The "Stimulus" Still Sucks

February 11, 2009: President Obama says that if his Stimulus package is passed, the CEO of Catepillar will rehire some of the 22,000 people that were laid off in January.

February 17, 2009: Obama signs the $787,000,000,000 stimulus package.

March 17, 2009: Catepillar announces they are cutting 2,400 more jobs.

Niagara Falls in The Winter

My wife and I recently took a vacation to Niagara Falls. We really enjoyed it, so I wanted to share about our experience.

Where to Stay? Sheraton on the Falls
We stayed at the Sheraton on the Falls hotel, and I highly recommend it. But only if you get a falls view room. If you don’t get a room with a view of the falls, you might as well stay at the Days Inn, which I don’t recommend. We had a package deal with our airfare and hotel, so I don’t know exactly how much the room cost, but I think it was about $30 more a night to have falls view room. I was a little hesitant to upgrade, but it was easily the best spent money of the whole trip. Floor to ceiling windows with a spectacular view of the falls, and there was a door in the middle of the window that opened (it had a railing). It was great because it allowed for excellent pictures as well as fresh cool air. We kept the (fake) fireplace on the whole time and opened the door when it got too hot.

How Many Nights? No more than 3
Don’t stay more than 3 nights. We flew in on Saturday and flew out on Tuesday. We could have done everything, and been perfectly satisfied with our trip if we only stayed 2 nights, but we were bored. However, if we stayed another night, we probably would have been searching for things to do.


Need a Rental Car? No
We flew into Buffalo international airport, and took a taxi to Niagara Falls. It was about a 45 minute ride, and cost $85. Taking a taxi is the best way to go. A rental car is too expensive, too much trouble, and not necessary. (Don’t forget $15 per day to park it!). If you stay at the Sheridan, everything but the butterfly conservatory is within a 15 minute walk. A rental car is especially unnecessary during the summer when the “People Mover” shuttle is running.



Are the falls really that cool? Yes
I arrived with high expectations, and I was not disappointed. It is a truly awesome experience to watch the water rushing over the cliff and crash to the bottom. It is fast and loud and violent and powerful, and strangely graceful and calm. And, since we went during the winter the falls were partially frozen, which was really neat. It can almost turn a cold hearted economist into an environmentalist. Almost.

Is Niagara Falls strictly for Honeymooners? Not at all
I was under the impression that Niagara Falls is a honeymooner’s city. I would say that impression is way off base. It would be a neat place for a honeymoon, but it was REALLY kid friendly. I think it might be the Putt Putt/Arcade/Haunted House/Wax Museum/capital of the world.

Do’s and Don’ts

Do walk to the American side.
It is a very short walk and it is really worth it. There is an observation deck that lets you get a cool look at the American falls, and an elevator that takes you to the bottom. It was closed because the walkway was covered in snow and ice while we were there, so we didn’t get to do it. The park was open so we walked all around there. All the shops were closed, but there looked like there were some cool places to eat lunch with good views of the falls.


Don’t do the Sky Wheel; Do the Skylon Tower.
The Skylon tower costs $2 more and it is 10 times as cool. The view is way better, you can stay as long as you like, and you can view the observatory from inside and outside. There is also a revolving restaurant. We ate lunch at the revolving restaurant, and I recommend that too. It is a little expensive, about $30 a plate, but if you eat at the restaurant you can go to the observation deck free. The food is good, not great, but you are paying for the view. We ate lunch and didn’t have to wait at all. If you want to eat dinner there you have to make reservations. Also, they only light the falls up at night during the summer, so if you go to the restaurant at night in the winter, you probably won’t be able to see anything.

Do eat dinner at the Spicy Olive.
It is a couple blocks down Clifton Street, and it is a really nice restaurant. Cheap prices, and great food. Service was a little slow, but they were short staffed and we were not in any rush.

Do stay in Canada.
There is no debate on this one. Also, do me a favor, spend the extra money and get a falls view room at the Sheraton. Totally worth it. I promise, when you are looking back at your pictures 6 months after you take the vacation you will regret it if you don’t.

