Random Possible Insensitivities

It's been a little over a week since I posted anything here, but the last week has been a bit distressing. This post will be a mixed bag of political thoughts, sports musings, and any other thing I might think of.

- This Sandra Fluke thing is getting out of hand. After her meet-and-greet with Congress (wasn't really a hearing, but just a small meeting called by Nancy Pelosi), conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh said some uncouth things. I don't agree with Limbaugh, and I'm not a fan of his show. His words have brought a a firestorm of hatred his way. Advertisers have left his show, but oddly the ones that left are suffering almost immediate adverse effects.

Gloria Allred is now seeking a way to prosecute Limbaugh for a misdemenor under an archaic Florida law forbidding anyone to question the "purity" of a woman. However, in the not so distant past, Bill Maher called Sarah Palin far worse things than Limbaugh called Fluke. Maher also donated $1 Million to Obama's campaign through a PAC. Obama has not offered to return the money (not that I'm calling for him to, but some non-liberal pundits are). David Letterman called Palin a cheap slut and joked about her daughters being raped. Michelle Obama, the current First Lady, is set to appear on Letterman's show this week. So either the media is ignoring Letterman and Maher because they are comedians and not taken as seriously as Limbaugh... or it's okay to speak such vulgarities about a woman, so long as you are liberal and she is conservative.

- Barack Obama is touting the fact that oil production is up under his administration. Well, remember that he froze all drilling in the Gulf, and on the Atlantic Coast, and oil drilling on federal lands decreased by over ten percent in 2011. So the logical conclusion to it is that oil production is up in spite of Obama, not because of him.

- Rick Santorum continues to jockey with Mitt Romney for the lead in the GOP race for the Presidential nomination. Santorum is the GOP candidate I am least likely to support, because I think he would earnestly seek to underhandedly institute a theocracy in this country. I'm a Christian, and I consider myself a fairly religious person, but I don't want a Christian theocracy. Nor do I want a Muslim, Hindu, or Baha'i theocracy. Having a Christian theocracy opens the door for those others to exist.

-According to Rasmussen, at the moment Romney and Obama are tied at 45% each. Obama leads Santorum 47% to 42%. On generic congressional ballots, Republicans lead Democrats by six percentage points. Personally, I'm amazed at the Democrats holding such high numbers as they do, seeing as they haven't passed a budget in over 1000 days, even when they had complete control of the House and a near supermajority in the Senate. The government currently spends about $11 Billion per day. For every dollar they spend, they have to borrow 43 cents. But if we could just increase taxes on the top 1% we'd be okay, right? Wrong. Even if you took 100% of the wealth of the top 1% of wage earners in this country, you could run the federal government for about 24 days. If you took all the wealth and assests of the Fortune 500 companies as well, you could run the federal government for about eight months. We do not have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem.

Now for some light-hearted sports stuff...

- Chipper Jones, the veteran Braves third-baseman, stated today that he might not be able to last the year. He's not played a full season in a long time, and he seems to stay hurt more than healthy. If/When he retires, he'll probably be a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee. I'd argue that he was one of the best ball players of the steroid era, and he was clean.

- The Formula 1 season starts this weekend in Australia. Last season the Red Bull Renault cars dominated, more specifically, Sebastian Vettel dominated. Through the preseason testing sessions, it appears as if there is no dominant car or team going in to Melbourne. The cars are hideous (except McLaren), and it looks like Bahrain will be on the calendar this year, even though several teams don't want to go.

- The Peyton Manning sweepstakes is in full swing. Manning has already ruled out Kansas City and Seattle, and he's visited Denver and is going to visit Tennessee, Miami, and Arizona. I wasn't aware Tennessee was in the mix until today, and I think the Titans would be a good fit. The weather is usually pretty good in Nashville, he'd play at least two games a season in domes (Houston and Indianapolis), and the owner would throw a good bit of money his way. It's likely the team that signs Manning will also make a run at Reggie Wayne and possibly at Jeff Saturday.

- The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins were penalized by the league for front-loading contracts during the uncapped season a year or two ago. The league specifically warned teams not to front-load, and the 'Skins and 'Boys did it anyway. The Saints and Raiders are also in the penalized group, but their offenses were not on the magnitude of Washington and Dallas.

