump.  Life will continue and whatever the future may hold for the United States, this nation will rise to meet it in its gloriously disheveled, uncoordinated, and multi-faceted fashion that is our way.  Our way and our privilege.  A true gift from God.  A gift that has been purchased and preserved by the active and retired personnel of our U.S. military.

Christmas 2018

In this world full of conflict, so varied and common;

We look for that space to be quiet and solemn.

The anger, the rage, the hate, and the scorn;

The inconsideration that is too often worn.

We’ve turned from the civil towards the face of the coarse;

We’ve traded persuasion for the harshness of force.

No compromise, no concessions, no giving, all take;

Simple victory’s not enough, we need a head on a stake!

There’s little real tolerance, positions locked down;

No room for learning, our answers are found.

We rush and we strive and we work and we play;

We intertwine with each other in an antiseptic way.

The force behind the face, the heart behind the person;

No time for these things, that much is certain.

Our lives have become a demand undenied;

Pushing and pulling and mostly contrived.

At times there is clarity, a moment to “feel”;

But those moments are swallowed in the swirl of the “real”.

And we look back with whimsy at the images left behind;

Opportunities passed by with no hope of rewind.

If only we could learn to seize the moment;

To grasp the cup rather than live with the torment.

To do what feels right as we know we should;

To follow our angels who whisper the good.

Yes…something lies with us, a notion of giving;

It’s a gift from God, a recipe for living.

Pay it Forward…Do Good First…call it what you will;

We each have that spirit within us so still.

And if we can find it and look at its face;

Just give it a moment to make its own case.

That spirit will change us and help heal this world;

That spirit will lift us and help find the Lord.

We’re not all perfect and not all smart;

We’ve all made mistakes and fallen short of the mark.

But we each can do something, special unto us;

Unique and private, a sacred kind of trust.

It is ours to give freely as we each see fit;

It flows without cost and is received without debt.

So as this Holiday Season barrels through our lives;

As we rush and we rumble and we fight to survive.

We each should remember that inside of us all;

Waiting and yearning for a summons or call.

Lies that special something that can transcend and ring…

The power to do good and the joy it can bring.

May you and yours have a                      

blessed and peaceful Holiday 

Season.

My Impossible Christmas Wish List

Anyone who has ever dealt with kids and their Santa Claus lists understands how to handle the situation when they put that particular thing on the list (usually at the top of the list) that is unobtainable, inappropriate, or just too expensive.  The typical response is to simply tell them to go ahead and put it on the list; just be sure to put some other things on there also.  This is the old escape route that places the blame squarely on ole St.  Nick for picking the wrong gifts from the list and allows you to skate away unscathed.  Well, here is my impossible gift list for Santa; made with the full knowledge that they are quite likely fantastical and totally unrealistic.

First off, I am going to cheat and split the first request into two parts.  The initial part is for our President to grow up, shut up, and man up.  Stop whining, stop throwing sand, stop pulling hair and slapping faces, stop dropping bathroom references every little whipstitch, and stop pumping up the arrogance to levels that are barely tolerable. Start performing by walking the walk and stop talking the talk.  Choose your words more carefully, doing a better job of matching the quality of your speech to the quality of your content.  When you are caught with your hand in the cookie jar…simply smile, slowly and plainly retract your hand, confess you are sorry and won’t do it again, and then move on.  If you don’t want to be put in the uncomfortable position of defending poor decisions or actions by your bad associates in the future, stop running around with bad associates.  Do your job and fill the vacant positions in your Administration.  It is inexcusable to allow important, critical, and essential positions to continue unfilled two years into your term.  There is a reason why top level government offices exist and leaving them vacant puts those departments and agencies into positions that lead to inaction, misaction, and abuse. Nature abhors a vacuum and so does government.   You got elected; now do your job and put good people in a position to fulfill your campaign promises.  Oh…and by the way, when you select good, competent people to fill those positions (as I admit you are prone to do), leave them the heck alone and let them do their jobs.  Don’t engage in public and trivial spats with them and instead, give them the respect and support that accomplished professionals expect and deserve.  Recognize that you have survived probably the most unfair initial two years of a Presidential term in recent  history, feel good about that accomplishment, and allow yourself to grow into the dignified (now THAT is getting into impossible territory!), inspirational, and credible President that this nation deserves and that you have the unique opportunity to become.  Now the second part…

