Its AR-Kansaw....Got it?

The Louisiana State University Tigers should have learned a lesson this weekend. Don't play with blasting caps.

Prior to the holiday weekend, LSU was ranked number one in the nation and on course for a berth in the BCS national championship game. Today they are on course for a berth on their couch watching someone like Missouri do what they couldn't. What the hell happened?

What the hell happened was Arkansas (pronounced AR-Kansaw)....the real question is how. Arkansas is a team that has underperformed all season against one of the weakest schedules in the SEC. Arkansas had not won at Baton Rouge during the Houston Nutt era. Arkansas has not beaten LSU anywhere in several years. Arkansas is a team with one-dimensional offense and an eight-dimensional soap opera. The odds of Arkansas knocking off LSU were microscopic.

But there is a reason they play the games. Every team in the country has something special about them. It may be the number of 5-star recruits they get like LSU, it may be history like Grambling, it may be perseverance through utter futility like Duke. LSU was apparently unaware of what makes Arkansas special.

What makes Arkansas special is, that it tends to perform in direct proportion to the arrogance of its opponent.

This is a lesson Texas has never learned. Texans view the Arkansas game as just another game against an inferior opponent. Many times in the past they have been shocked....shocked....at the intensity of the emotion from the other side. Their ho-hum game is the game of the century from their opponent. The fact is that Texas has a rivalry and doesn't know it, or doesn't care to know it. As far as they are concerned Arkansas is another nobody not even in the same class as them. Another Baylor or Houston. This is probably true technically.....but if Texas is not on its guard.....they pay for that attitude in the game.

LSU is getting the same lesson. For the last week they treated the Arkansas game as an automatic win. Their attitude has been that "The Golden Boot" is a contrivance that does not symbolize a real rivalry. That Arkansas is not in the same class with them and is just another Western Division nobody like Ole Miss and Mississippi State. That Arkansas is a state that is so unimportant that you don't even have to bother learning how to pronounce its name.

Arrogance. You played into our hands Tigers. You waved the red cape in the face of an Arkansas Razorback team, and no matter how bad they are, thats not smart. Feeding arrogance to Arkansas is like feeding spinach to Popeye.

After the game more than one Arkansas player was shouting...."It's AR-kansaw". THAT is why and how Arkansas won that game....when they should not have.

If LSU is smart, they will realize that they now have an honest to God SEC rivalry. Little Old Arkansas just screwed LSU's shot at a National Championship. We play at the end of the SEC season each year and we will screw your National Championship shot again if you are not careful.....and like it. So you better be careful.

My advice is, don't overlook Arkansas, don't diminish Arkansas even if they are 2-8, learn to say "Nice Piggie", and for God's sake learn how to pronounce our name.

This is a lesson Texas has been singularly incapable of learning for about 80 years and from time to time they pay for it.

Kids Say...."Let My Generation Pay!"

Saw that commercial today with all the little kids suggesting that THEY would vote for politicians who will save Social Security, keep promises, and "fix" health care. That all sounds good I guess as platitudes. But is this a commercial put together by some kid's group?

Ummm, no. It's put together by the AARP. The American Association for the Advancement of Retired People.

It's sort of ironic that an advocacy group for the elderly puts forward kids rather than....well....elderly to argue for keeping their benefits going. That IS what the commercial is really about....voting for people to keep benefits going to the elderly and the little kids who will pay that debt in generations to come are being used as shills to push for it.

I am sure these kids have such well-developed political views that they have studied the issue themselves and come to the conclusion that they need to get on television and push to have their future payroll taxes garnished by law to pay for my generation's elderly care.

Now I am not so much opposed to taking care of the elderly....but I do question trotting out little kids who don't know any better as spokespersons for it. It seems rather crass and manipulative.

Alabama Has Something Important To Say To Arkansas

Usually when you beat a team you want to pump them up so it seems like you beat somebody important. Somebody in Alabama though saw something so irritating to their sensibilities that they just had to speak the truth instead of the usual kudos to the loser. Every Arkansas football fan ought to read it. It's good to hear what a sports writer has to say, who does not have to hold his tongue out of fear of losing his access to the team.

Here is the embarrassing truth Arkansas..

