Is everyone going nuts?
Think about it — non-stop coverage of LeBron James? Put his name on a Google search and you get, bio, mom, thousands of pictures of him, stats, quotes, shoes, movie, house... On and on, plus 14,980 related articles in the first three lines.
I know he is, after all, King James (his self title), and he only pulls down a paltry $15 million a year salary, but does he really deserve all the hype? What kind of example do we set bowing at his feet?
Have you ever seen him play? He is not a king, at least not yet. I have seen him on the court, and yes, he is above average, but that’s all, as far as I could see. Someday he may be “the greatest” but not yet. Seven years with the Cavs did not produce a championship (although close) but he sure made a lot of noise — all about him — and got two MVP trophies for his efforts. The last game I saw him play he definitely stood out – he sounded like a freight train when he traveled the length of the court, stomping and snorting like a bull.
I think the “great anticipation” of what he was going to do was ridiculous. It filled every news station all day before the prime time special starring King James. Even when the time finally arrived he still dragged it out for a half hour before announcing his choice to play FOR the Heat. I find that word a poor choice... Why not WITH the Heat? I do commend him for his intelligence to choose a team that already has two stars that have proven their worth. I wonder if he will be able to keep up with them playing pro as well as he did in the Olympics?
I think anytime a big star athlete signs a long term, high paying contract it should be with reservations. If he plays as well as he says he will, without having to nurse a sore arm or bum knee with time off, give him his big bucks. If he turns out to be a big dud, make him suffer the loss, not the rest of the team. I hope King James helps the Miami team, it is my winter team. If he does not, those fans will be even tougher on him than the Cleveland fans who are tearing down his banner and throwing out all associated products bearing his name. The Miami fans will run him right out of town.
Another reason we are nuts – as I write this column on Sunday, July 11 — the cap on the oil gusher was removed, and BP, with a confirmation by Thad Allen, said it will take between four to seven days to complete the exchange with the new cap. It is said to be a cap WITH A BETTER SEAL. Do we believe that? We are over 80 days with the mess and are only now going to try a cap WITH A BETTER SEAL? If the required emergency plans had actually been filed, would the cap WITH A BETTER SEAL have been readily available?
And we are really nuts when it comes to the daily topic of the feds suing Arizona. They want to throw out the new, tougher immigration laws passed by Arizona which were put in place to attempt to control its out-of-control immigrant problems. Why didn’t the feds enforce federal laws already in place or toughen them up? Then, they would not have to go to court to stop someone else from doing it.
As I see it, the federal government is not doing all that well in court lately. Perhaps it should try working together with the states instead of trying to bully them. Most of the reports I’ve read or heard on TV indicate a larger number of citizens support Arizona’s new law than oppose it. Many other states are proposing putting similar laws in place — even a state without a border declared it was going to (Idaho I think).
The only ones really crying about the law are the immigrants. As I understand it the federal laws require all recipients of green cards to carry them so they may prove their right to be in our country.
So what is the problem? If that makes them unhappy, they can always turn in their cards, give up all the benefits they receive and go home.
I heard today Mexican government officials refused to meet with their U.S. counterparts because of the controversy. If they don’t want to work with our government they should just turn down the jobs we send them and cancel any hope of receiving additional work from U.S. companies. Without those jobs, and with the additional need to care for all their countrymen returning home, I think carrying green cards does not look so bad. Cries of police profiling is beyond belief. They want their rights and I believe they deserve to have them, so let’s send them home to get their RIGHTS!
I have said it before but it bears repeating, if I leave the United States, where I am a citizen, I must show special ID to re-enter my country. I must present a passport or enhanced driver’s license. It is not a problem for me. I don’t feel profiled or singled out in any way so why would presenting a green card be a problem? Why would they not think of it as a privilege?
P.S. — I need to pass along the happy ending to my telephone saga I relayed a while back. A very nice young lady in the Bad Axe corporate office fixed me up with a battery from stock, and just in case, a brand new one will be shipped to me. She announced, “It’s my goal to be absolutely certain each customer is fully satisfied and their problem solved after visiting our location.” Boy, what a departure from the Florida and Phoenix experiences.