Don’t do the indoor water park.
We were planning on doing it, but decided not to once we went and looked at it. We had never even heard of an indoor water park before, so we thought it would be cool. I guess if you have kids you might want to check it out, but it was about $45 a person, and it is not very big. I’m guessing it’s even less appealing in the summer.


Do the Journey Behind the Falls.This is the elevator to the bottom of the falls on the Canadian side. It only costs $10, and it is pretty cool. A lot of it was frozen when we went, so we didn’t get the full effect, but it was still cool in its own way. For example they have peep holes where you can see behind the falls, but it was completely frozen. Probably would have been better in the summer, but it was still cool. The bottom observation dock was completely covered in ice and snow too, so it was closed. If you go in the Summer be prepared to get wet because the falls are even more powerful and everything is open.

Meh for the bird kingdom.
It was too expensive ($17) for what it was. I guess I’m just not that into birds, but if you are its pretty cool. If you do decide to do it, spend the extra $2 and get a cup of nectar. The birds will be all over you like the crazy lady from Home Alone 2.

Do pack granola bars for breakfast.
We always do this on vacation, and it seems to really save us money. It cost us three bucks for breakfast for the whole vacation. If you must eat out for breakfast, we recommend Tim Horton’s. It’s close to the Sheraton and it is just different enough from Dunkin Donuts that you get a “Canadian” meal. We did it our last morning there. 1 coffee, 1 hot chocolate, and 4 donuts for less than $7 was a pretty good deal.

Don’t forget to pick up 222s and Cuban cigars.
We actually didn’t get either one, but you should if you want to. Both are legal in Canada, and no problem getting across the border. Our bag’s were never inspected when we crossed. I’ve smoke a Cuban cigar before, and I wasn’t impressed, so I wasn’t interested in them. I did try to get a bottle of 222’s, but they said a pharmacist had to give it to me and it was night so the pharmacy was closed.
Chris Berman on 222s

Do remember the currency difference.
Everything is in Canadian dollars, so it’s not quite as expensive as it seems. Currency exchange rate. $1 US dollar = $1.25 Canadian Dollar. So if a dinner entry costs $15 it really only costs about $11.75.

If you were planning on going to Niagara Falls, I hope this helped you. If you have any other questions, feel free to email me: notasportsblog@gmail.com

Canadian Health Care

I recently went to Niagara Falls, and while making small talk with the taxi driver, the topic of Canadian Health Care came up. He immigrant to the United States from the Philippians, but he eventually moved to Canada because he thought they had a better health care. He said that before he had kids it was worth the risk of not having great health insurance because he and his wife were healthy and had no history of major illness. However, once he was ready to have kids he wanted to move to Canada to make sure their healthcare needs would be taken care of. He made sure to mention that he did not have to pay hospital bills for the childbirth.

This got me thinking. There have been plenty of stories about pregnant Mexican women coming to the United States illegally to have children so they will born US citizens. I wonder if there are very many Americans going to Canada to have their children so that they can take advantage of the Canadian health care?

*Full review of Niagra Falls coming soon.

The NFL Combine Happened

Here are the results of the NFL Combine.

I didn’t get a chance to watch any of it, but that isn’t going to stop me from having an opinion about it. Here is what jumped out at me:

David Buehler is a badass. He had 25 reps of 225 on bench press. That's the 45 pound bar plus two 45 pound plates on each side. Doing that once impresses me - doing that 25 times REALLY impresses me. Oh, I forgot to mention, he is a kicker. Yeah, one of those fags. He also ran a 4.6 40 yard dash. One other little thing that should be mentioned, he ended the regular season by missing all 3 field goal attempts against UCLA. So, maybe he should spend a little more time kicking footballs instead of bench pressing. I'm guessing he thinks no chicks want to hook up with the dorky kicker. Hey kid, I got news for you. Just being on an NFL team is enough to get pletny of poon. Do you think Jeff Reed has ever been inside the Steelers weightroom?

