FOXnHenHouse's Blog

Check out this article from the Orlando Sentinel: Police Investigate Dust-Up at Channel 35

And this link: Roger Simmons

 

 

A lot of new bloggers in the last few weeks have their "comments" turned off. If you just want to respond to blogs or make a statment, that's fine, it's your choice.

But if you pose a question, how do you expect anyone to respond if you don't turn your "comments" on? Go to "settings" to turn it on, please.

Okay, read this article from the AP and pay close attention to the LAST paragraph:

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TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Hundreds gathered in Tulsa, Oklahoma to watch as a crane hauled a 1957 Plymouth Belvedere from a gaping hole in the city's courthouse lawn.

The car spent the last half-century snug in an underground concrete vault that was built to withstand a nuclear attack.

A-bombs aside, the crypt was certainly not waterproof. Event organizers had to pump out several feet of water before unearthing the car.

The Belvedere went underground in 1957 in celebration of Oklahoma's 50 years of statehood.

Also buried with the car were ten gallons of gas -- so future revelers could start 'er up, in case internal combustion engines became obsolete by 2007. That attempt will be made this evening.

The typical contents of a woman's handbag were stashed in the glove compartment, which include lipstick, gum and a bottle of tranquilizers.

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Really?! A bottle of tranquilizers were "typical" for women to carry around in 1957?

"If they say why...tell them that it's human nature"

-Michael Jackson

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It seems even our caveman ancestors committed murder!

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GENEVA -- A prehistoric hunter known as Oetzi whose well-preserved body was found on a snow-covered mountain in the Alps died more than 5,000 years ago after being struck in the back by an arrow, scientists said in an article published Wednesday.

Researchers from Switzerland and Italy used newly developed medical scanners to examine the hunter's frozen corpse to determine that the arrow had torn a hole in an artery beneath his left collarbone, leading to a massive loss of blood.

That, in turn, caused Oetzi to go into shock and suffer a heart attack, according to the article published online in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Even today, the chances of surviving such an injury long enough to receive hospital treatment are only 40 percent, according to the article.

Oetzi, also known as the Iceman, caused a sensation after his body was discovered by hikers in 1991 on a glacier 10,500 feet above sea level on the border between Austria and Italy.

The fact that the arrow's shaft was pulled out before his death may have worsened the injury, said Frank Ruehli of the University of Zurich, who carried out the research with scientists from Bolzano, Italy, where the iceman's body is preserved.

The findings confirm earlier suspicions that linked the arrowhead embedded in Oetzi's body with his death, and virtually rule out other theories that he had been the victim of a ritual sacrifice or had gotten caught in a storm.

If you could go back in time and change three events in your life, what would they be?

George Stephanapolous (sp?) interviewed Barrack Obama this past Sunday. I saw a clip on the Daily Show and just now on the Bill Moyers Journal. I may be paraphrasing here, but here's what Stephanapolous asked:

'You have a very cool style when you're on the stage. Is that because of your race?'

Obama says "That's interesting" and Steph continues his questioning...

Now, I'm not making this about Obama. I don't care if you're left or right wing..if Obama were a republican, or if he were white and Steph. was black... just the nerve of asking a question like that! What!?

Can you imagine interviewing McCain: "You seem kind of stiff...is it because you're white?"

 

 

ATHENS, Ga. -- Paul Oliver wanted to return for his senior season at Georgia. Poor grades will force the cornerback to get started on his pro career.

Oliver, one of the key players on the Bulldogs' defense, failed to meet academic standards and was declared ineligible to play this season, the school announced Thursday.

He plans to petition the NFL for entry into its July supplemental draft after initially passing up the chance to leave school a year early.

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So he's not smart enough to play college ball, but he can now go to the NFL and make millions?

Tell me again why I worked my butt off in school?

If we have evidence that a foreign country is responsible for the deaths of 170 Americans, what should our response be? Bush was quick to go to war in Iraq with faulty intelligence; but now that we have evidence against Iran, we do nothing?!

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From Fox News:

Iran has been training Iraqi fighters in Iran on the assembly of deadly roadside bombs known as EFPs, the U.S. military spokesman said on Wednesday.

"We know that they are being in fact manufactured and smuggled into this country, and we know that training does go on in Iran for people to learn how to assemble them and how to employ them. We know that training has gone on as recently as this past month from detainees debriefs," Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the U.S. military spokesman, said at a weekly briefing.

EFP stands for explosively formed penetrator, deadly roadside bombs that hurl a fist-size lump of molten copper capable of piercing armor.

In January, U.S. officials said at least 170 U.S. soldiers had been killed by EFPs.

Caldwell also said on Wednesday that the U.S. military had evidence that Iranian intelligence agents were active in Iraq in funding, training and arming Shiite militia fighters.

"We also know that training still is being conducted in Iran for insurgent elements from Iraq. We know that as recent as last week from debriefing personnel," he said.

"The do receive training on how to assemble and employ EFPs," Caldwell said, adding that fighters also were trained in how to carry out complex attacks that used explosives followed by assaults with rocket-propelled grenades and small arms.

