It's a total surprise, but the NY Pink Cows Red Bulls have, for the first time in their miserable history, made it to the final of Soccer Bowl, Major League Soccer's championship game.

Their trip to this event comes after the team finished the regular season under .500 (10 wins, 11 losses), and because of quirky rules, they will represent the west (that's right, a New York team will represent the Western conference -- now that's some rules in need of changing), and from my own personal observations as a season ticker holder, I must confess that this really is a mediocre team, at best.

But none of it matters now. They are facing the Columbus Crew on Sunday. It's one game. The ball is round. And we can win this thing. Yes we can.

So the Democrats in the Senate decided to allow Senator Joe Lieberman to stay in the Democratic caucus and to retain the coveted Homeland Security chairmanship.

I'm disappointed.

It is stuff like this that prevents me from calling myself a Democrat, even if I can't imagine ever voting for a Republican, ever.

Senator Lieberman should not have retained the chairmanship for two reasons: one, he's simply been terrible at it; two, his attacks on Senator Obama and fellow Democrats were simply way over the top.

I'm all against removing him as an act of revenge, and I understand the importance of getting as many votes as possible to pass important legislation. But damn it, there are times when you simply can't allow someone to walk all over you, when you have to send the message that you can't be fucked with, and if you do, there will be consequences.

In my mind, this was an act of weakness.

-- "Timetables"
-- I do not think that word means what you think it means.

So, it turns out Bush is for timetables in Iraq after he was against them. But does he really have a choice? I don't think so. Mister Bush has simply become the lamest of all lame duck presidents and the world is simply passing him by.

When will Republicans stop repeating the nonsense that private businesses do things better than government? How many large companies must fail for that false notion to dissipate?

This Republican myth is a big one with me because I have worked as a consultant with Fortunate 500 companies for many years to improve their efficiencies and reduce operating costs, and it's appalling how much waste goes on. It's not that the people running these companies are stupid, it's that most corporate executives focus most of their talent and energy on increasing revenue. Reducing costs is a lower priority, one that only gets major attention when the company runs into trouble.

The government doesn't pay for ridiculously high salaries and bonuses, spend on expensive and lavish corner offices, throw parties worthy of Hollywood starlets, live or die based on quarterly financial results and their impact on the price of their shares, and take risks that too often cause thousands of employees to lose their jobs.

I'm not suggesting that government does everything better, far from it, but the blanket statement that private businesses do things better or more efficiently than government is simply a myth. Don't believe me? Go ask employees of Sallie Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG, Lehman Bros, American auto industry workers, Enron, Wang, etc. etc.

Here's another take on that Republican myth:

Why is it so horrible when we hear about private sector lay offs, but reducing the number of government employees is seen as progress? Aren't they people too? I mean it's just as devastating to a civil servant to get a pink slip as it is for someone working in the private sector.

The bottom line is that the business of government is just as important if not more so than the "private sector" to the economic health of our country. Maintaining the military, constructing and maintaining our transportation infrastructures, and all the other endeavors our government carries out has been the single most significant factor resulting in the prosperity and success of our economy.

So when will Republicans stop saying it? They won't stop! That line is fed to them by private businesses and Republicans aren't likely to stop and think before parroting the line.

The best way to stop this myth is to have fewer Republicans.

If the results of this Rasmussen poll from a few days ago doesn't prove that the Republican party has become a party of the stupid, nothing will:

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of Republican voters say Alaska Governor Sarah Palin helped John McCain’s bid for the presidency... Only 20% of GOP voters say Palin hurt the party’s ticket... Ninety-one percent (91%) of Republicans have a favorable view of Palin, including 65% who say their view is Very Favorable... When asked to choose among some of the GOP’s top names for their choice for the party’s 2012 presidential nominee, 64% say Palin... These findings echo a survey earlier this week which found that Republicans were happier with their vice presidential candidate than with their presidential nominee. Seventy-one percent (71%) said McCain made the right choice by picking Palin as his running mate, while only 65% said the party picked the right nominee for president.

Are these people for real? For crying out loud, this teenage-like crush obsession is dangerous. But on the other hand... Palin v Obama in 2012? Sounds like fun.

I'm not spending much time wondering who Obama is picking for his administration. For one, it's virtually impossible for me to know the qualifications of White House staff, but mainly, I trusted the man with my vote so I trust him now to make the right staff choices.

Some are complaining about all the former Clintonites being chosen. I don't have a problem with that. I'm all for competence and successful track record, and who better than those who work with Clinton to facilitate a return of peace and prosperity? Sure, Obama ran on a theme of "change" but Clintonites offer a massive change from the last eith years, and when it comes to major policy initiatives, Obama will be the driving force.

So, I'm letting the man get the help he thinks will bring success.

From the "Sadly, does this surprise anyone?" category:

Threats against a new president historically spike right after an election, but from Maine to Idaho law enforcement officials are seeing more against Barack Obama than ever before... since the Nov. 4 election, law enforcement officials have seen more potentially threatening writings, Internet postings and other activity directed at Obama than has been seen with any past president-elect

I just hope these guys are working overtime on Obama's security.

I don't have a problem with negative campaigns. I think the tone of a campaign says as much about the attacked as it says about the attacker. How the attacked handles the attacks give us a peek into their make-up and helps determine the outcome of the election.

In this sense, I agree with Sarah Palin that she had every right to being up Obama's association with Bill Ayers. The American voters heard her and decided that the attacks were silly, to the point that they even backfired on the McCain/Palin ticket.

So no, I don't have a problem with Mrs. Palin talking up that point; it just puzzles why she continues to do it now, knowing that it reflects negatively on her.

Why is that? Stupidity? Stubbornness? Meanness? Take your pick. Whatever the reason, I just hope she keeps it up.

How bad have you been when even Vladimir Putin pauses at the thought of being like you? This exchange between Putin and Sarkozy, the president of France, shows just how soiled the American president has become:

With Russian tanks only 30 miles from Tbilisi on August 12, Mr Sarkozy told Mr Putin that the world would not accept the overthrow of Georgia's Government. According to Mr Levitte, the Russian seemed unconcerned by international reaction. "I am going to hang Saakashvili by the balls," Mr Putin declared.

Mr Sarkozy thought he had misheard. "Hang him?" -- he asked. "Why not?" Mr Putin replied. "The Americans hanged Saddam Hussein."

Mr Sarkozy, using the familiar tu, tried to reason with him: "Yes but do you want to end up like [President] Bush?" Mr Putin was briefly lost for words, then said: "Ah -- you have scored a point there."

Is it January 20 yet?

By VictorM:

Considering what has happened to this country as a result of the Republican party's reckless role over the last several decades, I think this paragraph is right on the money:

The greatest risk for Democrats is not that Obama will try to do too much, but that their terror of failure will lead them to waste an historic opportunity. This is not a Clintonian moment. It is more like the moment Lyndon Johnson inherited in 1965, or the one Franklin Roosevelt faced in 1933--a chance to reshape American government. The Democrats have it in their grasp to master the great problems of public life if they can summon their collective nerve. The only thing they have to fear is fear itself.

During the Clinton years we had mostly peace and prosperity, but in the overall scheme of things, we pretty much made no major shifts in government, certainly nothing close to the New Deal or the Great Society -- massive government action that forever changed the land. Obama does have the opportunity to strike big.

It's time for massive health care reform, for a drastic change in energy policy, and a giant step into a greener and much safer environment. The kind of stuff that there is no going back on. And as an added perk to me, the kind of stuff that drives right wing nuts bat shit crazy.

The big question is: will Obama and the Democrats go for it?

By VictorM:

Obama has a great respect for expertise. His instinct is that in any field, gather the leading experts and go after them... This is not amateur hour -- this is not crony time... Obama is extremely well-prepared. There is a lot of talk coming out of the Bush administration about a seamless transition. But in many instances, the Obama people know as much about what is happening in the Cabinet agencies as the Bush people do.

By VictorM:Anyway, watch it yourself:

By VictorM:

By VictorM:

By VictorM:

Notwithstanding the distractive and entertaining theater of expensive electioneering in American politics, the skyscrapers of debt are still on fire, even though the sitting administration chants “lend, baby, lend!”... 

Much of this alarming and very realistic flop is pegged to the report card of the sitting administration in Washington that, elections notwithstanding, shall have a further three months at the wheel of governance without heed to party politics or worry about reputation...

Hence, the first real step of the president-elect of the United States ought to be for a forceful demand for immediate resignation of the sitting president and his vice president.