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Friday,
January 30,
2009 - Jonathan
Expect the Unexpected
Ok so as I'm trying to decide what to write this week, I'm desperately trying to turn away from American Idol but
I can’t! YES I admit it, I watch AMERICAN IDOL! To be honest I use
to make fun of the whole “Idol” crowd. It was a dumb show, full of second-rate
singers, and very annoying personalities. Well I have had a change of heart.
Don’t get me wrong, it is still all of the above (dumb, annoying, second-rate,
ect…) but it is for those very reasons that I can’t turn away! The show is
hilarious! Where else can one take such pleasure in the misery and broken dreams
of other human beings with out feeling bad about it? For every halfway decent
singer shown during the series opening episodes, I get to enjoy
6 or 7 oblivious members
of the human race make absolute fools of themselves. And yes, quite frankly it
makes me feel just that much better about myself.
The best part is the family and friends
of those that are, well let’s just say, less then musically gifted. You wonder
what people must be thinking when they tell a loved one
“You are so talented!”
when in fact what they should be saying is, “STOP! NEVER EVER ATTEMPT TO
SING AGAIN, UNLESS YOU ARE COMPLETELY ALONE AND NO ONE ELSE CAN HEAR YOU!!!!”
Well enough of American Idol for tonight. Just this past week President Obama
gave the first televised interview of his new presidency. And to the surprise of
many (and not so surprising to everyone else) it was not with anyone of the
typical American media outlets. CNN? MSNBC? CNBC? CBS? FOXNEWS? No, no, no, no,
and HECK NO! And the winner of the very prestigious first interview with his
Highness President Obama is? Al-Arabiya, an overseas Arab television
station. Almost immediately after news of the interview all of your typical
political pundits were talking, analyzing and dissecting the presidents unusual
choice of media outlets. I heard a wide range of opinions on the topic,
everything from “What a brilliant decision by Obama,” and “He truly is a wise
statesman,” to “What was he thinking! How dare he give the Arab world such an
honor!” and “Now we see his true colors!”
Truth is Pres. Obama
did the right thing
by reaching out and showing the Arab Muslim world
that the US isn’t in the business of fighting Islam, it is in the business of
fighting radical terrorists who would mean our nation harm. Nowhere does it say
that you cannot have military might and diplomacy at the same time. Just because
a nation has the ability to wage war does mean it should abandon diplomatic
efforts all together.
I credit our previous president
with bolstering our national defense and
helping to make our nation safe from attacks upon our shores. But I also welcome
Pres. Obama’s call for greater diplomacy with other less then Pro-American
nations. Last time I checked, the Cold War wasn’t won by nuclear explosions and
foreign invasions. No, it was won due to the shrewd diplomacy of a great
American leader, President Ronald Reagan.
So to all those who want to point to
Obama’s willingness to talk with the enemy as just another sign that he is the
Anti-Christ, I can only shake my head in frustration.
Ok I am finished for tonight. Gotta get
back to SportsCenter, there is a highlight of a really great hockey fight on
right now!
A.
Today marks the
8th year anniversary of the Syndicate's founding. Folks, it's our hope that you've found something insightful, funny,
inspiring or otherwise from IPF. That continues to be our intention, and
we are honored to have you along for the ride with us.
Special shout out to the IPF Staff.
Much Love.
B.
Jon, appreciate the kind words my friend.
C.
Alright, I'm rooting for
Arizona
this weekend. The Steelers have plenty of Super Bowl trophies, they won't miss this one. Also, I've always been a fan of Kurt
Warner. One year he's stocking groceries, the next, he's winning a Super
Bowl. Amazing.
D.
Well, it's time for me to come
clean. I just can't hide it anymore...
Happy New Year to all of the IPF
family! It's kind of weird saying that since I've been absent for so long!
Life is a little crazy these days, but I can not complain. I've been blessed and
God has been faithful.
I realize the whole NFL commentary
thing from me was an absolute failure this past season. And since I have been
unable to share my thoughts and opinions on all things football for pretty much
the entire season, I am not going to start giving my opinions now.
Except to say, GO CARDINALS!
I want to give our fearless leader a
big shout out before I go any further (and no I am not referring to Barak H
Obama). The man I speak of has shown over the past several years now a real
commitment to keeping this site running (even though some of its regular
contributors, namely myself, have been less then faithful with their part) and
to the mission of IPF, which I believe is to have a place where people can come
and be up lifted and stay connected. So here is to you Chris and all of your
hard work, and for staying true to the vision you had for IPF.