What It Takes To Notice Illegal Immigration

What does it take for Arkansas politicians to notice illegal immigration? Cash draining out of their fun money sack, thats what.

The growth rate of immigration in Arkansas is fairly astounding. It grew 196 percent in the 1990's. We have about 150,000 immigrants, about half of those illegal according to statistics. Most living in Northwest Arkansas where the chicken manufacturers love them.

A recent report presented to the Legislature shows that we spend about $170 million on them. About $154 million of that on education. We spend about $1.8 million to house convicted criminals who are illegal.

Complaints by citizens have not sparked officials to act.....but $175 million out of the tax kitty apparently does. Oh well, whatever it takes.

With that being said, I think LEGAL immigration is a great thing for our state. Immigrants from Mexico are generally very family-oriented, generally religious, and without doubt hard workers. They save some of our manufacturers about $95 million a year in additional labor cost. I certainly do not mind Mexican citizens applying to come to the United States and choosing Arkansas to live and work in.

But if you are an ILLEGAL immigrant I do not want you here. Your presence signifies that you do not respect the laws created by the people of my country. I don't care how hard working you are or how much your family in Mexico needs the money. I would prefer that you be deported and that you be replaced by a Mexican national who followed the legal procedure.

The general response to such a view is to call the wielder of it a racist. I am not. I am actually in favor of increasing the legal quota of Mexican nationals admitted to the United States. They are hard workers, and they provide benefits to the economy. To those who fill out the paperwork and ask to come here....welcome. To those who sneak in...please go home.

The reasonable approach of raising the legal quota while deporting the illegals is not going to happen. Liberals see political benefit in creating another dependent minority and Conservatives will never allow a raising of the legal quota. So we will end up with all manner of criminals and ne'er do wells sneaking in alongside those who cannot gain entry legally because there are too few slots.

To those Americans who support ILLEGAL immigration and stand in the way of every attempt to enforce the law....please stop. If you want unfettered immigration then by all means have the law changed to make unfettered immigration legal through our democratic system. But help enforce the law until you do. That is if you believe in democratic government and the rule of law.

For Conservatives, you might want to consider that you cannot have controlled legal immigration with a quota of zero. Human nature does not work like that. You are going to have to fix the legal immigration system to reflect reality in order to stop illegal immigration. Increasing the quota is NOT amnesty. I deplore the idea of an amnesty, but encourage the raising of the quota.

As for the Arkansas Legislature......take a look at the trend line on immigration to Arkansas.....take a look at the budget of state number 49 in everything.....and then figure out if you will still have money for "Grabfest", whiskey and cigars, and Hawgball. Doesn't look like it to me.

I Must Warn You......Your Water Is....Ohmigod.....Filtered

I'm afraid I can't thank the environmental movement for informing me that my Aquafina water comes from municipal taps. Thats because I already knew it. When I started drinking Aquafina I wondered what made it taste so good and I went to their website and watched their little flash movie about how they take tap water and filter it, purify it, filter it, purify it, and filter it about a dozen times to the point of absurdity. It tastes darn good cold. In fact it tastes better than the other bottled waters I tried because it has no taste other than very cold and very wet.

I am guessing that the people who are shocked....utterly shocked.....are those that just assumed Aquafina came out of some Colorado mountain spring just because it comes in a bottle. I suggest those people switch to whiskey and lithium.

The point of this warning is not to clue you in....its to make you not trust bottled water at all. So you won't drink it at all no matter what brand it is. Environmentalists have chosen bottled water as the next evil they must erase to save the world.

I plan to continue to drink Aquafina not because it's hip, or because it was squeezed out of a glacier in Nepal, but because it tastes very good and is filtered and purified.

I also want to warn you, that some of the water you drink, even spring water and tap water.....may have been inside a dog or deer, or even had a fish pee in at some point in the last 10,000 years. Yuk....whiskey and lithium is your best bet.

Arkansas History

I have given Mike Beebe credit where I think he deserves it. I promised to give him the benefit of the doubt and to not attack him just because of his party affiliation. I have done so, and now I have my first cause for complaint.

