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Who Dat Next to Freddie Simpson?

Okay, so who exactly is Freddie Simpson? Well, he's the President of the Rail Teamsters Union, which is part of the national union run by James Hoffa.

He is also Dorene's uncle, who we see when we are down in Kentucky for family reunions (and being a supportive member of the extended family, I still have a Hoffa/Simpson bumper sticker on my car when he ran for union president back in 2006).

Now I know when I think Teamsters, I tend to think of the old rough and tumble days with Jimmy Hoffa, bodies buried in the end zone at Giants Stadium, that sort of thing. But I've met "Uncle Freddie" several times and he is the nicest guy you'd ever meet. Very laid back, soft spoken. I imagine to rise to the top of a union you have to be fairly forceful, but then again, maybe nice guys do indeed finish first. I've always been very impressed with him.

Recently, Dorene's parents visited her grandmother, who is in her 90's and in a nursing home, and showed her the above picture. Now, of course, her mind sometimes isn't like it used to be and she kept asking, "Who is that standing next to Freddie?" They told her it was the President, then a few minutes later, she again asked who that was standing next to Freddie. She asked the same question a couple more times while they were there, just not sure who that man was standing next to her son.

So, sorry about that Mr. President, but for this old lady in Kentucky, you're not the celebrity in the picture.

A Note to the Colts and Coach Caldwell

Just remember, that back in December when you rolled over and quit against the Jets, that game, had you won it, not only would have given you the run at history, but also would have eliminated the Jets from the playoffs.

Now the Jets are back and playing like they have nothing to lose, and so far they haven't. The Colts are favored, but so were the Chargers and Bengals in the playoffs. The Jets owe you big time if they win tomorrow, and you'll have one long off-season explaining this one away.

Jay v. Conan

Well, this got kinda interesting. Looks like NBC's experiment didn't work out so well. Conan's last show will be on Friday, then Jay returns to the Tonight Show spot on March 1 as NBC abandons the Leno show at 10:00 p.m. Meanwhile, Conan can't do anything until September, due to his contract. But don't shed too many tears, he's getting something like $40 million to walk away.

I didn't think Leno's show was THAT bad, but I also have to admit I haven't watched a single episode since his first. It seemed lacking some of the energy of his older show, but I still thought it would turn out okay. As for Conan, I watched his Tonight Show #1 and that was it. Maybe I'll watch his last one Friday night, or maybe not.

Either way, they both ain't no Johnny.

Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory

That would be the Democratic party this morning. In what surely has to go down as one of the most botched campaigns in history, the Democrats lose a seat that belonged to the legendary Ted Kennedy, with his signature issue, health care reform, as a central issue in the campaign.

It's typically no surprise when one party has complete control in Washington and screws it up. Democrats did it when Clinton first took office, Republicans did it when Bush was in office. But I have to say I figured it was going to be a long, long time before Republicans made any kind of inroads to returning to power (even the GOP victories in Virginia and New Jersey last fall were sort of written off). Had you said just a few months ago a Republican would win Kennedy's seat, you'd gotten laughed off the stage.

Problem is, I think Martha Coakley believed that too, in addition to the fact she'd be the first woman senator from the state. I watched MSNBC last night (we recently downgraded our Dish Network package and that's the only news channel we get). Even the trifecta of Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow and Keith Olberman weren't putting any positive spins on this one. None of the pundits they brought on were saying, "Hey, the night is early, let's wait until all the returns are in." Essentially, the blame game was on, but this time no one could blame Bush or a vast right wing conspiracy. It was a poorly run campaign, pure and simple (and even Matthews and Maddow couldn't say anything bad about Brown, who they admitted ran a masterful campaign).
The Democrats were blindsided by this one, and it was too little too late when they tried to rally at the end. From what I heard, Coakley took the holidays off while Brown campaigned hard. Probably made the difference.

As for health care reform? If it all comes down to whether the Democrats have 60 votes, then it's probably not a good idea. I certainly agree we need some major fixes in health care. We recently had our baby daughter in the hospital. Had we not had insurance, then the bill would have sunk us. Something certainly has to be done here, but who knows what'll happen now.

One thing that will happen is that the Democrats have re-energized the Republican party in a huge way. Not a good move on their part. Suddenly, the 2010 mid-term elections are going to turn into a real dogfight.

The Cardiac Cardinals

Wow, what a game! That was the single most nerve-wracking game I've ever watched. I really thought the Cardinals had a choke for the ages, but they pulled it out by the ridiculous score of 51-45. When Neil Rakers missed that short field game as time expired, I figured the Packers would march right down and score (which both teams were doing because neither defense could stop the other). Green Bay gets the ball, then they rush Aaron Rodgers and before you know it, the Cardinals defensive end has the ball and is waltzing into the end zone. Game over. What an incredible finish.

On to New Orleans . . .