I think the 3 Cone and the Shuttle Run translate much better to the NFL than the 40 Yard Dash. I expected Pat White to have the best 40 time for QBs, but I pretty surprised that Mark Sanchez and Chase Daniel both had faster shuttle runs than White.

So who is going to be good? Any bum can tell you Michael Crabtree, Matt Stafford, and Andre Smith are going to be good (Mel Kiper). It takes a real keen eye to tell you who else is going to have NFL success.

On the Radar, but barely: Javon Ringer, RB Michigan State
He had excellent times, on the two events I think are the most important (3 cone and shuttle), and he had 390 caries his senior year. He is not affraid of being tackled.

Hey, I think I’ve heard of him: Rhett Bomar, QB Sam Houston
He is the guy that got kicked out off Oklahoma because he was being paid for working at a place he never worked. Whoops. Oklahma's athletic department was shocked, and Bomar landed in Division II where he totally redeemed himself (/Dumb and Dumber’d)

Who the hell is that guy: Nathan Brown, QB Central Arkansas
Basically this is going to be the next Tom Brady. Except not as tall, handsome, or talented, so maybe he is the next Jeff Garcia. Actually, that is an excellent comparison. It is my firm prediction that many NFL teams will regret not drafting him, there will be rumors about his sexuality, and he will bang a smokin hot playmate.

Framing the Debate

When I was in college, I spent a summer interning for a US senator. While I was there I learned that one of the most important things about passing legislation is the way the debate is framed. Unfortunately, the Democratic party did a great job with the recent "Stimulus" legislation.

Just by having the bill called the "Stimulus Package", it infers that the bill will be good for the economy. The Democrats have the battle halfway won before the debate begins. Instead, if it was called the "Deficit Spending Package”, I'm pretty sure it would have had a lot more trouble passing.

This is especially important with the next piece of legislation the Democrat's are trying to pass, the "Fairness Doctrine". Unsurprisingly, I don't think this law would be "fair" at all. Instead, I suggest the "Government Censorship Doctrine." I'm guessing that bill would have a little more trouble passing. Fortunately, it won’t matter if congress passes it or not because Obama has said he doesn’t support it.

Bad Experience at Work

Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day. 65 degrees, light wind, and sunny. I noticed this as I was walking to my car on my lunch break. It was the first nice day in 5 months, and I really wanted to get some exercise. Unfortunately, I didn’t have work out clothes so I had to be extra miserable the rest of the day.

I decided I had to take advantage of the nice weather. So during my lunch break today, I changed clothes and went for a run. Unfortunately, I didn’t notice the weather wasn’t as nice as it was yesterday. When I walked outside I realized it was really cold. About 35 degrees and the wind was blowing like crazy. I had already changed clothes, so I decided to go ahead with the run. I don’t know how far I ran, but I now know it was too far. My guess is about 2 miles in about 15 minutes. Not impressive, I know, but I hadn’t exercised since before Thanksgiving, and it was really cold, and really windy, and I was under-dressed, and I’m a pussy.

So after the run, I made it back to the locker room feeling like total crap. I set in front of the locker for about 10 minutes trying not to throw up. Then another guy came in so I changed clothes and went back to my desk. I set at my desk for another 10 minutes and I kind of fell asleep and continued trying to not throw up. I needed something to drink so I walked to the break room to get some ice water. Somebody was cooking fish tacos in the microwave, and the smell literally made me taste vomit. I knew I had to go somewhere and take a quick nap or I wasn’t going to make it. I headed to the only place I knew I could be totally alone and uninterrupted – the bathroom. The seat wasn’t very comfortable, but it worked. I slept on the toilet for about 20 minutes with my head in my hands, it was great. As I was washing my hands I noticed I had a big mark on my forehead. While I was trying to sleep, I used my sweater to help pad my head, and it left an imprint of the sweater on my face.

I walked fast back to my desk looking down the whole time. Fortunately, I wasn’t bothered by anyone until I was no longer sick and my face was no longer imprinted. So, my bright idea to exercise on such a nice day turned out to leave me with one of the most miserable days I’ve ever had at work.
Is there a silver lining to my crappy day? I’m guessing when I go running tomorrow, I will be in better shape, and I shouldn’t have much trouble falling asleep tonight.

I Wish Politics had Instant Replay

From the Washington Post Washington Post "Obama repeatedly stressed the need for swift and aggressive action on the economy, pitting his plan against those who he said would "do nothing" to assist a desperate public."

Russell Roberts pointed that it reminded him an offense hurrying to the line of scrimmage after a questionable play to quickly snap the ball before the other team can throw the challenge flag.

If you are looking for an easy read to help you learn how economists think, I reccomend Roberts' novel Invisible Heart.

Lots of Links

I just wanted to post some interesting links:

An interesting, short video on how the Department of Agriculture is a really bad idea. Unfortunately, Obama voted for the farm bill in 2008, so it will probably be a problem for another 4 (8) years. (Cato: Downsizing the Federal Government)

A great sentence from Tyler Cowen:

"Lock Jason Furman and Larry Summers in a room for an hour, with no web connection and equipped only with a single crayon between them. They still would come up with a better spending plan than would Congress."
(Marginal Revolution)

A cool map showing all the Wal-Mart's being built across the country. (Flowing Data)

Charles Platt was curious about Wal-Mart, so he decided to get a job there. It's pretty interesting.
(Boing Boing)

Incase you missed Miss America, here are some pictures and a video. (Huffington Post)

The 50 Most Loathsome People in America (THE BEAST)

I guess today is a pretty good day to weigh in with a couple political thoughts.

I really wish John McCain would have won…….8 years ago. I really bought into that straight talk express. Even back then he was an older guy with a lot of political experience, but Washington hadn't really seemed to get to him. He thought he would be able to cut through the politics, not play the dumb games, and be able to win. If he would have won 8 years ago, I think he would have been an excellent president. But he didn't win. And, he didn't win mainly because of dirty politics, and I think that changed him. He thought voters would support him taking actual stances on issues, that voters would understand that he was not a regular politician, that he wouldn't play stupid political games. Well, the voters are idiots, and they elected George W. Bush.

8 years later McCain ran for the highest office again, but he wasn't the same guy. He turned into somebody that would say and do anything for votes. Hillary Clinton was the same way. The main thing that jumps to my mind was that stupid gas tax holiday. Both of them supported it, while Obama laughed at them. Throughout the whole campaign, Clinton and McCain both acted like they had already earned the presidency. Almost like it was their right and they were indignant that somebody else had the gall to challenge them.

"Fortunately",* Obama decided to run for president. His campaign consisted mostly of him looking handsome, acting cool, speaking extraordinarily eloquently, and making broad promises of hope and change. The perfect campaign.

So how will Obama do as president? I have no idea. I predict football games (poorly) not politics. However, there is one thing I'm confident Obama will do, that I haven't really heard mentioned anywhere. I really think that Obama will restore support in the United States of people from foreign countries. Or at least no longer make us a laughing stock.

My wife and I have traveled overseas twice in the last 3 years. Both times she tried to convince me that we should wear Canadian flag pins on our backpacks so that people wouldn't be mean to us because we were Americans. I talked her out of it both times and we were never treated poorly, but just having the conversation about it sucked. The majority of the world does not like the United States, and I think it is primarily because of George W Bush.

But now. Now we have a black guy named Barack Hussein Obama as our president. That's nuts. Ask the average American his opinion on India and thier Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Then ask the average American his opinion on India and tell him India's Prime Minister is a white guy named Fred Johnson. I think they will have a slightly higher regard in the second scenario.

What I'm basically trying to say is, remember the guy that threw his shoe at Bush?



I don't think anyone is going to throw a shoe at Obama. Mr. President, feel free to use that quote in any future campaigns.

*I say "fortunately" because I didn't support Obama. I do think he will be better than McCain, and MUCH better than Clinton. I was one of those crazy people that supported Ron Paul.