Arkansas students have traditionally been taught state history in the seventh and eighth grades. New guidelines now call for diluting the state history curriculum in favor of world history instead. This watering down comes despite the rather specific mandate of the legislature for the teaching of Arkansas History. These new standards were put forward by the state Board of Education. Teachers, historians, history professors, former Senator David Pryor, and others interested in Arkansas history have complained bitterly.

Governor Beebe supported the bureaucratic change to the standards at first. But then when the mini-firestorm erupted he backed off and gave lip-service to those opposed and promised to review the new standards.

That review is complete and the result is.......Governor Beebe supports the old standard, but it is too late to not implement the new standards for the upcoming year.

That is a weasel result. How can it be too late not to do something? Just revert to what was taught last year. It's like saying it's too late not to kill myself. This is a typical politicians answer.....I support you 100% but I have to screw you over anyway.

I will give credit to Governor Beebe for getting this far into his term before becoming a regular politician.

The truth is that we complain about our best kids leaving this state after graduation. That could be partially because our children do not have a strong and deep sense of being part of something. The money is better in Dallas so they go there because there is no difference of the heart between here or there. The feeling is that we are 49th in everything so its better to leave....not that we are 49th in everything and its necessary to stay.

But studying Arkansas History students can learn the sad history of our state, of its tragedies, and how it has struggled to overcome them. Our kids need to have a sense of what it is to be an Arkansan, to have a sense of responsibility to make the next 100 years be better, and to feel like they have the ability to have an impact. They cannot get that sense unless they are given a very good understanding of where they come from and who they are.

And even if they do leave us....we at least send them away with the understanding that they come from someplace unique and perhaps plant a seed for their return. Come on Governor Beebe....the legislature mandated the teaching of Arkansas History for this reason.....you should no faithfully execute that law. And to the Board of Education......listen to the historians on history, or be doomed to repeat it.

Why We Need A Democratic President

In recent days I have talked to various people who are of the opinion that George W. Bush is an evil genius doofus who has never done anything right in his life and is everything that is wrong with the United States. The view is that all we need for everything to be perfect again is a Democratic President and Congress. I am in favor of giving these people what they want and seeing how it turns out.

The folks I am talking about are adamantly against the war and just want it over. No matter what that means or what it portends for the future. It doesn't matter if we have enemies who want to kill us all no matter what we do.....just stop fighting. They are confident that Democrats will indeed.....just stop fighting.

It's possible that they are correct. But generally, when a Democrat gets elected President they want to shake off all the left-wing peacenik stuff and appear to be a strong American President....not a lily-livered weakling. Democrats do not want to be the next Jimmy "Handwringer" Carter. Usually that means quickly forgetting the promises made to their base and sending a cruise missile or two at someone to send a message that they are "tough".

I predict various symbolic missile launches toward tents that will irritate our enemies, but do nothing to slow them down. I predict that we will withdraw from Iraq, pretend it is September 10th, let our guard down, and be shocked that Al-Qaeda does not stop attacking us just because we stopped fighting them and pretended they would go away.

On the domestic front, the folks I've talked to believe that everything will be solved by complete government provision of health care, closing the prescription donut-hole, raising of the minimum wage, balancing the budget, and fully refunding social security and medicare. Unfortunately, the Democratic habit of promising everything is not cheap, and the money comes from our pockets.

I am anxious to see the faces of those folks so desperately talking to me about Democratic Utopia when the tax bill comes due. I must give credit to Democrats these days....they are more interested in actually paying for things than Republicans are. Republicans are now swiping the credit card.....at least Democrats will really want to pay for all the magic. But that means that some of those expecting a free Democratic lunch are going to be surprised by some mighty thin paychecks. "It'll all be better if we just get Bush out of there" is a phrase I have actually heard. I can't wait to see Hillary or Edwards, or both, in there.

Harry Truman had very low approval ratings. Right down there with Bush even. But history has shown him to have been a tough and effective leader who rearranged government and aim it in the direction that ultimately won the Cold War.

Yesterday it was announced that the economy grew quite well this quarter. Inflation is low. Interest rates good. I can't wait till some folks get exactly what they want. The end of all that and a liberal Democratic President.