If you cannot find it within yourself to make these course corrections; then demonstrate the benevolent good sense to refrain from running for re-election, collect your laurels as they may be, and return to that corporate jungle from whence you came.  Be proud of what you have accomplished; but spare us from another four years of constant sparring with all of your political enemies, both real and imagined.  Allow the Republican Party to learn from their past primary debacles, let them choose a worthy successor to your primarily sound governing principles, and let us build on a relatively solid domestic and foreign policy foundation.  And if perchance you choose to continue your occasional adolescent approach to the Executive office; then I will wish for some extraordinarily gifted and courageous Republican to stand up and oppose you for the 2020 Republican Presidential nomination…and defeat you. 

My second gift wish crosses the aisle into that fantasy land commonly known as Liberal/Progressive thinking.  I continue to be absolutely baffled by the successful bait and switch game played by Liberals who are slyly changing their moniker to Progressives. As we all know from experience, a rose by any other name is still a rose.  Just as global warming conveniently morphed into climate change when its ridiculousness was exposed for all to see; we now see the Liberal community attempting to ditch the age old label of Liberal for the new and yet to be defined label of Progressive.  The new one just feels so fresh and seems to roll off the tongue…don’t you think?  Whatever.

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If these people, who inhabit basically all of the Democratic Party leadership positions, want to paint themselves as the only remaining hope for mankind (excuse me please…that should be humankind), then let them do it.  They can call themselves whatever they like, tell us all how to live our lives, promote their socialist agenda of everything free all of the time for anyone standing in line for it, and frolic merrily about as if there is no tomorrow and no accountability for the actions we take today.  Let them do that.   Just let them do that somewhere else.  My wish is that the Democratic Party will remove these idiots to the smaller meeting room in the other wing of the hotel, reassume the role of a credible national policy variation to the Republicans, and select a 2020 Presidential candidate that can offer a reasonable alternative to a grownup Trump or his more acceptable successor.  This nation needs two national political parties and whether they realize it or not, those parties need each other also.  The plain and simple truth is that either party, left to its own devices and full control of government, will devolve into ideological certitude that eats away at the democratic principles upon which our country was formed.  It destroys the reasonable functioning of our government. 

So, Santa Claus…if you are out there and listening, here are Jim’s impossible wishes for this Christmas (well, it is actually for 2020, but it is beginning to happen as I write).   Don’t give us a President Trump with a bunker mentality.  Don’t give us Hillary 3.0 or some lost and ambitious soul who has humbly trodden the path to Obama for his political blessing.  I am not really sure at all about which Party you might support and how you might choose to vote philosophically; but I would like to think that you might just be a good old Independent thinker like me. 

Shelf Life Expired

This is it, all laid out, plain and simple.  The shelf life for Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller’s political misadventure has expired.  If you really care about the truth; if you want to judge this sad episode on the facts; if you want to be non-partisan and objective…simply read the three articles linked below and listen to the following podcast. 

1

Mueller was appointed in May of 2017 by Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein due to the fact that AG Jeff Sessions had recused himself from the subject based on his involvement in the Trump for President Campaign.  Also, keep in mind that the firing of FBI Director Comey was basically the spark that ignited this entire dumpster fire.  How does Comey look today and after having his role, and the behavior of his subordinates, in this event only partially examined?

https://www.npr.org/2017/05/17/528846598/former-fbi-director-mueller-appointed-special-counsel-to-oversee-russia-probe

2

Now that you have read the language surrounding the original appointment of Mueller and what it was about…think about the entirety of this whole Trump/Russia Collusion nonsense.  The absurdity is this: Trump is being pursued by the Special Prosecutor for, according to his accusers, attempting to obtain derogatory information on his political opponent (Hillary Clinton) from foreign sources.  Understand…this is not a crime.  Also, he was being investigated for obstruction of justice because, supposedly, he fired Comey to protect Mike Flynn; Flynn, who by the way was being investigated for simply conducting routine diplomatic business with the Kremlin in advance of the incoming Trump Administration…after the election was over.  Please note also that there is absolutely no dispute that one, the FBI Director is a political appointee serving at the pleasure of the President and two, literally months prior to  his dismissal, Democratic leaders were unified in called for Comey’s departure due to the bungled Hillary email investigation.  We now stand at a point, as effectively illustrated by Andy McCarthy in the following podcast, where Trump is being investigated for attempting to do something that Hillary Clinton, with the direct support and involvement of the Democratic National Committee, mainstream media, and the Obama Justice Department, actually did.  I am talking about the Steele Dossier.  Read it for yourself…

