Sunday Observations - 24 May

- Okay, I lied. There's just a bunch on my mind today.
Update: This post was began last night (Sunday) but there was a total blackout in my neighborhood. Don't know what caused it, but we were all dark.

- Lebron James is pretty good. If you did not see the amazing shot, it's here:


- Michael Vick was released from prison last week. What he did to the dogs was atrocious and inexcusable. Judging by posts to articles on him, lots of people believe that he should never play in the NFL again. I disagree. He was tried by the courts and did his time. He deserves a second chance. I am not a Vick fan. But I believe in the fact that men can change. He may not be much of a football player, but maybe he can prove he's a new man.

If I've learned anything from the Bible, it's that God uses messed up people all the time. People who were given a second (sometimes third) chance. Moses, David, Peter, Paul were all guilty of some pretty heinous stuff. When you are perfect, you become Messiah. When you screw up, God finds you useful to his kingdom.

- Good news- it looks like we have a new law to protect consumers from credit card lenders. Also attached to that law was a legislation that now permits loaded and concealed weapons in National Parks.

NY Times article

First, I'm not a fan. I liked that National Parks were gun free. Second, I don't resent the legislation as much as I resent the way it was ratified: attached to a consumer lending bill because there was no way that a Democratic Senate was going to approve it if it stood alone. Lastly, I also notice that people with guns too often fall into that trap that the guns solve all problems. Instead of being smarter, more prepared and cautious, many outdoorsmen with guns head into the wild with a false sense a security. I stand on my record that guns are like cars, the majority of the people who own them should not be allowed to operate them.

- Track season is over. North Henderson's highest placer was Catie Byrd, who finished 3rd in the 800m with a time of 2:26.

- Is waterboarding torture? The debate rages on about "enhanced interrogation".

Sources: Top Bush Advisors Approved 'Enhanced Interrogation'

When I was in high school, we played a very fun (and sometimes brutal) game called "Killball". We loved it, even when our big football players hit you so hard with the ball that it left welts. Apparently, someone complained about "Killball", so we could no longer play it. Some genius decided to start a new game called "Power Dodgeball". It had the same rules, used the same equipment, and left the same welts when Greg Dahl hit you, but we would swear under oath that we were playing a different game.