Some folks either never knew, or forgot, what a Jimmy Carter is like. Some folks don't understand 20% interest rates, 10% unemployment, high taxes, high inflation, and misery indexes. I guess its time to remind them the hard way....and I guess I have no choice but to be in favor of the reminding.

Oh, and the Democrats won't do a damn thing about illegal immigration either.

Other People's Money

John Edwards wants to bribe voters. But not with his money.

Edwards has stated that the recent minimum wage hike bribe from the Democratic Congress is not enough. He wants to raise it to somewhere around $10 an hour. Edwards is trying to one-up his own party during the run up to the Presidential election.

Minimum wage hikes typically come from Democrats during an election year. Its another ingenious tool where a politician can gain votes by promising somebody else's money. With a minumum wage hike the politicians do not have to budget a dime....they just pass a law and the business owners have to actually pay the bribe to poor out of their own pockets. Pure political genius of course.

Most Republicans have philosophical problems with setting price floors and ceilings. Thats because most of them took Econ 101 in college and are aware of supply and demand curves. They are aware that arbitrary wage floors cause labor surpluses and reduces hiring, especially for unskilled workers. They know that when McDonald's is forced to raise pay they do not eat the loss....they pass it on to every consumer by raising prices on their hamburgers. This is called inflation....and higher unemployment rates for the poor. Workers essentially are paying for their own vote with higher prices on everything they buy.

Republicans do have problems with the other party buying votes with inflation and unemployment. But they go along with it because its better politically in the short run to do so. They can tag along on the bribe, or at least minimize its effect, by voting for it despite their principles. In other words they coward out....every time....because they get bad PR if they do not.

So, we may very well get $10 per hour minimum wage if Edwards is not lying and gains the Presidency. I have to wonder why he doesn't just go for $15 per hour.....because if $10 per hour is good....then $15 is better. In fact....why doesn't Senator Edwards just advocate a minimum wage of $100,0000,000 per hour. That way we could all be rich, we could afford all the health-care we want, we would not have to worry about Social Security not being there, and nobody in America would ever have to work again? Why not give everyone a free steak dinner instead of the free lunch?

The reason of course is because it doesn't work that way. If we mandate $100,000,000 per hour salaries then hamburgers will cost about $75,000,000, businesses will employ very few if any, and we will not really have gained anything except inflation and economic upheaval. There is no legislatively mandated free lunch.

Of course, economic reality works exactly the same way with an arbitrary minimum wage of $10 or $15 except that the inflation, unemployment, and economic upheaval is at a less dramatic scale. The evil is less observable, but its still evil.

Mike Beebe and Apologies for Slavery

Mike Beebe has shied away from the concept of The State of Arkansas apologizing for slavery. I must admit I was surprised by this stance since its a darn cheap and easy thing for Democrats to do to get African-American votes. A painless way to help African-Americans forget which party was in charge of Arkansas during the era of slavery and perhaps a thank-you for voting out Republican Jay Dickey despite his efforts to get justice for black farmers.

But I am not here to damn Mike Beebe with faint praise because of his party affiliation. I think Governor Beebe's decision to decline the opportunity to jump on the apology band-wagon was a good thing.....and somewhat brave. Declining to support the apology could come with a very real political cost and jumping on the band-wagon had no cost at all.

The real apology Arkansas can offer to its African-American citizens is to fix Eastern Arkansas. Look at the racial and economic statistics of that region and its obvious that state legislature needs to be doing something besides apologizing for 150 year old wrongs.

Now I admit that much of the problem in Eastern Arkansas is caused by the residents of that region failing to establish a two-party system. They have put themselves in a position where they vote 100% Democratic for 150 years and thus have zero power in either party. They are taken for granted by Democrats and dismissed as unreachable by Republicans. That is a major reason why they are unable to get any political traction. Sooner or later they have voted for one party for 150 years and are still treated as the lowest of the low.

But nonetheless, the region is part of our state and it shares the same future, and its statistics are added to those of central and northwest Arkansas dragging both down. For that reason alone those two powerful regions might want to join together and do some fixin' for purely selfish reasons.

I would propose that for one season we put aside basketball arenas, new baseball fields, funding of Presidential Libraries, and fighting over whether Arkansans can buy wine over the internet and spend that season repairing the most destitute portion of our state. Mississippi spent $100,000,000 to steal a factory site from us....Trent Lott dragged the interstate back to his side of the river.....and Marion has been second choice for Toyota how many times now? Perhaps its time to put up some money for east Arkansas.

Getting jobs and infrastructure into our poorest region no matter what it takes is a novel concept. Its more costly than just words on a piece of legislative paper....but it would be a REAL apology. Mike Beebe's decision indicates he may care about that.

There Is No Place Like September 10th, There Is No Place Like September 10th

The 3rd Infantry Division did what it was trained to do in amazing fashion. "The Rock of the Marne" crossed the border into Iraq and drove directly on the enemy capital pushing aside all resistance in the most horrendous weather conditions imaginable. Upon reaching the Iraqi capital in record time it pierced the fortified ring around the city and drove to its heart. The 3rd Infantry Division and supporting forces accomplished one of the most incredible and awe-inspiring displays of military prowess in world history. Unfortunately, that's a distant memory.

They won an astounding victory in that battle. But somehow we have managed to lose the war. Notice I said WE have managed to lose the war. The 3rd Infantry Division, and the forces that followed them, did not. No matter how WE screw up this war....the soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division, the Marines of the 1st MEF, and others at least will have a page in history saying that they held up their end of the deal in grand fashion.

These days the primary focus of the Democrats is a pull-out from Iraq. There is little discussion of what this means for the overall war on terrorism.....just that we have to pull out. In recent days John Edwards has stated that the war on terror is just a bumper sticker slogan. That means it's not really real.....that it's made up. We have an imaginary war on our hands and we can end it just by no longer believing in the illusion. There is no need for Democrats to discuss that hard stuff or take any firm stand on the future........there is no need to consider anything beyond the immediate need to withdraw because the war is not real anyway.

In other words, if we withdraw from Iraq it will September 10th again.

Americans want to believe this. Casualties suck. Occupation without pre-planning sucks. IED's suck. Nation-building sucks. War sucks. That is fertile ground for wishful thinking and wishful thinking is fertile ground for Democrat's to sow.

I personally agree that we must pull out now. Not because I think the War on Terror is an illusion. Not at all. I think we must pull out because we have our armed forces fighting in a war that half of the American people are adamantly opposed to fighting. We have troops dying in a war where their deaths are becoming partisan political fodder. We have troops coming home from a war without proper medical care and support AGAIN. We have troops dying and our main concern is how The Soprano's ended or who got kicked off of American Idol. Those are reasons to bring the troops home.

Pulling the troops out will indeed strengthen the terrorist cause and encourage them. That's what happens when the people behind an army lose the will to fight, are internally divided, or fail to take a war seriously. So for now we have to think of the troops.

We can go back to September 10th for a little while. We can give our troops time with their families, we can get the wounded proper medical care, our planners can study where we went wrong, we can repair our equipment, we can develop better weapons, and we can improve our training and methods. This can go on in the background while we watch American Idol and enjoy our new iPhones. We can live in September 10th until a strengthened Al-Qaeda proves to us again that September 10th is gone, as they surely will do.

Then, maybe on the next September 11 we will be ready to take this war as seriously as General Sherman took his war. Maybe next September 11 the politicians will really mean it when they sing the national anthem together on the steps of the capitol. Maybe next September 11 we will be ready to ration our gasoline and meat like our Greatest Generation so ably did. Maybe next September 11 we will be ready to conduct our war with unity of purpose and tenacity as they did theirs. Maybe next September 11 our politicians will pay for the war and not just more pork. Maybe next September 11 we will plan for the occupation before we send in the troops. Maybe next September 11 victory will be more important than political-correctness and shared sacrifice more important than Sanjaya. Maybe next September 11 we have a national vote to decide if we fight this war all out, or just sit back and take punches. Maybe next time the American people will be ready to take the hard road and in their righteous might win through to absolute victory.

But for now, come on Americans, put on your ruby-colored glasses and say "There is no place like September 10th, there is no place like September 10th, there is no place like September 10th". John Edwards can take us there if we only believe.

Please, No Peckers

No more Cowboys and Indians games, the Indians lose and only the Cowboys remain. There will soon be no more NCAA teams with "Indians" as their mascot. Our own Arkansas State University held out to the end, but Political Correctness just can't be outlasted.