Roger Goodell speaks to a (gulp) blog

The Big Lead got a chance to interview the NFL Commissioner. Check it out here. It left me pretty I was pretty disappointed. Not in TBL, but in Goodell. At first I thought it was pretty cool that he spoke to a blog, but after thinking about it, I was pissed off it took him so long. The other thing that I didn’t like were his answers. They sucked. He sounded exactly like a politician, and I absolutely hate politician.

Here are two excerpts:
Q: Each morning, we’ll usually check out Youtube to look for exciting dunks or game-winning homers. I’d like to do that for the NFL, but the league is sure to keep all video highlights off YouTube. Do you feel like it is a disservice to fans?
I don’t think there’s a better time to be an NFL fan. When I was a child, I had to wait until halftime of Monday Night Football to watch the highlights from the Sunday games. Now, there’s more content than ever out there, and fans can get those highlights through many devices.
[This answer is so much bullshit it pisses me off. “When I was a kid, I had to walk 10 miles in the snow to get to a newspaper…blah,blah,blah. I thought Goodell was young enough to get the internet, but obviously he isn’t.]

Q: Changes have been made in the league to enhance offense – kickoffs, pass interference – and kickers have improved their accuracy over the last 30 years. We heard a stat that claimed in the last five years, 62 % of the teams that win the coin toss in overtime win the game. Do you feel the overtime format should be changed? And do you like the college overtime format?
We’ve looked at this repeatedly over the last 50 years. We believe that the integrity of the game should stay the same in regular and post season, but on the other hand, we have to determine a victor in the postseason. The reason I think there’s merit to what we have is that the object is to win the game in regulation. The fact that it is sudden death in postseason, and that a coin toss starts overtime, puts every incentive on teams to win the game in regulation. And I prefer our format to the college format.
[This sounds straight out of a George Orwell novel. Absolutely NO football fan prefers the NFL overtime format. Not one. The commissioner is just spouting off bullshit. He could have at least admitted the system is flawed, but instead he just switches between “we” and “I” while obnoxiously defending an indefensible position.]

The whole interview reads like a Senate judicial conformation hearing, where Goodell is trying to talk without saying or admitting anything.

Picking the Cotton Bowl

I meant to post this a little sooner than an hour before kick off, but better late than never. I have the absolute lock of the bowl season. Texas Tech -6 vs Ole Miss.

I think line actually might only be -4, but I'm saying -6 just to be safe. Texas Tech might win this game by 75 points. Seriously. Both Mike Leach and Houston Nutt are both crazy, but I think Leach's craziness is more productive. Ole Miss has overachieved all season, but they won't be able to beat Texas Tech. The Tech offense is just too good, and there is no way that Ole Miss will be able keep up with them.

This is a break the bank game. My 5 million star, can't lose pick of the millennium. When you place you bet, talk shit to your bookie. This one is money in the bank. Make the biggest bet of your life, it's infinitely safer than the stock market.

Me? I'm betting $55.

Picture from Every Day Should Be Saturday.

UPDATE (Jan 3 1:47 AM): Wow! I feel like a freaking moron. I'm just glad nobody is reading this because I would feel like a dumbass.

Slobber Moment = Comedy Gold

After the Ravens-Steelers game a story broke that Ravens cornerback, Frank Walker, spit in the face of Steelers Punter, Mitch Berger. The Baltimore Sun gives us this line from Walker that made me laugh out loud, "Frank Walker acknowledged that he spat in the face of Pittsburgh Steelers punter Mitch Berger, but the Ravens' backup cornerback called it an accident. "It was just a slobber moment," Walker said."

I found that to be hilarious: "It was just a slobber moment."

I think he was trying to be serious, and it was still really funny. I tried to come up with some funny examples that were not near as funny as "slobber moment":

• Sorry I banged the babysitter hunny, it was just a boner moment.
  
• Sorry I threw up all over the cat, it was just a vodka moment.
  
• Sorry I kept throwing the ball to Jason Witten, it was just a gay sex moment.
  
• Sorry I didn't show up for work last week, it was just a I didn't give a shit moment.

Baltimore Sun
From The Big Lead