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2017/12/who-was-that-masked-source.php

3

In May of 2018, President Trump ranted about the cost to the taxpayers of the Mueller investigation; claiming that it would soon be over $20 million dollars.  He was ridiculed for this statement by the NY Times, the Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, and all their fellow Resist Fraternity members who used creative accounting principles to convey the message that…well, yes, it has cost about that much.  As the following article states, its cost was over $17 million as of May, 2018.  Does anyone in their right mind doubt that it has now far exceeded the $20 million figure in November of 2018?  The tragic comedy in this sad episode is that the entire clown show is not the investigation of a crime, but rather an investigation in search of a crime.  Additionally, it is a job that should have been executed by the standard oversight provisions of the Legislative Branch and the auspices of the Department of Justice.

https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-does-russia-investigation-cost-robert-mueller-2018-5

4

And finally, to tie it all up in a pathetically neat little package, I give you Andrew McCarthy….

https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-mccarthy-report/e/57454619?autoplay=true

The time wasted, the money spent, the rancor and venom created between our national leaders, the damage done to the dignity and credibility of all the parties involved and the offices they represent…the Legislative, the Executive, and the Judiciary…not to mention the Fourth Estate, the press/media…is beyond calculation.  We will never know what might have come from the last two years of a Trump Presidency without this leaden albatross having been draped around its neck.  What history will undoubtedly show is that it was not the finest hour for any of the parties associated with it.  It will also show that the grandstanding efforts of Senators Flake and Coons aside, the Special Prosecutor provisions have long ago outlived their usefulness, they should never again be resurrected, and they are the best civic illustration of the old saying…power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Mr. Mueller…go into that good night.  Go gently if you will; just go.

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The Right to Be Stupid

The Liberal and the Conservative communities in American politics are both imperfect movements.  They both have good ideas, a few leaders who are truly interested in the betterment of the nation, and a significant portion of the voting public that is fiercely loyal to their ideals.  Unfortunately, they each have a fairly sizable group of idiots who seem to reside mainly in leadership positions for each national party.  This particular post is looking at that extreme element in each movement; not the portion of each that tends towards the middle and moderation.  That center is becoming more and more difficult to inhabit.  The decisions that each of us as citizens are faced with are increasingly polarized; posed in terms of win/lose, far left/far right, with me/against me, or perhaps the most despicable of all…evil vs. good.  How the fringe elements of each movement have managed to rise to such a level of influence as to disproportionately dictate the principles for the entire group is something I will leave to the history books.  I will, however, comment on the real life impact of that phenomenon.

Accepting the premise that it is the foundation of our nation’s government and at the risk of gross oversimplification, the fundamental difference between the Far Left and the Far Right is their view of the Constitution.  The Far Right purports to be strict constitutionalists.  To them, the Constitution is a document that was written in such a way as to be literally and eternally applicable.  The remedy for any necessary variation or revision to its original content is the amendment process.   In their view, it is the role of the federal Judiciary to interpret the laws and regulations promulgated by the Legislative and Executive branches as either being compliant with the Constitution’s written word or not.  They insist that legal remedies for the inevitable and evolutionary changes in our society and government be initiated and implemented in accordance with a strict interpretation of the Constitution.  And if that process becomes unworkable or dysfunctional due to political gridlock, then so be it.  The status quo shall be maintained until some nonspecific solution at some unspecified time in the future arrives to remove the impediments to orderly and constitutional change.

The Far Left has embraced the concept of the living Constitution.  While participating in the constitutional processes of governance, they insist on the premise that even though the Constitution is the bedrock document for our country, it is an aged document that must be brought into the current framework of our society through both interpretation and implementation.  They see it as an original framework that was fully intended, even necessarily mandated, to evolve as our culture changes and morphs through generations.  More than any other area of disagreement between the two political philosophies, their differing views on the role of the federal Judiciary is in stark contrast to the Far Right.  And even though both parties, depending on their majority/minority status at the time, have embraced or condemned extraordinary Legislative and Executive actions; the Far Left clearly and definitively see the Judiciary as overlords of social and governmental change.  This Judicial activism is a fundamental canyon that exists between the two movements and the strategic leverage of the competition lies in the unpredictable process of Executive appointments; how they fall, where they fall, and when they fall.  And even though it gets far less attention than the Legislative and Executive happenings in our government, this particular battle between the two movements is the true war of wills that most impacts the American people.

Each side has obvious flaws to their rigid beliefs and actions, but there is one particular trait possessed by the Far Left that has become extremely dangerous to the health of our nation.  The Far Right can be didactic and self-righteous in their profession of conservative values.  They are oftentimes clearly disingenuous when they publicly acknowledge the Far Left’s right to be different; but then publicly state this right with a “looking down your nose” attitude.  Additionally, they sometimes are too quick to equate the terms of the debate with a win or lose definition; abusing the “compromise on practice but never on principle” axiom.  They sometimes tend towards framing everything as principle.  The Far Left oftentimes calls these Far Right tendencies small-minded.  And if we want to keep the debate on a technical and above-board level, that description is pretty fair.  But the development that concerns me most is the ever-increasing actions by the Far Left to frame political debates in stark terms of “good versus evil” and their solution to political defeat being “burn it down”.  The snobbery and high-handed airs taken on by the Far Left are legendary in their display.  They have always seen themselves as superior beings to those that might disagree with them and have always thought that they know better what is best for all than anyone else involved in the process…including all.

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Tolerance is a necessary ingredient for democracy.  There must be room in our society, culture, and government for the coexistence of different values and ideals.  Now there will be occasions when tolerance is superseded by a fundamental notion of right or wrong.  Such tension is exquisitely illustrated by the ongoing debates surrounding abortion, capital punishment, or gay rights.  These, and others, are the great questions of our time and will define us as a nation and as a people.  Our ability, or inability, to discover a way to settle these great debates in a civil fashion is the quintessential challenge to our existence as a country.  But setting aside the bigger and more profound questions, which are in relative terms small in number; the way that each political faction has been approaching the more mundane issues of governance lately is problematic.  While the Far Right has certainly used Legislative trickery and Executive actions to their benefit when in power; they have not exercised as great a license in these areas as the Far Left.  And there can be no debate about the clear abuse of the Judiciary power that has been exhibited by the Far Left.  Liberal activist Judges are pushing judicial limits all across our nation.  If you accept the proposition of a living constitution; you must also accept the inherent dangers of irrational federal Judges exhibiting poor judgment in autonomously altering constitutional interpretation. 

But the extreme Liberal community in our nation seems to have entered into a new area of dogma.  They now advocate tolerance simply for the sake of tolerance.  They have taken the “agree with me or be damned” argument to new heights.  They have forgotten how to lose graciously and have adopted a new approach of “control it or burn it down”.   Taken at its face value, tolerance for the sake of tolerance is simply an absence of principle.  There are certain things that cannot, and should not, be tolerated.  On the other hand, by and large, in a nation such as ours that was built on diversity and autonomy; reasonable tolerance is a necessary ingredient for America.  The Far Right must come to grips with the fact that every time a disagreement comes up, it cannot be automatically placed in the principle rather than the practice category.  The Far Left must understand that every time someone dares to disagree with their specific prescription for living, it is not nuclear war and their opponents are not Neanderthals.  In our country, each one of us has the right to be stupid…as long as that stupidity does not infringe on another’s rights.  That, my friends, is the delicate balance that is being pursued.

College Football Foolishness Redux

In January of 2017, I wrote a post regarding the NCAA College Football Championship system.  Standing here nearly two years later, little has changed.  College football is still ruled by the NCAA Carnival of Clowns who decide, in their infinite wisdom, when a good loss is superior to a bad win.  Who decide that simply because team A defeated team B in the regular season, and all other things being relatively equal, there is nothing to prevent them from deeming team B a more deserving team as far as the college championship selection is concerned.  Additionally, and most wonderful of all, they can determine that regardless of what their respective regular season won-loss records are, certain teams deserve favorable selection treatment because they are playing their best football at the end of the regular season.  How the colleges of America can continue to allow their athletic programs to be held hostage by this power-hungry band of bungling bureaucrats is simply beyond my comprehension.  It is like watching a person witness their car burning up while holding a fire extinguisher in their hands…unused.  Just in the last couple of weeks, Washington State coach Mike (the Pirate) Leach pontificated about a college football playoff possibility.  Is there no one else thinking about the absurdity of the status quo?

Once again, under the worst case scenario, the NCAA College Football Championship should be settled from a pool of not less than eight teams selected to play in a single-elimination tournament with pairings being determined by common-sense seeding.  Under the best case scenario, the NCAA will look at Dan Wetzel’s plan (coming up below) and return the college football championship back to the people who deserve it; the schools, the players, and the fans.  Now…let’s take another look at that post from January 15, 2017…

College Football Foolishness.  Any NASCAR fan has noticed a significant happening over the last few years…the crowds are shrinking.  All professional sports are contending with the newfound competition of affordable home viewing of sporting events.  High def televisions are easily affordable and when paired up with cable or satellite packages, watching the big game from home has become (for many) preferable to the stadium experience.  Even though the game-day experience is a unique and exciting process, the fact is that it has become very expensive and logistically more challenging.  There is a reason that new stadium and arena projects are focusing more on the individual fan experience rather than the number of fans the structure can accommodate.  Consistently selling out seating capacity is far preferable to impressive, but less than capacity, crowds. 

Enter the college football post-season carnival.  What is the NCAA’s response to this new viewer challenge from the world of high tech?  In all of their wisdom, how have they decided to expand and improve their area of college athletics?  Why, of course…we will expand the college bowl landscape!  And because there will not be enough teams with winning records (such a pathetically low bar to clear) to populate the ever-increasing number of bowls, we will annually allow select teams with .500 winning percentages to complete in bowl games.  Pure genius!  And now, having created this master stroke of marketing, NCAA football is right there with NASCAR; the television cameras never show the stands because they are most times sparsely occupied.  I love college football, but post-season play should return to the traditional value of representing an award for outstanding season play; not an excuse for X number of additional practices and corporate sponsors wallowing in salary and expense excesses. 

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This brings us inevitably to the NCAA college football playoff.  Perhaps I see things far too simply in black and white shades, but I continue to be astounded at the NCAA’s refusal to conduct an expanded college football playoff that will crown an annual champion, that is determined by actual plays made on the field, that will return the true excitement of the college football games to the campus where it best exists, and will once again make a conference championship something worth obtaining.  As long as a committee, or a computer program, or a combination thereof selects who is and who is not qualified to complete for the annual college football championship, there will be injustice in the process.  We need only look at the NCAA basketball tournaments for guidance.  Undeniably one of the most exciting events in sports, the NCAA basketball tournaments showcase the best of college basketball and effectively integrate the players, the students, the fans, and the media in an effective and mesmerizing blend of broadcast coverage.  Do the big name schools from the Power Five conferences usually win the tournament?  Yes, they do; but that is no reason to discount the occasional Cinderella that goes deep into the tournament with upsets and, on that rare and truly special occasion, wins the tournament outright. 

There are many who say that NCAA college football cannot logistically accomplish a tournament similar to the basketball model.  That is bull.  Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports long ago put forth the best blueprint I have seen for NCAA football championship playoff; here is your link: https://www.yahoo.com/news/college-football-playoff-plan-132100316--ncaaf.html .  In his proposal, Wetzel shatters all of the shallow and self-serving arguments put up by the vested interests (including the NCAA) that control college athletics.  THIS is how a college football champion should be decided and crowned.  With this system in place, every single regular season game will be meaningful because it will lead to the conference championship.  With this system in place, the treasure trove of dollars that postseason college football generates will go largely back to the universities that create the game; not the corporate carpetbaggers who profit from it.  With this system in place, every NCAA school that competes in football will have a real opportunity to compete for a championship on the field of play (not be arbitrarily eliminated by a committee of “chosen” men/women).  And with this system, the excitement and participation in the NCAA college football playoff will reach levels never before dreamed of and will be well-positioned to address the evolving landscape of college athletics going into the future.

