Archive for February, 2009
Best. Deal. Ever?
February 28th, 2009 | 1 Comment | Posted in » In the News..., KC Chiefs
Wow. What a blockbuster trade by the Kansas City Chiefs today… picking up both Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel from the Patriots for a second round draft pick?
Are you kidding me?
Cassel was tagged as a franchise player for the Patriots, guaranteeing him top 5 NFL QB money. The Patriots had the right to trade him, of course… but franchise players almost always command such a high price that trades are so prohibitively expensive they just don’t happen. So… a first-rounder was pretty much a guarantee, and a trade for him was likely to include a first-rounder and another pick.
Yet the Chiefs got him… AND Vrabel… for a second-round pick.
UNBELIEVABLE.
This move is such a great deal for the Chiefs, I can’t believe it’s actually happening. In fact, I can only think of about one reason that it could possibly come together (at such an unbelievable price, that is)… Belicheck WANTED to do this.
That’s right. You see, I don’t think the Chiefs could have made this kind of deal with any other team in the NFL. It’s THAT good of a trade.
But the Pioli / Belicheck connection? It makes all the difference. The two have a history… they’ve worked together for years… they’re friends. You see, I think it’s quite possible that Belicheck wanted to help out Pioli to get off on the right foot.
I just can’t see any other explanation, especially with Tom Brady’s status being a bit uncertain. It just doesn’t add up unless there’s something going on outside of a pure trade value analysis.
Of course, it remains to be seen just how this pans out in the end. Cassel may be a bust, and Vrabel may be washed up. If that’s the case, Belicheck wins big.
Somehow, I just don’t see that happening, though. This may turn out to be one of the best trades in Chiefs history!
Allison is Two!
February 28th, 2009 | Comments Off | Posted in » My Life / Family, Pictures
My littlest princess, Allison, is turning two today! I can hardly believe it!
It’s always amazing to see how much she’s grown…
Happy birthday, Alli Grace!
More Scary News…
February 26th, 2009 | Comments Off | Posted in » In the News...
Seems like there’s something scary coming out of D.C. almost everyday anymore…
First, Obama wants to tax carbon emissions to create $50 – $300 billion dollars in additional tax revenue which will (theoretically) help curb global warming. At the high end, these numbers are half of annual social security benefit payments.
Um, who do you think will pay for this stuff eventually?
Applying these estimates to the roughly 120 million households in the U.S., the additional burden per household works out to be somewhere between $400 and $2500 per year! Sure… we won’t pay it directly on our tax bill, but it WILL show up elsewhere, passed through to us by the businesses it affects directly.
So much for economic stimulus.
Of course, Europe has gone this route already, implementing renewable mandates, cap and trade programs, etc. Carbon emissions in many locations have not changed a bit, but costs? Definitely up. All pain… no gain. And there’s been backlash against it… a retreating from those policies. But we want to give it a shot for ourselves?
And perhaps in more scary news, the projected deficit for the 2010 budget plan is $1.75 TRILLION dollars. Using that same 120 million household number from above, that’s almost $15000 per household (according to the article, it’s $12000 / taxpayer… $6000 per every person in the United States)! To make up that deficit, the federal government would have to more than DOUBLE income taxes (in 2007, total personal income taxes were only $1.4 trillion dollars, per IRS website).
Needless to say, I’m seriously concerned about what the next four years will bring for our nation!
Criminals are Idiots Sometimes…
February 25th, 2009 | 1 Comment | Posted in » In the News..., Just For Fun...
I’m still trying to figure this one out… Aussie car thief caught trapped in target vehicle.
Did you catch that? He was caught, trapped inside the vehicle he was stealing. He accidentally locked himself in the car.
Locked IN to a car.
What an idiot.
Were You Born in a Barn… Er, Cave?
February 23rd, 2009 | Comments Off | Posted in » In the News...
Well, given that Missouri is known as the “cave state”, I suppose it’s fitting that we’ve got a family that lives in one.
I do feel for their youngest son, though. He was actually BORN in a cave.
And you thought the “were you born in a barn?” comments were rough.
Interesting (and Scary) Article…
February 23rd, 2009 | 1 Comment | Posted in » In the News...
Check out this editorial on the current financial crisis when you get a chance. VERY interesting reading. Scary as heck, too!
Here’s an interesting chart from the editorial to pique your interest:
The Wonderful Cross
February 17th, 2009 | 1 Comment | Posted in » Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life / Family, Song of the Day
I just wrapped up some, well, not-so-quiet quiet time with God… strumming the guitar a bit and reflecting on the worship songs I played. I ended with “The Wonderful Cross”, a variation on a classic hymn with lyrics that absolutely blow me away.
Check it out:
The Wonderful Cross
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down:
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?Oh the wonderful Cross, oh the wonderful Cross
Bids me come and die and find that I may truly live
Oh the wonderful Cross, oh the wonderful Cross
All who gather here by grace draw near and bless Your nameWere the whole realm of Nature mine,
That were an offering far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all!Oh the wonderful Cross, oh the wonderful Cross
Bids me come and die and find that I may truly live
Oh the wonderful Cross, oh the wonderful Cross
All who gather here by grace draw near and bless Your name
Yes. When I reflect upon the cross… when I reflect upon the blood flowing from Christ’s head, hands, and feet… when I allow myself to begin to more fully grasp that this sacrifice was given wholly out of love for you and me….
I’m driven to my knees in praise and worship of God, my Heavenly Father.
Such sacrifice… such love… such amazing and awesome love!
It calls out to us, asking us to respond. It declares to us the unsearchable depth of the love of God the Father. It urges us to turn to Him… to repent of sin and forsake everything except Him. To give our very lives to the one who has made life itself.
That we might TRULY live.
That’s the power of the wondrous cross.