- The Saints are still feeling the fallout from the Bounty Program their defense ran. The league has been slow to penalize the team, but rumored penalties include 8 to 16 game bans for Sean Payton and Gregg Williams (now with the Rams). The team could face massive financial penalties and possibly the forfeiture of draft picks.

- Speaking of the Rams, St. Louis just landed a haul for their 2nd Round pick. The Redskins (who did all this trading before the league penalized them) gave up their 1st Round pick (6th overall) and their 2nd round pick, plus their first round picks in 2013 and 2014, to move up to #2 this year. Their goal: Robert Griffin III.

Super Tuesday

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Formula 1 Season Predictions

We are less than two weeks away from the start of the 2012 Formula 1 season, which means it is time for the Right Wing Formula 1 Season Predictions!

First Driver to be Replaced: Narain Karthikeyan
I know that it seems odd that Karthikeyan even got a ride this season, but he does bring loads of money to the table for the team. Still, his skill level is not quite that of the other drivers on the circuit. Look for HRT to cut him loose sometime around Round 5.

First Driver to become a Replacement Driver: Sebastian Buemi
This is just an off-the-cuff prediction, as Buemi is a Reserve Driver for Red Bull Renault, and if my first prediction is true, then HRT would be hiring his services away. I think, though, that Buemi is too good a talent to sit out for long.

Will the Bahrain Grand Prix happen? No.
I should qualify that answer by saying that the Grand prix is still on the calendar, but I can see a situation very similar to Indianapolis 2005. Unless the political situations in the Middle East rapidly improve by April 20, I think several teams will sit this one out. It may be the only time that HRT or Marussia get a victory…or even a point.

Will the United States Grand Prix happen? Yes.
The Circuit of the Americas is still being built, the builders, developers, and moneymen are still arguing, and Bernie still looks like a rejected member of a Beatles cover band. That said, you have to think even Bernie Ecclestone realizes that getting a Grand Prix in the US is too good an opportunity to miss. And I know the plan right now involves getting the Grand Prix to the Port Imperial street circuit in 2013 or 2014, but COTA might be one of the better Tilke tracks outside of Istanbul Park. You can’t deny race fans that kind of excitement.

Will we have a more exciting championship hunt than last season? Yes.
Forgiving the fact that Vettel ran away from the pack last year, the races were darned exciting. The rain-infused Canadian Grand Prix last year was one of the best races ever. And this year, testing showed that the top flight teams are separated by only 1 second on lap times. With six former World Driver Champions on the circuit, it has to be more exciting.

Can Kimi Raikkonen make a splash in his return with Lotus(Renault)? Absolutely.
I like Raikkonen and fully expect good things from him. I doubt that Lotus can compete for the championship, but stranger things have happened. Seriously, did anyone in 2009 think that Ross Brawn would double up the titles after buying his team one month before the season started? Raikkonen has set some fast lap times. He’ll be on the podium within the first 5 races.

Who wins the Constructor’s Championship? Red Bull Renault
This may be one of the tighter Constructor’s Championship races we’ve seen in some time. McLaren, Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes are all looking for the top spot. I’m picking Red Bull because they know what it takes to get it done, and they have two of the most consistent drivers on the circuit.

Who wins the Driver’s Championship? Lewis Hamilton
The last time Lewis Hamilton won the World Driver’s Championship, his team lost the Constructor’s Title. Hamilton has taken some hits lately and a rebound season is in order. He has as much or more talent than anyone on the circuit, and like Vettel and Schumacher, he’s great in the rain. He might start slow, but he’ll begin to pick up momentum in China, where he always races well. It’ll be close, though, with Vettel just missing out on three straight driver’s titles.

Random Predictions (that will most likely be wrong):
-Nico Rosberg will win a race this season.
-Mark Webber will not win a race this season.
-Caterham will score its first point by the mid-point of the season.
-Kimi Raikkonen will take the Lotus car to victory at Spa-Francorchamps.
-The Constructor’s Championship will be decided with one race remaining.
-Ferrari will fail to reach the podium in the first five races.