Let’s put the fans back in the stands.  Let’s put the dollars back in the university budgets.  Let’s give every team a fair chance to compete for the top prize in their sport.  And most important of all, let’s get a true champion that is determined on the field of play and not as the result of NCAA Committee wrangling, dealing, and compromise.

A Place to Begin

Now that we have a Democrat House, a Republican Senate, a celebrity President, and no media whatsoever, there is pretty much universal opinion that we are in for at least two years of legislative gridlock.  The apparent tendency of each Party to cater to their bases probably makes that prediction pretty reliable.  However, if in some fairy tale world, some parallel universe where government actually governs, Mitch and Nancy and The Donald could all sit down in a room and get serious for a few moments….here is a good start towards actually doing their jobs….(retread post from March/2018)…

Term Limits.  I know, I know…who in their right mind could possibly believe that our noble Senators and Representatives would actually vote themselves out of a job?  I cannot argue with that logic.  But simply because it does not seem likely or easily attainable does not make it unworthy of pursuit.  There can be little doubt that a large portion of the problems surrounding our Congress is the fact that powerful Congressional people have been corrupted by their length of service and they simply refuse to give it up.  Additionally, the longer they live and work in the WDC environment, the more out of touch they become with the people and the communities they are sent there to serve.  Every Senator harbors a secret ambition to become President and once that ambition is shriveled by reality, the notion remains that they would be a better President than the one in the White House (looking at you, Jeff Flake).  The House was intended by the founders to be an ever-evolving body of citizens who took a bit of time from their routine lives to serve this nation.  Nowadays, every Representative appears to live with the impression that they were selected as the savior of divine government rather than the leading vote-getter from a handful of counties in their home state.  And the Presidents…they get elected to a four-year term and get no more than moved in the White House before they are running for re-election.  Every decision they seem to make is tinged with the impact it might have on the upcoming elections.  And of course, they all live under the illusion that they can remake this nation into that perfect ideal they hold in their infallible little heads. 

Give the President one, six-year term to accomplish their goals.  That is sufficient and it will eliminate having a campaigner-in-chief rather than a true Chief Executive.  Any Senator that serves more than three, six-year terms has forgotten what is like to be a regular citizen; they consider themselves royalty.  They are either actively running for a higher office or maneuvering around to benefit from someone else getting it.  EIGHTEEN years is sufficient.  And the House, where we have citizen representatives from our own home towns or areas…how long do they navigate about in WDC before they forget from whence they came and why they came?  These folks have to maintain a closer alliance with the homefolks because they represent such a smaller area with fewer people and serve far shorter terms in office.  If they are of sufficient caliber to be re-elected for six, two-year terms, I say let them have it.  But after twelve years in office, they should move on to another vocation. 

Biennial Budgeting.  This continuing fiscal circus of Keystone Kop impersonation that is being annually performed by our sitting Presidents and Congress has reached epic fail status.  The combination of sweetheart trades, omnibus packaging, continuing resolutions, and last minute annual appropriations panic composition has rendered the annual federal budgeting process a joke.  For whatever reason, Congress has proven itself clearly incapable of properly passing a federal budget prior to the year the spending plan is scheduled to be implemented.  This has led to ballooning deficits that neither party wants to acknowledge or discuss; a monstrous albatross that is being hung about the necks of our children.  It has led to extraneous and bizarre expenditures being shoveled into last minute legislation that nobody knows anything about…except those doing the shoveling.  It has led to federal agencies never being able to use good business practices to plan their staffing, their training, and their very missions in any type of responsible fashion.  It has gotten so bad that no one involved in the process feels any shame or accountability whatsoever for failing to perform the primary function for which they were elected.  A biennial budget will not solve all of the partisan wrangling that dogs the federal budget process; but if Congress and the President could ever manage to get just one biennial budget completed on time, prior to the implementation period, just think about what might be accomplished in the following two years.  Congress could actually hold real hearings and debates about priorities for federal spending.  Federal agencies could assimilate two-year plans of action about the best ways to implement legislation and law.  It is bound to clear up the water to some degree and it just…makes…good…sense.  Now most folks can only budget as far ahead as their reliable income will allow.   That is no problem for the government, however; if they need more money, they just print more money. 

Less Patronage; More Career; Beef Up the Hatch Act.  Increasingly, we are seeing a President assume their office in an environment soaked with partisan venom.  The party that is out of power seems intent on conducting guerrilla warfare against the party that is in power; all for the purpose or intent to paralyze the majority party’s policy initiatives with no consideration for good and effective government.  Although I don’t believe I have ever seen this phenomenon rise to the current level we see in the Resist Trump movement; it has indeed gone on for decades and was very much in play during Obama’s two terms.  How can we tamp this down and spend more time governing with less time…organizing? 

It is estimated that each new President appoints about 3,000 people based on political considerations; commonly referred to as patronage appointments.  The upside to this type of hire is that a President gets to select people of like mind and inclination; people who think like he does and will hopefully be loyal to his ideals.  The downside is that even though we know these folks will be true believers, we can only hope they will be competent to fulfill their duties and responsibilities.  That is not always the case.  Many times, people are rewarded more for their monetary contributions to the candidate than they are for their intelligence, capabilities, and accomplishments.  A competent true believer can significantly improve the implementation of a new President’s agenda and serve the government well.  An incompetent political hack serves no useful purpose, destroys the morale and stability that may already be in place, and simply serves as a placeholder until the next President comes around.  A poorly appointed patronage employee is resented by the majority of career civil service employees who serve alongside and subordinate to them; creating a toxic atmosphere for effectiveness and efficiency. 

In addition to the quality problems associated with patronage appointments; there is also the delays created by the need for Congressional approvals.  Many of the patronage appointment positions are essential and critical to the good performance of our government; but they get bogged down in the Congressional review process due to partisan chicanery.  It is not unusual these days for many important political appointment positions to remain vacant well into the mid-term or later of a newly-elected President.  A thorough review needs to be conducted and many of these patronage appointments need to be converted to career civil service positions.  Let the federal hiring system serve its purpose to select the best people for the jobs and then let these people develop a career of accomplishment serving our government.  Just imagine the increased efficiency that would be gained from continuity alone as we transfer power from administration to administration with far less turnover in federal agency managers. Think about how much more time would be available to a new President to accomplish their vision for our nation if they can more quickly put their team in place to implement that vision. These actions would not require amendments to the Constitution; only a bi-partisan group of leaders (please…don’t injure yourself laughing) from Congress who are more interested in government that works than they are in rewarding their contributors.

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And if we are going to convert a significant number of these patronage appointments to career spots, then we must simultaneously (in the same piece of legislation) review and strengthen the Hatch Act.  Generally speaking, the Hatch Act is the set of rules applying to federal employees that is intended to keep politics out of the fashion in which they perform their duties.  It is designed to prevent political conflicts of interests and eliminate favoritism infections in the administration of government policies.  The Hatch Act has been somewhat diluted and marginalized over the last several administrations and the prosecution of its violations have been largely cherry picked by random accusers with political vendettas.  Based on what we have learned in recent revelations about the FISA program, the DOJ’s questionable behavior, and the blatant politicization of government agencies by the Obama administration; it is abundantly clear that the Hatch Act needs to be reviewed and strengthened to prevent the future political poisoning that has been occurring in the halls of our government.

If these three initiatives were to become reality, a President would come into office with full confidence that they could get their team in place in short order and begin the process of fulfilling his or her campaign promises.  They would not be looking ahead to insuring their own re-election and they should more intently focus on actual policy.  Over their term in office, they should be in a position to greatly influence three biennial budgets, which should dramatically enable them to put their policy ideals into actual practice.  They would have serving beneath them in the many and varied layers of government more professionals and fewer politicians than any President before them; and they could rely on the promise that those federal employees were interested in performing their appointed duties to the best of their abilities and not scoring political points for selfish reasons.  It might not be sufficient to entirely eliminate the current spin cycle; but it would absolutely slow it down and put it on a new path towards rediscovering some sense of gravity in this crazy, vertigoesque environment we are now experiencing.

Please note that these are three basic, non-partisan, administrative changes that would not disproportionately impact either political party.  They would result in significant budget savings due to reduced administrative requirements and would effectively streamline the legislative process.  They would help our government to run more efficiently and more effectively.  They are common sense, pragmatic solutions to real problems.  All this means that they will likely never happen; not in a million years; a snowball’s chance in….well, you get the picture.