Presented Without Comment

The 141st Belmont Stakes: Calvin Goes For The Tiger Slam

EPILOGUE:  I think this pretty much says it all:

Belmont Results     Replay

		Horse	Jockey	Win	Place	Show
4		Summer Bird	K. Desormeaux	$25.80	$9.30	$4.70
2		Dunkirk	J. Velazquez		$5.40	$3.60
7		Mine That Bird	C. Borel			$2.60
			EXOTIC PAYOFFS:
			$2.00 Exacta (4-2)		$121.00
			$2.00 Trifecta (4-2-7)		$295.00
			$2.00 Superfecta (4-2-7-6)		$852.00

Any questions?

Girl Power: Calvin and Rachel get it done with style in the 2009 Preakness.  The nose behind Rachel’s butt belongs to Mine That Bird, whose flying finish for second proved his stunning Derby win was no fluke.

The 134th Preakness Stakes: What to Do About the Girl….

Calvin Borel rides Mine That Bird up the rail to an impossible victory in the Derby

Leisure, by William Henry Davies

I’ve been too busy to write much here lately, which is perhaps why this appeals so much.  If you’ve been busy too, sit for a moment in the Poetry Corner.

Leisure

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

May you all have ample time to stand and stare.

Derby Epilogue: As long as you live….

….you may never again see something as improbable as this.  (That was embarassing.)

The 135th Kentucky Derby: The Populist Choice

URGENT UPDATE:

I seem to have done it again.  I Want Revenge has been scratched due to an ankle injury.  Anybody want a piece of my karma, give me an email address….

I’m going with Dunkirk (15), Papa Clem (7), and General Quarters (12) on top now.  I expect Friesan Fire (6) and Pioneerofthenile (16) to get cooked out front.

Let’s adjust to:

$7 exacta box 7,12,15 ($42)

$1 trifecta 12,15/6,7,12,15/1,2,5,6,7,12,15,17 ($36)

$1 super 15/6,7,12/6,7,12/1,2,5,6,7,12  ($24)

Borrow an extra $2 from your HELOC. 

 

Big Brown surges past Eight Belles in the 2008 Kentucky Derby; the filly did not survive the finish

What a year it has been since we last shared a quality equine moment.  Since the first Saturday in May of 2008, I lost my job, joined a fascinating startup, watched my 401(k) disintegrate, halved my commute, and met 1000 new people wondering what I wanted and when I’d stop talking.

No one will ever forget the Recession of 2008-9, as it changed an election, wiped out Wall Street, and brought Luddites back into the mainstream.  So what better choice could there be for the 2009 Kentucky Derby than a horse who got his start in the People’s Republic of California and goes by the moniker I Want Revenge (13).

Monogramming the Financial Crisis

I know it’s in the Obama Administration’s interest to emphasize how bad the economy was at the end of the Bush Administration.  But I think this goes too far.

Our President Channels Jimmy Carter

What in the name of God am I looking at here?

I think we’re finally getting an idea of what the “broader dialogue” entails.

In what universe is this a good development?

Will we soon hear that “we’ve finally found peace in our time”?

N.B.:  You have to go to Fox News to get the hands.  The mainstreamers cut the picture off at the faces.  Anybody still believe in an unbiased press?

The Case for Fundamental Tax Reform (Reposted)

The following was originally posted on April 15, 2008:

It’s April 15, and like many Americans I just finished spending much too long trying to figure out what I owe in federal and state income taxes. What better day could there be to consider the need for fundamental tax reform?

“You’re suspicious to me.”

The Campaign for Liberty is a political organization formed last year to continue advocating the political and economic principles on which the Ron Paul presidential campaign was founded.  As a proud member, I was interested to learn that an internal report of the Missouri State Police lumped the Campaign for Liberty in with skinheads and Branch Davidians as a part of the “modern militia movement.”  The report (dated Feb. 20, 2009) listed a number of supposed hallmarks of domestic terrorist organizations, including opposition to the Federal Reserve system, advocacy for a gold standard, and a belief in the impending economic collapse of the United States.  In one particularly silly paragraph, the report stated,

Militia members most commonly associate with 3rd party political groups.  It is not uncommon for militia members to display Constitutional Party, Campaign for Liberty, or Libertarian material.  These members are usually supporters of former Presidential Candidate:  Ron Paul, Chuck Baldwin, and Bob Barr.

I wasn’t sure whether to be alarmed or amused by this, but C4L officials took it seriously, possibly because they were at that time planning a big regional conference in St. Louis.  The report was roundly condemned, impressively satirized, and subsequently withdrawn.  The Missouri State Police apologized to the named presidential candidates, and it seemed to be over.

But now there’s this: