There’s a Doctor in the House: Ron Paul Visits Goucher College

Standing in line in the Rosenberg Gallery, (the Gallery makes up the lobby for the Kraushaar Auditorium at Goucher College) I was waiting for a friend. A friend I had made just two weeks earlier at the same venue, while listening to former General Counsel of the U.S. Navy, Alberto Mora.

I was one person of approximately 1,000 people, made up of Goucher Students, young professionals, older couples and blue collar workers of all ages. I saw Jews and Gentiles alike. Young married couples with kids in tow and a few individuals that I guessed to be of Middle Eastern descent. We were all waiting for the same thing. The doors to open to Kraushaar Auditorium so we could begin filing in to hear the speaker.

That person being the Republican Congressman from Texas running for President of the United States, Dr. Ron Paul. The free Ron Paul event at Goucher College Monday night, was as hot a commodity as any concert ticket could have been. There was a line formed next to will-call for those not having a ticket but hoping that all of the tickets may not have been spoken for. Continue reading There’s a Doctor in the House: Ron Paul Visits Goucher College

The Iraq Conflict by the Numbers

4,023: The number of dead U.S. G.I.s and Marines as of 04.07.08 http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

296,281: The number of U.S. wounded as of 04.07.08 http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

1,194,935: Iraqi deaths due to U.S Invasion http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq/iraqdeaths.html

3,884: The number of dead U.S. G.I.s and Marines since “Mission Accomplished” http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

$506 Billion: Cost of Iraqi Conflict http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

$341.4 Million: Cost of Iraqi conflict per day http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

Continue reading The Iraq Conflict by the Numbers

Predictable Outcome: Another Blown Winter Weather Forecast in Maryland

I’ve stocked up on milk, bread and toilet paper. I have gasoline in the generator. I’ve backed the truck onto to the driveway and brought the snow shovel in from the shed. I’m ready for the winter storm that will be “dumping 2-4 inches of snow across the area beginning after midnight tonight.”

I’m watching TV and am somewhat distracted by the weather alert broadcast by the local networks and moving across the bottom of my screen. If that weren’t enough, I notice the snowflake icon in the upper left hand corner of the picture with the word “Warning” underneath it. For the last 12 hours I’ve heard from the local meteorologists about the coming winter storm. The National Weather Service has issued a “Winter Storm Warning” for most of Maryland. Wow! This must be it! The Big One!

Heading home from work, I notice the Maryland State Highway dump trucks, plows attached and salt spilling out of their beds, sitting, waiting, in the median of I-95 - a good 9 hours before the first flake was due to fall. Pick-up trucks, more than I can count, pass me by, also with plows attached and salt spreaders in their beds, hoping for that big snow that Chief Meteorologist Tom Tasselmyer says is on its way. Continue reading Predictable Outcome: Another Blown Winter Weather Forecast in Maryland

One in a Billion: What happens in Vegas…can be utterly embarrassing

LAS VEGAS, Nevada - Almost 2 years to the day I was back here in Las Vegas for the CES, The Consumer Electronics Show, the World’s Largest Trade Show (140,000 attendees and 1.8 million square feet of exhibit space with over 2,700 exhibitors).

Now the CES is THE center of the Universe for 4 days every January. This is where the new technology of consumer electronics is introduced and hyped. Many of the gizmos and gadgets trotted out at the CES in January make their way to market sometime in the months that follow.

Because the CES is such a big deal it is the place to see and be seen. Celebrities galore are there either as spokespeople for the various companies or as attendees themselves. In years past I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Joan Jett, David Ortiz, Michael Irving, Randall Cunningham, Marcus Allen, Jackie “The Joke Man” Martling, Mathew Polk, Michael Douglas, Donny Osmond, Jon Anderson of Yes, Little Steven, Todd Rundgren, Cal Ripken Jr., Brian Williams, Yoko Ono, Herbie Hancock, Gallagher, Roger Staubach, Gene Simmons, Snoop Dog, Tommy Shaw, James Young, Darryl “DMC” McDaniel, Jane Wiedlin, Terry LeBonte and Sinbad to name a few. Continue reading One in a Billion: What happens in Vegas…can be utterly embarrassing

The Liberal Press: More myth than fact

The MoBseen: Observations as seen through the eyes of Mark

The Liberal Press.  A moniker used to describe America’s media.  Media of all sorts; radio, print media, and TV and the Internet.  For years I’ve wondered how this term came to describe the media and reporting in the United States.

In my mind, it flew in the face of what I saw and heard and read on a daily basis.  The likes of Rush Limbaugh, Anne Coulter, Imus, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, Martha Zoller, Pat Buchanan, Laura Ingraham, Glenn Beck and a laundry list of other talk show hosts are widely syndicated, very popular and all very conservative.

Many, such as Limbaugh, Imus and Coulter, to name a few,  have become media icons. Very recognizable, syndicated in dozens of cities and consequently very rich.  Many of these conservative talk show hosts also write columns in major market newspapers, are guests on TV news shows, are active in the world of blogging and all have their own web sites devoted to their point of view. They all have access to worldwide media that allows them to state their point of view. Continue reading The Liberal Press: More myth than fact

Horse Racing in Maryland, a $2 Billion Industry? Wanna bet?

The MoBseen: Life’s observations as seen through the eyes of Mark.

We, the voters of the Free State, will have the chance to vote on slots coming to Maryland.

Current polling by Gonzales Research & Marketing Strategies and the Washington Post Polling suggest that Maryland residents are in favor of Maryland slots and those favoring slots continue to outnumber those opposing slots. The question remains of course, where to put the parlors and who will be the beneficiary of the millions generated by this new gambling.

I should point out to those opposed to Maryland slots that we already have gambling in Maryland and on a very broad scale; We have The Lottery, Lotto, The Daily Pick 3, The Daily Pick 4, (twice a day!) Bonus Match 5, Mega Millions, Multi Match, Racetrax, Maryland Hold’em, Keno, Scratch-Offs, and of course horse racing. We also have Off Track Betting (OTB) and XpressBet.

The fact is, we have no shortage of vehicles to separate money from man and woman here in the Free State! These, of course, are all state-ordained gambling games. This in addition to all of the illegal numbers that are run everyday and the illegal slot machines in bars throughout the state, bingo nights at churches, VFWs and fire halls (these licensed by the State) and of course the office pools during March Madness.

The politicians, led by the both Governors Ehrlich and O’Malley, have and are supporting slots. This in itself is not what puzzles me, it’s the justification that is used to “sell” the slots to the constituents. Continue reading Horse Racing in Maryland, a $2 Billion Industry? Wanna bet?