As I watched, and continue to watch,
countless hours of election and inaugural coverage over the past several days
(as I am sure many of you have done) I am struck by a very overwhelming sense of
“Business as Usual”. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not so staunchly
conservative or right-winged that I cannot appreciate the historical
significance of President Obama’s election. And as a minority myself I can admit
to a small sense of satisfaction that a person of color has broken the barrier
of the highest political office in this nation if not the world. But that is
where it ends for me. After all the bells and whistles of the election and
inauguration are over, and after the last piece of trash has been collected and
disposed of off the streets of Washington following the grandiose parade and
festivities this past Tuesday, after ALL of that, it is Business as Usual in
Washington, as far as I am concerned.
I feel like this needs to be said, so I
am just going to say it. I DON’T CARE THAT
BARAK OBAMA IS BLACK, and quite frankly
neither should any of you. All I care about is that he is now OUR president! Not
the democrat’s president, or the liberal’s president or even the rest of the
world’s president. He is OUR president, the president of the United
States of America. Whether you are Republican, Democrat, Independent,
Libertarian, or claim allegiance to any other obscure political party, whether
you voted for him or not, whether your white, black, Hispanic, or Asian, IF
YOU ARE A CITIZEN OF THIS COUNTRY BARAK OBAMA IS YOUR PRESIDENT.
Let that sink in for a minute… Now back
to my statement about not caring that Pres. Obama is black. I was listening to
an interview with Rush Limbaugh last night and he made some interesting comments
on this topic that I think need to be heard (let me preface this by saying I
generally dislike Mr. Limbaugh and think he can be a right-winged blowhard but
in this instance I agree with him). The gist of his thoughts were basically
this: Obama’s being black has absolutely no relevance into the matter of whether
or not he can do the job required of him, and other then it being a nice
footnote in our nations history, PEOPLE NEED
TO GET OVER IT!
The man could be purple for all I care.
All I want to know is if this MAN, elected by the citizens of this great nation,
can execute the duties of the office of President of the United States. His
being black has about just as much relevance in his ability to be a good
president as my being Hispanic has in my ability to be a good police officer… In
case you missed that, what I am trying to say is… IT HAS NO RELEVANCE WHAT SO
EVER!!!
I guess I am just a little tired of
being force fed this notion
that Obama’s race and his scholarly demeanor are enough to lift this nation out
of the doldrums. The way people talk about this guy, you would think he is the
second coming of…well at least the second coming of the Beatles or something!
I will rap this up by saying I hope
Barak Obama succeeds in leading this country. Did I vote for him? No. Did
I think he was the best choice to be the leader of this country? No. But the
people have spoken and he is my President. And for that I say good luck to you
Mr. President. LONG LIVE THE KING!
A.
Today America turns to a new chapter in its history. The first
President of mixed descent takes his place. President Obama has a lot to
prove to me, but I can't help but be swept up a little in the emotion of his
election. A man of color has become President.
That's a big deal.
I think it speaks to the uniqueness of what is the American experience.
If you look at American History, only a handful of Presidents from each century,
have truly been remembered as difference makers. George
Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, Truman, JFK &
Reagan.
I'm not putting Obama on their level, but given the amount of momentum he has
right now, and the unprecedented nature of being the first President of color,
the potential is there. He's an excellent speaker, sure. But is
there more to the man? We shall see.
A.
Ladies and Gentlemen, stop the presses and download the 2008 BSC Game of the
Year, Gburg vs DC. Even though this was a regular season game, it turned
out to be the best of 2008. Who would have thought that the understudy
would beat the master? A clip like this deserves to be posted on its own.
Enjoy.
A.
First off, from the IPF Syndicate, welcome to 2009. The only resolution I
can give is to make it happen.
A very eventful 2008 for sure.
We saw the economic downturn in the U.S., the election of the first American
president of mixed descent. A world that is changing, becoming more
inter-connected than its ever been. A world that has more uncertainty in
it than at any time I can remember. These are trying times, and time to
think about what is really important in this life.
B.
Special shout out to IPF webmaster Benj Arthungal on the birth of his second
child, Kristen Miriam Arthungal, born this past Christmas Day.
C.
Lastly, thanks for staying with us in 2009. We have the IPF Volleyball
Classic & the Blessan Samuel Classic on tap this year, all your coverage
is right here.
Happy New Year all.
NEW BSC MEDIA
- GAME OF THE YEAR
NEXT MONDAY!
KEEP IT LOCKED.