Political Correctness is not logically consistent. It's bad for Ole Miss to have an elderly ex-Confederate as a mascot because being a mascot is an honor. It's bad to have an Indian mascot because being a mascot is a dishonor. The moral rules are made up to achieve the desired outcome, not to be logically consistent. The NCAA can now take up the quest to make the University of Wyoming stop being offensive to Cowboys now.

I have never understood why Native Americans are offended by being part of the popular culture. I can understand wanting to eliminate the cartoony and stereotypical and certainly eliminate something like "Redskins". But I am not sure of the efficacy of removing even dignified references as opposed to insisting on dignified references. Mascots will end up as the exclusive territory of the Irish, ex-Confederates, Crusaders, and white corn farmers, I suppose. Nonetheless, they have the right to their own opinions about their presence in the popular culture and they have spoken and I have to respect it whether I agree or not.

Oh well, now Arkansas's 2nd university has to choose a new mascot. Based on past history of Arkansas decision-making and the ongoing discussions.....I have reason to be worried. The debate among fans is fairly loud and hundreds of mascot suggestions have been floated. These suggestions are not put forward lightly. Many fans have decided and will not be happy if their preferred moniker is not adopted. I can't say that there is much logical thought put behind most of them so I will put forward my modest criteria for selecting a new mascot.

1. The mascot should not be regional. Arkansas State University is THE state university of Arkansas. The university does not belong just to Jonesboro, or Northeast Arkansas, or the Delta. It is representative of our entire state even if many wish it were not so.
   
2. The mascot should be dignified. It should not bring embarassment to the university or our state. Just as we should not have cartoonish Indians with scalps, we should not have cartoonish representations of Arkansas stereotypes.
3. The mascot should not be boring for the sake of compromise.

That's it. That's my criteria. I think my points are reasonable. So now I will look at some of the more adamantly supported nicknames in light of these criteria.

Ivory-Billed Woodpeckers (a.k.a PECKERS)
Brought on by the excitement generated by a questionable sighting of this apparently extinct bird in eastern Arkansas. Primarily put forward as a marketing ploy to get non-ASU fans to purchase licensed products with the word PECKERS on it. In other words, copying the double-entendre of the University of South Carolina Gamecocks who sells products with the word COCKS on it for laughs and cash. Presumably Jonesboro would host a Peckerfest to compete with USC's Cockfest.

This mascot fails my dignity test. It certainly is not boring. It would certainly create a lot of laughs and pull in some cash from non-ASU fans who want to wear a rude hat. If the goal is to sell your dignity for some license-fee cash then this is the one.

Fightin' Farmers
Of course, who can complain about having simple farmers, people of the land, the common clay of the new west as your mascot? I can I guess. The problem with this one is that it represents fine people, and the history of Arkansas as a primarily agricultural state.....but that's a view of the University that we have been trying to expand on. Arkansas is already known for agriculture. Selecting agriculture as a mascot is nothing new and fairly uninteresting.


Ricebirds
Ricebirds is not a bad name actually. I sort of like it. But there are no Ricebirds in Texarkana, or Washington County, or Yellville. It's an east Arkansas phenomenon and is not representative of the state. It is based on an agricultural product of the region for which there is no guarantee of permanency. In 25 years rice production may have moved elsewhere and a different crop may be the primary product of east Arkansas.


Ridgerunners
This one is a direct reference to Crowley's Ridge. What percentage of the population of our state resides on Crowley's Ridge? Ridgerunners is not even representative of Bay, Waldenburg, or Marked Tree much less the whole state.

So what is my answer? I don't know. There are very few things really that represent our state. We are the "Diamond State" and ASU already incorporates the diamond in its non-sports logo. Arkansas was "The Bear State" so a bear would be good. The ASU Diamond Bears appeal to me. Unfortunately UCA already has dibs on the bear logo. Arkansas is "The Natural State" and that would be worth considering but its been snatched up by a minor-league baseball team in Springdale. Arkansas was "The Wonder State" but that has been (fortunately) taken by Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys. So what does that leave? I don't know and that's part of the reason I am worried.