The Retirement

(Baseball post; non-fans can skip)

Randy Johnson has announced his retirement, ending a career of the pitcher who, in my opinion, was the most entertaining to watch over the past 22 years. I lived up in Washington state when the Mariners first acquired the young Johnson (from the Expos), and the first time I saw him pitch, my reaction was "Oh, my...if this guy learns to throw strikes, he'll be one of the greatest. If he doesn't, he's gonna kill somebody." He learned (although he did kill a bird with a pitch).
For those unfamiliar with "RJ" or "the big unit" as he was nicknamed, he was simply intimidating as a pitcher. A 6'11" lefthander with a 100mph fastball and a menacing stare, he overpowered batters. Baseball statistics are a matter of near religious reverence amongst fans, and Johnson's numbers put him in the all-time greats: 303 wins (24th), 4,875 strikeouts (2nd all-time, 1,700 ahead of #3), 5 Cy Young awards, 10 all-star appearances, 2 no-hitters (1 a perfect game) and a world series co-MVP. Automatic 'Hall-of-Fame" in 5 years.
In 2001, Johnson lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to a World Series championship, blowing away the hated Yankees. He ended his career by pitching last season for my beloved San Francisco Giants.
I've been a Baseball fan my whole life, and I've seen some of the greatest pitchers in the history of the game. Johnson was among them, and the game will miss him.

Oh, yeah...a couple of Senators are also retiring. But neither Dodd nor Dorgan ever won a Cy Young or a World Series. I suppose they both threw a few curve balls in their careers, though.

Like A Steele Trap

Republican party chairman Michael Steele follows up on his success with African-Americans and Hispanics by reaching out to Native Americans:

Our platform is one of the best political documents that’s been written in the last 25 years. Honest Injun on that.

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/01/05/steele-injun/

One of the Democrats best assets is having Steele speaking for republicans.

TSA Almost Succeeds

in protecting America from Joan Rivers:

The New York Daily News reports that comedian Joan Rivers was among the many travelers to get snared in the heightened-security frenzy that overtook airports after the December 25th failed terrorist attack. Rivers wasn’t allowed on her Newark-bound flight in Costa Rica this past weekend by a “jittery Continental Airlines gate agent” who thought the two names on her passport, which reads “Joan Rosenberg AKA Joan Rivers,” seemed “fishy.”

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/01/05/joan-rivers-airport/

Now, I don't think Ms. Rivers is a terrorist. But she's not funny, and she's the kind of celebrity that we have way too many of. As a country, we really don't need Joan Rivers back. I can only assume that the powerful cosmetic surgery industry successfully lobbied for her return.

The Entertainment Value of a Train Wreck

I've been in the 'political doldrums' lately, watching with intense disinterest as the dysfunctional process loudly fails to serve the public. I frequently find myself wondering how much worse it will get.
Here in Arizona, we get the honor of being represented by two of the worst examples of rethuglican obstructionism in the senate, Jon "I hate government" Kyl and St. Sleazy "Keating Five who?" McCain, which is bad enough. But the 'even further right' rethugs are serious about electing an even worse senator:

Fourteen months ago, John McCain was his party's nominee for president. But, now, as the 2010 midterms loom, the senior Senator from Arizona may find himself locked in a primary battle to hold on to his seat -- and he could be vulnerable.

Last week, former Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) signaled on his radio show that he's getting closer and closer to a run at McCain's seat. "We may have moved past due diligence into something that is more than a legal term of art ... something called 'testing the waters.' So stay tuned on that," Hayworth said.

Hayworth is popular with the conservative base because he was a leading right-wing voice in Congress on immigration, until he lost his seat in 2006. (Since then, Hayworth has hosted a talk radio show in Arizona.) McCain has traditionally struggled with this voting bloc, largely because of his past moderate positions on illegal immigration.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/why-the-political-deck-in-arizona-might-be-stacked-against-john-mccain.php?ref=fpa

As much as I dislike St. Sleazy, I cannot imagine a worse senator than J.D. Hayworth. J.D. is a blow-dried sportscaster with the intellectual capacity of an eggplant. He'll spout the right talking points on "god, guns, and gays", but his pet issue is 'immigration'; he really hates brown people. He's upset that there are "mexicans" in Arizona (J.D. don't know much history).
And he could win:

If McCain faces a primary challenge from Hayworth, McCain could be at a distinct disadvantage because of his state's election laws -- namely the closed primary, which allows only registered Republicans to choose the GOP's nominee.

Voting registration figures in Arizona through last spring show that Republicans, Democrats, and independents and minor parties all take about a third of registered voters. McCain has traditionally had a strong appeal with the state's independents -- but they can't vote in the GOP primary, leaving a heavily conservative, anti-illegal immigration base to choose the nominee.

So far, there is no credible democrat running. So if J.D. wins the primary, he could win in the general.

01022010

Happy "numerical palindrome day."

New Year's Boobie

Flying into 2010.

Happy 2010

Happy New Year to you!

And Happy Birthday to me. 51. Funny, I don't feel older.