Maintain Your Cool

Justice for Sale

keepitreal — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:09:31 +0000

Over the past 4 weeks the American public has openly viewed a new trend, justice is for sale to the highest bidder. Specifically, what message is being delivered to the youth of the USA by the 30-90 day incarceration of professional athletes …by allowing them to ‘buy their way out of a judgement’ . The deaths of 2 people as a direct result of the actions of Donte Stallworth (Cleveland Brown football) and JR Smith(Denver Nuggetts basketball) appear to say that one can indeed place a price tag on someone’s life and the Judicial System is in full agreement.When the former, nameless olympic swimmer drove a car into a crowd of teenagers while intoxicated in Tampa, Florida several years ago, he was put in jail for an extended period of time…much more than 90 days. The only color that now matters in the courts is ‘green’, the color of money. Let’s see what happens to the former New York Giants football wide receiver in his gun case. Is the law and justice only to be applied to cases with the poor and middle class, and are ‘celebrities’ in another category and above the law ? Think about it.

Chaos In Iran

keepitreal — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:27:00 +0000

For the past week President Obama has been criticized by disgruntled Republicans for not making a more forceful statement in support of the citizens rioting in Iran regarding the questionable results of the recent Presidential election. President Obama has been wise in his choice of words and especially his minimal commentary directed at the current president of Iran. His actions are wise for 2 reasons. First, since the previous presidential administration had been poor in diplomacy and have created an adversarial relationship with Iran, caustic comments from the USA could cause more damage to the relationship, and, furthermore cause this country to become an ally of the Al Quaeda terrorists. The 2nd reason President Obama’s measured position is wise is that if the USA is overly critical of the Iran election, the USA could possibly become the focus of the strife in Iran and would need to make immigration to the USA a potential recourse for disgruntled Iran residents. At least that is what I perceive is the situation.

Bryce Harper Golden Boy of Baseball

keepitreal — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:09:41 +0000

Bryce Harper, the phenomenal high school baseball player from Las Vegas has a unique opportunity to be the no 1 prospect in the 2010 Major League baseball draft. While I applaud the plans being made by his father and agent to plan not only for his baseballcareer , but also for his education, the plan brings to light the double standard in professional sports in the United States. First , I would like to state that the plan discussed will not work for every high school player, since the athlete must be very disciplined and mature for his/her age and, furthermore one cannot enter many colleges with only a GED. However, the flip side of the coin is that athletes as young as 13 or 14 are being removed from their schools and families and allowed to become professional athletes in soccer (Freddie Adu- age 14), tennis(Tracy Austin many years ago), golf gymnastics (too many to list).

English vs Spanish

keepitreal — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 21:21:34 +0000

There was a recent news article about the recent trend in having bi-lingual schools throughout the USA. The fact that this is an issue is troubling. The USA government and educators nationwide are losing touch with reality over this topic. While I recognize that we market our products in a global economy, requiring students and teachers to be bilingual is ridiculous. The national language of the United States of America is ENGLISH…not Spanish. I have travelled abroad and foreign countries offer no such language accomodation on language. If one travels to Germany, there are no signs in English; the same is true of Mexico. When a person travels to a foreign country he or she would be wise to learn the language before departure. In the USA ENGLISH wins hands down.

Take the Money and Run Bryce Harper

keepitreal — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:46:08 +0000

Bryce Harper, the baseball phenom from Las Vegas is headed down the road to riches and glory in the 2010 Major League Baseball draft, and forsaking his last 2 years of high school. While I applaud the plans being made by his father and agent, this plan would not work for many athletes, sine a GED will not enable students to be admitted to all colleges. His plans bring to light the double standards being applied in several professional sports in North America. For instance golfers(like Michelle Wie age 14), soccer players(Freddie Adu- age 14), tennis players (Tracy Austin age 14-15 ye4ars ago), gymnastic athletes (too many to mention…incl Mary Lou Retton age 14-15), ice hockey players (ages 16 and up) have been becoming professionals and paid to perform for many years. Only 3 years ago the NBA passed a rule making the minimumage for players to be 18. What is fair, given that the families of some athletes could benefit from the income and there is always the possibility of an athlete sustaining a life threatening injury, and thus disallowing him/her from playing a sport for pay. Until professional team owners meet as a group and standardize the age limitations the decision to tear apart families and take the money will continue. The argument that a family can purchase an insurance policy from Lords of London to ensure future earnings compensation in the event of an injury sound good . The reality is that such policies are very expensive, and outside the financial reach of many families. A 16 year old athlete is not as disciplined and mature as a 18 to 20 year old athlete. Two years makes a world of difference in the emotional stability and mental development of a person. However, the counter point is that professional teams in the USA continue to seek out and sign young athletes in foreign countries for several of the aforementioned sports. Look at baseball as an example. Whay are we penalizing the athletes in the USA, and not allowing them to get paid to play in selective sports (including basketball and football). So I say congratulations to Bryce Harper and his family and good luck.

AIG Drops the Hammer on US Air Flight 1549 Passengers

keepitreal — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 02:29:16 +0000

Though the US government resuscitated AIG Insurance Company, this company has now waved their thumb at the US Air Passengers who deplaned in the Hudson River several weeks ago, and said “we will not pay” your claims. I suppose a naive observer would expect that the insurance company to share the wealth and do the right thing. However, a seasoned traveller always hopes for the best , but expects the worst. With the rejection of each new claim from the ditched passengers, the American people are thinking more and more that the government balout of AIG was a huge mistake. The citizens and corporations of the USA should hit AIG where it hurts the most…in their wallet. When corporations withdraw business and cancel policies with insurance companies, they will feel the same pain and trauma that the passengers felt and continue to feel.

Clueless In Orlando

keepitreal — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:56:53 +0000

Last night, left to their own devices, and without an adequate coaching staff the Orlando Majic managed to give away game 4 of the NBA championship series. There was truly enough blame to go around to everyone. Some would say that they missed too many outside shots. Some might say that the supporting cast for Dwight Howard aka Superman, dod not play well enough. Some might say that they should have fouled the LA Lakers in the back court and not allowed them the opportunity to make a 3-point shot. However, the bottom line is that players play and coaches coach. The Majic players played as poorly as Stan VanGundy coached at ’game-winning time”. It is true that Coach Stan Van Gundy played Jameer Nelson instead of Rafer Alston during game-winning time in the 4th quarter. That was a bad choice, since Nelson is not at 100% health -wise and is not as good a ball handler or shooter now. Nelson also is not as good a defender from the point guard position as Alston even when he is healthy. Nelson could have forced Derek Fisher to take a 2-point shot instead of escorting him to the 3 point line and allowing him to drop the game-tying basket on Orlando. Coach Van Gundy should have advised his players to take the ball to the rime and force the Lakers to foul. With over 4 seconds anyone could have penetrated the Lakers’ defense for either a score or a foul. The Majic players seemed totally disorganized after 2 successive timeouts before the fineal 4+ seconds expired. Michael Pietrus’ took a bad shot and made no attempt to move closer to the basket. What the game showed the entire basketball world last night is that the Majic has an incompetent coach and has no veteran leadership on the court, which is to say that thee Majic team is truly ‘Clueless in Orlando’.

From High School to the NBA

keepitreal — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:39:38 +0000

Today 2 of the most sensational high school players in the USA, one signed up to play for a Division 1 college in Mississippi and one waiting by the phone, are probably wondering what must I do to make it to the NBA. The players in reference are prep stars Renardo Sidney(Ca) and Lance Stephenson (NY). these young men are exceptional athletes whose ultimate objective is to play in the National Basketball Association, which isthe dream shared bycountless young men. Unfortunately for these young men, due to the rules violations and recruiting scandals in the news recently regarding USC, former coach Tim Floyd and OJ Mayo; Derrick Rose and Memphis University and Greg Oden and Ohio State University the top echelon of players is under increased scrutiny. Colleges need the best high school players to win an NCAA championship, and thus secure more tv exposure and alumni support. On the other hand high school players need a platform on which to showcase thair talents, if only for 1 season. Division 1 college Athletic Directors are now taking a closer look at the’off the court’ records and behaviors and records of potential college players.If this had been done in the past the aforementioned athletes would not have their images tarnished to the extent they now are. College athletics is about developing ’student athletes’ not providing a breeding ground for pay for play icons. An easy fix to the problem for the high school players would be more in-depth background reviews of players as well as counselling.If a high school player understands that if he enlists a ‘handler’ to secure money or other material gains, the college will cancel his scholarship and boot him out of the school…this entire high school to NBArocess will be corrected. We all are accountable for our actions.

Is the US Government Chrysler’s Friend ?

keepitreal — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 14:48:18 +0000

Chrysler has always been an auto company that any man and every man could afford. Chrysler was available to the entire buying public. Chrysler was also one of the few USA automakers who was very reluctant to grab the government’s money. However, as the US government places the Fiat deal in stall, the chain reaction effect has resulted in the destruction of nationwide Chrysler dealerships and even more importantly jobs. Perhaps this situation was destined to occur, and the reduction of car dealerships will recur with not only Chrysler, but also Ford…as it has already happened to General Motors. The problem with the government involvement is that it is untimely. Rather than promoting business commerce, the government is being an obstacle. The Supreme Court and the current financial advisors to the preseident are not savvy in the area of automobile commerce. Furthermore, does the US government plan to create a national automobile company ? It’s bad enough that the government has fumbled the banking bailout and will soon own a few banks. Where does it end ? The government should do what they do best…create and enforce laws.

Out of Bounds

keepitreal — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:19:40 +0000

We have been following the unfortunate story of Euna lee and Laura King, reporters for Current TV who have fallen into the hands of the North Korean government and been sentenced to 12 years of hard labor. Though the current USA Stae Department will work diligently to seek their release, the American public must brace itself for the reality that these young women are ‘out of bounds’ and even more they will likely serve some of the hard labor verdict, but not the entire 12 years. When a person travels to a foreign country he must first learn the laws of that country …and realize he may be subject to very harsh penalties if the laws are disobeyed. Perhaps this situation will serve as a wake-up call to citizens of the USA. The United States is a super power, but there are other super powers also. The fact of the matter is that it is now fashionable to challenge the power of the USA . Playing the ‘global police’ ,as the USA often does, has caused the USA military to be spread too far and too thin, and these 2 young ladies maybee too far’out of bounds’.