"There has been training on specialized weapons that are used here in Iraq. And then we do know they receive also training on general tactics in terms of how to take and employ and work what we call a more complex kind of attack where we see multiple types of engagements being used from an explosion to small arms fire to being done in multiple places," Caldwell said.

The general would not say specifically which arm of the Iranian government was doing the training but called the trainers "surrogates" of Iran's intelligence agency.

Caldwell opened the briefing by showing photographs of what he said were Iranian-made mortar rounds, RPG rounds and rockets that were found in Iraq.

Isn't the Stamp Act one of the reasons we went to war with Britain? Oh, wait, I digress..

The price of a postage stamp is gonig up to 41-cents in May. People can buy "forever" stamps that will lock in the price of a stamp against future increases.

My question is, who uses stamps anymore? In the age of e-commerce, I use ONE stamp every three months; to mail out my HOA dues. And I could elect to have that automatically withdrawn, but with constant assessments and increases, I'd rather write the check myself. But everything else; mortgage, credit card, car payments, insurance etc., I either pay or have debited online.

So keep your stinkin' stamps! I'm going to go drink some tea now.

By GILLIAN FLACCUS
Associated Press Writer
SANTA ANA, Calif.
A slow-burning leadership struggle within the Minuteman Project has flared into a full-blown court fight that threatens the 2-year-old anti-illegal immigration group's influence, if not its survival.

Ousted Minuteman founder Jim Gilchrist sued the group's board of directors last week for control of the organization after he was fired and accused of embezzling $400,000 in donations.

Board members, who also fired the group's executive director, also allege Gilchrist used $13,000 of the organization's money for his own legal fees. And they recently filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service, saying Gilchrist illegally received a nonprofit postal discount.

On Tuesday, a judge set a March 21 hearing to decide whether to intervene in the dispute, which had been building for more than a year, according to court papers

So if anyone still doubts that the SEC is the most talented and competitive conference in the nation, I respectfully submit the following articles. The last article mentions Ocala's John Brantley...

 

The Top 10 teams on signing day as rated by SuperPrep, CSTV, Rivals.com, and National Blue Chips -- four of the country's top recruiting reports:

SuperPrep-Allen Wallace

1. Florida

2. Southern California

3. LSU

4. Tennessee

5. Texas

6. South Carolina

7. Auburn

8. Michigan

9. Oregon

10. Notre Dame

------CSTV-Tom Lemming

1. Florida

2. Tennessee

3. Texas

4. Southern California

5. LSU

6. South Carolina

7. Notre Dame

8. Nebraska

9. Auburn

10. Georgia

------Rivals.com-Bobby Burton

1. Florida

2. Tennessee

3. Southern California

4. LSU

5. Texas

6. South Carolina

7. Auburn

8. Notre Dame

9. Georgia

10. Michigan

------National Blue Chips-Max Emfinger

1. Florida

2. Southern California

3. LSU

4. Tennessee

5. Texas

6. Auburn

7. South Carolina

8. Ohio State

9. Notre Dame

10. (tie) Georgia

10 (tie) Alabama

 

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida finished the recruiting season exactly where it ended last season -- on top.

The national champion Gators capitalized on last month's Bowl Championship Series title game upset of Ohio State to land the top recruiting class in the country Wednesday.

Coach Urban Meyer's third class was ranked No. 1 by Scout.com, Rivals.com, SuperPrep, National Blue Chips and others.

The 27-player group included four highly touted defensive linemen, three standout quarterbacks and seven players from three-time Florida state Class 5A champion Lakeland, including star running back Chris Rainey.

"I'd say quarterback and defensive line, off the top, are outstanding," Meyer said.

The Gators got several of the top players from Florida, added some of the best talent from around the country and essentially followed up last year's class -- which ranked second to USC -- with an even better bunch. The most notable additions came along the defensive line, Florida's biggest area of need after losing five of its top six linemen following a 41-14 drubbing of the Buckeyes in the national title game.

The Gators lost Ray McDonald, Steven Harris, Joe Cohen and Jarvis Moss in addition to having defensive tackle Marcus Thomas kicked off the team during the season. Without them, Derrick Harvey will have the most experience along the line next season.

But he should have plenty of talent surrounding him. Tackles Torrey Davis and John Brown and ends Carlos Dunlap and Justin Trattou were four of Florida's 10 five-star recruits, according to Scout.com.

Dunlap, the top recruit in South Carolina, went against his father's wishes to stay closer to home and decided to head south to Florida. Trattou had been committed to Notre Dame but changed his mind following a recent visit to Gainesville.

The Gators also signed three quarterbacks to play behind -- and maybe compete against -- starter Tim Tebow. Meyer said after the title game that "it is Tim Tebow's team as of right now." But the coach had no one else to even mention -- until now. The Gators signed Cameron Newton, junior college transfer Bryan Waggener and John Brantley IV.

"We knew officially after Chris (Leak) threw his last pass we were down to one scholarship quarterback and that quarterback likes to run and he's going to take shots and we're going to have a problem," Meyer said. "We'll redshirt one of those quarterbacks, maybe two of them."

Newton and Waggener were two of nine recruits who enrolled at Florida in January and will get a head start on the backup job in spring practice.

"This spring is going to be critical for Bryan and for Cam Newton," Meyer said.

Brantley made his pledge official Wednesday. He had committed to Texas but changed his mind in December because he wanted to be closer to home.

The 6-foot-4 quarterback grew up in nearby Ocala. His father, John Brantley III, was a quarterback at Florida in the late 1970s, and his uncle, Scot Brantley, was an All-American linebacker with the Gators. His mother graduated from Florida, and the family has had football season tickets for the past 18 years.

Also, Brantley's high school coach was former Florida quarterback Kerwin Bell and the team's receivers coach was former Florida receiver Ricky Nattiel.

So Brantley, who threw for 6,802 yards during in high school and led his team to three consecutive state title games, had plenty of advice about Gainesville.

Okay, it's not a new commercial and they re-run it right around Valentines Day every year, but I just love that Publix commercial where the little kid has his mother bake a cake for a girl "he likes".

She asks, "Does she know you liker her?" and he says, "I guess." Intrigued and curious, the mom hints "Let's right her name on it." (the heart shaped cake). He says, "Nah."

The mom drives him to school, the boy gets out and she yells after him, "Wait, you forgot your cake!" He turns around...and this is the best part...with a look on his face that says, 'no I didn't', then runs into school. The mom finally realizes that the cake is for her.

Yeah, kinda sappy and when you think about it, she baked her own caked! LOL! But hey...great commercial. Publix usually has good ones, like those pilgrim salt and pepper shakers around Thanksgiving.

So there have been blogs about the worst TV commercials, I thought I'd start one about your favorite ones....

I'm still undecided on how to vote on a couple of amendments on the ballot. So I'm looking for some input.

First, the measure on amending the state constitution. As I understand it, approval would mean 60% of voters would have to approve of a measure instead of just 51%. At first blush I thought 'hey, that's taking voters' rights away.' If it takes that many votes NOTHING would ever get passed. But then I thought 'wait a minute, that might be a GOOD thing'. It would ensure that no frivolous amendments get passed. I mean that's how the class size amendment got passed.


Second, Eminent Domain. I believe progress has a price. If a city wants to tear down a run-down part of town to renovate it and build businesses and condos etc. then it should do so to help the economy. The problem is, the homeowners forced out are not compensated enough to find new homes.

What do you think?

I know it's a tradition and I know I might sound like a party-pooper here, but I just wanted to throw this out for your thoughts and comments.

Black College Reunion and Spring Break has given Daytona Beach a bad image over the last few years, so the city has taken steps to tone down the events to the point that it's no longer the beacon of debauchery it once was.

Yet, thousands of bikers can still converge. Two wheels, fast bikes, no helmets. Last year there were 5 deaths during Biketoberfest. There are already 4 this year. Wouldn't it be a good idea to take the same steps to tone down the event as well?

Local economy you say? Sure, well so is Spring Break and the BCR. But at what point do you draw the line? How many people have to die? If the city can take steps to discourage college students from coming there, foregoing economic gain and fostering a "family friendly" image, then shouldn't they do the same for bikers?

Look, I know it may come down to a personal responsibility argument and I acknowledge the "free spirit" shared by bikers.

(In fairness I should mention a couple of things: 1 of the 4 deaths this weekend was NOT motorcycle related. Also, police have said the crime revolving around past BCRs was not caused primarily by college students but by Floridians who take day trips to Daytona.)

I've been meaning to spout off about this for awhile. First, I should say I've never watched American Idol. Nor, any of those other knock-off three-judge-panel shows.

I was channel surfing last night and fell on FOX and they had a montage of all the past Idol winners in their auditions. And they all sounded alike. You know, that soulful, R&B sounding voice. Like they're in a gospel choir.

Now, I'm not saying I don't like R&B or gospel. My point is, why does America only reward that kind of singer? Can you imagine BLEEP Jagger of the Rolling Stones or Steve Tyler of Aerosmith on the show? Imagine for a moment that those singers were not famous. They're just starting out and they audition for American Idol. They'd be laughed off stage! I just picked 2 singers at random, you can fill in the blank with any established singer...Robert Plant? Prince?

Hasn't anyone noticed the lack of true original music on the radio or Top 20 today? It's all so derivitive. The bubble gum pop of the Kelly Clarksons, Paris Hiltons and Lindsay Lohans. Or the resampling of GOOD music by BAD rap artists who can't come up with an original note to save their grills. (it's a slang term, ask your kids!)

Need proof: How about the fact that these American Idol winners always release albums of cover songs or hire well known song writers to write their stuff?

Alright, give me your list: the good, bad and ugly. Name some artists on the radio/charts today that you like or don't like. Tell me why and whether you agree on my assessment of American Idol.

Okay, I feel better now.